diff --git a/mrw/exec.cpp b/mrw/exec.cpp
index 15b3bf3..72411af 100644
--- a/mrw/exec.cpp
+++ b/mrw/exec.cpp
@@ -9,6 +9,9 @@
     @license LGPL, see file <a href="license.html">COPYING</a>
 
     $Log$
+    Revision 1.11  2005/04/19 18:48:00  marc
+    new feature PartialExec
+
     Revision 1.10  2005/03/14 16:26:34  marc
     bugs have been fixed a long time ago, now no more in buglist
 
@@ -48,7 +51,12 @@
 #include <unistd.h> // fork, exec
 #include <string.h> // memcpy
 #include <assert.h> // assert
+#include <sys/types.h> // kill
+#include <signal.h> // kill
+
+//=========================================================== ExecutionFailedExc
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::ExecutionFailedExc::ExecutionFailedExc(const std::string& w,
                                             const std::string& c)
   throw(std::bad_exception):
@@ -65,22 +73,28 @@ mrw::ExecutionFailedExc::ExecutionFailedExc(const std::string& w,
   */
 }
 
+//========================================================================== Cmd
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Cmd::Cmd(const std::string& c) throw(std::bad_exception) {
   _cmd.push_back(c);
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Cmd& mrw::Cmd::operator,(const std::string& arg)
   throw(std::bad_exception) {
   _cmd.push_back(arg);
   return *this;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Cmd& mrw::Cmd::operator<<(const std::string& arg)
   throw(std::bad_exception) {
   _cmd.push_back(arg);
   return *this;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Cmd::operator std::string() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
   ArgList::const_iterator it(_cmd.begin());
   std::string c(*it);
@@ -88,22 +102,38 @@ mrw::Cmd::operator std::string() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
   return c;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Cmd::operator mrw::Exec() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
   return mrw::Exec(*this);
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::Cmd::operator mrw::PartialExec() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
+  return mrw::PartialExec(*this);
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec mrw::Cmd::execute(bool exc) const throw(std::exception) {
   return mrw::Exec(*this).execute(exc);
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec mrw::Cmd::execute(const std::string& input, bool exc) const
   throw(std::exception) {
   return mrw::Exec(*this).execute(input, exc);
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec mrw::Cmd::start(bool useInput) const throw(std::exception) {
+  return mrw::PartialExec(*this).start(useInput);
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 const char* mrw::Cmd::path() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
   return _cmd.front().c_str();
 }
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 char** mrw::Cmd::args() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
   if (_cmd.size()==0) return 0;
   char** array = new char*[_cmd.size()+1];
@@ -114,25 +144,32 @@ char** mrw::Cmd::args() const throw(std::bad_exception) {
   return array;
 }
 
