[Info-vax] Windows terminal revamped and open sourced

[Jan-Erik Söderholm]

Den 2019-06-16 kl. 21:05, skrev Dave Froble:
> On 6/16/2019 12:47 PM, Jan-Erik Söderholm wrote:
>> Den 2019-06-16 kl. 18:11, skrev Dave Froble:
>>> On 6/16/2019 4:30 AM, Jan-Erik Söderholm wrote:
>>>> Den 2019-06-16 kl. 01:23, skrev Dave Froble:
>>>>> On 6/15/2019 2:44 PM, seasoned_geek wrote:
>>>>>> On Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 12:18:08 PM UTC-5, Stephen Hoffman wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> There's also that VSI isn't aiming OpenVMS at workstations and
>>>>>>> desktops. OpenVMS is for servers, per VSI. You only really need a
>>>>>>> terminal emulator if you have a graphical environment.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Actually you need a terminal emulator to reach your server.
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> The VT-520 sitting here seems to do a credible job ....
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> An old hardware terminal such as the VT-line are today always
>>>> a worse solution than an termninal amulator running on your
>>>> everyday computer client you are using for anything else.
>>>> No matter if it is Windows, Linux oc Mac, they all have
>>>> emulators that are much better to work with than an VT520.
>>>>
>>>> Yes, VT-terminals are can be fun from an historical point of
>>>> view. But there is no reason to use them for real work.
>>>
>>> I do use terminal emulators for "real work", when I actually do such.
>>>
>>> You can read above that the issue appears to be the console, and I do
>>> not use the console for "real work".  A VT terminal, useless for much
>>> else, can still function as a console device.  "Wasting" a PC for such
>>> isn't reasonable.
>>>
>>
>> Wasting a VT terminal isn't reasoanble. Just connect your laptop
>> whenever you need the console. You will get built in logging of
>> all console trafic. Or put a small serial-to-network adapter on
>> the console port and just connect to it when needed.
>>
>> There is absolutely no reason to try to force a use of some
>> old hardware such as a VT-screen.
> 
> This particular VT is the console for a VAXstation 4000.  Now, when a 
> VAXstation 4000 attempts to write to the console, and there is not one 
> persent, the system hangs.  So it needs a console connected all the time.
> 

Now, the facts below is from an AS20e, not some way older VAXstation.
What a VAXstation does or doesn't need is more of historical interest.

Anyway... Stricly technical, and *if* the consol serial port is set to
"hardware" flow control, it needs one or two of the RS232 signal lines
to have a specific level. And that does not need a full VT-terminal,
a RS323 9-pin connector with a few straps is enough.

But easier is to set the consol port to "software flow control" and
"modem control off".

P00>>>show
...
com1_baud           	9600
com1_flow           	SOFTWARE
com1_modem          	OFF
com2_baud           	9600
com2_flow           	SOFTWARE
com2_modem          	OFF

Then it runs happily with nothing connected to the console port at all.
Any output will just go out in the thin air. When you are interested,
you can hook up something. Easiest is some kind of serial to network
adapter so that one can reach it remotly.

I tried to find any VAXstation docs to see the variables there, but
could not find anything usefull. It is way to many years from my
VAX days, so I do not remember the details.

> I'm not "forcing" anything, I'm just using the VT for something useful.

A door-stop had probably been of more use (in this case).