NAME
       gets - Read a line from a channel

SYNOPSIS
       gets channelId ?varName?


DESCRIPTION
       This  command  reads the next line from channelId, returns
       everything in the line up to (but not including) the  end-
       of-line character(s), and discards the end-of-line charac-
       ter(s).

       ChannelId must be an identifier for an open  channel  such
       as  the  Tcl  standard  input  channel (stdin), the return
       value from an invocation of open or socket, or the  result
       of a channel creation command provided by a Tcl extension.
       The channel must have been opened for input.

       If varName is omitted the line is returned as  the  result
       of  the command.  If varName is specified then the line is
       placed in the variable by that name and the  return  value
       is a count of the number of characters returned.

       If  end  of file occurs while scanning for an end of line,
       the command returns whatever input is available up to  the
       end  of  file.   If  channelId  is in nonblocking mode and
       there is not a full line of input available,  the  command
       returns  an  empty  string and does not consume any input.
       If varName is specified and an empty string is returned in
       varName  because of end-of-file or because of insufficient
       data in nonblocking mode, then the  return  count  is  -1.
       Note that if varName is not specified then the end-of-file
       and no-full-line-available  cases  can  produce  the  same
       results  as if there were an input line consisting only of
       the end-of-line character(s).  The eof and  fblocked  com-
       mands can be used to distinguish these three cases.


SEE ALSO
       file(n), eof(n), fblocked(n), Tcl_StandardChannels(3)


KEYWORDS
       blocking,  channel,  end  of file, end of line, line, non-
