🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Sep4.214917.25679@jupiter.sun.csd.unb.ca>, dedgar@mta.ca writes:
| Hello Net
| 
| I am looking for the meaning of the bytes returned by the DECTSR function
| on a VT320.  Does any body know these?  The VT320 reference manual does
| not list them specifically.

The format of DECTSR is explicitly, and deliberately, undocumented.  It can
vary between different firmware versions of the same terminal model, and will
certainly differ between terminal models.  (Theoretically, it could even vary
between different instances of the SAME terminal model running the SAME firm-
ware version, though given the nature of the technology, this is of course
pretty unlikely!)

The ONLY supported use of the DECTSR sequence is to send it back to the
terminal that sent it to you, thus restoring the terminal's state to where it
was.  There is a whole group of additional state queries with documented
syntax that you can use if you need to do anything else.

While I originally specified this architecture, and was involved with the
details of the VT330 specification (but not the coding), I have absolutely no
idea what the contents of a DECTSR string are.  We left that entirely up to
the firmware implementors.  My guess is that it's effectively a memory dump
of one or more internal data areas.  (We suggested that a checksum also be
included, partly to protect from damaged DECTSR strings, partly to prevent
accidentaly use of a DECTSR string from a different firmware version - and
partly to help dissuade people from mucking with the DECTSR string.)

| All help gratefully appreciated.  Please reply to me directly rather than
| use up net bandwidth on this rather obscure topic.

Since you don't even offer to post a summary, I take this to mean that you
don't want to be bothered to follow this group for responses.  Well, tough.

							-- Jerry
						(One-time member of
						 DEC's terminal group)