Datapro_C25_Digital Datapro C25 Digital

Datapro_C25_Digital Datapro_C25_Digital

User Manual: Datapro_C25_Digital

Open the PDF directly: View PDF .
Page Count: 62

Download
Open PDF In Browser	View PDF

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

C25-384-101
Terminals

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT300 Display Family
In this report:

Product Summary

Analysis .................... -102

Editor's Note
Digital now offers the VT320,
VT330, and VT340 displays, successors to the VT200 family that provide complete backwardcompatibility with improved
ergonomics and functionality. Digital continues to provide service for
the older line of displays, however.

Characteristics .......... -104
Pricing ....................... -105

Description
The VT320 is a monochrome display that provides single-session
support for text-oriented applications. The VT330 and VT340 both
provide dual sessions and graphics
capability.
Strengths
In addition to introducing dualsession support with the VT300 family, Digital designed higher
resolution, faster processing speed,
and greater customization capability
into the displays while lowering
prices significantly.

Competition
VT320-compatible displays are offered by TeleVideo, Wyse Technology, Qume Corporation,
Microterm, and Hewlett-Packard.
Microterm also offers VT330- and
VT340-compatible displays. AT&T,
Falco Data Products, and a few other
vendors offer VT320 emulation in
their general-purpose ASCII displays.
Vendor
Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC)
146 Main Street
Maynard, MA 01754-2571
(508) 493-5111
Price
The North American Version of the
VT320 sells for $575; the international version of the display costs
$625. The VT330 and VT340 sell for
$1,995 and $2,795, respectively.

Limitations
Vendors such as Wyse Technology,
TeleVideo, Microterm, and HewlettPackard offer VT clones that provide
enhancements such as multiple display configurations, more function
keys and interfacing options, and
more internal memory.

Delran NJ 08075 USA

JULY 1990

C25-384-102
Terminals

Analysis

Product Strategy
Digital Equipment Corporation's VT300 family,
which consists of the VT320, VT330, and VT340
display terminals, is the third and most advanced
generation of display terminals designed by Digital
for communications with applications running on
VAX host computers.
These displays feature full backward compatibility with their predecessors, the VT220, VT240,
and VT241 models, while providing ergonomic
improvements and better functionality. With the
VT330 and VT340, Digital introduced dual session
capability. The VT300 products operate up to five
times faster than the older models, provide higher
resolution, and display fonts that are more pleasing
to the eye. Enhanced setup menus provided with
these displays allow greater keyboard customization.
The VT320 is an entry-level, single-session
display that replaces the VT220. Designed for textoriented applications, the VT320 includes a 14inch monochrome screen that displays green,

Dlttltal Equipment
Corporetlon

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

VT300 Dlaple, 'eml.,

amber, or paper-white characters in 80- and 132column formats. This terminal provides the smallest footprint of any display yet offered by Digital.
Unlike the VT240 andVT241· displays, the
VT330 and VT340 support dual-session capability
over one or two wires. The VT330, a monochrome
model, comes with a 14-inch screen that displays
either green, amber, or paper-white characters in
80- or 132-column text arrangements. For graphics
applications, up to four levels of shading are supported. The VT340 includes a 13-inch screen that
supports 16-color graphics and 80- or 132-column
text arrangements.

Competitive Position
Digital occupies a distinct but somewhat separate
subsection of the asynchronous display market referred to as the ANSI segment. With the release of
the VT100 display in 1978, Digital became the first
vendor to support the American National Standards Institute's (ANSI's) X3.64 standard, which
. was first published in 1977 to standardize control
codes for all terminals. To offer VT emulation,
other vendors have also adopted this standard for
their display terminals.
Various research organizations have estimated that Digital holds from 60 to 80 percent of
the ANSI terminal market. Over 1 million VT 100
and one millionVT200 family displays were sold
prior to their discontinuance, and Digital has recently announced the shipment of the one millionth VT320 display.

The Digital Equipment Corporation VT300/amily consists a/the VT320, VT330,
and VT340 displays. The
VT320 is a single-session
text terminal; the VT330 is
a monochrome text/graphics
terminal with dual-session
capability and support/or
six levels 0/shading; the
VT340 is a 16-color text/
graphics terminal also with
dual-session capability.

JULY 1990

Delran NJ 08075 USA

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

DItI!tIII Bqulpment
CorpoNtIon

VT300

Company Profile
Digital Equipment
Corporation

Corporate
Headquarters
146 Main Street
Maynard, MA 01754-2571
(508) 493-5111
In Canada
Digital Equipment of Canada, Ltd.
P.O. Box 13000, 100 Hetzbug Road
Kanata, ON K2K 2A6
(613) 592-5111
European Headquarters
is in Geneva, Switzerland.
General International
Headquarters is in Acton,
MA.

Officers
Pres.: Kenneth H. Olsen
Sr. VP, Mrktg., Sales, Service, Channels, International: John J. Shields
Sr. VP, Eng. & Mfg.: John
F. Smith
Pres. & CEO, European
Operations: Pier Carlo
Falotti

Company Background
Year Founded: 1957
No. Employees: ,125,000

Digital is a leading supplier of computer systems
and associated peripherals, networks, communications, software, and
services. The products
are used in a variety of
applications in business,
industry, government, and
scientific areas. Both direct and indirect channels
are used to market and
support products worldwide.
In 1977, Digital introduced
the VAX Series of 32-bit
minicomputers, one of the
most successful product
launches in computer industry history. Since introducing the first VAX,
the 11/780, Digital has
continued to enhance the
basic VAX architecture

The rest of the ANSI market is controlled by
general-purpose ASCII display vendors that offer
VT clones and VT emulation. The VT100 is the
most widely emulated asynchronous terminal, with
over one million imitations sold. Digital also suffered competition from numerous low-priced
VT200 imitators, which caused the vendor to adjust prices accordingly.
At present, there is a small handful ofVT300compatible displays on the market. Wyse Technology's WY-185, Qume Corporation's QVT323-EV,
Microterm's model 5520, and Hewlett-Packard's
© 1990 McGraw·HiII, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.

Delran NJ 08075 USA

C25-384-103

DI8pI., '.mll,

Terminals

and VAX/VMS operating
system with announcements of new and more
powerful VAX models.
The current VAX family
consists of VAXstation
desktop workstations;
MicroVAX departmental
systems; VAX 6000 Series medium-range systems; and VAX 9000
Series high-end mainframes.
In addition to the VAX
family, Digital offers DECsystems that use reduced
instruction set computing
(RISC) technology and
operate under ULTRIX,
Digital's implementation
of the UNIX operating
system.
To support its systems,
Digital offers disk, storage
array, and solidstate
memory products, optical
disks, tape devices, displays, and printers. Besides hardware and
software, Digital offers a
range of communications
and networking products
and services.

of $12.7 billion, up 11 percent from $11.5 billion the
previous year. Net income
was $1.1 billion, down 8
percent from $1.3 billion
in 1988. According to the
president's letter to Digital's shareholders in
1989, "Digital's revenue
growth came from overseas markets, particularly
Europe and Japan."

Management
Statement
Digital has a $1.5 billion
dollar investment in new
product development. According to the president's
letter, Digital is "continuing to invest heavily in
VAX and RISC-based systems and VMS and UNIX
software." Within the next
year, "Digital's strategy is
to focus on the computing
environment of the 1990s.
Digital will offer the widest
selection of technology
and continue to make significant investments in
R&D and new products in
response to dynamically
changing customer
needs."

Financial Profile
For the 1989 fiscal year,
Digital reported revenues

HP 700/32 displays boast VT320-compatibility
with enhancements such as more programmable
function keys, greater interfacing flexibility, higher
resolution, faster transmission speeds, multiple
display configurations, and more screens of internal storage. The TeleVideo and Wyse models sell
for only $499. MMicroterm's 5530 display, a
VT330-compatible product priced at $1,495, provides 16 shades of gray. Microterm also offers a
VT340-compatible terminal, the 5540, which sells
for only $2,350 and provides color mapping for
each individual session and 16 colors from a
JULY 1990

C25-384-104
Terminals

262, 144-color palette. Both the 5530 and 5540 support transmission speeds as high as 38.4K bps. A
few vendors, including AT&T, Falco Data Products, and Visentech Systems, have incorporated
VT320 emulation into their general-purpose ASCII
displays. Vendors continue to play the better price/
performance game. It appears, however, that fewer
of them are able or willing to match Digital's
moves this time around.

Decision Points
The VT330 family provides two major improvements over its predecessors-dual session capability (for the VT330 and VT340) and up to five
times faster processing speed. These models offer
higher resolution, more versatility, easier-to-read
display fonts, and a new paper-white phosphor
character color for the monochrome VT320 and
VT330 models. The VT340 supports up to 16 colors, while the older VT241 supports only four.
These enhancements, with much more competitive
prices, have helped Digital to maintain its strong
position in the display market.
Digital's VT300 products are completely
backward-compatible with previous Digital displays, as well as the software supporting them-a
factor that gives Digital a decided advantage over
general-purpose ASCII terminals that offer only
VT emulation. Digital's reputation for manufacturing reliability and full service and support for its
VAX systems also contribute to the vendor's advantage over competitors offering VT clones with
improved price/performance.

Characteristics

Models: VT320, VT330, and VT340
Date Announced: VT320-August 1987; VT330 and
VT340-ApriI1987.

JULY 1990

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT300 Display Family

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

Date First Installed: VT320-September 1987; VT330
and VT340-May 1987.
Number of Installed Units: Over 1 million VT300 terminals have been installed.
Serviced by: Digital Equipment Corporation.

System Components
The Digital VT300 display terminal family consists of
three models: the VT320, VT330, and the VT340. All
three conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.

Transmission Specifications
Transmission is asynchronous in full-duplex mode, with
user-selectable local echo, seven- or eight-bit ASCII
code, one or two stop bits, and any of the following
types of parity: even, odd, none, even no-check, odd
no-check, mark, and space (seven-bit only). Users select host communications parameters through setup
screens. Characters are transmitted one by one, as
each key is depressed. Selectable transmission speeds
of 75, 110, 150,300,600, 1200,2400,4800,9600, and
19,200 bps are supported over DEC423 or RS-232-C
cable.

Device Control
The VT300 is fully backward compatible with the VT220
display; similarly, the VT330 and VT340 are fully compatible with the VT240 and VT241 displays, respectively.
Users can install and use VT300 family terminals without software modifications to existing application programs that support VT200 family products.
The default character sets for these displays are
the Digital Multinational ISO Latin-1 character sets. With
VT330 and VT340 displays, and the international version
of the VT320, users can optionally select English, German, or French versions of the setup menu system, and
any of 12 national replacement character sets.
Visual attributes of these displays include reverse
video and text highlighting using a blinking block or a
blinking underline. Both the VT330 and VT340 support
two high-level graphics instruction sets: Digital's Remote Graphics Instruction Set (ReGIS) and Tektronix'
4010/4014 graphics protocols.
Programmable function keys enable the user to
define and store commonly used sets of commands (up
to 256 characters in length), which can be executed with
a single keystroke.
The VT320 includes a 14-inch, flat, antiglare
monochrome screen with either green, amber, or paperwhite characters, a Digital LK201 keyboard that comes
in 16 different international versions, and an integrated
tilt mechanism. Swivel capability is offered optionally

Delran NJ 08075 USA

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

Digital Equipment
Corpol'lltlon
VT300 DI.play Family

through an alternate type of base. Each keyboard style
provides 15 programmable function keys and a numeric
keypad.
Designed for text-oriented applications, the VT320
provides single-session capability with a screen arrangement of 24 lines by either 80 or 132 columns, and
a maximum screen resolution of 1,200 pixels by 300
scan lines. The screen includes a 25th status line, which
can be programmed to display either system messages
or terminal-specific information, such as cursor position
or printing status. The VT320 provides a series of setup
screens, allowing the user to customize keyboard, host
communications, printing, and display characteristics.
The VT320 comes in two versions: a North American version and an international version. Both types
include two DEC423 MMJ serial communications
ports-one for a host connection and one for a displayattached Digital printer. Adapters for connecting nonDigital printers are also available optionally. The North
American version accommodates 120 volt power, and
includes a DEC423 cable and a 25-pin adapter that is
compatible with most standard U.S. modems. The international version accommodates 240 volt systems, and
provides full modem support through an RS-232-C, 25pin adapter. The international version also includes
setup screens in English, French, and German.
The VT330 and VT340 are dual-session displays
designed for graphics and text applications. They both
provide storage of six screens of text or two screens of
graphics for fast switching between sessions. The
VT330 includes a 14-inch, flat, monochrome screen with
either green, amber, or paper-white characters. For
graphics applications, the VT330 supports four levels of
shading, providing a maximum screen resolution of 800
pixels by 500 lines. The VT340 includes a 13-inch convex screen that displays up to 16 colors selectable from

Delran NJ 08075 USA

C2S-384-105
Terminals

a palette of 4,096 colors, and a maximum screen resolution of 800 pixels by 500 lines, Both models come with a
Digital LK201 keyboard available in 16 international versions. Each keyboard style provides 15 programmable
function keys and a numeric keypad.
The VT330 and VT340 provide screen arrangements of 24 lines by 80 or 132 columns, and a 25th status line for system messages or terminal-specific
information, such as cursor position or printing status.
Users can view two sessions simultaneously in splitscreen mode, or switch between full-screen sessions
with a hot key. A comprehensive set of menu screens
(in English, French, and German) allows users to customize keyboard, display, host communications, and
printing characteristics.
The VT330 and VT340 provide one RS-232-C host
communications port and one DEC423 host communications port. Dual sessions, running on a single host,
can be conducted over a single cable, if desired, using
Digital's Session Support Utility (SSU). Each VT330 and
VT340 display also includes one DEC423 port for a
display-attached printer. Adapters for non-Digital printers are available optionally.

Pricing
The North American version of the VT320 sells for $575,
while the international version of the same display sells
for $625. The VT330 and VT340 displays are priced at
$1,995 and $2,795, respectively. Digital offers a wide
selection of warranty and service agreements for these
products. Users can choose on-site coverage up to 24
hours a day, seven days a week. Carry-in and mail-in
repair arrangements are also available .•

JULY 1990

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

C25-384-101
Terminals

DEC
VT300 Video Display
Terminal Family
In this report:

Product Summary

Analysis .................... -102

Characteristics ..........

-104

Pricing .......................

-105

Description
The VT320 is a monochrome monitor that provides single-session support for text-oriented applications.
The VT330 and VT340 both provide
dual sessions and graphics capability.
Strengths
In addition to introducing dualsession support with the VT300 family, Digital designed higher
resolution, faster processing speed,
and greater customization capability
into the displays while lowering
prices significantly.

MAY 1990

C25-384-102
Terminals

Analysis

DEC
VT300 Yid.eo Display
Terminal Family

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

amber, or paper-white characters in 80- and 132column formats. This terminal provides the smallest footprint of any display yet offered by Digital.
Unlike the VT240 andVT241 displays, the
VT330 and VT340 support dual-session capability
over one or two wires. TheVT330, a monochrome
model, comes with a 14-inch screen that displays
either green, amber, or paper-white characters in
80- or 132-column text arrangements. For graphics
applications, up to four levels of shading are supported. The VT340 includes a 13-inch screen that
supports 16-color graphics and 80- or 132-column
text arrangements.

Competitive Position
Digital occupies a distinct but somewhat separate
subsection of the asynchronous display market referred to as the ANSI segment. With the release of
the VT 100 display in 1978, Digital became the first
vendor to support the American National Standards Institute's (ANSI's) X3.64 standard, which
was first published in 1977 to standardize control
codes for all terminals. To offer VT emulation,
other vendors have also adopted this standard for
their display terminals.
Various research organizations have estimated that Digital holds from 60 to 80 percent of
the ANSI terminal market. Over 1 million VT100
and one million VT200 family displays were sold
prior to their discontinuance, and Digital has recently announced the shipment of the one millionth VT320 display.

The Digital Equipment Corporation VT300 family consists ofthe VT320, VT330,
and VT340 displays. The
VT320 is a single-session
text terminal; the VT330 is
a monochrome text/graphics
terminal with dual-session
capability and support for
six levels ofshading; the
VT340 is a 16-color text/
graphics terminal also with
dual-session capability.

MAY 1990

Delran NJ 08075 USA

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

DEC

Company Profile
Digital Equipment
Corporation

Corporate
Headquarters
146 Main Street
Maynard, MA 01754-2571
(508) 493-5111

In Canada
Digital Equipment of Canada, Ltd.
P.O. Box 13000,100 Hetzbug Road
Kanata, ON K2K 2A6
(613) 592-5111
European Headquarters
is in Geneva, Switzerland.
General International
Headquarters is in Acton,
MA.

Officers
Pres.: Kenneth H. Olsen
Sr. VP, Mrktg., Sales, Service, Channels, International: John J. Shields
Sr. VP, Eng. & Mfg.: John
F. Smith
Pres. & CEO, European
Operations: Pier Carlo
Falotti

C25-384-103

VT300 Video Dlapl.y
Termin.1 F.mlly

Company Background
Year Founded: 1957
No. Employees: 125,000

Digital is a leading supplier of computer systems
and aSSOCiated peripherals, networks, communications, software, and
services. The products
are used in a variety of
applications in business,
industry, government, and
scientific areas. Both direct and indirect channels
are used to market and
support products worldwide.
In 1977, Digital introduced
the VAX Series of 32-bit
minicomputers, one of the
most successful product
launches in computer industry history. Since introducing the first VAX,
the 11/780, Digital has
continued to enhance the
basic VAX architecture

The rest of the ANSI market is controlled by
general-purpose ASCII display vendors that offer
VT clones and VT emulation. The VT100 is the
most widely emulated asynchronous terminal, with
over one million imitations sold. Digital also suffered competition from numerous low-priced
VT200 imitators, which caused the vendor to adjust prices accordingly.
At present, there is a small handful ofVT300compatible displays on the market. Wyse Technology's WY-185, Qume Corporation's QVT323-EV,
Microterm's model 5520, and Hewlett-Packard's
II> 1990 McGraw-Hili, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.
Delran NJ 08075 USA

Terminals

and VAXNMS operating
system with announcements of new and more
powerful VAX models.
The current VAX family
consists of VAXstation
desktop workstations;
MicroVAX departmental
systems; VAX 6000 Series medium-range systems; and VAX 9000
Series high-end mainframes.
In addition to the VAX
family, Digital offers DECsystems that use reduced
instruction set computing
(RISC) technology and
operate under ULTRIX,
Digital's implementation
of the UNIX operating
system.
To support its systems,
Digital offers disk, storage
array, and solidstate
memory products, optical
disks, tape devices, displays, and printers. Besides hardware and
software, Digital offers a
range of communications
and networking products
and services.

of $12.7 billion, up 11 percent from $11.5 billion the
previous year. Net income
was $1.1 billion, down 8
percent from $1.3 billion
in 1988. According to the
preSident's letter to Digital's shareholders in
1989, "Digital's revenue
growth came from overseas markets, particularly
Europe and Japan."

Management
Statament
Digital has a $1.5 billion
dollar investment in new
product development. According to the president's
letter, Digital is "continuing to invest heavily in
VAX and RISC-based systems and VMS and UNIX
software." Within the next
year, "Digital's strategy is
to focus on the computing
environment of the 1990s.
Digital will offer the widest
selection of technology
and continue to make significant investments in
R&D and new products in
response to dynamically
changing customer
needs."

Financial Profile
For the 1989 fiscal year,
Digital reported revenues

C2S-384-104
Terminals

Characteristics
Models: VT320, VT330, and VT340
Date Announced: VT320-August 1987; VT330 and
VT340-April 1987.

MAY 1990

DEC
VT300 Video Display
Terminal Family

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

Date First Installed: VT320-September 1987; VT330
and VT340-May 1987.
Number of Installed Units: Over 1 million VT300 terminals have been installed.
Serviced by: Digital Equipment Corporation.

System Components
The Digital VT300 display terminal family consists of
three models: the VT320, VT330, and the VT340. All
three conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.

1990 McGraw-Hili, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.
Delran NJ 08075 USA

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

DEC
VT300 Video Display
Terminal Family

1990 McGraw-Hili, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.
DelranNJ 08075 USA

C2S-384-10S
Terminals

a palette of 4,096 colors, and a maximum screen resolution of 800 pixels by 500 lines. Both models come with a
Digital LK201 keyboard available in 16 international versions. Each keyboard style provides 15 programmable
function keys and a numeric keypad.
The VT330 and VT340 provide screen arrangements of 24 lines by 80 or 132 columns, and a 25th status line for system messages or terminal-specific
information, such as cursor position or printing status.
Users can view two sessions simultaneously in splitscreen mode, or switch between full-screen sessions
with a hot key. A comprehensive set of menu screens
(in English, French, and German) allows users to customize keyboard, display, host communications, and
printing characteristics.
The VT330 and VT340 provide one RS-232-C host
communications port and one DEC423 host communications port. Dual sessions, running on a single host,
can be conducted over a single cable, if desired, using
Digital's Session Support Utility (SSU). Each VT330 and
VT340 display also includes one DEC423 port for a
display-attached printer. Adapters for non-Digital printers are available optionally.

MAY 1990

C25-384-101
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
The VT100 Video Display Terminal is an
acknowledged standard in the terminal industry. It is the most popular ASCII terminal
ever produced, with 1,000,000 units sold
since its introduction in 1978. A large emulation market has sprung from the VT100.
Digital Equipment Corporation has introduced the VT200 display terminal family, a
new generation that will replace the VT100
product line.

Since its introduction in 1978, Digital Equipment Corporation
has sold 1,000,000 VT100 terminals.

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
UPDATE: Upon the introduction of the VT200 display
terminal family in 1983, Digital Equipment Corporation
stated that it would continue to offer the older VT100 line for
at least two years. Digital has recently slashed prices for its
VT100 video display terminal family, indicating that the
product line will soon be discontinued. As ofnow, ~he VT100
terminals are no longer being manufactured; we have updated this report due to the significance of the product line.
The end is finally near for the VT 100 display terminal.
Following the introduction of the VT200 terminal family in
1983, Digital has made good on its promise to keep the
VT100 available for at least two additional years. In October 1985, however, the company announced significant
price cuts for the VT 100; this move is likely to clear out
Digital's remaining inventory of VT100 terminals.
Digital's VT100 Video Display Terminal stands as the
most successful and most widely emulated ASCII display
terminal ever. The VT100, which is used chiefly with
Digital's VAX line of computers, created an emulation
market that is second only to the IBM 3270 market in size.
According to Digital, VT100 sales reached the 1 millionunit mark in the fall of 1985, some seven years after its
introduction in 1978. The VT 100 succeeded the company's
earlier VT52 terminal; in November 1983, Digital introduced the VT200 Series of displays, which succeeds the
VT100.
In its basic configuration, the VT 100 can display 24 lines of
80 characters, or 14 lines of 132 characters. Transmission is
performed in character mode. Like all members of the
family, the VT100 features a 12-inch (diagonal) display
screen and detachable, typewriter-style keyboard. Other
standard features include scrolling (jump or smooth), reMARCH 1986

MODELS: VT1 00, VT102, VT125, and
VT131.
DISPLAY: All models feature a 12-inch (diagonal) display; characters are displayed in
white. All models feature 80-/132-column
display capability.
KEYBOARD: All models feature a detachable keyboard with a typewriter-style
layout.
COMPETITION: Several vendors continue to
offer terminals with VT100 emulation; however, the market is now geared toward
VT200 terminal emulation.
PRICE: Purchase prices range from $895 to
$3,800.

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation, 146 Main
Street, Maynard, MA 01754-2571. Telephone (617)
897-5111.
DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: VT100-June 1978;
VT125-July 1981; VTlOl and VTl31-September 1981.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: VT100-September 1978;
VTl25-September 1981; VTI0l, VTI02, and VT131October 1981.
.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: 1,000,000
(worldwide).
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS
The VT100 terminals are stand-alone, desktop units featuring a 12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a detachable,
typewriter-style keyboard. The following models currendy
comprise the famBy:
• VT100-The basic model. The unit is upgradable, and can
be configured with the Advanced Video Option and the
Printer Port Option.
• VTI01-A nonupgradable, entry-level model; it contains
all of the base features of the VT100, but will accept no
options. The VTlOI is no longer available.
• VTI02-A1so nonupgradable, but contains all VT100
base features plus the AVO and Printer Port Option as
standard features.

C25-384-102
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
J::> verse video, variable screen brightness, audible key click,

~ • VT12S-Contains all of the features of the VT100, plus a

and auto repeat keys. The VT100 will support expanded
capabilities and options. By adding the Advanced Video
Option (AVO), the VT100 gains the following features: four
alternate character attributes-bold, underline, blink, and
reverse-which can be selected on a character-by-character
basis; expanded display memory allowing for a display
format of 24 lines by 132 characters; and provision for
alternate character sets.

business graphics capability. The VT100 can be upgraded
to the VT12S via the VT12S upgrade kit.

In 1981, Digital Equipment Corporation expanded the
VTl 00 family by adding several submodels of the VTl 00.
These included the VTlOI (no longer available), an entrylevel model without the expansion capabilities of the
VT100; the VTl02, like the VT101, a nonexpandable
model, but including the Advanced Video Option and
Printer Port Option; the VT131, a block mode version of
the VTl02; and the VTl25, a terminal with business
graphics as well as alphanumeric capability. With the introduction of the VT200 Series, Digital Equipment Corporation placed these submodels in "maintenance mode"; this
meant that they would no longer be manufactured, but
Digital would continue to supply them on an "as available"
basis and to support them. Production of the VT 100 has
also ceased, but Digital has promised to continue to support its installed base of VT100 terminals for service and
repair.
COMPETITIVE POSITION

As was mentioned earlier in this report, the VT100 Video
Display Terminal achieved such widespread acceptance
that it created a sizable emulation market. Virtually every
major general-purpose ASCII display terminal vendor included a VT100 emulator in its product line. Now, the
same can be said of the new VT200 terminals, particularly
the VT220, a direct replacement for the VT100. However,
Digital is now positioned to take an even larger share of this
market.
When the VT 100 was introduced, Digital did not anticipate
the huge demand for the terminal; because of this, it was
unable to sufficiently meet the demand it had created for
the terminal. Lead time for delivery of a VTl 00 terminal
was often three-to-five months. In addition, the VT100
carried a high price tag. The independent terminal vendors
made the most of this opportunity, offering lower priced
emulators and shorter delivery times.
Digital has apparently learned from its VT100 experience.
The new VT200 terminals are priced competitively, and
are readily available. Nevertheless, the independent vendors have jumped on the VT200 bandwagon quickly, and
VT200 clones are plentiful. The result, of course, is that the
user can now purchase a VT220 emulator for as little as
$795; and prices may fall even lower.
ADVANTAGES AND RESTRICTIONS

The VT100 achieved its high degree of success despite the
fact that, traditionally, it carried a high price tag. The
functions available on the VT 190 (particularly the full- J::>

• VT131-The block mode/local edit version ofthe VT102.

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous, in full-duplex mode (the
VT102 and VT131 also support half-duplex mode); at
speeds of SO, 75, 110, 134.5, 150, 200, 300, 600, 1200, 1800,
2000,2400,3600,4800,9600, and 19,200.bits per second.
The 7- or 8-bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no
parity is selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard on the VTI01, VT102, and VT131, and available on
VT100s equipped with the printer port. An RS-232-C interface is standard; a 20 ma current loop interface is optional.

DEVICE CONTROL
On the VT100, VT101, VT102, and VT12S, transmission is
performed on a character-by-character basis as each key is
depressed by the operator. On the VT131, data is stored in
the terminal buffer as it is keyed. It is then transmitted in
block form. The VT100 terminal memory is nonvolatilefeature settings are retained when the terminal is powered
down.
The selection and storage of local terminal features is
performed in Set-Up mode. When entering Set-Up mode,
the status ofthe features stored in the temporary memory is
shown on the screen. Features can be changed, and new
features stored on a temporary basis by leaving Set-Up
mode. The new features can be stored on a fixed basis by
performing a save operation. If a recall operation is performed, the terminal is reset, or terminal power is turned off,
all temporary settings are replaced by the features that have
been stored on a fixed basis.
The VT100 family terminals are compatible with either of
two different programming standards: ANSI, or Digital
F,quipment Corporation VTS2. In ANSI mode, the VT100
terminals will respond to software based on ANSI standards. In VTS2 mode, the terminals will respond to software
written for use with Digital Equipment Corporation's older
VTS2 video display terminal.
In addition to selection of ANSI or VTS2 mode, the following features can be selected when in Set-Up mode (note that
not all features are available on all models); answerback
message, full-duplex communications, host editing, local
edit/block mode transmission, local echo, auto X-on/X-off,
display format (80- or 132-column), on-line/local operation,
new line, parity, parity sense, receive/transmit speeds,
scroll, tabs, wraparound, character set (U.S., U.K., and
special line drawing sets are standard on all models), cursor,
key click, margin bell, screen background (normal or reverse), screen brightness, and auto repeat.
Cursor controls move the cursor up, down, left. right, home,
and return. The cursor may be selected as either a blinking
block or blinking underline.
Advanced Video Option provides dual intensity, blink, and
underline functions in any combination with each other and
with reverse video. This option also adds 10 additional 132character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The Advanced
Video Option also provides additional circuitry to add an
alternate or custom character set in the future. Thus, two
character sets would reside in the terminal.
The VT100 provides composite video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video
output from a remote terminal or processor without interfer-

MARCH 1986

C25-384-103
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
Feature

VT100

VT101

VT102

VT131

VT125

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Opt.
Opt.'
Yes
No
No
Opt.'
No
Opt.

Std.
No
No
No
Std.
Yes
No
No
No
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Std.
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
Std.

Base VT 100 Features
Upgradable
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Printer Port
Local Echo
Full-duplex Communications
Half-duplex Communications
Modem Control Support
Host Editing
Block Mode Transmission/Local Editing
Bit Map Graphics
'With Printer Pa/t.

E> screen 132-column display capability) were not always

~ ing with local usage. Composite video output permits the

available from less expensive imitators, and obviously
offset the higher price. Also, given the popularity of Digital's VAX series computers, the VT 100 terminals served a
huge market. Digital Equipment Corporation, with the
introduction of the VT200 terminals, has moved to close
the price/performance gap that competitors had traditionally used to obtain a share of this market.

VT100 to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.

USER REACTION

In Datapro's 1985 Terminal Users Survey, conducted in
conjunction with Data Communications magazine, a total
of 111 users responded with ratings for the VT100 family
terminals. These users represented a total installed base of
7,975 units. Seventy-one of these users reported on their
experiences with the VT100, totalling 6,096 installed terminals; the remaining 40 users reported on the various submodels of the VT100 family, covering 1,879 VTlOI,
VTl02, VTl25, and VTl31 terminals. The users were
asked to rate their terminals with regard to seven separate
categories. The ratings given to the VTI 00 family terminals
by these users are summarized in the (ollowing tables:
VT100
Excellent
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

33
33
23
29
8
31
28

Good Fair Poor WA*
34
31
38
28
18
30
26

4
5
6
12
31
5
9

0
0
2
0
10
3
4

3.4
3.4
3.2
3.3
2.4
3.3
3.2

*Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

Other VT100 family (VTlOl, VTl02, VT125, VT131)
Excellent
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

15
17
14
18
3
14
13

Good Fair Poor WA*
24
20
18
16
10
21
14

1
3
8
5
20
5
10

0
0
0
0
5
0
I

*Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.
MARCH 1986

3.4
3.4
3.2
3.3
2.3
3.2
3.0

The VT12S directly executes Digital Equipment Corporation's general-purpose graphics descriptor, ReGIS (Remote
Graphics Instruction Set), providing a bit map graphics
capability, ReGIS allows the creation and storage of pictorial data as simple ASCII text. Graphics capabilities in the
ReGIS firmware allow for the plotting of trend lines, bar
charts, and pie charts. In engineering laboratory applications, point plot graphs and strip charts can be plotted.
Digital Equipment Corporation makes available an upgrade
kit to convert a VT100 to the VT12S.

COMPONENTS
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A l2-inch (diagonally measured)
display screen is standard on all models. Characters are
displayed in white (P4 Phosphor) on a dark background,
and are formed utilizing a 7-by-9 dot matrix with descenders. The 96-character upper-/lowercase ASCII set is displayable. U.S., U.K., and line drawing character sets are
standard on all models. The VT12S provides business
graphics display.
The standard display format on the VT100, VT12S, and
VTlOl is either 24 lines of 80 characters, or 14 lines of 132
characters. By adding the AVO to the VT100 and VT12S,
the l32-column format is increased to 24 lines. The AVO is
standard on the VTl02 and VT13l; it is not available on the
VTlOI.
Standard video attributes include normal or reverse video
(full screen), double-high/-wide characters (line-by-line basis), and adjustable screen brightness. Terminals equipped
with the AVO have these additional video attributes; bold,
underline, blink, and reverse. These attributes can be selected on a character-by-character basis. The AVO also provides for alternate character sets to be mapped in a ROM
and inserted into the terminal. These alternate characters
can also be selected on a character-by-character basis.
KEYBOARD: A sculptured typewriter-style, detachable
keyboard which is attached to the monitor via a 6-foot coiled
cord. The keyboard contains 83 keys, including a 6S-key
main array and an I8-key numeric/function pad. The numeric pad includes four program function keys. Visual indicators on the keyboard include seven LEDs; three are
dedicated to ON-LINE, LOCAL, and KDB LOCKED, and
four are user-programmable. Audible signals include key _
click and bell.
-

C25-384-104
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family

t> The users were also asked wheth~t or not they wouid

EQUIPMENT PRICES

recommend the VT100 family terminals to other users.
Overall, 83 users said that they would recommend them; 11
stated that they would not. The remaining users were
undecided, or chose not to answer the question. 0

PRICING

The VT100 family terminals are available for purchase
only, on an "as available" basis; they are no longer manufactured. Digital Equipment Corporation will continue to support the terminals through its Field Service, available
worldwide.

Purchase Monthly
Price
Maint.
($)

($)'

VT100

895

VT102

995

VT131

995

VT125

3,800

Advanced Video Option (AVO)

--.
29

MARCH 1986

C25-384-101
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
The VT100 Video Display Terminal is an
acknowledged standard in the terminal industry. It is the most popular ASCII terminal
ever produced, with over 500,000 units installed since its introduction in 1978. A
large emulation market has sprung from the
VT1 00. Digital Equipment Corporation has
introduced the VT200 display terminal family, a new generation that will eventually
replace the VT100.

Since its introduction in 1978, Digital Equipment Corporation
has shipped over 500,000 VT100 terminals.

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
UPDATE: Digital Equipment Corporation's VT100 video
display terminal family, despite the introduction of the
VT200 series, remains an active product line.
Digital Equipment Corporation's VT100 Video Display
Terminal is the most successful, and most widely emulated,
ASCII display terminal ever. The VT100 has created an
emulation market that rivals the IBM 3270 market in size.
According to Digital Equipment Corporation, over 500,000
VT100 terminals have been shipped since its introduction
in 1978. The VT 100 succeeded the company's earlier VT52
terminal; in November 1983, Digital Equipment Corporation introduced the VT200 Series of displays, which will
eventually succeed the VT100. Digital Equipment Corporation announced, however, that it would continue to
manufacture the VT100 for at least the next two years; as of
this writing, the VT 100 family ofterminals is still available.
In its basic configuration, the VT 100 can display 24 lines of
80 characters, or 14 lines of 132 characters. Transmission is
performed in character mode. Like all members of the
family, the VT100 features a 12-inch (diagonal) display
screen and detachable, typewriter-style keyboard. Other
standard features include scrolling (jump or smooth), reverse video, variable screen brightness, audible key click,
and auto repeat keys. The VT 100 will support expanded
capabilities and options. By adding the Advanced Video
Option (AVO), the VT1 00 gains the following features: four
alternate character attributes-bold, underline, blink, and
reverse-which can be selected on a character-by-character
basis; expanded display memory allowing for a display
format of 24 lines by 132 characters; and provision for
alternate character sets.
1:>
NOVEMBER 1985

MODELS: VT1 00, VT1 01, VT102, VT125,
and VT131.
DISPLAY: All models feature a 12-inch (diagonal) display; characters are displayed in
white. All models feature (80-/132-column)
display capability.
KEYBOARD: All models feature a detachable keyboard with a typewriter-style
layout.
COMPETITION: A large number of vendors
provide VT100 emulators, including CIE Terminals, Visual Technology, Teleray, and Lear
Siegler.
PRICE: Purchase prices range from $1,945
to $3,800.

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, MA 01754-2571. Telephone (617)
897-5111 or 1-800-DIGITAL Ext. 990.
DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: VT100-June 1978;
VT125-July 1981; VTI0l and VTI31-September 1981.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: VT100-September 1978;
VT12S--September 1981; VTI0l, VTI02, and VT131October 1981.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Over 500,000.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS

The VT100 terminals are stand-alone, desktop units featuring a 12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a detachable,
typewriter-style keyboard. The following models currently
comprise the family:
• VT100-The basic model. The unit is upgradable, and can
be configured with the Advanced Video Option and the
Printer Port Option.
• VTI01-A nonupgradable, entry-level model; it contains
all of the base features of the VT100, but will accept no
options.
• VTI02-Also nonupgradable, but contains all VT100
base features plus the AVO and Printer Port Option as
standard features.
~

C2S-384-102
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family

In 1981, Digital Equipment Corporation expanded the
VT100 family by adding several submodels of the VT100.
These included: the VTIOI, an entry-level model without
the expansion capabilities of the VTl 00; the VT 102, like
the VTlOl, a nonexpandable model, but including the
Advanced Video Option and Printer Port Option; the
VTl31, a block model version of the VTl 02; and the
VTl25, a terminal with business graphics as well as alphanumeric capability. With the introduction of the VT200
series, Digital Equipment Corporation has placed these
submodels in "maintenance mode"; they will no longer be
manufactured, but Digital Equipment Corporation will
continue to supply them on an "as available" basis and to
support them. It is likely, however, that these submodels
will remain available for some time through Digital Equipment Corporation distributors; therefore, we will continue
coverage in this report.

• • VT125-Contains all of the features of the VT100, plus a
business graphics capability. The VT100 can be upgraded
to the VT125 via the VTl25 upgrade kit.
• VT131-The block mode/local edit version ofthe VTI02.
TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous, in full-duplex mode (the
VTl02 and VT131 also support hitlf-duplex mode); at
speedsof50,75,110, 134.5,150,200,300,600, 1200, 1800,
2000, 2400, 3600, 4800, 9600, and 19,200 bits per second.
The 7- or 8-bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no
parity is selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard on the VTlOl, VTl02, and VT131, and available on
VT100s equipped with the printer port. An RS-232-C interface is standard; a 20 ma current loop interface is optional.
DEVICE CONTROL
On the VT100, VTI0l, VTI02, and VT125, transmission is
performed on a character-by-character basis as each key is
depressed by the operator. On the VT131, data is stored in
the terminal buffer as it is keyed. It is then transmitted in
block form. The VT100 terminal memory is nonvolatilefeature settings are retained when the terminal is powered
down.

Digital Equipment Corporation also offers the option of
converting the VTl 00 terminal into a personal computer
through the addition of the VTl8X Personal Computing
Option. The VTl8X kit consists of a Z80 microprocessor,
64K bytes of memory, dual 5if4-inch diskette drives, and
installation hardware. The resulting VTl80 Personal Computing Terminal features a CP/M operating system. The
VTl81X option is not available for models in the VT100
family other than the VTl 00 itself.

COMPETITIVE POSITION

As was mentioned earlier in this report, the VT 100 Video
Display Terminal has achieved such widespread acceptance that it has spawned a sizable emulation market.
Virtually every major general-purpose ASCII display terminal vendor includes a VT100 emulator in its product
line. Advanced Resources Development, a market research
firm, estimated 1982 shipments ofVT 1OO-type terminals at
155,000. Of these, approximately SO percent were Digital
Equipment Corporation units, the remainder were emulators from various vendors, including CIE Terminals, Visual Technology, Datamedia, Teleray, Ann Arbor, MicroTerm, and Lear Siegler. Given the huge number of Digital
Equipment Corporation computers in use, the demand for
VT100 emulators should remain strong for some time to
come. The new VT200 products should further strengthen
this market, keeping it profitable for both Digital Equipment Corporation and its competitors.

The VT100 family terminals are compatible with either of
two different programming standards: ANSI, or Digital
Equipment Corporation VT52. In ANSI mode, the VT100
terminals will respond to software based on ANSI standards. In VT52 mode, the terminals will respond to software
written for use with Digital Equipment Corporation's older
VT52 video display terminal.
In addition to selection of ANSI or VT52 mode, the following features can be selected when in Set-Up mode (note that
not all features are available on all models); answerback
message, full or fully duplex communications, host editing,
local edit/block mode transmission, lQC8l echo, auto X-on/
X-off, display format (80- or 132-column), on-line/local
operation, new line, parity, parity sense, receive/transmit
speeds, scroll, tabs, wraparound, character set (U.S., U.K.,
and special line drawing sets are standard on all models),
cursor, key click, margin bell, screen background (normal or
reverse), screen brightness, and auto repeat.
Cursor controls move the cursor up, down, left, right, home,
and return. The cursor may be selected as either a blinking
block or blinking underline.

ADVANTAGES AND RESTRICTIONS

The VT100 has achieved its high degree of success despite
the fact that, traditionally, it has carried a price tag that has
been somewhat high for the ASCII terminal market. The
functions available on the VT100 (particularly the fullscreen 132-column display capability) are not always available from less expensive imitators, and obviously offset the
higher price. Digital Equipment Corporation, with the
introduction of the VT200 terminals, has moved to close
the price/performance gap that competitors have used to
obtain a share of this market.

