Re: [Freeciv-Dev] GNU readline - input, please.

[Greg Wooledge <wooledge@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Andrew Donkin (ard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) wrote:

> I'm thinking of adding libreadline calls to the server.  Three questions:
> 
> 1: Has anyone else started this?  Someone mentioned they were thinking of
>    it but lacked the time.

I mentioned it, but I haven't done any work on it at all.  Feel free to
start it if nobody else objects.

> 2: Should the default be to *not* use readline?

I would suggest probing for it during the configure, and using it if it
is found.  It's quite transparent, I think, in terms of functionality --
if the server operator never uses any control/escape sequences during the
typing of commands, he/she would never even know readline is being used.

> 3: A toughie.  Can anyone give advice on which systems require termcap
>    and/or [n]curses with readline?

Probe during configure.  If ncurses is found and works, use it; else,
try for curses; else, try for termcap.  The ugly cases will be systems
which either have broken curses libraries, or require the use of -ltermlib
or -ltermcap in addition to -lcurses....

(Autoconf isn't a whole lot of fun, but I think that it's the "right way"
to handle this.)

-- 
Greg Wooledge                    | Distributed.NET http://www.distributed.net/
wooledge@xxxxxxxxxxx             | because a CPU is a terrible thing to waste.
http://www.kellnet.com/wooledge/ |