Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uflorida!haven!adm!smoke!gwyn
From: gwyn@smoke.BRL.MIL (Doug Gwyn)
Newsgroups: comp.terminals
Subject: Re: AT&T 630 X ?
Keywords: X cartridge?
Message-ID: <11050@smoke.BRL.MIL>
Date: 13 Sep 89 08:58:20 GMT
References: <9340@attctc.Dallas.TX.US>
Reply-To: gwyn@brl.arpa (Doug Gwyn)
Organization: Ballistic Research Lab (BRL), APG, MD.
Lines: 29

In article <9340@attctc.Dallas.TX.US> phil@attctc.Dallas.TX.US (Phil Meyer) writes:
>I have talked with someone who has seen a cartridge that converts an AT&T
>630 into an X terminal.
>Is this a commercial product?  How do I get one?  My local vendors know
>nothing about it.

It wasn't on the 600 series terminal price sheet I obtained a few
months ago from the 600 series product manager.  The standard 630
does support plug-in ROM cartridges, although this is the first
mention of a specific use for that that I've heard.

I've previously given some thought to what it would take to
support X on a 630.  The most glaring problem is that the 630
does not provide an Ethernet connection.  You could follow the lead
of one X terminal vendor (Graph-On?) and provide a host X server
that talks with the 630 over its usual serial-line connection.

The only other implementation difficulty is that X is a lot of
work to implement.  It sounds as though someone has taken the
trouble to do so.

I wonder why, though, because X seems to me a step backward.
630-specific programs are generally much more responsive and
easier to produce in the first place.  The main benefit of a
630-X would seem to be if you happen to have 630s for other
reasons and want to tap into applications that ONLY support X.

Incidentally, we're currently making improvements to the X
version of Rob Pike's "sam" text editor.  X sure is a pain!