homemade computer for fun and experience...

From: Richard Erlacher <edick_at_idcomm.com>
Date: Mon Apr 5 19:56:26 1999

I'm going to have to take an opposing position once again. I'd never have
given up on terminals, having invested hundreds of kilobucks in them over
time. My recollection, biased, I'm sure, by the ten years of trouble-free,
experience, thanks to being terminal-free is that they were more trouble
than I ever expected.

Since I stopped using terminals, I've not once been unable to use a software
package because I didn't have the right terminal. Whether it's VMS or
WORDSTAR, it is a royal pain if the hardware I've got won't work. Terminals
are different. They behave differently, given various commands. Yes, ANSI
terminals are more or less compatible, but they won't work with the
applications I used to use under CP/M at all.

I have never had a desire for DEC hardware, mainly because of my distaste
(and disdain) for their application of technology, and of course for their
overemphasis on the bottom line, meaning THEIR bottom line. If you read the
fine print, their sales documents specifically deny that they claim their
products work. argghhh! I'm GLAD they're gone. THEY were the reason I had
to have terminals around as long as I did.

A keyboard interface is quite straightforward. A video display is not. I
agree that there's reason why so many computers used terminals, but now that
we don't have to do that, I propose that we not limit ourselves to what
little a terminal can do.

See . . . there are reasons NOT to use a terminal.

Dick


-----Original Message-----
From: Tony Duell <ard_at_p850ug1.demon.co.uk>
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
<classiccmp_at_u.washington.edu>
Date: Monday, April 05, 1999 3:01 PM
Subject: Re: homemade computer for fun and experience...


>>
>> While I agree fundamentally in that you really don't have to have graphic
>> output capabilities, to wit, I did without it for over 30 years of
computer
>> use, I don't believe there's any reason to favor the terimnal over the
>> direct-mapped monochrome video display. It's nominally a 2000 character
>
>A few reasons. It's a lot easier to add a serial port than add a video
>display/keyboard system (I've done both, many times). And Tim is right :
>Serial terminals are probably a lot more universal than whatever flavour
>of monitor that you pick.
>
>> as for what you find difficult to get fixed . . . (a) who cares about
fixing
>> a serial card? Another costs $3. (b) pre-vga monochrome cards and
monitors
>
>I care. Particularly when I need the darn thing over a weekend, it's
>failed on Saturday night, and I have a junk box full of chips, but no
>spare boards... I also care about keeping the landfills empty.
>
>And I specificially mentioned the IBM Async card for a reason. It has a
>current loop I/O facility. AFAIK none of the cheap clones - the ones
>you'll get for $3 - have this facility. Adding it wouldn't be hard given
>a schematic and a well-stocked junk box, but what's the point? By the
>time you've traced out the schematic and made the mods you might as well
>have fixed the original card.
>
>Suffice it to say that I have full schematics of this PC and intend to
>keep on fixing it properly...
>
>> abound at the thrift stores. Keyboards do as well. (c) so long as hard
disk
>> drives of the ST506 variety still abound in the thrift stores, the
>
>Those drives are getting fairly hard to find in the UK :-(
>
>> controllers will too. I passed on an 'AT box a week ago, which had a VGA
>> card, a 200+ MB eide 3.5" 1/3-height hard disk, and much of the usual
stuff
>
>You're missing the point. If I have my data on an ST506 drive and the
>controller fails, the last thing I need is an EIDE drive, however big it
>is. I need a controller, or the chips to fix my existing controller. I
>want to get my data back.
>
>> I figure, if I can't replace it with something similar, then I'll replace
it
>> with something more current.
>
>Maybe... You might find you're replacing an awful lot of the machine,
>though... ISA is on the way out, remember..
>
>Personally, I'll stick to machines that I can maintain properly (no board
>swapping!). And _I_'ll decide when I want to upgrade.
>
>-tony
>
Received on Mon Apr 05 1999 - 19:56:26 BST

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