+//========================================================================= Exec
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec::Exec(const mrw::Cmd& c) throw(std::bad_exception):
   _cmd(new mrw::Cmd(c)), _success(false) {
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec::Exec(const mrw::Exec& e) throw(std::bad_exception):
   _cmd(new mrw::Cmd(*e._cmd)),
   _res(e._res), _err(e._err), _success(e._success) {
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec::~Exec() throw() {
   delete _cmd;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::operator=(const mrw::Exec& e) throw(std::bad_exception) {
   if (this==&e) return *this;
   *_cmd=*e._cmd; _res=e._res; _err=e._err; _success=e._success;
   return *this;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(bool exc) throw(std::exception) {
   /** This method calls @c fork, sets up a pipe connection to pass @c
       stdout and @c stderr from the child process to the parent
@@ -167,16 +204,22 @@ mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(bool exc) throw(std::exception) {
       // check and handle stdout
       if (num1 && (num1=read(stdOut.istream(), buf, sizeof(buf)))>0)
         _res += std::string(buf, num1);
-      else if (num1==-1 && (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN))
-        throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stdout", *_cmd);
+      else if (num1==-1)
+        if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+          throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stdout", *_cmd);
+        else
+          num1 = 1;
       // check and handle stderr
       if (num2 && (num2=read(stdErr.istream(), buf, sizeof(buf)))>0)
         _err += std::string(buf, num2);
-      else if (num2==-1 && (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN))
-        throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stderr", *_cmd);
+      else if (num2==-1)
+        if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+          throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stderr", *_cmd);
+        else
+          num2 = 1;
     } catch (...) {
-      if (exc) throw;
       _success = false;
+      if (exc) throw;
       return *this;
     }
   } else { // child
@@ -191,6 +234,7 @@ mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(bool exc) throw(std::exception) {
   return *this;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(const std::string& input, bool exc)
   throw(std::exception) {
   /// @c input length must be smaller than @c SSIZE_MAX.
@@ -199,7 +243,7 @@ mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(const std::string& input, bool exc)
          "sdin input exeeds C library limit in mrw::Exec "
          "please contact the author of the library");
   /** This method calls @c fork, sets up a pipe connection to pass @c
-      stdin, @c stdout and @c stderr from the child process to the
+      stdin, @c stdout and @c stderr between the child process and the
       parent process using mrw::Pipe and calls @c execvp to execute
       the program. */
   _success = false;
@@ -236,21 +280,30 @@ mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(const std::string& input, bool exc)
           in = in.substr(num0);
         else if ((unsigned int)num0==in.size())
           num0=0, stdIn.close_out();
-      } else if (num0==-1 && (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN))
-        throw ExecutionFailedExc("writing stdin", *_cmd);
+      } else if (num0==-1)
+        if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+          throw ExecutionFailedExc("writing stdin", *_cmd);
+        else
+          num0 = 1;
       // check and handle stdout
       if (num1 && (num1=read(stdOut.istream(), buf, sizeof(buf)))>0)
         _res += std::string(buf, num1);
-      else if (num1==-1 && (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN))
-        throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stdout", *_cmd);
+      else if (num1==-1)
+        if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+          throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stdout", *_cmd);
+        else
+          num1 = 1;
       // check and handle stderr
       if (num2 && (num2=read(stdErr.istream(), buf, sizeof(buf)))>0)
         _err += std::string(buf, num2);
-      else if (num2==-1 && (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN))
-        throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stderr", *_cmd);
+      else if (num2==-1)
+        if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+          throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stderr", *_cmd);
+        else
+          num2 = 1;
     } catch (...) {
-      if (exc) throw;
       _success = false;
+      if (exc) throw;
       return *this;
     }
   } else { // child
@@ -267,31 +320,218 @@ mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::execute(const std::string& input, bool exc)
   return *this;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec& mrw::Exec::operator>>(std::string& res) throw(std::exception) {
   execute();
   res += _res;
   return *this;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec::operator std::string&() throw(std::exception) {
   if (!_success) execute();
   return _res;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 mrw::Exec::operator bool() throw(std::bad_exception) {
   return _success;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 std::string& mrw::Exec::result() throw(std::exception) {
   if (!_success) execute();
   return _res;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 std::string& mrw::Exec::error() throw(std::exception) {
   if (!_success) execute();
   return _err;
 }
 
