CKITEM(1) User Commands CKITEM(1)

NAME

ckitem, erritem, helpitem - build a menu; prompt for and return a menu
item

SYNOPSIS

ckitem [-Q] [-W width] [-uno] [-f filename] [-l label]
[ [-i invis] [,]...] [-m max] [-d default] [-h help]
[-e error] [-p prompt] [-k pid [-s signal]]
[choice [...]]


/usr/sadm/bin/erritem [-W width] [-e error] [choice [..]]


/usr/sadm/bin/helpitem [-W width] [-h help] [choice [..]]

DESCRIPTION

The ckitem utility builds a menu and prompts the user to choose one item
from a menu of items. It then verifies the response. Options for this
command define, among other things, a prompt message whose response will
be a menu item, text for help and error messages, and a default value
(which will be returned if the user responds with a carriage return).


By default, the menu is formatted so that each item is prepended by a
number and is printed in columns across the terminal. Column length is
determined by the longest choice. Items are alphabetized.


All messages are limited in length to 70 characters and are formatted
automatically. Any white space used in the definition (including newline)
is stripped. The -W option cancels the automatic formatting. When a tilde
is placed at the beginning or end of a message definition, the default
text will be inserted at that point, allowing both custom text and the
default text to be displayed.


If the prompt, help or error message is not defined, the default message
(as defined under NOTES) will be displayed.


Two visual tool modules are linked to the ckitem command. They are
erritem (which formats and displays an error message) and helpitem (which
formats and displays a help message). These modules should be used in
conjunction with FML objects. In this instance, the FML object defines
the prompt. When choice is defined in these modules, the messages will
describe the available menu choice (or choices).

OPTIONS

The following options are supported:

-d default
Define the default value as default. The default is not
validated and so does not have to meet any criteria.


-e error
Define the error message as error.


-f filename
Define a file, filename, which contains a list of menu
items to be displayed. (The format of this file is:
token<tab>description. Lines beginning with a pound sign
(#) are designated as comments and ignored.)


-h help
Define the help messages as help.


-i invis
Define invisible menu choices (those which will not be
printed in the menu). (For example, ``all'' used as an
invisible choice would mean it is a legal option but does
not appear in the menu. Any number of invisible choices
may be defined.) Invisible choices should be made known to
a user either in the prompt or in a help message.


-k pid
Specify that the process ID pid is to be sent a signal if
the user chooses to abort.


-l label
Define a label, label, to print above the menu.


-m max
Define the maximum number of menu choices that the user
can choose. The default is 1.


-n
Specify that menu items should not be displayed in
alphabetical order.


-o
Specify that only one menu token will be returned.


-p prompt
Define the prompt message as prompt.


-Q
Specify that quit will not be allowed as a valid response.


-s signal
Specify that process ID pid defined with the -k option is
to be sent signal signal when quit is chosen. If no
signal is specified, SIGTERM is used.


-u
Specify that menu items should be displayed as an
unnumbered list.


-W width
Specify that prompt, help and error messages will be
formatted to a line length of width.

OPERANDS

The following operand is supported:

choice
Define menu items. Items should be separated by white space or
newline.

EXIT STATUS

The following exit values are returned:

0
Successful execution.


1
EOF on input, or negative width on -W option, or inability to open
file on -f option, or usage error.


3
User termination (quit).


4
No choices from which to choose.

SEE ALSO

attributes(7)

NOTES

The user may input the number of the menu item if choices are numbered or
as much of the string required for a unique identification of the item.
Long menus are paged with 10 items per page.


When menu entries are defined both in a file (by using the -f option) and
also on the command line, they are usually combined alphabetically.
However, if the -n option is used to suppress alphabetical ordering,
then the entries defined in the file are shown first, followed by the
options defined on the command line.


The default prompt for ckitem is:

Enter selection [?,??,q]:


One question mark will give a help message and then redisplay the prompt.
Two question marks will give a help message and then redisplay the menu
label, the menu and the prompt.


The default error message if you typed a number is:

ERROR: Bad numeric choice specification


The default error message if you typed a string is:

ERROR: Entry does not match available menu selection. Enter the number
of the menu item you wish to select, the token which is associated
with the menu item, or a partial string which uniquely identifies the
token for the menu item. Enter ?? to reprint the menu.


The default help message is:

Enter the number of the menu item you wish to select, the token
which is associated with the menu item, or a partial string which
uniquely identifies the token for the menu item. Enter ? to
reprint the menu.


When the quit option is chosen (and allowed), q is returned along with
the return code 3.


September 14, 1992 CKITEM(1)