terminfo - terminal capability data base
/usr/share/misc/terminfo/*/*
Terminfo is a data base describing terminals, used by screen-oriented
programs such as nvi(1), rogue(1) and libraries such as curses(3X).
Terminfo describes terminals by giving a set of capabilities which they
have, by specifying how to perform screen operations, and by specifying
padding requirements and initialization sequences.
Entries in terminfo consist of a sequence of `,' separated fields
(embedded commas may be escaped with a backslash or notated as \072).
White space after the `,' separator is ignored. The first entry for
each terminal gives the names which are known for the terminal, separated
by `|' characters. The first name given is the most common
abbreviation for the terminal, the last name given should be a long
name fully identifying the terminal, and all others are understood as
synonyms for the terminal name. All names but the last should be in
lower case and contain no blanks; the last name may well contain upper
case and blanks for readability.
Terminal names (except for the last, verbose entry) should be chosen
using the following conventions. The particular piece of hardware making
up the terminal should have a root name, thus ``hp2621''. This
name should not contain hyphens. Modes that the hardware can be in, or
user preferences, should be indicated by appending a hyphen and a mode
suffix. Thus, a vt100 in 132 column mode would be vt100-w. The following
suffixes should be used where possible:
Suffix Meaning Example
-nn Number of lines on the screen aaa-60
-np Number of pages of memory c100-4p
-am With automargins (usually the default) vt100-am
-m Mono mode; suppress color ansi-m
-mc Magic cookie; spaces when highlighting wy30-mc
-na No arrow keys (leave them in local) c100-na
-nam Without automatic margins vt100-nam
-nl No status line att4415-nl
-ns No status line hp2626-ns
-rv Reverse video c100-rv
-s Enable status line vt100-s
-vb Use visible bell instead of beep wy370-vb
-w Wide mode (> 80 columns, usually 132) vt100-w
For more on terminal naming conventions, see the term(7) manual page.
Capabilities [Toc] [Back]
The following is a complete table of the capabilities included in a
terminfo description block and available to terminfo-using code. In
each line of the table,
The variable is the name by which the programmer (at the terminfo
level) accesses the capability.
The capname is the short name used in the text of the database, and is
used by a person updating the database. Whenever possible, capnames
are chosen to be the same as or similar to the ANSI X3.64-1979 standard
(now superseded by ECMA-48, which uses identical or very similar
names). Semantics are also intended to match those of the specification.
The termcap code is the old termcap capability name (some capabilities
are new, and have names which termcap did not originate).
Capability names have no hard length limit, but an informal limit of 5
characters has been adopted to keep them short and to allow the tabs in
the source file Caps to line up nicely.
Finally, the description field attempts to convey the semantics of the
capability. You may find some codes in the description field:
(P) indicates that padding may be specified
#[1-9] in the description field indicates that the string is passed
through tparm with parms as given (#i).
(P*) indicates that padding may vary in proportion to the number of
lines affected
(#i) indicates the ith parameter.
These are the boolean capabilities:
Variable Cap- TCap Description
Booleans name Code
auto_left_margin bw bw
T}
auto_right_margin am am
T}
back_color_erase bce ut
T}
can_change ccc
T}
ceol_standout_glitch xhp xs
T}
col_addr_glitch xhpa
T}
cpi_changes_res cpix
T}
cr_cancels_micro_mode crxm YB
T}
dest_tabs_magic_smso xt xt
T}
eat_newline_glitch xenl xn
T}
erase_overstrike eo eo
T}
generic_type gn
T}
hard_copy hc
T}
hard_cursor chts
T}
has_meta_key km
T}
has_print_wheel daisy
T}
has_status_line hs
T}
hue_lightness_saturation hls hl -
T}
insert_null_glitch in in
T}
lpi_changes_res lpix
T}
memory_above da
T}
memory_below db
T}
move_insert_mode mir mi
T}
move_standout_mode msgr ms
T}
needs_xon_xoff nxon
T}
no_esc_ctlc xsb
T}
no_pad_char npc
T}
non_dest_scroll_region ndscr ND
T}
non_rev_rmcup nrrmc
T}
over_strike os
T}
prtr_silent mc5i
T}
row_addr_glitch xvpa
T}
semi_auto_right_margin sam YE
T}
status_line_esc_ok eslok es
T}
tilde_glitch hz
T}
transparent_underline ul ul
T}
xon_xoff xon
T}
These are the numeric capabilities:
Variable Cap- TCap Description
Numeric name Code
columns
T}
init_tabs it
T}
label_height lh
T}
label_width lw
T}
lines
T}
lines_of_memory lm
T}
magic_cookie_glitch xmc sg
T}
max_attributes ma
T}
max_colors colors
T}
max_pairs pairs
T}
maximum_windows wnum
T}
no_color_video ncv
T}
num_labels nlab
T}
padding_baud_rate pb pb
T}
virtual_terminal vt vt
T}
width_status_line wsl ws
T}
The following numeric capabilities are present in the SVr4.0 term
structure, but are not yet documented in the man page. They came in
with SVr4's printer support.
