terminfo - terminal capability data base
/usr/share/terminfo/*/*
Terminfo is a data base describing terminals, used by screen-oriented
programs such as nvi(1), rogue(1) and libraries such as curses(3X).
Terminfo describes terminals by giving a set of capabilities which they
have, by specifying how to perform screen operations, and by specifying
padding requirements and initialization sequences.
Entries in terminfo consist of a sequence of `,' separated fields
(embedded commas may be escaped with a backslash or notated as \072).
White space after the `,' separator is ignored. The first entry for
each terminal gives the names which are known for the terminal, separated
by `|' characters. The first name given is the most common
abbreviation for the terminal, the last name given should be a long
name fully identifying the terminal, and all others are understood as
synonyms for the terminal name. All names but the last should be in
lower case and contain no blanks; the last name may well contain upper
case and blanks for readability.
Terminal names (except for the last, verbose entry) should be chosen
using the following conventions. The particular piece of hardware making
up the terminal should have a root name, thus ``hp2621''. This
name should not contain hyphens. Modes that the hardware can be in, or
user preferences, should be indicated by appending a hyphen and a mode
suffix. Thus, a vt100 in 132 column mode would be vt100-w. The following
suffixes should be used where possible:
Suffix Meaning Example
-nn Number of lines on the screen aaa-60
-np Number of pages of memory c100-4p
-am With automargins (usually the default) vt100-am
-m Mono mode; suppress color ansi-m
-mc Magic cookie; spaces when highlighting wy30-mc
-na No arrow keys (leave them in local) c100-na
-nam Without automatic margins vt100-nam
-nl No status line att4415-nl
-ns No status line hp2626-ns
-rv Reverse video c100-rv
-s Enable status line vt100-s
-vb Use visible bell instead of beep wy370-vb
-w Wide mode (> 80 columns, usually 132) vt100-w
For more on terminal naming conventions, see the term(7) manual page.
Capabilities [Toc] [Back]
The following is a complete table of the capabilities included in a
terminfo description block and available to terminfo-using code. In
each line of the table,
The variable is the name by which the programmer (at the terminfo
level) accesses the capability.
The capname is the short name used in the text of the database, and is
used by a person updating the database. Whenever possible, capnames
are chosen to be the same as or similar to the ANSI X3.64-1979 standard
(now superseded by ECMA-48, which uses identical or very similar
names). Semantics are also intended to match those of the specification.
The termcap code is the old termcap capability name (some capabilities
are new, and have names which termcap did not originate).
Capability names have no hard length limit, but an informal limit of 5
characters has been adopted to keep them short and to allow the tabs in
the source file Caps to line up nicely.
Finally, the description field attempts to convey the semantics of the
capability. You may find some codes in the description field:
(P) indicates that padding may be specified
#[1-9] in the description field indicates that the string is passed
through tparm with parms as given (#i).
(P*) indicates that padding may vary in proportion to the number of
lines affected
(#i) indicates the ith parameter.
These are the boolean capabilities:
Variable Cap- TCap Description
Booleans name Code
auto_left_margin bw bw cub1 wraps from column
0 to last column
auto_right_margin am am terminal has automatic
margins
back_color_erase bce ut screen erased with
background color
can_change ccc cc terminal can redefine
existing colors
ceol_standout_glitch xhp xs standout not erased
by overwriting (hp)
col_addr_glitch xhpa YA only positive motion
for hpa/mhpa caps
cpi_changes_res cpix YF changing character
pitch changes resolution
cr_cancels_micro_mode crxm YB using cr turns off
micro mode
dest_tabs_magic_smso xt xt tabs destructive,
magic so char
(t1061)
eat_newline_glitch xenl xn newline ignored
after 80 cols (concept)
erase_overstrike eo eo can erase overstrikes
with a blank
generic_type gn gn generic line type
hard_copy hc hc hardcopy terminal
hard_cursor chts HC cursor is hard to
see
has_meta_key km km Has a meta key
(i.e., sets 8th-bit)
has_print_wheel daisy YC printer needs operator
to change character
set
has_status_line hs hs has extra status
line
hue_lightness_saturation hls hl terminal uses only
HLS color notation
(Tektronix)
insert_null_glitch in in insert mode distinguishes
nulls
lpi_changes_res lpix YG changing line pitch
changes resolution
memory_above da da display may be
retained above the
screen
memory_below db db display may be
retained below the
screen
move_insert_mode mir mi safe to move while
in insert mode
move_standout_mode msgr ms safe to move while
in standout mode
needs_xon_xoff nxon nx padding will not
work, xon/xoff
required
no_esc_ctlc xsb xb beehive (f1=escape,
f2=ctrl C)
no_pad_char npc NP pad character does
not exist
non_dest_scroll_region ndscr ND scrolling region is
non-destructive
non_rev_rmcup nrrmc NR smcup does not
reverse rmcup
over_strike os os terminal can overstrike
prtr_silent mc5i 5i printer will not
echo on screen
row_addr_glitch xvpa YD only positive motion
for vpa/mvpa caps
semi_auto_right_margin sam YE printing in last
column causes cr
status_line_esc_ok eslok es escape can be used
on the status line
tilde_glitch hz hz cannot print ~'s
(hazeltine)
transparent_underline ul ul underline character
overstrikes
xon_xoff xon xo terminal uses
xon/xoff handshaking
These are the numeric capabilities:
Variable Cap- TCap Description
Numeric name Code
columns cols co number of columns in
a line
init_tabs it it tabs initially every
# spaces
label_height lh lh rows in each label
label_width lw lw columns in each
label
lines lines li number of lines on
screen or page
lines_of_memory lm lm lines of memory if >
line. 0 means varies
magic_cookie_glitch xmc sg number of blank
characters left by
smso or rmso
max_attributes ma ma maximum combined
attributes terminal
can handle
max_colors colors Co maximum number of
colors on screen
max_pairs pairs pa maximum number of
color-pairs on the
screen
maximum_windows wnum MW maximum number of
defineable windows
no_color_video ncv NC video attributes
that cannot be used
with colors
num_labels nlab Nl number of labels on
screen
padding_baud_rate pb pb lowest baud rate
where padding needed
virtual_terminal vt vt virtual terminal
number (CB/unix)
width_status_line wsl ws number of columns in
status line
The following numeric capabilities are present in the SVr4.0 term
structure, but are not yet documented in the man page. They came in
with SVr4's printer support.
