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spud2451
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Joined: 27 May 2011
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Location: york maine
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 Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:03:49 am Post subject: How do I make a "Dumb Terminal" |
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I want to make a dumb terminal but can't find some decent instructoins on how to build one. Does anyone know were to find some.
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KermMartian
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:06:34 am Post subject: Re: How do I make a "Dumb Terminal" |
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| spud2451 wrote: | | I want to make a dumb terminal but can't find some decent instructoins on how to build one. Does anyone know were to find some. |
[Sidebar: questions end in question marks re: your second sentence.] I assume that you mean you want to build a VT100-style terminal that connects to a "modem" via a serial connection? How low-level do you want to go? You could do it with a microcontroller, an LCD, and a PS/2 keyboard, or you could reproduce it with 74LS-series logic. What did you have in mind?
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spud2451
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Location: york maine
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:19:47 am Post subject: |
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I want it to be simple and to have it be a weekend project. So the first one would be fine I guess. I dont care if it can diplay graphics all I really want is text. (yes some of the high end ones can display graphics)
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KermMartian
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:24:00 am Post subject: |
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| spud2451 wrote: | | I want it to be simple and to have it be a weekend project. So the first one would be fine I guess. I dont care if it can diplay graphics all I really want is text. (yes some of the high end ones can display graphics) |
What sort of existing electronics knowledge do you have? Any familiarity with microcontroller programming? How about C? What sort of electronics components and microcontrollers and such do you have at your disposal, or would you be willing to make some purchases?
Also, I'm curious what brought on this project.
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spud2451
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Location: york maine
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:37:04 am Post subject: |
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I have some electronics experience but not a lot (I can solder, cut wire, use resisters, hook up LEDs an other basic stuff). As fo what I have at my house: solder and a soldering gun, 9v battery conectors, batteries, some wire and an altoids tin to case it in. The other stuff I'd be willing to buy. As for what got me here is an artical about making one in an altoids tin I saw a few years ago than I printed out and then found yesterday
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Last edited by spud2451 on 26 Nov 2011 10:39:44 am; edited 1 time in total |
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KermMartian
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:38:23 am Post subject: |
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Ah, then why not just follow the schematic that they used? Can you point me/us to that article? Perhaps they don't give enough detail for you to be able to replicate their work, or you just want to do something more original?
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spud2451
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:43:48 am Post subject: |
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It was just an artical with the idea and some pictures but suprisingly no diagram and as for the site as I said in my last post it was a few years ago
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KermMartian
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:47:32 am Post subject: |
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| spud2451 wrote: | | It was just an artical with the idea and some pictures but suprisingly no diagram and as for the site as I said in my last post it was a few years ago |
*Article. Yes indeed, you did, but perhaps you could try tracking it down again? If you'd like to start from scratch though, that's fine.
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spud2451
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 10:56:40 am Post subject: |
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Truely I'd like to start from scratch because its more fun to do stuff from scratch. And by the way I've been looking for the artical but still cant find it anywere. if you can point me to some instrustions that would be great.
PS. It does not have to fit in an altoids tin
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Kaslai
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 05:44:24 pm Post subject: |
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You don't have to do it this way, but you could also just use an official TI cable in conjunction with libticables. From what I've read though, it appears that you really want to do something with hardware? If so, then Kerm is the hardware guru here 
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_player1537
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spud2451
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 09:29:13 pm Post subject: |
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Sorry it isn't theb
right one. The one I was thinking of didn't have a diagram and was in an atoids tin.
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KermMartian
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 09:48:56 pm Post subject: |
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You seriously need to take more care with your posts. A five-second re-read would have made you see where you pressed "b" instead of "enter" (how??) and typed "atoids" instead of "Altoids". I guess I should be happy that you're capitalizing the first word of your sentence and putting a period at the end and the apostrophes in didn't and isn't, though.
