This VT320 is hooked up to a Gateway2000 linux host in the bedroom. I demonstrate control of the audio system plus retro web browsing on the VT320 at 9600 baud.
Great demonstration … Great demonstration, thanks for posting. I’ve always wanted to see how these worked up close. I remember seeing the green monochrome Wyse units in the county clerk’s office in the Austin County Courthouse around ‘99-’00, not sure if they’re still there. The auto parts store and Ace Hardware had similar units until they were replaced with new Dell Optiplex workstations, probably much less reliable if my Optiplex is any indication…
there is a place … there is a place called Vecmar on line that sells all brands of them must still be a lot of uses for them and Vecmar sells brand new dec ones
I went to the wyse … I went to the wyse site and did not see any as far as current products….could it be they only recently quit making them? Maybe there are still some new old stock units in distributor’s stock.
I do like the … I do like the availability now of things like youtube, or like the ability to order electronic parts online which never would have been possible back then but I still can experience the retro feeling of using the terminals today too. It’s kind of amazing in a way that the old stuff can still work with todays internet. There are even bbs’s which you can telnet to, I ought to try more of them. Next I’m going to try to get the appleII computers set up to work as terminals.
Yes I know what you … Yes I know what you mean…there was not nearly as much spam on things like usenet or even on local bulletin boards on BBS’s. I can remember the dial-in sequence for Cleveland Freenet, ATDP 3683888. there was no touch tone service available then! IT was so rewarding to hear the modem tone and then CONNECT 2400 as so often it would be busy.
It brings back … It brings back memories of a simpler time on line. I had a commodore 64 300 buad modem. in 1984 [gosh] I would do war dialing and find BBS or store systems and could get on line and I even got a max headroom screen saver from Heath BBS was plenty fast without the graphics crap and poppups There was programs to redial till you got in we could also cat with local friends like IM. with direct dial to their computer.
I had a WYSE too, … I had a WYSE too, WY-75 when I was about 12 years old but I disconnected the CRT portion from the circuit board at the bottom and could never figure out how to reconnect them!
Had an Ampex amber screen terminal in the early 90’s too but something quit working on it. I saw a Televideo one time at a TV station, it was a small screen unit I think but never actually saw it in action.
They still use this … They still use this system in a lot of places like lumber yards and auto parts stores the lumber yard hear has new ones and new okidata pin printers they also have a real computer running a terminal emulator in office but can put emulator in window and go on line at same time car dealer has them two. the servers are probity replaced but the terminals last for ever I think they still make them new. My friend dos i.t. and he set one up 5 years ago new.
We still use dumb … We still use dumb terminals at some of our customer sites. We have WYSE and Televideo monitors, and like you we use 9600 baud 8N1 for serial port settings.
There are two large … There are two large chain stores in the UK which still use these for product ordering and billing, called Argos and MFI.
They’ve been running 24/7 since the 80s and their CRTs always have really bad screen burn.
Yes and also places … Yes and also places like Auto Zone used these kinds of terminals for parts lookup till recently but I think most businesses which once used terminals are now using thin clients as they are actually probably cheaper than replacing the terminals when they begin to have age-related problems.
I remember the … I remember the phone dialup procedure well. My favorite was a Free-net where you could access usenet and gopher servers. You often had to dial over and over again to try and get in as it would get real busy.
Thanks for your … Thanks for your comments…I have had the system operational for about 3 years but have had to do repairs over the years like to one of the computers which had problems with the motherboard.
This VT320 is hooked up to a Gateway2000 linux host in the bedroom. I demonstrate control of the audio system plus retro web browsing on the VT320 at 9600 baud.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
I’m using Slackware …
I’m using Slackware 9.0.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
What version of …
What version of linux are you running?
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Great demonstration …
Great demonstration, thanks for posting. I’ve always wanted to see how these worked up close. I remember seeing the green monochrome Wyse units in the county clerk’s office in the Austin County Courthouse around ‘99-’00, not sure if they’re still there. The auto parts store and Ace Hardware had similar units until they were replaced with new Dell Optiplex workstations, probably much less reliable if my Optiplex is any indication…
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
there is a place …
there is a place called Vecmar on line that sells all brands of them must still be a lot of uses for them and Vecmar sells brand new dec ones
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
I went to the wyse …
I went to the wyse site and did not see any as far as current products….could it be they only recently quit making them? Maybe there are still some new old stock units in distributor’s stock.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
wyse makes brand …
wyse makes brand new ones they are not obsolette
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
I do like the …
I do like the availability now of things like youtube, or like the ability to order electronic parts online which never would have been possible back then but I still can experience the retro feeling of using the terminals today too. It’s kind of amazing in a way that the old stuff can still work with todays internet. There are even bbs’s which you can telnet to, I ought to try more of them. Next I’m going to try to get the appleII computers set up to work as terminals.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Yes I know what you …
Yes I know what you mean…there was not nearly as much spam on things like usenet or even on local bulletin boards on BBS’s. I can remember the dial-in sequence for Cleveland Freenet, ATDP 3683888. there was no touch tone service available then! IT was so rewarding to hear the modem tone and then CONNECT 2400 as so often it would be busy.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
It brings back …
It brings back memories of a simpler time on line. I had a commodore 64 300 buad modem. in 1984 [gosh] I would do war dialing and find BBS or store systems and could get on line and I even got a max headroom screen saver from Heath BBS was plenty fast without the graphics crap and poppups There was programs to redial till you got in we could also cat with local friends like IM. with direct dial to their computer.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
I had a WYSE too, …
I had a WYSE too, WY-75 when I was about 12 years old but I disconnected the CRT portion from the circuit board at the bottom and could never figure out how to reconnect them!
Had an Ampex amber screen terminal in the early 90’s too but something quit working on it. I saw a Televideo one time at a TV station, it was a small screen unit I think but never actually saw it in action.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
They still use this …
They still use this system in a lot of places like lumber yards and auto parts stores the lumber yard hear has new ones and new okidata pin printers they also have a real computer running a terminal emulator in office but can put emulator in window and go on line at same time car dealer has them two. the servers are probity replaced but the terminals last for ever I think they still make them new. My friend dos i.t. and he set one up 5 years ago new.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
We still use dumb …
We still use dumb terminals at some of our customer sites. We have WYSE and Televideo monitors, and like you we use 9600 baud 8N1 for serial port settings.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
There are two large …
There are two large chain stores in the UK which still use these for product ordering and billing, called Argos and MFI.
They’ve been running 24/7 since the 80s and their CRTs always have really bad screen burn.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Oh, I remember the …
Oh, I remember the redialing and the phone bills. How things have changed.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Yes and also places …
Yes and also places like Auto Zone used these kinds of terminals for parts lookup till recently but I think most businesses which once used terminals are now using thin clients as they are actually probably cheaper than replacing the terminals when they begin to have age-related problems.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
I remember the …
I remember the phone dialup procedure well. My favorite was a Free-net where you could access usenet and gopher servers. You often had to dial over and over again to try and get in as it would get real busy.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Wow, hadn’t thought …
Wow, hadn’t thought of those days for sometime. Separate phone numbers for the bulletin boards, I think one of them was Morgana.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Hey! The Domino’s …
Hey! The Domino’s Pizza I worked at about 6 months ago used this system. I had no clue these were able to surf the web!
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Thanks for your …
Thanks for your comments…I have had the system operational for about 3 years but have had to do repairs over the years like to one of the computers which had problems with the motherboard.
October 25th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Great home stereo …
Great home stereo you have! The system really responds well and fast! How long has it been since you started this project?