"screen" is a window manager that allows you to handle several independent
screens (UNIX ttys) on a single physical terminal; each screen has its own
set of processes connected to it (typically interactive shells). Each
virtual terminal created by "screen" emulates a DEC VT100 plus several ANSI
X3.64 functions (including DEC VT102 features such as line and character
deletion and insertion).
Since "screen" uses pseudo-ttys, the select system call, and UNIX-domain
sockets, it will not run under a system that does not include these
features of 4.2 and 4.3 BSD UNIX.
This version of ``screen'' is a ``beta-test version'', i.e. I solicit
input on bugs (e.g., I'm not sure if "screen" works correctly on terminals
other than those on which I have been able to test it, namely VT100, VT220,
MDL110, IBM-PC with QNX, KDE-820), misfeatures, or just suggestions for
possible enhancements. After receiving enough of these and incorporating
the pertinent changes into screen, I want to post a final version of
"screen" to mod.sources.
If you want to get an idea how "screen" works but don't want to read the
entire manual do the following:
- call screen without arguments
- wait for the shell prompt; execute some commands
- type ^A ^C (Control-A followed by Control-C)
- wait for the shell prompt; do something in the new window
- type ^A ^A repeatedly to switch between the two windows
- terminate the first shell ("screen" switches to the other window)
- terminate the second shell
If you have got "vttest" (the VT100 test program from mod.sources) you
may want to run it from within "screen" to verify that it correctly
emulates a VT100 on your terminal (except for 132 column mode and
double width/height characters, of course).
Mail bug-reports and useful modifications to:
US...!pyramid!tub!net or Europe...!mcvax!unido!tub!net or net@TUB.BITNET
Regards,
Oliver Laumann
Technical University of Berlin,
Communications and Operating Systems Research Group.