keysh(1) keysh(1)
NAME [Toc] [Back]
keysh - context-sensitive softkey shell
SYNOPSIS [Toc] [Back]
keysh
DESCRIPTION [Toc] [Back]
keysh is an extension of the standard Korn-shell (for a description of
the basic Korn-shell functionality, see ksh(1)).
keysh uses hierarchical softkey menus and context-sensitive help to
aid users in building command-lines, combining the power of the Kornshell
with the ease-of-use of a menu system.
And keysh is entirely data-driven, allowing its menus and help to be
easily extended as needed.
Note that during keysh invocation, the environment variable $TERM must
specify the terminal type, as defined in the terminfo(4) database (see
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES below).
COMMAND ENTRY [Toc] [Back]
keysh continually parses the command-line and always presents the user
with an appropriate set of current choices on the softkey labels.
The user can select these softkeys to create readable softkey commands
on the command-line. keysh automatically translates these softkey
commands into equivalent HP-UX commands prior to executing them.
Alternatively, the user can ignore the softkeys altogether in favor of
entering the traditional HP-UX commands directly, as when using the
Korn-shell.
During command entry, keysh ordinarily displays a status-line near the
bottom of the screen. This status-line contains information such as
the host name, current directory, and time and date.
Whenever the user must perform an action to complete the current
softkey command, keysh temporarily displays a prompt message in place
of the status-line. This message briefly describes the required
action.
Softkey Types [Toc] [Back]
keysh presents four basic softkey types:
--Help-- Selecting the --Help-- softkey causes keysh to
display help information associated with the next
selected softkey, rather than actually performing
its action.
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--More-- If there are more current choices than there are
softkeys, keysh breaks the choices into banks and
displays a special --More-- softkey along with the
first bank. Selecting the --More-- softkey causes
keysh to display the next bank of softkeys in
sequence, eventually cycling back to the first.
<param> parameter softkeys are displayed as a name
enclosed between a pair of less-than and greaterthan
symbols. They indicate that the usersupplied
text (such as a file name) should be
entered into the command-line at that point,
rather than actually selecting the softkey.
(Actually selecting the softkey only causes keysh
to display a hint message on the status line; the
command-line remains unchanged.)
option All other softkeys are option softkeys that can be
used to insert the corresponding command or option
name into the command-line.
Softkeys can be selected from left to right.
Editing The Command-Line [Toc] [Back]
keysh supports the normal Korn-shell command-line editing modes. In
addition, keysh also recognizes the cursor movement and editing keys
found on most terminals, as defined in the terminfo(4) database.
These include:
<Clear display> Clear the screen and command-line. If the screen
is scrolled, clear only from the cursor position
to the end of scrolling memory.
<Clear line> Clear from the cursor position to the end of the
command-line.
<Delete line> Clear the entire command-line.
<Insert line> Translate any softkey commands in the current
command-line and then edit the result.
<Delete char> Delete the character under the cursor.
<Insert char> Toggle between insert and overwrite modes.
<Up/Down arrow> Recall the previous/next command from the history
buffer.
<Left/Right arrow> Move the cursor left/right.
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<Home up/down> Move the cursor to the beginning/end of the
command-line.
<Tab> If no <Insert line> key is present, perform the
<Insert line> function (see above). Otherwise, if
no --Help-- softkey is present, perform the --
Help-- function (also see above). Otherwise,
perform the normal tab function.
<Backtab> Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous
word.
<Ctrl-L> Redraw the lower lines of the screen and restore
any necessary terminal modes.
Visible Softkey Commands [Toc] [Back]
If the visibles configuration option is enabled (see CONFIGURATION
below), keysh displays a list of configured softkey commands on the
softkey labels whenever it is expecting a new command. This is the
the top-level softkey menu.
If the user selects one of these softkey commands, keysh inserts its
command name into the command-line then displays a sub-menu listing
the command's major parameters and/or options.