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 bool mrw::Exec::success() throw(std::bad_exception) {
   return _success;
 }
+
+//================================================================== PartialExec
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec::PartialExec(const mrw::Cmd& c) throw(std::bad_exception):
+    Exec(c), _finished(true), _finish(false) {
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec::PartialExec(mrw::PartialExec& e)
+    throw(std::bad_exception):
+    Exec(e), _finished(e._finished), _finish(e._finish),
+    _stdIn(e._stdIn), _stdOut(e._stdOut), _stdErr(e._stdErr), _input(e._input),
+    _num0(e._num0), _num1(e._num1), _num2(e._num2),
+    _lastPid(e._lastPid), _pid(e._pid) {
+      e._finished = true;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec::PartialExec(const mrw::PartialExec& e)
+    throw(std::bad_exception):
+    Exec(e), _finished(e._finished), _finish(e._finish),
+    _input(e._input),
+    _num0(e._num0), _num1(e._num1), _num2(e._num2),
+    _lastPid(e._lastPid), _pid(e._pid) {
+      /// @warning @c const is casted away
+      mrw::PartialExec& nonConstE(const_cast<mrw::PartialExec&>(e));
+      _stdIn = nonConstE._stdIn;
+      _stdOut = nonConstE._stdOut;
+      _stdErr = nonConstE._stdErr;
+      nonConstE._finished = true;
+      nonConstE._finish = false;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec& mrw::PartialExec::operator=(mrw::PartialExec& e)
+    throw(std::bad_exception) {
+  if (this==&e) return *this;
+  *_cmd=*e._cmd; _res=e._res; _err=e._err; _success=e._success;
+  _finished = e._finished;
+  _finish = e._finish;
+  _stdIn = e._stdIn; _stdOut = e._stdOut; _stdErr = e._stdErr;
+  _input = e._input; _num0 = e._num0; _num1 = e._num1; _num2 = e._num2;
+  _lastPid = e._lastPid;
+  _pid = e._pid;
+  e._finished = true;
+  e._finish = false;
+  return *this;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec& mrw::PartialExec::finish() throw() {
+  _finish = true;
+  return *this;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+bool mrw::PartialExec::finished() throw() {
+  return _finished;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec& mrw::PartialExec::start(bool useInput)
+  throw(std::exception) {
+  if (!_finished) throw mrw::runtime_error("running process not yet finished");
+  /** This method calls @c fork, sets up a pipe connection to pass @c
+      stdin, @c stdout and @c stderr between the child  process and the
+      parent process using mrw::Pipe and calls @c execvp to execute
+      the program. */
+  _success = false;
+  _finish = !useInput;
+  _input = "";
+  _res = _err = "";
+  _stdIn = std::auto_ptr<mrw::Pipe>(new mrw::Pipe(mrw::Pipe::block_input));
+  _stdOut = std::auto_ptr<mrw::Pipe>(new mrw::Pipe(mrw::Pipe::block_output));
+  _stdErr = std::auto_ptr<mrw::Pipe>(new mrw::Pipe(mrw::Pipe::block_output));
+  if (!*_stdIn || !*_stdOut || !*_stdErr)
+    throw mrw::ExecutionFailedExc("cannot create pipe", *_cmd);
+  _lastPid = 0;
+  _pid = fork();
+  if (_pid<0) throw ExecutionFailedExc("cannot fork", *_cmd);
+  if (_pid) { // parent
+    _stdIn->close_in();
+    _stdOut->close_out();
+    _stdErr->close_out();
+    if (!*_stdIn || !*_stdOut || !*_stdErr)
+      throw ExecutionFailedExc("cannot close pipes", *_cmd);
+    _num0 = _num1 = _num2 = 1;
+    _finished = false;
+  } else { // child
+    _stdIn->close_out();
+    _stdOut->close_in();
+    _stdErr->close_in();
+    _stdIn->connect_cin();
+    _stdOut->connect_cout();
+    _stdErr->connect_cerr();
+    execvp(_cmd->path(), _cmd->args());
+    exit(1); // execute failed
+  }
+  _success = true;
+  return *this;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+std::pair<std::string, std::string>
+  mrw::PartialExec::read(const std::string& input, bool exc)
+    throw(std::exception) {
+  std::pair<std::string, std::string> output;
+  /** @note @c input length must be smaller than @c SSIZE_MAX.
+            I'll only add support for longer strings upon request. */
+  assert(input.size()<=SSIZE_MAX &&
+         "sdin input exeeds C library limit in mrw::Exec "
+         "please contact the author of the library");
+  /** @warning After calling finish(), it is forbidden to pass
+               any @c input string, it must then always be empty,
+               because the pipe is already closed! */
+  assert(!(_finish && input.size()) &&
+         "after calling PartialExec::finish(), it is forbidden "
+         "to pass new input text, because the pipe is already "
+         "closed! this is a programming but that must be solved!");
+  _input += input;
+  /* It sometimes did not get the whole input since I changed to non
+     blocking pipes. Now I have found the solution to the problems:
+     Non blocking IO does not work in conjunction with select! Also
+     the pipe must not be nonblocking on both ends, but only on
+     one. */
+  if (!_finished) try { // not finished
+    char buf[4096];
+    int s(0);
+    if (!_lastPid && (_lastPid=waitpid(_pid, &s, WNOHANG))) {
+      if (_lastPid!=_pid || WIFEXITED(s)!=0 && WEXITSTATUS(s)!=0)
+        throw ExecutionFailedExc("execution failed", *_cmd);
+    }
+    // check and handle stdin
+    if (_input.size() && _num0!=-1 &&
+        (_num0=write(_stdIn->ostream(), _input.c_str(), _input.size()))>0) {
+      if ((unsigned int)_num0<_input.size())
+        _input = _input.substr(_num0);
+      else if ((unsigned int)_num0==_input.size())
+        _input.clear();
+    } else if (_num0==-1)
+      if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+        throw ExecutionFailedExc("writing stdin", *_cmd);
+      else
+        _num0 = 1;
+    // check and handle stdout
+    if (_num1 && (_num1=::read(_stdOut->istream(), buf, sizeof(buf)))>0)
+      _res += output.first=std::string(buf, _num1);
+    else if (_num1==-1)
+      if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+        throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stdout", *_cmd);
+      else
+        _num1 = 1;
+    // check and handle stderr
+    if (_num2 && (_num2=::read(_stdErr->istream(), buf, sizeof(buf)))>0)
+      _err += output.second=std::string(buf, _num2);
+    else if (_num2==-1)
+      if (errno!=EINTR&&errno!=EAGAIN)
+        throw ExecutionFailedExc("readin stderr", *_cmd);
+      else
+        _num2 = 1;
+    if (_finish && !_input.size()) {
+      _stdIn->close_out();
+      _num0 = 0;
+    }
+    _finished = _finish && !_input.size() && !_num1 && !_num2 && _lastPid;
+  } catch (mrw::exception& x) {
+    _finished = true;
+    _success = false;
+    if (exc) throw;
+    return output;
+  }
+  if (_finished) _success = true;
+  return output;
+}
+
+//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+mrw::PartialExec& mrw::PartialExec::terminate() throw() {
+  kill(_pid, SIGTERM);
+  return *this;
+}
diff --git a/mrw/exec.hpp b/mrw/exec.hpp
index 5a93a27..92e3737 100644
--- a/mrw/exec.hpp
+++ b/mrw/exec.hpp
@@ -9,6 +9,9 @@
     @license LGPL, see file <a href="license.html">COPYING</a>
 
