Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!jarthur!nntp-server.caltech.edu!toddpw
From: toddpw@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Todd P. Whitesel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
Subject: Re: Character streams on the GS
Message-ID: <1991Apr22.045115.13527@nntp-server.caltech.edu>
Date: 22 Apr 91 04:51:15 GMT
References: <110890@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu>
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
Lines: 22

meekins@cis.ohio-state.edu (Tim Meekins) writes:

>OK. Can anyone out there tell me how the Text Tool set and the GS/OS
>console driver interact? For example, the Orca shell uses the text tool
>set for its character streams, redirection, piping and so forth. What
>happens if I write a shell utility but use the console driver? Will
>redirection work? Also, lets say that Orca was written using the console
>driver, would all the existing utilities work?

The Text Tool set and the GS/OS console driver DON'T interact. Orca uses the
Text Tools for ouput and patches the toolbox vector to provide I/O redirection.
It's yet another thing about the Orca shell environment that really pisses me
off -- however Mike is supposedly going to be using the GS/OS prefixes in
the 2.x versions of the Orca shell, so there's hope.

What I want to see is Orca using GS/OS facilities whenever possible (looks like
Mike is finally getting smart and doing that) and less dependence on the Orca
or APW shells -- I want a PD shell that can be distributed so everybody can use
EXE's without half of them barfing because the Orca shell isn't present.

Todd Whitesel
toddpw @ tybalt.caltech.edu