The user can then (from left to right) select option softkeys and/or
enter text in place of parameter softkeys. keysh automatically
navigates the hierarchical softkey menu, always presenting the user
with an appropriate set of current choices on the softkey labels.
Note that keysh automatically redisplays the top-level softkey menu
when it detects that a command separator (such as a pipe or semicolon)
has been entered, thus allowing the user to use softkeys for
subsequent commands on the command-line as well as the first.
Invisible Softkey Commands [Toc] [Back]
If the invisibles configuration option is enabled (see CONFIGURATION
below) and keysh recognizes a traditional HP-UX command being entered,
it gives the user one last chance to use the softkeys by again
presenting an appropriate set of current choices on the softkey
labels. As with the top-level softkey menu options, the user can
choose to ignore the softkeys in favor of entering the traditional
HP-UX options directly.
Backup Softkeys [Toc] [Back]
If the backups configuration option is enabled (see CONFIGURATION
below), keysh displays the backup softkeys and programs the terminal
function keys appropriately whenever it has no other softkeys to
display (such as when a command is running). These provide the
traditional static softkey control which many users may be used to.
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Traditional HP-UX Commands [Toc] [Back]
If the user enters a traditional HP-UX command when keysh is
displaying its top-level softkey menu, keysh simply displays the
backup softkeys and allows the user to proceed.
If keysh subsequently detects a command separator, it again redisplays
the top-level softkey menu.
Softkey Command Syntax Errors [Toc] [Back]
Many softkey commands present the user with a set of softkey options
from which exactly one (or at least one) must be selected. If the
user fails to do this, keysh treats it as a syntax error, displaying
an error message and not accepting the command until the error has
been corrected.
Similarly, many softkey commands require that the user enter one or
more softkey parameters before the command is semantically complete.
If the user fails to do this, keysh again treats it as a syntax error.
Softkey Command Redirections [Toc] [Back]
The user can append redirection symbols (such as a less-than or
greater-than symbol followed by a file name) following a softkey
command. These are appended verbatim to the translated HP-UX command.
USING KEYSH WITH TERMINAL SESSION MANAGER [Toc] [Back]
When operating under the Terminal Session Manager (see tsm(1)), keysh
displays the tsm softkeys instead of the backup softkeys. If desired,
this interaction can be overridden by setting the $KEYTSM environment
variable (see ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES below).
When operating under tsm, keysh also automatically displays the tsm
window number in the status-line.
CONFIGURATION [Toc] [Back]
All keysh configuration functions are accessed through the top-level
Keysh_config softkey command or kc built-in command. These functions
include:
+ adding, placing, and deleting softkeys,
+ specifying backup softkeys,
+ selecting global options,
+ selecting status-line items,
+ restarting keysh,
+ writing configuration changes, and
+ undoing other configuration changes.
Each time the user changes keysh's configuration, keysh automatically
updates the user's $HOME/.keyshrc file. Upon subsequent invocations,
keysh automatically reconfigures itself as configured previously.
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Adding, Placing, And Deleting Softkeys
Any of the standard softkeys (see STANDARD SOFTKEY DEFINITIONS below)
can be added to the top-level softkey menu using the kc softkey add
command. If desired, an alternate softkey label may be specified
(usually in place of a cryptic HP-UX command name) using the
with_label option.
By default, added softkeys are placed at the end of the last --More--
bank of the top-level softkey menu. This placement can be overridden
using the and_place option of the kc softkey add command or using the
kc softkey move command.
In addition to the standard softkeys, custom softkeys can also be
added from custom softkey files using the from_user or from_file
options. For a description of the softkey file format, see
softkeys(4).
Note that any time a softkey is added from a particular softkey file,
all of the remaining softkeys from that file are automatically loaded
for use as invisible softkey commands. All softkeys from a file can
also be loaded for use as invisible softkey commands using the kc
softkey add invisibles command.
Any of the softkeys in the top-level softkey menu can be deleted using
the kc softkey delete command.
