WeeChat specifications

Case sensitive identifiers

• Author: Sébastien Helleu
• License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
• Created on: 2022-12-21
• Last updated: 2023-03-18
• Issue: #1872: case sensitive identifiers
• Status: implemented
• Target WeeChat version: 4.0.0

Context

Many identifiers are case insensitive in WeeChat and should not be.

Goals

Purpose of this specification is to make many identifiers case sensitive in data objects managed by the user, API and internal functions.

Changes proposed in this specification will also fix the following issues:

• #398: autocomplete wrong case
• #32213: completion problems with uppercase letters

Out of scope

These identifiers must stay case insensitive:

• hook config (check if option is matching hook mask)
• hooks hsignal and signal (check if signal is matching hook signal masks)
• hook line (check if buffer is matching hook mask)
• hook modifier name
• hook print (check if prefix or message displayed is contained in hook message)
• buffer matching condition in filters
• system signal name (“kill”, “term”, “usr1”, etc.)
• nick completions
• nicklist: groups and nicks
• fset filters
• weelist data (used to keep list sorted)
• IRC channel name
• IRC nicks
• IRC CTCP names
• IRC capabilities
• relay: IRC commands relayed
• relay: IRC commands ignored
• filters on trigger monitor buffer

Changes

These identifiers are currently case insensitive and must become case sensitive:

• configuration (files, sections, options)
• commands
• commands parameters
• hook command_run
• hook info
• hook info_hashtable
• infolist names
• hashtable types
• completion items
• completions (except nick completions)
• infolist variable name
• weelist position (beginning/end/sort)
• proxy options
• proxy types
• /secure buffer input (q to close)
• color names
• /color buffer input (q to close, etc.)
• custom bar item option (“conditions”, “content”)
• bar options
• bar types
• bar positions
• bar conditions (“active”, “inactive”, “nicklist”)
• bar names
• buffer types (“formatted”, “free”)
• buffer notify levels (none, highlight, etc.)
• buffer match list
• user buffer input (q to close)
• function gui_color_get_custom (parameter color_name, example: bold, reset, etc.)
• filter names
• hotlist priorities (“low”, “message”, “private”, “highlight”)
• key contexts (“default”, “search”, “cursor”, “mouse”)
• notify tags in line (“notify_none”, “notify_message”, etc.)
• alias name
• IRC server name
• IRC raw buffer input (q to close)
• IRC raw filters
• API function prefix (parameter prefix, example: error, network, etc.)
• script name
• plugin name (eg: irc vs Irc)
• relay buffer input (q to close, etc.)
• relay compression (off/zlib/zstd)
• trigger names
• trigger options
• trigger types
• trigger return codes
• trigger post actions
• xfer buffer input (q to close, etc.)
• xfer types
• xfer protocols (none/dcc)
• functions to set object properties

String comparison functions

When a comparison needs to be case sensitive instead of case insensitive, the call to the function must be replaced with another, in WeeChat core:

Function	Replacement
string_charcasecmp	string_charcmp
string_strcasecmp	string_strcmp or strcmp
string_strncasecmp	string_strncmp
string_strcmp_ignore_chars	Same function with case_sensitive = 1
string_strcasestr	strstr
string_match	Same function with case_sensitive = 1
string_match_list	Same function with case_sensitive = 1

When a comparison needs to be case sensitive instead of case insensitive, the call to the function must be replaced with another, in WeeChat plugins:

Function	Replacement
weechat_string_charcasecmp	weechat_string_charcmp
weechat_strcasecmp	weechat_strcmp or strcmp
weechat_strncasecmp	weechat_strncmp
weechat_strcmp_ignore_chars	Same function with case_sensitive = 1
weechat_strcasestr	strstr
weechat_string_match	Same function with case_sensitive = 1
weechat_string_match_list	Same function with case_sensitive = 1

Configuration files, sections, options

Configuration files, sections and options are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• config_file_search
• config_file_config_find_pos
• config_file_section_find_pos
• config_file_search_section
• config_file_option_find_pos
• config_file_new_option
• config_file_search_option
• config_file_search_section_option
• config_file_string_boolean_is_valid
• config_file_string_to_boolean
• config_file_option_set
• config_file_read_internal

Commands, commands parameters, command_runs, aliases and completions

Commands, commands parameters, hook “command_run”, aliases and completions (except nick) are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• hook_command_search
• hook_command_exec
• hook_command_run_exec
• hook_completion_exec
• hook_find_pos
• hook_add_to_infolist_type
• command_help
• input_exec_command
• gui_completion_word_compare_cb
• gui_completion_search_command
• gui_completion_list_add
• gui_completion_complete
• alias_search
• alias_find_pos
• all command callbacks (core and plugins)

That means for example /test -o and /test -O (upper case parameter) would have different meaning, -o and -O being two different options for the command /test.

Regarding commands, a new alias /AWAY could be defined to be away on all servers, like this:

/alias add AWAY /allserv /away

So that /away and /AWAY (the new alias) are two separate commands, with separate completion: the completion of /aw is /away (only this one), and the completion of /AW is /AWAY (only this one).

Nick completion remains case insensitive, that means if there are nicks “Nick” and “Nick_away”, typing “ni” with Tab will complete to partial completion “Nick” and typing “_” and Tab again will complete to “Nick_away”.

Partial completion is not converted to lower case any more, this fixes the issue #398 and Savannah bug #32213.

