The ta() function returns the number of characters in the type-ahead buffer for the current process or for any other process.
ta(expr)
| expr | An expression evaluating to the line number of the process to be checked. If expr evaluates to any negative number, the number of characters in the type-ahead buffer for the current process is returned. If expr evaluates to a number greater than the allowable maximum number of users, -1 is returned to indicate an error. |
When the type-ahead feature is on for a process, the ta() function returns the number of characters in the type-ahead buffer. The type-ahead buffer holds a maximum of 127 characters at a time. If the type-ahead feature is off, the ta() function returns 0.
To toggle the type-ahead feature on and off for the current process, the ta on and ta off statements may be used. To clear the type-ahead buffer for the current process, the ta clear or inputclear statement can be used.
See ta statement for more information on controlling the type-ahead feature for the current process or for any other process.
crt "Target process": ; input process if process = "" then stop crt "Chars in ta buff for process ":process:" is ":ta(process)