leland@mhuxl.UUCP (WOODBURY) (04/19/84)
Here's my problem: I'm trying out a number of communications packages and using them to log on to unix. Specifically, I'm using Perfect Link, Crosstalk, Smartcom II (comes with Hayes Smartmodem 1200B board), and PC-Talk III. All of these seem to be fine programs; however, I've identified two specific problems: word wrapping: Crosstalk and Perfect Link don't deal well with lines longer than 80 characters. No problem if you're in an environment like vi where the wrap is automatic, but a command like "echo $PATH" (where the length of PATH is long enough) just keeps printing all characters from the 81st on in the 80th character position. As near as I can tell, there is no (simple) solution to this problem. terminal emulation: Well, PC-Talk and Smartcom II deal OK with the above, but they get into trouble in vi, because I don't know what TERM to emulate. These two programs don't provide terminal emulation, so they're no help. Has anyone dealt with this before? Has anyone designed a TERMCAP for use with either of these two programs? That would solve my problem nicely. You'd think that, of these four leading packages, one of them would solve both (or rather, have neither) of these problems, but life just ain't like that. Can anyone help? Oh, yeah, one more thing: When uploading files to unix with PC-Talk, the text ends up double-spaced; my assumption is that PC-Talk is either inserting extra linefeeds or not deleting linefeeds which unix is then duplicating. There is no such problem when downloading to the pc. Does anyone know which of these actions is occurring (if either), why it's occurring, and any reasonable solution? Thanking whoever in advance... Lee Woodbury Bell Communications Research Murray Hill, NJ
chenr@tilt.UUCP (Raymond Chen ) (04/19/84)
<running out of creative first lines...>
This is what you do if you want full-screen capability with UNIX.
First, you buy, beg, borrow, or steal (no flames about software pirating,
please, I don't care how you get it) the IBM 3101 terminal emulator.
Then, you make sure that you're installation has an IBM 3101 termcap
entry. (If it doesn't, I'll mail you one.) Then, simply tell your
machine that you're a 3101 and viola, vi, vnews, wraparound, and general
functionality with your PC.
The problem with PC-Talk is that it's designed to run as a line-at-a-time
terminal. I've heard rumors about a VT-100 option merge file, but the
one I saw didn't work. The probability of success using the SmartComm II
package varies with how up-to-date yours is. The earlier versions were
absolute dogs, but I hear the later versions are OK.
The only problem with the 3101 emulator is that it doesn't have an "insert
line" mode, which means every time I tell vi cntrl-D or cntrl-B, at 1200
baud, I cringe because it has to redraw the screen instead of scrolling
up. Oh, well, I guess we can't have everything.
The price on the terminal emulator is quite reasonble, $100-150, I forget
exactly how much, and like the real 3101 terminal, it supports block
mode, so if you ever have to try and tie into a brain-damaged IBM mainframe,
you can go full-screen without having to deal with the now fairly-common
"use a Series 1 to emulate a bunch of 3270's" hack. (If you've never
had to deal with an IBM, count your blessings, pray for continued good
fortune, and disregard most of the above paragraph).
Other nice features on the thing include the ability to define everything
on the keyboard except for the standard typewriter keys. (i.e. alt-anything
and cntr-lots of things) Also, baud rate, stop bits, xon/xoff and other
things are also settable.
By the way, high on my list of projects this summer is to write a terminal
emulator specifically designed to be intelligent at 1200 baud and work
with UNIX. If I get something up, I'll post it. In any case, good luck!
Not an IBM (shudder) salesman...
--
From the Random Fingers of --
Ray Chen
{allegra | ihnp4 | mhuxi}!princeton!down!tilt!chenr
"It's amazing what a thousand monkeys and a few typewriters can accomplish..."ctk@ecsvax.UUCP (04/19/84)
I recently posted a program to net. sources that fixed these problems.
phcalamai@watmath.UUCP (Paul Calamai) (04/19/84)
You may wish to use YTERM ( a Yale University Utility ) which runs under DOS 1.0,1.1 or 2.0 and 1) allows the PC to emulate a DEC VT100, the DataMedia 1520, or a special type called IBMPC which combines the best features of both of these, 2) performs related services such as file transfer, session logging, and attached printer support,and 3) provides additional tools for the PC programmer to exploit the "terminal like" aspects of the IBM PC (its keyboard, screen, and asynchronous adapter). If your system has a VT100 termcap the VT100 emulator works well in most (if not all) situations.
jph@whuxle.UUCP (04/20/84)
#R:mhuxl:-129500:whuxle:22700023:000:556 whuxle!jph Apr 20 08:47:00 1984 If you want a reasonable **FREE** terminal emulation package, I have one that is specifically designed to work with UNIX(tm) via its own TERMCAP entry which is similar to an HP-2621. It also supports upload/download of text files and provides XMODEM support for the transfer of any type of file. It is written in PASCAL and MACRO and supports upto 9600 baud. If you would like a copy of the executable module and the source, send me a floppy and a self-addressed, **STAMPED** return envelop. Jim Holtman 35 Dogwood Trail Randolph, NJ 07869 (201) 361-3395
todd@islenet.UUCP (04/21/84)
I've been using PC/InterComm (by Mark of the Unicorn) for quite a while
now with TSO, WYLBUR, TOPS-20, and UNIX. Works fine with everything.
Its VT-100 emulation mode is superb. No need to fudge around with
termcaps. Just tell your system that you have a VT-100. It also
supports VT-52 and IBM 3101 terminal emulation. I have used it at
speeds up to 4800 baud with no problem.
Todd Ogasawara -- University of Hawaii -- Dept. of Psychology
{ dual, vortex, uhpgvax }!islenet!todd