[comp.sources.wanted] Mouse & Curses, Curses in DOS

flint@gistdev.gist.com (Flint Pellett) (09/13/90)

I have a couple programs that presently run using curses in a UNIX
environment.  I need two things with these programs that I don't have
right now, and I want to avoid re-inventing the wheel.

1. I'd like to be able to get input from a mouse device, without
   sacrificing all portability, and without having to spend weeks
   writing my own mouse drivers.  (If I can control the mouse in a
   386 environment, even if it won't port to other platforms, I'll
   be quite satisfied for now.)

2. I'd like to be able to port them to DOS.

I scanned the docs on AT&T's ETI, (Extended Terminal Interface) hoping
to find mouse support- but if it is there, I missed it.  (I assumed
that the addition of something very basic like mouse support would
have been included in a new version of curses for sure.  Apparently I
was wrong.  :-(.  Does anyone know of an existing curses type library
that provides mouse support in a 386 UNIX environment at least?  (I have
the AT&T Mouse Driver Add-On since I have X-Windows.  (Don't ask why
I'm messing with curses when I have a real X system, you don't wanna
know.)  Could I talk to the X mouse driver fairly easily within my
curses program to get mouse input, or is it not going to work because
I'm not in graphics mode?  If I can use it, where would I find the
docs that say how?) 

On the DOS front: I grabbed the PCURSES package from Simtel and was
pretty disappointed again: no color support for one thing, and it
appears to not have been updated since 1982, and was described as a
BETA version even then.  I am aware of Aspen Scientific's product, and
a Lattice product, but I have no idea how complete either of them are,
or how compatible with SYS V 3.2 curses.  If anyone has used either of
these and can give me some info, or provide any pointers to other
better packages, commercial or otherwise, I'd appreciate it.  (Again,
I would like to be able to use the mouse-- any of these have anything
for that?  I have mouse handling software for DOS already, but for
graphics mode, not text, and I'd rather leave the whole job of a mouse
cursor up to the curses routines rather than trying to step on their
feet and update the screen independently.)

Any news about upcoming future versions of things that will do what I
need would also be greatly appreciated.  Thanks much. 

Flint Pellett, Global Information Systems Technology, Inc.
1800 Woodfield Drive, Savoy, IL  61874     (217) 352-1165
uunet!gistdev!flint or flint@gistdev.gist.com
-- 
Flint Pellett, Global Information Systems Technology, Inc.
1800 Woodfield Drive, Savoy, IL  61874     (217) 352-1165
uunet!gistdev!flint or flint@gistdev.gist.com