this post was submitted on 20 Aug 2025
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    submitted 3 weeks ago by hellfire103@lemmy.ca to c/linuxmemes@lemmy.world
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    [–] over_clox@lemmy.world 43 points 3 weeks ago (7 children)

    Very relevant...

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=2XLZ4Z8LpEE

    [–] tal@lemmy.today 13 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

    Instead of unalias ls to avoid having just ls send ANSI color escape codes to the terminal, he should really have passed the term argument to agetty, like maybe dumb.

    EDIT: At 10:22, where he starts typing the login, it looks like the teletype does seek back up to reposition the cursor at "LOGIN:", so it does support at least some limited escape codes. Maybe something a little smarter than dumb.

    Hell, maybe there's even an existing terminfo/termcap entry for a compatible teletype.

    EDIT2:

    $ infocmp -D|xargs -i% find % -type f|xargs -n1 basename|xargs -n1 infocmp|less

    Will give a searchable list of supported terminfo entries on a given Linux system.

    On Debian trixie, I don't see an entry for a Model 15 Teletype, but they do have an entry for a "model 33 or 35 teletype", tty33.

    EDIT3: Searching eBay, looks like there are apparently teletype machines available on eBay, though some additional poking around suggests that that may not be the most affordable way to get one.

    https://old.reddit.com/r/Teletype/comments/g30rdi/where_to_buy_first_teletype/

    Teletype post

    Where to buy first teletype?

    Hello everyone. I have always liked manual typewriters, as well as vintage computers. When I found out that teletypes existed, I thought the heavens had aligned for my ultimate device. Then I realized that I could not, for the life of me, find one at a decent price. I have a sneaking suspicion that a lot of the hobbyists online did not purchase machines that were in need of repair for upwards of $2000. (Thanks, eBay.) So my question is, where should I look if I want to purchase my first teletype without getting ripped off? I assume those prices are very inflated, as I can't imagine there is a massive market for these things. Also, does anyone have any suggestions for a good starting model? I just want to hook it up as a serial terminal. I have experience with modems, and if a modem is hardwired in, that's fine.

    Oh yeah, don't go buy one on ebay. People are insane about what they think their junk is worth, plus shipping is prohibitive. What you should do is subscribe to the Greenkeys mailing list and introduce yourself.

    Then do a little research about what kind of gear you want - an ascii one, like a 33, the kind they used to use as a computer terminal? An older 5-level one like a model 28? Even older, a model 15 or 19, or a 14 that prints/punches on paper tape instead of roll paper? Something obscure and odd looking like a 26? And ancient and rare historical artifact like a 12? Plus all the different countries' variants, etc.

    Once you have some idea what you're looking for, post to the greenkeys list and say what you're after, how much work you're able to put into getting it working (do you want something you can just start using, or do you want a restoration project?) and most importantly where you live.

    Once you've put it out there what you're looking for, if it's not super unusual it's not unheard of for it to just appear at your door. A bunch of people have more teletype machines than they can really keep, and would much rather see them go to a good home than be scrapped. Especially since many collectors are elderly and thinking about what will happen to their stuff when they die.

    EDIT4: Oh, looking at the agetty command line, he passed "asr33", for the term parameter, which is apparently a (much, much newer than the machine he has) teletype machine, but it shouldn't support color, so I don't know why he'd be worried about that. Maybe his ls aliased to ls --color=always instead of ls --color=auto or something; they don't show it in the video. Or maybe unaliasing it wasn't necessary, and he just didn't realize it.

    [–] alecsargent@lemmy.zip 4 points 3 weeks ago

    That is insane!

    [–] tal@lemmy.today 3 points 3 weeks ago

    I was watching the thing and got to the part where he said that he was using XON/XOFF flow control and thought that the guy's Arduino RS-232 ASCII-to-Baudot-encoding thing could be made more efficient if he'd make the encoder use the RS-232 RTS/CTS lines instead of XON/XOFF encoding. Then I realized that he's converting to 45.5 baud, and that at that speed, even his 9600 baud line

    normally the chokepoint for people with modern hardware, you know, 1980s and on or so

    is blisteringly fast and inefficiency at that point is irrelevant.

    [–] fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

    Shit that beats out connecting my 90s serial equipped typewriter to use as a terminal output.

    [–] tal@lemmy.today 1 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

    Probably the most cost-effective option is gonna be a used daisy-wheel printer with continuous feed paper.

    I'd guess that the fastest

    if all one wants is a very fast dead-wood terminal

    is probably gonna be some kind of line printer. Apparently some of the late-model IBM line printers were made by a company called Printronix, which is still making printers. One of their printers, the P8C20, can apparently print at 2000 lpm. I can't find any video of one printing, but here's a video of an older 1500 lpm printer from them with the sound-isolation cover open. Dunno if it's running at full speed there, though.

    [–] porksnort@slrpnk.net 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

    I agree, and perhaps some deep diving to find an older dot matrix printer? Should be supremely hackable. I only have experience with these:

    Next-gen teletypes

    They were extremely durable and low maintenance. Also loud and more stress inducing than a modern SMS notification.

    Good times

    [–] over_clox@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago

    Last I checked, hospitals around my area still use dot matrix printers, mainly because of carbon copy papers..

    [–] Late2TheParty@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

    Damn, but we can be so creative!

    [–] thisbenzingring@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 3 weeks ago

    glad I watched the whole thing, that is amazing

    [–] porksnort@slrpnk.net 1 points 3 weeks ago

    That was a complete rabbit hole. Thanks.

    The only thing possibly more epic would be converting a Linotype to a Linux terminal. It uses hot lead to create type for newspapers, etc.

    I was trained to use one as there were so many in use they still have some niche applications for specialty printing.

    Anyhow, I call them Satan’s Typewriters and still have small scars from hot lead all over my forearms. And I love technology.

    A good film:

    Linotype: The Film