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     NAME
          dialog - display dialog boxes from shell scripts

     SYNOPSIS
          dialog --clear
          dialog --create-rc file
          dialog --print-maxsize
          dialog common-options box-options

     DESCRIPTION
          Dialog is a program that will let you present a variety of questions
          or display messages using dialog boxes from a shell script.  These
          types of dialog boxes are implemented (though not all are necessarily
          compiled into dialog):
               buildlist, calendar, checklist, dselect, editbox, form, fselect,
               gauge, infobox, inputbox, inputmenu, menu, mixedform, mixedgauge,
               msgbox (message), passwordbox, passwordform, pause, prgbox,
               programbox, progressbox, radiolist, rangebox, tailbox, tailboxbg,
               textbox, timebox, treeview, and yesno (yes/no).

          You can put more than one dialog box into a script:

          o   Use the "--and-widget" token to force dialog  to  proceed  to  the
              next dialog unless you have pressed ESC to cancel, or

          o   Simply add the tokens for the next dialog  box,  making  a  chain.
              Dialog  stops  chaining  when  the  return  code  from a dialog is
              nonzero, e.g., Cancel or No (see DIAGNOSTICS).

          Some widgets, e.g., checklist, will write  text  to  dialog's  output.
          Normally  that is the standard error, but there are options for chang-
          ing this: ``--output-fd'', ``--stderr'' and ``--stdout''.  No text  is
          written if the Cancel button (or ESC) is pressed; dialog exits immedi-
          ately in that case.

     OPTIONS
          All options begin with ``--'' (two ASCII hyphens, for the  benefit  of
          those using systems with deranged locale support).

          A ``--'' by itself is used as an escape, i.e., the next token  on  the
          command-line is not treated as an option.
               dialog --title -- --Not an option

          The ``--args'' option tells dialog to list the command-line parameters
          to  the standard error.  This is useful when debugging complex scripts
          using the ``--'' and ``--file'', since the command-line may be rewrit-
          ten as these are expanded.

          The ``--file'' option tells dialog to read parameters  from  the  file
          named as its value.
               dialog --file parameterfile

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          Blanks not within double-quotes  are  discarded  (use  backslashes  to
          quote  single  characters).   The result is inserted into the command-
          line, replacing ``--file'' and its option  value.   Interpretation  of
          the  command-line  resumes  from  that point.  If parameterfile begins
          with ``&'', dialog interprets the following text as a file  descriptor
          number rather than a filename.

          Most widgets accept height and width parameters, which can be used  to
          automatically size the widget to accommodate multi-line message prompt
          values:

          o   If the parameter is negative, dialog uses the screen's size.

          o   If the parameter is zero, dialog uses minimum size for the  widget
              to display the prompt and data.

          o   Otherwise, dialog uses the given size for the widget.

        Common Options
          Most of the common options are reset before processing each widget.

          --ascii-lines
               Rather than draw graphics lines around boxes,  draw  ASCII  ``+''
               and ``-'' in the same place.  See also ``--no-lines''.

          --aspect ratio
               This gives you some control over the box  dimensions  when  using
               auto  sizing  (specifying 0 for height and width).  It represents
               width / height.  The default is 9, which means 9 characters  wide
               to every 1 line high.

          --backtitle backtitle
               Specifies a backtitle string to be displayed on the backdrop,  at
               the top of the screen.

          --begin y x
               Specify the position of the upper left corner of a dialog box  on
               the screen.

          --cancel-label string
               Override the label used for ``Cancel'' buttons.

          --clear
               Clears the widget screen, keeping  only  the  screen_color  back-
               ground.   Use this when you combine widgets with ``--and-widget''
               to erase the contents of a previous widget on the screen,  so  it
               won't  be  seen under the contents of a following widget.  Under-
               stand this as the complement of  ``--keep-window''.   To  compare

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               the effects, use these:

               All three widgets visible, staircase effect, ordered 1,2,3:

                 dialog \
                                                --begin 2 2 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget               --begin 4 4 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget               --begin 6 6 --yesno "" 0 0

               Only the last widget is left visible:

                 dialog \
                                  --clear       --begin 2 2 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget --clear       --begin 4 4 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget               --begin 6 6 --yesno "" 0 0

               All three widgets visible, staircase effect, ordered 3,2,1:

                 dialog \
                                  --keep-window --begin 2 2 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget --keep-window --begin 4 4 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget               --begin 6 6 --yesno "" 0 0

               First and third widget visible, staircase effect, ordered 3,1:

                 dialog \
                                  --keep-window --begin 2 2 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget --clear       --begin 4 4 --yesno "" 0 0 \
                     --and-widget               --begin 6 6 --yesno "" 0 0

               Note, if you want to restore original  console  colors  and  send
               your  cursor  home  after  the dialog program has exited, use the
               clear (1) command.

          --colors
               Interpret embedded ``\Z'' sequences in the  dialog  text  by  the
               following  character,  which  tells dialog to set colors or video
               attributes:

               o   0 through 7 are the ANSI color numbers used in curses: black,
                   red, green, yellow, blue, magenta, cyan and white respective-
                   ly.

               o   Bold is set by 'b', reset by 'B'.

               o   Reverse is set by 'r', reset by 'R'.

               o   Underline is set by 'u', reset by 'U'.

               o   The settings are cumulative, e.g., ``\Zb\Z1'' makes the  fol-
                   lowing text bold (perhaps bright) red.

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               o   Restore normal settings with ``\Zn''.

          --column-separator string
               Tell dialog to split data for radio/checkboxes and menus  on  the
               occurrences of the given string, and to align the split data into
               columns.

          --cr-wrap
               Interpret embedded newlines in the dialog text as  a  newline  on
               the  screen.  Otherwise, dialog will only wrap lines where needed
               to fit inside the text box.

               Even though you can control line breaks with  this,  Dialog  will
               still  wrap any lines that are too long for the width of the box.
               Without cr-wrap, the layout of your text may be formatted to look
               nice  in the source code of your script without affecting the way
               it will look in the dialog.

               The cr-wrap feature is implemented subject to these conditions:

               o   the string contains ``\n'' and the --no-nl-expand  option  is
                   not used, or

               o   the --trim option is used.

               For more information, see Whitespace Options.

          --create-rc file
               When dialog supports run-time configuration, this can be used  to
               dump a sample configuration file to the file specified by file.

          --date-format format
               If the host provides strftime, this option allows you to  specify
               the  format  of  the date printed for the --calendar widget.  The
               time of day (hour, minute, second) are the current local time.

          --defaultno
               Make the default value of the yes/no box a No.   Likewise,  treat
               the  default button of widgets that provide ``OK'' and ``Cancel''
               as a Cancel.  If ``--nocancel'' or  ``--visit-items''  are  given
               those  options  overrides  this, making the default button always
               ``Yes'' (internally the same as ``OK'').

          --default-button string
               Set the default (preselected) button in a widget.  By  preselect-
               ing  a  button, a script makes it possible for the user to simply
               press Enter to proceed through a dialog with minimum interaction.

