cmd.exe console question

[Ann & Jason Edmeades]

Out of interest, is there any way to get (read here 'write code for') the
wine's cmd.exe better integrated in the window you launch it from when it is
not in wineconsole mode. 

For example, I would love to see cls clear the screen (I suppose I could
just launch 'clear'!), or command retrieval work (and, but by far the lowest
priority, colo(u)rs).

I *know* you can do it with wineconsole with user and curses backend, but in
a 'normal' shell window the shell itself manages it, and is there any
programming interface to that?

One problem I can perceive is I cant tell between output being redirected to
a file, or output being redirected to the shell window (neither query the
console attributes)

Jason