Re: Format

1999-07-06 Thread James R Curry

> | Nice to see u back Bob
> [cut]
> 
> 
> Don't you start that again.
> 

Start what, Bob?

*ducks*  ;)
--
James R Curry - [EMAIL PROTECTED]

"The Balloon Doggies DEMANDED it!"


Re: Format

1999-07-06 Thread David L

-Original Message-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: sam-users@nvg.ntnu.no 
Date: 06 July 1999 21:05
Subject: Re: Format


>| Nice to see u back Bob
>[cut]
>Don't you start that again.


Right Bob



Re: Format

1999-07-06 Thread Samsboss



| Nice to see u back Bob
[cut]


Don't you start that again.


--
Samsboss - The One And Only.
Accept No Others.




Re: Sam -year 2000-The Secretary

1999-07-06 Thread Samsboss



| On Sat, 3 Jul 1999 16:30:22 +0100 Sat,  3 Jul 99 17:04:50 BST,
| [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
|
| >
| >
| >
| >| Has anyone got a fix for the Secretary wordprocessor to make understand the
| >| year 2000
| >
| >
| >I think it is MasterDOS that needs a patch.
|
| Waste of time anyway. Who the hell would want to use that crap in this
| day and age?

Are we talking MasterDos or Secretary?


--
Samsboss - The One And Only.
Accept No Others.




Re: Sam -year 2000-The Secretary

1999-07-06 Thread Dave Whitmore
On Sat, 3 Jul 1999 16:30:22 +0100 Sat,  3 Jul 99 17:04:50 BST,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:

>
>
>
>| Has anyone got a fix for the Secretary wordprocessor to make understand the
>| year 2000
>
>
>I think it is MasterDOS that needs a patch.

Waste of time anyway. Who the hell would want to use that crap in this
day and age?



Re: Format

1999-07-06 Thread Dave Whitmore
On Sat, 3 Jul 1999 16:28:29 +0100 Sat,  3 Jul 99 17:04:49 BST,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:


>|
>| What's the story with Format these days. Any news - anybody?
>|
>| Dave
>|
>
>
>If you have read my past messages you will know that Bob hopes to restart 
>Format
>very soon. Try sending him a direct email at [EMAIL PROTECTED]

And feelings of euphoria swept through the SAM universe.




Bye for now,

Dave


Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks

1999-07-06 Thread James R Curry

> Just not saying where ;-)
> 
> @/
> 

Book Sale in Stratford had them at 1.50.  Until I bought them all.
--
James R Curry - [EMAIL PROTECTED]

"The Balloon Doggies DEMANDED it!"


Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks

1999-07-06 Thread Tim
> The really spooky thing is, Wal-Mart sell DD disks at under $5 a
> box..

Not really, I've seen quite a few places here that sell them at 1.99 a
box...

Just not saying where ;-)

@/



Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks

1999-07-06 Thread James R Curry

> > I have a need to duplicate a BBC style ADFS single density disk, but
> >have discovered that every IBM PC I can find has broken single density
> >floppy disk compatibility, such that none of the physical sector copiers
> >will work.

The really spooky thing is, Wal-Mart sell DD disks at under $5 a 
box.. 
--
James R Curry - [EMAIL PROTECTED]

"The Balloon Doggies DEMANDED it!"


Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks

1999-07-06 Thread David L

-Original Message-
From: Andrew Collier <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: sam-users@nvg.ntnu.no 
Date: 06 July 1999 01:23
Subject: Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks


>Most of the meat of KE-Disk was actually written in machine code, for
>speed. Anything more complicated than sector reads and writes you will not
>be able to achieve in BASIC.


That program that Nev Young was selling for about 25 quid was written in
Basic



Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks

1999-07-06 Thread Andrew Collier
>Hi,
>
>   I have a need to duplicate a BBC style ADFS single density disk, but
>have discovered that every IBM PC I can find has broken single density
>floppy disk compatibility, such that none of the physical sector copiers
>will work.

Do you really mean single density? (as opposed to double which the Sam
normally uses, or High which the PC normally uses) The tech docs for the
VL1772-02 floppy controller chip do indeed claim that it can handle single
density, although they think you're using 5.25 inch disks

HOWEVER the disk state (single or double density) is determined by the
signal on an input pin[1] rather than by software, and I'd be prepared to
bet that the Sam hardwires it to double density. If not, it will depend on
the capability of the drive. I'd say you're probably out of luck.

