# curs_terminfo 3x

    curs_terminfo(3x)                                     curs_terminfo(3x)

## NAME

           del_curterm, mvcur, putp, restartterm, set_curterm,
           setterm, setupterm, tigetflag, tigetnum, tigetstr, tparm,
           tputs, vid_attr, vid_puts, vidattr, vidputs - curses
           interfaces to terminfo database

## SYNOPSIS

           #include <curses.h>
           #include <term.h>

           int setupterm(char *term, int fildes, int *errret);
           int setterm(char *term);
           TERMINAL *set_curterm(TERMINAL *nterm);
           int del_curterm(TERMINAL *oterm);
           int restartterm(const char *term, int fildes, int *errret);
           char *tparm(char *str, ...);
           int tputs(const char *str, int affcnt, int (*putc)(int));
           int putp(const char *str);
           int vidputs(chtype attrs, int (*putc)(int));
           int vidattr(chtype attrs);
           int vid_puts(attr_t attrs, short pair, void *opts, int (*putc)(char));
           int vid_attr(attr_t attrs, short pair, void *opts);
           int mvcur(int oldrow, int oldcol, int newrow, int newcol);
           int tigetflag(char *capname);
           int tigetnum(char *capname);
           char *tigetstr(char *capname);

## DESCRIPTION

           These low-level routines must be called by  programs  that
           have to deal directly with the terminfo database to handle
           certain terminal capabilities, such as  programming  func-
           tion  keys.   For all other functionality, curses routines
           are more suitable and their use is recommended.

           Initially, setupterm should  be  called.   Note  that  se-
           tupterm  is  automatically  called by initscr and newterm.
           This  defines  the  set  of  terminal-dependent  variables
           [listed in terminfo(5)].  The terminfo variables lines and
           columns  are  initialized  by  setupterm  as  follows:  If
           use_env(FALSE)  has  been  called,  values  for  lines and
           columns specified in terminfo are used.  Otherwise, if the
           environment  variables LINES and COLUMNS exist, their val-
           ues are used.  If these environment variables do not exist
           and the program is running in a window, the current window
           size is used.  Otherwise, if the environment variables  do
           not  exist,  the values for lines and columns specified in
           the terminfo database are used.

           The header files curses.h and term.h  should  be  included
           (in  this order) to get the definitions for these strings,
           numbers,  and  flags.   Parameterized  strings  should  be
           passed  through  tparm  to instantiate them.  All terminfo
           strings [including the output of tparm] should be  printed
           with  tputs or putp.  Call the reset_shell_mode to restore
           the tty modes before exiting [see curs_kernel(3x)].   Pro-
           grams  which  use  cursor  addressing  should  output  en-
           ter_ca_mode upon startup and  should  output  exit_ca_mode
           before  exiting.   Programs  desiring shell escapes should
           call

           reset_shell_mode and output exit_ca_mode before the  shell
           is  called  and  should  output enter_ca_mode and call re-
           set_prog_mode after returning from the shell.

           The setupterm routine reads in the terminfo database, ini-
           tializing the terminfo structures, but does not set up the
           output virtualization structures used by curses.  The ter-
           minal  type is the character string term; if term is null,
           the environment variable TERM is used.  All output  is  to
           file  descriptor  fildes  which is initialized for output.
           If errret is not null, then setupterm returns  OK  or  ERR
           and stores a status value in the integer pointed to by er-
           rret.  A return value of OK combined with status of  1  in
           errret is normal.  If ERR is returned, examine errret:

                  1    means that the terminal is hardcopy, cannot be
                       used for curses applications.

                  0    means that the terminal could not be found, or
                       that  it  is a generic type, having too little
                       information for curses applications to run.

                  -1   means that the terminfo database could not  be
                       found.

           If  errret is null, setupterm prints an error message upon
           finding an error and exits.  Thus, the simplest call is:

                 setupterm((char *)0, 1, (int *)0);,

           which uses all the defaults and sends the output  to  std-
           out.

           The  setterm  routine is being replaced by setupterm.  The
           call:

                 setupterm(term, 1, (int *)0)

           provides the same  functionality  as  setterm(term).   The
           setterm  routine  is  included here for BSD compatibility,
           and is not recommended for new programs.

           The set_curterm routine  sets  the  variable  cur_term  to
           nterm, and makes all of the terminfo boolean, numeric, and
           string variables use the values from  nterm.   It  returns
           the old value of cur_term.

           The  del_curterm  routine  frees  the  space pointed to by
           oterm and makes it available for further use.  If oterm is
           the  same  as  cur_term, references to any of the terminfo
           boolean, numeric, and string variables thereafter may  re-
           fer  to  invalid  memory locations until another setupterm
           has been called.

           The  restartterm  routine  is  similar  to  setupterm  and
           initscr,  except  that it is called after restoring memory
           to a previous state (for example, when  reloading  a  game
           saved  as a core image dump).  It assumes that the windows
           and the input and output options are the same as when mem-
           ory  was saved, but the terminal type and baud rate may be
           different.  Accordingly, it saves various tty state  bits,
           does a setupterm, and then restores the bits.