Variable Cap- TCap Description
Numeric name Code
bit_image_entwining bitwin Yo number of passes for
each bit-image row
bit_image_type bitype Yp type of bit-image
device
buffer_capacity bufsz Ya numbers of bytes
buffered before
printing
buttons btns BT number of buttons on
mouse
dot_horz_spacing spinh Yc spacing of dots horizontally
in dots
per inch
dot_vert_spacing spinv Yb spacing of pins vertically
in pins per
inch
max_micro_address maddr Yd maximum value in
micro_..._address
max_micro_jump mjump Ye maximum value in
parm_..._micro
micro_col_size mcs Yf character step size
when in micro mode
micro_line_size mls Yg line step size when
in micro mode
number_of_pins npins Yh numbers of pins in
print-head
output_res_char orc Yi horizontal resolution
in units per
line
output_res_horz_inch orhi Yk horizontal resolution
in units per
inch
output_res_line orl Yj vertical resolution
in units per line
output_res_vert_inch orvi Yl vertical resolution
in units per inch
print_rate cps Ym print rate in characters
per second
wide_char_size widcs Yn character step size
when in double wide
mode
These are the string capabilities:
Variable Cap- TCap Description
String name Code
acs_chars acsc ac graphics charset
pairs, based on
vt100
back_tab cbt bt back tab (P)
bell bel bl audible signal
(bell) (P)
carriage_return cr cr carriage return (P*)
(P*)
change_char_pitch cpi ZA Change number of
characters per inch
to #1
change_line_pitch lpi ZB Change number of
lines per inch to #1
change_res_horz chr ZC Change horizontal
resolution to #1
change_res_vert cvr ZD Change vertical resolution
to #1
change_scroll_region csr cs change region to
line #1 to line #2
(P)
char_padding rmp rP like ip but when in
insert mode
clear_all_tabs tbc ct clear all tab stops
(P)
clear_margins mgc MC clear right and left
soft margins
clear_screen clear cl clear screen and
home cursor (P*)
clr_bol el1 cb Clear to beginning
of line
clr_eol el ce clear to end of line
(P)
clr_eos ed cd clear to end of
screen (P*)
column_address hpa ch horizontal position
#1, absolute (P)
command_character cmdch CC terminal settable
cmd character in
prototype !?
create_window cwin CW define a window #1
from #2,#3 to #4,#5
cursor_address cup cm move to row #1 columns
#2
cursor_down cud1 do down one line
cursor_home home ho home cursor (if no
cup)
cursor_invisible civis vi make cursor invisible
cursor_left cub1 le move left one space
cursor_mem_address mrcup CM memory relative cursor
addressing, move
to row #1 columns #2
cursor_normal cnorm ve make cursor appear
normal (undo
civis/cvvis)
cursor_right cuf1 nd non-destructive
space (move right
one space)
cursor_to_ll ll ll last line, first
column (if no cup)
cursor_up cuu1 up up one line
cursor_visible cvvis vs make cursor very
visible
define_char defc ZE Define a character
#1, #2 dots wide,
descender #3
delete_character dch1 dc delete character
(P*)
delete_line dl1 dl delete line (P*)
dial_phone dial DI dial number #1
dis_status_line dsl ds disable status line
display_clock dclk DK display clock
down_half_line hd hd half a line down
ena_acs enacs eA enable alternate
char set
enter_alt_charset_mode smacs as start alternate
character set (P)
enter_am_mode smam SA turn on automatic
margins
enter_blink_mode blink mb turn on blinking
enter_bold_mode bold md turn on bold (extra
bright) mode
enter_ca_mode smcup ti string to start programs
using cup
enter_delete_mode smdc dm enter delete mode
enter_dim_mode dim mh turn on half-bright
mode
enter_doublewide_mode swidm ZF Enter double-wide
mode
enter_draft_quality sdrfq ZG Enter draft-quality
mode
enter_insert_mode smir im enter insert mode
enter_italics_mode sitm ZH Enter italic mode
enter_leftward_mode slm ZI Start leftward carriage
motion
enter_micro_mode smicm ZJ Start micro-motion
mode
enter_near_letter_quality snlq ZK Enter NLQ mode
enter_normal_quality snrmq ZL Enter normal-quality
mode
enter_protected_mode prot mp turn on protected
mode
enter_reverse_mode rev mr turn on reverse
video mode
enter_secure_mode invis mk turn on blank mode
(characters invisible)
enter_shadow_mode sshm ZM Enter shadow-print
mode
enter_standout_mode smso so begin standout mode
enter_subscript_mode ssubm ZN Enter subscript mode
enter_superscript_mode ssupm ZO Enter superscript
mode
enter_underline_mode smul us begin underline mode
enter_upward_mode sum ZP Start upward carriage
motion
enter_xon_mode smxon SX turn on xon/xoff
handshaking
erase_chars ech ec erase #1 characters
(P)
exit_alt_charset_mode rmacs ae end alternate character
set (P)
exit_am_mode rmam RA turn off automatic
margins
exit_attribute_mode sgr0 me turn off all
attributes
exit_ca_mode rmcup te strings to end programs
using cup
exit_delete_mode rmdc ed end delete mode
exit_doublewide_mode rwidm ZQ End double-wide mode
exit_insert_mode rmir ei exit insert mode
exit_italics_mode ritm ZR End italic mode
exit_leftward_mode rlm ZS End left-motion mode
exit_micro_mode rmicm ZT End micro-motion