               The option's value is the name of the button:  ok,  yes,  cancel,
               no, help or extra.

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               Normally the first button in each widget  is  the  default.   The
               first  button shown is determined by the widget together with the
               ``--nook'' and ``--nocancel'' options.  If  this  option  is  not
               given, there is no default button assigned.

          --default-item string
               Set the default item in a checklist, form or menu box.   Normally
               the first item in the box is the default.

          --exit-label string
               Override the label used for ``EXIT'' buttons.

          --extra-button
               Show an extra button, between ``OK'' and ``Cancel'' buttons.

          --extra-label string
               Override the label used for ``Extra'' buttons.  Note: for  input-
               menu widgets, this defaults to ``Rename''.

          --help
               Prints the help message to the standard output  and  exits.   The
               help  message  is  also printed if no options are given, or if an
               unrecognized option is given.

          --help-button
               Show a help-button after ``OK'' and ``Cancel'' buttons  in  boxes
               which  have  a  list of tagged items (i.e., checklist, radiolist,
               menu, and treeview boxes).

               On exit, the return status indicates that  the  Help  button  was
               pressed.   Dialog  also  writes a message to its output after the
               token ``HELP'':

               o   If "--item-help" is also given, the item-help text  is  writ-
                   ten.

               o   Otherwise, the item's tag (the first field) is written.

                You  can   use   the   --help-tags   option   and/or   set   the
               DIALOG_ITEM_HELP  environment  variable  to modify these messages
               and exit-status.

               This option can be applied to other widgets, which have an ``OK''
               button, whether or not the ``Cancel'' button is used.  The return
               status and output are not treated specially for the  other  widg-
               ets; the help-button is just an extra button.

          --help-label string
               Override the label used for ``Help'' buttons.

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          --help-status
               If the help-button is selected, writes the  checklist,  radiolist
               or  form  information  after  the item-help ``HELP'' information.
               This can be used to reconstruct the state of  a  checklist  after
               processing the help request.

          --help-tags
               Modify the messages written on exit for --help-button  by  making
               them  always  just the item's tag.  This does not affect the exit
               status code.

          --hfile filename
               Display the given file using a textbox when the user presses F1.

          --hline string
               Display the given string centered at the bottom of the widget.

          --ignore
               Ignore options that dialog does not recognize.   Some  well-known
               ones  such as ``--icon'' are ignored anyway, but this is a better
               choice for compatibility with other implementations.

          --input-fd fd
               Read keyboard input from the given file descriptor.  Most  dialog
               scripts  read from the standard input, but the gauge widget reads
               a pipe (which is always standard input).  Some configurations  do
               not  work properly when dialog tries to reopen the terminal.  Use
               this option (with appropriate juggling  of  file-descriptors)  if
               your script must work in that type of environment.

          --insecure
               Makes the password widget friendlier but less secure, by  echoing
               asterisks for each character.

          --iso-week
               Set the starting point for the  week-number  shown  in  the  ``--
               calendar''  option  according to ISO-8601, which starts numbering
               with the first week which includes a Thursday in January.

          --item-help
               Interpret the tags data for checklist, radiolist and  menu  boxes
               adding  a  column  which  is  displayed in the bottom line of the
               screen, for the currently selected item.

          --keep-tite
               When built with ncurses, dialog normally checks to see if  it  is
               running  in an xterm, and in that case tries to suppress the ini-
               tialization strings that would make it switch  to  the  alternate
               screen.   Switching  between  the normal and alternate screens is
               visually distracting in a script which runs dialog several times.
               Use  this  option  to  allow  dialog  to use those initialization

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               strings.

          --keep-window
               Normally when dialog performs several tailboxbg widgets connected
               by  ``--and-widget'', it clears the old widget from the screen by
               painting over it.  Use this option to suppress that repainting.

               At exit, dialog repaints all  of  the  widgets  which  have  been
               marked  with  ``--keep-window'',  even  if they are not tailboxbg
               widgets.  That causes them to be repainted in reverse order.  See
               the discussion of the ``--clear'' option for examples.

          --last-key
               At exit, report the last key which the user entered.  This is the
               curses key code rather than a symbol or literal character, and is
               only reported for keys which are bound to an action.  It  can  be
               used  by  scripts to distinguish between two keys which are bound
               to the same action.

          --max-input size
               Limit input strings to the given size.   If  not  specified,  the
               limit is 2048.

          --no-cancel

          --nocancel
               Suppress the ``Cancel'' button in checklist,  inputbox  and  menu
               box  modes.   A script can still test if the user pressed the ESC
               key to cancel to quit.

          --no-collapse
               Normally dialog converts tabs  to  spaces  and  reduces  multiple
               spaces to a single space for text which is displayed in a message
               boxes, etc.  Use this option to disable that feature.  Note  that
               dialog  will  still  wrap  text, subject to the ``--cr-wrap'' and
               ``--trim'' options.

               The no-collapse feature is implemented subject  to  these  condi-
               tions:

               o   the string contains ``\n'' and the --no-nl-expand  option  is
                   not used, or

               o   the --trim option is not used.

               For more information, see Whitespace Options.

          --no-items
               Some widgets (checklist, inputmenu, radiolist,  menu)  display  a
               list  with  two columns (a ``tag'' and ``item'', i.e., ``descrip-
               tion'').  This option tells dialog to read shorter rows, omitting

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               the  ``item''  part  of  the  list.  This is occasionally useful,
               e.g., if the tags provide enough information.

               See also --no-tags.  If both options are given, this one  is  ig-
               nored.

          --no-kill
               Tells dialog to put the tailboxbg box in the background, printing
               its  process  id  to dialog's output.  SIGHUP is disabled for the
               background process.

          --no-label string
               Override the label used for ``No'' buttons.

          --no-lines
               Rather than draw lines around boxes,  draw  spaces  in  the  same
               place.  See also ``--ascii-lines''.

          --no-mouse
               Do not enable the mouse.

          --no-nl-expand
               Do not convert ``\n'' substrings of the message/prompt text  into
               literal newlines.

               The no-nl-expand feature is used  only  if  the  string  contains
               ``\n'' so that there is something to convert.

               For more information, see Whitespace Options.

          --no-ok

          --nook
               Suppress the ``OK'' button in checklist, inputbox  and  menu  box
               modes.  A script can still test if the user pressed the ``Enter''
               key to accept the data.

          --no-shadow
               Suppress shadows that would be drawn to the right and  bottom  of
               each dialog box.

          --no-tags
               Some widgets (checklist, inputmenu, radiolist,  menu)  display  a
               list  with  two columns (a ``tag'' and ``description'').  The tag
               is useful for scripting, but may not help the  user.   The  --no-
               tags  option (from Xdialog) may be used to suppress the column of
               tags from the display.  Unlike the --no-items option,  this  does
               not affect the data which is read from the script.