Variable Cap- TCap Description
Numeric name Code
bit_image_entwining bitwin Yo
T}
bit_image_type bitype
T}
buffer_capacity bufsz
T}
buttons
T}
dot_horz_spacing spinh Yc
T}
dot_vert_spacing spinv Yb
T}
max_micro_address maddr Yd
T}
max_micro_jump mjump
T}
micro_col_size mcs
T}
micro_line_size mls
T}
number_of_pins npins
T}
output_res_char orc
T}
output_res_horz_inch orhi Yk
T}
output_res_line orl
T}
output_res_vert_inch orvi Yl
T}
print_rate cps
T}
wide_char_size widcs
T}
These are the string capabilities:
Variable Cap- TCap Description
String name Code
acs_chars acsc
T}
back_tab cbt
T}
bell
T}
carriage_return cr
T}
change_char_pitch cpi ZA
T}
change_line_pitch lpi ZB
T}
change_res_horz chr
T}
change_res_vert cvr
T}
change_scroll_region csr cs
T}
char_padding rmp
T}
clear_all_tabs tbc
T}
clear_margins mgc
T}
clear_screen clear
T}
clr_bol
T}
clr_eol
T}
clr_eos
T}
column_address hpa
T}
command_character cmdch CC
T}
create_window cwin
T}
cursor_address cup
T}
cursor_down cud1
T}
cursor_home home
T}
cursor_invisible civis vi
T}
cursor_left cub1
T}
cursor_mem_address mrcup CM
T}
cursor_normal cnorm
T}
cursor_right cuf1
T}
cursor_to_ll ll
T}
cursor_up cuu1
T}
cursor_visible cvvis
T}
define_char defc
T}
delete_character dch1 dc
T}
delete_line dl1
T}
dial_phone dial
T}
dis_status_line dsl
T}
display_clock dclk
T}
down_half_line hd
T}
ena_acs
T}
enter_alt_charset_mode smacs as
T}
enter_am_mode smam
T}
enter_blink_mode blink mb
T}
enter_bold_mode bold
T}
enter_ca_mode smcup
T}
enter_delete_mode smdc dm
T}
enter_dim_mode dim
T}
enter_doublewide_mode swidm ZF
T}
enter_draft_quality sdrfq ZG
T}
enter_insert_mode smir im
T}
enter_italics_mode sitm ZH
T}
enter_leftward_mode slm ZI
T}
enter_micro_mode smicm ZJ
T}
enter_near_letter_quality snlq ZK -
T}
enter_normal_quality snrmq ZL
T}
enter_protected_mode prot mp
T}
enter_reverse_mode rev mr
T}
enter_secure_mode invis mk
T}
enter_shadow_mode sshm ZM
T}
enter_standout_mode smso so
T}
enter_subscript_mode ssubm ZN
T}
enter_superscript_mode ssupm ZO
T}
enter_underline_mode smul us
T}
enter_upward_mode sum ZP
T}
enter_xon_mode smxon
T}
erase_chars ech
T}
exit_alt_charset_mode rmacs ae
T}
exit_am_mode rmam
T}
exit_attribute_mode sgr0 me
T}
exit_ca_mode rmcup
T}
exit_delete_mode rmdc ed
T}
exit_doublewide_mode rwidm ZQ
T}
exit_insert_mode rmir ei
T}
exit_italics_mode ritm ZR
T}
exit_leftward_mode rlm ZS
T}
exit_micro_mode rmicm
T}
exit_shadow_mode rshm ZU
T}
exit_standout_mode rmso se
T}
exit_subscript_mode rsubm ZV
T}
exit_superscript_mode rsupm ZW
T}
exit_underline_mode rmul ue
T}
exit_upward_mode rum ZX
T}
exit_xon_mode rmxon
T}
fixed_pause pause
T}
flash_hook hook
T}
flash_screen flash
T}
form_feed ff
T}
from_status_line fsl fs
T}
goto_window wingo
T}
hangup
T}
init_1string is1
T}
init_2string is2
T}
init_3string is3
T}
init_file if
T}
init_prog iprog
T}
initialize_color initc Ic
T}
initialize_pair initp
T}
insert_character ich1 ic
T}
insert_line il1
T}
insert_padding ip
T}
key_a1
T}
key_a3
T}
key_b2
T}
key_backspace kbs
T}
key_beg
T}
key_btab kcbt
T}
key_c1
T}
key_c3
T}
key_cancel kcan
T}
key_catab ktbc
T}
key_clear kclr
T}
key_close kclo
T}
key_command kcmd
T}
key_copy kcpy
T}
key_create kcrt
T}
key_ctab kctab
T}
key_dc
T}
key_dl
T}
key_down kcud1
T}
key_eic
T}
key_end
T}
key_enter kent
T}
key_eol
T}
key_eos
T}
key_exit kext
T}
key_f0
T}
key_f1
T}
key_f10
T}
key_f11
T}
key_f12
T}
key_f13
T}
key_f14
T}
key_f15
T}
key_f16
T}
key_f17
T}
key_f18
T}
key_f19
T}
key_f2
T}
key_f20
T}
key_f21
T}
key_f22
T}
key_f23
T}
key_f24
T}
key_f25
T}
key_f26
T}
key_f27
T}
key_f28
T}
key_f29
T}
key_f3
T}
key_f30
T}
key_f31
T}
key_f32
T}
key_f33
T}
key_f34
T}
key_f35
T}
key_f36
T}
key_f37
T}
key_f38
T}
key_f39
T}
key_f4
T}
key_f40
T}
key_f41
T}
key_f42
T}
key_f43
T}
key_f44
T}
key_f45
T}
key_f46
T}
key_f47
T}
key_f48
T}
key_f49
T}
key_f5
T}
key_f50
T}
key_f51
T}
key_f52
T}
key_f53
T}
key_f54
T}
key_f55
T}
key_f56
T}
key_f57
T}
key_f58
T}
key_f59
T}
key_f6
T}
key_f60
T}
key_f61
T}
key_f62
T}
key_f63
T}
key_f7
T}
key_f8
T}
key_f9
T}
key_find kfnd
T}
key_help khlp
T}
key_home khome
T}
key_ic
T}
key_il
T}
key_left kcub1
T}
key_ll
T}
key_mark kmrk
T}
key_message kmsg
T}
key_move kmov
T}
key_next knxt
T}
key_npage knp
T}
key_open kopn
T}
key_options kopt