     $Log$
+    Revision 1.6  2005/04/19 18:48:00  marc
+    new feature PartialExec
+
     Revision 1.5  2004/12/14 20:30:09  marc
     added possibility to pass string to stdin of child process
 
@@ -35,6 +38,7 @@
 #include <string>
 #include <list>
 #include <mrw/exception.hpp>
+#include <mrw/unistd.hpp>
 
 namespace mrw {
 
@@ -81,12 +85,12 @@ namespace mrw {
         // "cat" passes all from stdin to stdout, therefore:
         assert(cat.result()=="this is passed to stdin");
       } catch (...) {} // ignore
-      @endcode
-  */
+      @endcode */
   //@{
   
   class Cmd;
-  
+
+  //============================================================================
   /** @brief Exception: Execution of command failed.
       @pre #include <mrw/exec.hpp>
 
@@ -95,18 +99,18 @@ namespace mrw {
       to create the necessary pipes, or the command executing process
       terminated with an error. In the last case, you can access the
       error stream from @c stderr respectively @c cerr with method
-      mrw::Exec::error().
-  */
+      mrw::Exec::error(). */
   class ExecutionFailedExc: public mrw::exception {
-  public:
-    ExecutionFailedExc(const std::string&, const std::string&)
-      throw(std::bad_exception);
-    virtual ~ExecutionFailedExc() throw() {}
-    virtual const char* what() const throw() {return _what.c_str();}
-  private:
-    std::string _what;
+    public:
+      ExecutionFailedExc(const std::string&, const std::string&)
+          throw(std::bad_exception);
+      virtual ~ExecutionFailedExc() throw() {}
+      virtual const char* what() const throw() {return _what.c_str();}
+    private:
+      std::string _what;
   };
 
+  //============================================================================
   /** @brief Execute a command in a new process.
       @pre #include <mrw/exec.hpp>
 
@@ -137,140 +141,295 @@ namespace mrw {
       // ls.error() contains stderr
       @endcode
 
-      @note Please note that the command execution may throw an exception.
-  */
+      @note Please note that the command execution may throw an exception. */
   class Exec {
-  public:
+
+      //................................................................ methods
+    public:
     
-    /** @brief Create an executor given a command.
-        Construction without passing a command is not possible. */
-    Exec(const mrw::Cmd&) throw(std::bad_exception);
+      /** @brief Create an executor given a command.
+          Construction without passing a command is not possible. */
+      Exec(const mrw::Cmd&) throw(std::bad_exception);
     
-    Exec(const mrw::Exec&) throw(std::bad_exception);
-    ~Exec() throw();
-    Exec& operator=(const mrw::Exec&) throw(std::bad_exception);
+      Exec(const mrw::Exec&) throw(std::bad_exception);
+      ~Exec() throw();
+      Exec& operator=(const mrw::Exec&) throw(std::bad_exception);
     
-    /** @brief Execute the command.
+      /** @brief Execute the command.
         
-        @param exc
-         - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
-         - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
+          @param exc
+           - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
+           - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
          
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
-         - fork fails
-         - creation or setup of pipes failed
-         - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
-           executed program terminates with an error
-    */
-    Exec& execute(bool exc=true) throw(std::exception);
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
+           - fork fails
+           - creation or setup of pipes failed
+           - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
+             executed program terminates with an error */
+      Exec& execute(bool exc=true) throw(std::exception);
     
-    /** @brief Execute the command, pass @c stdin.
+      /** @brief Execute the command, pass @c stdin.
 
-        @param input Input that is passed to @c stdin of the child process.
+          @param input Input that is passed to @c stdin of the child process.
         
-        @param exc
-         - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
-         - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
+          @param exc
+           - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
+           - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
          
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
-         - fork fails
-         - creation or setup of pipes failed
-         - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
-           executed program terminates with an error
-    */
-    Exec& execute(const std::string& input, bool exc=true)
-      throw(std::exception);
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
+           - fork fails
+           - creation or setup of pipes failed
+           - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
+             executed program terminates with an error */
+      Exec& execute(const std::string& input, bool exc=true)
+          throw(std::exception);
     
-    /** @brief Execute the command, pass @c stdin.
+      /** @brief Execute the command, pass @c stdin.
 
-        @param input Input that is passed to @c stdin of the child process.
+          @param input Input that is passed to @c stdin of the child process.
         
-        @param exc
-         - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
-         - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
+          @param exc
+           - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
+           - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
          
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
-         - fork fails
-         - creation or setup of pipes failed
-         - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
-           executed program terminates with an error
-    */
-    Exec& execute(char const*const input, bool exc=true)
-      throw(std::exception) {
-      return execute(std::string(input), exc);
-    }
-    
-    /** @brief Executes the command if not done, streams @c stdout into a string
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
+           - fork fails
+           - creation or setup of pipes failed
+           - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
+             executed program terminates with an error */
+      Exec& execute(char const*const input, bool exc=true)
+          throw(std::exception) {
+        return execute(std::string(input), exc);
+      }
+      
+      /** @brief Executes the command if not done, streams @c stdout
+                 into a string
 
-        If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
-        first executed, then the @c stdout output of the called
-        program is appended to the string.
+          If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
+          first executed, then the @c stdout output of the called
+          program is appended to the string.
 
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
-        executed program does not return a zero exit status.
-    */
-    Exec& operator>>(std::string&) throw(std::exception);
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
+                 executed program does not return a zero exit status. */
+      Exec& operator>>(std::string&) throw(std::exception);
     
-    /** @brief Executes the command if not done, returns @c stdout as string
+      /** @brief Executes the command if not done, returns @c stdout as string
 
-        If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
-        first executed, then the @c stdout output of the called
-        program is returned.
+          If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
+          first executed, then the @c stdout output of the called
+          program is returned.
 
-        @return @c stdout of the called program
+          @return @c stdout of the called program
 
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
-        executed program does not return a zero exit status.
-    */
-    operator std::string&() throw(std::exception);
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
+          executed program does not return a zero exit status. */
+      operator std::string&() throw(std::exception);
 
-    /** @return
-         - @c true if the last execution was successful
-         - @c false if the last execution failed or the command was
-           never executed
-    */
-    operator bool() throw(std::bad_exception);
+      /** @return
+           - @c true if the last execution was successful
+           - @c false if the last execution failed or the command was
+             never executed */
+      operator bool() throw(std::bad_exception);
 
-    /** @brief Executes the command if not done, returns @c stdout as string
+      /** @brief Executes the command if not done, returns @c stdout as string
 
-        If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
-        first executed, then the @c stdout output of the called
-        program is returned.
+          If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
+          first executed, then the @c stdout output of the called
+          program is returned.
 
-        @return @c stdout of the called program
+          @return @c stdout of the called program
 
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
-        executed program does not return a zero exit status.
-    */
-    std::string& result() throw(std::exception);
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
+          executed program does not return a zero exit status. */
+      std::string& result() throw(std::exception);
 
-    /** @brief Executes the command if not done, returns @c stderr as string
+      /** @brief Executes the command if not done, returns @c stderr as string
 
-        If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
-        first executed, then the @c stderr error output of the called
-        program is returned.
+          If the command has not yet been executed successfully, it is
+          first executed, then the @c stderr error output of the called
+          program is returned.
 
-        @return @c stderr of the called program
+          @return @c stderr of the called program
 
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
-        executed program does not return a zero exit status.
-    */
-    std::string& error() throw(std::exception);
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc in case of any failure or if the
+          executed program does not return a zero exit status. */
+      std::string& error() throw(std::exception);
     
-    /** @return
-         - @c true if the last execution was successful
-         - @c false if the last execution failed or the command was
-           never executed
-    */
-    bool success() throw(std::bad_exception);
-    
-  private:
-    Exec(); // no default constructor
-    mrw::Cmd* _cmd;
-    std::string _res, _err;
-    bool _success;
+      /** @return
+           - @c true if the last execution was successful
+           - @c false if the last execution failed or the command was
+             never executed */
+      bool success() throw(std::bad_exception);
+
+      //................................................................ methods
+    private:
+      
+      Exec(); // no default constructor
+
+      //.............................................................. variables
+    private:
+
+      friend class PartialExec; // don't want the variables protected
+      mrw::Cmd* _cmd;
+      std::string _res, _err;
+      bool _success;
   };
 
