[cctalk] Dysan 208-21 alignment disk - what is it for?

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Hi there,

Does anyone have the spec sheet for the Dysan 208-21 alignment disk, or 
know what drive it's intended to be used with?


I've got the information sheet which comes with the disk, but it doesn't 
identify the tracks-per-inch or track count.


It's a 5.25in double-sided disk; the info sheet says:

FILE: 208-21  PAGE 001

Dysan 208-21 (Configuration #802030)
  Double Sided Alignment Diskette

  Track 0  - Full Revolution (both sides)
  Track 1  - Index Burst (both sides)
  Track 16 - Index, Azimuth and Catseye (both sides)
  Track 33 - Full Revolution (both sides)
  Track 34 - Index and Azimuth (both sides)

Full Revolution - recording frequency is 125 kHz

Index Burst - 50us in duration and occurs 200us after index. Recording 
frequency 125 kHz.


Azimuth - Four bursts that depicts an azimuth of 12'.
Each burst is 1 millisecond in duration with the first burst occurring 
500us after index. The recording frequency is 125kHz.


Catseye - recording frequency 62.5 kHz



Sadly the part number doesn't appear on Accurite's old website (per 
archive.org), or the Dysan PDFs I've found on Bitsavers.
About the only thing I've been able to figure out is that it's an Analog 
Alignment Disk.


Thanks,
--
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
https://www.philpem.me.uk/

WTD - Oregon/Taumetric M68000 Pascal and Cross Assembler (VAX/VMS)

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Hi all,

Does anyone happen to have a copy of these squirrelled away?

  - Oregon Pascal M68000 -- cross compiler for VAX (or any other host 
platform). Probably called "P68.EXE" or something similar.


  - Oregon / Taumetric M68000 Cross Assembler for VAX (or any other). 
Probably called "MASM.EXE" or similar.


  - Oregon / Taumetric M68000 Linker for VAX (or any other). Probably 
called "MIL.EXE" or similar.


The assembler and linker might be ports of Motorola's M68KMASM and 
M68KLINK -- so something equivalent which takes the Motorola-format .SA 
files and spits out .RO files should work instead.


I've been tasked with getting some ancient code building again, and as 
usually happens, the "backup" is incomplete...


Thanks,
--
Phil.
phil...@philpem.me.uk
https://www.philpem.me.uk/

Setting up a VMS system

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Hopefully a few of the DEC/VMS fans here might be able to help!

I'm on a bit of a quest. I've been given some old VAX/VMS software -- a 
cross compiler and some source code -- that I'd like to get running. My 
goal is to get the source code building and experiment with the compiler 
a bit.


Problem is that I've never used VMS before, and don't have a clue how to 
install or use it.


Can any point me to an idiot's guide to VMS, how to set it up and make 
it possible to send files to it from my Linux box?


I'm thinking of using SIMH, unless there's a better emulator available.

I'm still waiting on a reply from HP with a hobbyist licence PAK (I've 
filled out the form), but I figure I can get started on the learning 
while I wait.



Cheers
Phil.

Looking for Maxtor LXT/MXT series firmware updates / docs

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Hi folks,

Has anyone happened to squirrel away a copy of the Maxtor/Sequel LXT or 
MXT series documentation or firmware updates?


I've got an LXT200A sat on the bench which seems to have corrupted 
on-disk firmware -- the firmware version is shown as "1.02BROM"
I've got an identical second drive which works but has bad sectors, 
which identifies as "1.02BHAT".


I'm hoping to dump the on-disk firmware on the working one and load it 
onto the dead one -- either onto disk or temporarily into RAM... high 
hopes I know.


This is all an experimental thing - the local data recovery firms aren't 
interested in a drive this old or this small...



If anyone has a mirror of Maxtor's old FTP site or support BBS, these 
are some of the files I'm after...



MXTA_53.EXE MAIN41K 03/94   MXT540A/AL Frimware Rev 5.3
firmware 540

MXTA_54.EXE MAIN40K 03/94   MXT540A/AL Firmware Rev 5.4
Firmware Upgrade for MXT-540AT.