mode
exit_shadow_mode rshm ZU End shadow-print
mode
exit_standout_mode rmso se exit standout mode
exit_subscript_mode rsubm ZV End subscript mode
exit_superscript_mode rsupm ZW End superscript mode
exit_underline_mode rmul ue exit underline mode
exit_upward_mode rum ZX End reverse character
motion
exit_xon_mode rmxon RX turn off xon/xoff
handshaking
fixed_pause pause PA pause for 2-3 seconds
flash_hook hook fh flash switch hook
flash_screen flash vb visible bell (may
not move cursor)
form_feed ff ff hardcopy terminal
page eject (P*)
from_status_line fsl fs return from status
line
goto_window wingo WG go to window #1
hangup hup HU hang-up phone
init_1string is1 i1 initialization
string
init_2string is2 is initialization
string
init_3string is3 i3 initialization
string
init_file if if name of initialization
file
init_prog iprog iP path name of program
for initialization
initialize_color initc Ic initialize color #1
to (#2,#3,#4)
initialize_pair initp Ip Initialize color
pair #1 to
fg=(#2,#3,#4),
bg=(#5,#6,#7)
insert_character ich1 ic insert character (P)
insert_line il1 al insert line (P*)
insert_padding ip ip insert padding after
inserted character
key_a1 ka1 K1 upper left of keypad
key_a3 ka3 K3 upper right of keypad
key_b2 kb2 K2 center of keypad
key_backspace kbs kb backspace key
key_beg kbeg @1 begin key
key_btab kcbt kB back-tab key
key_c1 kc1 K4 lower left of keypad
key_c3 kc3 K5 lower right of keypad
key_cancel kcan @2 cancel key
key_catab ktbc ka clear-all-tabs key
key_clear kclr kC clear-screen or
erase key
key_close kclo @3 close key
key_command kcmd @4 command key
key_copy kcpy @5 copy key
key_create kcrt @6 create key
key_ctab kctab kt clear-tab key
key_dc kdch1 kD delete-character key
key_dl kdl1 kL delete-line key
key_down kcud1 kd down-arrow key
key_eic krmir kM sent by rmir or smir
in insert mode
key_end kend @7 end key
key_enter kent @8 enter/send key
key_eol kel kE clear-to-end-of-line
key
key_eos ked kS clear-to-end-ofscreen
key
key_exit kext @9 exit key
key_f0 kf0 k0 F0 function key
key_f1 kf1 k1 F1 function key
key_f10 kf10 k; F10 function key
key_f11 kf11 F1 F11 function key
key_f12 kf12 F2 F12 function key
key_f13 kf13 F3 F13 function key
key_f14 kf14 F4 F14 function key
key_f15 kf15 F5 F15 function key
key_f16 kf16 F6 F16 function key
key_f17 kf17 F7 F17 function key
key_f18 kf18 F8 F18 function key
key_f19 kf19 F9 F19 function key
key_f2 kf2 k2 F2 function key
key_f20 kf20 FA F20 function key
key_f21 kf21 FB F21 function key
key_f22 kf22 FC F22 function key
key_f23 kf23 FD F23 function key
key_f24 kf24 FE F24 function key
key_f25 kf25 FF F25 function key
key_f26 kf26 FG F26 function key
key_f27 kf27 FH F27 function key
key_f28 kf28 FI F28 function key
key_f29 kf29 FJ F29 function key
key_f3 kf3 k3 F3 function key
key_f30 kf30 FK F30 function key
key_f31 kf31 FL F31 function key
key_f32 kf32 FM F32 function key
key_f33 kf33 FN F33 function key
key_f34 kf34 FO F34 function key
key_f35 kf35 FP F35 function key
key_f36 kf36 FQ F36 function key
key_f37 kf37 FR F37 function key
key_f38 kf38 FS F38 function key
key_f39 kf39 FT F39 function key
key_f4 kf4 k4 F4 function key
key_f40 kf40 FU F40 function key
key_f41 kf41 FV F41 function key
key_f42 kf42 FW F42 function key
key_f43 kf43 FX F43 function key
key_f44 kf44 FY F44 function key
key_f45 kf45 FZ F45 function key
key_f46 kf46 Fa F46 function key
key_f47 kf47 Fb F47 function key
key_f48 kf48 Fc F48 function key
key_f49 kf49 Fd F49 function key
key_f5 kf5 k5 F5 function key
key_f50 kf50 Fe F50 function key
key_f51 kf51 Ff F51 function key
key_f52 kf52 Fg F52 function key
key_f53 kf53 Fh F53 function key
key_f54 kf54 Fi F54 function key
key_f55 kf55 Fj F55 function key
key_f56 kf56 Fk F56 function key
key_f57 kf57 Fl F57 function key
key_f58 kf58 Fm F58 function key
key_f59 kf59 Fn F59 function key
key_f6 kf6 k6 F6 function key
key_f60 kf60 Fo F60 function key
key_f61 kf61 Fp F61 function key
key_f62 kf62 Fq F62 function key
key_f63 kf63 Fr F63 function key
key_f7 kf7 k7 F7 function key
key_f8 kf8 k8 F8 function key
key_f9 kf9 k9 F9 function key
key_find kfnd @0 find key
key_help khlp %1 help key
key_home khome kh home key
key_ic kich1 kI insert-character key
key_il kil1 kA insert-line key
key_left kcub1 kl left-arrow key
key_ll kll kH lower-left key (home
down)
key_mark kmrk %2 mark key
key_message kmsg %3 message key
key_move kmov %4 move key
key_next knxt %5 next key
key_npage knp kN next-page key
key_open kopn %6 open key
key_options kopt %7 options key
key_ppage kpp kP previous-page key
key_previous kprv %8 previous key
key_print kprt %9 print key
key_redo krdo %0 redo key
key_reference kref &1 reference key
key_refresh krfr &2 refresh key
key_replace krpl &3 replace key
key_restart krst &4 restart key
key_resume kres &5 resume key
key_right kcuf1 kr right-arrow key
key_save ksav &6 save key
key_sbeg kBEG &9 shifted begin key
key_scancel kCAN &0 shifted cancel key
