APPENDIX 3 : USING THE EDT EDITOR ON VAX/VMS If you are using the sideways ROM version of BBC KERMIT on a model B, or either version on a B+, B+128 or Master 128, you will be able to use the EDT screen editor on VAX/VMS mainframes to edit your files. This Appendix describes how you should set up your job to do this, and how the BBC Computer's function keys are used to control the editor. If you are using the RAM version of BBC KERMIT on a model B, which emulates only a 40 character wide teletype, you will still be able to use EDT, but only in line mode. A3.1 SETTING UP THE TERMINAL DETAILS In order to use the full facilities of the EDT editor you must, of course, set BBC KERMIT to provide a VT52 terminal emulation. This is the default setting, but if you have changed the terminal type you can return to VT52 mode with the command SET TERMINAL VT52 before you use the CONNECT command to enter terminal mode. Depending on how the VAX/VMS system has been set up, you may also need to configure it to know that your terminal is a VT52 and not, for instance, a VT100. You can see what VMS thinks your terminal is by issuing the DCL command $ SHOW TERMINAL during a job. If the default terminal type is a VT52, you need take no further action: EDT will automatically adapt itself to use the correct screen control commands. If, though, the default terminal type is not a VT52, you will need to take some action. You can do one of several things here: 1. If you are connected to your VAX system with a directly connected permanent line, you could ask your system manager to set the terminal characteristics that VMS will use. This will be permanent, and once it is done the default terminal type for that line will be a VT52. This will not, though, be possible if you are using some sort of network to link you to the VAX system. 2. Whenever you start a terminal job, you could issue the command $ SET TERMINAL/DEVICE=VT52 to tell VMS that you are using a VT52. You must do this before you use the EDT editor (or anything else, such as MAIL, that sends screen-control characters). You could include the command in your LOGIN.COM file to save you having to remember to issue it every time: however, the terminal type will then be wrong if you ever use a device that is not a VT52. 3. You could include in your LOGIN.COM file the command $ SET TERM/INQUIRE This will make VMS send an "inquiry sequence" to the terminal when you log in: BBC KERMIT will then identify itself as a VT52, and VMS will set itself up accordingly. This is probably the preferable method, since it will adapt itself automatically whatver device type you use. However, there are some drawbacks. If you use a device that does not respond to the inquiry sequence you will see some rubbish charaters appear, and login may be slowed down slightly: also, any commands you type while waiting for the login sequence to complete will be discarded. There is also the problem that some peculiar terminals (ICL terminals are apparently bad here) may interpret the inquiry sequence as something else entirely, and may do something strange or even stop working altogether. A3.2 EDIT KEYPAD KEYS As we saw in section 4.4, the models B, B+ and B+128 do not possess keys corresponding to the VT52 keypad, so BBC KERMIT emulates them using the red function keys. Section 4.4 specified the actual ESCAPE sequences that the keys will send to the host computer in VT52 mode: here we shall consider the use of the keys in terms of the EDT editor. If you have a Master 128 you will be able to use the keypad keys to send the ESCAPE sequences. A3.2.1 Models B, B+ and B+128 These machines do not have keypads, so you will need to use the red function keys to send the ESCAPE sequences to EDT. Note that some editor functions are invoked by pressing a sequence of keys: in the list below F3 indicates that you should press key F3, and SHIFT-F1/F3 indicates that you should press SHIFT-F1 (the GOLD function) then F3. BBC key sequence VT52 keypad key EDT function SHIFT-F1 PF1 GOLD SHIFT-F2 PF2 HELP SHIFT-F3 PF3 DELETE LINE SHIFT-F1/SHIFT-F3 GOLD/PF1 UNDELETE LINE SHIFT-F7 PERIOD SELECT SHIFT-F1/SHIFT-F7 GOLD/PERIOD RESET SHIFT-F8 ENTER ENTER SHIFT-F1/SHIFT-F8 GOLD/ENTER SUBS F0 0 LINE SHIFT-F1/F0 GOLD/0 OPEN LINE F1 1 WORD SHIFT-F1/F1 GOLD/1 CHANGE CASE F2 2 EOL SHIFT-F1/F2 GOLD/2 DELETE EOL F3 3 CUT SHIFT-F1/F3 GOLD/3 PASTE F4 4 ADVANCE SHIFT-F1/F4 GOLD/F1 BOTTOM F5 5 BACKUP SHIFT-F1/F5 GOLD/5 TOP F6 6 DELETE CHAR SHIFT-F1/F6 GOLD/F6 UNDELETE CHAR F7 7 PAGE SHIFT-F1/F7 GOLD/7 COMMAND F8 8 FIND NEXT SHIFT-F1/F8 GOLD/8 FIND F9 9 DELETE WORD SHIFT-F1/F9 GOLD/9 UNDELETE WORD UP UP CURSOR-UP SHIFT-F1/UP GOLD/UP REPLACE DOWN DOWN CURSOR-DOWN SHIFT-F1/DOWN GOLD/DOWN SECT RIGHT RIGHT CURSOR-RIGHT SHIFT-F1/RIGHT GOLD/RIGHT SPECINS LEFT LEFT CURSOR-LEFT SHIFT-F1/LEFT GOLD/LEFT APPEND A3.3.2 The Master 128 This machine possesses a keypad to the right of the main keyboard, and the arrangement of these keys closely parallels what you would find on a real terminal. The key arrangement differs most in that the cursor keys on a real VT52 are in the keypad area: on the Master they are separate, and the keypad keys that occupy these positions are not used. The keypad sends EDT control sequences as follows. If the key diagram shows two functions, the upper one is selected by pressing the key alone, and the lower is obtained by first pressing GOLD, then pressing the key. --------------------------------- ! ! ! ! ! ! GOLD ! HELP ! DEL L ! ! ! ! ! UND L ! ! ! ! ! ! ! --------------------------------- ! ! ! ! ! ! PAGE ! FNDNXT! DEL W ! ! ! COMND ! FIND ! UND W ! ! ! ! ! ! ! --------------------------------- ! ! ! ! ! ! ADV ! BACKUP! DEL C ! ! ! BOTTOM! TOP ! UND C ! ! ! ! ! ! ! --------------------------------- ! ! ! ! ! ! WORD ! EOL ! CUT ! ! ! C CASE! D EOL ! PASTE ! ! ! ! ! ! ! --------------------------------- ! ! ! ! ! LINE ! SELECT! ENTER ! ! OPN L ! RESET ! SUBS ! ! ! ! ! ---------------------------------