forms: Data File Format
4 Data File Format
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Files for use with Forms mode are very simple—each “record” (usually one
line) forms the contents of one form. Each record consists of a number
of “fields”, which are separated by the value of the string
‘forms-field-sep’, which is ‘"\t"’ (a Tab) by default.
If the format of the data file is not suitable enough you can define
the filter functions ‘forms-read-file-filter’ and
‘forms-write-file-filter’. ‘forms-read-file-filter’ is called when the
data file is read from disk into the data buffer. It operates on the
data buffer, ignoring read-only protections. When the data file is
saved to disk ‘forms-write-file-filter’ is called to cancel the effects
of ‘forms-read-file-filter’. After being saved,
‘forms-read-file-filter’ is called again to prepare the data buffer for
further processing.
Fields may contain text which shows up in the forms in multiple
lines. These lines are separated in the field using a “pseudo-newline”
character which is defined by the value of the string
‘forms-multi-line’. Its default value is ‘"\^k"’ (a Control-K
character). If it is set to ‘nil’, multiple line fields are prohibited.
If the data file does not exist, it is automatically created.
Info Catalog
forms: Forms Commands
forms: Top
forms: Control File Format