Advanced Video Option provides dual intensity, blink, and
underline functions in any combination with each other aud
with reverse video. This option also adds 10 additional 132character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The Advanced
Video Option also provides additional circuitry to add an
alternate or custom character set in the futnre. Thus two
character sets would reside in the terminal.

The VT100 provides composite video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video
output from a remote terminal or processor without interfer- •

NOVEMBER 1986

C25-384-103
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
Feature

VT100

VT101

VT102

VT131

VT125

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Opt.
Opt.'
Yes
No
No
Opt."
No
Opt.

Std.
No
No
No
Std.
Yes
No
No
No
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Std.
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
Std.

Base VT100 Features
Upgradable
Advanced Video Option (AVOI
Printer Port
Local Echo
Full-duplex Communications
Half-duplex Communications
Modem Control Support
Host Editing
Block Mode Transmission/Local Editing
Bit Map Graphics
"With Printer Port.

USER REACTION

In Datapro's 1985 Terminal Users Survey, conducted in
conjunction with Data Communications magazine, a total
of 111 users responded with ratings for the VTl 00 family
terminals_ These users represented a total installed base of
7,975 units_ Seventy-one of these users reported on their
experiences with the VT 100, totalling 6,096 installed terminals; the remaining 40 users reported on the various submodels of the VT100 family, covering 1,879 VTI0l,
VTl02, VTl25, and VTl31 terminals. The users were
asked to rate their terminals with regard to seven separate
categories. The ratings given to the VTl 00 family terminals
by these users are summarized in the following tables:
VT100
Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

33
33
23
29
8
31
28

34
31
38
28
18
30
26

4
5
6
12
31
5
9

0
0
2
0
10
3
4

3.4
3.4
3.2
3.3
2.4
3.3
3.2

·Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

Other VT100 family (VTIOl, VTI02, VT125, VT131)
Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

15
17
14
18
3
14
13

24
20
18
16
10
21
14

1
3
8
5
20
5
10

0
0
0
0
5
0
1

3.4
3.4
3.2
3.3
2.3
3.2
3.0

*Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

ing with local usage. Composite video output permits the
VT100 to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.
The VT12S directly executes Digital Equipment Corporation's general-purpose graphics descriptor, ReGIS (Remote
Graphics Instruction Set), providing a bit map graphics
capability, ReGIS allows the creation and storage of pictorial data as simple ASCII text. Graphics capabilities in the
ReGIS firmware allow for the plotting of trend lines, bar
charts, and pie charts. In engineering laboratory applications, point plot graphs and strip charts can be plotted.
Digital Equipment Corporation makes available an upgrade
kit to convert a VT100 to the VTI2S.

COMPONENTS
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured)
display screen is standard on all models. Characters are
displayed in white (P4 Phosphor) on a dark background,
and are formed utilizing a 7-by-9 dot matrix with descenders. The 96-character upper-/lowercase ASCII set is displayable. U.s., U.K., and line drawing character sets are
standard on all models. The VT12S provides business
graphics display.
The standard display format on the VT100, VTI2S, and
VTI0l is either 24 lines of 80 characters, or 14 lines of 132
characters. By adding the AVO to the VT100 and VTI2S,
the 132-column format is increased to 24 lines. The AVO is
standard on the VTI02 and VT131; it is not available on the
VTI0l.
Standard video attributes include normal or reverse video
(full screen), double high/wide characters (line-by-line basis), and adjustable screen brightness. Terminals equipped
with the AVO have these additional video attributes; bold,
underline, blink, and reverse. These attributes can be selected on a character-by-character basis. The ABO also provides for alternate character sets to be mapped in a ROM
and inserted into the terminal. These alternate characters
can also be selected on a character-by-character basis.
In September 1981, Digital Equipment Corporation introduced two new options for the VT100 CRT. The first option
is a tilt-and-swivel base, enabling the user to adjust the
display for ease of viewing. The second new option is an
antiglare filter kit for use with the display screen.

The users were also asked whether or not they would
recommend the VTl 00 family terminals to other users.
Overall, 83 users said that they would recommend them; 11
stated that they would not. The remaining users were
undecided, or chose not to answer the question. 0
NOVEMBER 1985

C25-384-104
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
EQUIPMENT PRICES

KEYBOARD: A sculptured typewriter-style, detachable
keyboard which is attached to the monitor via a 6-foot coiled
cord. The keyboard contains 83 keys, including a 65-key
main array and an 18-key numeric/function pad. The numeric pad includes four program function keys. Visual indicators on the keyboard include seven LEDs; three are
dedicated to ON-LINE, LOCAL, and KDB LOCKED, and
four are user-programmable. Audible signals include key
cUck and bell.

Purchase
Price
($)
VT100
VT10l
VT102
VT131
VT125

1,945
1,350
1,710
1,825
3,800

VT125 Upgrade Kit
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Printer Port Option
20 ma Current Loop
Tilt-and-Swivel Base
Anti-Glare Filter Kit
VT 18X Personal Computer
Upgrade

1,800
180
350
140
89

Monthly
Maint.
($)
18
15
22
22
29

Options

PRICING
The VT100 family terminals are available for purchase
only. Installation is priced at $150. Digital Equipment Corporation supports the terminals through its Field Service,
available worldwide.

60
1,295

•

NOVEMBER 1985

C25-384-101
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
The VT100 Video Display Terminal is an
acknowledged standard in the terminal industry. It is the most popular ASCII terminal
ever produced. with over 500.000 units installed since its introduction in 1978. A
large emulation market has sprung from the
VT100.

Since its introduction in 1978, DEC has shipped over 500,000
VT100 terminals.

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
DEC's VT100 Video Display Terminal is the most successful, and most widely emulated, ASCII display terminal
ever. The VT100 has created an emulation market that
rivals the IBM 3270 market in size. A.::cording to DEC,
over 500,000 VT100 terminals have been shipped since its
introduction in 1978. The VT 100 succeeded the company's
earlier VT52 terminal; in November 1983, DEC introduced the VT200 Series of displays, which will eventually
succeed the VT100. DEC has announced, however, that it
will continue to manufacture the VT100 for at least the
next two years.
In its basic configuration, the VT 100 can display 24 lines of
80 characters, or 14 lines of 132 characters. Transmission is
performed in character mode. Like all members of the
family, the VT100 features a 12-inch (diagonal) display
screen and detachable, typewriter-style keyboard. Other
standard features include scrolling Gump or smooth), reverse video, variable screen brightness, audible key click,
and auto repeat keys. The VT 100 will support expanded
capabilities and options. By adding the Advanced Video
Option (AVO), the VT 100 gains the following features: four
alternate character attributes-bold, underline, blink, and
reverse-which can be selected on a character-by-character
basis; expanded display memory allowing for a display
format of 24 lines by 132 characters; and provision for
alternate character sets.
In 1981, DEC expanded the VT100 family by adding
several submodels of the VT100. These included: the
VT101, an entry-level model without the expansion capabilities of the VT100; the VTl02, like the VTlOl, a nonexpandable model, but including the Advanced Video Option and Printer Port Option; the VT 131, a block model>
FEBRUARY 1984

MODELS: VT100. VT1 01. VT1 02. VT125.
and VT131.
DISPLAY: All models feature a 12-inch (diagonal) display; characters are displayed in
white. All models feature 80/132-column
display capability.
KEYBOARD: All models feature a detachable keyboard with a typewriter-style
layout.
COMPETITION: A large number of vendors
provide VT100 emulators. including CIE Terminals. Visual Technology. Datamedia. Teleray. and Lear Siegler.
PRICE: Purchase prices range from $1.945
to $3.800.

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, MA 01754. Telephone (617) 8975111.
DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: VT100-June 1978;
VT125-July 1981; VTI0l, VTI02, and VT131-September 1981.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: VT100-September 1978;
VTl25-September 1981; VTI0l, VT102, and VT131October 1981.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Over 500,000.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS
The DEC VT100 terminals are stand-alone, desk-top units
featuring a 12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a detachable, typewriter-style keyboard. ·The following models currently comprise the family:
• VT100-The basic model. The unit is upgradable, and can
be configured with the Advanced Video Option and the
Printer Port Option.
• VT101-A non-upgradable, entry-level model; it contains
all of the base features of the VT100, but will accept no
options.
• VTI02-A1so non-upgradable, but contains all VT100
base features plus the AVO and Printer Port Option as
standard features.
• VT131-The block mode/local edit version ofthe VTI02.~

C25-384-102
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family

};::o-version of the VTl02; and the VTl25, a terminal with
business graphics as well as alphanumeric capability. With
the introduction of the VT200 series, DEC has placed these
sub-models in "maintenance mode"; they will no longer be
manufactured, but DEC will continue to supply them on an
"as available" basis and to support them. It is likely,
however, that these submodels will remain available for
some time through DEC distributors; therefore, we will
continue coverage in this report.
DEC also offers the option of converting the VTl 00 terminal into a personal computer through the addition of the
VTI8X Personal Computing Option. The VTI8X kit consists of a Z80 microprocessor, 64K bytes of memory, dual
5lf4-inch floppy disk drives, and installation hardware. The
resulting VTl80 Personal Computing Terminal features a
CP/M operating system. The VTl8X option is not available for models in the VT I 00 family other than the VT100
itself.
COMPETITIVE POSITION

As was mentioned earlier in this report, the DEC VT100
Video Display Terminal has achieved such widespread
. acceptance that it has spawned a sizable emulation market.
Virtually every major general-purpose ASCII display terminal vendor includes a VT100 emulator in its product
line. Advanced Resources Development, a market research
firm, estimated 1982 shipments ofVT IOO-type terminals at
155,000. Of these, approximately 50 percent were DEC
units; the remainder were emulators from various vendors,
including CIE Terminals, Visual Technology, Datamedia,
Teleray, Ann Arbor, Micro-Term, and Lear Siegler. The
new VT200 products should further strengthen this market,
keeping it profitable for both DEC and its competitors.

VT12S-Contains all ofthe features of the VT100, plus a
business graphics capability. The VT100 can be upgraded
to the VT12S via the VT12S upgrade kit.
.

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous. in full-duplex mode (the
VTI02 and VT131 also support half-duplex mode); at
speeds of SO, 7S, 110, 134.S, 150, 200, 300, 600, 1200, 1800,
2000, 2400, 3600, 4800, 9600, and 19,200 bits per second.
The 7- or 8-bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no
patity is selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard on the VTlOl, VTl02, and VTl31, and available on
VT100s equipped with the printer port. An RS-232-C interface is standard; a 20mA current loop interface is optional.

DEVICE CONTROL
On the VT100, VT101, VT102, and VTI2S, transmission is
performed on a character-by-character basis as each key is
depressed by the operator. On the VT131, data is stored in
the terminal buffer as it is keyed. It is then transmitted in
block form. The VT100 terminal memory is non-volatilefeature settings are retained when the terminal is powered
down.
The selection and storage of local terminal features is
performed in Set-Up mode. When entering Set-Up mode,
the status of the features stored in the temporary memory is
shown on the screen. Features can be changed, and new
features stored on a temporary basis by leaving Set-Up
mode. The new features can be stored on a fixed basis by
performing a save operation. H a recall operation is performed, the terminal is reset, or terminal power is turned off,
all temporary settings are replaced by the features that have
been stored on a fixed basis.

ADVANTAGES AND RESTRICTIONS

The VT100 family terminals are compatible with either of
two different programming standards: ANSI, or DEC VTS2.
In ANSI mode, the VT100 terminals will respond to software based on ANSI standards. In VTS2 mode, the terminals will respond to software written for use with DEC's
older VTS2 video display terminal.

The VT100 has achieved its high degree of success despite
the fact that, traditionally, it has carried a price tag that has
been somewhat high for the ASCII terminal market. The
functions available on the VT100 (particularly the fullscreen 132-column display capability) are not always available from less expensive imitators, and obviously offset the
higher price. DEC, with the introduction of the VT200
terminals, has moved to close the price/performance gap
that competitors have used to obtain a share of this market.

In addition to selection of ANSI or VTS2 mode, the following features can be selected when in Set-Up mode (note that
not all features are available on all models): answerback
message, full- or half-duplex communications, host editing,
local edit/block mode transmission, local echo, auto
X-on/X-off, display format (80 or 132 column), on-line/local operation, new line, parity, parity sense, receive/transmit speeds, scroll, tabs, wraparound, character set (U.S.,
U.K. and special line drawing sets are standard on all
models), cursor, key click, margin bell, screen background
(normal or reverse), screen brightness, and auto repeat.

USER REACTION

Cursor controls move the cursor up, down, left, right, home,
and return. The cursor may be selected as either a blinking
block or blinking underline.

In Datapro's 1983 Terminal Users Survey, conducted in
conjunction with Data Communications magazine, a total
of 73 users responded with ratings for the VTloo family
terminals. These users represented a total installed base of
13,040 units. Fifty-three of these users reported on their
experiences with the VT100, totalling 12,362 installed terminals; the remaining 20 users reported on the various
submodels of the VT100 family, covering 678 VTlOI,
VTl02, VTl25, VTl31, and VTl32 (discontinued) terminals. The users were asked to rate their terminals with
regard to seven separate categories. The ratings given to the
VT100 family terminals by these users are summarized in
the following tables:
I>

Advanc:ed Video Option provides dual intensity, blink and
underline functions in any combination with each other and
with reverse video. This option also adds 10 additional 132character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The Advanced
Video Option also provides additional circuitry to add an
alternate or custom character set in the future. Thus two
character sets would reside in the terminal.
The VT100 provides composite video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video
output from a remote terminal or processor without interfering with local usage. Composite video output permits the
VT100 to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.
~

FEBRUARY 1984

C25-384-103
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
TABLE 1. VT100 FEATURE COMPAF:ISON

Feature

Base
00 Features
Upgradable
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Printer Port
Local Echo
Full-duplex Communications
Half-duplex Communications
Modem Control Support
Host Editing
Block Mode Transmission/Local Editing
Bit Map Graphics

VT100

VT101

VT102

VT131

VT125

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Opt.
Opt.'
Yes
No
No
Opt.'
No
Opt.

Std.
No
No
No
Std.
Yes
No
No
No
No
No

Std.
No
Ste!.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Std.
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
Std.

'With Printer Port.

~VTIOO

Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
35
27
22
15
12
11

12
20
25
31
31
34
20

2
3
4
6
9

6
3

0
I
0
0
0
I
I

3.7
3.4
3.4
3.2
3.1
3.1
3.4

Other VT100 family (VTlOI, VTl02, VT131, VT125)
Excellent
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

13
10
12
10
5
8
10

Good Fair Poor WA*
5
10
7
7
12
8
8

0
0
I
3
I
4
I

0
0
0
0
I
0
0

3.7
3.5
3.6
3.4
3.1
3.2
3.5

*Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

The users were also asked whether or not they would
recommend the DEC terminals to other users. Overall, 62
users said that they would recommend them; 6 stated that
they would not. The remaining users were undecided, or
chose not to answer the question. 0

. . The VT125 directly executes DEC's general purpose graphics descriptor, ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set),
providing a bit map graphics capability. ReGIS allows the
creation and storage of pictorial data as simple ASCII text.
Graphics capabilities in the ReGIS firmware allow for the
plotting of trend lines, bar charts, and pie charts. In engineering laboratory applications, point plot graphs and strip
charts can be plotted. DEC makes available an upgrade kit
to convert a VT100 to the VT125.
FEBRUARY 1984

COMPONENTS

CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured)
display screen is standard on all models. Characters are
displayed in white (P4 phosphor) on a dark background, and
are formed utilizing a 7 x 9 dot matrix with descenders. The
96-character upper/lower case ASCII set is displayable.
U.S., U.K., and line drawing character sets are standard on
all models. The VT125 provides business graphics display.
The standard display format on the VT100, VT125, and
VTI0l is either 24 lines of 80 characters, or 14 lines of 132
characters. By adding the AVO to the VT100 and VT125,
the 132-column format is increased to 24 lines. The AVO is
standard on the VTI02 and VT131; it is not available on the
VTI0l.
Standard video attributes include normal or reverse video
(full screen), double high/wide characters (line-by-linebasis), and adjustable screen brightness. Terminals equipped
with the AVO have these additional video attributes; bold,
underline, blink, and reverse. These attributes can be selected on a character-by-character basis. The AVO also provides for alternate character sets to be mapped in a ROM
and inserted into the terminal. These alternate characters
can also be selected on a character-by-character basis.
In September 1981, DEC introduced two new options for the
VT100 CRT. The first option is a tilt-and-swivel base,
enabling the user to adjust the display for ease of viewing.
The second new option is an anti-glare filter kit Cor use with
the display screen.
KEYBOARD: A sculptured typewriter-style, detachable
keyboard which is attached to the monitor via a 6-foot coiled
cord. The keyboard contains 83 keys, including a 65-key
main array and an 18-key numeric/Cunction pad. The numeric pad includes four program function keys. Visual indicators on the keyboard include seven LEDs; three are
dedicated to ON-LINE, LOCAL, and KBD LOCKED, and
four are user-programmable. Audible signals include key
click and bell.

PRICING

The VT100 family terminals are available for purchase
only. Installation is priced at $150. DEC supports the
terminals through its Field Service, available worldwide. . .

C25-384-104
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
Purchase
Price
VT100
VT101
VT102
VT131
VT125

$1,945
1,350
1,710
1,825
3,800

Monthly
Maint.
$18
15
22
22
29

Options
VT 125 Upgrade Kit
Advanced Video Option
(AVO)
Printer Port Option
20mA Current Loop
Tilt-and-Swivel Base
Anti-Glare Filter Kit
VT18X Personal Computer
Upgrade

1,800
180
350
140
89
60
1,295

•

FEBRUARY 1984

C25-384-101
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
DEC's popular line of ASCII display terminals.
All models feature an 80/132-column
display. Other standard features include a
12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a
detachable. typewriter-style keyboard. Features available with some of the models
include the Advanced Video Option (AVO) •
. printer port. and business graphics capability. Character and block mode transmission versions are available. and some models
have upgrade capability.
Purchase prices for the VT100 terminals
range from $1,350 to $3.800.
DEC's VT125 features business graphics. as well as alphanumeric. capabilities. Using DEC's Remote Graphics Instruction
Set (ReGIS). pictorial data is created and stored as simple ASCII
text. An upgrade kit is available to enable a standard VT100 to be
configured with the graphics capabilities of the VT125.

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, MA 01754. Telephone (617) 8975111.

The VT100 Video Display Terminal is the single most
widely emulated ASCII terminal on the market today.
Introduced in 1978, the VT100 has been joined in DEC's
VT video display family by a wide variety of models for
various applications. This report covers only those models
in the VT100 family which are designed for generalpurpose business use.

DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: VT100-June 1978;
VTl25-July 1981; VTlOl, VTl02, and VTl31-September
1981.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: VT100-September 1978;
VTl25-September 1981; VTlOl, VTl02, and VTl31October 1981.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Information not
available.

Five models currently comprise the VT100 family: the
VT100, which is the basic model; the VTIOI, an entrylevel model without the expansion capabilities of the
VT100; the VTI02, like the VTIOI, a non-expandable
model, but including the Advanced Video Option (AVO)
and Printer Port Option; the VTl31, a block-mode
version of the VT 102; and the VT 125, which has business
graphics capabilities.
In its basic configuration, the VT100 can display 24 Jines
of 80 characters, or 14 lines of 132 characters.
Transmission is performed in character mode. Like all
members of the family, the VT100 features a 12-inch
(diagonal) display screen and detachable, typewriter-style
keyboard. Other standard features include scrolling
(jump or smooth), reverse video, variable screen
brightness, audible key click, and auto repeat keys. The
VT 100 will support expanded capabilities and options.
By adding the Advanced Video Option, the VT100 gains
the following features: four alternate character attributes-bold, underline, blink, and reverse-which can be
selected on a character-by-character basis; expanded
display memory allowing for a display format of 24 lines
by 132 characters; and provision for alternate character
sets.
JANUARY 1983

SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS
The DEC VT100 terminals are stand-alone, desk-top units
featuring a 12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a detachable, typewriter-style keyboard. The following models
currently comprise the family:
• VT100-The basic model. The unit is upgradeable, and
can be configured with the Advanced Video Option and
the Printer Port Option.
• VTlOI-A non-upgradeable, entry-level model; it
contains all of the base features of the VT100, but will
accept no options.
• VTl02-Also non-upgradeable, but contains all VT100
base features plus the AVO and Printer Port Option as
standard features.
• VTl31-The block mode/local edit version of the VTl02.
• VTl25-Contains all of the features of the VT100, plus a
business graphics capability. The VT100 can
be upgraded to the VTl25 via the VTl25 upgrade kit.
TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS

t:>

Transmission is asynchronous, in full-duplex mode (the
VTl02 and VTl31 also support half-duplex mode); at •

C25-384-102
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family

I> The three newest members of the VT I00

family~the

VTlOI, VTl02, and VTl31-were introduced in September 1981. Unlike the VT100, these models are nonexpandable; they cannot be upgraded as user needs
change. The VTlOI is an entry-level model which
contains all of the base features of the VTI 00, plus local
echo. The VT 102 adds the AVO and Printer Port Option
as standard. The VTI 31 is a block mode version of the
VTI02.
The VT 125 provides the functionality -of the VT 100 along
with a business graphics capability. The VTI25 utilizes
DEC's graphics instruction set, ReGIS (Remote Graphics
Instruction Set). In addition to alphanumerics, the unit
can plot trend lines, bar charts, and pie charts. A VTI25
upgrade kit is available for the VT100.
, For applications requiring hard copy of the screen
contents, DEC supplies the DECwriter III and
DECwriter IV Printer Terminals.
DEC also offers the option of converting the VT100
terminal into a personal computer through the addition of
the VTI8X Personal Computing Option. The VTI8X kit
consists of a Z80 microprocessor, 64K bytes of memory,
dual 5Y<1-inch floppy disk drives, and installation
hardware. The resulting VT 180 Personal Computing
Terminal features a CP/M operating system. The VTl8X
option is not available for models in the VT100 family
other than the VT100 itself.
USER REACTION

During June, July, and August of 1982, Datapro, in
conjunction with Data Communications magazine,
conducted the first Terminal Users Survey. A questionnaire, designed by Datapro, was mailed to approximately I>

speeds of 50, 75, 110, 134.5, 150, 200, 300, 600, 1200, 1800,
2000, 2400, 3600, 4800, 9600, and 19,200 bits per second. The
7- or 8-bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity
is selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard on
the VTIOI, VTl02, and VTl31, and available on VT100s
equipped with the printer port. An R5-232-Cinterf8ce is
standard; a 20rnA current loop interface is optional.