+  //============================================================================
+  /** @brief Execute a UNIX program in non blocking parts.
+      @pre #include <mrw/exec.hpp>
+
+      A given UNIX command is executed, but the class does not wait
+      until it is finished, instead it gives back the control to the
+      caller. This behaviour is achieved using non blocking
+      communication. But the caller is responsible to retrieve all
+      information from the client, and if necessary to close the input
+      pipe of the client executable program. Therefore you have to
+      give back control from time to time, normally this is doen in a
+      @c while loop, where you can execute also different thing,
+      e.g. update a display of the result or similar.
+
+      With this class, you can communicate with a child process, and
+      do other things at the same time, without the need for multi
+      threading.
+
+      Execution of a program works the following way:
+       - do not use execute() (otherwise the behaviours is identical
+         to class mrw::Exec, you gain nothing, but also loose nothing)
+       - use start() to start the external program
+          - use start() or @c start(false) if you don't want to pass
+            input to the child process
+          - use @c start(true) if you want to pass input to the
+            child process
+       - if you called @c start(true), call finish() if you have no more
+         input to send to the child process (it's like an end-of-file)
+       - the execution is not terminated, before finished() returns
+         @c true
+       - while finished() is false, subsequently call read() to read
+         the output of the child process
+
+      @warning After calling finish(), or if you did not call
+               start() with parameter @c true, it is forbidden to
+               pass anything but an empty string as first parameter to
+               read()! Anything else is a programming error and
+               results in an assertion failure and a core dump!
+
+      @note If your program seems to hang, check if you call finish()
+            correctly!
+      
+      Here an example:
+      @code
+mrw::PartialExec exec = mrw::Cmd("/bin/cat").start(true);
+std::string res = exec.read("This is a test\n").first;
+res += exec.read("This is another test\n").first;
+exec.finish(); // close the input pipe of @c cat
+while (!exec.finished()) res+=exec.read().first;
+@endcode */
+  class PartialExec: public Exec {
+
+      //................................................................ methods
+    public:
+      
+      /** @brief Create an executor given a command.
+          Construction without passing a command is not possible. */
+      PartialExec(const mrw::Cmd&) throw(std::bad_exception);
+
+      /** @brief Copy construction invalidates the original object.
+
+          All opened pipes (opened with start()) are lost in the
+          original object and are then owned by the new object. */
+      PartialExec(mrw::PartialExec&) throw(std::bad_exception);
+      
+      /** @brief Copy construction invalidates the original object.
+
+          @copydoc PartialExec(mrw::PartialExec&)
+
+          @warning @c const for the argument is a fake! It is casted away!
+
+          @param e @b Warning: const is casted away! */
+      PartialExec(const mrw::PartialExec& e) throw(std::bad_exception);
+
+      /** @brief Assignment invalidates the original object.
+
+          @copydoc PartialExec(mrw::PartialExec&) */
+      PartialExec& operator=(mrw::PartialExec&) throw(std::bad_exception);
+
+      /** @brief Close the input pipe of the child process.
+
+          If start() is called with argument @c false, then you
+          can pass input to @c stdin of the child process, but you @b
+          must call this method, after passing the last input
+          string. Otherwise, the child's input pipe won't be closed,
+          the child process does not stop waiting for more input! If
+          your program seems to hang, check if you call finish()
+          correctly! */
+      PartialExec& finish() throw();
+
+      /** @brief Check if there's more data left to read().
+          @return @c true if the child process has finished and all
+                  data is read. */
+      bool finished() throw();
+
+      /** @brief Start a new child process.
+
+          At most one child process can run at the same time.
+
+          @throw mrw::runtime_error if a previous child has not finished() yet
+          @throw mrw::ExecutionFailedExc if the child process cannot be started
+          @param useInput
+           - @c true if input will be sent to the child's @c stdin
+              - pass all input in the first parameter of read()
+              - finish() must be called when all input is sent
+           - @c false if no input is sent to the child's @c stdin
+              - the first parameter of read must allways be passed an
+                empty string */
+      PartialExec& start(bool useInput=false) throw(std::exception);
+
+      /** @brief Read from the subprocess, optionally pass an @c input to
+                 @c stdin of the subprocess.
+
+          @param input a string to pass to the child processes @c stdin
+          
+          @param exc
+           - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
+           - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
+         
+          @return a pair containing the last read @c stdout and @c stderr
+                  of the child
+          
+          @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
+           - fork fails
+           - creation or setup of pipes failed
+           - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
+             executed program terminates with an error
+
+          @note If start() was not called with parameter @c true, then
+                @c input must always be an empty string!
+
+          @pre start() was called */
+      std::pair<std::string, std::string> read(const std::string& input="",
+                                               bool exc=true)
+          throw(std::exception);
+
+      /// Terminates a running job by sending @c SIGTERM to the child process.
+      PartialExec& terminate() throw();
+
+      //................................................................ methods
+    private:
+      
+      PartialExec(); // no default constructor
+
+      //.............................................................. variables
+    private:
+
+      bool _finished;
+      bool _finish;
+      std::auto_ptr<mrw::Pipe> _stdIn, _stdOut, _stdErr;
+      std::string _input;
+      int _num0, _num1, _num2, _lastPid, _pid;
+  };
+  
+  //============================================================================
   /** @brief A system command to be executed
       @pre #include <mrw/exec.hpp>
 
