[BRLTTY] Linux console hacking (was: Re: Footsteps towards better accessibility in Linux)

[Nicolas Pitre]

On Fri, 27 Mar 2026, Halim Sahin wrote:

> Hi Nicolas,
> 
> On Thu, Mar 26, 2026 at 09:45:19PM -0400, Nicolas Pitre wrote:
> > This is now available in kernels v6.18.20 or later, v6.19.10 or later, 
> > and the upcoming v7.0.
> 
> Just wondering if that will continue to work if  switching to kmscon and
> distros then could  unset config_vt in the kernel.

As far as I know, kmscon was largely developed around 2012–2014 but 
became mostly unmaintained after that. It was never widely adopted in 
major distributions.

> Maybe it's not related and it would help if you can explain that a bit
> more.

The Linux kernel VT console is what I use every day. When it is lacking 
in features I try to bring it reasonably up to date.

Last year I added:

- Update to Unicode v16.0
- Proper double-width character support
- Bracketed paste support (mainly for BRLTTY benefit)

Lately I added:

- Alternate screen support for /dev/vcsu
- Mode reporting for many keyboard key combinations


Nicolas