[Pine-info] Alt editor failure cause found -- vim returning errors

[Joseph Tam]

On Thu, 15 Feb 2007, Matt Ackeret wrote:


> Well, I found the problem.  If vim gets any error, including searching for

> text that's not found (like if I do /ZZZ right now in vim launched from

> pine), then vim returns an error.


I noticed this annoying messages a long time ago when I set my default editor to
vi (the one packed with Solaris):

 	editor=/usr/bin/vi
 	feature-list=enable-alternate-editor-implicitly, enable-alternate-editor-cmd, ...

If you have an editor error (the last command?), you would get the message.  Every
build from then on, I applied this patch (taken from my notes):

         # Do not check for alternate editor exit status (don't worry, be happy):
         #       //      /*
         #       //       * Report child's unnatural or unhappy exit...
         #       //       */
         #       //      if(WIFEXITED(stat) && WEXITSTATUS(stat) == 0)
         #       //        strcpy(result, "Alternate %s done");
         #       //      else {
         #       //        sprintf(result, "Alternate %%s terminated abnormally (%d)",
         #       //                WIFEXITED(stat) ? WEXITSTATUS(stat) : -1);
         #       //        if(f)
         #       //          ret = -1;
         #       //        else{
         #       //            sprintf(prmpt, "Alt editor failed, use file %.20s of size %%ld chars anyway", fn)
;
         #       //            ret = -2;
         #       //        }
         #       //      }
         #               strcpy(result, "Alternate %s done");
         #
         # To test:
         #       - start pine and start composing a message
         #       - do something that causes an error (e.g. ":g"), then quit
         #       - it ought to say "Alternate editor done"
         vi pico/osdep/unix

I guess maybe you can also make a wrapper script around vi that cleanses the
exit code and use that:

 	cat ___EOF_ >/my/version/of/vi
 	#!/bin/sh

 	/usr/bin/vi
 	exit 0
 	_EOF_

 	chmod +x /my/version/of/vi

Joseph Tam <tam at math.ubc.ca>