[M100] RS232 to USB HID Keyboard Adapter

[Alastair Wiggins]

Hi everyone,

I recently picked up a near mint WP-2 to complement my NEC PC8201A. Whilst
researching the former, I came across an interesting article on "electronic
typewriters". This mentioned some different AlphaSmart models, including
the Dana. This had a pretty neat way of transferring text, which emulated a
keyboard.

You just plug the Dana into virtually any PC/Mac/etc and the Dana appears
to the PC as a standard USB HID keyboard. Now you just fire up your text
editor of choice and click send on the Dana. Voila - the text is
transferred! OK, not the most efficient way of transferring a file, but
very universal and saves having to use any special software on the PC.

I then did some Google searching and found an RS232 to USB HID keyboard
adaptor cable on eBay. Took about 2 weeks to arrive from China, but I am
pleased to say it works with both machines (no real surprise there). You
need a null modem (swap Rx and Tx lines) and don't extend the RS232 too
far, otherwise the adapter won't work (that threw me for a while).

Might help a few people out there who want a painless way to transfer text
files from Kyocera clones and similar devices (like the WP-2).

Regards,

Alastair

[M100] zbug

[Will Senn]

I get the impression that the TRS-80 Model 100 Assembler|Debugger, aka 
ZBUGASM can't really be run from RAM. Has anyone tried it successfully?


I used TEENY and dl to get ZBUG.BA and ZBUG.CO loaded onto my 32K RAM 
m100. I then ran zbug.ba (which is a basic stub to clear memory and run 
the assembler)... fine, it loaded up the assembler no problem. I then 
typed in a small asm example into TEXT from the book, saved it, and 
tried to assemble it from ZBUG but got an out of memory OM ERROR. 
ZBUG.CO is 8K on disk, after getting it on to the disk, I'm left with 
about 12K. I deleted ZBUG.BA, TEENY.CO and every other file, recleared 
memory and still get the OM ERROR when trying to assemble. Seems like it 
ought to be enough to do an assembly. The manual does make mention of 
loading it from tape if memory's tight, but surely it would have said 
that it was required to load it from tape and not provide instructions 
for saving to and running from RAM if it could not be run from memory?


Thanks,

Will

Re: [M100] is the m100 a trs-80? In walks like a, not is categorized as a

[Mike Stein]

Granted, it's convenient to have BASIC built into the system ROM but would
we love it any less if it were an option ROM as it is in a number of
similar machines?

You'd have more RAM available, and could easily switch to another
environment/language, e.g. MFORTH, especially if you have a REX or
equivalent.

Keep in mind that thousands of people used their M100 every day without
ever starting BASIC except perhaps to delete a file.

m

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 5:51 PM David Szasz  wrote:

> Interesting discussion, but it's all a little like saying which came first
> "chicken or the egg."  Without BASIC the model 100 would have no charm at
> all.
>
> BTW: I see from the auction link for the Bill Gates Model 100 that it sold
> for around  $30K. That reminds me of many Ebay auction prices I've seen!
>
> On Thu, Oct 6, 2022 at 3:54 PM Brian K. White 
> wrote:
>
>> On 10/6/22 15:09, John R. Hogerhuis wrote:
>> > "HH/OS (Hand Held OS)"
>> >
>> > Probably better to keep it always abbreviated, at least for the 600 ;-)
>> >
>> > I guess the 600 is more hand-held than, say, a Compaq or Kaypro
>> luggable.
>> >
>> > -- John.
>>
>>
>> It is quite difficult to hold it in merely one hand. It's like over 9
>> lbs? You need at least an arm. Arm Held OS? Back Packable OS?
>>
>> I know what it's rightful name is, Donky Back OS
>>
>> --
>> bkw
>>
>>

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Randy Kindig]

I have the physical package with manual, cassette and hard cover/holder.  
Didn’t know it was rare.  I don’t want to give it up though.  :).   Sounds like 
it has been archived.