T}
key_ppage kpp
T}
key_previous kprv
T}
key_print kprt
T}
key_redo krdo
T}
key_reference kref
T}
key_refresh krfr
T}
key_replace krpl
T}
key_restart krst
T}
key_resume kres
T}
key_right kcuf1
T}
key_save ksav
T}
key_sbeg kBEG
T}
key_scancel kCAN
T}
key_scommand kCMD
T}
key_scopy kCPY
T}
key_screate kCRT
T}
key_sdc
T}
key_sdl
T}
key_select kslt
T}
key_send kEND
T}
key_seol kEOL
T}
key_sexit kEXT
T}
key_sf
T}
key_sfind kFND
T}
key_shelp kHLP
T}
key_shome kHOM
T}
key_sic
T}
key_sleft kLFT
T}
key_smessage kMSG
T}
key_smove kMOV
T}
key_snext kNXT
T}
key_soptions kOPT
T}
key_sprevious kPRV
T}
key_sprint kPRT
T}
key_sr
T}
key_sredo kRDO
T}
key_sreplace kRPL
T}
key_sright kRIT
T}
key_srsume kRES
T}
key_ssave kSAV
T}
key_ssuspend kSPD
T}
key_stab khts
T}
key_sundo kUND
T}
key_suspend kspd
T}
key_undo kund
T}
key_up
T}
keypad_local rmkx
T}
keypad_xmit smkx
T}
lab_f0
T}
lab_f1
T}
lab_f10
T}
lab_f2
T}
lab_f3
T}
lab_f4
T}
lab_f5
T}
lab_f6
T}
lab_f7
T}
lab_f8
T}
lab_f9
T}
label_format fln
T}
label_off rmln
T}
label_on smln
T}
meta_off rmm
T}
meta_on
T}
micro_column_address mhpa ZY
T}
micro_down mcud1
T}
micro_left mcub1
T}
micro_right mcuf1
T}
micro_row_address mvpa Zc
T}
micro_up mcuu1
T}
newline
T}
order_of_pins porder
T}
orig_colors oc
T}
orig_pair op
T}
pad_char pad
T}
parm_dch dch
T}
parm_delete_line dl DL
T}
parm_down_cursor cud DO
T}
parm_down_micro mcud
T}
parm_ich ich
T}
parm_index indn
T}
parm_insert_line il AL
T}
parm_left_cursor cub LE
T}
parm_left_micro mcub
T}
parm_right_cursor cuf RI
T}
parm_right_micro mcuf Zh
T}
parm_rindex rin
T}
parm_up_cursor cuu
T}
parm_up_micro mcuu
T}
pkey_key pfkey
T}
pkey_local pfloc
T}
pkey_xmit pfx
T}
plab_norm pln
T}
print_screen mc0
T}
prtr_non mc5p
T}
prtr_off mc4
T}
prtr_on
T}
pulse
T}
quick_dial qdial
T}
remove_clock rmclk
T}
repeat_char rep
T}
req_for_input rfi
T}
reset_1string rs1
T}
reset_2string rs2
T}
reset_3string rs3
T}
reset_file rf
T}
restore_cursor rc
T}
row_address vpa
T}
save_cursor sc
T}
scroll_forward ind
T}
scroll_reverse ri
T}
select_char_set scs
T}
set_attributes sgr
T}
set_background setb
T}
set_bottom_margin smgb Zk
T}
set_bottom_margin_parm smgbp Zl
T}
set_clock sclk
T}
set_color_pair scp
T}
set_foreground setf
T}
set_left_margin smgl
T}
set_left_margin_parm smglp Zm
T}
set_right_margin smgr MR
T}
set_right_margin_parm smgrp Zn
T}
set_tab
T}
set_top_margin smgt
T}
set_top_margin_parm smgtp Zp
T}
set_window wind
T}
start_bit_image sbim
T}
start_char_set_def scsd Zr
T}
stop_bit_image rbim
T}
stop_char_set_def rcsd Zt
T}
subscript_characters subcs Zu
T}
superscript_characters supcs Zv
T}
tab
T}
these_cause_cr docr
T}
to_status_line tsl
T}
tone
T}
underline_char uc
T}
up_half_line hu
T}
user0
T}
user1
T}
user2
T}
user3
T}
user4
T}
user5
T}
user6
T}
user7
T}
user8
T}
user9
T}
wait_tone wait
T}
xoff_character xoffc
T}
xon_character xonc
T}
zero_motion zerom
T}
The following string capabilities are present in the SVr4.0 term structure,
but were originally not documented in the man page.
Variable Cap- TCap Description
String name Code
alt_scancode_esc scesa S8
T}
bit_image_carriage_return bicr Yv -
T}
bit_image_newline binel Zz
T}
bit_image_repeat birep Xy
T}
char_set_names csnm
T}
code_set_init csin
T}
color_names colornm
T}
define_bit_image_region defbi Yx
T}
device_type devt
T}
display_pc_char dispc
T}
end_bit_image_region endbi Yy
T}
enter_pc_charset_mode smpch S2
T}
enter_scancode_mode smsc S4
T}
exit_pc_charset_mode rmpch S3
T}
exit_scancode_mode rmsc S5
T}
get_mouse getm
T}
key_mouse kmous
T}
mouse_info minfo
T}
pc_term_options pctrm
T}
pkey_plab pfxl
T}
req_mouse_pos reqmp
T}
scancode_escape scesc
T}
set0_des_seq s0ds
T}
set1_des_seq s1ds
T}
set2_des_seq s2ds
T}
set3_des_seq s3ds
T}
set_a_background setab AB
T}
set_a_foreground setaf AF
T}
set_color_band setcolor Yz
T}
set_lr_margin smglr
T}
set_page_length slines
T}
set_tb_margin smgtb
T}
The XSI Curses standard added these. They are some post-4.1 versions
of System V curses, e.g., Solaris 2.5 and IRIX 6.x. The ncurses termcap
names for them are invented; according to the XSI Curses standard,
they have no termcap names. If your compiled terminfo entries use
these, they may not be binary-compatible with System V terminfo
entries after SVr4.1; beware!
