Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!lll-crg!lll-lcc!qantel!ihnp4!inuxc!pur-ee!j.cc.purdue.edu!h.cc.purdue.edu!pur-phy!mrstve!rjk
From: rjk@mrstve.UUCP (Richard Kuhns)
Newsgroups: net.micro.mac,net.unix
Subject: Re: Porting UNIX Applications to the Mac
Message-ID: <253@mrstve.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 21-Sep-86 16:04:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: mrstve.253
Posted: Sun Sep 21 16:04:43 1986
Date-Received: Tue, 23-Sep-86 22:18:14 EDT
References: <1572@cbdkc1.UUCP> <1091@hoptoad.uucp> <15372@mordor.ARPA> <981@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> <305@esl.UUCP>
Reply-To: rjk@mrstve.UUCP (Richard Kuhns)
Organization: Mr sTVe's, Lafayette IN
Lines: 25
Xref: mnetor net.micro.mac:7146 net.unix:5600


I'm rather surprised that no one has mentioned the AT&T 3b1 during this
discussion.  I realise that there are large differences between the
User Agent on the 3b1 and the Desktop on the Mac, but they look to be
related (disclaimer: I don't have any first-hand experience with the Mac).

Currently, it's possible to set up any single command on the 3b1 with the
User Agent & it's support of windows, using shform(1) if you want to do it
via a shell script, or menu(3t) & message(3t) if you want to handle it
via C code.  Using shform(1), for example, it's easy to set up a form
which requests all the info needed to run a grep (filename[s], pattern,
any additional options), which a shell script simply gives to grep.

In general, then, all you'd need is a program ala shform, which reads a
file containing a description of the desired user interface, interacts
with the user using the appropriate graphics interface, and returns the
results of said interactions in a form which a shell script can handle.

Any 3b1 gurus/developers care to comment?

Further disclaimer:  I have no relationship with AT&T other than being a
reasonably satisfied user of some of their computers, and no relationship
with Apple at all.
-- 
Rich Kuhns		{ihnp4, decvax, etc...}!pur-ee!pur-phy!mrstve!rjk