Hi.
I interpret
terminal as anything through which I can communicate with a computer, so it might be hardware, but these days it's usually some software package, driving a dumb screen and keyboard, often with a mouse, from the box to which it is attached, so software counts for a lot in that instance.
As with most people, my favorite changed as time went on, First, the convenience of a TTY33, then the smoothness of the TI Silent 700. However, having a CRT was usually superior, so the Heathkit H19 was best for a period. I think I have used a Tektronix 4014, but not for an extended period. The Illinois / CDC Plato terminal was nearly unbelievable at the time. An electric typewriter was used as the console human-I/O device for the CDC 1604 -- very low-speed IO. A similar device (possibly an IBM Selectric) was used for coding in APL (it had a changeable
typeball). A special piece of hardware featuring 2 large programmable CRTs was the console for the CDC 6000 series. For development work (typically on weekends) we would sometimes use that console as a terminal. I'm sure there were others -- would a keypunch count? -- but I think I am digressing ( as well as showing my age
)
Now I use whatever is around that *nix provides, Konsole, Terminal, xterm, eterm (but not so much the X-Window driving [eg]macs).
Best wishes ... cheers, drl
APL (programming language - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
PLATO (computer system - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
IBM Selectric typewriter - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia