HP2640
The HP2640 and other HP264X models were block-mode "smart" and intelligent terminals produced by Hewlett Packard using the new 8080 processor.Functionality
The functionality defined by the HP264X series hasn't changed much as the preferred terminal for HP1000 and HP3000 series computers. They never achieved the notoriety of the VT100 among programmers, but included sophisticated features not found in the VT100, such as offline forms, multipages, and (in some models) local storage. The styling looked like a toaster oven. It was boxy, with a "widescreen"
aspect ratio. The keyboard had flat tops, and
featured two keypad areas, like the IBM PC keyboard. The testing area was called "beepland" because it had 500 terminals, with the end of the test ending in a beep. The HP2640 introduced "block mode", similar to
the IBM 3270. The escape sequences Esc-[ and Esc-] defined unprotected areas, but it didn't have to take up a visible space. It acted much like a web page, disconnected from the host until the SEND key was pressed. The fields could screen for alphabetic or numeric characters, a feature beyond Windows Forms today. This would be supported by programs such as VIEW/3000 which would map form data into runtime variables and databases. The HP2640 also introduced multiple pages of memory, much like the DOS box in Microsoft Windows today, and the page up and page down key which appears on PC keyboards. A cool trick was to take the terminal offline,
edit the line, and then retransmit it, giving the effect of a line editor even if the operating system did not support it. This was later implemented as "line mode".
Models
The HP264X series included several models beyond the HP2640. - The HP2645 introduced 3M mini cartridge tape drives which could be used to upload or download data, as opposed to slow paper tapes of the time. Another later model used floppy disks, and supported drawing forms etch-a-sketch style and would compute intersections. Also notable was the use of paper labeled function keys on the upper left. These would always get lost, so users would scroll lock the top 2 lines of the screen and uses these for labels. These were built into the next generation of terminals. The values of these keys could be programmed.
- The HP2648 was a graphics terminal which featured hardware zoom, and "autoplot".
- The HP2647 had a variant of Microsoft BASIC with AGL (HP's standard for plotting) built in, and perhaps the first real business charting for a microcomputer, complete with 3D cross-hatched pie charts.
- The HP262X series introduced the "periscope" look, "soft" key labels along with a 4 + 4 key display at the bottom of the screen, and a heirarchical setup tree.
The great over-reach was a color graphics terminal that cost more than the HP2645 color graphics workstation. Eventually, HP ended up selling essentially a low-cost version of the HP2640, and now you'll need to find a terminal emulator.
|
|