Variable Cap- TCap Description
String name Code
enter_horizontal_hl_mode ehhlm Xh -
T}
enter_left_hl_mode elhlm Xl
T}
enter_low_hl_mode elohlm Xo
T}
enter_right_hl_mode erhlm Xr
T}
enter_top_hl_mode ethlm Xt
T}
enter_vertical_hl_mode evhlm Xv
T}
set_a_attributes sgr1 sA
T}
set_pglen_inch slength
T}
A Sample Entry [Toc] [Back]
The following entry, describing an ANSI-standard terminal, is representative
of what a terminfo entry for a modern terminal typically looks
like.
ansi|ansi/pc-term compatible with color,
mc5i,
colors#8, ncv#3, pairs#64,
cub=\E[%p1%dD, cud=\E[%p1%dB, cuf=\E[%p1%dC,
cuu=\E[%p1%dA, dch=\E[%p1%dP, dl=\E[%p1%dM,
ech=\E[%p1%dX, el1=\E[1K, hpa=\E[%p1%dG, ht=\E[I,
ich=\E[%p1%d@, il=\E[%p1%dL, indn=\E[%p1%dS, .indn=\E[%p1%dT,
kbs=^H, kcbt=\E[Z, kcub1=\E[D, kcud1=\E[B,
kcuf1=\E[C, kcuu1=\E[A, kf1=\E[M, kf10=\E[V,
kf11=\E[W, kf12=\E[X, kf2=\E[N, kf3=\E[O, kf4=\E[P,
kf5=\E[Q, kf6=\E[R, kf7=\E[S, kf8=\E[T, kf9=\E[U,
kich1=\E[L, mc4=\E[4i, mc5=\E[5i, nel=\r\E[S,
op=\E[37;40m, rep=%p1%c\E[%p2%{1}%-%db,
rin=\E[%p1%dT, s0ds=\E(B, s1ds=\E)B, s2ds=\E*B,
s3ds=\E+B, setab=\E[4%p1%dm, setaf=\E[3%p1%dm,
setb=\E[4%?%p1%{1}%=%t4%e%p1%{3}%=%t6%e%p1%{4}%=%t1%e%p1%{6}%=%t3%e%p1%d%;m,
setf=\E[3%?%p1%{1}%=%t4%e%p1%{3}%=%t6%e%p1%{4}%=%t1%e%p1%{6}%=%t3%e%p1%d%;m,
sgr=\E[0;10%?%p1%t;7%;%?%p2%t;4%;%?%p3%t;7%;%?%p4%t;5%;%?%p6%t;1%;%?%p7%t;8%;%?%p8%t;11%;%?%p9%t;12%;m,
sgr0=\E[0;10m, tbc=\E[2g, u6=\E[%d;%dR, u7=\E[6n,
u8=\E[?%[;0123456789]c, u9=\E[c, vpa=\E[%p1%dd,
Entries may continue onto multiple lines by placing white space at the
beginning of each line except the first. Comments may be included on
lines beginning with ``#''. Capabilities in terminfo are of three
types: Boolean capabilities which indicate that the terminal has some
particular feature, numeric capabilities giving the size of the terminal
or the size of particular delays, and string capabilities, which
give a sequence which can be used to perform particular terminal operations.
Types of Capabilities [Toc] [Back]
All capabilities have names. For instance, the fact that ANSI-standard
terminals have automatic margins (i.e., an automatic return and linefeed
when the end of a line is reached) is indicated by the capability
am. Hence the description of ansi includes am. Numeric capabilities
are followed by the character `#' and then a positive value. Thus
cols, which indicates the number of columns the terminal has, gives the
value `80' for ansi. Values for numeric capabilities may be specified
in decimal, octal or hexadecimal, using the C programming language conventions
(e.g., 255, 0377 and 0xff or 0xFF).
Finally, string valued capabilities, such as el (clear to end of line
sequence) are given by the two-character code, an `=', and then a
string ending at the next following `,'.
A number of escape sequences are provided in the string valued capabilities
for easy encoding of characters there. Both \E and \e map to an
ESCAPE character, ^x maps to a control-x for any appropriate x, and the
sequences \n \l \r \t \b \f \s give a newline, line-feed, return, tab,
backspace, form-feed, and space. Other escapes include \^ for ^, \\
for \, \, for comma, \: for :, and \0 for null. (\0 will produce \200,
which does not terminate a string but behaves as a null character on
most terminals, providing CS7 is specified. See stty(1).) Finally,
characters may be given as three octal digits after a \.
A delay in milliseconds may appear anywhere in a string capability,
enclosed in $<..> brackets, as in el=\EK$<5>, and padding characters
are supplied by tputs to provide this delay. The delay must be a number
with at most one decimal place of precision; it may be followed by
suffixes `*' or '/' or both. A `*' indicates that the padding required
is proportional to the number of lines affected by the operation, and
the amount given is the per-affected-unit padding required. (In the
case of insert character, the factor is still the number of lines
affected.) Normally, padding is advisory if the device has the xon
capability; it is used for cost computation but does not trigger
delays. A `/' suffix indicates that the padding is mandatory and
forces a delay of the given number of milliseconds even on devices for
which xon is present to indicate flow control.
