#GNU Emacs under NT ?
4 messages in this thread
I know I'm going to regret jumping into the middle of what has obviously become
a personal argument, but I would like to say that as a die-hard UNIX head that
has recently moved to NT, I found your C-shell somewhat of a misnomer. It is
an excellent shell, but it deviated enough from the original to annoy the hell
out of me. For example, if C: drive is my current default then "cd /apps/foo"
won't work, but "cd c:/apps/foo" and "cd \apps\foo" will. This might seem
trivial, but when the first case has been ingrained in you for the last 12
years it is hard to change. I still use your shell (it supports backgrounding
:->, but no backgrounding interrupt 🙁 ), but only after I told myself 50
times that it wasn't CSH so don't expect it to work like CSH. As for your
return rate, I can say that most of the copies at our company are used by
PC-DOS users who have only fleeting experience with CSH and thus couldn't
recognize the differences if they wanted to. Those who are ex-UNIX users are
ether like me and are forced to use it or just let it collect dust on the shelf
because they are too busy to return it (in big corporations, software is never
returned). A more interesting statistic is how many different people call you
for support? A low support call rate may mean that your product is so well
written that it is bug-free and self-documenting (CSH?) or it might mean that
few people use the product enough to find things wrong with it.
I have had my say. I am now donning my bullet-proof, flame suit.
-Brian
There is 1 Reply.
> if C: drive is my current default then "cd /apps/foo" won't work, but "cd
c:/apps/foo" and "cd \apps\foo" will.
Oh, my goodness, Brian. I wish you had called. This is an easy customization.
To make the C shell behave the way you'd like, set the environment variable
SWITCHCHARS to just the minus character. You can do this via the control panel
or by typing
setenv SWITCHCHARS = –
By default, the C shell recognizes either – (UNIX-style) or / (NT-style) as an
introducing an option. That's why it objected to cd /apps/foo — it thought
you had garbled the options. As you point out, this default behavior is not
always right for everyone. (I'm like you and want only the minus to be
recognized too.) You'll find this and other related topics, e.g., whether cd
with no operand prints the current directory (default, NT-style) or returns you
to the home directory (UNIX-style), discussed in the chapter, "Customizing the
Shell".
Please do let me know if you're experiencing any other problems or if any part
of the manual seems unclear. I want to do whatever it takes to make you happy.
Call me at 508-358-5715 if I can help in any way. If I'm out, leave a message
and I promise to return your call the same day.
There is 1 Reply.
Douglas…
We have not purchased your C shell since I am still lobbying with the
powers that be…but, please feel certain that we will be buying your
C shell for NT (on Alpha by the way).
However. Other than that, I spoke with you briefly at Windows World
Atlanta and I have come to the conclusion that you are indeed the kind
of software developer that users, of the likes of myself, dream about.
I know you don't let these complaints bother too much but I am impressed
with your attitude in messages that I have read over the last year and
that is sufficient for me to strongly recommend your software (BTW, I
did play with the demo kit from the vendors CDROM).
To me, having a c shell identical, in every respect, to UNIX, is not
important. I can learn the differences and learn to use them. What is
indeed important for a product such as a C shell is to know that it is
a programmer who is behind it and who deeply cares about how users
react to his product.
Doug…Thanks for the csh on NT, even though we haven't gotten it yet.
phil
There is 1 Reply.
How very kind of you, Phil! Thank you very much for your encouragement. Yes,
I really do care about my customers. I'll look forward to working with you.
Warm regards,
Doug