NAME

       readbuffer - read input from devices which don't like constant stopping and starting

SYNOPSIS

       readbuffer [--mlock] [size]

DESCRIPTION

       readbuffer  reads  data  on  standard  input  and  writes  it to standard output.  It will
       internally buffer up to size megabytes of data, and will only  read  more  data  when  the
       buffer is at least 75% empty.

       size  may  also  be  suffixed  with m, k, or b to indicate that it is in megabytes (2^20),
       kilobytes (2^10) or bytes.

       It is intended  for  use  in  situations  where  many  small  reads  are  undesirable  for
       performance reasons, e.g. tape drives.

OPTIONS

       --mlock
              Calls mlock(2) to lock the buffer into memory.

SEE ALSO

       writebuffer(1), mlock(2)