               Xdialog does  not  display  the  tag  column  for  the  analogous
               buildlist and treeview widgets; dialog does the same.

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               Normally dialog allows you to quickly  move  to  entries  on  the
               displayed list, by matching a single character to the first char-
               acter of the tag.  When the --no-tags  option  is  given,  dialog
               matches  against  the first character of the description.  In ei-
               ther case, the matchable character is highlighted.

          --ok-label string
               Override the label used for ``OK'' buttons.

          --output-fd fd
               Direct output to the given file descriptor.  Most dialog  scripts
               write to the standard error, but error messages may also be writ-
               ten there, depending on your script.

          --separator string

          --output-separator string
               Specify a string that will separate the output on dialog's output
               from checklists, rather than a newline (for --separate-output) or
               a space.  This applies to other widgets such as forms  and  edit-
               boxes which normally use a newline.

          --print-maxsize
               Print the maximum size of dialog boxes, i.e., the screen size, to
               dialog's output.  This may be used alone, without other options.

          --print-size
               Prints the size of each dialog box to dialog's  output  when  the
               box is initialized.

          --print-text-only string [ height [ width ] ]
               Prints the string as it would be wrapped  in  a  message  box  to
               dialog's output.

               Because the optional height and width default to  zero,  if  they
               are omitted, dialog autosizes according to the screen dimensions.

          --print-text-size string [ height [ width ] ]
               Prints the size of the string as it would be wrapped in a message
               box, to dialog's output, as

                 height width

               Because the optional height and width parameters default to zero,
               if they are omitted, dialog autosizes according to the screen di-
               mensions.

          --print-version
               Prints dialog's version to dialog's output.   This  may  be  used
               alone,  without  other options.  It does not cause dialog to exit
               by itself.

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          --quoted
               Normally dialog quotes the strings  returned  by  checklist's  as
               well  as the item-help text.  Use this option to quote all string
               results as needed (i.e., if the string contains whitespace  or  a
               single or double-quote character).

          --reorder
               By default, the buildlist widget uses the same order for the out-
               put  (right)  list  as  for the input (left).  Use this option to
               tell dialog to use the order in which a user adds  selections  to
               the output list.

          --scrollbar
               For widgets holding a scrollable set of data, draw a scrollbar on
               its right-margin.  This does not respond to the mouse.

          --separate-output
               For certain  widgets  (buildlist,  checklist,  treeview),  output
               result  one  line  at  a time, with no quoting.  This facilitates
               parsing by another program.

          --separate-widget string
               Specify a string that will separate the output on dialog's output
               from each widget.  This is used to simplify parsing the result of
               a dialog with several widgets.  If this option is not given,  the
               default separator string is a tab character.

          --shadow
               Draw a shadow to the right and bottom of each dialog box.

          --single-quoted
               Use single-quoting as needed (and no quotes if unneeded) for  the
               output of checklist's as well as the item-help text.

               If this option is not set, dialog may use  double  quotes  around
               each  item.   In either case, dialog adds backslashes to make the
               output useful in shell scripts.

               Single quotes would be needed if the string  contains  whitespace
               or a single or double-quote character.

          --size-err
               Check the resulting size of a dialog box before trying to use it,
               printing  the  resulting  size  if  it is larger than the screen.
               (This  option  is  obsolete,  since  all  new-window  calls   are
               checked).

          --sleep secs
               Sleep (delay) for the given number of seconds after processing  a
               dialog box.

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          --stderr
               Direct output to the standard error.  This is the default,  since
               curses normally writes screen updates to the standard output.

          --stdout
               Direct output to the standard output.  This  option  is  provided
               for  compatibility  with  Xdialog,  however  using it in portable
               scripts is not recommended,  since  curses  normally  writes  its
               screen  updates  to the standard output.  If you use this option,
               dialog attempts to reopen the terminal so it  can  write  to  the
               display.   Depending  on  the platform and your environment, that
               may fail.

          --tab-correct
               Convert each tab character to one or more spaces (for the textbox
               widget;  otherwise  to a single space).  Otherwise, tabs are ren-
               dered according to the curses library's interpretation.   The  --
               no-collapse option disables tab expansion.

          --tab-len n
               Specify the number of spaces that a tab character occupies if the
               ``--tab-correct''  option  is given.  The default is 8.  This op-
               tion is only effective for the textbox widget.

          --time-format format
               If the host provides strftime, this option allows you to  specify
               the  format  of  the  time printed for the --timebox widget.  The
               day, month, year values in this case are for  the  current  local
               time.

          --timeout secs
               Timeout (exit with error code) if no  user  response  within  the
               given number of seconds.  A timeout of zero seconds is ignored.

               This option is ignored by the ``--pause''  widget.   It  is  also
               overridden  if  the  background ``--tailboxbg'' option is used to
               set up multiple concurrent widgets.

          --title title
               Specifies a title string to be displayed at the top of the dialog
               box.

          --trace filename
               logs the command-line parameters, keystrokes and  other  informa-
               tion  to the given file.  If dialog reads a configure file, it is
               logged as well.  Piped input to the gauge widget is logged.   Use
               control/T to log a picture of the current dialog window.

               The dialog program handles some command-line parameters  special-
               ly,  and  removes  them  from the parameter list as they are pro-
               cessed.  For example, if the first option is --trace,  then  that

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               is processed (and removed) before dialog initializes the display.

          --week-start day
               sets the starting day for the week, used  in  the  ``--calendar''
               option.  The day parameter can be

               o   a number (0 to 6, Sunday through Saturday using POSIX) or

               o   the special value ``locale'' (this works with  systems  using
                   glibc,  providing  an  extension  to  the locale command, the
                   first_weekday value).

               o   a string matching one of the abbreviations for the day of the
                   week  shown  in  the calendar widget, e.g., ``Mo'' for ``Mon-
                   day''.

          --trim
               eliminate leading blanks,  trim  literal  newlines  and  repeated
               blanks from message text.

               The trim feature is implemented subject to these conditions:

               o   the string does not contain ``\n'' or

               o   the --no-nl-expand option is used.

               For more information, see Whitespace Options.

               See also the ``--cr-wrap'' and ``--no-collapse'' options.

          --version
               Prints dialog's version to the standard output, and  exits.   See
               also ``--print-version''.

          --visit-items
               Modify the tab-traversal of checklist, radiolist, menubox and in-
               putmenu  to include the list of items as one of the states.  This
               is useful as a visual aid, i.e., the cursor position  helps  some
               users.

               When this option is given, the cursor is initially placed on  the
               list.   Abbreviations  (the first letter of the tag) apply to the
               list items.  If you tab to the button row, abbreviations apply to
               the buttons.

          --yes-label string
               Override the label used for ``Yes'' buttons.

        Box Options
          All dialog boxes have at least three parameters:

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          text   the caption or contents of the box.

          height the height of the dialog box.

          width  the width of the dialog box.

          Other parameters depend on the box type.

