wilsenac@handel.mpr.ca (Henry Wilsenack) (08/21/90)
I am trying to find out if the ANSI X3.64 (1979) standard is still an accepted standard or if it has been superseded by some other standard...?? I also would like to know if this X3.64 standard is supported by DEC VT100 or VT220 terminals or not? The ANSI X3.64 standard provides a general set of controls to accomodate the foreseeable needs (in 1979!) for interactive terminals and printers. This includes control (escape sequences) for editing functions, screen formatting, control of screen input areas and cursor positioning... Any information on this standard would be appreciated, specifically if it is supported by DEC VTxxx terminals.... Thanks! Henry H. Wilsenack Voice: (604) 293-5478 MPR Teltech Ltd. FAX: (604) 293-5787 8999 Nelson Way, Internet: wilsenac@mprgate.mpr.ca Burnaby, BC, Canada, V5A 4B5 uunet!ubc-cs!mprgate!wilsenac
lasko@regent.dec.com (Tim Lasko, Digital Equipment Corp., Westford, MA) (08/22/90)
ANSI X3.64-1979 is still an accepted standard in the U.S. There is a
corresponding ISO standard, ISO 6429:1989, which is more up-to-date and
contains more still control functions, although certainly not everything that
I've seen implemented in a video terminal or printer. (I don't know whether
there is a corresponding CSA standard number; my memory tells me no.)
[Copies of these standards are, of course, available from ANSI or the CSA, as
appropriate.]
ANSI technical committee X3L2, responsible for this area of standardization,
has discussed plans to withdraw X3.64 in favor of ISO 6429, rather than go
through the tedious and almost entirely superfluous process of updating X3.64.
(If anyone has an opinion on this, I would be happy to receive them, as I sit
on X3L2.)
---
Digital VT-class video terminals conform to these standards, as do many other
terminal vendors worldwide; the usual marketing jargon indicates that the
terminal supports "ANSI" (or "VT100") commands.
However, note that conformance to 'X3.64/'6429 only requires that control
functions be coded in a certain manner and behave in a certain way (and that
implementor-private control functions be coded in a certain way so as not to be
confused with standardized functions). It does not require any specific set of
functions to be implemented. (I call it a "catalog" standard.) This means
that any two devices claiming conformance to the standard could in fact support
entirely different sets of control functions.
---
Tim Lasko, Digital Equipment Corporation, Westford MA (lasko@regent.dec.com)
]]] My opinions are my own; the facts can speak for themselves. [[[