Viewdata: Difference between revisions

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VisualWikitext
imported>Dingolover6969
m I suppose the number sign in the infobox should really be a Viewdata square, huh?
 
imported>Gilbert189
 
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Viewdata offered a display of 40×24 characters, based on [[ISO 646]] (IRV IA5) – 7 bits with no accented characters.<ref name=aei>{{cite web| url=http://aei.pitt.edu/94572/1/videotex.pdf | title=Proceedings of the Videotex in Europe | access-date=2023-12-26 | date=1979-07-19}}</ref>
Viewdata offered a display of 40×24 characters, based on [[ISO 646]] (IRV IA5) – 7 bits with no accented characters.<ref name=aei>{{cite web| url=http://aei.pitt.edu/94572/1/videotex.pdf | title=Proceedings of the Videotex in Europe | access-date=2023-12-26 | date=1979-07-19}}</ref>
Originally, Viewdata was accessed with a special purpose [[Computer terminal|terminal]] (or [[Emulator|emulation software]]) and a [[modem]] running at [[ITU-T]] [[ITU-T V.23|V.23]] speed (1,200 bit/s down, 75 bit/s up).<ref name=aei/> By 2004, it was normally accessed over [[TCP/IP]] using Viewdata [[client software]] on a [[personal computer]] running [[Microsoft Windows]], or using a Web-based emulator.
Originally, Viewdata was accessed with a special purpose [[Computer terminal|terminal]] (or [[Emulator|emulation software]]) and a [[modem]] running at [[ITU-T]] [[ITU-T V.23|V.23]] speed (1,200 bit/s down, 75 bit/s up).<ref name=aei/> By 2004, it was normally accessed over [[TCP/IP]] using Viewdata [[client software]] on a [[personal computer]] running [[Microsoft Windows]], or using a Web-based emulator.
===Keypad symbols: the sextile and the square===


{{Infobox symbol
{{Infobox symbol
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[[File:AVAYA 9611G IP Phone detail of star and hash.jpg |thumb|left|Detail of a more recent telephone keypad, in which (typographic) asterisk and number{{nbsp}}sign have replaced the ITU star and square]]
[[File:AVAYA 9611G IP Phone detail of star and hash.jpg |thumb|left|Detail of a more recent telephone keypad, in which (typographic) asterisk and number{{nbsp}}sign have replaced the ITU star and square]]


Viewdata uses special symbols already widely available on telephone keypads: the {{key press|⚹}} "star" key and the {{key press|⌗}} "square" key, as formally standardised by the [[International Telecommunication Union]].<ref>{{cite web | url =  http://www.itu.int/rec/T-REC-E.161-200102-I/en | title = E.161 : Arrangement of digits, letters and symbols on telephones and other devices that can be used for gaining access to a telephone network | publisher = [[International Telecommunication Union]] | date= 2 February 2001 | access-date =  23 December 2019}}</ref> These are often treated as approximately corresponding to the ASCII [[asterisk]] (*) and [[number sign]] (#), which do not necessarily conform to the ITU specifications for the keypad symbols; the asterisk is also usually displayed smaller and raised.<ref name="L213105r" />
Viewdata uses special symbols already widely available on telephone keypads: the {{key press|⚹}} "[[Telephone keypad#Star key|star key]]" and the {{key press|⌗}} "[[Telephone keypad#Square key|square key]]", as formally recommended by the [[International Telecommunication Union]].<ref>{{cite web | url =  http://www.itu.int/rec/T-REC-E.161-200102-I/en | title = E.161 : Arrangement of digits, letters and symbols on telephones and other devices that can be used for gaining access to a telephone network | publisher = [[International Telecommunication Union]] | date= 2 February 2001 | access-date =  23 December 2019}}</ref> The ASCII [[asterisk]] (*) and [[number sign]] (#) are sometimes used instead because they are regular symbols on [[computer keyboard]]s, although they do not match the ITU specification.<ref name="L213105r" /> On telephones, use of the number sign (hash symbol) has become the norm rather than the exception.