Sometimes individual capabilities must be commented out. To do this,
put a period before the capability name. For example, see the second
ind in the example above.
Fetching Compiled Descriptions [Toc] [Back]
If the environment variable TERMINFO is set, it is interpreted as the
pathname of a directory containing the compiled description you are
working on. Only that directory is searched.
If TERMINFO is not set, the ncurses version of the terminfo reader code
will instead look in the directory $HOME/.terminfo for a compiled
description. If it fails to find one there, and the environment variable
TERMINFO_DIRS is set, it will interpret the contents of that variable
as a list of colon- separated directories to be searched (an empty
entry is interpreted as a command to search /usr/share/misc/terminfo).
If no description is found in any of the TERMINFO_DIRS directories, the
fetch fails.
If neither TERMINFO nor TERMINFO_DIRS is set, the last place tried will
be the system terminfo directory, /usr/share/misc/terminfo.
(Neither the $HOME/.terminfo lookups nor TERMINFO_DIRS extensions are
supported under stock System V terminfo/curses.)
Preparing Descriptions [Toc] [Back]
We now outline how to prepare descriptions of terminals. The most
effective way to prepare a terminal description is by imitating the
description of a similar terminal in terminfo and to build up a
description gradually, using partial descriptions with vi or some other
screen-oriented program to check that they are correct. Be aware that
a very unusual terminal may expose deficiencies in the ability of the
terminfo file to describe it or bugs in the screen-handling code of the
test program.
To get the padding for insert line right (if the terminal manufacturer
did not document it) a severe test is to edit a large file at 9600
baud, delete 16 or so lines from the middle of the screen, then hit the
`u' key several times quickly. If the terminal messes up, more padding
is usually needed. A similar test can be used for insert character.
Basic Capabilities [Toc] [Back]
The number of columns on each line for the terminal is given by the
cols numeric capability. If the terminal is a CRT, then the number of
lines on the screen is given by the lines capability. If the terminal
wraps around to the beginning of the next line when it reaches the
right margin, then it should have the am capability. If the terminal
can clear its screen, leaving the cursor in the home position, then
this is given by the clear string capability. If the terminal overstrikes
(rather than clearing a position when a character is struck
over) then it should have the os capability. If the terminal is a
printing terminal, with no soft copy unit, give it both hc and os. (os
applies to storage scope terminals, such as TEKTRONIX 4010 series, as
well as hard copy and APL terminals.) If there is a code to move the
cursor to the left edge of the current row, give this as cr. (Normally
this will be carriage return, control M.) If there is a code to produce
an audible signal (bell, beep, etc) give this as bel.
If there is a code to move the cursor one position to the left (such as
backspace) that capability should be given as cub1. Similarly, codes
to move to the right, up, and down should be given as cuf1, cuu1, and
cud1. These local cursor motions should not alter the text they pass
over, for example, you would not normally use `cuf1= ' because the
space would erase the character moved over.
A very important point here is that the local cursor motions encoded in
terminfo are undefined at the left and top edges of a CRT terminal.
Programs should never attempt to backspace around the left edge, unless
bw is given, and never attempt to go up locally off the top. In order
to scroll text up, a program will go to the bottom left corner of the
screen and send the ind (index) string.
To scroll text down, a program goes to the top left corner of the
screen and sends the ri (reverse index) string. The strings ind and ri
are undefined when not on their respective corners of the screen.
Parameterized versions of the scrolling sequences are indn and rin
which have the same semantics as ind and ri except that they take one
parameter, and scroll that many lines. They are also undefined except
at the appropriate edge of the screen.
The am capability tells whether the cursor sticks at the right edge of
the screen when text is output, but this does not necessarily apply to
a cuf1 from the last column. The only local motion which is defined
from the left edge is if bw is given, then a cub1 from the left edge
will move to the right edge of the previous row. If bw is not given,
the effect is undefined. This is useful for drawing a box around the
edge of the screen, for example. If the terminal has switch selectable
automatic margins, the terminfo file usually assumes that this is on;
i.e., am. If the terminal has a command which moves to the first column
of the next line, that command can be given as nel (newline). It
does not matter if the command clears the remainder of the current
line, so if the terminal has no cr and lf it may still be possible to
craft a working nel out of one or both of them.
These capabilities suffice to describe hard-copy and "glass-tty" terminals.
Thus the model 33 teletype is described as
33|tty33|tty|model 33 teletype,
bel=^G, cols#72, cr=^M, cud1=^J, hc, ind=^J, os,
while the Lear Siegler ADM-3 is described as
adm3|3|lsi adm3,
am, bel=^G, clear=^Z, cols#80, cr=^M, cub1=^H, cud1=^J,
ind=^J, lines#24,
Parameterized Strings [Toc] [Back]
Cursor addressing and other strings requiring parameters in the terminal
are described by a parameterized string capability, with printf(3S)
like escapes %x in it. For example, to address the cursor, the cup
capability is given, using two parameters: the row and column to
address to. (Rows and columns are numbered from zero and refer to the
physical screen visible to the user, not to any unseen memory.) If the
terminal has memory relative cursor addressing, that can be indicated
by mrcup.
The parameter mechanism uses a stack and special % codes to manipulate
it. Typically a sequence will push one of the parameters onto the
stack and then print it in some format. Often more complex operations
are necessary.
