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Git Repository Merge Request #17: Separate options to include bitmap terminals and old dot-matrix printers (merged)

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Bastian Märkisch wants to merge 1 commit from /u/markisch/gnuplot/ to master, 2026-06-22

One of the original reasons to disable bitmap terminals by default
was bitmap.c's license and that these terminals had seriously fallen
behind or just weren't useful anymore. Since the license changed, and the
bitmap terminals block and sixeltek can be useful, we only enable the
non-printer terminals with the "--with-bitmap-terminals" option.
This new option "--with-old-printers" additionally includes the terminals
for old dot-matrix printers.

This allows to easily include the more useful bitmap terminals, but not the
old printer code.

Note that this is an update to the original merge request.

Commit Date  
[9d352a] (bitmap-enable) by Bastian Maerkisch Bastian Maerkisch

Separate options to include bitmap terminals and old dot-matrix printers

One of the original reasons to disable bitmap terminals by default
was bitmap.c's license and that these terminals had seriously fallen
behind or just weren't useful anymore. Since the license changed, and the
bitmap terminals block and sixeltek can be useful, we only enable the
non-printer terminals with the "--with-bitmap-terminals" option.
This new option "--with-old-printers" additionally includes the terminals
for old dot-matrix printers.

 2021-07-16 07:06:54 Tree

Discussion

  • Bastian Märkisch

    Bastian Märkisch - 2021-12-19

    @sfeam, is this change acceptable? I would really like the block terminal to be included by default.

     

    • Ethan Merritt

      Ethan Merritt - 2021-12-20

      I admit to being very "old school" in coding preferences. Smaller is better; deleting code is better than adding code; new code should be justified by demonstrating that it satisfies a need that is not well-served without it. My personal feeling is that none of the terminals using the old bitmap code provide anything that is worth the amount of code that is dragged in to support them. So I disable them when building for myself and would continue to do so.

      But I am open to being convinced. Can you summarize what the block terminal offers that isn't provided by the dumb or sixelgd terminals?

       

  • Bastian Märkisch

    Bastian Märkisch - 2026-06-19

    • Summary: Include bitmap terminals by default, but not dot-matrix printers --> Separate options to include bitmap terminals and old dot-matrix printers

    • Description:

    Diff:

    --- old
+++ new
@@ -1,6 +1,12 @@
-One of the original motivations to disable bitmap terminals by default
+One of the original reasons to disable bitmap terminals by default
 was bitmap.c's license and that these terminals had seriously fallen
 behind or just weren't useful anymore. Since the license changed, and the
-bitmap terminals sixeltek and block can be useful, we now default to
-enable bitmap terminals again. We add a new option "--with-old-printers"
-to include terminals for old dot-matrix printers.
+bitmap terminals block and sixeltek can be useful, we only enable the
+non-printer terminals with the "--with-bitmap-terminals" option.
+This new option "--with-old-printers" additionally includes the terminals
+for old dot-matrix printers.
+
+This allows to easily include the more useful bitmap terminals, but not the
+old printer code.
+
+Note that this is an update to the original merge request.
     

    • Ethan Merritt

      Ethan Merritt - 2026-06-22

      Applied.

       

  • Ethan Merritt

    Ethan Merritt - 2026-06-22
    • Status: open --> merged
     

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