A method and system for converting the output of a communications port (e.g., a serial port or a USB port) into video signals representing the output of a terminal using a KVM switch. Upon receiving characters from the communications port, the system interprets the characters as terminal emulation commands and internally generates a representation of what a resulting terminal screen would look like. From that internal (digital) representation, the system produces analog outputs representing the terminal screen. The analog outputs are output on the monitor attached to the KVM switch.