CoolTerm Development - Beta Testers needed

[Roger Meier]

I'm working on the next major release of CoolTerm, whose many new features will make it a great terminal app to connect to the Altair Mini BBS. It will include comprehensive VT100 emulation, Telnet connections, as well as all the necessary file transfer protocols (X/Y/ZMODEM) needed to exchange files with the BBS. ZMODEM even supports autostart and batch transfer mode to make downloading and uploading files even easier.

Aside from from being a useful BBS terminal app, CoolTerm is a versatile terminal that can be used to connect to a plethora of things, over serial interfaces, raw and Telnet connections over TCP, and even UDP connections.

All the major new features are implemented and functional, but now need more folks to test them to make sure everything works as advertised before I unleash this into the wild.

You can access the latest development build here:

http://freeware.the-meiers.org/betas
username: beta
password: beta3Tester

You may also want to sign up to the beta tester's mailing list at http://the-meiers.org/.../coolterm-betas_the-meiers.org to stay informed about new builds.

Contact me if you have any questions.

[Richard Deane]

Sounds great, don't forget to add BREAK functionality so that you can invoke the ICE debugger, when enabled in Z80PACK. Also check support of the multiple devices through modern USB (composite device support) where one cable connection can support 2 com devices , allowing say terminal and serial printer, it's supported by Z80PACK RP2350Geek.

Cheers

Richard.

P s. I hope to be able to test it 

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[Roger Meier]

It is capable of sending BREAK.

Roger

On Jul 27, 2026, at 11:57 PM, Richard Deane <rwd...@gmail.com> wrote:



[Roger Meier]

It occurred to me that I should probably describe what CoolTerm is for those who aren't familiar :-)

CoolTerm is a freeware serial terminal for macOS, Windows, and Linux that I have been continuously developing for almost 20 years now. The current version is v2.4.0 and can be downloaded here: https://freeware.the-meiers.org/

The I'm currently working on v.2.5.0 (I might actually just call it 3.0.0 since enough new functionality has been added to warrant a major version increase). 

Below is the description from the "Read Me" for this new version currently in development:

WHAT IS IT?
===========

CoolTerm is an easy-to-use terminal for communication with hardware connected to serial ports for macOS, Window, and Linux.

CoolTerm is a simple serial port terminal application  that is geared towards hobbyists and professionals with a need to exchange data with hardware connected to serial ports such as servo controllers, robotic kits, GPS receivers, microcontrollers, etc.

The key features of CoolTerm include:
- Capability of multiple concurrent connections on separate serial ports, TCP, or UDP connections.
- Support for Raw and Telnet communication over TCP connections.
- Display of received data in plain text or hexadecimal format.
- Display of received data as graphic chart.
- Comprehensive terminal emulation (VT52, VT100, VT220, XTerm) in dedicated VT100 view.
- Support of ANSI color and CP437 character set in VT100 view.
- Hardware (CTS, DTR) and software flow control (XON).
- Visual line status indicators.
- Manual control of RTS, DTS, and serial BREAK.
- Configurable character, line, and packet transmit delays.
- Support for adding timestamps to received data.
- Customizable receive and transmit character handling.
- Keyword formatting in plain text and VT100 view.
- Support for transmit and receive macros.
- File transfer via RAW, XMODEM, YMODEM, ZMODEM, and KERMIT protocols.
- Easy sending of files via file dialog or drag-and-drop.
- Capability of capturing received data to text/binary files in plain text or hex format.
- Saving and retrieving connection options.
- Support for data forwarding between multiple terminals.
- Configurable toolbar.
- Scripting.
- and more...

[peterq...@gmail.com]

I tried it with the ADM-3a that I'm restoring. The ADM-3 is faulty and spews out random characters. Coolterm displayed the data fine. I've been using Putty previously but I'll probably continue to use Coolterm because it can display the hex values. 

(Windows x64)

I'd like to connect to a PiDP11 on my network but I haven't been able to figure out how to do so. I haven't spent more than 10 minutes at it, but since I use SSH and not Telnet or Serial to connect to it, it's not completely obvious.

[Roger Meier]

CoolTerm doesn’t support SSH as it can’t do any encrypted communication. So, for network communication it’s limited to raw and telnet connections. 

On Jul 29, 2026, at 9:09 PM, peterq...@gmail.com <peterq...@gmail.com> wrote:



To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/altair-duino/43e0b957-b2fc-4bee-95a8-5468e5151490n%40googlegroups.com.

[Roger Meier]

I believe it is possible to enable Telnet on the PiDP11, though, in case this is something you would consider.

On Jul 29, 2026, at 10:26 PM, Roger Meier <rogerro...@gmail.com> wrote: