BBS Graphics Mode
BBS Operation - Graphics Mode
When a caller first logs on, the system determines what type of general terminal they are using with the "Backspace/DEL" test. Commodore graphics terminals send a CHR$(20) code when the caller hits the DEL key, while ANSI and ASCII callers will send a CHR$(8) or CHR$(127) code when they hit the backspace or delete keys.
If they are using ANSI or ASCII, the system then asks the caller if their terminal supports ANSI graphics. If they answer "Y", then the computer will make full use of ANSI color and graphics characters. If they answer "N” then they will also be asked if their terminal requires line feeds to work correctly. This is for ASCII terminals that may already attach a linefeed to each carriage return received.
Commodore Graphics Mode
Commodore graphics terminal programs can get the full effect of all the various color changes and graphics characters used in the BBS system. This is primarily the reason this BBS system was named Color 64, because it was one of the first to fully support the new line of Commodore graphics term programs such as CCGMS.
Color 64 supports the background color change that was standardized in the early term programs. A background color change is achieved though the CTRL/B character; if a color is typed after a CTRL/B character, then the background will change to that color. This does not function for Commodore 128 80 column term programs, because CTRL/B is used to turn on underlining. Color 64 will allow you to print files specifically designed for the 80 column C128 screen because it will "pass through" the control characters used for underlining and flashing modes.
ASCII Mode
Color 64 will attempt the best translation possible when the caller is calling using a plain ASCII terminal program, although use of these programs is decreasing because of the greater availability of color terminal programs for Commodore and non-Commodore computer callers.
All the Commodore graphics characters will be converted to a suitable substitution, and Color 64 will even consider the current uppercase/lowercase mode of the text screen.
| Commodore Graphics (PETSCII) | ASCII Translation by Color 64 |
|---|---|
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ANSI Graphics Mode ANSI callers should be quite satisfied with the conversion made by Color 64. Color 64 supports 15 ANSI colors (dark grey does not work on some ANSI terms, so it is translated to medium grey) and makes the best possible conversion of Commodore graphics characters.
| Commodore Graphics (PETSCII) | ANSI Translation by Color 64 |
|---|---|
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ANSI callers should set their terminal so that the default background color is black, to adequately emulate Commodore graphics. Also, the term should be set that a carriage return will not be appended after a linefeed, because the line feed character is used as the "cursor down" character for ANSI callers.
Since many ANSI terms only support 8 different background colors, the other 8 "bold" colors may not be active in REVERSE mode, thus some graphics translations may not be as satisfactory as possible.
One other input option is available to ANSI callers. If they type the ESCape character and follow it with two digits, then they can change the current cursor color. The first digit is the bold setting, 0 for normal colors or 1 for the brighter "bold" colors. The second digit is the ANSI color from 0 to 7. This way they can access all the possible colors that Commodore graphics callers can use.
Next Section: The User Application