1 *debugger.txt* For Vim version 7.2b. Last change: 2005 Mar 29
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Gordon Prieur
7 Debugger Support Features *debugger-support*
9 1. Debugger Features |debugger-features|
10 2. Vim Compile Options |debugger-compilation|
11 3. Integrated Debuggers |debugger-integration|
13 {Vi does not have any of these features}
15 ==============================================================================
16 1. Debugger Features *debugger-features*
18 The following features are available for an integration with a debugger or
19 an Integrated Programming Environment (IPE) or Integrated Development
22 Alternate Command Input |alt-input|
23 Debug Signs |debug-signs|
24 Debug Source Highlight |debug-highlight|
25 Message Footer |gui-footer|
26 Balloon Evaluation |balloon-eval|
28 These features were added specifically for use in the Motif version of gvim.
29 However, the |alt-input| and |debug-highlight| were written to be usable in
30 both vim and gvim. Some of the other features could be used in the non-GUI
31 vim with slight modifications. However, I did not do this nor did I test the
32 reliability of building for vim or non Motif GUI versions.
35 1.1 Alternate Command Input *alt-input*
37 For Vim to work with a debugger there must be at least an input connection
38 with a debugger or external tool. In many cases there will also be an output
39 connection but this isn't absolutely necessary.
41 The purpose of the input connection is to let the external debugger send
42 commands to Vim. The commands sent by the debugger should give the debugger
43 enough control to display the current debug environment and state.
45 The current implementation is based on the X Toolkit dispatch loop and the
46 XtAddInput() function call.
49 1.2 Debug Signs *debug-signs*
51 Many debuggers mark specific lines by placing a small sign or color highlight
52 on the line. The |:sign| command lets the debugger set this graphic mark. Some
53 examples where this feature would be used would be a debugger showing an arrow
54 representing the Program Counter (PC) of the program being debugged. Another
55 example would be a small stop sign for a line with a breakpoint. These visible
56 highlights let the user keep track of certain parts of the state of the
59 This feature can be used with more than debuggers, too. An IPE can use a sign
60 to highlight build errors, searched text, or other things. The sign feature
61 can also work together with the |debug-highlight| to ensure the mark is
64 Debug signs are defined and placed using the |:sign| command.
67 1.3 Debug Source Highlight *debug-highlight*
69 This feature allows a line to have a predominant highlight. The highlight is
70 intended to make a specific line stand out. The highlight could be made to
71 work for both vim and gvim, whereas the debug sign is, in most cases, limited
72 to gvim. The one exception to this is Sun Microsystem's dtterm. The dtterm
73 from Sun has a "sign gutter" for showing signs.
76 1.4 Message Footer *gui-footer*
78 The message footer can be used to display messages from a debugger or IPE. It
79 can also be used to display menu and toolbar tips. The footer area is at the
80 bottom of the GUI window, below the line used to display colon commands.
82 The display of the footer is controlled by the 'guioptions' letter 'F'.
85 1.5 Balloon Evaluation *balloon-eval*
87 This feature allows a debugger, or other external tool, to display dynamic
88 information based on where the mouse is pointing. The purpose of this feature
89 was to allow Sun's Visual WorkShop debugger to display expression evaluations.
90 However, the feature was implemented in as general a manner as possible and
91 could be used for displaying other information as well.
93 The Balloon Evaluation has some settable parameters too. For Motif the font
94 list and colors can be set via X resources (XmNballoonEvalFontList,
95 XmNballoonEvalBackground, and XmNballoonEvalForeground).
96 The 'balloondelay' option sets the delay before an attempt is made to show a
98 The 'ballooneval' option needs to be set to switch it on.
100 Balloon evaluation is only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
103 The Balloon evaluation functions are also used to show a tooltip for the
104 toolbar. The 'ballooneval' option does not need to be set for this. But the
105 other settings apply.
107 Another way to use the balloon is with the 'balloonexpr' option. This is
108 completely user definable.
110 ==============================================================================
111 2. Vim Compile Options *debugger-compilation*
113 The debugger features were added explicitly for use with Sun's Visual
114 WorkShop Integrated Programming Environment (ipe). However, they were done
115 in as generic a manner as possible so that integration with other debuggers
116 could also use some or all of the tools used with Sun's ipe.
118 The following compile time preprocessor variables control the features:
120 Alternate Command Input ALT_X_INPUT
121 Debug Glyphs FEAT_SIGNS
122 Debug Highlights FEAT_SIGNS
123 Message Footer FEAT_FOOTER
124 Balloon Evaluation FEAT_BEVAL
126 The first integration with a full IPE/IDE was with Sun Visual WorkShop. To
127 compile a gvim which interfaces with VWS set the following flag, which sets
130 Sun Visual WorkShop FEAT_SUN_WORKSHOP
132 ==============================================================================
133 3. Integrated Debuggers *debugger-integration*
135 One fully integrated debugger/IPE/IDE is Sun's Visual WorkShop Integrated
136 Programming Environment.
138 For Sun NetBeans support see |netbeans|.
140 vim:tw=78:sw=4:ts=8:ft=help:norl: