Plato terminal

From: Curt Vendel <curt_at_atari-history.com>
Date: Thu Jul 12 07:22:22 2001

I wouldn't mind trying to join in on that, can you supply dial-up #'s and
settings??? I think it would be interesting to see if we can all communicate
with one another using Plato access, I have one of the original Plato Terminal
ROM's developed by CDC for use on the Atari 800 computer system using Graphics
Mode 8 (320 X 192)


Curt



Douglas Quebbeman wrote:

> > This is two years late, but the terminal the original poster describes
> > sounds like an IST (model 1), a CRT-based CDC product, vintage about 1978.
> > There was a later edition called the IST-II, also CDC. It had two 8" drives
> > and a Z-80 CPU, as well as connectivity to CDC PLATO mainframe systems,
> > either by dialup modem (1200 bps) or multiplexer.
>
> Actually, I was the original poster; a reply to me mentioned the
> terminal you're describing.
>
> > The IST is not the oldest PLATO terminal, but it is the oldest that CDC
> > manufactured, I suspect. Even my PLATO IV (Magnavox, 1971) is not the
> > oldest, but only the first mass-produced machine. The earliest ones date to
> > about 1961 and there are probably only two or three still in existence, if
> > we're lucky enough to have that many. A precursor to these would be Norman
> > Crowder's Auto-Tutor, vintage about 1958, which has characteristics very
> > similar to the PLATO terminals (though it is not a computer terminal, it
> > operates on filmstrip media), and PLATO's mechanisms are said to have been
> > influenced by this machine.
>
> It's one of the mid-70s Magnavox plasma displays I'm looking for...
>
> Say, are you able to connect to NovaNET with the magnavox terminal? if
> so, we should meet for a game of Empire or Avatar some time (although
> I'm sure you'll wipe me out).... or maybe a more civilized game of chess...
>
> Regards,
> -doug quebbeman
Received on Thu Jul 12 2001 - 07:22:22 BST