key_scommand kCMD *1 shifted command key
key_scopy kCPY *2 shifted copy key
key_screate kCRT *3 shifted create key
key_sdc kDC *4 shifted delete-character
key
key_sdl kDL *5 shifted delete-line
key
key_select kslt *6 select key
key_send kEND *7 shifted end key
key_seol kEOL *8 shifted clear-toend-of-line
key
key_sexit kEXT *9 shifted exit key
key_sf kind kF scroll-forward key
key_sfind kFND *0 shifted find key
key_shelp kHLP #1 shifted help key
key_shome kHOM #2 shifted home key
key_sic kIC #3 shifted insert-character
key
key_sleft kLFT #4 shifted left-arrow
key
key_smessage kMSG %a shifted message key
key_smove kMOV %b shifted move key
key_snext kNXT %c shifted next key
key_soptions kOPT %d shifted options key
key_sprevious kPRV %e shifted previous key
key_sprint kPRT %f shifted print key
key_sr kri kR scroll-backward key
key_sredo kRDO %g shifted redo key
key_sreplace kRPL %h shifted replace key
key_sright kRIT %i shifted right-arrow
key
key_srsume kRES %j shifted resume key
key_ssave kSAV !1 shifted save key
key_ssuspend kSPD !2 shifted suspend key
key_stab khts kT set-tab key
key_sundo kUND !3 shifted undo key
key_suspend kspd &7 suspend key
key_undo kund &8 undo key
key_up kcuu1 ku up-arrow key
keypad_local rmkx ke leave 'keyboard_transmit'
mode
keypad_xmit smkx ks enter 'keyboard_transmit'
mode
lab_f0 lf0 l0 label on function
key f0 if not f0
lab_f1 lf1 l1 label on function
key f1 if not f1
lab_f10 lf10 la label on function
key f10 if not f10
lab_f2 lf2 l2 label on function
key f2 if not f2
lab_f3 lf3 l3 label on function
key f3 if not f3
lab_f4 lf4 l4 label on function
key f4 if not f4
lab_f5 lf5 l5 label on function
key f5 if not f5
lab_f6 lf6 l6 label on function
key f6 if not f6
lab_f7 lf7 l7 label on function
key f7 if not f7
lab_f8 lf8 l8 label on function
key f8 if not f8
lab_f9 lf9 l9 label on function
key f9 if not f9
label_format fln Lf label format
label_off rmln LF turn off soft labels
label_on smln LO turn on soft labels
meta_off rmm mo turn off meta mode
meta_on smm mm turn on meta mode
(8th-bit on)
micro_column_address mhpa ZY Like column_address
in micro mode
micro_down mcud1 ZZ Like cursor_down in
micro mode
micro_left mcub1 Za Like cursor_left in
micro mode
micro_right mcuf1 Zb Like cursor_right in
micro mode
micro_row_address mvpa Zc Like row_address #1
in micro mode
micro_up mcuu1 Zd Like cursor_up in
micro mode
newline nel nw newline (behave like
cr followed by lf)
order_of_pins porder Ze Match software bits
to print-head pins
orig_colors oc oc Set all color pairs
to the original ones
orig_pair op op Set default pair to
its original value
pad_char pad pc padding char
(instead of null)
parm_dch dch DC delete #1 characters
(P*)
parm_delete_line dl DL delete #1 lines (P*)
parm_down_cursor cud DO down #1 lines (P*)
parm_down_micro mcud Zf Like parm_down_cursor
in micro mode
parm_ich ich IC insert #1 characters
(P*)
parm_index indn SF scroll forward #1
lines (P)
parm_insert_line il AL insert #1 lines (P*)
parm_left_cursor cub LE move #1 characters
to the left (P)
parm_left_micro mcub Zg Like parm_left_cursor
in micro mode
parm_right_cursor cuf RI move #1 characters
to the right (P*)
parm_right_micro mcuf Zh Like parm_right_cursor
in micro mode
parm_rindex rin SR scroll back #1 lines
(P)
parm_up_cursor cuu UP up #1 lines (P*)
parm_up_micro mcuu Zi Like parm_up_cursor
in micro mode
pkey_key pfkey pk program function key
#1 to type string #2
pkey_local pfloc pl program function key
#1 to execute string
#2
pkey_xmit pfx px program function key
#1 to transmit
string #2
plab_norm pln pn program label #1 to
show string #2
print_screen mc0 ps print contents of
screen
prtr_non mc5p pO turn on printer for
#1 bytes
prtr_off mc4 pf turn off printer
prtr_on mc5 po turn on printer
pulse pulse PU select pulse dialing
quick_dial qdial QD dial number #1 without
checking
remove_clock rmclk RC remove clock
repeat_char rep rp repeat char #1 #2
times (P*)
req_for_input rfi RF send next input char
(for ptys)
reset_1string rs1 r1 reset string
reset_2string rs2 r2 reset string
reset_3string rs3 r3 reset string
reset_file rf rf name of reset file
restore_cursor rc rc restore cursor to
position of last
save_cursor
row_address vpa cv vertical position #1
absolute (P)
save_cursor sc sc save current cursor
position (P)
scroll_forward ind sf scroll text up (P)
scroll_reverse ri sr scroll text down (P)
select_char_set scs Zj Select character
set, #1
set_attributes sgr sa define video
attributes #1-#9
(PG9)
set_background setb Sb Set background color
#1
set_bottom_margin smgb Zk Set bottom margin at
current line
set_bottom_margin_parm smgbp Zl Set bottom margin at
line #1 or (if smgtp
is not given) #2
lines from bottom
set_clock sclk SC set clock, #1 hrs #2
mins #3 secs
set_color_pair scp sp Set current color
pair to #1
set_foreground setf Sf Set foreground color
#1
set_left_margin smgl ML set left soft margin
at current column.
