Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!ames!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!bloom-beacon!EXPO.LCS.MIT.EDU!keith
From: keith@EXPO.LCS.MIT.EDU (Keith Packard)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.x
Subject: Re: negative offset in XSetDashes()
Message-ID: <8902071523.AA20352@expo.lcs.mit.edu>
Date: 7 Feb 89 15:23:44 GMT
References: <PINKAS.89Feb6132227@hobbit.intel.com>
Sender: daemon@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 16


The Xlib interface shows poor judgement in several places, this is one of
them.  The Protocol specifies the dash-offset as a CARD16; a 16 bit
unsigned integer.  Passing a negative int to XSetDashes will result in
a very large positive number when "converted" into the CARD16 desired by the
protocol.

The designers of Xlib were torn between ease of access from C, and
conformance with the protocol.  In many cases, ease of access was chosen.
As it is an accepted standard of the X Consortium, it is unlikely to change;
get used to it.

						Keith Packard
						MIT X Consortium
						(617) 253-1428
						keith@EXPO.LCS.MIT.EDU