Aucbvax.4764 fa.info-terms utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!info-terms Wed Oct 28 17:28:02 1981 Terminal evaluations >From menlo70!sytek!zehntel!hickman@Berkeley Wed Oct 28 14:01:43 1981 Recently, we did an evaluation of terminals for home (and in office) usage. The following summarizes the evaluation and information obtained. Note that the terminal had to be termcap-able in order for us to consider it at all. Also, the following shorthand will be used for terminal features: ILN Insert line DLN Delete line IC Insert character DC Delete character UL Underline RV Reverse video Ann Arbor Ambassador: Wonderful features (ILN, DLN, IC, DC, UL, RV, ...). Has a nice keyboard with all the keys in the right place. The reason we didn't go with this terminal was because of the slow phosphor. It really gets on your nerves. Visual 200: Excellent character font; rotten keyboard; no extra memory for multiple pages; features (ILN, DLN, IC, DC, ...). Ampex Dialogue 80: Pretty box; rotten keyboard; nice display font; good features (ILN, DLN, IC, DC, ...); multiple pages of memory but no reverse or forward scroll to view it (have to use a page button). Teleray 100: Vt100+ compatibility. Problem with vt100's is that their idea of insert/delete line is so bizzare as to not be termcap-able. Ugly box; okay screen font. Too expensive. Adm 32: Nice pretty box; rotten keyboard; weird features (no details on this; sorry). So-so screen font. Televideo 950: Excellent screen font; weird features (again, no details), no local scrolling to view multiple pages. Video tubes go out of whack and flyback squeal is bad. Sticky keyboard. Hp-2621: Man plus's and minus's for this: plus: many features; minus: 1e38 characters in a cursor move sequence, so most of the time visual programs use the up,down,left,right sequences to move the cursor. Datamedia 40: Nice box, but large. Televideo 950, adm 31 compatible. Nice keyboard, pretty good features (ILN, DLN, IC, DC, ...) and has local scroll. Didn't see this one myself, so I don't know why we didn't pick it. Adds Viewpoints: Real loser: rotten keyboard; excruciatingly loud bell!!!!! No features. Ugly box. Televideo 920: Nice keyboard, as long as you type with a hammer in hand to pound the keys down with. All the features of the 950. Adm3a: Everyone knows what these do and don't do. Concept 108: (warning: this message is somewhat biased cuz I use one of these and love it). This terminal has more features than any other I have seen, including the ambassador. It is very nice to use, has the best keyboard seen, to date. All the keys are in the right place except for the caps-lock. Will do multiple windowing; local scroll mode (96 to 192 lines of text - in 80 column mode; less in 132 column mode); bindable function keys; local editing; ILN, DLN, IC, DC, RV, UL, ....... and then some; the termcap entry for this terminal is the longest yet. This version of the terminal (unlike the concept 104) has no brain damage, and can be programmed to send ^S/^Q when it gets behind. Which means fill characters are no longer needed. The manual for the terminal is 1/2 inch thick. Up to 4 fonts, user definable if you can burn proms. 25th status line which can be programmed in about 17,000 different ways. We didn't buy this because it is a bit to expensive for home usage. ------------------------------------------------------------ And now for the winner: Falco Data Products Ts-1: Very nice keyboard (a few keys in the wrong place, tho). All of the features, multiple pages of memory with local scrolling. Green/White/Amber phosphor choice. Local editing; bindable function keys; no padding needed; setup mode like vt100, but nicer. Terminal has internal time clock on status line (disable-able and set able); battery backup of setup stuff. 10 characters of setable status line info. Detachable keyboard. All in all, a good terminal. The cost is right too. If you want the number of the company mail to this address. kipp ----------------------------------------------------------------- gopher://quux.org/ conversion by John Goerzen of http://communication.ucsd.edu/A-News/ This Usenet Oldnews Archive article may be copied and distributed freely, provided: 1. There is no money collected for the text(s) of the articles. 2. The following notice remains appended to each copy: The Usenet Oldnews Archive: Compilation Copyright (C) 1981, 1996 Bruce Jones, Henry Spencer, David Wiseman.