Specifying Backup Softkeys [Toc] [Back]
Backup softkeys are typically specified in the user's $HOME/.softkeys
file. The basic backup softkey definition line resembles:
backup softkey "<softkey>" literal "<string>";
Where <softkey> is the softkey label to display and <string> is the
text string to program the terminal function key with. A maximum of
eight backup softkeys can be specified.
Note that backup softkeys must be explicitly added using the kc
softkey add backups command before keysh can program them.
Selecting Global Options [Toc] [Back]
Various global options can be configured using the kc option command,
including:
backups Enable or disable the programming of the backup
softkeys.
help Enable or disable the --Help-- softkey.
invisibles Enable or disable the recognition of invisible
softkey commands.
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prompts Enable or disable the automatic generation of
prompt messages. When enabled, keysh displays a
prompt message whenever the user must perform an
action to complete the current softkey command.
This message briefly describes the required
action.
selectors Enable or disable the use of keyboard selectors.
When enabled, keysh displays an upper-case
selector character in each softkey label. Typing
the unquoted (upper-case) character selects the
softkey just as if its corresponding function key
had been pressed. Quoting the selector character
in any way restores its traditional meaning.
Selector keys are intended to be used on terminals
that do not support a sufficient number of
softkeys.
translations Enable or disable the display of HP-UX command
translations.
visibles Enable or disable the presentation and recognition
of visible softkey commands.
Selecting Status-Line Items [Toc] [Back]
Various information items can be configured into the status-line
displayed at the bottom of the screen using the kc status_line
command, including:
host_name The host name.
user_name The user name.
current_dir The current directory.
mail_status The mail status based on the $MAIL environment
variable (i.e., No mail, You have mail, or You
have new mail).
date The date.
time The time of day.
In addition, the $KEYSH environment variable, if set, is always
displayed first in the status-line.
Restarting Keysh [Toc] [Back]
keysh can be forced to reread the $HOME/.keyshrc file with the kc
restart command. This command is typically used to update a keysh to
a new configuration specified in another window.
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keysh can also be forced to remove the $HOME/.keyshrc file and restart
from the default user configuration with the kc restart default
command.
Writing Configuration Changes [Toc] [Back]
keysh can be forced to rewrite the $HOME/.keyshrc file with the kc
write command.
Undoing Other Configuration Changes [Toc] [Back]
keysh can also be forced to rewrite the $HOME/.keyshrc file with its
original contents, thus undoing all configuration changes made since
keysh was invoked, using the kc undo command.
Scaling Keysh Functionalities [Toc] [Back]
keysh provides a scalable set of functionalities which can be tailored
to suit personal preferences.
For users who are familiar with the HP-UX command names (though not
necessarily with the command options) or for users who prefer to
usually have the tsm softkeys visible, the command kc options visibles
off prevents keysh from displaying its top-level softkey menu while
waiting for a command; instead, it displays the backup softkeys or tsm
softkeys, as appropriate. (keysh start-up time can then be decreased
significantly by editing the $HOME/.keyshrc file and removing the
lines which add visible softkeys.)
For users who are also familiar with the HP-UX command options, the
command kc options invisibles off prevents keysh from displaying
softkey menus for invisible softkey commands, also.
And for users who have no need for the backup softkeys, the command kc
options backups off prevents keysh from ever programming the backup
softkeys.
Note that if visibles, invisibles, and backups are all turned off,
keysh performs no softkey processing at all. keysh effectively
transforms into a Korn-shell which displays a status-line and
recognizes the cursor movement and editing keys.
