[GRASS-dev] Re: g.rename consolidation

[Glynn Clements]

Hamish wrote:

> > I had opportunity to watch how total n00bs and lam3s work with GRASS.
> > One of problems for them was how to know whem some module has finished
> > it's work witout error. Curretnly lot of GRASS modules output
> > different progress info, that many users may found fustrating, but
> > after reporting about "opening" and "closing" maps, it does not report
> > "success" at end. In good old times it was easy to know, that module
> > has finished it's run - it was just returning GRASS prompt to user to
> > get new command. Nowdays progress may go to different window somewhere
> > behind other windows between gazzilion of other unnecessary info and
> > it may be hard to distinguish what's important and what is not and as
> > progress bar due extensive output may be scrolled up far, far away,
> > how to know how many % module has completed?
> 
> 
> It's a valid point, and not just frustrating for new users. From the Tcl
> GUI window there is no indication that it has finished, unless the
> module calls G_done_msg(). They shouldn't have to run gkrellm or learn
> to listen to the change in pitch of the processor fan to know it is done.
> 
> For a long time I have wished that G_done_msg() would show a green tick
> mark in the GUI window like G_warning() and G_fatal_error() show a "!"
> and "X".
> 
> Maybe wxPython gives us more options than tcl does WRT knowing when a
> process finishes?

Tcl knows when a process finishes by the "eof" from the stream
identifier which "open |..." returns. There's no reason why the Tcl/Tk
GUI can't add something to the gronsole when the command has finished,
regardless of whether or not the module uses G_done_message().

-- 
Glynn Clements <glynn at gclements.plus.com>