Subject: IMPORTANT: wscons virtual screen configuration
To: None <current-users@netbsd.org, tech-install@netbsd.org>
From: None <drochner@zel459.zel.kfa-juelich.de>
List: current-users
Date: 03/13/1999 16:28:30
>From the next update, the wscons driver will not automatically
come up with 8 virtual screens anymore. Only the system console
(if it is a wscons device at all) will be initialized.

Virtual screens (max 8) can be set up with "/usr/sbin/wsconscfg",
preferrably from rc.local so that "init" can immediately start
"getty"s on them.
"wsconscfg" with only a numerical index argument (0..7) will
initialize a virtual screen with default settings (ie standard
graphics card setup as determined by the graphics device driver
and default terminal emulation as defined at kernel compilation
time), just as happened before automatically.
Depending on the graphics device and the compiled-in terminal
emulators, one can choose different graphics properties and/or
terminal emulations using the "-t" or "-e" flags - see wsconscfg(8).
(The "-t" is actually only useful with VGA, you can select a
50-line screen ("80x50") or trade in half of the color map
for the ability to access a font of 512 characters ("80x25bf").
This still needs some documentation...)

I've put a script for wscons initialization to /etc/rc.wscons.
This is far from being generally usable but might be useful
as an example.

For INSTALL-type kernels, there is a kernel configuration
option which recreates the old behaviour:
option WSDISPLAY_DEFAULTSCREENS=8
will set up 8 screens automatically without need for "wsconscfg".

best regards
Matthias