VT100 emulator for PCs

[terry]

In article <8434 at tut.cis.ohio-state.edu>, mdf at tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Mark D. Freeman) writes:
> 
> I need a perfect VT100 emulator, to be used to run Microsoft Word and
> SCO Professional on an SCO XENIX system.

I talked the the person who wrote the terminal information files for the
Microsoft word and suggested some corrections.  As they sat a while ago, it
wouldn't work quite right except with real old (first run) VT100's.  I think
they've fixed it by now.  She was pretty on the ball.  The problem centered
around the information file making the assumption (valid on a VT200 or above
emulating a VT100) that the secondary character set was by default a US ASCII
set (it's not; it's the box-drawing graphics set).  Consequently, the secondary
set was left alone and the primary set was turned into the graphics set via the
old `ESC (0` in their initialization sequence.  The fix was to swap every
occurance of `\017` and `\016` in the file and change the initialization from
including `ESC (0` to including `ESC (B ESC )0`.  The `ESC )0` will make it
work on terminals that incorrectly emulate the secondary set, such as a VT200
or Altos III.

> Crosstalk is either too slow or too stupid (I can't tell),

Actually Crosstalk will sorta work if you torture the AM equivalent in the file
and lie about it (the same problem as exists with most curses).  Crosstalk wraps
after character 80, not before character 81, which is wrong.  I have also heard
complaints about the graphic characters, and that it is not a very faithful
emulation, depending on the version you have.

> and the first release of Mirror is not lots better.

Never played with it, myself.

> MS-KERMIT 2.30 is good, but eats the page-up and page-down keys, which I
> need to implement for their intended use.

Unfortunately, most communications programs can't fully remap the keyboard.

> The emulator I seek should be able to pass through unique codes for all
> 10 function keys, as well as all keys on the control pad (Home, End,
> PgUp, PgDn, Ins, Del).  Yes, I know that a vt100 only has 4 function
> keys.  However my client need to use all 10 to run his software the way
> he's used to.
> 
> Any ideas?

[Begin Ad]

TERM, our product, emulates a VT100 correctly to the point of allowing full
use of LSE on a VAX (not an easy thing to do).  Currently, the DOS box on my
desk (OH MY GOD!  Terry has a _WHAT_ on his desk?) is connected via hard wire
to an Intel-motherboard based 386 system running SCO.  We have SCO PRO, and it
works fine.  In addition, we have quite a number of customers using TERM with
Microsoft Word, both in VT100 mode and DOS ANSI mode, although VT100 mode is
preferred, as it allows transparent printing using the DOS printer.

All keyboard keys are remappable, including Func, Ctrl-Func, Shft-Func,
Alt-Func, Alt A-Z, All regular alphabetic (in case you are a Dvorak fan or
whatever), all control keys, and the keypad keys.  To define additional
function keys, you'd want to move our functions off the main keys so as to
free them up, then logically extend the keys.  Since PF1-PF4 is \E[P-\E[S,
logically, you would use \E[T-\E[Y.  You would then have to tell the termcap
and Microsoft terminal information file about the new definitions.  The same
can be done for the PGUP and PGDN, etc keys:

TERMCAP:
	:k0=\E[P:k1=\E[Q:k2=\E[R:k3=\E[S:k4=\E[T:k5=\E[U:\
	:k6=\E[V:k7=\E[W:k8=\E[X:k9=\E[Y:pn=\E[6~:\
	...

TERM:
	setkey af1 menu			! make ALT F1 the menu key
	setkey af2 help			! make ALT F2 the help key
	setkey af3 gold			! make ALT F3 the gold key
	setkey af4 shell		! make ALT F4 the DOS "hotkey"
	setkey af5 capture		! make ALT F5 the capture toggle key
	setkey af6 print		! make F6 send what termcap expects
	setkey f5 "\E[T"
	...
	setkey f10 "\E[Y"
	setkey next "\E[6~"		! make PGDN send VT200 "Next Screen"

Personally, I prefer defining them so they'll work in VI, but if you can have
VI, Microsoft Word is the next best thing ;-).

	Talk to someone at (801)-268-3088.

	PS:  The reason you don't see us advertised in DOS mag's is that we
	don't... our primary market is UNIX... We *EMULATE* 9 terminals there,
	VMS, BTOS, CTOS, Macintosh, and DOS, too.  Soon to be 10, as I am
	currently putting the finishing touches on 3101; HAD to have the block
	mode work, too :-).  This isn't any of that garbagy 'CU' stuff, either.
	Our VT100 emulation works on a Wyse 50, including scroll regions, which
	the '50 doesn't have, since we are termcap/termlib driven on UNIX :-).

[End Ad]


| Terry Lambert           UUCP: ...{ decvax, ihnp4 }                          |
| @ Century Software          : ...utah-cs!uplherc!sp7040!obie!wsccs!terry    |
| SLC, Utah                                                                   |
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