Terminal Interface Message Processor: User's Guide to the Terminal IMP. (Revision)

This report describes the use of a terminal connected to a Terminal IMP (TIP) in the ARPA Network. The report assumes that the user knows how to operate a server Host system somewhere on the network once he becomes connected to that system, and the report defines the procedures and options the user has available to establish that connection. The ARPA Network, IMPs and TIPs, hardware maintenance, TIP operation, and formats and protocols are not described here. The bibliography (Appendix C) lists the relevant documents. Where possible, all types of these devices have been operated with direct connections to the TIP and also over a 103A dial-up modem. We have also briefly operated the TIP or heard of the TIP being operated with a variety of other types of terminals. These are listed in Appendix D. For your own safety, before you purchase any terminal listed in Appendix D or any other terminal for use with the TIP, you should check with BBN and try it with a TIP. One TIP is configured with a magnetic tape drive which is used as discussed in Section 8. It should be noted that the TIP is designed to support interactive, asynchronous terminals. It cannot normally support synchronous devices, or devices whose input (to the TIP) characteristics are significantly different from a human typist.