MXTA_55.EXE MAIN40K 03/94   MXT540A/AL Firmware Rev 5.5
Firmware Upgrade for MXT-540AT.

MXTA_60.EXE MAIN41K 03/94   MXT540A/AL Firmware Rev 6.0
Firmware Upgrade for MXT-540AT.

Alternatively the same covering the LXT series.


Or this (or similar) documents covering the LXT series:

MAXTOR LXT-200A TECHNICAL MANUAL 1019707


Cheers
Phil.

Oregon Pascal for M68000

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Hi all,

Does anyone have any documentation (or perhaps even a copy?) of Oregon 
Pascal for the Motorola 68000?


I'm looking for information on its calling convention, if such is 
available -- or otherwise a way to run it with arbitrary code and see 
how it behaves.


Once again I'm reverse-engineering a 68K-based embedded system... :)

Cheers
Phil.

WTD - Jupiter Ace plastic rivets

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Has anyone got a couple of the white plastic rivets which are used to
hold the Jupiter Ace case together?

They consist of a 4-point clawed rivet of about 5mm long, and a pin
which pushes down the centre to open it out.

I need five of them ideally - but even two or three would get the case
buttoned up, if not perfectly.

I've checked the local plastic supplier catalogues and haven't found
anything which quite matches up.

Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
phil...@philpem.me.uk
https://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Unix-PC

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

On 25/03/18 00:39, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk wrote:
> 
> 
> On 03/24/2018 07:58 PM, Warner Losh wrote:
> 
> 
> On Sat, Mar 24, 2018 at 5:44 PM, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk 
> > wrote:
> 
> 
> The Unix-PC has found a new home in the hands of someone
> I am sure will enjoy and appreciate it.  I would expect him to
> show up here sometime with questions as he tries to revive
> it.  I tried booting it and while it booted fine from the diagnostic
> floppy and things like memory and CPU tested OK it won't boot
> off the hard disk which means either the hard disk has died
> (a possibility considering its age) or could just be bit rot.  In
> any event, he got all the floppies that went with it.  Who knows,
> might show up at VCF-East some day.
> 
> At least it has MFM hard drives, which means that it can use the MFM emulator 
> to have near infinite storage (sadly, only ~64MB at a time due to limitations 
> in the controller, it seems).
> 
> I wondered about that.  I heard someone was working on one but I never saw it.
> Got any pointers?  70M is the limit I think.  has something to do with the 
> registers
> in the controller.  But I seem to remember a mod to let it use two disks. 
> That would
> make it 140M.

That'd be the P5.1 Mod.

> This one has 1 Meg.  Amount isn't the problem, finding the expansion boards 
> is.  They
> were rare in its heyday and probably unobtanium today.
> 
> As for something more modern, I always thought it would be an improvement if 
> it ran
> BSD.  Even with only one meg it should be able to run 2.11BSD if someone 
> could do a
> port.  Then you put NFS on and disk space is no longer a problem.  :-)

Good luck finding an Ethernet card! I don't like the sound of NFS over
SLIP... (which you'd need a Combo Card for)... or NFS over PPP at 1200
Baud thru the internal modem...


-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: WeirdStuff going out of business

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

On 06/04/18 17:54, Randy Dawson via cctalk wrote:
> Zane,
> 
> The Country Store is still going, and while you are there check the museum, 
> VintageTek next door.
> 
> Surplus Gizmos in Hillsboro looks to still be in business:
> 
> http://www.surplusgizmos.com/
> 
> Welcome to SurplusGizmos.com, LLC - We sell the Gizmos 
> ...
> www.surplusgizmos.com
> Welcome to the web store of SurplusGizmos.com, LLC. Our retail store is 
> located: 5797 NW Cornelius Pass Road, Hillsboro Oregon, 97124 (503-439-1249)

A bit further afield (Garland, Texas), there's BG Micro -
https://www.bgmicro.com/



-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Kodak Diconix 150plus - looking for info

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

On 30/11/17 19:46, Philip Pemberton via cctalk wrote:
> It looks like the DIP switches are the same as the 150 - William Degnan
> posted a link to those.

Update -- the DIP switch settings are *not* the same as the 150. I
finally found the 150 Plus settings in an old Usenet post:

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!search/diconix$20150$2B$20dip$20switch/comp.sys.laptops/5o5yNBJzlDU/hynUFXHRvkIJ

Copied below for the benefit of anyone who finds one of these printers
and decides to get it working...

It does work rather well with 8.5x11 listing paper with perforation-skip
enabled! Very nice little thing to use with old DOS radio programming
tools (the sort which poke the printer port directly and bypass
print-to-file TSRs).

Power supply, as I said earlier, is 9VDC 1A centre-negative.

Emulation modes are (apparently) Epson FX-85 and IBM ProPrinter.
Graphics 192x192dpi, max print width is 7.1 inches.

The "expanded" graphics mode switch apparently sets the graphics
resolution -- "normal mode" increases resolution by about 25%, shrinking
images in the X axis. Might be useful if the 7.1in print width causes
print to clip against the edge.

Certainly a neat little machine.


> From: jon...@ibm.net  (Jonathan Edwards)
> Subject: Re: ??_Diconix 150 printer power supply_??
> Date: 1995/08/19
> Message-ID: <4155l7$3...@news-s02.ny.us.ibm.net>#1/1
> X-Deja-AN: 108478659
> references: <ddj2ey@berlioz.nsc.com> <ddjcwb@berlioz.nsc.com>
> reply-to: jon...@ibm.net   (Jonathan Edwards)
> newsgroups: comp.sys.laptops
> 
> In <ddjcw...@berlioz.nsc.com>, gr...@galaxy.nsc.com (Paul Grohe) writes:
>>In article <ddj2e...@berlioz.nsc.com>, gr...@galaxy.nsc.com 
>>says...
>>>
>>>What is the voltage/current specs of the
>>>Kodak-Diconix 150 portable printer power supply?
>>
> [...]
>>Next question, What are the dip switch settings?? I have the 
>>parallel version (I assume they are for the serial version).
> 
> From the "Fast Track Operator's Guide":
> 
> "Both parallel and serial versions of the 150 Plus have a main
> package of switches (Panel A) located inside the printer near
> the cartidge's home position.
> 
> "Serial versions of the printer have two additional groups of
> switches at the extreme left end of the carriage shaft.
> 
> "Panel A contains 10 switches; switches 1-9 control these printer
> functions:
> 
> - carriage return definition
> - page length
> - compatibility mode
> - perforation skip
> - IBM character set
> - international character sets
> - ptich and graphics mode
> 
> Switch 10 is reserved for manufacturing purposes; do not use it.
> 
> Carriage Return Definition (switch 1)
>  up   - carriage return plus line feed
>  down - carriage return only
> 
> Page Length (switch 2)
>  up   - 12 inches (30.5 cm)
>  down - 11 inches (28 cm)
> 
> Compatibility Mode (switch 3)
>  up   - IBM
>  down - Epson
> 
> Perforation Skip Definition (Epson mode only) (switch 4)
>  up   - 1 inch skip
>  down - no skip
> 
> IBM Character Set (IBM mode only) (switch 4)
>  up   - Set 2
>  down - Set 1
> 
> Characters per Inch/Graphics Mode (switch 9)
>  up   - 10/expanded
>  down - 12/normal
> 
> Character Set (switches 5-8)
>   - USA
>  uddd - France
>  dudd - Germany
>  uudd - England
>  ddud - Denmark 1
>  udud - Sweden
>  duud - Italy
>  uuud - Spain 1
>  dddu - Japan
>  uddu - Norway
>  dudu - Denmark 2
>  uudu - Spain 2
>  dduu - Latin America
>  uduu - Denmark/Norway
>  duuu - reserved
>   - reserved
> 
> "Serial switches (present only on serial versions of the printer) control
> these functions:
> 
> - baud rate
> - data length
> - parity
> - data protocol
> - carrier detect signal
> - clear to send signal
> - data set ready signal
> 
> "Once again, remember that the new settings do not take effect until the
> printer is reset; make all changes with power off.
> 
> Panel B has 8 switches; panel C has 3.
> 
> Baud Rate (Panel B) (switches 1-3)
>  ddd - 9600 1 stop bit
>  ddu - 4800 1 stop bit
>  dud - 2400 1 stop bit
>  duu - 1200 1 stop bit
>  udd -  600 1 stop bit
>  udu -  300 1 stop bit
>  uud -  300 2 stop bits
>  uuu -  110 2 stop bits
> 
> Data Length (Panel B) (switch 4)
>  up   - 8 bits
>  down - 7 bits
> 
> Parity (Panel B) (switches 5-6)
>  dd - none
>  du - even
>  ud - odd
> 
> Protocol (Panel B) (switches 7-8)
>  dd - RDY/BSY
>  du - XON/XOFF
>  ud - ETX/ACK
> 
> Carrier Detect Input Signal (Panel C) (switch 1)
>  up   - ignored
>  down - sensed
> 
> Data Set Ready Input Signal (Panel C) (switch 2)
>  up   - ignored
>  down - sensed
> 
> Clear to Send Input Signal (Panel C) (switch 3)
>  up   - ignored
>  down - sensed
> 


-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Kodak Diconix 150plus - looking for info

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

On 27/11/17 03:26, Robert Feldman via cctalk wrote:
>> I'm mainly looking for a DIP switch table (annoyingly, it won't produce
>> a config print - just a test page). I'd also love to find some details
>> on the control codes, emulations and character sets it supports.
> 
> The 180si does not use DIP switches, so I can't help with that.

It looks like the DIP switches are the same as the 150 - William Degnan
posted a link to those.


The basic operating instructions are the same, but the Plus has  a few
differences:

  * Different internal fonts - Quality, Draft, NLQ and Condensed.
  * Different keys - On-line (with LED), LF/FF and Font.

There's a handy reference on the bottom of the printer.

I get the feeling it was intended for use more with listing paper than
cut-sheet A4.

The battery holder is interesting. There's a little door in the platen
which opens to reveal a slot for five C-cells. Nice way to make the
printer smaller.


> The Tech Ref manual does have Command Code and Character Set info, however. 
> The whole manual is a bit over 100 pages. I can scan it if you are interested.

I'd love a copy of the command codes and character sets for the 180,
if/when you have time to scan them.

I found a bunch of text editor macros which include some of the control
codes, but only for text formatting - nothing for graphics. I might try
throwing some Epson FX and IBM ProPrinter commands at it in the interim.


>> Also - does anyone know what the material on the printhead capping
>> station is, or if they're still available?
>> It looks like a cardboard or blotting paper pad with a plastic backing
>> card. This one is soaked in ink and looks like it could do with being
>> replaced. I assume it's to stop the cartridge from drying out?
> 
> The 180si uses one also. It "catches a spray of ink which the printer uses to 
> clear the printhead cartridge before printing." A new pad is included in each 
> printhead cartridge container.

I just found the one which came with my 51604A cartridge -- attached to
one of the wheels on my chair! I guess I was a bit over-enthusiastic
opening the box...

So at least as late as 2012, they *do* still come with the blotting pads.

Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Kodak Diconix 150plus - looking for info

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

On 26/11/17 14:15, Tony Duell wrote:
>> I wonder if the 51604A cartridges still need them.
> 
> I can't remember the number of the cartridge I used, but it came in
> a little foil tub (a bit like the ones you get jam in at hotel
> breakfasts.). In the tub was the cartridge and the absorbing strip.

Same with this cartridge.

I just found the blotter... stuck to one of the wheels on my chair.

It's now in the printer :)


> I don't remember any sealing tape on the cartridge either.

It's a little blue strip of tape which seems to be there just to stop
the cartridge from leaking in transit.

> But since the 'squirt to prime the cartridge' is a printer function, and
> since these cartrdges are totally dumb (just the heating elements, no
> other electronics at all, no form of cartridge ID read out electrically) I
> would assme all cartridges would need the absorbing strip.

I think I have the datasheet for the cartridge around here somewhere...
If not, I certainly have a copy of the "Inkjet Applications" book which
covered it.

One of these days I should pick up a cartridge carriage and have a play.
That said, I've got a Thinkjet cart with wires soldered on as a "who
knows if this'll work" experiment.

Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Kodak Diconix 150plus - looking for info

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

On 26/11/17 06:17, Tony Duell wrote:
>> Also - does anyone know what the material on the printhead capping
>> station is, or if they're still available?
>> It looks like a cardboard or blotting paper pad with a plastic backing
>> card. This one is soaked in ink and looks like it could do with being
>> replaced. I assume it's to stop the cartridge from drying out?
> 
> In the Thinkjet (I have several and the service manual) it doesn't
> cap the printhead. It's just something for the printhead to spray
> onto when it is priming it.
> 
> You got a new strip in the pack with the new print head cartridge.

No I didn't - the print head package only contained the cartridge (in a
foil bag).

There was a little piece of card attached to the cartridge sealing tape,
but that's it. Hence why I asked about the blotters :)

I wonder if the 51604A cartridges still need them.

Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Kodak Diconix 150plus - looking for info

[Philip Pemberton via cctalk]

Hi folks,

I just picked up a Kodak Diconix 150 Plus portable inkjet printer. No
power supply or documentation, but it works fine. It appears to be a
variant of HP's Thinkjet (it certainly uses the same cartridges) tweaked
for portable use. Looking inside, it's full of Chinon ICs, and was
apparently made in Japan (from the baseplate).

This one needed some parts on the DC interface board resoldering, but
after that it worked fine.

Which brings me onto my question... Does anyone have any information on
this printer?

I'm mainly looking for a DIP switch table (annoyingly, it won't produce
a config print - just a test page). I'd also love to find some details
on the control codes, emulations and character sets it supports.

Also - does anyone know what the material on the printhead capping
station is, or if they're still available?
It looks like a cardboard or blotting paper pad with a plastic backing
card. This one is soaked in ink and looks like it could do with being
replaced. I assume it's to stop the cartridge from drying out?

I've put a HP 51604A (expired 2012!) cartridge in there, and it seems
happy enough.

Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: need (physical) key for Sun SPARCserver 1000e

[Philip Pemberton]

On 13/02/17 07:58, alexmcwhir...@triadic.us wrote:
> On 2017-02-12 07:59, Philip Pemberton wrote:
>> On 09/02/17 20:06, Mark G Thomas wrote:
>>>   http://files.markgthomas.com/dl/sunkey/
>>>
>>> I thought maybe having a picture would help in finding the correct key.
>>
>> A little part of me wants to get hold of one of these keys and the
>> matching lock, match it to a key blank and measure the bitting...
>>
>> Cheers,
> 
> Am i wrong in thinking all sun keys are identical up until the E25K?
> Like i said earlier, my V890 key works in all my circa ~1990 sun gear.
> These keys are pretty easy to find on ebay (in the US anyways).
> 
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sun-Fire-V880-Server-Bezel-Key-/272532177241?hash=item3f742f0159:g:8mgAAOSw5cNYhgUb
> 
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUN-MICROSYSTEMS-KEYS-350-1651-01-/111613413055?hash=item19fcad86bf:m:mCTY6wGdWH6b9WiORB0DrhA

330-1651. Well there you have it (just mis-listed as 350-1651). I'm not
about to pay $60 shipping on a pair of keys though :)

Maybe someone with a key and a set of callipers can match up a blank at
Home Depot and measure it up :P

Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: need (physical) key for Sun SPARCserver 1000e

[Philip Pemberton]

On 09/02/17 20:06, Mark G Thomas wrote:
>   http://files.markgthomas.com/dl/sunkey/
> 
> I thought maybe having a picture would help in finding the correct key.

