Re: LYNX-DEV lynx2.7.1ac-0.20 available

[Laura Eaves]

> From: Bela Lubkin <address@hidden>
> Date: Mon, 5 May 1997 15:20:41 -0700
>...
> I like my searches to act like in an editor: each time I hit "next", the
> hilight jumps to the very next match -- even if it's on the same line as
> the previous match.  This helps my visual scan for the search phrase.
> If the screen contains many matches, the cursor should jump forward on
> the same screen, without causing a redraw, until it's on the last match;
> then and only then should it draw a new screen, with the next match near
> the top of the screen.

There's a distinction to be made between moving the cursor and highlighting
text.
In lynx, when you do a search and the match happens to be on an anchor, the
"current link" is moved to that anchor, which may or may not require the
screen to be redrawn.  If SHOW_CURSOR happens to be true, this means
the cursor is positioned at that link, so it's easy for a screen reader (or
magnification software) to track it.
If the match is not on an anchor, it is just highlighted (no cursor movement).
This is the difference between lynx and an editor.

Cursor movement aside, though, I actually like the idea of moving the
highlighted text from one match to the next, rather than highlighting all
the matches at once.

> I imagine -- perhaps incorrectly -- that it might be helpful for a
> visually impaired user if each search caused the screen to be redrawn
> with the new match near the top of the screen.  Obviously the details
> depend on the type and sophistication of the screen-reader software.  A
> sophisticated reader program should be able to deal with the method I
> prefer, by "noticing" that a highlight has been turned off and another
> turned on.  Lynx should not *assume* that level of sophistication, but
> it should definitely *accomodate* that level if it exists.

Actually, from what I understand, redrawing the screen is pain for speech
users as it generates a lot of verbage.
But if the match is at or near the top of the screen, at least it can be
identified quickly.

One thing nice about the new version using slang color 7 instead of plain
underlining to highlight matches is that it makes them distinguishable from
other underlined text on the screen.  (Slang color 7 actually represents
bold+underline+reverse (or everything turned on at once).  I don't know how
that looks when you're not using slang.  maybe it wouldn't work on some
terminals...
--le

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