UNIXPC trivia

[ronald.l.fletcher]

> In article <1244 at icus.ICUS.COM>, lenny at icus.ICUS.COM (Lenny Tropiano) writes:
> ...
> > Well I forget the model, but AT&T had a telephone, computer terminal pair
> > (was it the 510?) that looked like a minature PC7300, with a builtin-phone.
> > They (CT) even had a version of "TAM" called "Touch TAM", that would 
> > convert the touching of the screen on that machine to TAM-equivalent
> > escape codes.  Imagine that, touching the "Filecabinet" to open it up, and
> > then touching the "file" to edit that ...  Reminds me of the days of
> > light-pens! ;-)

In article <652 at westmark.UU.NET>, dave at westmark.UU.NET (Dave Levenson) writes:
> 
> Yes, it was the 510.  Two models: the 510-A and the 510-D.  The -A
> model was analog, and could connect with two telephone lines.  One
> was normally used for speaking, the other with the internal modem.
> The -D was the digital model, which would connect only with the AT&T
> System 85 and System 75 PBXs.  It uses DCP (a proprietary digital
> link similar to but not compatible with ISDN) and provides 64 kbit
> voice and data connectivity with other PBX endpoints.  It could
> provide up to four call-pickup buttons, and a number of feature
> buttons, as well.

Well actually 3 models, the "D" model had an early vintage which
did not have an EIA port.

> 
> The screen (and optional keyboard) emulated a VT-100, including
Was it optional? I never saw one without it.

> 132-col mode, and smooth-scroll.  The handset and internal
> speakerphone emulate a 2500 set on the 510-A, and a 7400 digital set
> on the 510-D.  On the -D, if your PBX had all of the optional
> features working, the screen normally shows pictures of line, hold,
> conference, and speed-dial buttons.  You touch them, and place a
> call.  When someone calls you, a button-symbol blinks and the
> caller's number or name are displayed next to the blinking button.
> If you invoke the internal directory, names are displayed on the
> screen.  You "reach out and TOUCH someone" and it dials their
> number.
> 
> And yes, if you used it to log into a UNIX-PC running TAM, you got
> "Touch Target TAM" on your 510 screen.  The touch screen, actually,
> used optical techniques very much like a light-pen.  When you
> touched the screen, your finger-pressure dimpled a transparent
> flexible piece of plastic.  Some transparent jelly was sandwiched
> between this piece of plastic and another, against the CRT face.
> The dimple would reflect light from the CRT screen toward some photo
> detectors at the corners of the screen.  The sense electronics
> connected thereto would receive a pulse of light and correlate it
> with the position of the raster scan, and determine what you had
> touched on your screen.
> 
> A very neat terminal, as I recall.  Probably one of the most
> expensive telehpones ever offered for sale.  Also, a rather costly
> VT-100 emulator.  But, like the flying submarine, it was a better
> telephone than most data terminals, and a far better data terminal
> than most telephones!

Any idea what these things retailed for?

Funny a 510 discussion should start now, the lab next door
just trashed 4 of these. I walked by them for a week and the
hardware hacker in me got the better of me. There must be some
neat application for a touch-screen. It took 3 of them
to get 1 fully functional 510D with EIA port. I hooked it up DCP-wise
to a System 75 and ran its internal tests and played awhile. 
Pretty neat. I havent had a chance to hook it up to a UNIXPC
yet, but I will soon. 

These were a hot item internally for a while, but with the advent
of PC-PBX (DCP interface for UNIXPC or PC6300) they became passe'.

I was told that a number of retiree's got 510A's for a going away
present.


					Ron Fletcher
					att!mtgzy!rlf