Hans wrote:
64 by 20 would also have been a good choice - almost
the same ratio than 80x24 but with 256 lines (512 pixles)
still acceptable within TV limits.
No. I've seen 64-column text on typical mid-70s NTSC televisions, and it was
abysmal. The televisions had to be modified to remove their color trap
in order to get reasonably sharp characters.