These symbols appear as 'Sextile' and 'Viewdata square' in the [[Miscellaneous Symbols]] and [[Miscellaneous Technical]] Unicode blocks, respectively. The sextile was added due to [[Astrological aspect|its use in astrology]],<ref name="L213105r">{{cite web|url=https://unicode.org/L2/L2013/13105r-telephony.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://unicode.org/L2/L2013/13105r-telephony.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live | title= Proposal to incorporate two telephony symbols into Unicode by glyph and annotation changes | date= 28 October 2013 | access-date =  23 December 2019 | author = Karl Pentzlin |id=UTC L2/13-105R}}</ref> and the square had previously appeared in the [[ISO/IEC 646#Variant comparison chart|BS_Viewdata]] character set, as a replacement for the underscore.<ref name="ISO-IR-047">{{cite iso-ir |title=Alphanumerics for viewdata and broadcast teletext |sponsor=BSI |sponsor-link=BSI Group |date=1981-06-01 |number=47}}</ref>
These symbols appear as {{unichar2|⚹}} and {{unichar2|⌗|nlink=}} in the [[Miscellaneous Symbols]] and [[Miscellaneous Technical]] Unicode blocks, respectively. The sextile was added due to [[Astrological aspect|its use in astrology]],<ref name="L213105r">{{cite web|url=https://unicode.org/L2/L2013/13105r-telephony.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://unicode.org/L2/L2013/13105r-telephony.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live | title= Proposal to incorporate two telephony symbols into Unicode by glyph and annotation changes | date= 28 October 2013 | access-date =  23 December 2019 | author = Karl Pentzlin |id=UTC L2/13-105R}}</ref> and the square had previously appeared in the [[ISO/IEC 646#Variant comparison chart|BS_Viewdata]] character set, as a replacement for the underscore.<ref name="ISO-IR-047">{{cite iso-ir |title=Alphanumerics for viewdata and broadcast teletext |sponsor=BSI |sponsor-link=BSI Group |date=1981-06-01 |number=47}}</ref>


In 2013, the German national body submitted a [[Unicode Consortium|Unicode Technical Committee]] proposal to align the Unicode reference glyphs with the ITU specifications for these symbols, and annotate them as telephone keypad symbols on the code charts.<ref name="L213105r" /> {{as of|2019}} (Unicode 12.1), these changes have not been accepted/implemented.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U2300.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U2300.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |title=Miscellaneous Technical |work=The Unicode Standard |author=Unicode Consortium |author-link=Unicode Consortium}}</ref>
In 2013, the German national body submitted a [[Unicode Consortium|Unicode Technical Committee]] proposal to align the Unicode reference glyphs with the ITU specifications for these symbols, and annotate them as telephone keypad symbols on the code charts.<ref name="L213105r" /> {{as of|2019}} (Unicode 12.1), these changes have not been accepted/implemented.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U2300.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U2300.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |title=Miscellaneous Technical |work=The Unicode Standard |author=Unicode Consortium |author-link=Unicode Consortium}}</ref>
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=== Travel industry ===
=== Travel industry ===
As of 2015, Viewdata was still in use in the [[United Kingdom]], mainly by the [[travel industry]]. [[Travel agent]]s use it to look up the price and availability of [[package holiday]]s and [[Commercial aviation|flight]]s. Once they find what the customer is looking for they can place a booking.
As of 2015, Viewdata was still in use in the [[United Kingdom]], mainly by the [[travel industry]]. [[Travel agent]]s use it to look up the price and availability of [[package holiday]]s and [[Commercial aviation|flight]]s. Once they find what the customer is looking for they can place a booking. As of 2019, Viewdata is only used by a handful of travel agents.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Agents vote for return of Viewdata in online poll |url=https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/agents-vote-for-return-of-viewdata-in-online-poll |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=Travel Weekly |language=En}}</ref>
 
There are a number of factors still holding up a move to a [[World Wide Web|Web]]-based standard. Viewdata is regarded within the industry as low-cost and reliable, travel consultants have been trained to use Viewdata and would need training to book holidays on the Internet, and [[tour operator]]s cannot agree on a Web-based standard.  
{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}