DEVICE CONTROL
On the VT100, VTlOI, VTI02, and VTl25, transmission is
performed on a character-by-character basis as each key is
depressed by the operator. On the VTl31, data is
stored in the terminal bulter as it is keyed. It is then
transmitted in block form. The VT100 terrninal memory is
non-volatile-feature settings are retained when the terrninal
is powered down.

The selection and storage of local terminal features is
performed in Set-Up mode. When entering Set-Up mode,
the status of the features stored in the temporary memory is
shown on the screen. Features can be changed, and new
features stored on a temporary basis by leaving Set-Up
mode. The new features can be stored on a fixed basis by
performing a save operatiqn. If a recall operation is
performed, the terminal is reset, or terminal power is turned
olt, all temporary settings are replaced by the ftlll~res that
have been stored on a fixed basis.
The VTl 00 family terminals are compatible with either of
two dilterent programming standards: ANSI, or DEC
VT52. In ANSI mode, the VT100 terminals will respond to
software based on ANSI standards. In VT52 mode, tbe
terminals will respond to software written for use with
DEC's older VT52 video display terminal.
In addition to selection of ANSI or VT52 mode, the
following features can be selected when hI Set-Up mode
(note that not all features are available on all models):
answerback message, full- or half-duplex communications,
host editing, local edit/block mode transmission, local echo,
auto X-on/X-oIf, display format (SO or 132 column), online/local operation, new line, parity, parity sense,
receive/transmit speeds, scroll, tabs, wraparound, character set (U.S., U.K. and special line drawing sets are
standard on all models), cursor, key click, margin bell, screen
background (normal or reverse), screen brightness, and auto
repeat.
-Cursor controls move the cursor up, down, left, right, home,
and return. The cursor may be selected as either a blinking
block or blinking underline.
Advanced Video Option provides dual intensity, blink and
underline functions in any combination with each other and
with reverse video. This option also adds 10 additional 132character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The Advanced
Video Option also provides additional circuitry to add an
alternate or custom character set in the future. Thus two
character sets would reside in the terminal.
The VT100 provides composite video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video
output from a remote terminal or processor without interfering with local usage. Composite video output permits the
VT100 to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.

The DEC VT100 is one of the most popular. as well as one of
the most wide~v emulated. video display terminals on the
market today. When equipped with the Advanced Video
Option. the terminal can display 24 lines of80 or 132 characters.
andfeatures video attributes such as bold. blink. underline. and
reverse on a character-by-character basis.

The VTI25 directly excutes DEC's general purpoSe graphics
descriptor, ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set),
providing a bit map graphics capability. ReGIS allows the
creation and storage of pictorial data as simple ASCII text.
Graphics capabilities in tbe ReGIS fIrmware allow for the
plotting of trend lines, bar charts, and pie charts. In
engineering laboratory applications, point plot graphs and

JANUARY 1983

C25-384-103
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
TABLE 1. VT100 FEATURE COMPARISON
Feature
Base VT100 Features
Upgradeable
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Printer Port
Local Echo
Full-duplex Communications
Half-duplex Communications
Modem Control Support
Host Editi ng
Block Mode Transmission/Local Editing
Bit Map Graphics

VT100

VT101

VT102

VT131

Std.
Yes
Opt.
Opt.
Opt.'
Yes
No
No
Opt."
No
Opt.

Std.
No
No
No
Std.
Yes
No
No
No
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No

Std.
No
Std.
Std.
Std.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No

VT125
Std.
Yes
Opt.
Std.
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
Std.

"With Printer Port.

t> 10,000 addresses selected at random from Data
Communications' U.S. end-user subscriber base. A total
of 60 users of DEC VT100 family terminals responded to
the survey. Breaking the responses down by model yielded
the following totals: 47 of the users reported on their
experiences with the VT I00, representing an installed base
of 2,193 terminals (an average of 47 terminals per user);
and 13 of the users responded on the newer members of the
VT100 family, including the VTIOI, VTl02, VT125, and
VT13I, representing an installed base of 569 units (an
average of 44 terminals per user). The users were asked to
rate the terminals with regard to six separate categories.
The ratings given to the VT100 family terminals by these
users are detailed in the following tables:
VT100
--Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

31
26
20
19
22
IS

19
20
23
22
19

I
2
6
S

3
8

0
0
I
0
0
4

3.6
3.5
3.3
3.3
3.4
3.0

Other VT100 family (VTIOI, VTI02, VT131, VTI2S)
Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service/
technical support

2
2
3

10
8

2
3

0
I
2
3
3
4

0
0
0
0
0
0

3.2
3.1
3.1
3.2
2.9
2.9

*Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

The users were also asked whether or not they would
recommend the DEC terminals to other users. Of the
VT I00 users,· 38 responded that they would recommend
them, while 2 stated that they would not; the remaining 7
users were either undecided or did not respond to that
question. Of the other VT100 family member users, 8
responded that they would recommend their terminals, 2
said that they would not, and the remaining three were
undecided or did not respond.O
JANUARY 1983

strip charts can be plotted. DEC makes available an upgrade
kit to convert a VT100 to the VTl2S.

COMPONENTS
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured)
display screen is standard on all models. Characters are
displayed in white (P4 phosphor) on a dark background, and
are formed utilizing a 7 x 9 dot matrix with descenders. The
96-character upper/lower case ASCII set is displayable.
U.S., U.K., and line drawing character sets are standard on
all models. The VTl25 provides business graphics display.
The standard display format on the VT100, VTl25, and
VTlOl is either 24 lines of 80 characters, or 14 lines of 132
characters. By adding the AVO to the VT100 and VTl25, the
132-column format is increased to 24 lines. The AVO is
standard on the VTl02 and VTl31; it is not available on the
VTlOl.
Standard video attributes include normal or reverse video
(full screen), double high/wide characters (Iine-by-Iine basis),
and adjustable screen brightness. Terminals equipped with
the AVO have these additional video attributes: bold,
underline, blink, and reverse. These attributes can be selected
on a character-by-character basis. The AVO also provides
for alternate character sets to be mapped in a ROM and
inserted into the terminal. These alternate characters can
also be selected on a character-by-character basis.
In September 1981, DEC introduced two new options for
the VT100 CRT. The fJrst option is a tilt-and-swivel base,
enabling the user to adjust the display for ease of viewing.
The second new option is an anti-glare filter kit for use with
the uplay screen.
KEYBOARD: A sculptured typewriter-style, detachable
keyboard which is attached to the monitor via a 6-foot coiled
cord. The keyboard contains 83 keys, including a 65-key
main array and an 18-key numeric/function pad. The
numeric pad includes four program function keys. Visual
indicators on the keyboard include seven LEDs; three are
dedicated to ON-LINE, LOCAL, and KBD LOCKED, and
four are user-programmable. Audible signals include key
click and bell.

PRICING
The VT100 family terminals are available for purchase only.
Installation is-priced at 5150. DEC supPorts the terminals
through its Field Service, available worldwide.

C25-384-104
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family

VT100
VTl0l
VTl02
VT131
VT125

Purchase
Price

Monthly
Maint.

$1,945
1,350
1,710
1,825
3,800

$18
15
22
22
29

Options
VT125 Upgrade Kit
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Printer Port Option
20mA Current Loop
Tilt-and-Swivel Base
Anti-Glare Filter Kit
VT18X Personal Computer Upgrade

1,800
180
350
140
89
60
1,295

JANUARY 1983

C25-384-101
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
A family of stand-alone ASCII display
terminals. headed by the widely-emulated
VT100.
All models feature an 80/132-column
display. Other standard features include a
12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a
detachable. typewriter-style keyboard. Features available with some of the models
include the Advanced Video Option (AVO).
printer port. and business graphics capability. Character and block mode transmission versions are available. and some models
have upgrade capability.
Purchase prices for the VT100 terminals
range from $2.150 to $3.800.

The DEC VT100 is one of the most popular, as well as one of
the most widely emulated, video display terminals on the
market today. When equipped with the Advanced Video
Option, the terminal can display 24 lines of80 or 132 characters,
and features video attributes such as bold, blink, underline, and
reverse on a character-by-character basis.

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
Digital Equipment Corporation's VT100 Video Display
Terminal is the single most widely emulated ASCII
terminal on the market today. Introduced in 1978, the
VT100 replaced the company's older VT52 terminal.
Initially, production problems with the VT100 caused a
delivery lag, with DEC unable to supply its distributors
with enough units. This situation was viewed as an
opportunity by many independent terminal manufacturers, who entered the DEC market with VT100
emulators. After several months, however, DEC resolved
its problems, and the company is now in full production
and able to meet its delivery schedules on time.
Six models currently comprise the VT100 family: the
VT100, which is the basic model; the VT132, which is a
block-mode version of the VT100; the VTI01, an entrylevel model without the expansion capabilities of the
VT100; the VTI02, like the VTIOI, a non-expandable
model, but including the Advanced Video Option (AVO)
and Printer Port Option; the VT131, a block-mode
version of the VTI 02; and the VTl25, which has business
graphics capabilities.
In its basic configuration, the VT100 can display 24 lines
of 80 characters, or 14 lines of 132 characters.
Transmission is performed in character mode. Like all
members of the family, the VT100 features a 12-inch
(diagonal) display screen and detachable, typewriter-style
keyboard. Other standard features include scrolling
Uump or smooth), reverse video, variable screen
brightness, audible key click, and auto repeat keys. The t>
DECEMBER 1981

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, MA 01754. Telephone (617) 8975111.

DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: VT100-June 1978;
VTl32-June 1978; VTl25-July 1981; VTlO1, VTl02, and
VTl31-September 1981.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: VT100-September 1978;
VTl32-December 1980; VTI25-September 1981; VTlO1,
VTl02, and VTl31-0dober 1981.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Information not
available.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS
The DEC VT100 terminals are stand-alone, desk-top units
featuring a 12-inch (diagonal) display screen and a detachable, typewriter-style keyboard. The following models
currently comprise the family:
• VTl 00-The basic model. The unit is upgradeable, and
can be configured with the Advanced Video Option and
the Printer Port Option.
• VTl32-The block mode/local edit version of the VT100.
• VTI0I-A non-upgradeable, entry-level model; it
contains all of the base features of the VT100, but will
accept no options.
• VTl02-Also non-upgradeable, but contains all VT100
base features plus the AVO and Printer Port Option as
standard features.

• VTl31-The block mode/local edit version of the VTl02.
• VTl25-Contains all of the features of the VT100, plus a
business graphics capability. The VT100 can
be upgraded to the VTl25 via the VTl25 upgrade kit. ~

C25-384-102
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family

I:> VT100 will support expanded capabilities and options.
By adding the Advanced Video Option, the VT100 gains
the following features: four alternate character attributes-bold, underline, blink, and reverse-which can be
selected on a character-by-character basis; expanded
display memory allowing for a display format of 24 lines
by 132 characters; and provision for alternate character
sets. The VTl32 has all of the features of the VT100, but
it allows for block mode transmission and permits local
editing (block mode transmission is not supported on
DEC systems).
The three newest members of the VT 100 family-the
VT 10 I, VT 102, and VT 13 I-were introduced in September 1981. Unlike the VT100 and VTl32, these models are
non-expandable; they cannot be upgraded as user needs
change. The VTIOI is an entry-level model which
contains all of the base features of the VT100, plus local
echo. The VTI02 adds the AVO and Printer Port Option
as standard. The VT 131 is a block mode version of the
VTI02.
The VTI25 provides the functionality of the VT100 along
with a business graphics capability. The VTI25 utilizes
DEC's graphics instruction set, ReGIS (Remote Graphics
Instruction Set). In addition to alphanumerics, the unit
can plot trend lines, bar charts, and pie charts. A VT 125
upgrade kit is available for the VT100.
For applications requiring hard copy of the screen
contents, DEC supplies the DECwriter III and
DECwriter IV Printer Terminals. See reports C27-38420 I and C27-384-30 I, respectively, for information on
these products.
USER REACTION

In the 1981 survey of alphanumeric display terminal
users, Datapro received responses from six users of the
DEC VT100 video display terminal. These users reported
on their experiences with a total of 41 terminals. Their
ratings are as follows:
Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
Ovenlll performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ha~dware reliability
Maintenance service
Technical support

5
4
4
4
4
3
3

2
2
2

0
0
0

0
0
0
0
0
0
0

3.8
3.5
3.7
3.7
3.7
3.4
3.5

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS

•

Transmission is asynchronous, in full-duplex mode (the
VTl02 and VTl31 also support half-duplex mode); at
speeds of 50, 75, 110,134.5, ISO, 200,300,600, 1200, 1800,
2000, 2400, 3600, 4800, %00, and 19,200 bits per second. The
7- or 8-bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity
is selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard on
the VTlOI, VTl02, and VTl31, and available on VT100s
and VTl32s equipped with the printer port. An RS-232-C
interface is standard; a 20mA current loop interface is
optional.

DEVICE CONTROL
On the VT100, VTlOl, VTl02, and VTl25, transmission is
performed on a character-by-character basis as each key is
depressed by the operator. On the VTl31 and VTl32, data is
stored in the terminal butTer as it is keyed. It is then
transmitted in block form. The VT100 terminal memory is
non-volatile-feature settings are retained when the terminal
is powered down.
The selection and storage of local terminal features is
performed in Set-Up mode. When entering Set-Up mode,
the status of the features stored in the temporary memory is
shown on the screen. Features can be changed, and new
features stored on a temporary basis by leaving Set-Up
mode. The new features can be stored on a fixed basis by
performing a save operation. If a recall operation is
performed, the terminal is reset, or terminal power is turned
otT, all temporary settings are replaced by tbe:features that
have been stored on a fixed basis.
The VT100 family terminals are compatible with either of
two different programming standards: ANSI, or DEC
VT52. In ANSI mode, the VT100 terminals will respond to
software based on ANSI standards. In VT52 mode, the
terminals will respond to software written for use with
DEC's older VT52 video display terminal.
In addition to selection of ANSI or VT52 mode, the
following features can be selected when in Set-Up mode
(note that not all features are available on all models):
answerback message, full- or half-duplex communications,
host editing, local edit/block mode transmission, local echo,
auto XON/OFF, display format (80 or 132 column), online/local operation, new line, parity, parity sense, bit map
graphics, receive/transmit speeds, scroll, tabs, wraparound,
character set (U.S., U.K. and special line drawing sets are
standard on all models), cursor, key click, margin bell, screen
background (normal or reverse), screen brightness, and auto
repeat.
Cursor controls move the cursor up, down, left, right, home,
and return. The cursor may be selected as either a blinking
block or blinking underline.
Advanced Video Option provides dual intensity, blink and
underline functions in any combination with each other and
with reverse video. This option also adds 10 additional 132character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The Advanced
Video Option also provides additional circuitry to add an
alternate or custom character set in the future. Thus two
character sets would reside in the terminal.

*Weighted Average based on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

As in the 1980 survey, the ratings given the VT100 terminals were consistently high. Typical applications
mentioned by the respondents included program
development (5 users), data entry (4 users), intracompany message transmission (2 users), and text editing
(2 users).D

The VT100 provides composite video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video
output from a remote terminal or processor without interfering with local usage. Composite video output permits the
VT100 to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.
The VTl25 directly excutes DEC's general purpose graphics
descriptor, ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set), . .

DECEMBER 1981

C25-384-103
Display Tenninals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VT100
Video Display Terminal Family
TABLE 1. VT100 FEATURE COMPARISON
Feature
-Base VT100 Features
Upgradeable
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Printer Port
Local Echo
Full-duplex Communications
Half-duplex Communications
Modem Control Support
Host Editing
Block Mode Transmission/Local Editing
Bit Map Graphics

VT100
---

VT132
---

VT101

VT102
---

VT131

Std,
Yes
Opt
Opt
Opt'
Yes
No
No
Opt'
No
Opt

Std,
Yes
Opt
Opt
Opt'
Yes
No
No
Opt'
Yes
No

Std,
No
No
No
Std,
Yes
No
No
No
No
No

Std,
No
Std,
Std,
Std,
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No

Std,
No
Std,
Std,
Std,
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No

VT125
--Std,
Yes
Opt
Std,
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
Std,

'With Printer Port,

providing a bit map graphics capability. ReGIS allows the
creation and storage of pictorial data as simple ASCII text.
Graphics capabilities in the ReGIS firmware allow for the
plotting of trend lines, bar charts, and pie charts. In
engineering laboratory applications, point plot graphs and
strip charts can be plotted. DEC makes available an upgrade
kit to convert a VT100 to the VTl25.

Standard video attributes include normal or reverse video
(full sereen), double high/wide characters (line-by-Iine basis),
and adjustable screen brightness. Terminals equipped with
the AVO have these additional video attributes: bold,
underline, blink, and reverse. These attributes can be selected
on a character-by-character basis. The AVO also provides
, for alternate character sets to be mapped in a ROM and
inserted into the terminal. These alternate characters can
also be selected on a character-by-character basis.
In September 1981, DEC introduced two new options for
the VT100 CRT. The fIrSt option is a tilt-and-swivel base,
enabling the user to adjust the display for ease of viewing.
The second new option is an anti-glare filter kit for use with
the display screen.
KEYBOARD: A sculptured typewriter-style, detachable
keyboard which is attached to the monitor via a 6-foot coiled
cord. The keyboard contains 83 keys, including a 65-key
main array and an 18-key numeric/function pad. The
numeric pad includes four program function keys. Visual
indicators on the keyboard include seven LEDs; three are
dedicated to ON-LINE, LOCAL, and KBD LOCKED, and
four are user-programmable. Audible signals include key
click and bell.

PRICING
The VT100 family terminals are available for purchase only.
Installation is priced at 5150. DEC supports the terminals
through its Field Service, available worldwide.

VT100
VT132
VT1o.1
VT1o.2
VT131
VT125

Purchase
Price

Monthly
Maint.

$2,150.
2,575
2,150
2,400
2,450.
3,800

$18
18
15
22
22
29

Options

The VTl25 features business graphics, as well as alphanumeric,
capabilities. Using DEC's Remote Graphics Instruction Set
(ReGIS), pictorial data is created and stored as simple ASCII
text.

DECEMBER 1981

VT125 Upgrade Kit
Advanced Video Option (AVO)
Pri nter Port Option
2o.mA Current Loop
TIlt-and-Swivel Base
Anti-Glare Filter Kit

2,000
150
225
140
89
60.

C25-384-101
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT-100 Video Display Terminal
MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
The VT-IOO is an advanced function CRT display designed to supersede the DEC VT 52 while remaining
compatible with it. In terms of the DEC product line,
the VT-IOO is a terminal for sale to OEM accounts; it is a
display terminal which can be sold on DEC systems;
and it forms the base of the PDT-II terminal line, a
user programmable family of terminals compatible with
the PDP-II series of computers.
The standard VT-100 can display 24 lines of 80 characters or 14 lines of 132 characters. An optional advanced
video function provides an additional 10 lines of 132
characters. Characters are formed in a 7 x 9 matrix
with upper/lower case displayed either as white on black·
or black on white.

A stand-alone teletype compatible display
terminal capable of displaying either 80 or
132 characters per line. Standard features
include detached keyboard, reverse video,
split screen addressable cursor, selectable
transmission rates, and parity.
An optional advanced video function provides
full 24-line x 132-character screen capacity;
blink, underline and dual intensity in any
combination; and provision for storing an
alternate or custom character set.
Available for purchase only at $2,050 in
quantity one. OEM discounts are available.

