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Re: LK461 keyboard directly connected on a RX2620

 
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Bruno Seghers
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LK461 keyboard directly connected on a RX2620

Hi,

Here is my issue :

I would like to connect a OpenVMS keyboard LK461 (A good white QWERTY keyboard with DO key and 20 function keys) directly on a RX2620 Itanium system.
On the RX, it's a USB port. The keyb is PS/2.
I bought a PS/2 - USB converter.

In the EFI shell, I have configured the keyboard to US Keyboard (option 0) via DRVCFG.

When I start DECWindows, the keyb is mapped to a QWERTY PC like keyb even if I choose the LKxxx in keyboard config of DECWindows.

The DO key is no more available, in TPU : a FIND gives an Insert, etc...

My question is : Is there a way to correctly map this keyboard.

I read on the net that : "The LK463 USB keyboard is also a potential option, for those wishing to connect an OpenVMS keyboard to USB systems or (via the provided adapter) to PS/2 systems" but the problem is that the keyb is not near by the system (around 20 meters). I can use PS/2 extensions for this distance.
Is it also possible to use USB extensions and is this keyb will be right mapped.

Thanks a lot for your help

Seghers Bruno
Belgium - French speaking
2 REPLIES 2
Hoff
Honored Contributor
Solution

Re: LK461 keyboard directly connected on a RX2620

Something in the PS/2 mapping to USB in the dongle is scrozzled, which isn't a huge surprise. Dongles tend to be designed to send along the PS/2 keys, and the LK series sends other keycodes.

You might find a dongle that maps the full set or I or somebody else could likely create a custom solution. But custom will be expensive.

The cited text is from an edition of the OpenVMS FAQ (the current edition is available at the http://www.hoffmanlabs.com/vmsfaq site), and yes, do consider using the LK463 or LK464 USB keyboards. (I have a listing of most of the various LK keyboards posted at the http://64.223.189.234/node/19 page.)

That the keyboard is at 20 meters implies that the display is either very larger, or it too is extended at least 19 meters, and extending the video this far tends to produce artifact.

For (just) the keyboard itself, I might look at and consider using (testing) some or all the following: bluetooth, a KVM, a network KVM, or a USB extender. (Some of these provide more than just the keyboard.)

And some KVMs should work here. Like the PS/2 to USB dongles, some KVMs will work better here with OpenVMS and Unix boxes than do others. I've used an Avocet switch for PS/2 on a mix of boxes including OpenVMS, and that worked.

Given how this stuff works and how this I/O tends to be implementation-specific, I'd still want to test the particular configuration with an Avocet KVM or other such. Raritan is another maker of KVMs that has had boxes that work here. (HP has had offerings here, too, though I've not worked with those.)

There are also Cat5/5e/5enh/6 extenders around for keyboard, video and mouse. Some are rated for 300 meters, though these can potentially require constrained video.

Or you could use the MP or a serial connection into a terminal or a terminal emulator. This would tend to be my choice for baseline management, unless I really needed DECwindows. The MP connection is particularly useful for remote management.

There are serial-line WiFi bridges, too.

And for DECwindows, I'd look at implementing a local X Window System server and not the OpenVMS X server; a thin-client, a Linux, Mac OS X or Unix box with the provided X server, or a Windows box with an add-on X server.

Which solution is best here depends highly on exactly what you're doing (which is usually more than extending keyboard connection), and on your local environment and local site-specific requirements and expectations.

And does Belgium still offer the local beer in many of its vending machines? That was a pleasant surprise late one thirsty evening in Brugge... :-)

Stephen Hoffman
HoffmanLabs LLC
Bruno Seghers
Advisor

Re: LK461 keyboard directly connected on a RX2620

Thanks a lot for your answer.

I will try the LK463 or 464 keyboard with usb extender.

Yes, Belgium still offer local beer in vending machine, it's a part of our folklore ;-)
Next time you come in Belgium, I hope you will try one of our 680 different biers. Only few one are in vending machines. For the others, try a cosy pub.

Huuum, you talk about Brugge, I suppose it was with Johan Michiels. His prefered beer is the "Duvel", a really good one.

Have a nice day

Seghers Bruno