Table of Contents
dtpad -- edit text files
dtpad [-options] [file]
The
dtpad utility is a basic editor that supports editing text files in a manner
consistent with other common Graphical User Interface text manipulation
and file access mechanisms. Cursor positioning and text selection as well
as access to various edit operations can be done via the standard Motif
text manipulation mechanisms using the mouse or user-definable key combinations.
Text can be cut, copied or pasted, or dragged to and from the Text Editor
and/or other compliant application windows via the standard Motif Clipboard
and ICCCM Primary and Secondary selection mechanisms. Also, standard dialogs
are presented for accessing files and printing text.
The Text Editor also
provides the following features:
-
- Pull down menus for common edit and
file operations.
-
- Undo of the previous edit operation.
-
- Search and replace.
-
- Spell checking.
-
- Simple formatting.
-
- Wrap-to-fit and overstrike modes.
-
- Optional status line - allowing cursor positioning by line number.
-
- Automatic file save on many abnormal termination conditions.
-
- Mechanism
for automatic session save and restore.
In the XCDE, the Text Editor can
be a drag target for XCDE files, allowing a File Manager file icon to be
dropped on a Text Editor window for insertion in the current text. Also,
in XCDE, the Text Editor operates in a transparent client-server mode in
which all text editing for a display is handled by a single Text Editor
server process. In this mode, invoking the Text Editor causes the invoked
Text Editor process to be relegated to the role of a requestor process
that simply sends an edit request to the server process where the actual
editing is handled. The server creates and maintains a separate edit window
for each edit request and notifies the requestor when its edit window is
closed. The requestor normally just blocks until told by the server to exit;
however, if the server cannot honor the edit request (for example, it can’t
access the directory containing the requestor’s file), the requestor handles
the editing by itself. If a Text Editor server for a display is not running
when an edit request is made, XCDE automatically starts one, normally on
the XCDE session server (which need not be the same as the requestor’s host).
The normal client-server behavior can be disabled or altered via the Client
and Server Control options described under the OPTIONS heading in this
manual page.
The following options are available:
- -saveOnClose
- Automatically and silently saves the current text
when there are unsaved changes and the Text Editor is closed. The default
action for this situation posts a dialog asking whether or not to save
the current text. This option inhibits the posting of the Save dialog when
the Text Editor is closed. The Save dialog is always posted when a new file
is specified and there are unsaved changes.
- -missingFileWarning
- Posts a Warning
dialog whenever a file name is specified and the file does not exist or
cannot be accessed.
- -noReadOnlyWarning
- Disables the Warning dialog posted
whenever a file is specified for which the user does not have write permission.
The default posts a Warning dialog whenever this situation occurs.
- -noNameChange
- Indicates
that the default file name associated with the current text is not to change
when the text is saved under a name different than what it was read in
under. The current text can still be saved under a different file name;
however, the default file name does not change. By default, the default
file name is automatically changed to correspond to the last name under
which the current text was saved.
- -viewOnly
- Disallows editing of text in the
edit window, essentially turning the Text Editor into a text viewer. The
default allows text editing in the edit window even if the text was obtained
from a file for which the user does not have write permission.
- -statusLine
- Displays
a status line at the bottom of the edit window. The status line shows the
line number of the line where the text cursor is currently positioned. The
text cursor can be positioned to a specific line by selecting the line
number window in the status line, typing the desired number and pressing
the Return key. Normally, a status line is not displayed.
- -wrapToFit
- Initially
turns on wrap-to-fit mode. Wrap-to-fit mode can be toggled on or off via the
Edit menu Wrap-to-fit button and normally is initially turned off.
- -workspaceList
workspace_list
- Displays the edit window for the current invocation of the
Text Editor in the specified workspace or workspaces. The default displays
the edit window in the workspace in which the Text Editor was invoked. The
workspace_list argument specifies a blank-separated list of XCDE workspaces.
If more than one workspace is specified, the list must be enclosed in quotes.
- -session session_file
- Restores the Text Editor to all text editing windows
and settings that were in effect at a previous XCDE shutdown. All other
command-line options are ignored when this option is specified. The session_file
argument specifies a Text Editor session file, previously saved at session
shutdown by the Text Editor, to be used to restore the Text Editor to its
state at shutdown.
- -standAlone
- Forces the
current invocation of the Text Editor to do its own text processing in
its own window, independent of the Text Editor server. This is useful for
displaying the Text Editor with an environment different from that of other
edit windows controlled by the server as, for example, to specify a different
locale or different color resources. The Text Editor still supports file
drag and drop in this mode.
- -noBlocking
- Terminates the Text Editor requestor
process as soon as the Text Editor server determines that it can handle
the requestor’s edit request. If this option is not specified, the requestor
blocks, terminating only when it receives notification from the server
that its edit window has been closed.
- -server
- Forces a Text Editor server
to be started up (if one is not already running) to process all subsequent
edit requests for the display. These edit requests are normally generated
by subsequent invocations of the Text Editor without the -standAlone command-line
option and cause the server to create a separate edit window to handle
each request. Users normally do not need to use this option since the initial
edit request for the display causes the XCDE to start a Text Editor server
automatically.
- -exitOnLastClose
- Specifies that the Text Editor server process
is to terminate when the last edit window for the display is closed. It
should only be used with the -server option since it only applies to the
server process. If this option is not specified, the Text Editor server
remains active indefinitely, even when all active edit windows have been
closed.
The following operand is supported:
- file
- The file to be edited
or viewed. If no file is specified, the Text Editor opens a new (empty)
edit window and the file name must be specified when the contents are saved.
The dtpad utility supports the specific Text Editor resources
described here plus the standard resources related to the Text Editor widget
hierarchy. The main widgets that make up the Text Editor hierarchy are shown
under this heading to aid in specifying resources. The widget instance name
is shown first, followed by the widget class name in parentheses. Indentation
indicates hierarchical structure.
CWdtpad (Dtpad)
main (MainWindow)
bar (MenuBar)
fileMenu (PulldownMenu)
editMenu (PulldownMenu)
formatMenu (PulldownMenu)
optionsMenu (PulldownMenu)
helpMenu (PulldownMenu)
editor (DtEditor)
The client-server architecture of dtpad restricts the scope of resources
that can be specified for individual edit windows that the Text Editor
server handles. For efficiency, only the resources specific to the Text
Editor are passed on the Text Editor server. None of the standard widget
resources, except for geometry, are passed on from the requestor Text Editor
to the Text Editor server. These resources are loaded according to the environment
on the server’s host at the time the server is started up. If more control
is required, the -standAlone command-line option is used to create a separate,
stand alone dtpad process where any and all of the standard resources,
such as fontList or colors, can be loaded according to the environment
on the requestor’s host.
| Basic Resources |
| Name |
| saveOnClose |
| missingFileWarning |
| readOnlyWarning |
| nameChange |
| viewOnly |
| statusLine |
| wrapToFit |
| workspaceList |
| session |
- saveOnClose
- Indicates
whether the Text Editor is to save automatically the current text when
there are unsaved changes and the Text Editor is closed. Setting this resource
to True automatically saves unsaved changes when the Text Editor is closed.
This is equivalent to specifying the -saveOnClose command-line option.
- missingFileWarning
- Indicates
whether a warning dialog is to be posted when a file is specified that
does not exist or cannot be accessed. Setting this resource to True displays
the warning. This is equivalent to specifying the -missingFileWarning command-line
option.
- readOnlyWarning
- Indicates whether a warning dialog is to be posted
when a file for which the user does not have write permission is read. Setting
this resource to False suppresses the warning. This is equivalent to specifying
the -noReadOnlyWarning command-line option.
- nameChange
- Indicates whether the
current file name is to be changed when the current text is saved under
a new name. Setting this resource to False does not allow the name to be
reset. This is equivalent to specifying the -noNameChange command-line option.
- viewOnly
- Indicates whether text only be viewed or whether it can be edited
in the edit window. Setting this resource to True disables text editing.
This is equivalent to specifying the -viewOnly command-line option.
- statusLine
- Indicates
whether the Text Editor is to display the status line at the bottom of
the edit window. Setting this resource to True displays the status line.
This is equivalent to specifying the -statusLine command-line option.
- wrapToFit
- Indicates
whether the Text Editor is to enable wrap-to-fit mode when the editor is
started. Setting this resource to True enables wrap-to-fit mode. This is equivalent
to specifying the -wrapToFit command-line option.
- workspaceList
- Indicates which
workspace or workspaces the Text Editor is to be displayed in. This is equivalent
to specifying the -workspaceList command-line option.
- session
- Specifies the
saved session file to use in restoring a previously saved Text Editor session.
This is equivalent to specifying the -session command-line argument.
| Client-Server
Control |
| Resources |
| Name |
| standAlone |
| blocking |
| server |
| exitOnLastClose |
- standAlone
- Specifies whether the Text Editor is to run
as a separate, independent Text Editor process without using the Text Editor
server. Setting this resource to True invokes a separate, independent process.
This is equivalent to specifying the -standAlone command-line option.
- blocking
- Specifies
that the client Text Editor process is not to terminate until receiving
notification from the Text Editor server that the user exited or closed
its edit window. Setting this resource to False causes the client process
to exit immediately when the server determines that it can handle its edit
request. This is equivalent to specifying the -noBlocking command-line option.
- server
- Specifies that the Text Editor is to be started in server mode to
handle all processing for all subsequent edit requests for the display.
Setting this resource to True is equivalent to specifying the -server command-line
option.
- exitOnLastClose
- Specifies that the Text Editor server is to terminate
when the last edit window for the display is closed. Setting this resource
to True is equivalent to specifying the -exitOnLastClose command-line option.
Not used.
None.
dtpad allows you to print either
frgaments of text files or complete text files.
You print a fragment from
a text file using Drag and Drop. Select the portion you want to print and
drag the selected text over the printer icon on the desktop. This Drag and
Drop action displays a print setup dialog that allows you to configure
the print job and execute it.
You can print a complete text file either
from the File Manager or from within dtpad.
To print from the File Manager,
select the file’s icon and drag it over the printer icon on the desktop.
As with printing a text file fragment, this Drag and Drop action displays
a print setup dialog that allows you to configure the print job and execute
it.
You can print the currently open document from within dtpad in either
of two ways:
-
- By selecting Print from the File pulldown menu. With this
method, dtpad prints the current file using the print setup options established
by the last print job. No print setup dialog is displayed.
-
- By selecting
Print... from the File pulldown menu. This method gives you the most control
over the printing process and the resulting output. When you select Print...,
dtpad displays a Print Setup window that allows you to set a number of
generic and printer-specific printing options. For example, you can send
the output to a file or a printer. In the case of printed output, you can
specify how many copies you want. You can also access another window to
set options specific to the printer/spooler you are using. For example,
you can select paper size, orientation, a banner page title, one- or two-sided
printing, and email notification on completion of the print job.
The following environment variables affect the execution of dtpad:
- DISPLAY
- Specify the default X Windows display to connect to.
- LANG
- Provide
a default value for the internationalization variables that are unset or
null. If LANG is unset or null, the corresponding value from the implementation-specific
default locale will be used. If any of the internationalization variables
contains an invalid setting, the utility behaves as if none of the variables
had been defined.
- LC_ALL
- If set to a non-empty string value, override the
values of all the other internationalization variables.
- LC_MESSAGES
- Determine
the locale that is used to affect the format and contents of diagnostic
messages written to standard error and informative messages written to
standard output.
- NLSPATH
- Determine the location of message catalogues for
the processing of LC_MESSAGES.
The following
ToolTalk Desktop and Media requests are supported by the Text Editor server:
- C_STRING
- Text in an arbitrary codeset
- _DT_DATA
- Data that does not match any
other data type
In addition, the Text Editor supports the messages below
for any media type that does not have a specific editor registered.
The
following messages are supported from the Media Exchange message set:
- Instantiate
- Opens
a new edit window for composing arbitrary file(s).
- Edit
- Opens a new edit
window for editing an existing file or buffer or for composing a specific
new file or buffer.
- Display
- Opens a new edit window for displaying an existing
file or buffer.
The following messages are supported from the Desktop message
set:
- Quit
- Terminates the text editing services or closes a specific Text
Editor edit window as specified by the operation2Quit argument. The operation2Quit
argument must be the message ID of the Media Exchange request that created
the edit window.
- The default actions for notifying the user, saving or returning
text
- and closing edit windows are:
-
- If operation2Quit is specified, the
specified edit window is closed; otherwise, all edit window(s) are closed
and the text editing services are terminated
-
- If there are unsaved changes,
the user is notified and allowed to save the text and/or abort the Quit;
otherwise, the user is not notified and the text is not saved (or returned
if a buffer is being edited)
- Both the silent and force
- arguments are supported.
However, the semantics of silent differ from the Desktop message set in
that the text editing services provides user notification only when there
are unsaved changes, rather than user notification when an edit window
is terminated. The following table describes variances in the default action
for various combination of silent and force.
| silent |
| False |
| True |
| If there are
unsaved changes, the user is |
| not notified, the text is not saved and the
edit window is not terminated. |
| T} |
| False |
| If there are unsaved changes, the user
is |
| still notified and allowed to save the text, but cannot abort the |
| Quit. |
| T} |
| True |
| If
there are unsaved changes, the user is |
| not notified, the text is not saved
and the edit window is closed. |
| T} |
- Whenever the Quit request is not carried
- out (i.e., in the default case when the user explicitly aborts the Quit or
when silent is True and force is not specified or is False), the Quit request
is failed with TT_DESKTOP_ECANCELED.
- Save
- Saves a specific edit window opened
via an Edit request. The ID argument must have the messageID vtype and have
the value of the message ID of the Edit request that created the edit window.
- Saved
- Sent when a file has been saved, as the result of a Save request or
a user action.
Not used.
Not used.
None.
None.
The following exit values are returned:
- 0
- Successful completion.
- >0
- An error occurred.
Default.
None.
None.
Each instance of the Text Editor operates
in one of three modes:
- Requestor Mode
- When the Text Editor is started without
any overriding command-line options (that is, -standAlone or -server), it
always attempts to run in this mode. In this mode it simply sends an edit
request to a separate Text Editor server process and then blocks (does
nothing) until it receives a notice from the server when its edit request
is done, at which time it exits. If -noBlocking is specified, it exits immediately
after the server accepts its edit request rather than waiting until the
edit request is done.
- StandAlone Mode
- If the Text Editor server cannot process
the edit request from the Text Editor instance (for example, the server
process doesn’t exist or can’t be started, or it can’t access the requestor’s
file), or if -standAlone is specified on the command line, the Text Editor
instance operates in standAlone mode. In this mode the Text Editor creates
its own edit window and handles all processing for this window on its own.
In addition, it does not handle any edit requests from outside sources
and it exits when its edit window is closed.
- Server Mode
- When -server is specified
on the command line, the Text Editor instance operates as a server for
all Text Editor edit requests for the same display. That is, it creates
a separate edit window and does the actual editing for all Text Editor
instances running to the same display that do not have -standAlone specified
on their command line. Only one Text Editor server for a display can exist,
and in the XCDE, this instance is normally started automatically if it’s
not running at the time an edit request is made.
The
Text Editor automatically saves the current text to a panic save file before
exiting whenever it encounters a panic signal or an internal X error. Panic
signals are signals such as SIGHUP, SIGINT, SIGQUIT, SIGILL, SIGABRT, SIGIOT,
SIGEMT, SIGFPE, SIGBUS, SIGSEGV, SIGSYS, SIGPIPE and SIGTERM. Internal X
errors are both non fatal X Error events (as trapped by XSetErrorHandler(3)
),
such as a failure in X server memory allocation, and fatal X errors (as
trapped by XSetIOErrorHandler), such as losing the connection to the X
server. The Text Editor constructs the name of the panic save file by bracketing
the file name as supplied by the user (or noName if none is supplied) with
enough number symbols ( #) to make the name unique.
Wrap-to-fit
mode and text formatting are essentially independent operations. Wrap-to-fit
mode pertains to the dynamic display of lines, as delimited by <newline>
characters, which exceed the width of the Text Editor window and is based
on the left and right window boundaries. When wrap-to-fit mode is off (the
default), each line of text is displayed on a single line on the display
and text entered at the right window boundary causes the window to scroll
automatically to the right to accommodate the new text until an actual
<newline> character is entered (normally, by pressing the Return key). When
wrap-to-fit mode is on, lines longer than the window width are automatically
wrapped at the right window margin to one or more display lines, and text
entered at the right window boundary is automatically broken on a word
boundary to the first column of the next display line. Wrap-to-fit mode is
dynamic in that wrapped lines are automatically adjusted when text is inserted
or deleted or when the window is resized. Wrap-to-fit mode only affects the
display of lines; it does not actually insert <newline> characters in the
text.
Text formatting is a static operation that inserts actual <newline>
(and/or <space>) characters directly in the text to match it to the left
and right margins (and justification mode) specified in the Format Settings
dialog. Format settings affect text only when explicitly applied and have
no affect on wrap-to-fit mode or previously formatted text. Initially, and
whenever the window is resized, the right format margin is automatically
set to the window width to match the wrap-to-fit boundary.
- /usr/dt/app-defaults/$LANG/Dtpad
- Text
Editor Application Defaults.
- /usr/dt/lib/nls/msg/$LANG/dtpad.cat
- Text Editor
Message Catalog.
- /usr/dt/appconfig/help/$LANG/Textedit.sdl
- Text Editor Help
Volume.
- /usr/dt/appconfig/types/$LANG/dtpad.dt
- Contains Text Editor action
definitions used by the Text Editor.
- /usr/dt/appconfig/tttypes/types.xdr
- ToolTalk
process-types file containing message definitions used by the Text Editor.
- #<file name>#
- Panic save file (see Automatic File Save).
DtEditor(3)
.
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