Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!rochester!cornell!batcomputer!sun!dave
From: dave@sun.soe.clarkson.edu (Dave Goldblatt)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.8bit
Subject: Re: Modem communications on an 800
Summary: But of course!
Keywords: 800 VT100
Message-ID: <377@sun.soe.clarkson.edu>
Date: 5 Feb 88 16:36:10 GMT
References: <6548@sol.ARPA>
Reply-To: dave@sun.soe.clarkson.edu.UUCP (Dave Goldblatt)
Organization: Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY
Lines: 65

In article <6548@sol.ARPA> ciaraldi@cs.rochester.edu (Mike Ciaraldi) writes:
>
>1)  How do you connect a modem to an 800?  Isn't there a
>    built-in serial port of some kind?  Can you use this for a
>    modem, or is it needed for disk or printer communication?
>    If not, can you add a serial port easily?  We would need
>    at least 1200 baud.

There was a device known as the Atari 850 interface which provided 4 serial
ports (2 full ports, one teletype, and forgot what the other was) and a 
printer interface (centronics parallel).  It has not been made in years,
unfortunately.    However, ICD (I think; it's been a while) makes a device
called the "PR: connection", or something like that.  (P: being the printer
device, R: being the default serial)  It runs between $60-100 bucks, and
can usually be found advertised in Antic or ANALOG.  It will allow you to
put any RS-232C modem on an Atari.  Atari also sells a direct plug-in
modem (XM130), but I'm fairly sure they never released the 1200 baud model.

>
>2)  Can you get an 80-column by 24-line display on 800?
>    Do you need an add-on board?  Where do you get one?
>    (no Atari dealers in town anymore, I think).

Again, Atari was _supposed_ to release an 80-column adaptor for the 800;
it was even previewed at a show or two (like a lot of things.. :-).  I
don't think it was ever released.  However, CDY Consulting (in Texas)
sells a number of upgrades for the 800 and XL lines, including a product
called OmniView, which allows 80-column output.  It is also supported by
quite a few programs.  They usually advertise in Antic as well.

>
>3)  Assuming you can do the above stuff, is there software to emulate
>    a VT-100 terminal?  It would be nice if it could also
>    dump the screen to disk and/or printer on operator request.
>    If not Vt-100, how about some other terminal (other than
>    a "glass TTY" with no cursor control at all!).
>

There was a package called Chameleon, which would emulate a VT-100, and
emulate 80 columns by scrolling the screen to the right.  I _think_ a
newer version supported the OmniView.  Antic has their own software catalog
they publish every once in a while -- included in there was Chameleon and 
a number of other programs, all at low prices.

>
>Thanks,

You're welcome. :-)

>
>Mike Ciaraldi
>University of Rochester Computer Science
>
>Internet:  ciaraldi@cs.rochester.edu
>uucp:      seismo!rochester!ciaraldi


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