FilePro from Linux xterm or other terminal?

[Richard Kreiss]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: filepro-list-bounces+rkreiss=verizon.net at lists.celestial.com
[mailto:filepro-list-
> bounces+rkreiss=verizon.net at lists.celestial.com] On Behalf Of Bill
Campbell
> Sent: Thursday, August 12, 2010 12:42 PM
> To: filepro-list at lists.celestial.com
> Subject: Re: FilePro from Linux xterm or other terminal?
> 
> On Thu, Aug 12, 2010, Brian K. White wrote:
> >On 8/11/2010 11:09 PM, John Esak wrote:
> ...
> >> PFEOF=46
> >>
> >> Is really a 2e which is a period and makes things on Windows look like
my
> >> Unix end of field markers.  I absolutely hate the giant triangles
laying on
> >> their sides.  Whever thought that one up has zero aesthetic
> >> sensibilities.... :-)  Watch, I'll find out it was Ken now. .... :-)
> >
> >I don't like to ever terminate or delimit a field using a character that
> >may ever appear in the data unless you can do something like use a color
> >combo that is guaranteed never to appear on a screen or input prompt for
> >any other use but that....
> 
> I would go further than that and say that I don't see any need
> for a field ending character other than a single blank character
> at the end of the field before the text naming the next field.
> 
> In my curses based entry screens, I highlight the current field
> in reverse video so the entire field is easily visible (and use a
> red block cursor so that the character under it is visible).
> 
> One feature I liked on some character terminals was the ability
> to specify different attributes for protected fields which could
> be used to set a screen's trim (the text identifying fields) with
> a dim attribute.  FilePro and other software would use this
> feature to get around terminals that require a visible character
> position on either side of a field to change attributes as
> protected fields didn't require this space, and could have an
> identifying attribute (e.g. reverse video).
> 
> I think the idea of protected fields on video terminals goes back
> to the days of synchronous communications when the user filled in
> all data on the field non-interactively, then submitted
> everything to the server in a single transmission.  One very nice
> feature of the Burroughs TD-xxx terminals and their COBOL was
> that the submitted data would automatically be placed in a data
> structure so one didn't have to do any parsing to get it.

Ken showed how to highlight the current field some years ago at an FP
conference.  I have used this a few times.  

None of my clients has ever complained about the end of field marker. 

Most care that the information being entered is being done in a logical
manner and that all of the functions work correctly and as quickly as
possible. 

Working in a Windows environment has allowed me to use color screens.
However, I have some clients who preferred monochrome screens with only some
font colors being used.  In another case, they wanted a more "windows" style
screen.  Screens are white with either blue or black fonts.  Again, here,
some fields use a colored font so the eye picks up this information faster.

Richard