9.12 Fixeols

9.12 Fixeols

The fixeols command takes two filename arguments: an input file and an

output file. It reads in the input file and writes it to the output file changing all

Tutorial

the end of line control character sequences to the local format. It can also take

one filename argument, in which case it replaces the target file with its

Developer

transformation.

Reference

Syntax  : fixeols = "fixeols" s filename [s filename]

1 Introduction

Examples: fixeols imported.hak result.kln

2 Interface

          fixeols sloth.dat

3 Scanner

The fixeols command works by parsing the input file into alternating runs of

4 Parser

printable characters (ASCII 20 to ASCII 126) and runs of non printable

5 Analyser

characters (all the others). It then parses each run of non printable characters

6 Tangle

from left to right into subruns of non printables not containing the same

7 Weave

character twice. It then replaces each subrun with a native EOL. (Note: A

native EOL can be inserted into a text file in a portable manner simply by

8 Shell

writing "

\n

" to the text output stream). For example, if a native EOL is X, and

9 Commands

ABCD are non printable characters, and the file to be converted is

10 Glossary

11 References

thisABisABCDanABABexampleABCCCof the conversion.

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then fixeols would produce

thisXisXanXXexampleXXXof the conversion.

The fixeols command was devised to solve the problem created sometimes

when text files are moved from one machine to another (e.g. with the Kermit

program) using a binary transfer mode rather than a text transfer mode. If such

a transfer is made, and the text file line termination conventions differ on the

two machines, one can wind up with a set of text files with improperly

terminated lines. This can cause problems on a number of fronts, but in

particular affects regression testing which relies heavily on exact comparisons

between files. The fixeols command provides a solution to this problem by

providing a portable way to "purify" text files whose end of lines have become

incorrect. The regression testing scripts all apply fixeols to their input and

output files before each test.

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Copyright   Ross N. Williams 1992,1999. All rights reserved.

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