Re: Bug#2313: xterm keymapping problems suspected
>Richard Kaszeta writes:
>> Is this a bug or a misfeature...? Xfree inherits many of the
>> keymappings from the spawning tty, and on most linux distributions
>> (including debian) the default keymappings for the text console (US
>> keyboard maps at least) map both these keys to the same value...
>>
>> For example, /usr/lib/kdb/keytables/us.map on default 0.93R6 systems
>> maps both keycodes 9 and 111 to the same code (mostly, one is mapped
>> to Delete and one to Remove, not really sure the difference but by the
>> time X gets done they are the same).
>
>There's a huge difference: Under X backspace is ^H, under console linux it's
>^?. Well, at least that's what it's supposed to be.
Last time I checked, on every single other Unix box around here, ^? is
delete, ^H is backspace (AIX, Solaris, Sunos, SGI, DEC, HP). Is this
just 'redefining Backspace for the hell of redefining backspace'
That's EXACTLY my point. It's screwed up in X because it is screwed
up on the console.
>From the us.map keyboard
>keycode 14 = Delete Delete
> alt keycode 14 = Meta_Delete
Clearly, the BackSpace key has been crufted up to send a delete. This
is passed on to X by default, and makes it rather difficult to
generate a BackSpace code in X
>> Shouldn't this be fixed? Would also cut down on the 'Backspace
>> doesn't work in Netscape' complaints... :)
>
>Where's the problem with netscape? From a HOWTO:
>
>! To make Backspace delete-previous-character and Delete
>! delete-next-character in Motif applications
>
>That should work, doesn't it?
(Thanks, I *already knew that*). I was just referring to the
preponderance of postings to comp.os.linux.misc about why 'Backspace
doesn't work in Linux'. It doesn't generally work because someone
hosed the system to send a 'delete' when BS is pressed.
Does, but so does mapping the backspace key to <BackSpace> and
mapping the <Delete> key to delete. As far as I am concerned all else
is cruft.
Backspace should send backspace. Delete should send delete. (by
default at least, if people want to hose their systems for hokey
reasons, they should have to hose it themselves). Am I the only person
out here that thinks that it is reasonable to expect linux to function
like most every other Unix on the planet?
--
Richard W Kaszeta Graduate Student/Sysadmin
kaszeta@me.umn.edu,kaszeta@bofh.mi.org University of MN, ME Dept
http://www.me.umn.edu/0h/home/kaszeta/www.html
--
Tabasco. Don't leave ~ without it.
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