The % encodings have the following meanings:
%% outputs `%'
%[[:]flags][width[.precision]][doxXs]
as in printf, flags are [-+#] and space
%c print pop() like %c in printf()
%s print pop() like %s in printf()
%p[1-9] push i'th parm
%P[a-z] set dynamic variable [a-z] to pop()
%g[a-z] get dynamic variable [a-z] and push it
%P[A-Z] set static variable [a-z] to pop()
%g[A-Z] get static variable [a-z] and push it
%'c' char constant c
%{nn} integer constant nn
%l push strlen(pop)
%+ %- %* %/ %m
arithmetic (%m is mod): push(pop() op pop())
%& %| %^ bit operations: push(pop() op pop())
%= %> %< logical operations: push(pop() op pop())
%A, %O logical and & or operations (for conditionals)
%! %~ unary operations push(op pop())
%i add 1 to first two parameters (for ANSI terminals)
%? expr %t thenpart %e elsepart %;
if-then-else, %e elsepart is optional.
else-if's are possible a la Algol 68:
%? c1 %t b1 %e c2 %t b2 %e c3 %t b3 %e c4 %t b4 %e %;
ci are conditions, bi are bodies.
Binary operations are in postfix form with the operands in the usual
order. That is, to get x-5 one would use "%gx%{5}%-". %P and %g variables
are persistent across escape-string evaluations.
Consider the HP2645, which, to get to row 3 and column 12, needs to be
sent \E&a12c03Y padded for 6 milliseconds. Note that the order of the
rows and columns is inverted here, and that the row and column are
printed as two digits. Thus its cup capability is
"cup=6\E&%p2%2dc%p1%2dY".
The Microterm ACT-IV needs the current row and column sent preceded by
a ^T, with the row and column simply encoded in binary,
"cup=^T%p1%c%p2%c". Terminals which use "%c" need to be able to
backspace the cursor (cub1), and to move the cursor up one line on the
screen (cuu1). This is necessary because it is not always safe to
transmit \n ^D and \r, as the system may change or discard them. (The
library routines dealing with terminfo set tty modes so that tabs are
never expanded, so \t is safe to send. This turns out to be essential
for the Ann Arbor 4080.)
A final example is the LSI ADM-3a, which uses row and column offset by
a blank character, thus "cup=\E=%p1%' '%+%c%p2%' '%+%c". After sending
`\E=', this pushes the first parameter, pushes the ASCII value for a
space (32), adds them (pushing the sum on the stack in place of the two
previous values) and outputs that value as a character. Then the same
is done for the second parameter. More complex arithmetic is possible
using the stack.
Cursor Motions [Toc] [Back]
If the terminal has a fast way to home the cursor (to very upper left
corner of screen) then this can be given as home; similarly a fast way
of getting to the lower left-hand corner can be given as ll; this may
involve going up with cuu1 from the home position, but a program should
never do this itself (unless ll does) because it can make no assumption
about the effect of moving up from the home position. Note that the
home position is the same as addressing to (0,0): to the top left corner
of the screen, not of memory. (Thus, the \EH sequence on HP terminals
cannot be used for home.)
If the terminal has row or column absolute cursor addressing, these can
be given as single parameter capabilities hpa (horizontal position
absolute) and vpa (vertical position absolute). Sometimes these are
shorter than the more general two parameter sequence (as with the
hp2645) and can be used in preference to cup. If there are parameterized
local motions (e.g., move n spaces to the right) these can be
given as cud, cub, cuf, and cuu with a single parameter indicating how
many spaces to move. These are primarily useful if the terminal does
not have cup, such as the TEKTRONIX 4025.
If the terminal needs to be in a special mode when running a program
that uses these capabilities, the codes to enter and exit this mode can
be given as smcup and rmcup. This arises, for example, from terminals
like the Concept with more than one page of memory. If the terminal
has only memory relative cursor addressing and not screen relative cursor
addressing, a one screen-sized window must be fixed into the terminal
for cursor addressing to work properly. This is also used for the
TEKTRONIX 4025, where smcup sets the command character to be the one
used by terminfo. If the smcup sequence will not restore the screen
after an rmcup sequence is output (to the state prior to outputting
rmcup), specify nrrmc.
Area Clears [Toc] [Back]
If the terminal can clear from the current position to the end of the
line, leaving the cursor where it is, this should be given as el. If
the terminal can clear from the beginning of the line to the current
position inclusive, leaving the cursor where it is, this should be
given as el1. If the terminal can clear from the current position to
the end of the display, then this should be given as ed. Ed is only
defined from the first column of a line. (Thus, it can be simulated by
a request to delete a large number of lines, if a true ed is not available.)
Insert/delete line and vertical motions
If the terminal can open a new blank line before the line where the
cursor is, this should be given as il1; this is done only from the
first position of a line. The cursor must then appear on the newly
blank line. If the terminal can delete the line which the cursor is
on, then this should be given as dl1; this is done only from the first
position on the line to be deleted. Versions of il1 and dl1 which take
a single parameter and insert or delete that many lines can be given as
il and dl.
If the terminal has a settable scrolling region (like the vt100) the
command to set this can be described with the csr capability, which
takes two parameters: the top and bottom lines of the scrolling region.
The cursor position is, alas, undefined after using this command.
It is possible to get the effect of insert or delete line using csr on
a properly chosen region; the sc and rc (save and restore cursor) commands
may be useful for ensuring that your synthesized insert/delete
string does not move the cursor. (Note that the ncurses(3X) library
does this synthesis automatically, so you need not compose
insert/delete strings for an entry with csr).
Yet another way to construct insert and delete might be to use a combination
of index with the memory-lock feature found on some terminals
(like the HP-700/90 series, which however also has insert/delete).
Inserting lines at the top or bottom of the screen can also be done
using ri or ind on many terminals without a true insert/delete line,
and is often faster even on terminals with those features.
The boolean non_dest_scroll_region should be set if each scrolling window
is effectively a view port on a screen-sized canvas. To test for
this capability, create a scrolling region in the middle of the screen,
write something to the bottom line, move the cursor to the top of the
region, and do ri followed by dl1 or ind. If the data scrolled off the
bottom of the region by the ri re-appears, then scrolling is nondestructive.
System V and XSI Curses expect that ind, ri, indn, and
rin will simulate destructive scrolling; their documentation cautions
you not to define csr unless this is true. This curses implementation
is more liberal and will do explicit erases after scrolling if ndstr is
defined.
If the terminal has the ability to define a window as part of memory,
which all commands affect, it should be given as the parameterized
string wind. The four parameters are the starting and ending lines in
memory and the starting and ending columns in memory, in that order.
If the terminal can retain display memory above, then the da capability
should be given; if display memory can be retained below, then db
should be given. These indicate that deleting a line or scrolling may
bring non-blank lines up from below or that scrolling back with ri may
bring down non-blank lines.
Insert/Delete Character
There are two basic kinds of intelligent terminals with respect to
insert/delete character which can be described using terminfo. The
most common insert/delete character operations affect only the characters
on the current line and shift characters off the end of the line
rigidly. Other terminals, such as the Concept 100 and the Perkin Elmer
Owl, make a distinction between typed and untyped blanks on the screen,
shifting upon an insert or delete only to an untyped blank on the
screen which is either eliminated, or expanded to two untyped blanks.
You can determine the kind of terminal you have by clearing the screen
and then typing text separated by cursor motions. Type "abc def"
using local cursor motions (not spaces) between the "abc" and the
"def". Then position the cursor before the "abc" and put the terminal
in insert mode. If typing characters causes the rest of the line to
shift rigidly and characters to fall off the end, then your terminal
does not distinguish between blanks and untyped positions. If the
"abc" shifts over to the "def" which then move together around the end
of the current line and onto the next as you insert, you have the second
type of terminal, and should give the capability in, which stands
for "insert null". While these are two logically separate attributes
(one line versus multi-line insert mode, and special treatment of
untyped spaces) we have seen no terminals whose insert mode cannot be
described with the single attribute.
Terminfo can describe both terminals which have an insert mode, and
terminals which send a simple sequence to open a blank position on the
current line. Give as smir the sequence to get into insert mode. Give
as rmir the sequence to leave insert mode. Now give as ich1 any
sequence needed to be sent just before sending the character to be
inserted. Most terminals with a true insert mode will not give ich1;
terminals which send a sequence to open a screen position should give
it here.
If your terminal has both, insert mode is usually preferable to ich1.
Technically, you should not give both unless the terminal actually
requires both to be used in combination. Accordingly, some non-curses
applications get confused if both are present; the symptom is doubled
characters in an update using insert. This requirement is now rare;
most ich sequences do not require previous smir, and most smir insert
modes do not require ich1 before each character. Therefore, the new
curses actually assumes this is the case and uses either rmir/smir or
ich/ich1 as appropriate (but not both). If you have to write an entry
to be used under new curses for a terminal old enough to need both,
include the rmir/smir sequences in ich1.
If post insert padding is needed, give this as a number of milliseconds
in ip (a string option). Any other sequence which may need to be sent
after an insert of a single character may also be given in ip. If your
terminal needs both to be placed into an `insert mode' and a special
code to precede each inserted character, then both smir/rmir and ich1
can be given, and both will be used. The ich capability, with one
parameter, n, will repeat the effects of ich1 n times.
If padding is necessary between characters typed while not in insert
mode, give this as a number of milliseconds padding in rmp.
It is occasionally necessary to move around while in insert mode to
delete characters on the same line (e.g., if there is a tab after the
insertion position). If your terminal allows motion while in insert
mode you can give the capability mir to speed up inserting in this
case. Omitting mir will affect only speed. Some terminals (notably
Datamedia's) must not have mir because of the way their insert mode
works.
Finally, you can specify dch1 to delete a single character, dch with
one parameter, n, to delete n characters, and delete mode by giving
smdc and rmdc to enter and exit delete mode (any mode the terminal
needs to be placed in for dch1 to work).
A command to erase n characters (equivalent to outputting n blanks
without moving the cursor) can be given as ech with one parameter.
Highlighting, Underlining, and Visible Bells
If your terminal has one or more kinds of display attributes, these can
be represented in a number of different ways. You should choose one
display form as standout mode, representing a good, high contrast,
easy-on-the-eyes, format for highlighting error messages and other
attention getters. (If you have a choice, reverse video plus halfbright
is good, or reverse video alone.) The sequences to enter and
exit standout mode are given as smso and rmso, respectively. If the
code to change into or out of standout mode leaves one or even two
blank spaces on the screen, as the TVI 912 and Teleray 1061 do, then
xmc should be given to tell how many spaces are left.
Codes to begin underlining and end underlining can be given as smul and
rmul respectively. If the terminal has a code to underline the current
character and move the cursor one space to the right, such as the
Microterm Mime, this can be given as uc.
Other capabilities to enter various highlighting modes include blink
(blinking) bold (bold or extra bright) dim (dim or half-bright) invis
(blanking or invisible text) prot (protected) rev (reverse video) sgr0
(turn off all attribute modes) smacs (enter alternate character set
mode) and rmacs (exit alternate character set mode). Turning on any of
these modes singly may or may not turn off other modes.
If there is a sequence to set arbitrary combinations of modes, this
should be given as sgr (set attributes), taking 9 parameters. Each
parameter is either 0 or nonzero, as the corresponding attribute is on
or off. The 9 parameters are, in order: standout, underline, reverse,
blink, dim, bold, blank, protect, alternate character set. Not all
modes need be supported by sgr, only those for which corresponding separate
attribute commands exist.