@@ -293,115 +452,62 @@ namespace mrw {
       @endcode
   */
   class Cmd {
-  public:
-    /** @brief Create a command given the name of the executable
-        @param command the name of the program to execute (no parameter)
-        @note There is no default constructor. */
-    Cmd(const std::string& command) throw(std::bad_exception);
-
-    /** @brief Append a parameter to a command
-        @param param a parameter&nbsp;/ commandline argument
-        to append to the command */
-    Cmd& operator,(const std::string& param) throw(std::bad_exception);
+    public:
+      /** @brief Create a command given the name of the executable
+          @param command the name of the program to execute (no parameter)
+          @note There is no default constructor. */
+      Cmd(const std::string& command) throw(std::bad_exception);
+
+      /** @brief Append a parameter to a command
+          @param param a parameter&nbsp;/ commandline argument
+          to append to the command */
+      Cmd& operator,(const std::string& param) throw(std::bad_exception);
     
-    /** @brief Append a parameter to a command
-        @param param a parameter&nbsp;/ commandline argument
-        to append to the command */
-    Cmd& operator<<(const std::string& param) throw(std::bad_exception);
+      /** @brief Append a parameter to a command
+          @param param a parameter&nbsp;/ commandline argument
+          to append to the command */
+      Cmd& operator<<(const std::string& param) throw(std::bad_exception);
 
-    /** @return the command including parameter */
-    operator std::string() const throw(std::bad_exception);
+      /** @return the command including parameter */
+      operator std::string() const throw(std::bad_exception);
 
-    /** @return a mrw::Exec that's constructed with this class */
-    operator mrw::Exec() const throw(std::bad_exception);
+      /** @return a mrw::Exec that's constructed with this class */
+      operator mrw::Exec() const throw(std::bad_exception);
 
-    /** @brief Create a mrw::Exec and execute the command
-
-        Creates a mrw::Exec, executes the command, passes the flag to
-        mrw::Exec::execute() and returns the created mrw::Exec. The
-        result of the execution can be retrieved through the returned
-        mrw::Exec object: The methods mrw::Exec::success(),
-        mrw::Exec::result() and mrw::Exec::error() provide the
-        necessary information.
-        
-        @param exc
-         - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
-         - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
+      /** @return a mrw::PartialExec that's constructed with this class */
+      operator mrw::PartialExec() const throw(std::bad_exception);
 
-        @return the mrw::Exec that has executed the command
-         
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
-         - fork fails
-         - creation or setup of pipes failed
-         - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
-           executed program terminates with an error
-    */
-    Exec execute(bool exc=true) const throw(std::exception);
+      /** @brief Create a mrw::Exec and execute a child process.
+          @see Exec::execute(bool) */
+      Exec execute(bool exc=true) const throw(std::exception);
     
-    /** @brief Create a mrw::Exec and execute the command given an input
-
-        Creates a mrw::Exec, executes the command, passes the input
-        and the flag to mrw::Exec::execute() and returns the created
-        mrw::Exec. The result of the execution can be retrieved
-        through the returned mrw::Exec object: The methods
-        mrw::Exec::success(), mrw::Exec::result() and
-        mrw::Exec::error() provide the necessary information.
-
-        @param input Input that is passed to @c stdin of the child process.
-        
-        @param exc
-         - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
-         - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
-
-        @return the mrw::Exec that has executed the command
-         
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
-         - fork fails
-         - creation or setup of pipes failed
-         - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
-           executed program terminates with an error
-    */
-    Exec execute(const std::string& input, bool exc=true) const
-      throw(std::exception);
+      /** @brief Create a mrw::Exec and execute a child process.
+          @see Exec::execute(const std::string&, bool) */
+      Exec execute(const std::string& input, bool exc=true) const
+          throw(std::exception);
     