Anyway, you could indeed find a way to use your calculator as a dumb terminal, as per Kaslai's suggestion, and indeed it has even been done before:
http://www.ticalc.org/archives/files/fileinfo/71/7116.html
Alternatively, you could use a microcontroller and an LCD and a PS/2 keyboard, but you'd have to learn to control an LCD and read a keyboard from your program as well as deal with serial things. Do you even have a computer that can act as the serial host?
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benryves
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| Posted: 26 Nov 2011 11:13:24 pm Post subject: |
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| As a cheaper alternative to an LCD you could generate a video signal with a microcontroller. I used a dsPIC33FJ128GP802 to drive a 320x240 pixel display (either a graphical LCD, a PAL television or a VGA monitor). Here's a schematic, some source code and a video demo. |
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spud2451
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Joined: 27 May 2011
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Location: york maine
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| Posted: 27 Nov 2011 07:27:45 am Post subject: |
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Well Kerm first of all I've been writing my posts on my Wii lately. Thats why there're are so many mistakes in the last few posts I've made. Second, I don't want to use my calc because: I only have one TI calc, I don't want to mess it up and I want this to be (premanent?). And to answer your question about if I had a computer to use, yes I do.
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seana11
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| Posted: 27 Nov 2011 09:54:38 am Post subject: |
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| spud2451 wrote: | | Well Kerm first of all I've been writing my posts on my Wii lately. |
Buahahahahahaaa. Very good. It seems as though that's a good as any excuse... Anyway,
| spud wrote: | | Second, I don't want to use my calc because: I only have one TI calc, I don't want to mess it up and I want this to be (premanent?). And to answer your question about if I had a computer to use, yes I do. |
Well, this doesn't have to permanent, I don't see why you couldn't undo anything. Just make sure you make backups before starting work, and you'll be fine. I think that using telnet83 is a very viable option, as it's really not telnet, but a remote terminal bit. That would require no modding (to your calc) at all, and it seems that you have enough expertise to make a homemade graphlink cable.
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Code:
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GCS d- s+: a---@ C+++ UL++ P L+++ E- W++ N o? K? w--- O? M--
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alberthrocks
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Joined: 29 Jul 2010
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| Posted: 27 Nov 2011 10:38:46 am Post subject: |
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| seana11 wrote: | | spud2451 wrote: | | Well Kerm first of all I've been writing my posts on my Wii lately. |
Buahahahahahaaa. Very good. It seems as though that's a good as any excuse... |
To be fair, it isn't really fun to type on the Wii... 
The Opera browser doesn't even include USB keyboard support, so you're forced to use your shaky hand and a little button to type stuff out. Did I mention that getting symbols is a pain?
spud, if you are truly dependent on your Wii to type, I suggest switching to keypad mode for typing. It's much faster and easier.  |
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KermMartian
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| Posted: 28 Nov 2011 02:07:59 am Post subject: |
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Aaaanyway, getting back on topic. This wouldn't require any sort of internal hardware modifications to your calculator, only the construction of an external serial link. I might strongly recommend that option, in fact.
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willrandship
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| Posted: 14 Dec 2011 07:35:45 pm Post subject: |
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But, if you want to, you could use an arduino. It just needs the LCD hooked up, and some dead simple code sent to it, to run the LCD, the keyboard, and transmit and receive serial signals.
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technomonkey76
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| Posted: 14 Dec 2011 08:15:20 pm Post subject: |
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Three things I'd like to address:
1) Alberthrocks: The Wii's browser actually does support a USB keyboard. I've used a keyboard with mine on several occasions. If you don't have support for it, you must have an old version of the software, your keyboard draws more power than Wii is willing to provide, or the circuit is not completing (dirty USB contacts?).
2) Kerm, he pressed "b" instead of the space bar. However, there is indeed an extraneous carriage return, line feed, or both, dependent on your system's method of formatting new lines.
3) Spud, as I stated in response to Alberthrocks, your Wii's internet channel should work quite happily with a USB keyboard. Also, I completely agree with the annoyance of typing with a Wii Remote.
Sadly, I am incapable of giving any other non-corrective input on this topic, as I am inexperienced with hardware.
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