CHARACTERISTICS
The VT-100 has two mechanical switches, one for controlling the power supply and the other for turning the
terminal on and off. All functions, (setting tab stops,
transmission rates, parity, etc.) are set via the operator's
keyboard. The keyboard is detached and connected to the
display by means of a six-foot coil cord.

VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, MA 01754.

A printer port option has recently been added to the VT100. This option enables a hard copy printer (including
the DECprinter III and the DECwriter IV) to be
attached.

NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Information not available.

DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: June 1978.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: September 1978, volume
delivery November 1978.

SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.

CONFIGURATION
USER REACTION

In the 1980 survey of alphanumeric display terminal
users. Datapro received responses from 10 users of the
DEC VT-IOO display terminal. These users reported on
their experiences with 23 installed units. Their ratings are
as follows:
1:>

The standard VT-IOO is a CRT with detached keyboard
which displays upper and lower case ASCII characters in a
format of 24 lines of 80 characters or 24 lines of 132
characters. An optional printer port is available, only for
terminals equipped with the advanced video option.

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
The VT-IOO transmits in fun duplex mode, asynchronously.
Transmission speeds are switch selectable at 50, 75, 110,
134.5, ISO, 200, 300, 600, 1200, 1800, 2000, 2400, 3600,
4800, 9600 or 19.2K bps. A total of 94 ASCII characters
may be transmitted. Odd, even, or no parity is also switch
selectable from the operator keyboard. A standard EIA
RS-232-C interface is the standard connection. A 20 mA
current loop interface is available as an option.

DEVICE CONTROL
Transmission is performed on a character-by-character basis
as each key is depressed by the operator.
A split screen capability permits prompts and status indications to be displayed independent of keyed data. Smooth
scrolling in either direction is also standard. The split screen
also permits only part of the screen to scroll. Thus menu
selection or prompts may be scrolled without disturbing
keyed data.
The basic character set includes a number of line drawing
graphies which may be used to form pictorial information
FEBRUARY 1981

C25-384-102
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT-100 Video Display Terminal

Excellent Good Fair

----

. Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service
Technical support

7
7
7
7
7
4
4

3
2
3
3
3
4
3

0
I
0
0
0
2
2

Poor WA*
0
0
0
0
0
0
I

3.7
3.6
3.7
3.7
3.7
3.2
3.0

*Weighted Average on a. scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

Datapro conducted telephone interviews with three .of
the respondents to obtain additional comments. The first
user interviewed was a west coast manufacturer, who
praised the reliability of the terminal. The company had
required no service on the unit in the I Y:1 years that it had
been operating. The user added that the VT-100's smooth
scroll feature was " ... a nice thing to have." The terminal's
VT-52 emulation is often utilized, stated the user, but the
132-column capability had never been needed for their
applications. The only negative point mentioned was an
imperfection in the keyboard, which the operator was
capable of correcting himself.
The second respondent questioned was a southwest
utility company. Although in limited use, the user praised
his VT-IOO for its versatility, reliability, and the excellent
quality of the characters generated. "It's a little expensive
for our application," he added, "but the readily available
. service from DEC makes it worth it".
The final user polled was an east coast software
development house. This user felt that the VT-100's main
attribute was its human engineering. He praised the clear
characters, smooth scrolling, keyboard layout and feel,
and the detachability of the keyboard. He stated that
although the l32-column format was hard to read and
contained a design problem (the text is pressed too close
to the left margin), "All in all, we are very p\eased.D

on the display screen. Simple forms, graphs and charts may
be created when required using these graphic characters.
The VT-IOO provides compositl! video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video
output from a remote terminal or processor without interfering with local usage. Composite video output permits the
VT-IOO to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.
The VT-l00 is compatible with the DEC VT-52.
Advanced Video Option provides dual intensity, blink and
underline functions in any combination with each other and
with reverse video. This option also adds 10 additional
132-character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The
Advanced Video Option also provides additional circuitry
to add an alternate or custom character set in the future.
Thus two character sets would reside in' the terminal.
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: The standard VT-I00 terminal
displays 24 lines of 80 characters, or 24 lines of 132
characters. Characters are upper/lower case, formed on a 7
x 9 matrix; however, double size of double width characters
may be displayed on a line-by-line basis. Lower case
characters have two-dot descenders for those characters
which extend below the base line. The user may select white
characters on a black screen or black characters on a white
screen on a character-by-character basis. A 128-character
ASCII set is displayed. The display monitor measures 14.5
inches high, 18 inches wide, and 8 inches deep.
KEYBOARD: The detached keyboard is connected to the
display terminal via a six-foot coil cord permitting virtually
any convenient keyboard placement. The keyboard is
sculptured and arranged in conventional typewriter
configuration. In addition, there is an 18-key numeric/
function keypad which provides calculator-style numeric
input plus single keystroke entries for program controlled
application functions. There are a total of 83 keys.

PRICING
The VT-loo is available for purchase only at $2,050 per unit.
The Advanced Video Option is priced at $290 per unit.
Monthly maintenance is available from DEC at $17.00 per
unit.•

FEBRUARY 1981

C25-384-101
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT-100 Video Display Terminal
A stand-alone teletype compatible display
tenninal capable of displaying either 80 or
132 characters per line. Standard features
include detached keyboard, reverse video,
split screen addressable cursor, selectable
transmission rates, and parity.
An optional advanced video function provides
full 24-line x 132-character screen capacity;
blink, underline and dual intensity in any
combination; and provision for storing an
alternate or custom character set.
Available for purchase only at $1,900 in
quantity one. OEM discounts are available.

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) 146 Main
Street, Maynard, MA 01754.
. DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: June 1978.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: September 1978, volume
deliver,y November 1978.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Information not available.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
The VT-100 is an advanced function CRT display designed to supersede the DEC VT 52 while remaining
compatible with it. In terms of the DEC product line,
the VT-IOO is a terminal for sale to OEM accounts; it is a
display terminal which can be sold on DEC systems;
and it forms the base of the PDT-II terminal line, a
user programmable family of terminals compatible with
the PDP-II series of computers.
The standard VT-100 can display 24 lines of 80 characters or 14 lines of 132 characters. An optional advanced
video function provides an additional 10 lines of 132
characters. Characters are formed in a 7 x 9 matrix
with upper flower case displayed either as white on black
or black on white.
The VT-100 has two mechanical switches, one for controlling the power supply and the other for turning the
terminal on and off. All functions, (setting tab stops,
transmission rates, parity, etc.) are set via the operator's
keyboard. The keyboard is detached and connected to the
display by means of a six-foot coil cord.D

CONFIGURATION
The standard VT-l00 is a CRT with detached keyboard
which displays upper and lower case ASCII characters in a
format of 24 lines of 80 characters or 14 lines of 132
characters.

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
The VT-l00 transmits in fun duplex mode, asynchronously.
Transmission speeds are switch selectable at 50, 75, 110,
134.5, 150, 200, 300, 600, 1200, 1800, 2000, 2400, 3600,
4800, 9600 or 19.2K bps. A total of 94 ASCII characters
may be transmitted. Odd, even, or no parity is also switch
selectable from the operator keyboard. A standard EIA
R5-232 interface is the standard connection. A 20 mA
current loop interface is available as an option.

DEVICE CONTROL
Transmission is performed on a character-by-character basis
as each key is depressed by the operator. The standard
VT-100 terminal displays 24 lines of 80 characters, or 14
lines of 132 characters. Characters are upper flower case,
formed on a 7 x 9 matrix; however, double size or double
width characters may be displayed on a line-by-Iine basis.
Lower case characters have two-dot descenders for those
characters which extend below the base line. The user may
select white characters on a black screen or black characters on a white screen on a character-by-character basis.
A split screen capability permits prompts and status indications to be displayed independent of keyed data. Smooth
scrolling in either direction is also standard. The split screen
also permits only part of the screen to scroll. Thus menu
selection or prompts may be scrolled without disturbing
keyed data.
~

APRIL 1979

C25-384-102

Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT-100 Video Display Terminal
,... The basic character set includes a number of tine drawing
graphics which may be Used to form pictorial information
on the display screen. Simple forms, graphs and charts may
be created when required using these graphic characters.
The VT-tOO provides composite video input and output.
Composite video input permits the user to overlay video

output from a remote terminal or processor without interfering with loeal usage. Composite video output permits the
VT-tOO to drive an auxiliary monitor which is useful where
data or text must be displayed to a group of people.
The VT-tOO. compatible with the DEC VT-S2.
Advanced Video Option provides dual intensity, blink and
underline functions in any combination with each other and
with reverse video. Th. option also adds 10 additional
132-character display lines for a total of 24 lines. The
Advanced Video Option also provides additional circuitry
to add an alternate or custom character set in the future.
Thus two character sets would reside in the terminal, switch
selectable by the operator.

The detached keyboard is connected to the display terminal
via a six-foot eoiI cord permitting virtually any convenient
keyboard placement. The keyboard is sculptured and arranged

in conventional typewriter configuration. In addition, there
is an IS-key numeric/function keypad which provides ealeulator-style numeric input plus single keystroke entries for
program controUed application functions. There are a total
of 83 keys.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
The VT-tOO display monitor measures t4.5 inches high,
18 inches wide and 14.25 inches deep. The keyboard measures
3:4 inches high, 18 inches wide and 8 inches deep. Because
the base of the monitor is recessed, the total depth of the
terminal is 20.25 inches if the keyboard is placed directly
in front of, and flush with the monitor. The weight of the
terminal is 34.5 pounds.

PRICING
The VT-IOO is available for purchase only at 51,900 per unit.
The Advanced Video Option is priced at 5270 per unit.
Monthly maintenance is available from DEC at 517.00 per
unit ••

REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED

APRIL 1979

C25-384-101
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
DECscope VT50 and VT52

A low-cost family of teletype-compatible
CRT keyboard/display terminals.
Standard features include selectable transmission rates, tabulation, extensive cursor
control, addressable cursor, program function keys, numeric pad, etc. Options include
an RS-232C or current loop interface and a
serial/parallel printer interface.

The VT52 has the same physical appearance as the VT50, but features an auxiliary keypad (standard), a 1920-character screen, and
several other significant features not found on the earlier VT50.

CHARACTERISTICS

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
Known as the IBM of the minicomputer industry, Digital
Equipment Corporation is also a manufacturer of terminals that complement its minicomputers and provide
total systems capability. Its terminals have also achieved
prominence within the industry and are integrated into
'>v"tems offered by several vendors. These prominent
DEC terminals include the DECwriter, a teleprinter terminal (Report C27-384-101), and the DECscope, a display terminal. The DECscope is available in two models,
the VT50 and a newer, more sophisticated version, the
VT52. Both models are identical in appearance and include a 12-inch CRT screen and an integral keyboard.
The terminals are teleprinter-oriented and provide Teletype compatibility.
As alternatives to teleprinter terminals, the DECscopes
offer several useful features that provide increased operating flexibility, communications efficiency, and performance. Paramount among these features is the Hold
Screen mode, which lets the user view displayed data at
his own pace by freezing the page; when ready, the user
requests additional data. Under user control, the termi~
nal automatically regulates the volume of data transmitted by the host computer via commands that interrupt or request the transmitted data. This useful feature is
complemented by the Alternate mode feature provided
by the VT52. This feature allows the auxiliary keypad to '
be used for user (software)-defined program function
keys as an alternative to their basic functions.
Display clarity is improved on the VT52 over the VT50,
which has lower character resolution. And unlike the
VT50, the VT52 displays both upper and lower case symbols in addition to 33 graphic symbols.
Neither model provides edit functions, such as character
and line insert and delete, or format protection for struc- I:>
NOVEMBER 1976

Configurations are stand-alone. Pricing
ranges from $1,300 to $2,320 including all
options. The VT50 and VT52 are available for
purchase only. OEM and end-user quantity
discounts are available.

VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), One
Iron Way, Marlborough, MA 01782. Telephone (800)
225-9480.
DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: VT50-June 1974; VT52September 1975.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: VTSO-December 1974;
VT52-December 1975.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: About 80,000.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS
Model VTSO and VT52 DECscope Video Display Terminals are stand-alone, Teletype-compatible alphanumeric display terminals with integral keyboards. The VT52 can accommodate a printer via the optional Printer Interface
Module. The option provides a serial (RS-232C) and parallel interface and can accommodate the DECwriter or the
DEC LA180 printer.
TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous and is performed in the half
or full duplex mode at switch-selectable data rates of 75, 110,
ISO, 300, 600, 1200, 2400,4800, and 9600 bits/second. The
HI- or ll-unit, 8-level ASCII code is used. Parity is switchselectable_ Even parity or a mark condition ("1") are selectable; odd or a space condition ("0") are selectable if specified. Each character includes one start bit and one or two tured data entry applications. These functions require
buffered operation and block transmission, which the
VT5(} and VT52 do not provide. The DECscope models
are designed to satisfy the teleprinter market, and as such
are not required to include data entry functions, which
would result in higher prices.

Only the VT52 is available with a printer interface, which
may be a severe limitation for some potential users of the
VT50. The optional printer interface for the VT52 accommodates a serial or parallel printer interface (the DECwriter or DEC LA180 can be used) and responds to local
or remote commands that condition the printer to print
only displayed data as a local copy printer or data received from the communications line that is not displayed. Printing can be performed by line or page (via
command), which provides added flexibility.

The Hold Saeen mode freezes a page of displayed data until
the Scroll function is keyed, which permits the next line or
page of data (defmed by one or more line feed codes) to be
displayed. The terminal remains in the Hold Screen mode
untiI disabled by the appropriate command (Fscape sequence). An internal buffer (Silo) receives data to be displayed from the host computer when the terminal is in the
Hold Screen mode. A line or page of data is transferred from
Silo and displayed for each depression of the shift and/or
scroll keys. When the Silo is full, an XOFF code is transmitted to the host computer to interrupt transmission. Transmission is continued when the terminal transmits an XON
code, which indicates that the terminal can accept one or
more lines of data depending on the quantity of data remaining in the Silo. The transmmsion of XON and XOFF control codes is an automatic function of the terminal and the
Scroll function is active only in the Hold Screen mode.

The salient features of the VT50 and VT52 are as follows:
•

1920-{VT52) or 960-(VT50) character screen.

•

96 displayable symbols plus 32 additional graphic
symbols (VT52 only).

•

Individual cursor control keys (VT52 only).

•

Addressable cursor (VT52 only).

•

Tabulation.

•

Character-by-character transmission.

•

Switch-selectable transmission rates from 75 to 9600
bps.

•

Asynchronous operation.

•

RS-232C interface (optional on VT50).

When not in the Hold Screen mode, data automatically rolls
up by one line when data is displayed on the last line and a
line feed occurs; the fIrSt line is lost as it rolls oft'the screen.
Cursor movement results from carriage return, line feed, tab,
space and backspace functions. Cursor movement is also directed by keyed or received Fscape sequence commands and
by individual cursor control keys on the VT52. Carriage return positions the cursor to the beginning of the line occupied by the cursor. Line feed moves the cursor to the same"
character position of the next line. The data scrolls up by one
line if the last line contains data when a line feed is received;
the fIrSt line is lost as it scrolls oft'the screen. Space and
backspace move the cursor forward or backward by one
character position. Tab moves the cursor to the next tab
stop. Tab stops are spaced at 8-character intervals up to the
72nd character position. The tab function advances the
cursor by one character position following the 72nd character position. Individual cursor controls on the VT52 move
the cursor up, down, left, and right and transmit the appropriate control codes. Escape sequences move the cursor
up, down (VT52 only) right, left (VT52 only), and home.
Cursor functions do not feature wraparound; movement
stops at the end of a line or at the top or bottom line.

• "20 rna dc current loop interface (standard on VT50).
•

Printer interface (a VT52 option only).

•

Auxiliary keypad including numeric keys (standard
on VT52 only).

Erasure functions are also directed by Escape functions and
include screen and line erase. Screen erase erases alI displayed data from the cursor position to the end of the display. Erase line erases all data displayed on the line occupied
by the cursor beginning with the cursor location.
The auxiliary keypad on the VT52 operates in one of two
modes; Numeric or Alternate. In Numeric mode, numeric
codes (difJerent from those generated by the main keygroup) are generated for each numeric key. In Alternate
mode, each numeric key generates a unique escape sequence.
The cursor and blank keys generate the same escape sequence in either mode. The escape sequences generated by
the numeric keys in the Alternate mode can be defmed by
user programs. The Caps Lock function on the VT52 afJects
the main keygroup only, not the auxiliary keypad. When enabled, the Caps Lock function disables lower case; only
upper case codes are transmitted.

USER REACTION

In Datapro's 1976 survey of alphanumeric display terminal users, 4 users reported on their experience with a total
of 19 DEC VT50 display terminals. Their ratings are presented below.
Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel and
usability

3
4
2
3

0
0
2
I

I
0
0
0

0
0
0
0

3.5
4.0
3.5
3.8

VTSO and VT52 perform carriage return, line feed, space,
backspace, tabulation, screen erase, line erase, sound audible
alarm (bell), cursor movement, terminal identification, enable and disable Hold Saeen mode, and enable Fscape
mode. The VT52 also executes commands for cursor addressing (line and character), additional cursor movement,
and auxiliary keypad, Alternate mode, Graphic and Print
mode enable/disable.

I:>

The Printer mode, provided for the VT52 only via the optional Printer Interface Module, features local or remote
control of an attached printer. Keyed or received control se-

NOVEMBER 1976

...
~

C25-384-103
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
DECscope VT50 and VT52
Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*

1>
Hardware reliability
Maintenance service
Software & technical
support

3
2
2

0
I
2

0
I
0

I
0
0

3.3
3.3
3.5

*Weighted Average on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

These satisfied users unanimously cited low cost as the
key advantage of the VT50. Flexibility, reliability, and
strong vendor support each received two mentions. Performance limitations were cited by two users as the basic
disadvantage. 0
~

quences execute a print screen or print cursor line operation
or enable or disable Auto-Print or Printer-Controller modes.
The Auto-Print mode prints the line occupied by the cursor
and moves the cursor down by one line for each line feed.
The Printer-Controller mode prints without displaying data
received from the communications line.

COMPONENTS
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonal measurement)
CRT with a viewing area 4.1 inches high by 8.3 inches wide.
The display arrangement is as follows:

Chars./display:
Chars./line:
Lines/display:

VTSO

VTS2

960
80
12

1920
80
24

The VTSO provides a character set of 64 ASCII characters
including upper case a1phabetics, numerics, and special sym-

boIs. The VTS2 provides a character set of 96 ASCII characters including upper and lower case alphabeties, numerics,
and specials plus 32 additional special symbols with the
Graphics mode. Data is displayed in white. The VTSO displays each character within a >by-7 dot matrix. The VTS2
displays each character within a 7-by-7 dot matrix. The
cursor is displayed as a blinking underscore.
VTSO KEYBOARD: A 62-key, typewriter-style integral keyboard. Key functions include Back Space, Break, Line Feed,
Delete, Carriage Return, Tab, Escape, Bell, Scroll, Shift, and
Control Shift. The keyboard generates any of 64 ASCII
upper case codes.
VTS2 KEYBOARD: A 62-key, typewriter-style integral keyboard. Key functions include Back Space, Break, Line Feed,
Delete, Carriage Retuin, Repeat, Escape, Tab, Bell, Scroll,
Caps Lock, Shift, and Control Shift. The keyboard generates any of 128 ASCII characters. The 19-key auxiliary
keypad located to the right of tbe main keygroup includes II
numeric key (including decimal point), four cursor control
keys, and the Enter key.

PRICING
DEC offers direct purchase of equipment through its catalog
sales with discounts up to 9 percent off list price for cash
with the order, and up to S percent for cash within 30 days
for approved, open account customers. The DECscope can
also be ordered through the Components Group, which provides discounts of up to 38 percent on orders of SO or more
units over a 12-month period. End-user and OEM Dollar
and Unit Volume discount agreements are available for enduser and OEM orders that include the DECscope as part of
complete minicomputer systems. Contact Digital Equipment
Corp. for the discounts for these arrangements.
InstaIlation is pried at 595 per terminal. The field installation
charge for the Printer Interface Module is 5S0 per option
plus a 54S site charge. The monthly maintenance charge is
for prime-shift service.

Purchase Price

NOVEMBER 1976

1-49

50-99

100-199

Units

VT 50 with 20 rna de current loop interface
VT50 with RS-232C/CCrrr interface

$1,300
1,360

$ 995
1,041

$ 925
967

VT52 with 20 rna dc current loop interface
VT52 with RS-232C/CCITI interface
Printer Interface Module (VT52 only)

2,095
2,095
225

1,570
1,570

1,425
1,425

CORPORATION, DELRAN, N.J. 08075
REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

C25-384-201
Terminals

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT200 Display Family
In this report:

Product Summary

Analysis .................... -202

Editor's Note
Digital Equipment Corporation no
longer manufactures the VT200 display family. Its successor, the VT300
display series, offers full compatibility, improved ergonomics, and
greater functionality at a lower price.
Because of the high market penetration of the VT200 family, Datapro
continues to include this product
report in Datapro Reports on Data

Characteristics .......... -203
Pricing ....................... -206

Communications.
Description
The VT200 family of video display
terminals consists of three models.
The VT220 is a monochrome terminal designed for text-oriented applications. The monochrome VT240
and the color VT241 both offer bitmapped graphics capability.
Strengths
The VT200 display terminals provide improved price/performance
over the VT100. Their monitors offer smaller footprints and more
streamlined designs, and their lowprofile keyboards are more comfortable. With the VT241 , Digital
introduced color capability.

1990 McGraw-Hili. Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.

DAlrAn N.I /IRIl7!; LJ!':A

Limitations
Because of the strong demand for the
VT220, Digital raised its price to
$1,395. Other vendors countered by
introducing VT220 clones for less
than $800, forcing Digital to lower
its price accordingly. Today, VT220
imitations are still marketed for as
little as $499.
Competition
Wyse Technology, Hewlett-Packard,
TeleVideo Systems, Qume Corporation, Esprit Systems, and several others.
Vendor
Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC)
146 Main Street
Maynard, MA 01754-2571
(508) 493-5111
Prices
The VT200 family is no longer marketed.

JULY 1990

C25-384-202
Terminals

Analysis

Product Strategy
Digital Equipment Corporation's VT200 series,
announced in November 1983, more than aptly
succeeded its predecessor, the VT100 product line.
Prior to its discontinuance, the VT 100 was the
most successful and most widely emulated ASCII
terminal, with more than one million sold. Featuring full VT100 compatibility, the VT200 terminals
offer a modular design based on the company's line
of personal computer products, and provide the
user with an improved price/performance ratio
over that found on the VT 100 terminals. With the
demand for the VT220 being so strong, Digital,
being confronted by independent terminal vendors
offering clones for as little as $795, responded to
the intense competition by reducing the price of
this general-purpose model to match that of the
clone versions offered by its competitors.
The VT200 family consists of three models:
the VT220, VT240, and VT241. The VT220 is the

Digital Equipment
CorporaUon
VT200 Display Family

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

low-end model, a general-purpose interactive display which directly replaces the venerable VT100.
Features include a 12-inch monochrome display,
80-/132-column display capability, and a detachable keyboard. The VT240 combines the VT220's
text functions with graphics capability; two graphics protocols are available (Digital's ReGIS and
Tektronix' 4010/4014). The VT241 is a color text!
graphics terminal, combining the features found on
the VT220 and VT240 with color display capability and a slightly larger (13 inches) display screen.
The VT200 terminals incorporate a modular
enclosure design not found on the older VT 100
models. As a result of this design, the VT200 terminals are more compact and take up less desk
space than the older VT100 models. The VT220
features two-piece construction, including the
monitor and keyboard; terminal logic is contained
in the monitor housing. The VT240 and VT241
feature three-piece construction, consisting of the
monitor, the keyboard, and a system box containing the terminal's logic. The VT200 monitors have
a wedge-shaped design with a built-in tilt feature;
the keyboards incorporate a low-profile design and
conform to the DIN standard for ergonomics.

Competitive Position
Digital's VT100 display terminal ranks as the most
successful ASCII terminal ever marketed. Since its

The VT220 offers a 12-inch
monochrome green, amber,
or paper-white screen providing 80- or 132-column
display capability. Its 103key typewriter-style keyboard, which includes 15
programmable function keys
and a numeric pad, is available in any of 16 international styles.

JULY 1990

1990 McGraw-Hili, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.
Delran NJ 08075 USA

I§l

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT200 Displa, Famll,

introduction in 1978, 1 million VT100s have been
shipped, including submodels VT 10 1, VT 102,
VT125, VT131, and VT132.
Into this ready-made market came the VT200
family. Digital imbued the VT200 terminals with
full VT100 compatibility, virtually assuring them
of a successful product life. Demand for the VT220
in particular was initially strong, enabling Digital
to raise the price of the terminal from $1,295 to
$1,395.
After the VT200 introduction, however, a
large number of terminal vendors introduced
VT200 emulators, most of them emulating the
VT220. These competitors included Wyse Technology, Hewlett-Packard, TeleVideo Systems,
Qume Corporation, Esprit Systems, CIE Terminats, Zentec, Liberty Electronics, Microterm, Visual Technology, and many others. These vendors
unveiled their VT220 clones with purchase prices
as low as $795, which forced Digital to lower the
price of the VT220 to match those of the independent manufacturers.
Years after their withdrawal, an emulation
market for the VT200 and VT 100 still flourishes.
The VT 100/200/300 emulation market is second in
size only to the IBM 3270 emulation market in
overall display terminal sales. Most major generalpurpose ASCII display terminal vendors provide
models with some VT emulation as part of their
product lines.
When Digital introduced the VT100 in 1978,
the company underestimated the demand for that
terminal. Orders piled up until a three-to-five
month wait for delivery was not uncommon. Into
this gap came the independent vendors with their
VT100 emulators, and a lucrative emulation market was born. Having apparently learned from this
experience, Digital was prepared for the demand
for VT200 terminats, and did not report serious
shortages of the terminal despite the strong demand generated for the product. The independents, seeking an entry into this market, turned to
price as a weapon. The result meant greater value
for the consumer.

C2S-384-203
Terminals

design, provide full VT100 compatibility and functionality, and are priced lower than their predecessors. In addition, the VT240 and VT241 have
graphics capabilities previously found only on the
VT125. Color has also been added to the Digital
terminal product line with the VT241.
Significant features carried over from the
VT100 terminals include 80-/132-column display
capability and conformance with the ANSI X3.64
standard for control codes. The American National
Standards Institute (ANSI) first published the
X3.64 standard for two-dimensional data devices
in 1977. The goal was to standardize control codes
for all terminals, effectively eliminating compatibility problems. The VT100 was the first display
terminal to conform to the ANSI standard. In order to provide true Digital emulation, the makers
of Digital emulators must also provide ANSI
X3.64 code compatibility on their products.
Digital created a display terminal standard
with the VT100. The company succeeded in advancing that standard with the success of the
VT200 terminals.

Characteristics

Models: VT220, VT240, and VT241.
Date Announced: November 1983.
Date Firat Installed: November 1983.
Number of Units Sold: Over 1 million.

Models
The Digital VT200 display terminal family consists of
three models:

Decision Points
The VT200 terminals provide significant pricel
performance improvements over the VT 100. These
models incorporate an improved terminal housing

1890 McGraw-Hili, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.

Delran NJ 08075 USA

•

VT220-an interactive display for text-oriented applications. The VT220 is a two-piece modular unit
consisting of a 12-lnch monochrome display/control
unit and a detachable keyboard. The display features 80-/132-column display capability and has amber, green, or white phosphor characters.

JULY 1990

C25-384-204
Terminals

Company Profile
Digital Equipment
Corporation

Corporate
Headquarters
146 Main Street
Maynard, MA 01754-2571
(508) 493-5111

In Canada
Digital Equipment of Canada, Ltd.
P.O. Box 13000, 100
Herzberg Road
Kanata, ON K2K 2A6
(613) 592-5111

Officers
President: Kenneth H.
Olsen
Senior Vice President, Engineering, Manufacturing,
and Product Marketing:
John F. Smith
President and CEO, European Operations: Pier
Carlo Falotti

•

Company Background
Year Founded: 1957
No. Employees: 125,000
No. Systems Sold (cumulative): More than 500,000

Led by Kenneth H. Olsen,
three engineers founded
Digital Equipment Corporation in 1957. Using their
own money in addition to
funding from a Boston
venture-capital firm, they
set up operations in an
old brick wool mill in Maynard, MA.
Digital's first product was
a set of electronic modules for computer test
equipment. Three years
after its founding, Digital
introduced its first computer, the Programmed
Data Processor Model 1,

VT240-an interactive display with both text and
graphics capabilities. The VT240 is a three-piece
modular unit consisting of a 12-inch monochrome
display unit, a detachable keyboard, and a system
box. The display features 80-/132-column display
capability and has amber, green, or white phosphor
characters. Screen resolution is 800 by 240 pixels.
Two graphics instruction sets have bit-mapped
graphics capability.
VT241-an interactive, graphics-oriented terminal
with color. The VT241 is a three-piece modular unit
consisting of a 13-inch color display unit, a detachable keyboard, and a system box. The display features 80-/132-column display capability, and has a

JULY 1990

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT100 DI...lay Famll,

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

or PDP-1. In 1963, the
company introduced its
landmark PDP-8, the first
successful minicomputer.

The current VAX family
consists of VAXstation
desktop workstations;
MicroVAX departmental
systems; VAX 6000 Series medium-range systems; and VAX 9000
Series high-end mainframes.

The PDP-8 established a
whole new market for
smaller computers and
made Digital a rising star
within an industry then
dominated by mainframe
vendors. Digital's smaller
machines soon became a
price/performance alternative to big mainframes
and also introduced the
concept of distributed
processing.
In 1977, Digital introduced
the VAX (virtual address
extension) Series of 32-bit
minicomputers, one of the
most successful product
launches in computer industry history. Since introducing the first VAX,
the 11-780, Digital has
continued to enhance the
basic VAX architecture
and VAXfVMS operating
system with announcements of new and more
powerful VAX models
over the years.

In addition to the VAX
family, Digital offers DECsystems which use reduced instruction set
computing (RISC) technology and operate under
ULTRIX, Digital's implementation of the UNIX
operating system.
To support its systems,
Digital offers disk, storage
array, and solidstate
memory products; optical
disks; tape devices; and
printers. Besides hardware and software, Digital
offers a range of communications and networking
products and services.

Business Overview
Digital likes to characterize itself as the world's

resolution of 800 by 240 pixels. Two graphics instruction sets have bit-mapped graphics capability.
All models conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.

Transmission Specifications
Transmission is asynchronous in full-duplex mode at
transmission rates from 50 to 19.2K bps. The 7- or 8-bit
ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity is selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard. An

1990 McGraw·Hili. Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.
Delran NJ 08075 USA

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT200 Display Family

leading supplier of networked computer systems as well as a leader
in systems integration. To
remain a leader, particularly in these specific areas, the company
believes it must support
openness and industry
standards to remain competitive in the 1990s. The
company is a key participant in industry standards
organizations such as the
Open Systems Foundation (OSF), an industry
group founded in 1988 to
develop industryrecognized specifications
for UNIX. UNIX will be the
standard operating system for users who prefer
open systems rather than
proprietary systems.

integrate desktop systems and large system
resources involving both
Digital and non-Digital
systems.

Network Application Support (NAS), a new Digital
strategic direction addressing VAX compatibility and multivendor
connectivity, will let users

In 1988, Digital introduced
Enterprise Management
Architecture (EMA), an
integrated network management strategy.

Financial Profile
Digital Equipment continues to rank as the second
largest U.S. computer
company as measured by
total revenues. While Digital enjoyed record revenue and profit growth
through the 1980slargely on the strength of
its VAX platform and networking architecturesales and profits have
been sluggish within the
last couple years.
For fiscal 1989, ended
June 30, Digital reported
net earnings of $1.1 billion, down 18 percent

EIA RS-232-C or 20 mA interface is included; also standard is an RS-232-C serial printer port. An integral modem with auto dial and auto answer capabilities is
optional on the VT241.

Device Control
All VT200 models provide full VT100 compatibility.
VT200 terminals can emulate the operation of the
VT100, enabling the user to use the terminals with existing application programs that support VT100 terminals.
For all VT200 models, transmission is performed
on a character-by-character basis as each key is depressed. The selection and storage of local terminal parameters is performed in Set-Up mode. The VT200
terminals provide a plain-language setup menu, which is

@ 1990 McGraw· Hill, Incorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Datapro Research.
Delran NJ 08075 USA

C25-384-205
Terminals

from the $1.3 billion
earned in 1988. Revenues
for 1989 were $12.7 billion, up 11 percent from
the $11.5 of the previous
year.
Earnings for the second
fiscal quarter, ended December 30, 1989, were
$155.4 million compared
with $279 million for the
same period last year, a
44 percent drop. (See
graph for revenue and
earning trends over the
last several years.)
Digital blamed the profit
drop on flat U.S. sales
and lower demand for
high-margin products.
Like major competitors,
Digital continues to do
better internationally.
In moves designed to reduce expenses, last summer Digital announced
that it would begin shifting
4,000 manufacturing employees to other jobs and

offered severance packages to 700 manufacturing and administrative
employees.

Management
Statement
Digital is making a $1.5
billion investment toward
new product development. According to the
president's letter, Digital
is "continuing to invest
heavily in VAX and RISCbased systems and VMS
and UNIX software."
Within the next year,
"Digital's strategy is to
focus on the computing
environment of the 1990s.
Digital will offer the widest
selection of technology
and continue to make significant investments in
R&D and new products in
response to dynamically
changing customer
needs."

cursor driven. The set of menus presents plainlanguage choices in any of three selectable languages:
English, German, or French.
Visual attributes include reverse video and character highlighting. The Selective Erase feature allows
the user to select positions on the screen to be erased
without erasing the whole screen. Programmable function keys allow the user to store commonly used commands and execute them with a single keystroke. Also
featured is a downline loadable character set, allowing
as many as 94 characters to be loaded into the terminal
from the host, thus enabling users to design special
characters for use in specific applications.
Both the VT240 and VT241 support two high-level
graphics instruction sets: Digital's ReGIS (Remote
Graphics Instruction Set) and Tektronix' 4010/4014
graphics protocols. Digital also provides applications
software, such as DECgraph and DECslide, to support
the graphics features of the VT240 and VT241. The

JULY 1990

C25-384-208
Terminals

VT241 features RGB (red/green/blue) output to devices
such as a color camera and an auxiliary color monitor.
Color graphics print output is also available. All VT200
models feature composite video output, allowing the
user to connect auxiliary monitors to the VT200 terminals.

Components
CRT Display Unit .
A 12-inch (diagonally measured), monochrome, nonglare display is standard on the VT220 and VT240. The
VT241 includes a 13-inch color display. Terminal control
logic is located in the display monitor of the VT220; the
VT240 and VT241 include a separate system box which
houses terminal logic. Amber, green, or white phosphor
characters can be selected for the VT220 and VT240.
Four colors out of a palette of sixty-four can be displayed on the VT241. A multinational character set
(MCS) that includes the full ASCII set is displayable; any
of 256 multinational characters can be generated from
the keyboard. Also available is the national replacement
character set (NRC), which allows users to generate
international characters and is backward compatible
with the VT100. A CRT Saver feature, designed to prolong the life of the CRT, is standard on all models.

JULY 1990

Digital Equipment
Corporation
VT200 Display Family

Datapro Reports on
Data Communications

All models feature selectable display formats of
24 lines of 80 characters, and 24 lines of 132 characters. Character brightness and screen contrast are individually adjustable. The VT200 monitors have a built-in
tilt feature for ease of viewing.

Keyboard
All models feature a low-profile, detachable keyboard
that conforms to the international DIN standard for human engineering. A total of 103 keys are contained on
the keyboard, which features a typewriter-style layout,
separate numeric pad, and 15 programmable function
keys. Function keys can be custom labeled for userdefined applications. All keys feature a sculptured,
matte finish and provide an audible key click.
A total of 16 different language keyboards are
available for the VT200 terminals; 8 are available in specialized word processing configurations. The standard
character set generated is multinational.

Pricing
The VT200 family terminals are no longer actively marketed. Digital still offers service and support,
however.•

1990 McGraw·HiII,lncorporated. Reproduction Prohibited. Oatapro Research.
Delran NJ 08075 USA

C25-384-301
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family
cIaIapto
ANALYSIS
UPDATE: Digital Equipment Corporation no longer manufactures the VT200 Video Display Terminal Family. The
VT300 family is replacing that series. Digital still offers
service and support for the VT200 family, however. According to Digital, the VT300 family offers full-backward compatibility, improved ergonomics, and more functionality at
a lower price. Datapro will continue to include the VT200
family report, however, due to the high market penetration
of this series.
Digital Equipment Corporation's VT200 Series, announced in November 1983, more than aptly succeeded
its predecessor, the VT100 product line. Prior to its discontinuance, the VT 100 was the most successful and most
widely emulated ASCII terminal, with more than one
million sold. Featuring full VT100 compatibility, the
VT200 terminals offer a modular design based on the
company's line of personal computer products, and pro-

VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, Massachusetts 017542571. Telephone (508) 897-5111.
MODELS: VT220, VT240, and VT241.
COMPETITION: CIE Terminals, Zentec, Uberty
Electronics, Micro-Term, TeleVideo Systems, Visual Technology, Wyse Technology, and several
others.
PRICE: The VT200 family is no longer actively
marketed.
REPORT HIGHLIGHTS:
PAGE
Product Evaluation .......................... 302
Market Position . ............................. 302
SPECIFICATIONS ............................... 303

vide the user with an improved price/performance ratio
over that found on the VT 100 terminals. With the demand for the VT220 being so strong, Digital, being confronted by independent terminal vendors offering clones
for as little as $795, responded to the intense competition

The Digital VT200 family of video
display terminals consists of three
models. The VT220 features full
VT100 compatibility, the VT240
provides bit-mapped graphics architecture and text/graphics capabilities. and the VT241 replaces the
monochrome display of the VT240
with a color monitor.

REFERENCE EDITION: This is a mature product. No significantfurther developments are anticipated. but because
of its importance in the history of the industry, coverage is being continued. No future updates are planned.

JUNE 1989

C25-384-302
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family
by reducing the price of this general-purpose model to
match that of the clone versions offered by its competitors.
The VT200 family consists of three models: the VT220,
VT240, and VT241. The VT220 is the low-end model, a
general-purpose interactive display which directly replaces
the venerable VT100. Features include a 12-inch monochrome display, 80-/132-column display capability, and a
detachable keyboard. The VT240 combines the VT220's
text functions with a graphics capability; two graphics
protocols are available (Digital's ReGIS and Tektronix'
4010/4014). The VT241 is a color text/graphics terminal,
combining the features found on the VT220 and VT240
with color display capability and a slightly larger (13-inch)
display screen.
The VT200 terminals incorporate a modular enclosure
design not found on the older VT100 models. As a result
of this design, the VT200 terminals are more compact and
take up less desk space than the older VT 100 models. The
VT220 features two-piece construction, including the
monitor and keyboard; terminal logic is contained in the
monitor housing. The VT240 and VT241 feature threepiece construction, consisting of the monitor, the keyboard, and a system box containing the terminal's logic.
The VT200 monitors have a wedge-shaped design with a
built-in tilt feature; the keyboards incorporate a lowprofile design and conform to the DIN standard for ergonomics.

PRODUcr EVALUATION
The VT200 terminals provide significant price/
performance improvements over the VT100. These models incorporate an improved terminal housing design,
provide full VT100 compatibility and functionality, and
are priced lower than their predecessors. In addition, the
VT240 and VT241 have graphics capabilities previously
found only on the VT125. Color has also been added to
the Digital terminal product line with the VT241.
Significant features carried over from the VT100 terminals include 80-/132-column display capability and conformance with the ANSI X3.64 standard for control
codes. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
first published the X3.64 standard for two-dimensional
data devices in 1977. The goal was to standardize control
codes for all terminals, effectively eliminating compatibility problems. The VT1 00 was the first display terminal to

conform to the ANSI standard. In order to provide true
Digital emulation, the makers of Digital emulators must
also provide ANSI X3.64 code compatibility on their
products.
Digital created a display terminal standard with the
VT1 00. The company succeeded in advancing that standard with the success of the VT200 terminals.

MARKET POSITION
Digital's VT100 display terminal ranks as the most successful ASCII terminal ever marketed. Since its introduction in 1978, one million VT100s have been shipped,
including submodels VT101, VT102, VT125, VT131, and
VT132. An emulation market for the VT100 now flourishes, second in size only to the IBM 3270 emulation
market in the display terminal industry. Most major
general-purpose ASCII terminal vendors provide models
with some VT100 emulation as part of their product lines.
Into this ready-made market came the VT200 family.
Digital imbued the VT200 terminals with full VT100
compatibility, virtually assuring them of a successful
product life. Demand for the VT220 in particular was
initially strong, enabling Digital to raise the price of the
terminal from $1,295 to $1,395. After the VT200 introduction, however, a large number of terminal vendors
introduced VT200 emulators, most ofthem emulating the
VT220. These competitors included CIE Terminals,
Qume, Zentec, Liberty Electronics, Micro-Term, TeleVideo Systems, Wyse Technology, Visual Technology,
and many others. These vendors unveiled their VT220
clones with purchase prices as low as $795, which caused
Digital to lower the price of the VT220 to match those of
the independent manufacturers.
When Digital introduced the VT100 in 1978, the company underestimated the demand for that terminal. Orders piled up until a three-to-five month wait for delivery
was not uncommon. Into this gap came the independent
vendors with their VT100 emulators, and a lucrative emulation market was born. Having apparently learned from
this experience, Digital was prepared for the demand for
VT200 terminals, and did not report the serious shortages
of the terminal despite the strong demand generated for
the product. The independents, seeking an entry into this
market, turned to price as a weapon. The result meant
savings for the consumer.

JUNE 1989

C25-384-303
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT200
Video Display Terminal Family

however, a large number of terminal vendors have introduced VT200 emulators, most of them emulating the
VT220. These competitors include CIE Terminals, ITT
Qume, Lear Siegler, Liberty Electronics, Micro-Term, TeleVideo Systems, Wyse Technology, Visual Technology, and
many others. These vendors have unveiled their VT220
clones with purchase prices as low as $795. This has caused
Digital to lower the price of the VT220 to $1,095.
When Digital introduced the VT100 in 1978, the company
underestimated the demand for that terminal. Orders piled
up until a three-to-five month wait for delivery was not
uncommon. Into this gap came the independent vendors
with their VT100 emulators, and a lucrative emulation
market was born. Digital is much more prepared for the
demand for VT200 terminals, and serious shortages of the
terminal have not been reported, despite the strong demand generated for the product. The independents, seeking
an entry into this market, have turned to price as a weapon.
The result: a fully compatible VT220 emulator for well
below $1,000.
At the time of the VT200 announcement, Digital also
announced that it would continue the production of the
VT100 for at least two additional years. That time is up,
and Digital has recently slashed prices and ceased production of the older models, signalling the end of the line for
the VT100 family.
ADVANTAGES AND RESTRICTIONS

The VT100 achieved its success despite a relatively high
price tag. The terminal's enhanced features (most notably
its full-screen 132-column display capability) and high
degree of functionality were key factors in the VT100's
early success; later, as prices for display terminals plunged,
the VT1 00 persevered chiefly because it had become a
standard in the industry.
The VT200 terminals provide significant price/performance improvements over the VT100. The new models
incorporate a new terminal housing design, provide full
VT1 00 compatibility and functionality, and are priced
lower than their predecessors. In addition, the VT240 and
VT241 have graphics capabilities previously found only on
the VT125. Color has also been added to the Digital
terminal product line with the VT241.
Significant features carried over from the VT100 terminals
include 80-/132-column display capability, and conformance with the ANSI X3.64 standard for control codes.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) first
published the X3.64 standard for two-dimensional data
devices in 1977. The goal was to standardize control codes
for all terminals, effectively eliminating compatibility
problems. The VT 100 was the first display terminal to
conform to the ANSI standard. In order to provide true
Digital emulation, the makers of Digital emulators must
also provide ANSI X3.64 code compatibility on their
products.
1:>

MARCH 1986

Both the VT240 and VT241 support two high-level graphics
instruction sets: Digital's ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set) and Tektronix' 4010/4014 graphics protocols.
Digital also provides applications software, such as DECgraph and DECslide, to support the graphics features of the
VT240 and VT241. The VT241 features color RGB (red/
green/blue) output to devices such as a color camera and an
auxiliary color monitor. Color graphics print output is also
available. All VT200 models feature composite video output,
allowing the user to connect auxiliary monitors to the VT200
terminals.
COMPONENTS

CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured)
monochrome nongiare display is standard on the VT220 and
VT240. The VT241 includes a 13-inch color display. Terminal control logic is located in the display monitor of the
VT220; the VT240 and VT241 include a separate system
box which houses terminal logic. Amber, green, or white
phosphor characters may be selected for the VT220 and
VT240. Four colors (out ofa palette of 64) may be displayed
on the VT241. A multinational character set (MCS) that
includes the full ASCII set is displayable; any of 256
multinational characters can be generated from the keyboard. Also available is the national replacement character
set (NRC), which allows users to generate international
characters, and is backward-compatible with the VT100. A
CRT Saver feature, designed to prolong the life of the CRT,
is standard on all models.
All models feature selectable display formats of 24 lines by
80 characters, and 24 lines of 132 characters. Character
brightness and screen contrast are individually adjustable.
The VT200 monitors have a built-in tilt feature for ease of
viewing.
KEYBOARD: All models feature a low-profile, detachable
keyboard that conforms to the international DIN standard
for human engineering. A total of 103 keys are contained on
the keyboard, that features a typewriter-style layout, separate numeric pad, and 15 programmable function keys.
Function keys may be custom-labeled for user-defined applications. All keys feature a sculptured, matte finish and
provide an audible key click.
A total of 16 different language keyboards are available for
tbe VT200 terminals; 8 are available in specialilzed word
processing configurations. The standard character set generated is multinational.
PRICING

The VT200 family terminals are available for purchase
only. Digital Equipment Corporation supports the terminals
through its Field Service, available worldwide in over 400
service locations and sales offices. Carry-in service is also
available.

EQUIPMENT PRICES
Purchase Monthly
Price
Maint.
(S)

VT220
VT240
VT241

1.095
2.195
3.195

(S)

6
16

23.

C25-384-304
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT200
Video Display Terminal Family

t> Digital created a display terminal standard with the VT 100.
The company's ad campaign for the VT200 boasts that they
are now "Advancing the Standard." With the success that
the new VT200 terminals have already enjoyed, it would
appear that Digital has indeed succeeded in doing so.

In Datapro's 1985 Terminal Users Survey, conducted in
conjunction with Data Communications magazine, a total
of 57 users responded with ratings for the VT200 family
terminals. These users represented a total installed base of
2,592 units. A total of 46 of these users reported on their
experiences with the VT220, totalling 2,259 installed terminals; the remaining 11 users reported on the VT240, covering 333 units. The users were asked to rate their terminals
with regard to seven separate categories. The ratings given
to the VT200 family terminals by these users are summarized in the following tables:

Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability

Mfr.'s maintenance
service/technical
support

Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*
21

3.3

*Weighted Average on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

USER REACTION

VT220

VT240
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Mfr. 's maintenance
service/technical
support

Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*

---- --

8
8
8
7
9
6
5

3
3
3
2
2
3
2

0
0
0
0
0
0
0

0
0
0
1
0
1
1

3.7
3.7
3.7
3.6
3.8
3.5
3.5

*Weighted Average on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

Excellent Good Fair Poor WA*

----

33
31
28
22
19
24

12
17

17
20
16

0
3
1
5
4
3

0
0
0
2
2
0

3.7
3.6
3.6
3.3
3.2
3.5

When asked whether or not they would recommend the
VT200 terminals to other users, 49 of the respondents
answered that they would; none of the users answered
negatively. The remainder were undecided, or chose not to
answer the question. 0

/'ilflMbt)UCiION PAOHlslUD

MARCH 1986

C25-384-301
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family
MANAGEMENT SUMMARY

Digital Equipment Corporation's VT200
family of display terminals is following in the
sucessful footsteps of the discontinued
VT1 00 family. These popular products provide full VT1 00 compatibility and functionality and considerably lower price tags. Color
graphics, available on the VT241 • is a capability not found on the VT100 terminals.

UPDATE: Digital Equipment Corporation's VT200 Video
Display Terminal family has had one significant change
since our last revision. The list price of its most popular
member, the VT220, has been lowered by 27 percent. This
$300 reduction brings the cost of this model down from
$1,095 to $795.
Digital Equipment Corporation's VT200 Series, announced in November 1983, has more than aptly succeeded its predecessor, the VT100 product line. Prior to its
recent discontinuance, the VT100 was the most sucessful
and most widely emulated ASCII terminal, with more than
one million sold. Featuring full VT100 compatibility, the
VT200 terminals offer a modular design based on the
company's line of personal computer products, and provide the user with an improved price/performance ratio
over that found on the VT I 00 terminals. With the demand
for the VT220 being so strong, and being confronted by
independent terminal vendors offering clones for as little as
$795, Digital has responded to the intense competition by
reducing the price of this general-purpose model to match
that of the clone versions offered by its competitors.
The VT200 family consists of three models: the VT220,
VT240, and VT241. The VT220 is the low-end model, a
general-purpose interactive display which directly replaces
the venerable VT100. Features include a 12-inch monochrome display, 80-/132-column display capability, and a
detachable keyboard, The VT240 combines the VT220's
text functions with a graphics capability; two graphics

MODELS: VT220. VT240, and VT241.
DISPLAY: The VT220 and VT240 feature a
12-inch monochrome display; amber, green,
or white phosphor characters are available.
The VT241 is equipped with a 13-inch color
display. All models feature 80-/132-column
display capability.
KEYBOARD: All models include a 103-key
detachable keyboard. The keyboard features
a low-profile design and includes 1 5 programmable function keys. Sixteen different
language keyboards are available.
COMPETITION: CIE Terminals, Zentec, Liberty Electronics, Micro-Term, TeleVideo
Systems, Visual Technology, Wyse Technology, and several others.
PRICE: Purchase prices for the VT200 terminals range from $795 to $3.195.

CHARACTERISTICS

VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation, 146 Main
Street, Maynard, Massachusetts 01754-2571. Telephone
~
(617) 897-5111.

The Digital VT200 family of video
display terminals consists of three
models. The VT220 features full
VT100 compatibility, the VT240
provides bit-mapped graphics architecture and text/graphics capabilities, and the VT241 replaces the
monochrome display of the VT240
with a color monitor.

APRIL 1987

C25-384-302
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family

t> protocols

are available (Digital's ReGIS and Tektronix'
4010/4014). The VT241 is a color text/graphics terminal,
combining the features found on the VT220 and VT240
with color display capability and a slightly larger (13-inch)
display screen.

~ DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: November 1983.

DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: November 1983.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Over 100,000.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.

The VT200 terminals incorporate a modular enclosure
design not found on the older VT 100 models. As a result of
this design, the VT200 terminals are more compact, and
take up less desk space, than the older VTl 00 models. The
VT220 features two-piece construction, including the monitor and keyboard; terminal logic is contained in the monitor housing. The VT240 and VT241 feature three-piece
construction, consisting of the monitor, the keyboard, and
a system box containing the terminal's logic. The VT200
monitors have a wedge-shaped design with a built-in tilt
feature; the keyboards incorporate a low-profile design and
conform to the DIN standard for ergonomics.
COMPETITIVE POSITION

Digital's VT 100 display terminal ranks as the most successful ASCII terminal ever marketed. Since its introduction in
1978, one million VT100s have been shipped, including
submodels (VTlOl, VTl02, VTl25, VTl31, and VTl32).
An em ulation market for the VT 100 now flourishes, second
in size only to the IBM 3270 emulation market in the
display terminal industry. Most major general-purposed
ASCII terminal vendors provide models with some VT 100
emulation as part of their product line.
Into this ready-made market comes the VT200 family.
Digital imbued the VT200 terminals with full VT100 compatibility, virtually assuring them of a successful product
life. Demand for the VT220 in particular has been strong,
initially enabling Digital to raise the price of the terminal
from $1,295 to $1,395. Since the VT200 introduction,
however, a large number of terminal vendors have introduced VT200 emulators, most of them emulating the
VT220. These competitors include CIE Terminals, ITT
Qume, Zentec, Liberty Electronics, Micro-Term, TeleVideo Systems, Wyse Technology, Visual Technology, and
many others. These vendors have unveiled their VT220
clones with purchase prices as low as $795. This has caused
Digital to lower the price of the VT220 to match that of the
independent manufacturers.
When Digital introduced the VT100 in 1978, the company
underestimated the demand for that terminal. Orders piled
up until a three-to-five month wait for delivery was not
uncommon. Into this gap came the independent vendors
with their VT100 emulators, and a lucrative emulation
market was born. Apparently having learned from this
experience, Digital was prepared for the demand for VT200
terminals, and serious shortages of the terminal have not
been reported, despite the strong demand generated for the
product. The independents, seeking an entry into this
market, have turned to price as a weapon. The result has
meant savings for the consumer.
t>

MODELS
The Digital VT200 display terminal family currently consists of three models:
• VT220-an interactive display for text-oriented applications. The VT220 is a two-piece modular unit consisting of
a 12-inch monochrome display/control unit and a detachable keyboard. The display features 80-/132-column display capability and is available with amber, green, or
white phosphor characters.
• VT240-an interactive display with both text and graphics capabilities. The VT240 is a three-piece modular unit
consisting of a 12-inch monochrome display unit, a detachable keyboard, and a system box. The display features
80-/132-column display capability and is available with
amber, green, or white phosphor characters. Screen resolution is 800 by 240 pixels. Two graphics instruction sets
are available for bit-mapped graphics capability.
• VT241-an interactive, graphics-oriented terminal with
color. The VT241 is a three-piece modular unit consisting
of a 13-inch color display unit, a detachable keyboard, and
a system box. The display features 80-/132-column display capability, and has a resolution of 800 by 240 pixels.
Two graphics instruction sets are available.
AU models conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.
TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous in full-duplex mode at transmission rates from SO to 19,200 bits per second. The 7- or Sbit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity is
selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard. An
EIA RS-232-C or 20 ma interface is included; also standard
is an RS-232-C serial printer port. An integral modem with
auto-dial and auto-answer capabilities is optional on the
VT241.
DEVICE CONTROL
All VT200 family members provide full VT100 compatibility. VT200 terminals can emulate the operation of the
VT100, enabling the user to implement the new terminals
without software modifications to existing application programs that support VT100 terminals.
For all VT200 models, transmission is performed on a
character-by-character basis as each key is depressed. The
selection and storage of local terminal parameters is performed in Set-Up mode. The VT200 terminals provide a
plain-language setup menu, which is cursor driven. The set
of menus presents plain-language choices in any of three
selectable languages: English, German, or French.
Visual attributes available include reverse video and character highlighting. The Selective Erase feature allows the user
to select positions on the screen to be erased without erasing
the whole screen. Programmable function keys allow the
user to store commonly used commands and execute them
with a single keystroke. Also featured is a downline loadable
character set, allowing as many as 94 characters to be
loaded into the terminal from the host, thus enabling users
to design special characters for use in specific applications. . .

APRIL 1987

C25-384-303
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family

t> ADVANTAGES AND RESTRICTIONS
The VT200 terminals provide significant price/performance improvements over the VT100. These models incorporate an improved terminal housing design, provide
full VT100 compatibility and functionality, and are priced
lower than their predecessors. In addition, the VT240 and
VT241 have graphics capabilities previously found only on
the VT125. Color has also been added to the Digital
terminal product line with the VT241.
Significant features carried over from the VT100 terminals
include 80-/132-column display capability, and conformance with the ANSI X3.64 standard for control codes.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) first
published the X3.64 standard for two-dimensional data
devices in 1977. The goal was to standardize control codes
for all terminals, effectively eliminating compatibility
problems. The VT I 00 was the first display terminal to
conform to the ANSI standard. In order to provide true
Digital emulation, the makers of Digital emulators must
also provide ANSI X3.64 code compatibility on their
products.
Digital created a display terminal standard with the VT I 00.
The company has succeeded in advancing that standard
with the success of the VT200 terminals.
USER REACTION

In Datapro's 1986 User Ratings of Display Terminals
conducted in conjunction with Data Communications
magazine, a total of 68 users responded with ratings for the
VT200 family of terminals. These users represented a total
installed base of 3,715 units. A total of 53 of these users
reported on their experiences with the VT220, totalling
3,258 installed terminals; the remaining 15 users reported
on the VT240, covering 457 units. The users were asked to
rate their terminals with regard to seven separate categories. The ratings given to the VT200 family terminals by
these users are summarized in the following tables:
VT220
Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Mfr.'s maintenance
service/technical
support

Excellent
19
27
26
19
14
23
16

Good Fair Poor WA*
------30
25
24
27
30
23
32

2
I
3
6
8
5
4

0
0
0
I
1
I
0

3.3
3.5
3.4
3.2
3.1
3.3
3.3

Overall performance
Ease of operation
Display clarity
Keyboard feel & usability
Ergonomics
Hardware reliability
Mfr.'s maintenance
service/technical
support

Excellent
7
9
6
6
I
6
8

Good Fair Poor WA*
-------7
4
9
8
9
8
5

I
2
0
I
5
I
I

*Weighted Average on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.
APRIL 1987

~ Both the VT240 and VT241 support two high-level graphics
instruction sets: Digital's ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set) and Tektronix' 4010/4014 graphics protocols.
Digital also provides applications software, such as DECgraph and DECslide, to support the graphics features of the
VT240 and VT241. The VT241 features color RGB (red/
green/blue) output to devices such as a color camera and an
auxiliary color monitor. Color graphics print output is also
available. All VT200 models feature composite video output,
allowing the user to connect auxiliary monitors to the VT200
terminals.

COMPONENTS
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured),
monochrome, nonglare display is standard on the VT220
and VT240. The VT241 includes a 13-inch color display.
Terminal control logic is located in the display monitor of
the VT220; the VT240 and VT241 include a separate system
box which houses terminal logic. Amber, green, or white
phosphor characters may be selected for the VT220 and
VT240. Four colors (out of a palette of 64) may be displayed
on the VT241. A multinational character set (MCS) that
includes the full ASCII set is displayable; any of 256
multinational characters can be generated from the keyboard. Also available is the national replacement character
set (NRC), which allows users to generate international
characters, and is backward compatible with the VT100. A
CRT Saver feature, designed to prolong the life of the CRT,
is standard on all models.
All models feature selectable display formats of 24 lines of
80 characters, and 24 lines of 132 characters. Character
brightness and screen contrast are individually adjustable.
The VT200 monitors have a built-in tilt feature for ease of
viewing.
KEYBOARD: All models feature a low-profile, detachable
keyboard that conforms to the international DIN standard
for human engineering. A total of 103 keys are contained on
the keyboard, which features a typewriter-style layout, separate numeric pad, and 15 programmable function keys.
Function keys may be custom labeled for user-defined applications. All keys feature a sculptured, matte finish and
provide an audible key click.
A total of 16 different language keyboards are available for
the VT200 terminals; 8 are available in specialiized word
processing configurations. The standard character set generated is multinational.

PRICING

*Weighted Average on a scale of 4.0 for Excellent.

VT240

When asked whether or not they would recommend the
VT200 terminals to other users, 54 of the respondents
answered that they would and 4 answered negatively. The
remainder were undecided, or chose not to answer the
question. 0

0
0
0
0
0
0
I

The VT200 family terminals are available for purchase
only. Digital Equipment Corporation supports the terminals
through its Field Service, available worldwide through over
400 service locations and sales offices. Carry-in service is
also available.

3.4
3.5
3.4
3.3
2.7
3.3
3.3

EQUIPMENT PRICES
Purchase Monthly
Price
Maint.
VT220
VT240
VT241

($)

795
2.195
3.195

12
19
31

•

C25-384-301
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT200
Video Display Terminal Family
MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
UPDATE: Since the introduction of the VT200 family of
terminals, virtually every independent ASCII terminal vendor has introduced new terminal models with VT200 emulation, hoping to capitalize on a promising market. Infact,
demand for Digital's new terminals has been extremely
strong; the new product line seems assured of achieving or
surpassing the popularity enjoyed by its predecessor, the
VT100 family.
In November 1983, Digital Equipment Corporation introduced its long-awaited VT200 Series of video display terminals. The VT200 terminal family is intended to replace
the hugely successful VT100 family in Digital's product
line. The new terminals provide full VT 100 compatibility,
ensuring Digital a ready-made market into which the
VT200 can be sold. The VT200s feature a new modular
design based on the company's line of personal computer
products, and provide the user with an improved price/
performance ratio over that found on the VT 100 terminals.
The demand for the new terminals has been strong, and
Digital has already slashed the price tag of the generalpurpose VT220, in response to intense price competition
from a number of independent terminal makers.
The VT200 family consists of three models: the VT220,
VT240, and VT241. The VT220 is the low-end model, a
general-purpose interactive display which directly replaces
the venerable VT100. Features include a 12-inch monochrome display, 80-/132-column display capability, and a
detachable keyboard. The VT240 combines the VT220's
text functions with a graphics capability; two graphics
protocols are available (Digital's ReGIS and Tektronix' J:>

The VT200 family succeeds the highly popular VT100 terminal family in Digital's terminal product line. The VT200 terminals
combine full VT100 compatibility and functionality with a new terminal design and
lower price tags. Color graphics, available on
the VT241. is a new capability not found on
the VT100 terminals.
MODELS: VT220. VT240, and VT241.
DISPLAY: The VT220 and VT240 feature a
12-inch monochrome display; amber. green,
or white phosphor characters are available.
The VT241 is equipped with a 13-inch color
display. All models feature 80-/132-column
display capability.
KEYBOARD: All models include a 103-key
detachable keyboard. The keyboard features
a low-profile design and includes 15 programmable function keys. Sixteen different
language keyboards are available.
COMPETITION: CIE Terminals, Lear Siegler.
Liberty Electronics. Micro-Term. TeleVideo
Systems. Visual Technology. Wyse Technology, and several others.
PRICE: Purchase prices for the VT200 terminals range from $1,395 to $3.195.

CHARACTERISTICS
VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation, 146 Main
Street, Maynard, MA 01754-2571. Telephone (617)_
897-5111.
~

The Digital VT220 boasts full
VT100 compatibility, including
80-/132-column display capability
and compatibility with the ANSI
X3.64 standard. As was the case
with the VT100. several vendors
have recently introduced terminals
designed to emulate the VT220.

