DEC VT320 - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Kean
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 08, 2019, 04:03:47 pm
content: I do miss the DEC VT terminals from my uni days, but can't say I ever liked the smooth scrolling feature. It just made the lag seem even worse.ISTR that the best terminals I used were in the library, and in the mathematics and mechanical engineering departments. For some reason the EE dept had the crappiest terminals on campus.I still have an IBM 3151 terminal sitting here beside me in my home office. It sits on top of a RS/6000 POWERserver 230 pizzabox, but I haven't turned either on in years. Must do that sometime...

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 10, 2019, 01:56:45 am
content: I'd love to get some nice serial terminals to use on my computers. Even with 4 monitors, I always find myself running out. Shame the prices on them aren't great.

author: ebastler
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 10, 2019, 07:34:29 am
content: Quote from: Ampera on June 10, 2019, 01:56:45 amThere must be plenty of modern VT100 emulators around, which you can use with space-saving LCD screens. I like this one for its minimal single-chip design. Full documentation and firmware are available so you can roll your own. The screen resolution is a bit "vintage" though:http://geoffg.net/terminal.html

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 10, 2019, 03:29:30 pm
content: Quote from: ebastler on June 10, 2019, 07:34:29 amAt that rate I might as well make it an X terminal, and use something like Synergy to have it operate like another monitor.

author: dexters_lab
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 18, 2019, 07:40:25 am
content: My 2nd job was working for a software company that wrote a text based windowing app for unix based machines, so we had to have scores of different machines and terminals to write and test the software on.I know we had vt320 but i don't remember seeing many of them!Great to see terminals getting some love from LGR

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 18, 2019, 08:45:14 pm
content: It makes me sad recalling the number of these I threw out when I was younger. I had a couple of data terminals as a kid and didn't really know what to do with them or appreciate their value. From memory the ones I had were made by Zenith Data Systems (though I could be remember that incorrectly).

author: legacy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 20, 2019, 10:52:12 pm
content: Quote from: dexters_lab on June 18, 2019, 07:40:25 amIf you guys love this stuff, I will make a video for my Digital vt525.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 21, 2019, 12:31:16 am
content: That's neat, I have a DEC VT-220, C Itoh CIT-220 and a Wyse 60 in my collection. I love the old serial terminals.

author: rrinker
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 21, 2019, 07:05:37 pm
content: Whoa, I know DEC terminals, and Wyse, and others, but I only ever knew C Itoh as a printer maker. They made terminals as well? Never came across one of those in the wild.

author: gslick
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 21, 2019, 07:16:37 pm
content: Quote from: rrinker on June 21, 2019, 07:05:37 pmhttp://terminals-wiki.org/wiki/index.php/Category:C._Itoh

author: bsudbrink
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 21, 2019, 08:06:08 pm
content: Quote from: james_s on June 21, 2019, 12:31:16 amYup. I have (ordered by age):a Teletype KSR-33a Teletype ASR-33a VT-1004 (or is it 5?) ADM-3a's (not all working)a Heathkit H9a SWTPc CT10243 TI Silent 700sa Visual 50and I'm sure I'm forgetting a couple.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 21, 2019, 11:43:18 pm
content: Quote from: rrinker on June 21, 2019, 07:05:37 pmIt's a rather blatant copy of the VT-220, I actually thought it was one until I looked more closely, I can take a picture of it later if you like.It actually had a ROM error that would occasionally cause it to fail POST and then it got worse until it was happening all the time. I thought I was going to be screwed because I couldn't find another one like it anywhere to get a copy of the ROM. I got very lucky though when I read the chip in my reader and then burned a new one with that image and it worked. Seems the EPROM was starting to bit rot but the reader was able to extract the contents intact. Eventually I re-burned the same original chip to refresh it and it has been fine since.

author: legacy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 24, 2019, 10:55:11 am
content: Guys, if someone wants one, I have atektronix xp217c, it's an x11 terminal, but it also have two serial ports for vt220 support, and I have its PSU and the firmware (in its original CD), so it's ready to work, and it has been tested.