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| -- $Id: README-first,v 1.9 2007/01/27 18:27:09 tom Exp $ |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| C++ interface to ncurses routines |
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| |
| This directory contains the source code for several C++ classes which |
| ease the use of writing ncurses-based programs. The code was originally |
| derived from the libg++ CursesWindow class, but rewritten for ncurses. |
| |
| The classes simplify the use of window specific functions by |
| encapsulating them in the window object. Function overloading is |
| used in order to narrow the interface. For example, you do not have the |
| distinction between `printw' and `mvprintw' anymore. |
| |
| A second benefit is the removal of all #defines which are included in |
| the curses.h file. This is a steady cause of trouble because many |
| common identifiers are used. Instead now all #defines are inline |
| functions, which also allows strict type checking of arguments. |
| |
| The next enhancement is color support. It was originally provided by a |
| derived class. This caused some trouble if you think about Panels or |
| Menus and Forms with colors. We decided to put color support into the |
| base class so that any derived class may use color support also. |
| The implementation chosen here is directed to unrestricted use |
| of mixes of color and monochrome windows. The original NCursesColorWindow |
| class is maintained for compatibility reasons. |
| |
| The last point to mention is the support of other packages that are |
| distributed with the ncurses package: the panels library, the menu library |
| and the form library. This support is provided by the NCursesPanel class, |
| which is also derived from the NCursesWindow class and the NCursesMenu |
| and NCursesForm classes which are derived from NCursesPanel. This allows |
| building interfaces with windows. |
| |
| Please see the example program for a quick introduction. |
| |
| Note that at this point, there is no documentation for these classes. |
| Hopefully some will be written in the not too distant future. For now, |
| to find out how to use the classes, read the code and the example program. |
| |
| Suggestions for enhancements and contributions of code (and docs) are |
| welcome. Please let us know which functionality you miss. |
| |
| Original author: |
| Eric Newton <newton@rocky.oswego.edu> for FSF's libg++ |
| |
| Authors of first ncurses based release (NCursesWindow, NCursesPanel): |
| Ulrich Drepper <drepper@ira.uka.de> |
| and Anatoly Ivasyuk <anatoly@nick.csh.rit.edu> |
| |
| Authors of this release: |
| Juergen Pfeifer |
| Thomas E. Dickey |
