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From: usenet@TSfR.UUCP (usenet)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Con -> RS232
Summary: Fforce()/Fdup() to the rescue!
Message-ID: <528@TSfR.UUCP>
Date: 22 Apr 89 04:52:36 GMT
References: <111500016@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu>
Reply-To: orc@pell.UUCP (David L. Parsons)
Followup-To: comp.sys.atari.st
Organization: Department of Atomic Text Units
Lines: 70
Expires:

In article <111500016@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu> sfn20715@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu writes:
>
>I have set up an ST BBS recently and am trying to get some online games
>running, specifically Larn and Nethack.  However, both of these games send
>output to the screen, not the RS232 port.

 If you're running a STadel, it attempts to redirect i/o to the rs232
 port when you shell out from remote.  If hack & larn still talk to the
 screen, you're S.O.L. unless you wanna hack the BIOS calls.  If you're
 not running STadel, try the following code:

 ------[cut here]------

 /*
  * rexec: execute a program with stdin/stdout pointed at AUX:
  */
 #include <atari\osbind.h>

 main(argc, argv)
 {
    char tail[128];
    char *command;
    int save0, save1;

    if (argc < 2) {
	Cconws("usage: rexec command [args]\r\n");
	exit(255);
    }
    save0 = Fdup(0);	/* save old file descriptors */
    save1 = Fdup(1);

    Fforce(-2, 0);	/* force AUX: (-2) into stdin (0) and stdout (1) */
    Fforce(-2, 1);	/* PARAMETERS MAY BE REVERSED! */

    ++argv, --argc;

    command = *argv++;
    argc--;

    tail[0] = 0;		/* fabricate a command tail */
    while (argc-- > 0) {
	strcat(tail, " ");
	strcat(tail, *argv++);
    }
    if (tail[0])
	tail[0] = strlen(tail)-1;
    
    Pexec(0, command, tail, 0L);	/* Zoom! */

    Fforce(save0, 0);	/* restore stdin/stdout */
    Fforce(save1, 1);
    Fclose(save0);	/* and toss save-handles */
    Fclose(save1);
 }

 ------[cut here]------

 If your applications are well-behaved (talk via GEMDOS calls instead
 of BIOS calls), this will do the trick.  I use a variant of this routine
 from inside STadel for shelling out, and I regularly shell out from
 remote (when Pell is working, that is) even if I'm calling from long
 distance.

>Reply as e-mail to sfn20715@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu please.

 Hope you don't mind that I replied publicly - this sort of code is
 useful to the world in general...

   -david parsons
   -orc@pell.uucp