A little part of me wants to get hold of one of these keys and the
matching lock, match it to a key blank and measure the bitting...

Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Archived viruses, was Re: Reasonable price for a complete SOL-20 system?

[Philip Pemberton]

On 22/10/16 20:21, Fred Cisin wrote:
> But "Marketing" convinced the public that Macs were IMMUNE TO GETTING
> VIRUSES!:-)

And "Engineering" (aka some teenager playing on their parents' Mac)
decided to convince Marketing that they were wrong?

And the whole scene unfolds with a tedious inevitability...

;)

Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Any Kryoflux, Discferret, Catweasel, or other floppy flux images wanted

[Philip Pemberton]

On 13/10/16 11:39, Santo Nucifora wrote:
> Hi Eric,
> 
> First off, thanks for attempting this.  I spent last night trying to
> recreate a disk using the CP/M-86 streams I had posted with the Kryoflux
> and failed.  I'm going to play with it a little until I can get a working
> reproduction so I would not rely on those Kryoflux streams just yet.  I am
> guessing the only way I can reproduce a disk is through the Kryoflux
> streams written back to a disk but I can't seem to do that.
> 
> I noticed that Discferret had a wiki page on the Victor 9000 format.  It
> looks like it handled the format but it looks like it is a dead project and
> I'm guessing you can't get Discferret boards anymore.

I have about a dozen bare DiscFerret boards in my cupboard if anyone
wants one.
The board house ran them as hot-air levelled instead of silver-plated,
so they need the SMD pads for the RAM and FPGA (and ideally the PIC too)
cleaning with desolder wick before having those parts installed.
Electrically they're fine.

If you'd prefer to run your own boards (maybe you really like the gold
on purple that OSH Park do?), I have no problem with someone downloading
Eagle, running CAM and uploading the resulting Gerber files to a board
house. Student Me would have appreciated it if you'd have kicked him a
few quid for doing that, but these days... screw it, go have fun. It's
GPLv2 / open hardware. If we ever meet in person, say thank-you. That'll
do. :)

Heck, go make a box full of DiscFerrets for you and your friends. I'd
actually like to see people getting something out of it more than I'd
like to see money from it :)

There's even an ATE program (FerretTest) which can give you a rough idea
where to look for bad solder joints and things. Lots of things to help
you DIY boards (though I actually wrote it because I had a run of boards
with solder bridges on the RAM and FPGA which were causing read/write
issues).


As far as "dead project" goes, it's only dead in the sense that I have
no inclination to buy parts and assemble boards again. Anyone who's been
following DiscFerret for long enough knows the tale. The record's been
stuck so long it's worn through, so I won't repeat it :P


Regarding the API and microcode, they're not "dead", they're "stable"! I
can't think of anything else to add. What more does it need than read
and write? Tell me!


TL/DR: it was a university final year project that kinda escaped the
lab. I'm glad you all still like it and talk about it. I never saw that
coming.


Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Wanted - two 27C010-capable EPROM emulators

[Philip Pemberton]

On 01/09/16 04:11, Glen Slick wrote:
> Grammar Engine PromICE units show up on eBay from time to time in the
> US sometimes around the $20 range for just the box alone. Then you
> need to supply your own power adapter and ribbon cable DIP plug
> adapters.

Ahh - I hadn't heard of the PromICE.

Thanks for the lead!

Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Wanted - two 27C010-capable EPROM emulators

[Philip Pemberton]

On 01/09/16 13:00, Alexandre Souza wrote:
> 
>Can't you roll your own? It is SO easy to build one, if you don't
> mind the hassle!?

I was looking at that option, but I still have repressed memories from
the last one I designed :P

Getting the PCB layout onto two layers was hell.

If I did it again, I'd use a CPLD and an FTDI FT240X USB interface, but
most CPLDs are 3.3V -- which leaves level translation to a 5V host.