>   However, I remember picking up a SAM disk magazine at an All Formats
>show which came on single density floppies, and so I am aware that the
>SAM disk interface has no such problems.

Yes, but was it *formatted* as single or double density? Using inferior
disks may well tend to cause errors, but the formats certainly don't
necessarily need to match. For example, I often use HD disks formatted as
DD, just because I can't find DD any more.

I was not aware that SamDOS was written to cope with anything other than
800K disks, although someone else who has hacked about with it more than I
have may know different (Edwin?)

>   Therefore, is there any tool available for my 256kb SAM that will copy
>such a disk for me?
>
>   I'm also aware that KE-Disk (since I owned it twice counting the later
>distribution with Fred) was a BASIC program that could read non-SAM
>format disks. So perhaps there is a place somewhere where I could just
>read up on the correct commands to write such a program?

Most of the meat of KE-Disk was actually written in machine code, for
speed. Anything more complicated than sector reads and writes you will not
be able to achieve in BASIC.

Andrew

[1] 26

--
 --  Andrew Collier  ([EMAIL PROTECTED])  --My other
  --  http://mnemotech.ucam.org  --   .sig is a
   -- Part 3 Materials Science, Cambridge --  PDF file
   --




Bizarre SimCoupe .dsk problem

1999-07-06 Thread Andrew Collier
Some of you who read comp.sys.sinclair may be aware of a recent thread in
which Stuart Campbell (ex-YS writer) has been trying to get SimCoupe to
run. Because some of his questions have come up before and may come up
again, I put together a quick web page at
http://mnemotech.ucam.org/newbie.html

Unfortunately, it seems that some of the sample .dsk images on my site are
not working correctly. However, I suspect the problem is restricted to
Windows... probably trying to do something clever behind the user's back -
we just have to work out exactly what it is   :)

I've tried uploading, downloading, redownloading and reuploading the file
at /downloads/samdos2.dsk.gz - I'm now pretty certain that the file my Mac
downloads is exactly the same file as it uploaded. I'm also certain that
the file is also correctly downloaded and ungzipped by Linux[1], and the
file appears to be the same even on Windows98.

However, on SimCoupe/MacOS the file works; on SimCoupe/DOS the file doesn't
work (it gives "Loading Error" when I try to boot).

I'd like people to help me identify (and perhaps fix) the problem by
testing three things:

Please download that file from the website, on as many different platforms
as possible, and tell me whether or not they work.

Also please download some of the MNEMOtech demos from /mnemotech.html, and
tell me if they work on different platforms.

Finally please download some of the same demos from
ftp://ftp.nvg.ntnu.no/pub/sam-coupe/demos/ and tell me if they work on
different platforms.


Hopefully, if certain files fail under certain conditions, I might be able
to work out exactly which combinations are to be avoided

Thanks in advance,

Andrew

[1] Which probably indicates that Macgzip has been successfully tamed...

--
 --  Andrew Collier  ([EMAIL PROTECTED])  --My other
  --  http://mnemotech.ucam.org  --   .sig is a
   -- Part 3 Materials Science, Cambridge --  PDF file
   --




Re: Using my SAM to copy non-SAM format disks

1999-07-06 Thread Simon Cooke
> The only thing is: does the BBC disc have 9 or 10 sectors per track?
> (Assuming we're talking 3.5" here) copying sector-by-sector is fine,
> but the destination disc will need to be pre-formatted. The SAM
> can format at 10 sectors per track, and I think there is a program
> that will format at 9 sectors per track. It may be best to format
> the destination disc on your BBC / a PC if it is 9 sectors.

IIRC, it has 9 sectors per track. But I wouldn't worry about that; as long
as you don't use the last sector, everything will be fine.

> I've got a PC reader (can't remember what it's called ... PC DISC?
> It came from Nev's Software, I think) that says you can sometimes
> write to a 10 sector per track disc, ignoring the last sector on the
> track, and some PCs can cope.

Most, if not all, should be able to cope :) Actually, the ideal program
would write to a SAM disk from a PC, and would know how to avoid the last
sector. You'd end up with less data space, and a maximum of 17 files per
disk, but it should work quite happily.

Simon