          --buildlist text height width list-height [ tag item status ] ...
               A buildlist dialog displays two lists, side-by-side.  The list on
               the  left  shows  unselected  items.  The list on the right shows
               selected items.  As items are selected or unselected,  they  move
               between the lists.

               Use a carriage return or the ``OK'' button to accept the  current
               value  in  the selected-window and exit.  The results are written
               using the order displayed in the selected-window.

               The initial on/off state of each entry is specified by status.

               The dialog behaves like a menu, using the --visit-items  to  con-
               trol whether the cursor is allowed to visit the lists directly.

               o   If --visit-items is not given, tab-traversal uses two  states
                   (OK/Cancel).

               o   If --visit-items is given,  tab-traversal  uses  four  states
                   (Left/Right/OK/Cancel).

               Whether or not --visit-items is given, it is possible to move the
               highlight  between  the  two lists using the default ``^'' (left-
               column) and ``$'' (right-column) keys.

               On exit, a list of the tag strings  of  those  entries  that  are
               turned on will be printed on dialog's output.

               If the "--separate-output" option is not given, the strings  will
               be  quoted  as  needed  to make it simple for scripts to separate
               them.  By default, this uses double-quotes, as needed.   See  the
               ``--single-quoted'' option, which modifies the quoting behavior.

          --calendar text height width day month year
               A calendar box displays month, day and year in  separately  adju-
               stable windows.  If the values for day, month or year are missing
               or negative, the current date's corresponding  values  are  used.
               You can increment or decrement any of those using the left-, up-,
               right-, and down-arrows.  Use vi-style h, j, k and l  for  moving
               around  the array of days in a month.  Use tab or backtab to move
               between windows.  If the year is given as zero, the current  date
               is used as an initial value.

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               On exit, the date is printed in  the  form  day/month/year.   The
               format can be overridden using the --date-format option.

          --checklist text height width list-height [ tag item status ] ...
               A checklist box is similar to a menu box; there are multiple  en-
               tries  presented  in  the  form of a menu.  Another difference is
               that you can indicate which entry is currently selected, by  set-
               ting  its  status to on.  Instead of choosing one entry among the
               entries, each entry can be turned on or off by the user.  The in-
               itial on/off state of each entry is specified by status.

               On exit, a list of the tag strings  of  those  entries  that  are
               turned on will be printed on dialog's output.

               If the ``--separate-output'' option is  not  given,  the  strings
               will  be  quoted  as  needed  to  make  it  simple for scripts to
               separate them.  By default, this uses double-quotes (as  needed).
               See  the  ``--single-quoted''  option, which modifies the quoting
               behavior.

          --dselect filepath height width
               The directory-selection dialog displays a  text-entry  window  in
               which  you  can  type  a directory, and above that a windows with
               directory names.

               Here filepath can be a filepath in which case the directory  win-
               dow will display the contents of the path and the text-entry win-
               dow will contain the preselected directory.

               Use tab or arrow keys to move between the  windows.   Within  the
               directory  window,  use  the  up/down  arrow  keys  to scroll the
               current selection.  Use the space-bar to copy the current  selec-
               tion into the text-entry window.

               Typing any printable characters switches focus to the  text-entry
               window, entering that character as well as scrolling the directo-
               ry window to the closest match.

               Use a carriage return or the ``OK'' button to accept the  current
               value in the text-entry window and exit.

               On exit, the contents of the text-entry  window  are  written  to
               dialog's output.

          --editbox filepath height width
               The edit-box dialog displays a copy of the file.  You may edit it
               using the backspace, delete and cursor keys to correct typing er-
               rors.   It  also  recognizes  pageup/pagedown.   Unlike  the   --
               inputbox,  you  must  tab  to the ``OK'' or ``Cancel'' buttons to
               close the dialog.  Pressing the ``Enter'' key within the box will
               split the corresponding line.

                                       - 14 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

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               On exit, the contents of the edit window are written to  dialog's
               output.

          --form text height width formheight [ label y x item y x flen ilen ] ...
               The form dialog displays a form consisting of labels and  fields,
               which  are positioned on a scrollable window by coordinates given
               in the script.  The field length flen and input-length ilen  tell
               how  long  the field can be.  The former defines the length shown
               for a selected field, while the latter  defines  the  permissible
               length of the data entered in the field.

               o   If flen is zero, the corresponding field cannot  be  altered.
                   and the contents of the field determine the displayed-length.

               o   If flen is negative, the corresponding field  cannot  be  al-
                   tered,  and  the  negated  value  of  flen  is  used  as  the
                   displayed-length.

               o   If ilen is zero, it is set to flen.

               Use up/down arrows (or  control/N,  control/P)  to  move  between
               fields.  Use tab to move between windows.

               On exit, the contents of the form-fields are written to  dialog's
               output, each field separated by a newline.  The text used to fill
               non-editable fields (flen is zero or  negative)  is  not  written
               out.

          --fselect filepath height width
               The fselect (file-selection) dialog displays a text-entry  window
               in  which  you can type a filename (or directory), and above that
               two windows with directory names and filenames.

               Here filepath can be a filepath in which case the file and direc-
               tory  windows will display the contents of the path and the text-
               entry window will contain the preselected filename.

               Use tab or arrow keys to move between the  windows.   Within  the
               directory  or  filename  windows,  use  the up/down arrow keys to
               scroll the current selection.  Use  the  space-bar  to  copy  the
               current selection into the text-entry window.

               Typing any printable characters switches focus to the  text-entry
               window, entering that character as well as scrolling the directo-
               ry and filename windows to the closest match.

               Typing the space character forces dialog to complete the  current
               name  (up  to  the  point where there may be a match against more
               than one entry).

                                       - 15 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

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               Use a carriage return or the ``OK'' button to accept the  current
               value in the text-entry window and exit.

               On exit, the contents of the text-entry  window  are  written  to
               dialog's output.

          --gauge text height width [percent]
               A gauge box displays a meter along the bottom of  the  box.   The
               meter  indicates  the  percentage.  New percentages are read from
               standard input, one integer per line.  The meter  is  updated  to
               reflect  each  new  percentage.   If the standard input reads the
               string ``XXX'', then the first line following is taken as an  in-
               teger percentage, then subsequent lines up to another ``XXX'' are
               used for a new prompt.  The gauge exits when EOF  is  reached  on
               the standard input.

               The percent value denotes the initial percentage shown in the me-
               ter.  If not specified, it is zero.

               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  The  widget  ac-
               cepts no input, so the exit status is always OK.

          --infobox text height width
               An info box is basically a message box.  However, in  this  case,
               dialog  will exit immediately after displaying the message to the
               user.  The screen is not cleared when dialog exits, so  that  the
               message  will remain on the screen until the calling shell script
               clears it later.  This is useful when you want to inform the user
               that  some  operations are carrying on that may require some time
               to finish.

               On exit, no text is written  to  dialog's  output.   An  OK  exit
               status is returned.

