VMH(1)                        [mh.6]                       VMH(1)


NAME
       vmh - visual front-end to MH

SYNOPSIS
       vmh   [-prompt string]   [-vmhproc program]   [-novmhproc]
            [switches for vmhproc] [-help]

DESCRIPTION
       vmh is a program which implements the server side  of  the
       MH window management protocol and uses curses (3) routines
       to maintain a split-screen interface to any program  which
       implements  the  client side of the protocol.  This latter
       program,  called  the  vmhproc,  is  specified  using  the
       `-vmhproc program' switch.

       The  upshot  of all this is that one can run msh on a dis-
       play terminal and get a  nice  visual  interface.   To  do
       this, for example, just add the line

            mshproc: vmh

       to  your  .mh_profile.   (This takes advantage of the fact
       that msh is the default vmhproc for vmh.)

       In order to facilitate things, if the `-novmhproc'  switch
       is  given,  and  vmh can't run on the user's terminal, the
       vmhproc is run directly without the window management pro-
       tocol.

       After  initializing the protocol, vmh prompts the user for
       a command to  be  given  to  the  client.   Usually,  this
       results in output being sent to one or more windows.  If a
       output to a window would cause it to scroll,  vmh  prompts
       the user for instructions, roughly permitting the capabil-
       ities of less or more (e.g., the ability to  scroll  back-
       wards and forwards):

            SPACE      advance to the next windowful
            RETURN  *  advance to the next line
            y       *  retreat to the previous line
            d       *  advance to the next ten lines
            u       *  retreat to the previous ten lines
            g       *  go to an arbitrary line
                       (preceed g with the line number)
            G       *  go to the end of the window
                       (if a line number is given, this acts like `g')
            CTRL-L     refresh the entire screen
            h          print a help message
            q          abort the window

       (A  `*'  indicates that a numeric prefix is meaningful for
       this command.)

       Note that if a command resulted in more than one  window's



MH                        April 22, 1986                        1

VMH(1)                        [mh.6]                       VMH(1)


       worth  of  information  being displayed, and you allow the
       command which is generating information for the window  to
       gracefully  finish (i.e., you don't use the `q' command to
       abort information being sent to the window), then vmh will
       give  you  one  last change to peruse the window.  This is
       useful for scrolling back and forth.  Just type  `q'  when
       you're done.

       To  abnormally  terminate  vmh  (without  core  dump), use
       <QUIT> (usually CTRL-\).   For  instance,  this  does  the
       right thing with bbc and msh.

FILES
       $HOME/.mh_profile                     The user profile

PROFILE COMPONENTS
       Path:                To determine the user's MH directory

SEE ALSO
       msh(1)

DEFAULTS
       `-prompt (vmh) '
       `-vmhproc msh'

CONTEXT
       None

BUGS
       The  argument  to the `-prompt' switch must be interpreted
       as a single token by the shell that invokes  vmh.   There-
       fore,  one  must usually place the argument to this switch
       inside double-quotes.

       At present, there is no way to pass signals (e.g.,  inter-
       rupt,  quit) to the client.  However, generating QUIT when
       vmh is reading a command from the terminal  is  sufficient
       to tell the client to go away quickly.

       Acts  strangely  (loses  peer or botches window management
       protocol with peer) on random occasions.
















MH                        April 22, 1986                        2