Submitted by: Damon Harper <address@hidden>
Date: 2006-08-26
Summary: Enhance the echo command in comsatd / .biffrc

This patch makes the `echo' .biffrc action for comsatd behave more
like the shell version of `echo':

1. Multiple arguments to echo are accepted, and are echoed back
   separated by single spaces.  This way you can use echo without
   having to quote the entire string.

2. A newline is appended by default, unless the first argument to echo
   is `-n'.

3. With no arguments, a single newline is produced.

This allows much easier to read constructions like the following
contrived example:

echo
echo New "mail  ::  for" address@hidden:
echo ---
echo From: $H{From}
echo Subject: $H{Subject}
echo -n $B(,5)
echo ---

NOTE: This does introduce one backwards-incompatibility, in that
current .biffrc echo commands will have an extra newline appended.

--- mailutils-1.0.orig/comsat/action.c	2005-08-29 03:21:54.000000000 -0700
+++ mailutils-1.0/comsat/action.c	2006-08-25 15:39:41.000000000 -0700
@@ -369,7 +369,24 @@
 	    }
 	  else if (strcmp (argv[0], "echo") == 0)
 	    {
-	      action_echo (tty, cr, argv[1]);
+              int newline = 1;
+              if (argc > 1)
+                {
+                  int c = 1;
+                  if (strcmp (argv[1], "-n") == 0)
+                    {
+                      newline = 0;
+                      c++;
+                    }
+                  for (; c < argc; c++)
+                    {
+                      action_echo (tty, cr, argv[c]);
+                      if (c < argc - 1)
+                        action_echo (tty, cr, " ");
+                    }
+                }
+              if (newline)
+                action_echo (tty, cr, "\n");
 	      nact++;
 	    }
 	  else if (strcmp (argv[0], "exec") == 0)