Provided by: ncurses-doc_6.4+20240113-1ubuntu2_all 
NAME
slk_init, slk_set, slk_wset, slk_refresh, slk_noutrefresh, slk_label, slk_clear, slk_restore, slk_touch,
slk_attron, slk_attrset, slk_attroff, slk_attr_on, slk_attr_set, slk_attr_off, slk_attr, slk_color,
extended_slk_color - curses soft label key routines
SYNOPSIS
#include <curses.h>
int slk_init(int fmt);
int slk_set(int labnum, const char *label, int align);
int slk_wset(int labnum, const wchar_t *label, int align);
char *slk_label(int labnum);
int slk_refresh(void);
int slk_noutrefresh(void);
int slk_clear(void);
int slk_restore(void);
int slk_touch(void);
int slk_attron(const chtype attrs);
int slk_attroff(const chtype attrs);
int slk_attrset(const chtype attrs);
int slk_attr_on(attr_t attrs, void *opts);
int slk_attr_off(const attr_t attrs, void *opts);
int slk_attr_set(const attr_t attrs, short pair, void*opts);
/* extension */
attr_t slk_attr(void);
int slk_color(short pair);
/* extension */
int extended_slk_color(int pair);
DESCRIPTION
These functions manipulate the soft function key labels that some hardware terminals support. For those
terminals that do not have soft labels, curses takes over the bottom line of stdscr, reducing its
vertical size and the value of LINES by one. By default, curses uses eight labels of up to eight
characters each.
ncurses furthermore supports a mode comprising twelve labels of up to five characters each, following a
convention associated with the IBM PC/AT keyboard. ncurses simulates this mode by taking over up to two
lines at the bottom of the screen; it does not try to use any hardware support for this mode.
Initialization
slk_init must be called before initscr or newterm. If initscr eventually uses a line from stdscr to
emulate the soft labels, then fmt determines how the labels are arranged on the screen.
0 indicates a 3-2-3 arrangement of the labels.
1 indicates a 4-4 arrangement
2 indicates the PC-like 4-4-4 mode.
3 is again the PC-like 4-4-4 mode, but in addition an index line is generated, helping the user to
associate each label with its numbered function key. LINES and the vertical size of stdscr are
further reduced.
Labels
Populate the labels with normal strings (slk_set) or wide-character strings (slk_wset). Each function
takes three parameters.
labnum is the label number, from 1 to 8 (12 if fmt in slk_init is 2 or 3);
label is be the string to put on the label, up to eight (five if fmt in slk_init is 2 or 3) characters
in length. A empty string or a null pointer sets up a blank label.
align is 0, 1, or 2, aligning label to the left, center, or right, respectively, within the 8 (5)
character cells housing it.
slk_label obtains the string assigned to label number labnum, with any leading and trailing blanks
stripped.
Screen Updates
slk_refresh and slk_noutrefresh affect the soft key label lines as wrefresh and wnoutrefresh do the
curses window.
The slk_clear routine clears the soft labels from the screen.
The slk_restore routine restores the soft labels to the screen after a slk_clear has been performed.
The slk_touch routine forces all the soft labels to be output the next time a slk_noutrefresh is
performed.
Video Attributes
The slk_attron, slk_attrset, slk_attroff, and slk_attr routines correspond to attron, attrset, attroff,
and attr_get, respectively. They have an effect only if soft labels are simulated on the bottom line of
the screen. The default highlight for soft key labels is A_STANDOUT (as in System V curses, which does
not document this fact).
Colors
The slk_color routine corresponds to color_set. It has an effect only if soft labels are simulated on
the bottom line of the screen.
Because slk_color accepts only short (signed 16-bit integer) values, this implementation provides
extended_slk_color, which accepts an int value of at least 32 bits.
RETURN VALUE
Routines that return an integer return ERR upon failure and OK (SVr4 specifies only “an integer value
other than ERR”) upon successful completion.
X/Open Curses defines no error conditions.
In this implementation
slk_attr
returns the attribute used for the soft keys.
slk_attroff, slk_attron, slk_clear, slk_noutrefresh, slk_refresh, slk_touch
return an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not initialized.
slk_attrset
returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not initialized.
slk_attr_set
returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not initialized, or the color pair is
outside the range 0..COLOR_PAIRS-1.
slk_color
returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not initialized, or the color pair is
outside the range 0..COLOR_PAIRS-1.
slk_init
returns an error if the format parameter is outside the range 0..3.
slk_label
returns NULL on error.
slk_set
returns an error if the terminal or the softkeys were not initialized, or the labnum parameter is
outside the range of label counts, or if the format parameter is outside the range 0..2, or if
memory for the labels cannot be allocated.
NOTES
Most applications would use slk_noutrefresh because a wrefresh is likely to follow soon.
EXTENSIONS
X/Open Curses documents the opts argument as reserved for future use, saying that it must be null. This
implementation uses that parameter in ABI 6 for the functions which have a color pair parameter to
support extended color pairs.
For functions which modify the color, e.g., slk_attr_set, if opts is set it is treated as a pointer to
int, and used to set the color pair instead of the short pair parameter.
PORTABILITY
X/Open Curses, Issue 4, describes these functions, with some differences from SVr4 curses:
• X/Open added functions like the SVr4 attribute-manipulation functions slk_attron, slk_attroff, and
slk_attrset, but which use attr_t parameters (rather than chtype), along with a reserved opts
parameter.
Two of these new functions (unlike the SVr4 functions) have no provision for color: slk_attr_on and
slk_attr_off.
The third function (slk_attr_set) has a color pair parameter.
• It added const qualifiers to parameters (unnecessarily), and
• It added slk_color.
Although slk_start is declared in the curses header file, it was not documented by SVr4 other than its
presence in a list of libtermlib.so.1 symbols. Reading the source code (i.e., Illumos):
• slk_start has two parameters:
• ng (number of groups) and
• gp (group pointer).
• Soft-key groups are an array of ng integers.
• In SVr4, slk_init calls slk_start passing a null for gp. For this case, slk_start uses the number of
groups ng (3 for the 3-2-3 layout, 2 for the 4-4 layout) which slk_init provided.
If ng is neither 2 or 3, slk_start checks the terminfo fln (label_format) capability, interpreting
that as a comma-separated list of numbers, e.g., “3,2,3” for the 3-2-3 layout.
Finally, if there is no fln capability, slk_start returns ERR.
• If slk_start is given a non-null gp, it copies the ng elements of the group of soft-keys, up to 16.
If there are more than 16 elements, slk_start returns an error.
• The format codes 2 and 3 for slk_init were added by ncurses in 1996. PDCurses 2.4 added this feature
in 2001.
The function slk_attr was added by ncurses in 1996.
X/Open Curses does not specify a limit for the number of colors and color pairs which a terminal can
support. However, in its use of short for the parameters, it carries over SVr4's implementation detail
for the compiled terminfo database, which uses signed 16-bit numbers. This implementation provides
extended versions of those functions which use int parameters, allowing applications to use larger color-
and pair-numbers.
HISTORY
SVr3 introduced these functions:
slk_clear
slk_init
slk_label
slk_noutrefresh
slk_refresh
slk_restore
slk_set
slk_touch
SVr4 added these functions:
slk_attroff
slk_attron
slk_attrset
slk_start
X/Open Curses added these:
slk_attr_off
slk_attr_on
slk_attr_set
slk_color
slk_wset
SEE ALSO
ncurses(3NCURSES), attr(3NCURSES), initscr(3NCURSES), refresh(3NCURSES), curses_variables(3NCURSES)