tek graphics from VM/CMS --> SUN over TELNET,TCP/IP

[Kevin.N.Broekhoven%QueensU.CA at qucdn.queensu.ca]

Hello,  we are adding SUNs to our list of supported "platforms" at
Queen's.  The relevant configuration now looks like VM/CMS, PCs with
ethernet cards and SUNs and Macs communicating via TELNET over a TCP/IP
network.

We are able to connect the SUNs to the IBM mainframe by using a program
called TN3270.  What we would like is to be able to use the SUN as a
graphics terminal attached to VM.  This would allow our users to take
advantage of their new SUN systems, while retaining the ability to use the
wide range of mathematical and graphic libraries we have accumulated on VM
over the years.  As near as I can tell from a brief reading of SUN
documentation, monochrome monitors with their one deep bit-plane could use
a TEK401n emulation, grey-scale and colour monitors could use a TEK410n
(colour) emulation.

We have access to Pascal code for tek emulators running on the PC;
looking at the SUN graphic programming tools, this could be ported to
TN3270 in C for which we have source.  I would prefer not to re-invent the
wheel on this one -- has anyone out there had this problem, or solved it?
I would appreciate any information on this problem.

Related question:  I have had a look at the SunCore documentation (though
not SunGKS, or SunCGI) -- the whole software package seems devoted to
producing graphics on the monitor;  I did not see any way of producing
hard-copy from it.  Did I miss something in the documentation?  or is
there some nifty feature of SUNs which allows pictures to be transferred
from the screen to a hard-copy device?  The main use of graphics in a
university environment is to produce hard-copy for theses and publications
-- not whiz-bang animated sequences (though that might change).

thanks in advance for any replies,

Kevin Broekhoven
Applications Programmer (graphics)
Computing and Communication Services
Queens University K7L-3N6 (613) 545-2235
mailnet, bitnet, NetNorth: BROEKHVN at QUCDN