Call for Opionings (Virtual Terminal)

[zben at umd5.UUCP]

In the context of this, let us consider improvements to the TermCap system.
One real inadequacy of TermCap is its less than adequate support for *INPUT*
translation.  The Unix editors and such finesse the issue by refusing to
support terminal capabilities such as arrow keys, built-in insert/delete modes,
and other features.  From a "User Friendlyness" point of view this is a real
loss, although a cogent argument can be made for the current scheme of
providing a terminal-independant input language (I,J,K,L, etc in VI, etc).
Other issues, such as "what happens when you type backspace in column one?"
and "what happens when you type linefeed in row 24?" are finessed by using
smart echoing to avoid the need to know.

Long before finding out about TermCap I wrote a screen editor for really
dumb systems, using a dedicated procedure for each terminal to translate both
input and output to a program-specific internal language.  It will work on
systems that do not provide raw, or even rare terminal access.  Right now it
works on both Univac 1100 (Exec 8) and IBM 4341 (VM/CMS) systems.  To make
the scheme work from a TermCap system one would need input translations.

There also exists a "TN3270" program that does TelNet into IBM systems from
Vaxen.  Unfortunately, TermCap does not provide enough for doing this, so the
program has its own database of terminal types.  An expanded TermCap system
could obviate the need for Yet Another Terminal Database....

What say ye?

Ben Cranston        ...seismo!umcp-cs!umd5!zben       zben at umd2.arpa