          --inputbox text height width [init]
               An input box is useful when you want to ask  questions  that  re-
               quire  the user to input a string as the answer.  If init is sup-
               plied it is used to initialize the input string.   When  entering
               the  string, the backspace, delete and cursor keys can be used to
               correct typing errors.  If the input string is  longer  than  can
               fit in the dialog box, the input field will be scrolled.

               On exit, the input string will be printed on dialog's output.

          --inputmenu text height width menu-height [ tag item ] ...
               An inputmenu box is very similar to an ordinary menu box.   There
               are only a few differences between them:

               1.  The entries are not automatically centered but left adjusted.

                                       - 16 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

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               2.  An extra button (called Rename/) is  implied  to  rename  the
                   current item when it is pressed.

               3.  It is possible to rename the current entry  by  pressing  the
                   Rename  button.   Then  dialog  will  write  the following on
                   dialog's output.

                   RENAMED <tag> <item>

          --menu text height width menu-height [ tag item ] ...
               As its name suggests, a menu box is a dialog box that can be used
               to  present  a list of choices in the form of a menu for the user
               to choose.  Choices are displayed in the order given.  Each  menu
               entry consists of a tag string and an item string.  The tag gives
               the entry a name to distinguish it from the other entries in  the
               menu.  The item is a short description of the option that the en-
               try represents.  The user can move between the  menu  entries  by
               pressing  the  cursor keys, the first letter of the tag as a hot-
               key, or the number keys 1 through 9.  There are  menu-height  en-
               tries  displayed  in  the  menu at one time, but the menu will be
               scrolled if there are more entries than that.

               On exit the tag of the chosen  menu  entry  will  be  printed  on
               dialog's  output.   If the ``--help-button'' option is given, the
               corresponding help text will be printed if the user  selects  the
               help button.

          --mixedform text height width formheight [ label y x item y x flen ilen itype ] ...
               The mixedform dialog displays a form  consisting  of  labels  and
               fields,  much  like  the  --form  dialog.  It differs by adding a
               field-type parameter to each field's description.   Each  bit  in
               the type denotes an attribute of the field:

               1    hidden, e.g., a password field.

               2    readonly, e.g., a label.

          --mixedgauge text height width percent [ tag1 item1 ] ...
               A mixedgauge box displays a meter along the bottom  of  the  box.
               The meter indicates the percentage.

               It also displays a list of the tag/- and item/-values at the  top
               of the box.  See dialog(3) for the tag values.

               The text is shown as a caption between the list and  meter.   The
               percent value denotes the initial percentage shown in the meter.

               No provision is made for reading data from the standard input  as
               --gauge does.

                                       - 17 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

     DIALOG(1)              $Date: 2020/03/27 21:14:23 $               DIALOG(1)

               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  The  widget  ac-
               cepts no input, so the exit status is always OK.

          --msgbox text height width
               A message box is very similar to a yes/no box.  The only  differ-
               ence between a message box and a yes/no box is that a message box
               has only a single OK button.  You can  use  this  dialog  box  to
               display  any  message  you  like.  After reading the message, the
               user can press the ENTER key so that dialog  will  exit  and  the
               calling shell script can continue its operation.

               If the message is too large for the space, dialog may  allow  you
               to  scroll it, provided that the underlying curses implementation
               is capable enough.  In this case, a percentage is  shown  in  the
               base of the widget.

               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  Only  an  ``OK''
               button  is  provided for input, but an ESC exit status may be re-
               turned.

          --pause text height width seconds
               A pause box displays a meter along the bottom of  the  box.   The
               meter  indicates  how  many  seconds  remain until the end of the
               pause.  The pause exits when  timeout  is  reached  or  the  user
               presses  the OK button (status OK) or the user presses the CANCEL
               button or Esc key.

          --passwordbox text height width [init]
               A password box is similar to an input box, except that  the  text
               the  user enters is not displayed.  This is useful when prompting
               for passwords or other sensitive information.  Be aware  that  if
               anything  is  passed  in  ``init'',  it  will  be  visible in the
               system's process table to casual  snoopers.   Also,  it  is  very
               confusing  to  the  user  to provide them with a default password
               they cannot see.  For these reasons,  using  ``init''  is  highly
               discouraged.   See  ``--insecure''  if you do not care about your
               password.

               On exit, the input string will be printed on dialog's output.

          --passwordform text height width formheight [ label y x item y x flen ilen ] ...
               This is identical to --form  except  that  all  text  fields  are
               treated as password widgets rather than inputbox widgets.

          --prgbox text command height width

          --prgbox command height width
               A prgbox is very similar to a programbox.

               This dialog box is used to display the output of a  command  that
               is specified as an argument to prgbox.

                                       - 18 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

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               After the command completes, the user can press the ENTER key  so
               that  dialog  will exit and the calling shell script can continue
               its operation.

               If three parameters are given, it displays the text under the ti-
               tle,  delineated from the scrolling file's contents.  If only two
               parameters are given, this text is omitted.

          --programbox text height width

          --programbox height width
               A programbox is very similar to a progressbox.  The only  differ-
               ence  between  a program box and a progress box is that a program
               box displays an OK button (but only after the command completes).

               This dialog box is used to display the piped output of a command.
               After  the command completes, the user can press the ENTER key so
               that dialog will exit and the calling shell script  can  continue
               its operation.

               If three parameters are given, it displays the text under the ti-
               tle,  delineated from the scrolling file's contents.  If only two
               parameters are given, this text is omitted.

          --progressbox text height width

          --progressbox height width
               A progressbox is similar to an tailbox, except that

               a) rather than displaying the contents of a file,
                  it displays the piped output of a command and

               b) it will exit when it reaches the end of the file
                  (there is no ``OK'' button).

               If three parameters are given, it displays the text under the ti-
               tle,  delineated from the scrolling file's contents.  If only two
               parameters are given, this text is omitted.

          --radiolist text height width list-height  [ tag item status ] ...
               A radiolist box is similar to a menu box.  The only difference is
               that  you can indicate which entry is currently selected, by set-
               ting its status to on.

               On exit, the tag of the selected item is written to dialog's out-
               put.

          --tailbox file height width
               Display text from a file in a dialog box, as  in  a  ``tail  -f''
               command.   Scroll  left/right  using  vi-style  'h'  and  'l', or
               arrow-keys.  A '0' resets the scrolling.

                                       - 19 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

     DIALOG(1)              $Date: 2020/03/27 21:14:23 $               DIALOG(1)

               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  Only  an  ``OK''
               button  is  provided for input, but an ESC exit status may be re-
               turned.

          --rangebox text height width min-value max-value default-value
               Allow the user to select from a range of values,  e.g.,  using  a
               slider.   The  dialog  shows the current value as a bar (like the
               gauge dialog).  Tabs or arrow keys move the  cursor  between  the
               buttons  and the value.  When the cursor is on the value, you can
               edit it by:

               left/right cursor movement to select a digit to modify

               +/-  characters to increment/decrement the digit by one

               0 through 9
                    to set the digit to the given value

               Some keys are also recognized in all cursor positions:

               home/end
                    set the value to its maximum or minimum

               pageup/pagedown
                    increment the value so that the slider moves by one column

          --tailboxbg file height width
               Display text from a file in a dialog box as a background task, as
               in a ``tail -f &'' command.  Scroll left/right using vi-style 'h'
               and 'l', or arrow-keys.  A '0' resets the scrolling.

