Data communications over telegraph circuits 1939

Jim Haynes

Obviously originally Telex and TWX used Baudot. Did these systems ever convert to ASCII or stay with Baudot to the end? Indeed, I believe systems for deaf people continue to use Baudot to this day, although their keyboard-displays are automated. It appears one can't call a relay service using their computer because of the ASCII-Baudot difference.

In a WU Tech Review article announcing ASCII, WU said it didn't forsee much use for it because it was two extra bits that weren't needed (WU saw it as a 7 bit code, not counting the parity bit). WU also noted that ASCII would be 'hard to memorize', apparently its people could read Baudot characters off a tape. WU did have some specialized 8 level codes for computer transmissions.

I miss the news printers many organizations had. All sorts of news stories would come through and be there on the yellow paper to read. The teletype made a pleasant clacking sound as it typed (the later models were noisy). Indeed, many radio news reports had a pre-recorded sound of teletype clacking long after the actual old teletypes were long gone. Sure news is available off the Internet, but it's not quite the same feeling and one has to wade through a lot of garbage to get to it.