VT520/VT525 FAQ Page 1 Frequently Asked Questions 20 June 1994 VT520/VT525 Frequently Asked Questions OVERVIEW The VT520 is a multi-session monochrome text terminal featuring ANSI and ASCII emulations. The VT525 is a color version of the VT520. Both products support the following emulations: - VT520 VT420 VT320 VT220 - VT100 - VT52 - VT PCTerm - WYSE 325 (VT525 Only) - WYSE 160/60 Native - WYSE PCTerm - WYSE 50/50+ - WYSE 150/120 - TVI 950 - TVI 925 - TVI 910+ - ADDS A2 - SCO Console Call 1-800-DIGITAL to order. VT520/VT525 FAQ Page 2 Frequently Asked Questions 20 June 1994 KEYBOARD 1. Can I use any PC compatible keyboard with my VT520/VT525 terminal? Can I use VT520/VT525 keyboards with my PC? Can I use options (bar code reader, scanner,...) which plug into the VT520/VT525 keyboard port? The VT520/VT525 uses "PC compatible" keyboards with a PS/2 connector. Many keyboards using this connector are designed to be "PC compatible", but this does not insure that these keyboards are interchangable. It is not unusual to find differences in signal timing, scan codes and power up characteristics between keyboard manufacturers. Digital has worked with several keyboard manufacturers to insure that a variety of keyboard types are known to work. Other PC keyboards may work, but should be carefully evaluated by the purchaser. Partially correct behavior is not considered to be "working" and will likely give rise to user complaints such as: "It works fine except for a couple of keys" or "It works, except that the terminal hangs sometimes". As a rule of thumb, enhanced PC 101 and 102 style layouts are more likely to work. Keyboards with greater than 102 keys are less likely to work. The reason for this is that most PC compatible keyboards implement three Scan Code Sets. During power up, the host device sends a command to the keyboard to tell the keyboard which Scan Code Set to transmit. The VT520/VT525 configures the keyboard to use Scan Code Set 3. In PC Term mode, Scan Code Set 3 is converted to Scan Code Set 1 by the terminal firmware. There are qualified bar code reading devices for the VT520/VT525. 2. Can I use VT420, VT300 or VT200 keyboards with my VT520/VT525? No. Keyboards used on previous VT products do not have the PS/2 style keyboard connector. There is no intent to create an adapter. 3. Can CapsLock, NumLock and Scroll Lock be controlled from the host? Yes. DECLL, controls the LEDS on the keyboard, independent of key state. DECKLHIM must be set for DECLL to function. DECNUMLCK and DECCAPSLK sequences set/reset Num Lock and Caps Lock state. VT520/VT525 FAQ Page 3 Frequently Asked Questions 20 June 1994 TERMINAL 1. The VT520/VT525 Terminal type emulation reads "WYSE 160/60 Native". What's "WY160" about it? The VT520/VT525 is sold as a replacement for the WY60 and other ASCII terminals. VT520/VT525 ASCII emulations most closely match emulations found in the the WY160 product. The WY160 emulation of the WY60 was considered to be a better implementation of the WY60. Attempts were made to avoid the hangs and other erratic behaviors found in the original WY60. Some additional ASCII sequences, found in the WY160 product, are implemented in the "WYSE 160/60 Native" emulation. The VT525 includes WYSE325 color emulation. 2. Can Set-Up data be saved to NVM using a host control sequence? No. NVM memory operates for a limited number of write cycles which is sufficient for normal operation, but could be accidently used up by a looping program. Also, allowing NVM to be loaded from the host can present security problems. The Set-Up commands, "Save settings" and "Save settings for all" save current Set-Up data to NVM memory. Most Set-Up features can be changed from the host. Note, whenever the terminal is Reset, Function Keys are initialzed to their definitions stored in NVR. Unlike the WY60, Function Key definitions are not automatically stored in NVR whenever they are defined. This means that applications which define Function Keys and then Reset the terminal will not work if the redefined keys to not match the NVR settings. 3. The VT520/VT525 does not support baud rates below 300 baud. Why not? Baud rates below 300 present a data security risk. At low baud rates, communications data frequency is too low to be filtered out by the power line capacitors. 4. Why does my Calculator come up in the middle of the screen when I'm in 132 column mode? If you have invoked the Calculator while in 80 column mode and then invoke it in 132 column mode, it will appear at the last origin points saved while in 80 column mode. 5. Can I lock the Banner Message so that it cannot be changed? VT520/VT525 FAQ Page 4 Frequently Asked Questions 20 June 1994 No, but the Set-Up key may be redefined so that a user may not know how to get to the Banner Message dialog box. 6. Why don't the arrow keys work with 'vi' in VT modes? ANSI arrow keys transmit key sequences which have the form up arrow = Esc [ A 'vi' has two modes of operation: Command mode and Insert mode. 'vi' interprets the ASCII Escape code as a command to exit Insert Mode and return to Command mode. If an Escape is received while in Command mode, it is an error and the user is notified by beeping the terminal. When 'vi' receives an Escape code it starts a timer. If the timer times out before receiving the "[" code, 'vi' interprets the Escape as an Escape and the following "[ A" codes are interpreted as commands. These "bad commands" cause 'vi' to beep the terminal. The symptom is intermittent as it is timing dependent and is effected by communications channel delays and processor speeds. Workaround: Enter the 'vi' command, "set notimeout". 7. Why doesn't VMS identify my terminal as a VT500 Series terminal? When you login in, VMS requests the terminal to report information about the terminal's characteristics. VT520/VT525 is a new terminal model and has it's own unique ID which may not be recognized by your version of VMS. Try setting the "Terminal ID to host" to "VT420". 8. What is the Review Previous Lines feature? Enabling "Review previous lines" in Display Set-Up configures page memory as a single page. Pressing [Ctrl]+[up/down arrow] allows the user to review data which had scrolled off the top of the screen without host support. 9. When using Split Screens mode why can I only see 12 data lines? Split Screens mode is enabled/disabled by pressing [Ctrl]+[F4] or [Ctrl]+[CapsLock]+kpd[0] when at least 2 Sessions are active. Enabling Split Screens mode does not automatically change the number of lines per screen, unless Auto resize is enabled in the Lines per screen Set-Up feature. VT520/VT525 FAQ Page 5 Frequently Asked Questions 20 June 1994 PRINTER 1. Why is my attached printer printing very slow? Some printers have a switch selectable data buffer, such as the Epson LQ850. Try enabling this data buffer. VT is a trademark of Digital Equipment Corporation. Epson is a trademark of Epson Corporation. SCO is a trademark of Santa Cruz Operations, Inc. WYSE and WY are registered trademarks of Wyse Technologies. PS/2 is a trademark of International Business Machines.