From: wilsond@LIB.UCSF.EDU (Danny Wilson)
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.innopac
Subject: Fw: Re: The "bold" problem
Date: 18 Nov 92 17:36:22 GMT
              <INNOPAC@MAINE.BITNET>
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU
X-Nupop-Charset: English

------------------------------
From: Lee Norden <norden%ANDY.BGSU.EDU@ucsfvm.ucsf.edu>
Mon, 9 Nov 1992 15:09:09 -0500
To: Multiple recipients of list INNOPAC <INNOPAC@MAINE.BITNET>
Subject: Re: The "bold" problem

Boy, I hope I can explain some of this in one email message.

A VT100 has 4 basic screen modes--reverse video, bold, underline and blink.

If none of these is active, the screen display is "normal".  III software
appears to turn on BOLD and leave it on, starting somewhere after the
first screen (mainmenu).  From then on, everything is displayed in BOLD
as the default, unless a screen area is highlighed by useing reverse
video and/or underline and/or blink.

Most terminal emulation software is written to take advantage of color
monitors.  The one I'm using today can display 16 different combinations
of foreground/background colors for the 16 different combinations of
reverse/bold/underline/blink.  (2x2x2x2=16)  I have noticed some III
screens the have 8 out of the 16 displaying at once.

PROBLEM:

When you run the color oriented software on a monochrome screen, you
can't see actual colors.  For example, on a black and white screen,
you can show black, white and shades of grey.  Sort of like watching
a color show on a black and white TV--it comes out as shades of grey.
Whether it's a green or amber or other type monochrome display, III's
screen will be translated into varying shades of intensity (of the
two basic colors).  In some cases, the "bold" will show up as a
fainter or lighter characters.  In the worst case, the foreground
and background will be mapped to the same "color", and the text becomes
invisible.

SOLUTION A:

Convince III to change their software to leave the screens in "normal"
(not bold) mode.  Not likely in the shortrun.  There are lots of
installed terminals and terminal users out there who are perfectly happy with
BOLD as the default.

SOLUTION B:

Get into the software that your computer(s) is using to emulate a
VT100 and change the "colors."  For example, tell it to display the
BOLD in the same "colors" as NORMAL mode displays.  This may not be
as easy as it sounds.  Each software package setup is different--
that's what makes it `better' than the competition.  :-/   Someone
else may have installed the software and left you with no knowledge
and/or documentation on how it can be changed.  The actual terminal
emulation software may be buried in a Windows-like environment that
supposedly makes it easier to use, but harder to install and maintain.
The software may be loaded on a LAN server somewhere where you can't
get to it, even if you want to.  Or, all of the above.  :-( :-(

Good Luck.

Lee


Lee Norden                          |        419-372-8664
Head of Systems                     |    fax 419-372-7996
115 Jerome Library                  |   home 419-866-8440
Bowling Green State Univ.           |
Bowling Green, OH  43403  USA       | norden@andy.bgsu.edu
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU