VT Pages

The VT terminal contains an area of memory called page memory. Page memory contains 144 lines that you can divide into equal pages. The host sends control sequences defining a page containing any number of lines from 24 through 144. This might be useful in UNIX environments where some applications can accept any size terminal. Therefore, you can select the most appropriate window size considering the account screen space, window contents, and other applications.

If your page size is larger than your window size, you can use the horizontal and vertical scroll bars to move on the page. You use the vertical scroll bar to move up and down on the current page, and the horizontal scroll bar to move left and right. The boxes in the scroll bars show your relative position on the viewed page. Alternatively, you can change the size of the screen font to view the entire VT page.

The host generally selects the page size, active page, and viewed page. However, you can change the viewed page.

To change the VT page size

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. In the Display page Lines drop-down text box, specify the number of lines per VT page by selecting or typing a number between 24 and 144. The most common configuration is 6 pages of 24 lines each.

    NOTE:This divides page memory into equal pages. If any lines remain, they are not used. For example, if you selected 33 lines per page, page memory is divided into 4 pages of 33 lines each, and the remaining 12 lines are not used. Each page has left, right, top, and bottom margins. If you change the page size, the host can override your selection if necessary.

To change the VT page width

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. On the Display page under Columns, select either 80 or 132.

    NOTE:When you change between 80 and 132 columns, the width of each character changes. If some of the columns are not visible, you can use the horizontal scroll bar to view them all.

    Changing the column width clears the VT page.

To limit the rate of VT scrolling

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. On the Display page under Scroll Speed, use the slider to select a speed.

    NOTE:If you select a slow scrolling speed and data arrives faster than it can be displayed, the window is re-written only after a certain portion of the window has changed. No data is lost, only the line-by-line scrolling is omitted to save time.

To display control characters in a VT session

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. To display received control characters, select Show Control Characters.

    NOTE:When you display received control characters, control functions are not performed—only the characters are displayed.

To wrap lines and set tabs in a VT session

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. If you want to wrap text that appears on the screen, select Automatic Line Wrap.

  4. Set individual tab stops. Under Tabs, in the Columns edit box, type a series of numbers separated by commas, for example: 4,7,15,20.

    -or-

    Set tab stops at repeated intervals after the last stop, or after column 1 if no stops are defined. Type the interval as +n, for example: 10,20,+5. The default is 8-column intervals.

To couple the VT text cursor

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. On the Display page, select Page Coupling. The viewed page is changed as necessary when you move the text cursor.

    If the cursor is coupled, when the window scrolls the cursor remains visible as the current VT page changes. As data arrives from the host, the viewed page is changed to the active page. In this way, you can see the data as it arrives from the host.

To change the properties of the VT text cursor

  1. In a VT, SCO-ANSI, or AT386 session, from the Options menu, choose Settings.

  2. Under Categories, choose Display.

  3. On the Display page under Cursor, select from among Show, Block, and Blink.

To select text with your mouse

  1. Position the mouse cursor at the beginning of the area to select.

  2. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the mouse pointer across the text you want to select.

    NOTE:You can select either a portion of a line or lines or a rectangular portion of the viewed page. To toggle selection mode, press the CTRL key.

To select text with your keyboard in a VT session

  1. Press F1 to put your session into Hold Screen mode. The word "Select..." is displayed on the status bar.

  2. Using the arrow keys, move the cursor to the beginning of the text you want to select.

    NOTE:You can move the cursor a whole word at a time if you hold down the CTRL key as you press the arrow keys.

  3. Do one of the following:

    Table 3-52

    To Select

    Do

    A portion of a line or lines

    Press F8 or hold down the SHIFT key as you press an arrow key to extend your selection.

    Complete words

    Hold down both the SHIFT and CTRL keys as you press an arrow key to extend your selection.

    A complete line

    With your cursor at the beginning of the line, hold down the SHIFT key and press END.

    A rectangular portion of the viewed page

    Press CTRL + SHIFT + F8, then use the arrow keys to extend your selection.

  4. To cancel selection mode, press ESC.

To select the entire VT page

From the Edit menu, choose Select Display.

To clear the page

From the Edit menu, choose Clear Display.

NOTE:This clears display memory and sets all line attributes to normal.