MARCH 1986

C25-384-302
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation VT200
Video Display Terminal Family

J:> 4010/4014). The VT241 is a color text/graphics terminal,

~ DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: November 1983.

combining the features found on the VT220 and VT240
with color display capability and a slightly larger (13-inch)
display screen.

DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: November 1983.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Over 100,000.

The VT200 terminals incorporate a modular enclosure
design not found on the older VT 100 models. As a result of
this design, the VT200 terminals are more compact, and
take up less desk space, than the older VT 100 models. The
VT220 features two-piece construction, including the monitor and keyboard; terminal logic is contained in the monitor housing. The VT240 and VT241 feature three-piece
construction, consisting of the monitor, keyboard, and a
system box containing the terminal's logic. The VT200
monitors have a wedge-shaped design with a built-in tilt
feature; the keyboards incorporate a low-profile design and
conform to the DIN standard for ergonomics.

SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.
MODELS
The Digital VT200 display terminal family currently consists of three models:
• VT220-an interactive display for text-oriented applications. The VT220 is a two-piece modular unit consisting of
a 12-inch monochrome display/control unit and a detachable keyboard. The display features 80-/132-column display capability and is available with amber, green, or
white phosphor characters.
• VT240-an interactive display with both text and graphics capabilities. The VT240 is a three-piece modular unit
consisting of a 12-inch monochrome display unit, detachable keyboard, and a system box. The display features
80-/132-column display capability and is available with
amber, green, or white phosphor characters. Screen resolution is 800 by 240 pixels. Two graphics instruction sets
are available for bit-mapped graphics capability.

COMPETITIVE POSITION

• VT241-an interactive, graphics-oriented terminal with
color. The VT241 is a three-piece modular unit consisting
of a 13-inch color display unit, detachable keyboard, and
system box. The display features 80-/132-column display
capability, and has a resolution of 800 by 240 pixels. Two
graphics instruction sets are available.
All models conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.

Into this ready-made market comes the VT200 family.
Digital imbued the VT200 terminals with full VT100 compatibility, virtually assuring them of a successful product
life. Demand for the VT220 in particular has been strong,
initially enabling Digital to raise the price of the terminal
from $1,295 to $1,395. Since the VT200 introduction, t>

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous in full-duplex mode at transmission rates from SO to 19,200 bits per second. The 7- or 8bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity is
selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard. An
EIA RS-232-C or 20 ma interface is included; also standard
is an RS-232-C serial printer port. An integral modem with
autodial and autoanswer capabilities is optional on the
VT241.
DEVICE CONTROL
All VT200 family members provide full VT100 compatibility. VT200 terminals can emulate the operation of the
VT100, enabling the user to implement the new terminals
without software modifications to existing application programs that support VT100 terminals.

The VT240 is a monochrome terminal with both text and
graphics display capability. Two graphics instruction sets are
availablefor bit-mapped graphics displays. Screen resolution is
800 by 240 pixels.

For all VT200 models, transmission is performed on a
character-by-character basis as each key is depressed. The
selection and storage of local terminal parameters is performed in Set-Up mode. The VT200 terminals provide a
plain language set-up menu, which is cursor-driven. The set
of menus presents plain language choices in any of three
selectable languages: English, German, or French.
Visual attributes available include reverse video and character highlighting. The Selective Erase feature allows the user
to select positions on the screen to be erased without erasing
the whole screen. Programmable function keys allow the
user to store commonly used commands and execute them
with a single keystroke. Also featured is a downline loadable
character set, allowing as many as 94 characters to be
loaded into the terminal from the host, thus enabling users
to design special characters for use in specific applications. •

MARCH 1986

C25-384-303
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family

SPECIFICATIONS
MODELS: VT220, VT240, and VT241.
DATE ANNOUNCED: November 1983_
DATE FIRST INSTALLED: November 1983_
NUMBER INSTALLED TO DATE: Over 1 million_

MODELS
The Digital VT200 display terminal family consists of
three models:
• VT220-an interactive display for text-oriented applications. The VT220 is a two-piece modular unit consisting
of a 12-inch monochrome display/control unit and a
detachable keyboard. The display features 80/132-column display capability and has amber, green, or
white phosphor characters.
• VT240-an interactive display with both text and
graphics capabilities. The VT240 is a three-piece modular unit consisting of a 12-inch monochrome display
unit, a detachable keyboard, and a system box. The
display features 80-/132-column display capability and
has amber, green, or white phosphor characters. Screen
resolution is 800 by 240 pixels. Two graphics instruction
sets have bit-mapped graphics capability.
• VT241-an interactive, graphics-oriented terminal with
color. The VT241 is a three-piece modular unit consisting of a 13-inch color display unit, a detachable keyboard, and a system box. The display features 80-/132column display capability, and has a resolution of 800
by 240 pixels. Two graphics instruction sets have bitmapped graphics capability.

without software modifications to existing application
programs that support VT100 terminals.
For all VT200 models, transmission is performed on a
character-by-character basis as each key is depressed. The
selection and storage of local terminal parameters is performed in Set-Up mode. The VT200 terminals provide a
plain-language setup menu, which is cursor driven. The
set of menus presents plain-language choices in any of
three selectable languages: English, German, or French.
Visual attributes include reverse video and character highlighting. The Selective Erase feature allows the user to
select positions on the screen to be erased without erasing
the whole screen. Programmable function keys allow the
user to store commonly used commands and execute
them with a single keystroke. Also featured is a downline
loadable character set, allowing as many as 94 characters
to be loaded into the terminal from the host, thus enabling
users to design special characters for use in specific applications.
Both the VT240 and VT241 support two high-level graphics instruction sets: Digital's ReGIS (Remote Graphics
Instruction Set) and Tektronix' 4010/4014 graphics protocols. Digital also provides applications software, such as
DECgraph and DECslide, to support the graphics features
of the VT240 and VT241. The VT241 features color RGB
(red/green/blue) output to devices such as a color camera
and an auxiliary color monitor. Color graphics print output is also available. All VT200 models feature composite
video output, allowing the user to connect auxiliary monitors to the VT200 terminals.

COMPONENTS
All models conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.

TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS
Transmission is asynchronous in full-duplex mode at
transmission rates from 50.0 to 19.2K bps. The 7- or 8-bit
ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity is
selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard. An
EIA RS-232-C or 20 rnA interface is included; also standard is an RS-232-C serial printer port. An integral modem with auto dial and auto answer capabilities is
optional on the VT241.

DEVICE CONTROL
All VT200 family members provide full VT 100 compatibility. VT200 terminals can emulate the operation of the
VT100, enabling the user to implement the terminals

JUNE 1989

CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured),
monochrome, nonglare display is standard on the VT220
and VT240. The VT241 includes a 13-inch color display.
Terminal control logic is located in the display monitor of
the VT220; the VT240 and VT241 include a separate
system box which houses terminal logic. Amber, green, or
white phosphor characters can be selected for the VT220
and VT240. Four colors out of a palette of 64 can be
displayed on the VT241. A multinational character set
(MCS) that includes the full ASCII set is displayable; any
of 256 multinational characters can be generated from the
keyboard. Also available is the national replacement character set (NRC), which allows users to generate international characters, and is backward compatible with the
VT100. A CRT Saver feature, designed to prolong the life
of the CRT, is standard on all models.

C25-384-304
Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family
All models feature selectable display formats of 24 lines of
80 characters, and 24 lines of 132 characters. Character
brightness and screen contrast are individually adjustable.
The VT200 monitors have a built-in tilt feature for ease of
viewing.

KEYBOARD: All models feature a low-profile, detachable
keyboard that conforms to the international DIN standard
for human engineering. A total of 103 keys are contained
on the keyboard, which features a typewriter-style layout,
separate numeric pad, and 15 programmable function
keys. Function keys can be custom labeled for user-

defined applications. All keys feature a sculptured, matte
finish and provide an audible key click.
A total of 16 different language keyboards are available for
the VT200 terminals; 8 are available in specialized word
processing configurations. The standard character set generated is multinational.

PRICING
The VT200 family terminals are no longer being actively
marketed. Digital still offers service and support,
however. 0

JUNE 1989

C25-384-301
Display Tanninals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family
MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
The VT200 family succeeds the highly popular VT100 terminal family in DEC's terminal
product line. The VT200 terminals combine
full VT100 compatibility and functionality
with a new terminal design and lower price
tags. Color graphics. available on the
VT241. is a new capability not found on the
VT100 terminals.

In November 1983, DEC introduced its long-awaited
VT200 Series of video display terminals. The VT200 terminal family is intended to replace the hugely successful
VT100 family in DEC's product line. The new terminals
provide full VT100 compatibility, ensuring DEC a readymade market into which the VT200 can be sold. The
VT200s feature a new modular design based on the company's line of personal computer products, and provide the
user with an improved price/performance ratio over that
found on the VT 100 terminals. The demand for the new
terminals has been strong, and some shortages of the
products have been reported, reminiscent of the VT100's
introduction.

MODELS: VT220. VT240. and VT241.
DISPLAY: The VT220 and VT240 feature a
12-inch monochrome display; amber. green.
or white phosphor characters are available.
The VT241 is equipped with a 13-inch color
display. All models feature 80-/132-column
display capability.
KEYBOARD: All models include a 103-key
detachable keyboard. The keyboard features
a low-profile design and includes 15 programmable function keys. Sixteen different
language keyboards are available.
COMPETITION: CIE Terminals. Lear Siegler.
Liberty Electronics. Micro-Term. TeleVideo
Systems. Visual Technology. Wyse Technology, and several others.
PRICE: Purchase prices for the VT200 terminals range from $1.395 to $3.195.

The VT200 family consists of three models: the VT220,
VT240, and VT241. The VT220 is the low-end model, a
general-purpose interactive display which directly replaces
the venerable VT100. Features include a 12-inch monochrome display, 80-/132-column display capability, and a
detachable keyboard. The VT240 combines the VT220's
text functions with a graphics capability; two graphics
protocols are available (DEC's ReGIS and Tektronix'
4010/4014). The VT241 is a color text/graphics terminal,
combining the features found on the VT220 and VT240
with color display capability and a slightly larger (I3-inch)
display.
The VT200 terminals incorporate a modular enclosure
design not found on the older VT1 00 models. As a result of
this design, the VT200 terminals are more compact, and
take up less desk space, than the older VT1 ()() models. The
VT220 features two-piece construction, including the mon-

CHARACTERISTICS

VENDOR: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), 146
Main Street, Maynard, MA 01754. Telephone (617)
897-5111.

The VT220 is the low-end model in
DEC's new VT200 terminalfamily.
The VT220 features two-piece modular construction, with a I2-inch
monochrome display and a detachable, low-profile keyboard. As with
all ofthe new VT200 terminals, the
VT220 boasts full DEC VT100
compatibility, including 80-/132column display capability and compatibility with the ANSI X3.64
standard. As was the case with the
VT100, several vendors have recently introduced terminals designed to
emulate the VT220.

FEBRUARY 1985

_
-

C25-384-302
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family

t> itor and keyboard; terminal logic is contained in the
monitor housing. The VT240 and VT241 feature threepiece construction, consisting of the monitor, keyboard,
and a system box containing the terminal's logic. The
VT200 monitors have a wedge-shaped design with a builtin tilt feature; the keyboards incorporate a low-profile
design and conform to the DIN standard for ergonomics.
COMPETITIVE POSITION

DEC's VT 100 display terminal ranks as the most successful
ASCII terminal ever marketed. Since its introduction in
1978, over 500,000 VT100s have been shipped; an additional200,000 VT100 submodels (VTlOI, VTl02, VTl25,
VT13I, and VTl32) have also been sold. An emulation
market for the VT 100 now flourishes, second in size only to
the IBM 3270 emulation market in the display terminal
industry. Most major general-purpose ASCII terminal vendors provide models with some VT 100 emulation as part of
their product line. Dataquest, a San Jose, California-based
market research firm, estimates that DEC holds better than
a 60 percent share of the VT 100 market, a market that
accounted for shipments of well over 200,000 units in 1983.
TeleVideo Systems, the leading independent display terminal manufacturer, predicted that shipments of DEC-compatible terminals would hit the 300,000 mark in 1984.
Into this ready-made market comes the VT200 family.
DEC imbued the VT200 terminals with full VT100 compatibility, virtually assuring them of a successful product
life. Demand for the VT220 in particular has been brisk,
enabling DEC to raise the price ofthe terminal from $1,295
to $1,395. Since the VT200 introduction, several vendors
have introduced VT200 emulators, most of them emulating the VT220. These competitors include TeleVideo, as
well as CIE Terminals, Lear Siegler, Liberty Electronics,

DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT: November 1983.
DATE OF FIRST DELIVERY: November 1983.
NUMBER DELIVERED TO DATE: Over 60,000.
SERVICED BY: Digital Equipment Corporation.

MODELS
The DEC VT200 display terminal family currently consists
of three models:
• VT220-an interat1ive display for text-oriented applications. The VT220 is a two-piece modular unit consisting of
a 12-inch monochrome display/control unit and a detachable keyboard. The display features 80-/132-column display capability and is available with amber, green, or
white phosphor characters.
• VT240-an interactive display with both text and graphics capabilities. The VT240 is a three-piece modular unit
consisting of a 12-inch monochrome display unit, detachable keyboard, and a system box. The display features
80-/132-column display capability and is available with
amber, green, or white phosphor characters. Screen resolution is 800 by 240 pixels. Two graphics instruction sets
are available for bit-mapped graphics capability.
• VT241-an interactive, graphics-oriented terminal with
color. The VT241 is a three-piece modular unit consisting
of a 13-inch color display unit, detachable keyboard, and
system box. The display features 80-/132-column display
capability, and has a resolution of 800 by 240 pixels. Two
graphics instruction sets are available.
All models conform to the ANSI X3.64 standard.
TRANSMISSION SPECIFICATIONS

Transmission is asynchronous in full-duplex mode at transmission rates from SO to 19,200 bits per second. The 7- or 8bit ASCII code is used. Odd, even, mark, or no parity is
selectable from the keyboard. Local echo is standard. An
EIA RS-232-C or 20 ma interface is included; also standard
is an RS-232-C serial printer port. An integral modem, with
autodial and autoanswer capabilities, is optional on the
VT241.
DEVICE CONTROL

All VT200 family members provide full VT100 compatibility. VT200 terminals can emulate the operation of the
VT100, enabling the user to implement the new terminals
without software modifications to existing application programs that support VT100 terminals.
For all VT200 models, transmission is performed on a
character-by-character basis as each key is depressed. The
selection and storage of local terminal parameters is performed in Set-Up mode. The VT200 terminals provide a
plain langnage set-up menu, which is cursor-driven. The set
of menus presents plain language choices in any of three
selectable languages: English, German, or French.

The VT240 is a monochrome terminal with' both text and
graphics display capability. Two graphics instruction sets are
availablefor bit-mapped graphics displays. Screen resolution is
800 by 240 pixels.

Visual attributes available include reverse video and character highlighting. The Selective Erase feature allows the user
to select positions on the screen to be erased without erasing
the whole screen. Programmable function keys allow the
user to store commonly used commands and execute them
with a single keystroke. Also featured is a downline loadable
character set, allowing as many as 94 characters to be
loaded into the terminal from the host, thus enabling users
to design special characters for use in specific applications.

FEBRUARY 1985

C25-384-303
Display Terminals

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)
VT200 Video Display Terminal Family
TABLE 1. DEC VT220 EMULATORS

Vendor
CIE Terminals
Cybernex
Lanpar Technologies
Lear Siegler
liberty
Micro-Term
Plessey
TeleVideo
Visual
Wyse
Zentec

Model
CIT-220+
RG-220
Vision
2200+
ADM 220
Freedom
220
Ergo 320
PT-220
922
Visual 220
WY-85
00220

•

Screen
Size

80·/132·
Column
Display

12
14
12

Yes
Yes
Yes

1,195

12
12/14

Yes
Opt.

1,165
795-845

12
12
12
14
14
14

Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes

Price'
(S)

1,195

995
995
799
850

*8ased on single-quantity

Wyse Technology, Visual Technology, and some others.
Table 1 provides a summary of the VT220 emulating
terminals currently on the market.
At the time of the VT200 announcement, DEC also announced that it will continue the production of the VT100
for at least two more years, or possibly longer if demand for
them still exists. The submodels of the VT100 have been
placed in maintenance mode, meaning DEC will continue
to support them but has ceased their production.
ADVANTAGES AND RESTRICTIONS

The VT100 achieved its success despite a relatively high
price tag. The terminal's enhanced features (most notably
its full-screen 132-column display capability) and high
degree of functionality were key factors in the VT100's
early success; later, as prices for display terminals plunged,
the VT100 persevered chiefly because it had become a
standard in the industry.
The VT200 terminals provide significant price/performance improvements over the VT1 00. The new models
incorporate a new terminal housing design, provide full
VT100 compatibility and functionality, and are priced
lower than their predecessors. In addition, the VT240 and
VT241 have graphics capabilities previously found only on
the VT125. Color has also been added to the DEC terminal
product line with the VT241.
Significant features carried over from the VT 100 terminals
include 80-/132-column display capability, and conformance with the ANSI X3.64 standard for control codes.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) first
published the X3.64 standard for two-dimensional data
devices in 1977. The goal was to standardize control codes
for all terminals, effectively eliminating compatibility
problems. The VT 100 was the first display terminal to
conform to the ANSI standard. In order to provide true
DEC emulation, the makers of DEC emulators must also
provide ANSI X3.64 code compatibility on their products. 1:>

FEBRUARY 1985

Both the VT240 and VT241 support two high-level graphics
instruction sets: DEC's ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set) and Tektronix' 4010/4014 graphics protocols.
DEC also provides applications software, such as DECgraph and DECslide, to support the graphics featnres ofthe
VT240 and vT:Z41. The VT241 features color RGB (red/
green/blue) output to devices such as a color camera and an
auxiliary color monitor. All VT200 models featnre composite video output, allowing the user to connect auxiliary
monitors to the VT200 terminals.

COMPONENTS
CRT DISPLAY UNIT: A 12-inch (diagonally measured)
monochrome nonglare display is standard on the VT220 and
VT240. The VT241 includes a 13-inch color display. Terminal control logic is located in the display monitor of the
VT220; the VT240 and VT241 include a separate system
box which houses terminal logic. Amber, green, or white
phosphor characters may be selected for the VT220 and
VT240. Four colors (out of a palette of 64) may be displayed
on the VT241. A multinational character set that includes
the full ASCII set is displayable; any of 256 multinational
characters can be generated from the keyboard. A CRT
Saver feature, designed to prolong the life of the CRT, is
standard on all models.
All models featnre selectable display formats of 24 lines by
80 characters, and 24 lines of 132 characters. Character
brightness and screen contrast are individually adjustable.
The VT200 monitors have a built-in tilt feature for ease of
viewing.
KEYBOARD: All models feature a low-profile, detachable
keyboard which conforms to the international DIN standard
for human engineering. A total of 103 keys are contained on
the keyboard, which features a typewriter-style layout, separate numeric pad, and 15 programmable function keys.
Function keys may be custom-labeled for user-defined applications. All keys feature a sculptured, matte finish and
provide an audible key click.
A total of 16 different language keyboards are available for
the VT200 terminals; 8 are available in specialilzed word
processing configurations. The standard character set generated is multinational.

PRICING
The VT200 family terminals are available for purchase
only. DEC supports the terminals through its Field Service,
available worldwide in over 400 service locations and sales
offices. Carry-in service is also available.

VT220
VT240
VT241

Purchase
Price

Monthly
Maint.

($)

1,395
2,195
3,195

6
16
23

•

DEC created a display terminal standard with the VT100.
The company's ad campaign for the VT200 boasts that they
are now "Advancing the Standard." With the success that
the new VT200 terminals have already enjoyed, it would
appear that DEC has indeed succeeded in doing so. 0

Source Exif Data:

File Type                       : PDF
File Type Extension             : pdf
MIME Type                       : application/pdf
PDF Version                     : 1.3
Linearized                      : No
XMP Toolkit                     : Adobe XMP Core 4.2.1-c041 52.342996, 2008/05/07-21:37:19
Create Date                     : 2016:08:19 09:32:41-08:00
Modify Date                     : 2016:08:19 09:51:08-07:00
Metadata Date                   : 2016:08:19 09:51:08-07:00
Producer                        : Adobe Acrobat 9.0 Paper Capture Plug-in
Format                          : application/pdf
Document ID                     : uuid:e2651ce6-225e-8b45-90b7-7397ee7ba5f6
Instance ID                     : uuid:4f8d43c5-516d-5649-a9e8-6448f4807362
Page Layout                     : SinglePage
Page Mode                       : UseOutlines
Page Count                      : 62

EXIF Metadata provided by EXIF.tools

Datapro_C25_Digital Datapro C25 Digital

Datapro_C25_Digital Datapro_C25_Digital

Navigation menu

Versions of this User Manual:

Views

Navigation