               Dialog treats the background task specially if  there  are  other
               widgets  (--and-widget)  on the screen concurrently.  Until those
               widgets are closed (e.g., an ``OK''), dialog will perform all  of
               the  tailboxbg  widgets in the same process, polling for updates.
               You may use a tab to traverse between the widgets on the  screen,
               and  close  them individually, e.g., by pressing ENTER.  Once the
               non-tailboxbg widgets are closed, dialog forks a copy  of  itself
               into  the  background,  and  prints its process id if the ``--no-
               kill'' option is given.

               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  Only an ``EXIT''
               button  is  provided for input, but an ESC exit status may be re-
               turned.

               NOTE: Older versions of dialog forked immediately  and  attempted
               to update the screen individually.  Besides being bad for perfor-
               mance, it was unworkable.  Some older scripts may not work  prop-
               erly with the polled scheme.

                                       - 20 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

     DIALOG(1)              $Date: 2020/03/27 21:14:23 $               DIALOG(1)

          --textbox file height width
               A text box lets you display the contents of a text file in a dia-
               log  box.   It  is  like a simple text file viewer.  The user can
               move through the file by using the cursor, page-up, page-down and
               HOME/END  keys available on most keyboards.  If the lines are too
               long to be displayed in the box, the LEFT/RIGHT keys can be  used
               to  scroll  the  text  region horizontally.  You may also use vi-
               style keys h, j, k, and l in place of the cursor keys, and B or N
               in place of the page-up and page-down keys.  Scroll up/down using
               vi-style 'k' and 'j', or  arrow-keys.   Scroll  left/right  using
               vi-style 'h' and 'l', or arrow-keys.  A '0' resets the left/right
               scrolling.  For more convenience, vi-style forward  and  backward
               searching functions are also provided.

               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  Only an ``EXIT''
               button  is  provided for input, but an ESC exit status may be re-
               turned.

          --timebox text height [width hour minute second]
               A dialog is displayed which allows you to select hour, minute and
               second.   If the values for hour, minute or second are missing or
               negative, the current date's corresponding values are used.   You
               can  increment  or  decrement  any of those using the left-, up-,
               right- and down-arrows.  Use tab or backtab to move between  win-
               dows.

               On exit, the result is printed in  the  form  hour:minute:second.
               The format can be overridden using the --time-format option.

          --treeview text height width list-height [ tag item status depth ] ...
               Display data organized as a tree.  Each group of data contains  a
               tag,  the  text  to  display  for the item, its status (``on'' or
               ``off'') and the depth of the item in the tree.

               Only one item can be selected (like the radiolist).  The  tag  is
               not displayed.

               On exit, the tag of the selected item is written to dialog's out-
               put.

          --yesno text height width
               A yes/no dialog box of size height rows by width columns will  be
               displayed.   The string specified by text is displayed inside the
               dialog box.  If this string is too long to fit in  one  line,  it
               will  be automatically divided into multiple lines at appropriate
               places.  The text string can also contain the sub-string   \n
               or  newline  characters `\n' to control line breaking explicitly.
               This dialog box is useful for asking questions that  require  the
               user to answer either yes or no.  The dialog box has a Yes button
               and a No button, in which the user can switch between by pressing
               the TAB key.

                                       - 21 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

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               On exit, no text is written to dialog's output.  In  addition  to
               the  ``Yes''  and ``No'' exit codes (see DIAGNOSTICS) an ESC exit
               status may be returned.

               The codes used for ``Yes'' and ``No'' match those used for ``OK''
               and ``Cancel'', internally no distinction is made.

        Obsolete Options
          --beep
               This was used to tell the original cdialog that it should make  a
               beep  when  the  separate processes of the tailboxbg widget would
               repaint the screen.

          --beep-after
               Beep after a user has completed a widget by pressing one  of  the
               buttons.

        Whitespace Options
          These options can be used to transform whitespace  (space,  tab,  new-
          line) as dialog reads the script:
               --cr-wrap, --no-collapse, --no-nl-expand, and --trim

          The options are not independent:

          o   Dialog checks if the script contains at least one ``\n'' and  (un-
              less  --no-nl-expand  is set) will ignore the --no-collapse and --
              trim options.

          o   After checking for ``\n'' and the  --no-nl-expand  option,  dialog
              handles the --trim option.

              If the --trim option  takes  effect,  then  dialog  ignores  --no-
              collapse.   It changes sequences of tabs, spaces (and newlines un-
              less -cr-wrap is set) to a single space.

          o   If neither the ``\n'' or --trim cases apply, dialog  checks  --no-
              collapse  to decide whether to reduce sequences of tabs and spaces
              to a single space.

              In this case, dialog ignores -cr-wrap and  does  not  modify  new-
              lines.

          Taking those dependencies into account, here is  a  table  summarizing
          the  behavior  for the various combinations of options.  The table as-
          sumes that the script contains at least one ``\n'' when  the  --no-nl-
          expand option is not set.
               cr-     no-        no-         trim    Result
               wrap    collapse   nl-expand
               _____________________________________________________________________

                                       - 22 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

     DIALOG(1)              $Date: 2020/03/27 21:14:23 $               DIALOG(1)

               no      no         no          no      Convert tab to space.  Convert
                                                      newline to space.  Convert
                                                      ``\n'' to newline.
               no      no         no          yes     Convert tab to space.  Convert
                                                      newline to space.  Convert
                                                      ``\n'' to newline.
               no      no         yes         no      Convert tab to space.  Do not
                                                      convert newline to space.
                                                      Convert multiple-space to sin-
                                                      gle.  Show ``\n'' literally.
               no      no         yes         yes     Convert tab to space.  Convert
                                                      multiple-space to single.
                                                      Convert newline to space.
                                                      Show ``\n'' literally.
               no      yes        no          no      Convert newline to space.
                                                      Convert ``\n'' to newline.
               no      yes        no          yes     Convert newline to space.
                                                      Convert ``\n'' to newline.
               no      yes        yes         no      Do not convert newline to
                                                      space.  Do not reduce multiple
                                                      blanks.  Show ``\n'' literal-
                                                      ly.
               no      yes        yes         yes     Convert multiple-space to sin-
                                                      gle.  Convert newline to
                                                      space.  Show ``\n'' literally.
               yes     no         no          no      Convert tab to space.  Wrap on
                                                      newline.  Convert ``\n'' to
                                                      newline.
               yes     no         no          yes     Convert tab to space.  Wrap on
                                                      newline.  Convert ``\n'' to
                                                      newline.
               yes     no         yes         no      Convert tab to space.  Do not
                                                      convert newline to space.
                                                      Convert multiple-space to sin-
                                                      gle.  Show ``\n'' literally.
               yes     no         yes         yes     Convert tab to space.  Convert
                                                      multiple-space to single.
                                                      Wrap on newline.  Show ``\n''
                                                      literally.
               yes     yes        no          no      Wrap on newline.  Convert
                                                      ``\n'' to newline.
               yes     yes        no          yes     Wrap on newline.  Convert
                                                      ``\n'' to newline.
               yes     yes        yes         no      Do not convert newline to
                                                      space.  Do not reduce multiple
                                                      blanks.  Show ``\n'' literal-
                                                      ly.
               yes     yes        yes         yes     Convert multiple-space to sin-
                                                      gle.  Wrap on newline.  Show
                                                      ``\n'' literally.

