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3270 Host Connection Program 2.1 and 1.3.3 for AIX: Guide and Reference

Xwindow 3270 Emulator (xhcon)

The xhcon command is the Motif version of the e789 command. It has all of the functionalities of the e789 command. However, some new features are supported:

The following software is required to use the xhcon command:

Customizing the xhcon Command

The xhcon command uses the hconutil utility to customize the color and keyboard configuration so that the e789 and xhcon commands can run interchangeably. The xhcon command also requires the Motif default resources from the /usr/lib/X11/app-defaults/XHcon file. These default resources are:

For international language support, the double-byte character set (DBCS) countries have their own application default resource file located in /usr/lib/X11/<LANG>/app-defaults/XHcon. For example, for DBCS countries, the default resource files are:

Japanese: /usr/lib/X11/Ja_JP/app-defaults/XHcon
Korean: /usr/lib/X11/ko_KR/app-defaults/XHcon
Traditional Chinese: /usr/lib/X11/zh_TW/app-defaults/XHcon

To display text correctly, the following fontSet resources are recommended for each country:

Japanese: -ibm_aix-gothic-medium-r-normal--19-120-100-100-m-*-*-* 
Traditional Chinese:
          -ibm_aix-sung-medium-r-normal--27-170-100-100-m-*-*-*
Korean:   -ibm_aix-myungjo-medium-r-normal--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
ISO-8859: -ibm--medium-r-medium--20-14-100-100-c-90-* 

These default resources can be overridden by the standard .Xdefaults file in your local home directory.

Mouse Function

In an X Window System environment, the mouse is the ideal mechanism to emulate the light-pen. With a mouse, you can activate a light-pen selectable field or trigger field, or move the cursor to a new location by clicking on a mouse button.

The following list shows the action taken when a mouse button is clicked:

Button Action
1 Move cursor to new location.
2 Activate a light-pen selectable filed or trigger field.
3 Not used.

Button 2 provides the same function as the CURSEL (cursor select) key.

Note: Cut and Paste function is not supported.

Access Function Keys through Push Buttons

This feature allows you to select and run function keys by using push buttons. A pop-up window containing the push buttons for each of the function keys is displayed when you select Function Keys from the menu-bar option list. Once the Function Keys button box is displayed and the buttons are placed on the screen, you can move them to any location on the screen. The initial window displays the first 12 function keys and you can select the next set of 12 function keys by clicking a push button. The hconutil command can be used to configure the action of each button.

The Function Key Window screen shows the layout of the Function Key window when it is first activated.

When your session is iconified, the Function Key window will also be iconified.

Dynamic Window Size for Multiple Sessions

The user interface can run multiple sessions in one window, the window is resized to fit each sessions geometry configuration. The window size is part of the session definition using SMIT. For the DFT and TCP/IP sessions, the window size remains constant as specified in the session configuration profile. However, the SNA T2.1 session window size will change in accordance to the BIND parameters specifications.

xhcon Process

Like the e789 process, the xhcon command invokes the xhcon process which starts the xhconx process for each session. For example:

xhcon abc [ options ]

starts one instance of the xhcon process and three instances of the xhconx process for session a, b, and c.

The process hierarchy can be represented as follows:

XDesktop Startup

xhcon may be started from the AIXwindows Desktop using its Application Manager. Use the following steps:

  1. Log on to AIXwindows Desktop.
  2. Open an Application Manager window. Make sure you are at the top level if the current level is not the top level.
  3. Double-click on the xhconstart icon to bring up an xhconstart window.
  4. Select sessions and options for HCON:
  5. Select the Start button to start the xhcon window.
    Note: Alternatively, the Cancel button closes the xhconstart window.

Window Characteristics

Once the window is displayed, the window consists of the following components, as depicted in the Window Characteristics figure.

Menu Bar: The user can select Sessions, Utility, and Keys from the session menu bar.
Sessions: The session option is used for session navigation and termination. Choose from the following buttons from this menu:
Button Description
Next Makes the next session the active session. Same as the next session key. This button is active if xhcon is started with more than one session.
Specific Session Selects the next active session from a list of sessions. This button is active if the xhcon command is started with more than two sessions.
Close This Session Ends the current active session. If the xhcon command is started with more than one session, the next session in the list is active. Otherwise, xhcon is stopped.
Close All Sessions Ends the xhcon process.
Utility: This option is a productivity session for various personal configurations. The following button may be selected from this menu:
Button Description
Hconutil Activates the hconutil utility in an AIX window. Once this window is displayed, you can move to any location on the screen or iconify it. For each active session, only one hconutil process can be activated. If you make any configuration changes, the changes will not take effect until you end the hconutil command. When you terminate the xhcon process, the hconutil command also terminates.
Keys: This option is a fast path for activating PF keys using the mouse. The following button can be selected from this menu.
Button Description
Function Keys Selects and runs function keys. Refer to "Access Function Keys through Push Buttons" for more information concerning function keys.
Presentation Space Area: The Presentation Space (PS) area is used to display the data received from the host. The PS window size is depended on the font size and the number of rows and columns. During its startup procedure, the xhcon command sets the maximum and minimum window size for the current active session. Consequently, you cannot enlarge the PS window beyond the maximum size or shrink the window below the minimum size. If you make the window smaller, you can use the scroll bar to scroll the window.
Operator Information Area: The Operator Information Area (OIA) is used to display status information such as keyboard lock and session activity. The OIA window size is a constant value based on the maximum height of the character fonts and you cannot shrink the window. In DBCS mode, a status window, reporting the input or keyboard status of the input method to the users, is attached to the bottom of this window.

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