See smgl.
(ML is not in BSD
termcap).
set_left_margin_parm smglp Zm Set left (right)
margin at column #1
set_right_margin smgr MR set right soft margin
at current column
set_right_margin_parm smgrp Zn Set right margin at
column #1
set_tab hts st set a tab in every
row, current columns
set_top_margin smgt Zo Set top margin at
current line
set_top_margin_parm smgtp Zp Set top (bottom)
margin at row #1
set_window wind wi current window is
lines #1-#2 cols
#3-#4
start_bit_image sbim Zq Start printing bit
image graphics
start_char_set_def scsd Zr Start character set
definition #1, with
#2 characters in the
set
stop_bit_image rbim Zs Stop printing bit
image graphics
stop_char_set_def rcsd Zt End definition of
character set #1
subscript_characters subcs Zu List of subscriptable
characters
superscript_characters supcs Zv List of superscriptable
characters
tab ht ta tab to next 8-space
hardware tab stop
these_cause_cr docr Zw Printing any of
these characters
causes CR
to_status_line tsl ts move to status line,
column #1
tone tone TO select touch tone
dialing
underline_char uc uc underline char and
move past it
up_half_line hu hu half a line up
user0 u0 u0 User string #0
user1 u1 u1 User string #1
user2 u2 u2 User string #2
user3 u3 u3 User string #3
user4 u4 u4 User string #4
user5 u5 u5 User string #5
user6 u6 u6 User string #6
user7 u7 u7 User string #7
user8 u8 u8 User string #8
user9 u9 u9 User string #9
wait_tone wait WA wait for dial-tone
xoff_character xoffc XF XOFF character
xon_character xonc XN XON character
zero_motion zerom Zx No motion for subsequent
character
The following string capabilities are present in the SVr4.0 term structure,
but were originally not documented in the man page.
Variable Cap- TCap Description
String name Code
alt_scancode_esc scesa S8 Alternate escape
for scancode emulation
bit_image_carriage_return bicr Yv Move to beginning
of same row
bit_image_newline binel Zz Move to next row
of the bit image
bit_image_repeat birep Xy Repeat bit image
cell #1 #2 times
char_set_names csnm Zy Produce #1'th item
from list of character
set names
code_set_init csin ci Init sequence for
multiple codesets
color_names colornm Yw Give name for
color #1
define_bit_image_region defbi Yx Define rectangualar
bit image
region
device_type devt dv Indicate language/codeset
support
display_pc_char dispc S1 Display PC character
#1
end_bit_image_region endbi Yy End a bit-image
region
enter_pc_charset_mode smpch S2 Enter PC character
display mode
enter_scancode_mode smsc S4 Enter PC scancode
mode
exit_pc_charset_mode rmpch S3 Exit PC character
display mode
exit_scancode_mode rmsc S5 Exit PC scancode
mode
get_mouse getm Gm Curses should get
button events,
parameter #1 not
documented.
key_mouse kmous Km Mouse event has
occurred
mouse_info minfo Mi Mouse status
information
pc_term_options pctrm S6 PC terminal
options
pkey_plab pfxl xl Program function
key #1 to type
string #2 and show
string #3
req_mouse_pos reqmp RQ Request mouse
position
scancode_escape scesc S7 Escape for scancode
emulation
set0_des_seq s0ds s0 Shift to code set
0 (EUC set 0,
ASCII)
set1_des_seq s1ds s1 Shift to code set
1
set2_des_seq s2ds s2 Shift to code set
2
set3_des_seq s3ds s3 Shift to code set
3
set_a_background setab AB Set background
color to #1, using
ANSI escape
set_a_foreground setaf AF Set foreground
color to #1, using
ANSI escape
set_color_band setcolor Yz Change to ribbon
color #1
set_lr_margin smglr ML Set both left and
right margins to
#1, #2. (ML is
not in BSD termcap).
set_page_length slines YZ Set page length to
#1 lines
set_tb_margin smgtb MT Sets both top and
bottom margins to
#1, #2
The XSI Curses standard added these. They are some post-4.1 versions
of System V curses, e.g., Solaris 2.5 and IRIX 6.x. The ncurses termcap
names for them are invented; according to the XSI Curses standard,
they have no termcap names. If your compiled terminfo entries use
these, they may not be binary-compatible with System V terminfo
entries after SVr4.1; beware!
Variable Cap- TCap Description
String name Code
enter_horizontal_hl_mode ehhlm Xh Enter horizontal
highlight mode
enter_left_hl_mode elhlm Xl Enter left highlight
mode
enter_low_hl_mode elohlm Xo Enter low highlight
mode
enter_right_hl_mode erhlm Xr Enter right highlight
mode
enter_top_hl_mode ethlm Xt Enter top highlight
mode
enter_vertical_hl_mode evhlm Xv Enter vertical highlight
mode
set_a_attributes sgr1 sA Define second set of
video attributes
#1-#6
set_pglen_inch slength sL YI Set page length
to #1 hundredth of
an inch
A Sample Entry [Toc] [Back]
The following entry, describing an ANSI-standard terminal, is representative
of what a terminfo entry for a modern terminal typically looks
like.
