.\" authorization. *
.\"***************************************************************************
.\"
-.\" $Id: curs_attr.3x,v 1.49 2017/01/07 19:25:15 tom Exp $
+.\" $Id: curs_attr.3x,v 1.53 2017/03/28 23:31:39 tom Exp $
.TH curs_attr 3X ""
.de bP
.IP \(bu 4
erasing and clearing.
.PP
Routines which do not have a \fBWINDOW*\fP parameter apply to \fBstdscr\fP.
+For example,
+\fBattr_set\fP is the \fBstdscr\fP variant of \fBwattr_set\fP.
.\" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
.SS Window attributes
.PP
-The \fBattr_set\fP and \fBwattr_set\fP functions set the current attributes
+There are two sets of functions:
+.bP
+functions for manipulating the window attributes and color:
+\fBwattr_set\fP and \fBwattr_get\fP.
+.bP
+functions for manipulating only the window attributes (not color):
+\fBwattr_on\fP and \fBwattr_off\fP.
+.PP
+The \fBwattr_set\fP function sets the current attributes
of the given window to \fIattrs\fP, with color specified by \fIpair\fP.
-X/Open specified an additional parameter \fIopts\fP which is unused in
-all implementations.
.PP
-Use \fBattr_get\fP and \fBwattr_get\fP to retrieve attributes for
-the given window.
+Use \fBwattr_get\fP to retrieve attributes for the given window.
.PP
Use \fBattr_on\fP and \fBwattr_on\fP to turn on window attributes, i.e.,
values OR'd together in \fIattr\fP,
In these functions,
the color \fIpair\fP argument is a color-pair index
(as in the first argument of \fBinit_pair\fR, see \fBcurs_color\fR(3X)).
-The \fBopts\fR argument is not
-presently used, but is reserved for the future (leave it \fBNULL\fR).
.\" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
.SS Change window color
The routine \fBcolor_set\fR sets the current color of the given window to the
foreground/background combination described by the color \fIpair\fP parameter.
-The parameter \fIopts\fP is reserved for future use;
-applications must supply a null pointer.
.\" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
.SS Standout
.PP
The SVr4 manual page claims (falsely) that these routines always return \fB1\fR.
.SH NOTES
These functions may be macros:
+.sp
+.RS
\fBattroff\fR, \fBwattroff\fR, \fBattron\fR, \fBwattron\fR,
\fBattrset\fR, \fBwattrset\fR, \fBstandend\fR and \fBstandout\fR.
+.RE
.PP
Color pair values can only be OR'd with attributes if the pair
number is less than 256.
value directly.
However, ncurses ABI 4 and 5 simply OR this value within the alternate functions.
You must use ncurses ABI 6 to support more than 256 color pairs.
+.SH EXTENSIONS
+.PP
+This implementation provides the \fBA_ITALIC\fP attribute for terminals
+which have the \fBenter_italics_mode\fP (\fBsitm\fP)
+and \fBexit_italics_mode\fP (\fBritm\fP) capabilities.
+Italics are not mentioned in X/Open Curses.
+Unlike the other video attributes, \fBA_ITALIC\fP is unrelated
+to the \fBset_attributes\fP capabilities.
+This implementation makes the assumption that
+\fBexit_attribute_mode\fP may also reset italics.
+.PP
+Each of the functions added by XSI Curses has a parameter \fIopts\fP,
+which X/Open Curses still (after more than twenty years) documents
+as reserved for future use, saying that it should be \fBNULL\fP.
+This implementation uses that parameter in ABI 6 for the functions which
+have a color-pair parameter to support \fIextended color pairs\fP:
+.bP
+For functions which modify the color, e.g.,
+\fBwattr_set\fP,
+if \fIopts\fP is set it is treated as a pointer to \fBint\fP,
+and used to set the color pair instead of the \fBshort\fP \fIpair\fP parameter.
+.bP
+For functions which retrieve the color, e.g.,
+\fBwattr_get\fP,
+if \fIopts\fP is set it is treated as a pointer to \fBint\fP,
+and used to retrieve the color pair as an \fBint\fP value,
+in addition
+retrieving it via the standard pointer to \fBshort\fP parameter.
+.PP
+The remaining functions which have \fIopts\fP,
+but do not manipulate color,
+e.g., \fBwattr_on\fP and \fBwattr_off\fP
+are not used by this implementation except to check that they are \fBNULL\fP.
.SH PORTABILITY
These functions are supported in the XSI Curses standard, Issue 4.
-The
-standard defined the dedicated type for highlights, \fBattr_t\fR, which is not
-defined in SVr4 curses.
-The functions taking \fBattr_t\fR arguments are
-not supported under SVr4.
+The standard defined the dedicated type for highlights,
+\fBattr_t\fR, which was not defined in SVr4 curses.
+The functions taking \fBattr_t\fR arguments were not supported under SVr4.
+.PP
+Very old versions of this library did not force an update of the screen
+when changing the attributes.
+Use \fBtouchwin\fR to force the screen to match the updated attributes.
.PP
The XSI Curses standard states that whether the traditional functions
\fBattron\fR/\fBattroff\fR/\fBattrset\fR can manipulate attributes other than
SVr4 curses, these functions correctly manipulate all other highlights
(specifically, \fBA_ALTCHARSET\fR, \fBA_PROTECT\fR, and \fBA_INVIS\fR).
.PP
-This implementation provides the \fBA_ITALIC\fP attribute for terminals
-which have the \fBenter_italics_mode\fP (\fBsitm\fP)
-and \fBexit_italics_mode\fP (\fBritm\fP) capabilities.
-Italics are not mentioned in X/Open Curses.
-Unlike the other video attributes, \fBA_ITALIC\fP is unrelated
-to the \fBset_attributes\fP capabilities.
-This implementation makes the assumption that
-\fBexit_attribute_mode\fP may also reset italics.
-.PP
-XSI Curses added the new entry points, \fBattr_get\fR, \fBattr_on\fR,
+XSI Curses added these entry points:
+.sp
+.RS
+\fBattr_get\fR, \fBattr_on\fR,
\fBattr_off\fR, \fBattr_set\fR, \fBwattr_on\fR, \fBwattr_off\fR,
-\fBwattr_get\fR, \fBwattr_set\fR.
-These are intended to work with
+\fBwattr_get\fR, \fBwattr_set\fR
+.RE
+.PP
+The new functions are intended to work with
a new series of highlight macros prefixed with \fBWA_\fR.
The older macros have direct counterparts in the newer set of names:
.PP
.TE
.RE
.PP
-Very old versions of this library did not force an update of the screen
-when changing the attributes.
-Use \fBtouchwin\fR to force the screen to match the updated attributes.
-.PP
The XSI curses standard specifies that each pair of corresponding \fBA_\fR
and \fBWA_\fR-using functions operates on the same current-highlight
information.
.bP
returns an error if the color pair parameter
for \fBwcolor_set\fP is outside the range 0..COLOR_PAIRS\-1.
+.bP
+does not return an error if either of the parameters of \fBwattr_get\fP
+used for retrieving attribute or color-pair values is \fBNULL\fP.
.PP
Functions with a "mv" prefix first perform a cursor movement using
\fBwmove\fP, and return an error if the position is outside the window,