use_default_colors

dft_fgbg ? use terminal’s default colors

#include <curses.h>

int use_default_colors(void);
int assume_default_colors(int fg, int bg);

The use_default_colors() and assume_default_colors() functions are extensions to the curses library. They are used with terminals that support ISO 6429 color, or equivalent. These terminals allow the application to reset color to an unspecified default value (e.g., with SGR 39 or SGR 49). XSI Curses assumes the default colors are white on black.

Applications that paint a colored background over the whole screen do not take advantage of SGR 39 and SGR 49. Some applications are designed to work with the default background.

The first function, use_default_colors() tells the curses library to use the terminal’s orig_pair or orig_colors capability when setting color pair 0.

The other, assume_default_colors() is a refinement which tells which colors to assume are set for color pair 0. The following are equivalent:

use_default_colors();
assume_default_colors(-1,-1);

Do this:

assume_default_colors(COLOR_WHITE,COLOR_BLACK);

to disable default colors.

These functions return the integer ERR upon failure and OK on success. They will fail if either the terminal does not support the orig_pair or orig_colors capability. If the initialize_pair capability is found, this causes an error as well.

Associated with this extension, the init_pair(3X) function accepts negative arguments to specify default foreground or background colors.

These routines are specific to ncurses. They were not supported on Version 7, BSD or System V implementations. It is recommended that any code depending on them be conditioned using NCURSES_VERSION.

curs_color(3X), ded(1).

Thomas Dickey (from an analysis of the requirements for color xterm for XFree86 3.1.2C, February 1996).