ansi|ansi/pc-term compatible with color,
mc5i,
colors#8, ncv#3, pairs#64,
cub=\E[%p1%dD, cud=\E[%p1%dB, cuf=\E[%p1%dC,
cuu=\E[%p1%dA, dch=\E[%p1%dP, dl=\E[%p1%dM,
ech=\E[%p1%dX, el1=\E[1K, hpa=\E[%p1%dG, ht=\E[I,
ich=\E[%p1%d@, il=\E[%p1%dL, indn=\E[%p1%dS, .indn=\E[%p1%dT,
kbs=^H, kcbt=\E[Z, kcub1=\E[D, kcud1=\E[B,
kcuf1=\E[C, kcuu1=\E[A, kf1=\E[M, kf10=\E[V,
kf11=\E[W, kf12=\E[X, kf2=\E[N, kf3=\E[O, kf4=\E[P,
kf5=\E[Q, kf6=\E[R, kf7=\E[S, kf8=\E[T, kf9=\E[U,
kich1=\E[L, mc4=\E[4i, mc5=\E[5i, nel=\r\E[S,
op=\E[37;40m, rep=%p1%c\E[%p2%{1}%-%db,
rin=\E[%p1%dT, s0ds=\E(B, s1ds=\E)B, s2ds=\E*B,
s3ds=\E+B, setab=\E[4%p1%dm, setaf=\E[3%p1%dm,
setb=\E[4%?%p1%{1}%=%t4%e%p1%{3}%=%t6%e%p1%{4}%=%t1%e%p1%{6}%=%t3%e%p1%d%;m,
setf=\E[3%?%p1%{1}%=%t4%e%p1%{3}%=%t6%e%p1%{4}%=%t1%e%p1%{6}%=%t3%e%p1%d%;m,
sgr=\E[0;10%?%p1%t;7%;%?%p2%t;4%;%?%p3%t;7%;%?%p4%t;5%;%?%p6%t;1%;%?%p7%t;8%;%?%p8%t;11%;%?%p9%t;12%;m,
sgr0=\E[0;10m, tbc=\E[2g, u6=\E[%d;%dR, u7=\E[6n,
u8=\E[?%[;0123456789]c, u9=\E[c, vpa=\E[%p1%dd,
Entries may continue onto multiple lines by placing white space at the
beginning of each line except the first. Comments may be included on
lines beginning with ``#''. Capabilities in terminfo are of three
types: Boolean capabilities which indicate that the terminal has some
particular feature, numeric capabilities giving the size of the terminal
or the size of particular delays, and string capabilities, which
give a sequence which can be used to perform particular terminal operations.
Types of Capabilities [Toc] [Back]
All capabilities have names. For instance, the fact that ANSI-standard
terminals have automatic margins (i.e., an automatic return and linefeed
when the end of a line is reached) is indicated by the capability
am. Hence the description of ansi includes am. Numeric capabilities
are followed by the character `#' and then a positive value. Thus
cols, which indicates the number of columns the terminal has, gives the
value `80' for ansi. Values for numeric capabilities may be specified
in decimal, octal or hexadecimal, using the C programming language conventions
(e.g., 255, 0377 and 0xff or 0xFF).
Finally, string valued capabilities, such as el (clear to end of line
sequence) are given by the two-character code, an `=', and then a
string ending at the next following `,'.
A number of escape sequences are provided in the string valued capabilities
for easy encoding of characters there. Both \E and \e map to an
ESCAPE character, ^x maps to a control-x for any appropriate x, and the
sequences \n \l \r \t \b \f \s give a newline, line-feed, return, tab,
backspace, form-feed, and space. Other escapes include \^ for ^, \\
for \, \, for comma, \: for :, and \0 for null. (\0 will produce \200,
which does not terminate a string but behaves as a null character on
most terminals, providing CS7 is specified. See stty(1).) Finally,
characters may be given as three octal digits after a \.
A delay in milliseconds may appear anywhere in a string capability,
enclosed in $<..> brackets, as in el=\EK$<5>, and padding characters
are supplied by tputs to provide this delay. The delay must be a number
with at most one decimal place of precision; it may be followed by
suffixes `*' or '/' or both. A `*' indicates that the padding required
is proportional to the number of lines affected by the operation, and
the amount given is the per-affected-unit padding required. (In the
case of insert character, the factor is still the number of lines
affected.) Normally, padding is advisory if the device has the xon
capability; it is used for cost computation but does not trigger
delays. A `/' suffix indicates that the padding is mandatory and
forces a delay of the given number of milliseconds even on devices for
which xon is present to indicate flow control.
Sometimes individual capabilities must be commented out. To do this,
put a period before the capability name. For example, see the second
ind in the example above.
Fetching Compiled Descriptions [Toc] [Back]
If the environment variable TERMINFO is set, it is interpreted as the
pathname of a directory containing the compiled description you are
working on. Only that directory is searched.
If TERMINFO is not set, the ncurses version of the terminfo reader code
will instead look in the directory $HOME/.terminfo for a compiled
description. If it fails to find one there, and the environment variable
TERMINFO_DIRS is set, it will interpret the contents of that variable
as a list of colon- separated directories to be searched (an empty
entry is interpreted as a command to search /usr/share/terminfo). If
no description is found in any of the TERMINFO_DIRS directories, the
fetch fails.
If neither TERMINFO nor TERMINFO_DIRS is set, the last place tried will
be the system terminfo directory, /usr/share/terminfo.
(Neither the $HOME/.terminfo lookups nor TERMINFO_DIRS extensions are
supported under stock System V terminfo/curses.)
Preparing Descriptions [Toc] [Back]
We now outline how to prepare descriptions of terminals. The most
effective way to prepare a terminal description is by imitating the
description of a similar terminal in terminfo and to build up a
description gradually, using partial descriptions with vi or some other
screen-oriented program to check that they are correct. Be aware that
a very unusual terminal may expose deficiencies in the ability of the
terminfo file to describe it or bugs in the screen-handling code of the
test program.
To get the padding for insert line right (if the terminal manufacturer
did not document it) a severe test is to edit a large file at 9600
baud, delete 16 or so lines from the middle of the screen, then hit the
`u' key several times quickly. If the terminal messes up, more padding
is usually needed. A similar test can be used for insert character.
