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From: Koichi Murase <myoga.murase@gmail.com>
Newsgroups: gnu.bash.bug
Subject: How to use PROMPT_COMMAND(S) without breaking other scripts
Date: Sun, 23 Aug 2020 11:35:29 +0900
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Hi, I have a question on the behavior of the new array PROMPT_COMMANDS
and the best practice to use it.

In coming Bash 5.1, the new array variable `PROMPT_COMMANDS' is
available in the replacement of `PROMPT_COMMAND'.  When the array
`PROMPT_COMMANDS' has one or more elements, the scalar version
`PROMPT_COMMAND' is disabled.

Is there a background that the scalar version is disabled in the
presence of the array version?  Because of this behavior, I am
wondering how to write a source script in the way not interfering with
other source scripts which might use either of `PROMPT_COMMANDS' or
`PROMPT_COMMAND'.

* If I use the newer form `PROMPT_COMMANDS+=(my-function)', other
  scripts that use `PROMPT_COMMAND' will be broken.  Maybe I can write
  in the following way to convert `PROMPT_COMMAND' to
  `PROMPT_COMMANDS', but it still does not resolve the problem of the
  scripts sourced after my script.

  if [[ $PROMPT_COMMAND ]]; then
    PROMPT_COMMANDS+=("$PROMPT_COMMAND")
    unset PROMPT_COMMAND
  fi
  PROMPT_COMMANDS+=(my-function)

* If I use the older form with `PROMPT_COMMAND', it will be broken
  when another script sets the variable `PROMPT_COMMANDS'.  Maybe I
  can switch to `PROMPT_COMMANDS' only when the array already exists,
  but it again does not work when the other script sourced after mine
  newly sets `PROMPT_COMMANDS'.

  if ((${#PROMPT_COMMANDS})); then
    PROMPT_COMMANDS+=(my-function)
  else
    PROMPT_COMMAND="my-function${PROMPT_COMMAND:+;}$PROMPT_COMMAND"
  fi

Here, my question is what is the best practice to use the new array
variable `PROMPT_COMMANDS' in the way that it does not break the
conventional scripts that use `PROMPT_COMMAND'.

# The related commit is 5f49ef47d (commit bash-20200323 snapshot).
# Here are the related threads:
# https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-bash/2018-01/threads.html#00067
# https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-bash/2018-02/threads.html#00019

--
Koichi