EXAMPLES [Toc] [Back]
To add the od (see od(1)) softkey to the end of the top-level softkey
menu and label it Octal_dump,
kc softkey add od with_label Octal_dump
To add the paste(1) softkey to the beginning of the top-level softkey
menu and label it Paste,
kc softkey add paste and_place as_first_softkey
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To add the custom emacs softkey from the file ~rpt/.softkeys to the
top-level softkey menu immediately before the ls (see ls(1)) softkey,
kc softkey add emacs from_user rpt and_place before_softkey ls
To add all invisible softkeys from the file ~rpt/.softkeys,
kc softkey add invisibles from_user rpt
To add the backup softkeys from the file $HOME/.softkeys,
kc softkey add backups
To delete the Edit_file softkey from the top-level softkey menu,
kc softkey delete Edit_file
To disable the --Help-- softkey,
kc options help off
To configure the user name into the status-line,
kc status_line user_name on
To configure the exit-value of the last command executed into the
status-line,
KEYSH="\${?#0}"
To list the ten largest files in the current directory,
ls long_format | Sort_lines numerically reverse_order \
starting_at_field 5 | head
STANDARD SOFTKEY DEFINITIONS [Toc] [Back]
Copy_files, Move_files, Print_files, Set_file_attribs, Switch.
adjust, ar, bdf, cal, cancel, cat, cd, cdb, chatr, chgrp, chmod,
chown, cmp, col, comm, cpio, cut, dd, df, diff, dircmp, disable, du,
elm, enable, exit, find, fold, grep, head, jobs, kill, lp, lpstat, ls,
mailx, make, man, mkdir, more, nm, nroff, od, paste, pg, pr, ps,
remsh, rlogin, rm, rmdir, sdiff, set, shar, sort, tail, tar, tee,
touch, tr, umask, uname, vi, wc, who, write, xd, xdb.
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES [Toc] [Back]
TERM Specifies the terminal type, as defined in the
terminfo(4) database. This variable must be either
part of keysh's invocation environment or it must be
set within one of the standard Korn-shell start-up
files.
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COLUMNS Specifies the number of columns in the terminal screen
if different than the terminfo(4) default.
LINES Specifies the number of lines in the terminal screen if
not the same as the terminfo(4) default.
PAGER Specifies the preferred pager to be used to display
help. The default is more (see more(1)).
TZ Specifies the time-zone to be used for time and date
representations on the status-line. The default is
en_US.roman8.
KEYBEL Specifies the character sequence sent to the terminal
by keysh to ring the bell. The default is ^G.
KEYENV Specifies an alternate keysh configuration file. The
default is $HOME/.keyshrc.
KEYESC Specifies the maximum allowable delay between
characters (in milliseconds) if they are to be treated
as part of a terminal escape sequence. The default is
350 ms.
KEYKSH If set, specifies that keysh should mimic the behavior
of the Korn-shell as closely as possible. No softkeys
or status-line are displayed. This mode is
particularly useful over slow modem lines.
KEYLOC If set, specifies that keysh should leave the terminal
keypad in local mode while commands are being entered.
This mimics the behavior of the Korn-shell.
KEYPS1 If set, specifies that keysh should not reset the
initial values of $PS1, $PS2, and $PS3. Note that $PS1
must be a constant character string in order for keysh
to recognize it and provide subsequent softkey
assistance.
KEYSH Specifies arbitrary text to be included in the keysh
status-line.
KEYSIM If set, specifies that keysh should always simulate
softkey labels and not use the built-in labels on HP
terminals.
KEYTSM If set, specifies that keysh should not use the tsm
softkeys when tsm is running. In this case, the user
can either use the tsm hotkey, the backup softkeys, or
the Switch softkey command (see STANDARD SOFTKEY
DEFINITIONS above) to switch tsm windows.
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KSH DIFFERENCES [Toc] [Back]
keysh is an extension of ksh(1) with the following exceptions:
Screen Updates [Toc] [Back]
keysh optimizes its display output to take advantage of available
terminal capabilities. Unlike the Korn-shell which often has to
redraw large portions of the command-line, keysh can simply insert or
delete characters at the appropriate screen position.
This makes keysh significantly faster over slow modem lines,
especially if the $KEYKSH environment variable is set (see ENVIRONMENT
VARIABLES above).
Emacs-Mode Editing [Toc] [Back]
The new <ESC>v command performs the function of the vi-mode v command.