Basic Capabilities [Toc] [Back]
The number of columns on each line for the terminal is given by the
cols numeric capability. If the terminal is a CRT, then the number of
lines on the screen is given by the lines capability. If the terminal
wraps around to the beginning of the next line when it reaches the
right margin, then it should have the am capability. If the terminal
can clear its screen, leaving the cursor in the home position, then
this is given by the clear string capability. If the terminal overstrikes
(rather than clearing a position when a character is struck
over) then it should have the os capability. If the terminal is a
printing terminal, with no soft copy unit, give it both hc and os. (os
applies to storage scope terminals, such as TEKTRONIX 4010 series, as
well as hard copy and APL terminals.) If there is a code to move the
cursor to the left edge of the current row, give this as cr. (Normally
this will be carriage return, control M.) If there is a code to produce
an audible signal (bell, beep, etc) give this as bel.
If there is a code to move the cursor one position to the left (such as
backspace) that capability should be given as cub1. Similarly, codes
to move to the right, up, and down should be given as cuf1, cuu1, and
cud1. These local cursor motions should not alter the text they pass
over, for example, you would not normally use `cuf1= ' because the
space would erase the character moved over.
A very important point here is that the local cursor motions encoded in
terminfo are undefined at the left and top edges of a CRT terminal.
Programs should never attempt to backspace around the left edge, unless
bw is given, and never attempt to go up locally off the top. In order
to scroll text up, a program will go to the bottom left corner of the
screen and send the ind (index) string.
To scroll text down, a program goes to the top left corner of the
screen and sends the ri (reverse index) string. The strings ind and ri
are undefined when not on their respective corners of the screen.
Parameterized versions of the scrolling sequences are indn and rin
which have the same semantics as ind and ri except that they take one
parameter, and scroll that many lines. They are also undefined except
at the appropriate edge of the screen.
The am capability tells whether the cursor sticks at the right edge of
the screen when text is output, but this does not necessarily apply to
a cuf1 from the last column. The only local motion which is defined
from the left edge is if bw is given, then a cub1 from the left edge
will move to the right edge of the previous row. If bw is not given,
the effect is undefined. This is useful for drawing a box around the
edge of the screen, for example. If the terminal has switch selectable
automatic margins, the terminfo file usually assumes that this is on;
i.e., am. If the terminal has a command which moves to the first column
of the next line, that command can be given as nel (newline). It
does not matter if the command clears the remainder of the current
line, so if the terminal has no cr and lf it may still be possible to
craft a working nel out of one or both of them.
These capabilities suffice to describe hard-copy and "glass-tty" terminals.
Thus the model 33 teletype is described as
33|tty33|tty|model 33 teletype,
bel=^G, cols#72, cr=^M, cud1=^J, hc, ind=^J, os,
while the Lear Siegler ADM-3 is described as
adm3|3|lsi adm3,
am, bel=^G, clear=^Z, cols#80, cr=^M, cub1=^H, cud1=^J,
ind=^J, lines#24,
Parameterized Strings [Toc] [Back]
Cursor addressing and other strings requiring parameters in the terminal
are described by a parameterized string capability, with printf(3S)
like escapes %x in it. For example, to address the cursor, the cup
capability is given, using two parameters: the row and column to
address to. (Rows and columns are numbered from zero and refer to the
physical screen visible to the user, not to any unseen memory.) If the
terminal has memory relative cursor addressing, that can be indicated
by mrcup.
The parameter mechanism uses a stack and special % codes to manipulate
it. Typically a sequence will push one of the parameters onto the
stack and then print it in some format. Often more complex operations
are necessary.
The % encodings have the following meanings:
%% outputs `%'
%[[:]flags][width[.precision]][doxXs]
as in printf, flags are [-+#] and space
%c print pop() like %c in printf()
%s print pop() like %s in printf()
%p[1-9] push i'th parm
%P[a-z] set dynamic variable [a-z] to pop()
%g[a-z] get dynamic variable [a-z] and push it
%P[A-Z] set static variable [a-z] to pop()
%g[A-Z] get static variable [a-z] and push it
%'c' char constant c
%{nn} integer constant nn
%l push strlen(pop)
%+ %- %* %/ %m
arithmetic (%m is mod): push(pop() op pop())
%& %| %^ bit operations: push(pop() op pop())
%= %> %< logical operations: push(pop() op pop())
%A, %O logical and & or operations (for conditionals)
%! %~ unary operations push(op pop())
%i add 1 to first two parameters (for ANSI terminals)
%? expr %t thenpart %e elsepart %;
if-then-else, %e elsepart is optional.
else-if's are possible a la Algol 68:
%? c1 %t b1 %e c2 %t b2 %e c3 %t b3 %e c4 %t b4 %e %;
ci are conditions, bi are bodies.
Binary operations are in postfix form with the operands in the usual
order. That is, to get x-5 one would use "%gx%{5}%-". %P and %g variables
are persistent across escape-string evaluations.
Consider the HP2645, which, to get to row 3 and column 12, needs to be
sent \E&a12c03Y padded for 6 milliseconds. Note that the order of the
rows and columns is inverted here, and that the row and column are
printed as two digits. Thus its cup capability is
"cup=6\E&%p2%2dc%p1%2dY".
The Microterm ACT-IV needs the current row and column sent preceded by
a ^T, with the row and column simply encoded in binary,
"cup=^T%p1%c%p2%c". Terminals which use "%c" need to be able to
backspace the cursor (cub1), and to move the cursor up one line on the
screen (cuu1). This is necessary because it is not always safe to
transmit \n ^D and \r, as the system may change or discard them. (The
library routines dealing with terminfo set tty modes so that tabs are
never expanded, so \t is safe to send. This turns out to be essential
for the Ann Arbor 4080.)
A final example is the LSI ADM-3a, which uses row and column offset by
a blank character, thus "cup=\E=%p1%' '%+%c%p2%' '%+%c". After sending
`\E=', this pushes the first parameter, pushes the ASCII value for a
space (32), adds them (pushing the sum on the stack in place of the two
previous values) and outputs that value as a character. Then the same
is done for the second parameter. More complex arithmetic is possible
using the stack.
