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From: bet@ecsvax.UUCP (Bennett E. Todd III)
Newsgroups: net.unix-wizards,net.unix,net.info-terms
Subject: Re: Terminfo()--Ideas needed. System V &  Re: request for extended Termcap description.
Message-ID: <1553@ecsvax.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 14-May-86 13:36:13 EDT
Article-I.D.: ecsvax.1553
Posted: Wed May 14 13:36:13 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 15-May-86 08:27:09 EDT
References: <1135@bunker.UUCP> <155@molihp.UUCP> <2774@pegasus.UUCP>
Reply-To: bet@ecsvax.UUCP (Bennett E. Todd III)
Distribution: net
Organization: Duke University Computation Center
Lines: 24
Keywords: terminfo,termcap
Xref: linus net.unix-wizards:15035 net.unix:7189 net.info-terms:477

In article <2774@pegasus.UUCP> hansen@pegasus.UUCP (60545457-Tony L. Hansen;LZ 3B-315;6243) writes:
>... More to the point, when will Berkeley support terminfo? ...

While I won't dispute the claim that terminfo is more expressive, I
still find it to be a HUGE step backwards in design: there just isn't
sufficient justification for making the active, working database a
compiled binary file -- PARICULARLY when AT&T then doesn't include the
sources to the terminfo descriptions. As shipped, the description for
the DMD5620 is noticibly broken. To fix it, I'll have to completely
rewrite the entire thing, since the readable (modifyable) version isn't
available. Termcap isn't as expressive, perhaps, but I can write and
modify termcap descriptions easily. Terminfo is a loser. Indeed, when I
bring up full-screen applications (e.g. EMACSs) under System V, I use
termcap. I have a public-domain rewrite of libtermcap, which a friend
of mine wrote in response to AT&T's leaving it out of System V. Let us
hope that Berkeley continues to support the better organized design, and
doesn't attempt to corrupt BSD UNIXs too badly in the name of
compatability.

-Bennett
-- 

Bennett Todd -- Duke Computation Center, Durham, NC 27706-7756; (919) 684-3695
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