That might well be the path I take -- a custom-designed EPROM emulator
for the Datatrak unit, to plug into the front-panel EPROM board socket.
I was just hoping to be a little lazy and save some effort :)

Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Wanted - two 27C010-capable EPROM emulators

[Philip Pemberton]

Hi there,

Does anyone have a pair of spare EPROM emulators which are capable of
emulating 27C010 EPROMs?
Ideally two identical ones, but that's optional.


I'm trying to reverse-engineer a Securicor Datatrak MkII navigation
receiver and build a signal generator which can emulate a chain of
Datatrak transmitters. I'm part of the way there, but I've hit something
of an impasse:


  * My emulator isn't good enough to run the firmware on a PC (it
crashes when the RTOS starts to boot).

  * My knowledge of the hardware is full of holes (especially the
simple-but-custom ASIC). Porting a monitor ROM using EPROMs would take a
fair while, even with the HP16700A to use as a "debugger". I'd like to
try patching the firmware, but with bare EPROMs that'll take a while to
get right.


I could swear these things were as common as housebricks on ebay a year
or so ago, but now they're not quite so common...


Incidentally, if someone (preferable in the EEA) has a spare HP 16717A
acquisition card (for the 16700A series logic analysers) for sale, I'd
be very interested in getting another one -- my second 16717A seems to
have died while in storage, and spying on the 68k has eaten up all the
pod inputs on my one working card.


Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: CDC 9429 Floppy maintenance manual

[Philip Pemberton]

On 08/05/16 21:49, Chuck Guzis wrote:
> On 05/08/2016 01:30 PM, tony duell wrote:
> 
>> They are considerably better than the Shugart drives with the plastic
>> disk with a spiral groove for the head positioner
> 
> Ah yes, the SA-400.  When I was evaluating one, I wondered if Shugart
> was really serious about the things.  Doubtless some engineer at Shugart
> was quite proud of himself for designing a ball-bearing follower for the
> spiral groove.  Marks for being cheap.
> 
> Oddly, my own troubles with the SA-400 (believe it or not, this was used
> as the original IBM offering for the 5150 drive) were with the tach
> circuit.  Mine blew a small inductor.
> 
> Among all of the 5.25" FH drives offered at the time, my vote still goes
> to Micropolis for designing the Sherman tank of drives.  Leadscrew
> positioner with multiple steps per track.  Probably among the most
> expensive 5.25" drives also.
> 
> To their credit, Shugart did have the best hub-clamp setup.
> 
> --Chuck
> 
> 


My awards list more or less goes as follows:

Hardest to align: Nintendo Famicom Disk System.
  For bonus points, when you replace the drive belt, you have to realign
the drive hub, which sets the "start of track" position. There must be a
jig or procedure to do this, but I've never seen it. Homebrew procedure
is to loosen the hub and rotate it a few degrees until things align and
the drive works...
  The hub alignment, incidentally, is critical because the discs are
written as a continuous spiral track, not a series of concentric tracks.


Nicest half-height 5.25in: Teac FD-550 series
  I love these drives to bits. There are a bunch of variants (40/80
track, 1.2Meg and 360K) but they're pretty solid performers. Fairly good
at reading crusty old disks. Keep a few Bemcot wipes and some isopropyl
around to clean the heads.


Weirdest drive interface: the NEC 8-inch drive
  Uses something called a "VFO" interface (I think I remembered that
right?), which is a Japanese standard. Also needs to be rejumpered to
provide raw data output. This is jolly good fun, because the jumpers (if
memory serves) have quite odd labels...


The "What were they thinking?!" award: Amstrad 3-incher, made by Panasonic.
  PC style power connector pinout. With the 5V and 12V swapped. You can
bet every one of these you'll find that's been "tested working, motor
spins when powered but that's normal" will have a fried ASIC.
  Again, has a drive belt, but at least you can replace this without
cocking up the alignment.


For 3.5in PC drives, I quite like the Sony drives. From experience with
DiscFerret, they're pretty good at pulling a clean signal off discs some
other drives won't even read. Some Panasonic drives are better built,
though. Apples and oranges.


Cheers,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Tool to convert between Motorola FFP and IEEE754 float formats?