Cursor Motions [Toc] [Back]
If the terminal has a fast way to home the cursor (to very upper left
corner of screen) then this can be given as home; similarly a fast way
of getting to the lower left-hand corner can be given as ll; this may
involve going up with cuu1 from the home position, but a program should
never do this itself (unless ll does) because it can make no assumption
about the effect of moving up from the home position. Note that the
home position is the same as addressing to (0,0): to the top left corner
of the screen, not of memory. (Thus, the \EH sequence on HP terminals
cannot be used for home.)
If the terminal has row or column absolute cursor addressing, these can
be given as single parameter capabilities hpa (horizontal position
absolute) and vpa (vertical position absolute). Sometimes these are
shorter than the more general two parameter sequence (as with the
hp2645) and can be used in preference to cup. If there are parameterized
local motions (e.g., move n spaces to the right) these can be
given as cud, cub, cuf, and cuu with a single parameter indicating how
many spaces to move. These are primarily useful if the terminal does
not have cup, such as the TEKTRONIX 4025.
If the terminal needs to be in a special mode when running a program
that uses these capabilities, the codes to enter and exit this mode can
be given as smcup and rmcup. This arises, for example, from terminals
like the Concept with more than one page of memory. If the terminal
has only memory relative cursor addressing and not screen relative cursor
addressing, a one screen-sized window must be fixed into the terminal
for cursor addressing to work properly. This is also used for the
TEKTRONIX 4025, where smcup sets the command character to be the one
used by terminfo. If the smcup sequence will not restore the screen
after an rmcup sequence is output (to the state prior to outputting
rmcup), specify nrrmc.
Area Clears [Toc] [Back]
If the terminal can clear from the current position to the end of the
line, leaving the cursor where it is, this should be given as el. If
the terminal can clear from the beginning of the line to the current
position inclusive, leaving the cursor where it is, this should be
given as el1. If the terminal can clear from the current position to
the end of the display, then this should be given as ed. Ed is only
defined from the first column of a line. (Thus, it can be simulated by
a request to delete a large number of lines, if a true ed is not available.)
Insert/delete line and vertical motions
If the terminal can open a new blank line before the line where the
cursor is, this should be given as il1; this is done only from the
first position of a line. The cursor must then appear on the newly
blank line. If the terminal can delete the line which the cursor is
on, then this should be given as dl1; this is done only from the first
position on the line to be deleted. Versions of il1 and dl1 which take
a single parameter and insert or delete that many lines can be given as
il and dl.
If the terminal has a settable scrolling region (like the vt100) the
command to set this can be described with the csr capability, which
takes two parameters: the top and bottom lines of the scrolling region.
The cursor position is, alas, undefined after using this command.
It is possible to get the effect of insert or delete line using csr on
a properly chosen region; the sc and rc (save and restore cursor) commands
may be useful for ensuring that your synthesized insert/delete
string does not move the cursor. (Note that the ncurses(3X) library
does this synthesis automatically, so you need not compose
insert/delete strings for an entry with csr).
Yet another way to construct insert and delete might be to use a combination
of index with the memory-lock feature found on some terminals
(like the HP-700/90 series, which however also has insert/delete).
Inserting lines at the top or bottom of the screen can also be done
using ri or ind on many terminals without a true insert/delete line,
and is often faster even on terminals with those features.
The boolean non_dest_scroll_region should be set if each scrolling window
is effectively a view port on a screen-sized canvas. To test for
this capability, create a scrolling region in the middle of the screen,
write something to the bottom line, move the cursor to the top of the
region, and do ri followed by dl1 or ind. If the data scrolled off the
bottom of the region by the ri re-appears, then scrolling is nondestructive.
System V and XSI Curses expect that ind, ri, indn, and
rin will simulate destructive scrolling; their documentation cautions
you not to define csr unless this is true. This curses implementation
is more liberal and will do explicit erases after scrolling if ndstr is
defined.
If the terminal has the ability to define a window as part of memory,
which all commands affect, it should be given as the parameterized
string wind. The four parameters are the starting and ending lines in
memory and the starting and ending columns in memory, in that order.
If the terminal can retain display memory above, then the da capability
should be given; if display memory can be retained below, then db
should be given. These indicate that deleting a line or scrolling may
bring non-blank lines up from below or that scrolling back with ri may
bring down non-blank lines.
Insert/Delete Character
There are two basic kinds of intelligent terminals with respect to
insert/delete character which can be described using terminfo. The
most common insert/delete character operations affect only the characters
on the current line and shift characters off the end of the line
rigidly. Other terminals, such as the Concept 100 and the Perkin Elmer
Owl, make a distinction between typed and untyped blanks on the screen,
shifting upon an insert or delete only to an untyped blank on the
screen which is either eliminated, or expanded to two untyped blanks.
You can determine the kind of terminal you have by clearing the screen
and then typing text separated by cursor motions. Type "abc def"
using local cursor motions (not spaces) between the "abc" and the
"def". Then position the cursor before the "abc" and put the terminal
in insert mode. If typing characters causes the rest of the line to
shift rigidly and characters to fall off the end, then your terminal
does not distinguish between blanks and untyped positions. If the
"abc" shifts over to the "def" which then move together around the end
of the current line and onto the next as you insert, you have the second
type of terminal, and should give the capability in, which stands
for "insert null". While these are two logically separate attributes
(one line versus multi-line insert mode, and special treatment of
untyped spaces) we have seen no terminals whose insert mode cannot be
described with the single attribute.
Terminfo can describe both terminals which have an insert mode, and
terminals which send a simple sequence to open a blank position on the
current line. Give as smir the sequence to get into insert mode. Give
as rmir the sequence to leave insert mode. Now give as ich1 any
sequence needed to be sent just before sending the character to be
inserted. Most terminals with a true insert mode will not give ich1;
terminals which send a sequence to open a screen position should give
it here.
If your terminal has both, insert mode is usually preferable to ich1<
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