Re: lynx-dev TEXTAREA (was Re: LYNX-DEV Using Lynx woth web "forums")

[David Combs]

> From address@hidden Fri Apr 24 09:01:07 1998
> Date: Fri, 24 Apr 1998 16:32:17 +0100
> From: David Hardy <address@hidden>
> 
> 
> Another possibility is to use a special character to introduce a
> function, preferably one that's not commonly used in input into a text
> area. For example, if \ were the special character then \ followed by
> anything other than another \ could mean 'do the associated function'
> (for example, \ followed by left-arrow would mean 'back out to the
> next higher link') while \\ would mean 'put a \ in the text area'.
> This is similar to the trick used by the C language in strings to
> introduce control characters.
> 

do like unix mail: have a default such character, but ALSO allow
the user to REDEFINE it.

Why?

For people who dial-in through a program like unix "tip", etc.

Programs like that have their OWN special-char that means
"talk NOW to TIP itself, with a command for TIP, rather than
the usual thing of tip simply passing everything through to
computer at the other end of the line.

TIP, for instances, uses (as default) TILDE, the SAME char
that unix MAIL uses!!!!

Which means that when using mail, whatever you key in goes
through (at least) TWO programs, EACH of which will do
something special on a tilde.  Meaning that any beginning-of-line
tilde will be caught at the first opportunity, ie by TIP,
and MAIL will never see it...

See the problem?   And the solution, which is to allow
the user to REdefine that char.