Linux – Options to show images when on the console

It depends on your distribution.

Arch Linux

In Arch Linux, once you have selected the font from /usr/share/kbd/keymaps/ that you would like to set, you need to add it to your /etc/rc.conf like so:

CONSOLEFONT="lat2-16"

and then add the consolefont hook to your /etc/mkinitcpio.conf

HOOKS="base udev autodetect pata scsi sata filesystems consolefont"

and regenerate the image:

# mkinitcpio -p kernel26

Ubuntu/Debian

In Ubuntu/Debian, select your font from /usr/share/consolefonts/ and then edit /etc/default/console-setup and add an entry like:

CODESET="Lat15"
FONTFACE="Terminus"
FONTSIZE="16"

and to make it permanent:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure console-setup

Fedora

The available fonts are listed in /lib/kbd/consolefonts/.

Specify the desired font in /etc/sysconfig/i18n file by modifying the SYSCONF entry.

SYSFONT="lat2-16"

References

1. Arch: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Fonts#Console_fonts
2. Fedora: http://www.g-loaded.eu/2005/09/30/change-console-font-in-fedora

Try not exporting the TERM variable at all. This should be set by the terminal itself to an appropriate value. The linux console should set this to linux, while various X based terminal programs might use the value you set.

You should only set this as an override for when the default values do not work or don't get passed as when SSH'ing to a location that does not recognize your environment.