[Philip Pemberton]

On 14/02/16 23:56, Philip Pemberton wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> Does anyone know of a tool which can convert between Motorola's FFP
> (Fast Floating Point) float format and IEEE754?
> 
> I'm trying to reverse-engineer some ancient 68k code which uses the FFP
> library, but a load of the floating point constants have been hard-coded
> as hex constants, which is making things hard to interpret...
> 
> I've tried to convert the 68k assembler in FFPIEEE.SA to C, but I must
> have missed something because it just isn't working...


Naturally, I figured out what I was doing wrong an hour or so after I
hit send...

Enjoy!

// val is a FFP float, returns IEEE float format
// basically a direct conversion of the motorola FFPTIEEE function.
// comments are from there.
// you are not expected to understand this horrendous mess.
float ffpieee(const uint32_t val)
{
uint32_t x = val;
union {
float f;
uint32_t i;
} _fcast;

x = x + x;  // delete mantissa high bit
if (x == 0) {
// if zero, branch zero as finished
return (float)x;
}

uint8_t k = x & 0xff;

k ^= 0x80;  // to two's complement exponent
k >>= 1;// form 8-bit exponent
k -= 0x82;  // adjust 64 to 127 and excessize

x = (x & ~0xff) | k;

x = (x << 16) | (x >> 16);  // swap for high byte placement
x <<= 7;// set sign+exp in high byte

_fcast.i = x;

return _fcast.f;
}




-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Tool to convert between Motorola FFP and IEEE754 float formats?

[Philip Pemberton]

Hi,

Does anyone know of a tool which can convert between Motorola's FFP
(Fast Floating Point) float format and IEEE754?

I'm trying to reverse-engineer some ancient 68k code which uses the FFP
library, but a load of the floating point constants have been hard-coded
as hex constants, which is making things hard to interpret...

I've tried to convert the 68k assembler in FFPIEEE.SA to C, but I must
have missed something because it just isn't working...

Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: IDE knowledge anyone?

[Philip Pemberton]

On 06/12/15 20:57, Oliver Lehmann wrote:
> Right after power up and after the disk got ready, I issue the IDENTIFY
> command and read the data back which works perfectly. After that I
> read sector 0 and this fails.

I thought the first valid sector on an IDE disk was sector 1, CHS 0:0:1?

-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

1980s/1990s 68k C cross (and not so cross) compilers

[Philip Pemberton]

Hi there,

I'm working on reverse engineering a radio navigation receiver
(surprisingly not GPS, something else... Datatrak if anyone's heard of
it) for the purpose of either repurposing the hardware or building up
some kind of demo rig.

A lot of my effort at the moment seems to be identifying C Library
functions and naming them. Ideally, I'd like to identify the compiler
and CLib and feed that into the disassembler to eliminate that work.

Does anyone know which 68000 compilers were available in 1993, and which
could produce ROM code? Or a few?



I've looked at Aztec C68K but ruled it out on the basis that the _strlen
library function doesn't match up -- this is the one from the ROM:

_strlen:
  movea.l  4(sp), a0
  move.l   a0, d0
_strlen_l001:
  tst.b(a0+)
  bne.s_strlen_l001
  sub.la0, d0
  not.ld0
  rts


Aztec is identical up to the bne, then:

  sub.ld0, a0
  move.l   a0, d0
  sub,l#1, d0
  rts

Which is one instruction longer... so it's not Aztec.


Other parts of the system apparently used VME-bus modules... so this
wasn't a small operation.

Anyway, whatever compiler this is, it pulls in Motorola's Fast Floating
Point library.


Thanks,
-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/

Re: Is tape dead?

[Philip Pemberton]

On 15/09/15 19:27, Eric Smith wrote:
> On Mon, Sep 14, 2015 at 6:38 PM, drlegendre .  wrote:
>> To the cloud, to the CLOUD!!
> 
> There is no cloud, just other people's computers.

"Real men don't make backups, they just put their stuff on an FTP and
let the rest of the world mirror it..."


-- 
Phil.
classic...@philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/