                                       - 23 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

     DIALOG(1)              $Date: 2020/03/27 21:14:23 $               DIALOG(1)

     RUN-TIME CONFIGURATION
          1.  Create a sample configuration file by typing:

                 dialog --create-rc file

          2.  At start, dialog determines the settings to use as follows:

              a)  if environment variable DIALOGRC is set, its value  determines
                  the name of the configuration file.

              b)  if the file in (a) is not found, use the file  $HOME/.dialogrc
                  as the configuration file.

              c)  if the file in (b) is not found, try using the  GLOBALRC  file
                  determined at compile-time, i.e., /etc/dialogrc.

              d)  if the file in (c) is not found, use compiled in defaults.

          3.  Edit the sample configuration file and copy it to some place  that
              dialog can find, as stated in step 2 above.

     KEY BINDINGS
          You can override or add to key bindings in dialog  by  adding  to  the
          configuration  file.  Dialog's bindkey command maps single keys to its
          internal coding.

                 bindkey widget curses_key dialog_key

          The widget name can be ``*'' (all widgets), or specific  widgets  such
          as  textbox.   Specific  widget  bindings override the ``*'' bindings.
          User-defined bindings override the built-in bindings.

          The curses_key can be expressed in different forms:

          o   It may be any of the names derived from curses.h,  e.g.,  ``HELP''
              from ``KEY_HELP''.

          o   Dialog also recognizes ANSI control  characters  such  as  ``^A'',
              ``^?'', as well as C1-controls such as ``~A'' and ``~?''.

          o   Finally, dialog allows backslash escapes as in C.   Those  can  be
              octal  character values such as ``\033'' (the ASCII escape charac-
              ter), or the characters listed in this table:
                    Escaped   Actual
                    _______________________________
                              backspace
                                   form feed
                              carrinewliner(line feed)
                              space
                              tab

                                       - 24 -         Formatted:  April 17, 2020

     DIALOG(1)              $Date: 2020/03/27 21:14:23 $               DIALOG(1)

                              ``^'' (caret)
                    ?         ``?'' (question mark)
                    \         ``'' (backslash)
                    _______________________________

          Dialog's internal keycode names correspond to the  DLG_KEYS_ENUM  type
          in dlg_keys.h, e.g., ``HELP'' from ``DLGK_HELP''.

        Widget Names
          Some widgets (such as the formbox) have an area where  fields  can  be
          edited.   Those are managed in a subwindow of the widget, and may have
          separate keybindings from the main widget because the  subwindows  are
          registered using a different name.
               Widget        Window name   Subwindow Name
               __________________________________________
               calendar      calendar
               checklist     checklist
               editbox       editbox       editbox2
               form          formbox       formfield
               fselect       fselect       fselect2
               inputbox      inputbox      inputbox2
               menu          menubox       menu
               msgbox        msgbox
               pause         pause
               progressbox   progressbox
               radiolist     radiolist
               tailbox       tailbox
               textbox       textbox       searchbox
               timebox       timebox
               yesno         yesno
               __________________________________________

          Some widgets are actually other widgets, using  internal  settings  to
          modify  the  behavior.   Those  use the same widget name as the actual
          widget:
               Widget         Actual Widget
               ____________________________
               dselect        fselect
               infobox        msgbox
               inputmenu      menu
               mixedform      form
               passwordbox    inputbox
               passwordform   form
               prgbox         progressbox
               programbox     progressbox
               tailboxbg      tailbox
               ____________________________

        Built-in Bindings
          This manual page does not list the key bindings for each  widget,  be-
          cause that detailed information can be obtained by running dialog.  If

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          you have set the --trace option, dialog writes the key-binding  infor-
          mation for each widget as it is registered.

        Example
          Normally dialog uses different keys for navigating between the buttons
          and  editing  part  of  a  dialog versus navigating within the editing
          part.  That is, tab (and back-tab) traverse buttons (or  between  but-
          tons  and  the  editing part), while arrow keys traverse fields within
          the editing part.  Tabs are also recognized  as  a  special  case  for
          traversing  between widgets, e.g., when using multiple tailboxbg widg-
          ets.

          Some users may wish to use the same  key  for  traversing  within  the
          editing  part  as  for traversing between buttons.  The form widget is
          written to support this sort of redefinition of the keys, by adding  a
          special  group  in  dlgk_keys.h  for  ``form'' (left/right/next/prev).
          Here is an example binding demonstrating how to do this:

                 bindkey formfield TAB  form_NEXT
                 bindkey formbox   TAB  form_NEXT
                 bindkey formfield BTAB form_prev
                 bindkey formbox   BTAB form_prev

          That type of redefinition would not be useful in other widgets,  e.g.,
          calendar, due to the potentially large number of fields to traverse.

     ENVIRONMENT
          DIALOGOPTS     Define this variable to apply any of the common options
                         to  each  widget.  Most of the common options are reset
                         before processing each widget.  If you set the  options
                         in  this  environment  variable,  they  are  applied to
                         dialog's state after the reset.  As in  the  ``--file''
                         option, double-quotes and backslashes are interpreted.

                         The ``--file'' option is not considered a common option
                         (so  you  cannot embed it within this environment vari-
                         able).

          DIALOGRC       Define this variable if you want to specify the name of
                         the configuration file to use.

          DIALOG_CANCEL

          DIALOG_ERROR

          DIALOG_ESC

          DIALOG_EXTRA

          DIALOG_HELP

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          DIALOG_ITEM_HELP

          DIALOG_OK      Define any of these variables to change the  exit  code
                         on  Cancel  (1), error (-1), ESC (255), Extra (3), Help
                         (2), Help with --item-help (2), or  OK  (0).   Normally
                         shell scripts cannot distinguish between -1 and 255.

          DIALOG_TTY     Set this variable to  ``1''  to  provide  compatibility
                         with older versions of dialog which assumed that if the
                         script redirects the standard  output,  that  the  ``--
                         stdout'' option was given.

     FILES
          $HOME/.dialogrc     default configuration file

     EXAMPLES
          The dialog sources contain several samples of how to use the different
          box  options  and  how they look.  Just take a look into the directory
          samples/ of the source.