For example, the DEC vt220 supports most of the modes:
tparm parameter attribute escape sequence
none none \E[0m
p1 standout \E[0;1;7m
p2 underline \E[0;4m
p3 reverse \E[0;7m
p4 blink \E[0;5m
p5 dim not available
p6 bold \E[0;1m
p7 invis \E[0;8m
p8 protect not used
p9 altcharset ^O (off) ^N (on)
We begin each escape sequence by turning off any existing modes, since
there is no quick way to determine whether they are active. Standout
is set up to be the combination of reverse and bold. The vt220 terminal
has a protect mode, though it is not commonly used in sgr because
it protects characters on the screen from the host's erasures. The
altcharset mode also is different in that it is either ^O or ^N,
depending on whether it is off or on. If all modes are turned on, the
resulting sequence is \E[0;1;4;5;7;8m^N.
Some sequences are common to different modes. For example, ;7 is output
when either p1 or p3 is true, that is, if either standout or
reverse modes are turned on.
Writing out the above sequences, along with their dependencies yields
sequence when to output terminfo translation
\E[0 always \E[0
;1 if p1 or p6 %?%p1%p6%|%t;1%;
;4 if p2 %?%p2%|%t;4%;
;5 if p4 %?%p4%|%t;5%;
;7 if p1 or p3 %?%p1%p3%|%t;7%;
;8 if p7 %?%p7%|%t;8%;
m always m
^N or ^O if p9 ^N, else ^O %?%p9%t^N%e^O%;
Putting this all together into the sgr sequence gives:
sgr=\E[0%?%p1%p6%|%t;1%;%?%p2%t;4%;%?%p1%p3%|%t;7%;
%?%p4%t;5%;%?%p7%t;8%;m%?%p9%t\016%e\017%;,
Remember that if you specify sgr, you must also specify sgr0.
Terminals with the ``magic cookie'' glitch (xmc) deposit special
``cookies'' when they receive mode-setting sequences, which affect the
display algorithm rather than having extra bits for each character.
Some terminals, such as the HP 2621, automatically leave standout mode
when they move to a new line or the cursor is addressed. Programs
using standout mode should exit standout mode before moving the cursor
or sending a newline, unless the msgr capability, asserting that it is
safe to move in standout mode, is present.
If the terminal has a way of flashing the screen to indicate an error
quietly (a bell replacement) then this can be given as flash; it must
not move the cursor.
If the cursor needs to be made more visible than normal when it is not
on the bottom line (to make, for example, a non-blinking underline into
an easier to find block or blinking underline) give this sequence as
cvvis. If there is a way to make the cursor completely invisible, give
that as civis. The capability cnorm should be given which undoes the
effects of both of these modes.
If your terminal correctly generates underlined characters (with no
special codes needed) even though it does not overstrike, then you
should give the capability ul. If a character overstriking another
leaves both characters on the screen, specify the capability os. If
overstrikes are erasable with a blank, then this should be indicated by
giving eo.
Keypad and Function Keys [Toc] [Back]
If the terminal has a keypad that transmits codes when the keys are
pressed, this information can be given. Note that it is not possible
to handle terminals where the keypad only works in local (this applies,
for example, to the unshifted HP 2621 keys). If the keypad can be set
to transmit or not transmit, give these codes as smkx and rmkx. Otherwise
the keypad is assumed to always transmit. The codes sent by the
left arrow, right arrow, up arrow, down arrow, and home keys can be
given as kcub1, kcuf1, kcuu1, kcud1, and khome respectively. If there
are function keys such as f0, f1, ..., f10, the codes they send can be
given as kf0, kf1, ..., kf10. If these keys have labels other than the
default f0 through f10, the labels can be given as lf0, lf1, ..., lf10.
The codes transmitted by certain other special keys can be given: kll
(home down), kbs (backspace), ktbc (clear all tabs), kctab (clear the
tab stop in this column), kclr (clear screen or erase key), kdch1
(delete character), kdl1 (delete line), krmir (exit insert mode), kel
(clear to end of line), ked (clear to end of screen), kich1 (insert
character or enter insert mode), kil1 (insert line), knp (next page),
kpp (previous page), kind (scroll forward/down), kri (scroll backward/up),
khts (set a tab stop in this column). In addition, if the
keypad has a 3 by 3 array of keys including the four arrow keys, the
other five keys can be given as ka1, ka3, kb2, kc1, and kc3. These
keys are useful when the effects of a 3 by 3 directional pad are
needed.
Strings to program function keys can be given as pfkey, pfloc, and pfx.
A string to program screen labels should be specified as pln. Each of
these strings takes two parameters: the function key number to program
(from 0 to 10) and the string to program it with. Function key numbers
out of this range may program undefined keys in a terminal dependent
manner. The difference between the capabilities is that pfkey causes
pressing the given key to be the same as the user typing the given
string; pfloc causes the string to be executed by the terminal in
local; and pfx causes the string to be transmitted to the computer.
The capabilities nlab, lw and lh define the number of programmable
screen labels and their width and height. If there are commands to
turn the labels on and off, give them in smln and rmln. smln is normally
output after one or more pln sequences to make sure that the
change becomes visible.
Tabs and Initialization [Toc] [Back]
If the terminal has hardware tabs, the command to advance to the next
tab stop can be given as ht (usually control I). A ``back-tab'' command
which moves leftward to the preceding tab stop can be given as
cbt. By convention, if the teletype modes indicate that tabs are being
expanded by the computer rather than being sent to the terminal, programs
should not use ht or cbt even if they are present, since the user
may not have the tab stops properly set. If the terminal has hardware
tabs which are initially set every n spaces when the terminal is powered
up, the numeric parameter it is given, showing the number of spaces
the tabs are set to. This is normally used by the tset command to
determine whether to set the mode for hardware tab expansion, and
whether to set the tab stops. If the termi
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