That means when partial completion is enabled (/set weechat.completion.partial_completion_other on), the result is the following:

Nicks in channel	Input text	Old completion	New completion
{Andrew} and {Andrew}_Mobile	{a or {A	{andrew}	{Andrew}
NickName and NickToto	ni or Ni	nick	Nick

Info, info_hashtable, infolist

Name of “info”, “info_hashtable” and “infolist” are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• hook_info_get
• hook_info_get_hashtable
• hook_infolist_get
• infolist_search_var
• infolist_integer
• infolist_string
• infolist_pointer
• infolist_buffer
• infolist_time

Bars and bar items

Name of bar items and all these bar identifiers are made case sensitive:

• name
• options
• type
• position
• conditions

Functions to update:

• command_bar
• gui_bar_item_custom_search_option
• gui_bar_item_custom_search_with_option_name
• gui_bar_search_option
• gui_bar_search_type
• gui_bar_search_position
• gui_bar_check_conditions
• gui_bar_search
• gui_bar_search_with_option_name
• gui_bar_default_items
• gui_bar_update

Plugins

Plugin names are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• command_plugin_list
• gui_layout_buffer_get_number
• plugin_search
• plugin_check_extension_allowed (option weechat.plugin.extension)
• plugin_check_autoload (option weechat.plugin.extension)
• xfer_search

Functions to get/set properties

The functions used to set object properties are updated to be case sensitive for the property to set (parameter property):

• config_file_option_get_string
• config_file_option_get_pointer
• hashtable_get_integer
• hashtable_get_string
• hashtable_set_pointer
• hdata_get_string
• hook_set
• proxy_set
• gui_bar_set
• gui_buffer_get_integer
• gui_buffer_get_string
• gui_buffer_get_pointer
• gui_buffer_set
• gui_buffer_set_pointer
• gui_completion_get_string
• gui_nicklist_group_get_integer
• gui_nicklist_group_get_string
• gui_nicklist_group_get_pointer
• gui_nicklist_group_set
• gui_nicklist_nick_get_integer
• gui_nicklist_nick_get_string
• gui_nicklist_nick_get_pointer
• gui_nicklist_nick_set
• gui_window_get_integer
• gui_window_get_pointer

Hashtables

Hashtable types are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• hashtable_get_type

Weelist

Weelist positions are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• weelist_insert

Proxies

Proxy options and types are made case sensitive.

Proxy names are made case sensitive in read of infolist “proxy”.

Functions to update:

• proxy_search_option
• proxy_search_type
• plugin_api_infolist_proxy_cb

Buffers

Buffer types and notify levels are made case sensitive.

API function buffer_match_list is made case sensitive.

Buffer names are made case sensitive in read of infolist “buffer”.

Functions to update:

• gui_buffer_search_type
• gui_buffer_search_notify
• gui_buffer_match_list
• plugin_api_infolist_buffer_cb

Input actions in buffers

Input actions (like “q” to close buffer) are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• secure_buffer_input_cb
• gui_color_buffer_input_cb
• gui_buffer_user_input_cb
• irc_input_data
• relay_buffer_input_cb
• xfer_buffer_input_cb

Colors

Color names (like blue, red, etc.) and color attributes (bold, underline, etc.) are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• gui_color_search
• gui_color_get_custom

Filters

Filter names are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• gui_filter_find_pos

Hotlist priorities

Hotlist priorities (“low”, “message”, “private”, “highlight”) are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• gui_hotlist_search_priority

Key contexts

Key contexts (“default”, “search”, “cursor”, “mouse”) are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• gui_key_search_context

Notify tags in line

Notify tags in line (“notify_none”, “notify_message”, etc.) are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• gui_line_set_notify_level

IRC servers

IRC server names are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• irc_command_exec_all_servers
• irc_command_server
• irc_ignore_search
• irc_ignore_check_server
• irc_info_infolist_irc_server_cb
• irc_info_infolist_irc_notify_cb
• irc_server_casesearch (function removed)

IRC raw filters

Filters on IRC raw buffer (except command name with m:xxx) are made case sensitive

Functions to update:

• irc_raw_message_match_filter

API function “prefix”

The prefix parameter in “prefix” API function is made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• plugin_api_prefix

Scripts

Script names are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• plugin_script_search
• plugin_script_find_pos

Triggers

Trigger names, options, types, return codes and post actions are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• trigger_command_trigger
• trigger_search_option
• trigger_search_hook_type
• trigger_search_return_code
• trigger_search_post_action
• trigger_search

Xfer

Xfer types and protocols are made case sensitive.

Functions to update:

• xfer_search_type
• xfer_search_protocol

Planning

The changes must be implemented in this order:

1. Make case sensitive:
   • configuration files, sections, options
   • aliases
2. Convert default aliases to lower case
3. Make case sensitive:
   • commands, commands parameters, hook “command_run”, aliases and completions (except nick)
   • info, info_hashtable, infolist
   • bars, bar items
   • plugins
   • functions to get/set properties
   • hashtable types
   • weelist position
   • proxy options and types, proxy name in infolist “proxy”
   • buffer types and notify levels, API function buffer_match_list, buffer name in infolist “buffer”
   • input actions in buffers
   • color names and attributes
   • filter names
   • hotlist priorities
   • notify tags in line
   • IRC server names
   • IRC raw filters
   • API function “prefix”
   • script names
   • trigger names, options, types, return codes and post actions
   • xfer types and protocols

References

• Source of this specification: https://github.com/weechat/specs.weechat.org/blob/main/specs/2023-001-case-sensitive-identifiers.md

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