     DIAGNOSTICS
          Exit status is subject to being overridden by  environment  variables.
          The  default  values  and corresponding environment variables that can
          override them are:

          0    if the YES or OK button is pressed (DIALOG_OK).

          1    if the No or Cancel button is pressed (DIALOG_CANCEL).

          2    if the Help button is pressed (DIALOG_HELP),
               except as noted below about DIALOG_ITEM_HELP.

          3    if the Extra button is pressed (DIALOG_EXTRA).

          4    if the Help button is pressed,
               and the --item-help option is set
               and the DIALOG_ITEM_HELP environment variable is set to 4.

               While any of the exit-codes can be overridden  using  environment
               variables,  this  special case was introduced in 2004 to simplify
               compatibility.  Dialog uses DIALOG_ITEM_HELP(4)  internally,  but
               unless  the  environment variable is also set, it changes that to
               DIALOG_HELP(2) on exit.

          -1   if errors occur inside dialog (DIALOG_ERROR) or dialog exits  be-
               cause the ESC key (DIALOG_ESC) was pressed.

     PORTABILITY
          Dialog works with X/Open curses.  However, some  implementations  have
          deficiencies:

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             o   HPUX curses (and perhaps others) do not open the terminal prop-
                 erly  for  the newterm function.  This interferes with dialog's
                 --input-fd option, by preventing cursor-keys and similar escape
                 sequences from being recognized.

             o   NetBSD 5.1 curses has incomplete support  for  wide-characters.
                 dialog will build, but not all examples display properly.

     COMPATIBILITY
          You may want to write scripts which run with other dialog ``clones''.

        Original Dialog
          First, there is the ``original'' dialog program to consider  (versions
          0.3  to  0.9).  It had some misspelled (or inconsistent) options.  The
          dialog program maps those deprecated options to  the  preferred  ones.
          They include:
               Option         Treatment
               ________________________________
               --beep-after   ignored
               --guage        mapped to --gauge
               ________________________________

        Xdialog
          This is an X application, rather than a terminal program.   With  some
          care, it is possible to write useful scripts that work with both Xdia-
          log and dialog.

          The dialog program ignores these options which are recognized by Xdia-
          log:
               Option             Treatment
               ______________________________________________
               --allow-close      ignored
               --auto-placement   ignored
               --fixed-font       ignored
               --icon             ignored
               --keep-colors      ignored
               --no-close         ignored
               --no-cr-wrap       ignored
               --screen-center    ignored
               --separator        mapped to --separate-output
               --smooth           ignored
               --under-mouse      ignored
               --wmclass          ignored
               ______________________________________________

          Xdialog's manpage has a section discussing its compatibility with dia-
          log.   There are some differences not shown in the manpage.  For exam-
          ple, the html documentation states

               Note: former Xdialog releases used the ``\n'' (line  feed)  as  a
               results separator for the checklist widget; this has been changed

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               to ``/'' in Xdialog v1.5.0 to make it compatible with  (c)dialog.
               In  your  old  scripts using the Xdialog checklist, you will then
               have to add the --separate-output option before  the  --checklist
               one.

          Dialog has not used a different separator; the difference  was  likely
          due to confusion regarding some script.

        Whiptail
          Then there is whiptail.  For practical purposes, it is  maintained  by
          Debian (very little work is done by its upstream developers).  Its do-
          cumentation (README.whiptail) claims

                 whiptail(1) is a lightweight replacement for dialog(1),
                 to provide dialog boxes for shell scripts.
                 It is built on the
                 newt windowing library rather than the ncurses library, allowing
                 it to be smaller in embedded environments such as installers,
                 rescue disks, etc.

                 whiptail is designed to be drop-in compatible with dialog, but
                 has less features: some dialog boxes are not implemented, such
                 as tailbox, timebox, calendarbox, etc.

          Comparing actual sizes (Debian testing, 2007/1/10): The total of sizes
          for  whiptail, the newt, popt and slang libraries is 757 KB.  The com-
          parable number for dialog (counting ncurses) is 520 KB.  Disregard the
          first paragraph.

          The second paragraph is misleading, since whiptail also does not  work
          for common options of dialog, such as the gauge box.  whiptail is less
          compatible with dialog than the original mid-1990s dialog 0.4 program.

          whiptail's manpage borrows features from dialog, e.g., but oddly cites
          only  dialog versions up to 0.4 (1994) as a source.  That is, its man-
          page refers to features which were borrowed from more recent  versions
          of dialog, e.g.,

          o   --gauge (from 0.5)

          o   --passwordbox (from Debian changes in 1999),

          o   --default-item (from dialog 2000/02/22),

          o   --output-fd (from dialog 2002/08/14).

          Somewhat humorously, one may note that the popt feature  (undocumented
          in  its  manpage)  of  using  a  ``--'' as an escape was documented in
          dialog's manpage about a year before it was  mentioned  in  whiptail's
          manpage.   whiptail's  manpage  incorrectly  attributes that to getopt
          (and is inaccurate anyway).

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          Debian uses whiptail for the official dialog variation.

          The dialog program ignores or maps these options which are  recognized
          by whiptail:
               Option            Treatment
               __________________________________________
               --cancel-button   mapped to --cancel-label
               --fb              ignored
               --fullbutton      ignored
               --no-button       mapped to --no-label
               --nocancel        mapped to --no-cancel
               --noitem          mapped to --no-items
               --notags          mapped to --no-tags
               --ok-button       mapped to --ok-label
               --scrolltext      mapped to --scrollbar
               --topleft         mapped to --begin 0 0
               --yes-button      mapped to --yes-label
               __________________________________________
          There are visual differences which are not addressed  by  command-line
          options:

          o   dialog centers lists within the window.  whiptail  typically  puts
              lists against the left margin.

          o   whiptail uses angle brackets (``<'' and ``>'')  for  marking  but-
              tons.  dialog uses square brackets.

          o   whiptail marks the limits of subtitles with vertical bars.  dialog
              does not mark the limits.

          o   whiptail attempts to mark the top/bottom cells of a scrollbar with
              up/down arrows.  When it cannot do this, it fills those cells with
              the background color of the scrollbar and confusing the user.  di-
              alog uses the entire scrollbar space, thereby getting better reso-
              lution.

     BUGS
          Perhaps.

     AUTHOR
          Thomas E. Dickey (updates for 0.9b and beyond)

     CONTRIBUTORS
          Kiran Cherupally  the mixed form and mixed gauge widgets.   Tobias  C.
          Rittweiler  Valery  Reznic   the  form  and progressbox widgets.  Yura
          Kalinichenko adapted the gauge widget as ``pause''.

          This is a rewrite (except as needed to provide compatibility)  of  the
          earlier version of dialog 0.9a, which lists as authors:

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          o   Savio Lam  version 0.3, ``dialog''

          o   Stuart Herbert  patch for version 0.4

          o   Marc Ewing  the gauge widget.

          o   Pasquale De Marco ``Pako''  version 0.9a, ``cdialog''

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