> On 5 Mar 96 at 17:23, Kenneth Albanowski wrote:
>
> >
> > This patch is intended to make Linux easier for the blind to use. It was
> > based was produced and tested on 1.3.67, but should work on all 1.3.x
> > kernels. The following changes have been made:
>
> Aren't there ioctl()s to enable back-scrolling? (Or only for VC
> switching?) Maybe we should add them.
Nope, there isn't such an ioctl. I've added something like that, in the
form of the setterm 15.
> I think the rest of the patch is unnecessary; just start some script
> as root to disable back-scrolling.
Yes, but that misses the specific feature of this Braille reader: it works
from the moment of boot, without a special driver. By disabling scrollback
when the console is loaded, you can follow the boot trace and ideally should
be able to see where it stopped if it crashes.
Also, placing the script may be troublesome -- if your only access to the
Linux setup is via this reader in question, _you will not be able to read
anything on the screen_ until scrollback is disabled. Placing and activating
that script is troublesome. I feel that adding a normally dormant mechanism
to disable scrollback in any 1.4.x kernel is the most helpful solution.
In addition, by adding this code, if the console driver ever needs to be
changed to support another visually impaired access device, it can hang
of the same flag mechanism.
> > 1. A new global kernel variable "blind_flag" is made, which defaults to
> > zero.
> [...]
> > --
> > Kenneth Albanowski (kjahds@kjahds.com, CIS: 70705,126)
>
> I have nothing against the idea, but we should keep it simple.
Agreed. I've investigated many different mechanisms, and I believe this is
the simplest useful solution.
> ------------
> Ulrich Windl Klinikum der Universitaet Regensburg
> Rechenzentrum DV-med Franz-Josef-Strauss-Allee 11
> Tel: +49 941 944-5879 D-93053 Regensburg
> FAX: +49 941 944-5882
> Just imagine my mail address were <Ulrich.Windl@rz.uni.r.de>...
-- Kenneth Albanowski (kjahds@kjahds.com, CIS: 70705,126)