=== Bulletin board systems ===
=== Bulletin board systems ===
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}


It was made in the late 1970s and early 1980s to make it easier for travel consultants to check availability and make bookings for holidays.
A number of Viewdata [[bulletin board system]]s existed in the 1980s, predominantly in the UK due to the proliferation of the [[BBC Micro]], and a short-lived ''Viewdata Revival'' appeared in the late 1990s fuelled by the [[retrocomputing]] vogue. Some Viewdata boards still exist, with accessibility in the form of [[Java (Sun)|Java]] [[Telnet]] clients.
A number of Viewdata [[bulletin board system]]s existed in the 1980s, predominantly in the UK due to the proliferation of the [[BBC Micro]], and a short-lived ''Viewdata Revival'' appeared in the late 1990s fuelled by the [[retrocomputing]] vogue. Some Viewdata boards still exist, with accessibility in the form of [[Java (Sun)|Java]] [[Telnet]] clients.


Latest revision as of 12:26, 20 April 2026

Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".

File:Teletext Viewdata Terminal.png
A Viewdata machine displayed in teletext format

Viewdata is a Videotex implementation. It is a type of information retrieval service in which a subscriber can access a remote database via a common carrier channel, request data and receive requested data on a video display over a separate channel. Samuel Fedida, who had the idea for Viewdata in 1968, was credited as inventor of the system which was developed while working for the British Post Office which was the operator of the national telephone system. The first prototype became operational in 1974. The access, request and reception are usually via common carrier broadcast channels. This is in contrast with teletext.

Design

Viewdata offered a display of 40×24 characters, based on ISO 646 (IRV IA5) – 7 bits with no accented characters.[1] Originally, Viewdata was accessed with a special purpose terminal (or emulation software) and a modem running at ITU-T V.23 speed (1,200 bit/s down, 75 bit/s up).[1] By 2004, it was normally accessed over TCP/IP using Viewdata client software on a personal computer running Microsoft Windows, or using a Web-based emulator.

Keypad symbols: the sextile and the square

Template:Infobox symbol

File:Detail-Tastatur-FeTAp-751-1982.JPG
Detail of a telephone keypad displaying the sextile and Viewdata square
File:AVAYA 9611G IP Phone detail of star and hash.jpg
Detail of a more recent telephone keypad, in which (typographic) asterisk and numberScript error: No such module "String".sign have replaced the ITU star and square

Viewdata uses special symbols already widely available on telephone keypads: the Script error: No such module "key". "star key" and the Script error: No such module "key". "square key", as formally recommended by the International Telecommunication Union.[2] The ASCII asterisk (*) and number sign (#) are sometimes used instead because they are regular symbols on computer keyboards, although they do not match the ITU specification.[3] On telephones, use of the number sign (hash symbol) has become the norm rather than the exception.

These symbols appear as Template:Unichar2 and Template:Unichar2 in the Miscellaneous Symbols and Miscellaneous Technical Unicode blocks, respectively. The sextile was added due to its use in astrology,[3] and the square had previously appeared in the BS_Viewdata character set, as a replacement for the underscore.[4]

In 2013, the German national body submitted a Unicode Technical Committee proposal to align the Unicode reference glyphs with the ITU specifications for these symbols, and annotate them as telephone keypad symbols on the code charts.[3] As of 2019Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". (Unicode 12.1), these changes have not been accepted/implemented.[5]

Uses

Travel industry

As of 2015, Viewdata was still in use in the United Kingdom, mainly by the travel industry. Travel agents use it to look up the price and availability of package holidays and flights. Once they find what the customer is looking for they can place a booking. As of 2019, Viewdata is only used by a handful of travel agents.[6]

Bulletin board systems

Script error: No such module "Unsubst".

A number of Viewdata bulletin board systems existed in the 1980s, predominantly in the UK due to the proliferation of the BBC Micro, and a short-lived Viewdata Revival appeared in the late 1990s fuelled by the retrocomputing vogue. Some Viewdata boards still exist, with accessibility in the form of Java Telnet clients.

See also

References

<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />

  1. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  3. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Template:Cite iso-ir
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".

External links

Template:Videotex

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