An initial ^N command recalls the history line following the history
line executed as the previous command. This provides an easy
mechanism to repeat a sequence of history commands.
gmacs editing mode is not supported; emacs editing mode follows the
GNU emacs (18.54) definition of ^T.
The ^@ and <ESC>n ^K commands are not supported.
The M-<letter> and M-]<letter> alias functions are not supported (in
lieu of true softkey support).
Vi-Mode Editing [Toc] [Back]
The new o command performs the function of the emacs-mode ^O command.
An initial j command recalls the history line following the history
line executed as the previous command. This provides an easy
mechanism to repeat a sequence of history commands.
The | command is not supported.
The @<letter> alias function is not supported (in lieu of true softkey
support).
The u command performs an emacs-style nested undo; u<space> performs a
traditional vi-style undo.
WARNINGS [Toc] [Back]
keysh requires that the $TERM environment variable be set
appropriately in your $HOME/.profile file. It also requires that
$LINES and $COLUMNS be set appropriately if running on a non-standard
size terminal. Otherwise, an error message or a garbled screen
display results.
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keysh requires that option softkeys be selected from left to right.
When editing a command-line, it is possible to back up and insert a
softkey out-of-order -- resulting in a command error.
keysh initializes $PS1, $PS2, and $PS3 and types them read-only - do
not change them. Instead, use $KEYSH to display additional status
information.
keysh normally maintains the $HOME/.keyshrc file without user
intervention; however, start-up errors may occasionally occur and
persist. In this case, either execute the command kc restart default
(to remove the file and revert to the default user configuration) or
execute the command kc write (to rewrite the file with the current
configuration).
keysh assumes that HP-UX commands are not heavily aliased; otherwise
unexpected command translations may occur.
keysh neglects the effects of the Korn-shell expansion mechanisms when
counting command-line parameters, causing it to occasionally
underestimate the true number of parameters specified. The <ESC>*
emacs-mode or vi-mode editing command can often be used to pre-expand
these parameters.
The <ESC>v emacs-mode editing command and v vi-mode editing command
cannot be used to edit (pre-translated) softkey commands, since no
subsequent command translation can occur.
Adding a large number of softkeys can cause keysh to overflow a 1-
Mbyte Korn-shell data size limitation, causing disconcerting behavior.
keysh can only program the function keys on terminals whose
terminfo(4) entry defines the pfkey capability; similarly, it can only
use hardware softkey labels on terminals whose terminfo(4) entry
defines the pln capability (along with specifying lh equal to 2).
The default value for $KEYESC was chosen to provide reasonable
response in both local and networked environments. If keysh
misinterprets quickly typed emacs-mode or vi-mode editing commands as
terminal escape sequences, it may be necessary to decrease this value.
Specifying a \n (new-line) in the literal key sequence for a backup
softkey causes undesired results on HP terminals; use a \r (carriagereturn)
instead.
keysh does not display tsm softkeys when simulating softkey labels.
A limited number of environment variables and arguments are exported
to the pager when displaying help.
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EXTERNAL INFLUENCES [Toc] [Back]
Environment Variables
LANG determines the language in which softkeys and messages are
displayed.
LC_TIME determines the format and contents of date and time strings in
the status-line.
International Code Set Support [Toc] [Back]
Single-byte character code sets are supported.
AUTHOR [Toc] [Back]
keysh was developed by HP and AT&T.
FILES [Toc] [Back]
/usr/bin/keysh main executable
/usr/lib/keysh/builtins Keysh_config softkey
definition file
/usr/lib/keysh/$LANG/softkeys standard softkey
definitions file
/usr/lib/keysh/$LANG/keyshrc default user
configuration file
/usr/lib/nls/$LANG/keysh.cat message catalog
$HOME/.keyshrc user configuration file
$HOME/.softkeys user softkey definitions
file
SEE ALSO [Toc] [Back]
ksh(1), tsm(1), softkeys(4), terminfo(4).
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