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From: Arthur Krewat <krewat@kilonet.net>
To: tuhs@minnie.tuhs.org
Subject: Re: [TUHS] cat -v and other complaints
Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2018 12:10:00 -0400	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <f07bf5a5-b39d-90a4-5edf-2af87c25c0d5@kilonet.net> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <20180908142212.167B1218D6@orac.inputplus.co.uk>

On 9/8/2018 10:22 AM, Ralph Corderoy wrote:
>
>> I'm interested in learning about this curses vs blit business. Is
>> there a writeup or book chapter out there that covers this in any
>> detail?
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blit_(computer_terminal) is a jumping-off
> point.  And I suppose the same goes for curses(3):
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curses_(programming_library)
>

In my opinion (as retarded as I can be sometimes), this is an 
apples-and-oranges comparison.

Blit is a completely new terminal type, with specific operating 
system/software support.

Curses is a way to control various already-existing terminal types. DEC 
terminals, Hazeltine, etc. A recent termcap on my Solaris server has 472 
entries. The wide-ranging support was quite important.

Many people/institutions had a variety of terminals already, usually 
recycled from previous systems. I remember one instance when I was 17 
years old working at BOCES/LIRICS on Long Island, and an office worker 
in a local high-school looked at me like a deer in the headlights when 
they could no longer use their current-loop terminal and acoustic 
coupler. Sorry, the leased-line mux in the other room can't do that. It 
has to be RS232. We gladly gave them a new LA36. Which invoked another 
set of "how do I..." questions. Ah, progress. (This was to support 
TOPS-10 on DEC KS10's, but the same thing happened many times over my 
early career. People just didn't want to give up what they already had)

ak



  reply	other threads:[~2018-09-08 16:10 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 37+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
2018-09-08 12:02 [TUHS] [TUHS} " Doug McIlroy
2018-09-08 13:36 ` Will Senn
2018-09-08 14:22   ` [TUHS] " Ralph Corderoy
2018-09-08 16:10     ` Arthur Krewat [this message]
  -- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
2018-09-06 20:29 Norman Wilson
2018-09-06 22:16 ` Andy Kosela
2018-08-29 14:25 Clem Cole
2018-08-29 22:34 ` Dave Horsfall
2018-08-29 23:36   ` Larry McVoy
2018-08-30  1:14     ` Clem cole
2018-08-30  1:15       ` Clem cole
2018-08-30  2:43       ` Kevin Bowling
2018-08-30  2:59         ` George Michaelson
2018-08-31  0:27         ` Dave Horsfall
2018-08-31  0:41           ` Dan Cross
2018-08-31  1:58             ` Larry McVoy
2018-08-31 11:38           ` ron
2018-08-31 21:56 ` Cág
2018-09-01  3:37   ` Andrew Warkentin
2018-09-03 18:04     ` Cág
2018-09-03 18:11       ` Kurt H Maier
2018-09-03 18:56         ` Cág
2018-09-04  6:10           ` Andy Kosela
2018-09-04  6:41             ` ron minnich
2018-09-04  9:34               ` Andy Kosela
2018-09-04 10:23                 ` Dan Cross
2018-09-04 14:22                 ` ron minnich
2018-09-06 20:02                   ` Andy Kosela
2018-09-06 20:49                     ` ron minnich
2018-09-06 21:55                       ` Andy Kosela
2018-09-07  1:59                         ` Dan Cross
2018-09-07  4:40                           ` Andy Kosela
2018-09-30 21:32           ` Lyndon Nerenberg
2018-09-03 20:08         ` Bakul Shah
2018-09-03 20:41           ` Kurt H Maier
2018-09-03 21:46             ` Bakul Shah
2018-09-04  0:52               ` Kurt H Maier

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