menu(3X)

NAME
menu - curses extension for programming menus

SYNOPSIS
#include <menu.h>

DESCRIPTION
The menu library provides terminal-independent facilities for composing menu systems on character-cell terminals. The library includes: item routines, which create and modify menu items; and menu routines, which group items into menus, display menus on the screen, and handle interaction with the user.

The menu library uses the curses libraries, and a curses initialization routine such as initscr must be called before using any of these functions. To use the menu library, link with the options -lmenu -lcurses.

  Current Default Values for Item Attributes
The menu library maintains a default value for item attributes. You can get or set this default by calling the appropriate get_ or set_ routine with a NULL item pointer. Changing this default with a set_ function affects future item creations, but does not change the rendering of items already created.

  Routine Name Index
The following table lists each menu routine and the name of the manual page on which it is described.
curses Routine Name | Manual Page Name
current_item | mitem_current(3X)
free_item | mitem_new(3X)
free_menu | menu_new(3X)
item_count | menu_items(3X)
item_description | mitem_name(3X)
item_index | mitem_current(3X)
item_init | menu_hook(3X)
item_name | mitem_name(3X)
item_opts | mitem_opts(3X)
item_opts_off | mitem_opts(3X)
item_opts_on | mitem_opts(3X)
item_term | menu_hook(3X)
item_userptr | mitem_userptr(3X)
item_value | mitem_value(3X)
item_visible | mitem_visible(3X)
menu_back | menu_attributes(3X)
menu_driver | menu_driver(3X)
menu_fore | menu_attributes(3X)
menu_format | menu_format(3X)
menu_grey | menu_attributes(3X)
menu_init | menu_hook(3X)
menu_items | menu_items(3X)
menu_mark | menu_mark(3X)
menu_opts | menu_opts(3X)
menu_opts_off | menu_opts(3X)
menu_opts_on | menu_opts(3X)
menu_pad | menu_attributes(3X)
menu_pattern | menu_pattern(3X)
menu_request_by_name | menu_requestname(3X)
menu_request_name | menu_requestname(3X)
menu_spacing | menu_spacing(3X)
menu_sub | menu_win(3X)
menu_term | menu_hook(3X)
menu_userptr | menu_userptr(3X)
menu_win | menu_win(3X)
new_item | mitem_new(3X)
new_menu | menu_new(3X)
pos_menu_cursor | menu_cursor(3X)
post_menu | menu_post(3X)
scale_menu | menu_win(3X)
set_current_item | mitem_current(3X)
set_item_init | menu_hook(3X)
set_item_opts | mitem_opts(3X)
set_item_term | menu_hook(3X)
set_item_userptr | mitem_userptr(3X)
set_item_value | mitem_value(3X)
set_menu_back | menu_attributes(3X)
set_menu_fore | menu_attributes(3X)
set_menu_format | menu_format(3X)
set_menu_grey | menu_attributes(3X)
set_menu_init | menu_hook(3X)
set_menu_items | menu_items(3X)
set_menu_mark | menu_mark(3X)
set_menu_opts | mitem_opts(3X)
set_menu_pad | menu_attributes(3X)
set_menu_pattern | menu_pattern(3X)
set_menu_spacing | menu_spacing(3X)
set_menu_sub | menu_win(3X)
set_menu_term | menu_hook(3X)
set_menu_userptr | menu_userptr(3X)
set_menu_win | menu_win(3X)
set_top_row | mitem_current(3X)
top_row | mitem_current(3X)
unpost_menu | menu_post(3X)

RETURN VALUE
Routines that return pointers return NULL on error. Routines that return an integer return one of the following error codes:

E_OK
    The routine succeeded.

E_BAD_ARGUMENT
    Routine detected an incorrect or out-of-range argument.

E_BAD_STATE
    Routine was called from an initialization or termination function.

E_NO_MATCH
    Character failed to match.

E_NO_ROOM
    Menu is too large for its window.

E_NOT_CONNECTED
    No items are connected to the menu.

E_NOT_POSTED
    The menu has not been posted.

E_NOT_SELECTABLE
    The designated item cannot be selected.

E_POSTED
    The menu is already posted.

E_REQUEST_DENIED
    The menu driver could not process the request.

E_SYSTEM_ERROR
    System error occurred (see errno(3)).

E_UNKNOWN_COMMAND
    The menu driver code saw an unknown request code.

NOTES
The header file <menu.h> automatically includes the header files <curses.h> and <eti.h>.

In your library list, libmenu.a should be before libncurses.a; that is, you should say “-lmenu -lncurses”, not the other way around (which would give a link-error when using static libraries).

PORTABILITY
These routines emulate the System V menu library. They were not supported on Version 7 or BSD versions.

The menu facility was documented in SVr4.2 in Character User Interface Programming (UNIX SVR4.2).

It is not part of X/Open Curses.

Aside from ncurses, there are few implementations: systems based on SVr4 source code, e.g., Solaris. NetBSD curses.

AUTHORS
Juergen Pfeifer. Manual pages and adaptation for ncurses by Eric S. Raymond.

SEE ALSO
curses(3X) and related pages whose names begin “menu_” for detailed descriptions of the entry points.

This describes ncurses version 6.4 (patch 20221231).