[mpg123-users] For mpg123 users on MS Windows: wildcard expansion in the program or not?

[Thomas O. <tho...@or...>]

Dear mpg123 users on Windows,

during reworking of entry points with better Unicode command line
argument handling on MS Windows the question occured whether mpg123
should enforce wildcard expansion of arguments or not. On Linux, I am
used to the shell doing the wildcard expansion vom *.mp3 to a list of
files. On Windows, this usually does not happen. Depending on defaults
in the mingw toolchain, the reworked mpg123 binary might stop resolving
calls like

	mpg123 C:\dir\*.mp3

to play the list of files in the directory. There are ways to make it
resolve wildcards, but they have at least theoretical drawbacks.

The state in current trunk enforces wildcard expansion through a
somewhat hidden function of the Windows API that even changed its
prototype between Windows versions. This is dirty. But the alternative
may also have some dirt should we enforce wildcard expansion.

Before coming to a decision what to do there: What do the users say? Is
wildcard expansion something even relevant in your usage of mpg123.exe?
Are there examples of programs in a similar place that do or do not
expand them? What is the proper behaviour on that platform?


Alrighty then,

Thomas