           The tparm routine instantiates the string str with parame-
           ters pi.  A pointer is returned to the result of str  with
           the parameters applied.

           The  tputs  routine  applies  padding  information  to the
           string str and outputs it.  The str  must  be  a  terminfo
           string  variable  or the return value from tparm, tgetstr,
           or tgoto.  affcnt is the number of lines affected, or 1 if
           not  applicable.   putc is a putchar-like routine to which
           the characters are passed, one at a time.

           The putp routine calls tputs(str, 1, putchar).  Note  that
           the  output  of  putp  always  goes  to stdout, not to the
           fildes specified in setupterm.

           The vidputs routine displays the string on the terminal in
           the  video  attribute mode attrs, which is any combination
           of the attributes listed in  curses(3x).   The  characters
           are passed to the putchar-like routine putc.

           The  vidattr  routine  is like the vidputs routine, except
           that it outputs through putchar.

           The vid_attr and vid_puts routines correspond  to  vidattr
           and  vidputs,  respectively.   They use a set of arguments
           for representing the video attributes  plus  color,  i.e.,
           one of type attr_t for the attributes and one of short for
           the color_pair number.  The vid_attr and vid_puts routines
           are  designed  to use the attribute constants with the WA_
           prefix.  The opts argument is  reserved  for  future  use.
           Currently,  applications  must  provide a null pointer for
           that argument.

           The mvcur routine provides low-level  cursor  motion.   It
           takes  effect  immediately  (rather  than  at the next re-
           fresh).

           The tigetflag, tigetnum and tigetstr routines  return  the
           value of the capability corresponding to the terminfo cap-
           name passed to them, such as xenl.

           The tigetflag routine returns the value -1 if  capname  is
           not a boolean capability, or 0 if it is canceled or absent
           from the terminal description.

           The tigetnum routine returns the value -2  if  capname  is
           not  a  numeric capability, or -1 if it is canceled or ab-
           sent from the terminal description.

           The tigetstr routine returns the value (char *)-1 if  cap-
           name is not a string capability, or 0 if it is canceled or
           absent from the terminal description.

           The capname for each capability is given in the table col-
           umn  entitled  capname code in the capabilities section of
           terminfo(5).

                  char *boolnames[], *boolcodes[], *boolfnames[]

                  char *numnames[], *numcodes[], *numfnames[]

                  char *strnames[], *strcodes[], *strfnames[]

           These null-terminated arrays  contain  the  capnames,  the
           termcap  codes, and the full C names, for each of the ter-
           minfo variables.

## RETURN VALUE

           Routines that return an integer return  ERR  upon  failure
           and  OK  (SVr4 only specifies "an integer value other than
           ERR") upon successful completion, unless  otherwise  noted
           in the preceding routine descriptions.

           Routines that return pointers always return NULL on error.

           X/Open defines no error conditions.  In  this  implementa-
           tion

                  del_curterm
                       returns  an error if its terminal parameter is
                       null.

                  restartterm
                       returns an error if the associated call to se-
                       tupterm returns an error.

                  setupterm
                       returns  an error if it cannot allocate enough
                       memory, or create the initial windows (stdscr,
                       curscr,  newscr).   Other error conditions are
                       documented above.

## NOTES

           The setupterm routine should be used in place of  setterm.
           It  may be useful when you want to test for terminal capa-
           bilities without committing to the allocation  of  storage
           involved in initscr.

           Note that vidattr and vidputs may be macros.

## PORTABILITY

           The  function  setterm  is not described in the XSI Curses
           standard and must be considered non-portable.   All  other
           functions are as described in the XSI curses standard.

           In  System V Release 4, set_curterm has an int return type
           and returns OK or ERR.  We have chosen  to  implement  the
           XSI Curses semantics.

           In System V Release 4, the third argument of tputs has the
           type int (*putc)(char).

           The XSI Curses standard prototypes tparm with a fixed num-
           ber  of  parameters, rather than a variable argument list.
           This  implementation  uses  a  variable   argument   list.
           Portable  applications  should  provide 9 parameters after
           the format; zeroes are fine for this purpose.

           XSI notes that after calling mvcur, the curses  state  may
           not  match the actual terminal state, and that an applica-
           tion should touch and refresh the window  before  resuming
           normal  curses calls.  Both ncurses and System V Release 4
           curses implement mvcur using the SCREEN data allocated  in
           either  initscr or newterm.  So though it is documented as
           a terminfo function, mvcur is  really  a  curses  function
           which is not well specified.

           XSI  states that the old location must be given.  This im-
           plementation allows the caller to use -1's for the old or-
           dinates.  In that case, the old location is unknown.

           Extended  terminal  capability  names, e.g., as defined by
           tic -x, are not stored in the  arrays  described  in  this
           section.

## SEE ALSO

           curses(3x),  curs_initscr(3x), curs_kernel(3x), curs_term-
           cap(3x), putc(3S), terminfo(5)

                                                          curs_terminfo(3x)