-    /** @brief Create a mrw::Exec and execute the command given an input
-
-        Creates a mrw::Exec, executes the command, passes the input
-        and the flag to mrw::Exec::execute() and returns the created
-        mrw::Exec. The result of the execution can be retrieved
-        through the returned mrw::Exec object: The methods
-        mrw::Exec::success(), mrw::Exec::result() and
-        mrw::Exec::error() provide the necessary information.
-
-        @param input Input that is passed to @c stdin of the child process.
-        
-        @param exc
-         - @c true throw an exception if return status is not zero
-         - @c false throw only an exception in case of a fatal error
+      /** @brief Create a mrw::Exec and execute a child process.
+          @see Exec::execute(char const*const, bool) */
+      Exec execute(char const*const input, bool exc=true) const
+          throw(std::exception) {
+        return execute(std::string(input), exc);
+      }
 
-        @return the mrw::Exec that has executed the command
-         
-        @throw ExecutionFailedExc is thrown if
-         - fork fails
-         - creation or setup of pipes failed
-         - if given parameter is @c true (the default) also if the
-           executed program terminates with an error
-    */
-    Exec execute(char const*const input, bool exc=true) const
-      throw(std::exception) {
-      return execute(std::string(input), exc);
-    }
+      /** @brief Create a new mrw::PartialExec and start a new child process.
+          @see PartialExec::start(bool) */
+      PartialExec start(bool useInput=false) const throw(std::exception);
     
   private:
-    /// Exec is allowed to call @c path() and @c args().
+    // Exec and PartialExec are allowed to call @c path() and @c args().
     friend class Exec;
-    /// No default constructor.
-    Cmd(); 
+    friend class PartialExec;
+    Cmd(); // No default constructor.
     const char* path() const throw(std::bad_exception);
     char** args() const throw(std::bad_exception);
     typedef std::list<std::string> ArgList;
     ArgList _cmd;
   };
+
   //@}
 }
 #endif
diff --git a/mrw/exec_test.cpp b/mrw/exec_test.cpp
index 542f838..a0130c8 100644
--- a/mrw/exec_test.cpp
+++ b/mrw/exec_test.cpp
@@ -9,6 +9,9 @@
     @license LGPL, see file <a href="license.html">COPYING</a>
 
     $Log$
+    Revision 1.9  2005/04/19 18:48:00  marc
+    new feature PartialExec
+
     Revision 1.8  2005/04/07 20:55:21  marc
     Oops, there's a make distcheck...? Now it works.
 
@@ -65,12 +68,44 @@ public:
   void unexpectedExc() throw(std::bad_exception) {
     std::string res = (mrw::Cmd("/bin/false")).execute().result();
   }
+  void lsTest2() {
+    std::string res;
+    mrw::PartialExec exec = (mrw::Cmd("/bin/ls"), "-l",
+                             std::string(getenv("srcdir"))+"/..").start();
+    while (!exec.finished()) res+=exec.read().first;
+    CPPUNIT_ASSERT(res.find("COPYING")<res.size());
+  }
+  void catTest2() {
+    mrw::PartialExec exec = mrw::Cmd("/bin/cat").start(true);
+    std::string res = exec.read("This is a test\n").first;
+    res += exec.read("More to come...\n").first;
+    exec.finish();
+    while (!exec.finished()) res+=exec.read().first;
+    CPPUNIT_ASSERT(res=="This is a test\nMore to come...\n");
+  }
+  void excTest12() {
+    mrw::PartialExec exec = (mrw::Cmd("/bin/false")).start();
+    while (!exec.finished()) exec.read();
+  }
+  void excTest22() {
+    mrw::PartialExec exec = (mrw::Cmd("/bin/false")).start(true);
+    while (!exec.finished()) exec.read("xxx");
+  }
+  void unexpectedExc2() throw(std::bad_exception) {
+    mrw::PartialExec exec = (mrw::Cmd("/bin/false")).start();
+    while (!exec.finished()) exec.read();
+  }
   CPPUNIT_TEST_SUITE(ExecTest);
   CPPUNIT_TEST(lsTest);
   CPPUNIT_TEST(catTest);
   CPPUNIT_TEST_EXCEPTION(excTest1, mrw::ExecutionFailedExc);
   CPPUNIT_TEST_EXCEPTION(excTest2, mrw::ExecutionFailedExc);
   CPPUNIT_TEST_EXCEPTION(unexpectedExc, std::bad_exception);
+  CPPUNIT_TEST(lsTest2);
+  CPPUNIT_TEST(catTest2);
+  CPPUNIT_TEST_EXCEPTION(excTest12, mrw::ExecutionFailedExc);
+  CPPUNIT_TEST_EXCEPTION(excTest22, mrw::ExecutionFailedExc);
+  CPPUNIT_TEST_EXCEPTION(unexpectedExc2, std::bad_exception);
   CPPUNIT_TEST_SUITE_END();
 };
 CPPUNIT_TEST_SUITE_REGISTRATION(ExecTest);