xterm is a console program?

[Harold L Hunt II]

>>This is also wrong for a lot of X11 applications. Just imagine the debug
>>nighmare when the user never sees the "Can't connect to display" message
>>and crys "xterm bombs!!!!! :( Plz Help"
> 
> 
> This, actually, is a *very* good point!  Most X apps will communicate with
> the console, if only to show errors or help messages (run your favorite X
> app with --help and see if it doesn't print to the console).  So, to
> answer the question in the subject, *yes, an xterm IS a console app*.
> 

Right, just like how you can't get info from XWin.exe -help right now 
because we *had* to make it a Windows app instead of a console app (or 
even a console app with auto-detach) because there isn't currently a 
good solution to this problem.

> The functionality that Early proposes might be useful, but it certainly is
> not something to have *by default*.  A Cygwin-specific command-line switch
> (if it's implementable -- I don't know) is a good compromise, and,
> although that *will* require changing each individual application, it
> sounds much better than the "no console ever" policy.
> 

The policy isn't "no console ever".  The policy is "detach from consoles 
created specifically for this process, remain attached to consoles that 
this process is launched from".  Thus, if you launch from bash you get 
console output.  If you launch from Start->Run or by double-clicking the 
app you don't get a new console spawned specifically for that app.

> If such functionality is released, the best place for it, IMO, is what CGF
> suggested, i.e., a separate hideconsole.o which apps link against; it can
> even come in its own package, independent of either cygwin or xfree*.

Of course.  We are having a discussion here and the purpose is to wander 
around until we find a good idea.  There are not two camps here (for and 
against) like it may seem.  We are all trying to find out if there is an 
acceptable solution and Chris's suggestion sounds like a better solution 
than the earlier proposal, so it is the current winner.  Of course, our 
emails haven't reflected this yet because I have to sleep at night so I 
haven't had a chance to change the direction of the discussion until now.

Harold