I forgot to say in my previous posting, which Dennis's posting prompted
me to remember.

Just take a PC into a receiving dock, and watch with incredulity what
happens when they accidentally click that little X in a box at the top
right hand corner of the screen, when they were about to check a
delivery note against a purchase order. After watching for about 10 mins
whilst they hit it to get the screen to come back, you realise that its
the Windows environment that is over complex. And an emulator running on
Windows is no more less complex than any other piece of software.

In article <01c09ae3$d2db3950$031e82c0@bigbird>, Dennis Heidner
<[log in to unmask]> writes
>Also,  try doing a STARTSESS to a virtual port and compare the results of
>going to a nailed DTC port.   There are user written applications which
>depend on nailed ports.   If HP enhanced MPEiX to allow a STARTSESS to an
>IP address, or a HP "FOPEN" of a remote IP address as an interactive data
>device... then much of the need for DTC's would fade away.
>
>You can get some pretty good hardened PC's at a low cost.   Now days the
>keyboards for HP terminals are made by Keytronix (Spokane WA) and are
>basically the same device as you see on an ordinary PC.  You can by small
>book PC or thin client boxes for under $400 (monitor extra).  Low cost B&W
>VGA monitors sell for about $100.    I.E. you could devise a PC solution
>that would still operate in a nasty industrial environment.  So I don't see
>the PC cost vs. dumb terminal cost as the main issue.  I think the bigger
>issue is the nailed ports and better print page recovery that you get with
>the DTC's.
>

Alan Yeo
[log in to unmask]    Just because you're paranoid
Phone +44 1684 291710   it doesn't mean someone isn't!.
Fax   +44 1684 291712