Re: lynx-dev Question about WHEREIS

[Henry Nelson]

On Sun, Jan 18, 2004 at 06:16:58PM -0200, Frédéric L. W. Meunier wrote:
> 2- Use
> http://archive.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/Software/Mosaic/MetaIndex.html
> 
> in
> 
> lynx.cfg:DEFAULT_INDEX_FILE:http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/Software/Mosaic/MetaIndex.html
> userdefs.h:#define DEFAULT_INDEX_FILE 
> "http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/Software/Mosaic/MetaIndex.html";
> 
> Anyway, it isn't maintained: Last Mod: Wed, 07 Jun 2000
> 20:18:50 GMT
> 
> and has various broken links. Is there a better place ? Use
> something in lynx.isc.org ? Get rid of that 'I' option ?

Please keep the 'I' option.  It is very useful as a "hotkey" for search
engines.  (See below.)

I agree that `` DEFAULT_INDEX_FILE "http://www.ncsa.uiuc ... '' is totally
useless; I haven't associated it with the 'I' key for at least 5 years.

Essentially, what I do is remove `` <H2>Meta-indexes: lists of links</H2> ''
and `` <H2>Search engines:</H2> '' from "lynx_help/lynx_help_main.html", and
put these sections in a file by themselves called "lynx_search.html".  I
overwrite the define in "userdefs.h" to point to that local file.  It can
also be done in lynx.cfg.  I manually gzip the file, though it wouldn't be
too hard to do it in the configure script along with all the other files in
"lynx_help/".  Thus when I hit 'I', I get a listing of my favorite search
engines instantaneously since it is a local file.  On one machine I have
'I' directed to a modified google (c) form so I can enter the key words
immediately upon pressing 'I'.  An added benefit (from my point of view),
is that it keeps clutter off of the "Help" page.

If Tom and others on the list think this is a good idea, in it's generic
form of moving what is already in "lynx_help_main.html" and associating the
'I' key with a local file as a secondary[1] default, then I would be willing
to provide a patch, either for the upcoming release or the next dev series,
to the necessary files (lynx_help_main.html, userdefs.h, lynx.cfg).  Tom
would have to do the tweaking to the configure script to treat the new file
associated with 'I' (lynx_search.html) in the same manner as the main help
file wrt optional compressing and installing.

[1] By "secondary default" I mean in exactly the same sense as the main
help file (http:// ... subir ...), i.e., "http://... ncsa ... " is the
uncommented default, and right below is: `` #define DEFAULT_INDEX_FILE
"file://localhost/PATH_TO/lynx_help/lynx_search.html" '', only needing to
be uncommented.

Let me know (if you want it, and when).

-- 
__Henry

  "Using Lynx is like wearing a really good pair of shades: cuts out
   the glare and harmful UV (ultra-vanity), and you feel so-o-o COOL."
                                         -- me, March 1999

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