Randy

Sent from my iPhone

> On Oct 19, 2022, at 7:24 PM, Joshua O'Keefe  wrote:
> 
> 
>> On Oct 19, 2022, at 3:33 PM, Peter Noeth  wrote:
>> " Assembler/Debugger" part number 26-3823. I have been looking for this 
>> software package for a number of years myself, just to make my collection 
>> complete.  
> 
> Hi Peter,
> 
> If you're just hoping to use the software I have the Tandy editor/assembler 
> debugger in my bucket[1], along with the manual.  I believe it has been 
> labeled variously "ZBG" or "EDTASM" (as other Tandy assemblers) as well.  The 
> underlying assembler and debugger are the Microsoft package, I believe.
> 
> Another member found it on the Internet Archive mirror of the defunct xibalba 
> site.
> 
> If you're hoping for a physical item, I've never seen one.
> 
> [1]. http://public.nachomountain.com/files/m100/
> 

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Brian White]

I didn't read that as in any way negative.
Basically you just created the only negativity.

bkw

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022, 2:47 PM John R. Hogerhuis  wrote:

>
>
> On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:03 AM Peter Vollan 
> wrote:
>
>> 36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked us
>> first, there's lots of other places.
>>
>>>
>>>
> Please keep the discussion positive. In any event I think he was
> discussing potential ideas for his next projects.
>
> I have no idea what that resistor should cost but no matter what it's his
> money to spend if he wants to. No call to hassle/tease.
>
> -= Model T's Forever =-
>
> -- John.
>
>
>

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Will Senn]

That's what I've been looking for, thanks.

Will


On 10/19/22 6:23 PM, Joshua O'Keefe wrote:

On Oct 19, 2022, at 3:33 PM, Peter Noeth  wrote:
" Assembler/Debugger" part number 26-3823. I have been looking for 
this software package for a number of years myself, just to make my 
collection complete. 


Hi Peter,

If you're just hoping to use the software I have the Tandy 
editor/assembler debugger in my bucket[1], along with the manual.  I 
believe it has been labeled variously "ZBG" or "EDTASM" (as other 
Tandy assemblers) as well.  The underlying assembler and debugger are 
the Microsoft package, I believe.


Another member found it on the Internet Archive mirror of the defunct 
xibalba site.


If you're hoping for a physical item, I've never seen one.

[1]. http://public.nachomountain.com/files/m100/

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Joshua O'Keefe]

> On Oct 19, 2022, at 3:33 PM, Peter Noeth  wrote:
> " Assembler/Debugger" part number 26-3823. I have been looking for this 
> software package for a number of years myself, just to make my collection 
> complete.  

Hi Peter,

If you're just hoping to use the software I have the Tandy editor/assembler 
debugger in my bucket[1], along with the manual.  I believe it has been labeled 
variously "ZBG" or "EDTASM" (as other Tandy assemblers) as well.  The 
underlying assembler and debugger are the Microsoft package, I believe.

Another member found it on the Internet Archive mirror of the defunct xibalba 
site.

If you're hoping for a physical item, I've never seen one.

[1]. http://public.nachomountain.com/files/m100/

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Peter Noeth]

The official Radio Shack assembler program for the M100 was "
Assembler/Debugger" part number 26-3823. I have been looking for this
software package for a number of years myself, just to make my collection
complete.  The assembler in the Cleuseau 2 ROM (usable with the REX) is
what I have used so far, but I would like the experience and documentation
that came with the Tandy package.

Is tractor feed greenbar paper even available anymore?

Regards,

Peter

--
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Tue, 18 Oct 2022 19:03:36 -0500
> From: Will Senn 
> To: Model 100 Discussion 
> Subject: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.
> Message-ID: <96f3033f-ac8d-e371-05b3-515a08c35...@gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"; Format="flowed"
>
> I'm loving my m100. It's an endless source of fascination - very old
> school, but amazingly well preserved and usable. I haven't done much
> with it beyond learning about how to connect it to my Mac via serial -
> which works flawlessly in both directions with TEENY.CO and dl, yay,
> running stuff from club100 on it - go Starblaze :), and refreshing on
> BASIC sans renum and tron/troff! Mostly, I've been reading everything in
> sight (virtually speaking) and preparing to dive into its software guts
> more seriously - quickly moving into 8085 territory.
>
> BTW, I did get my BASIC banner program written and working as I remember
> it did in the 1984 timeframe based on the bitmaps in ROM (basically just
> asks for a string, get's each character of the string's character map,
> asks the user for a character to print and one to not print, pixel on
> char and pixel off char, asks for a multiplier, then prints to screen
> with the multiplier applied in both rows and columns, nothing fancy) -
> thanks for pointing me to the ROM address of the characters set. But
> other than that, It's all been reading and planning... which brings me
> to the weekend projects I have mapped out for the next bit of time:
>
> 1. Get a REXCPM (ordered up) installed and running doing whatever it is
> that it does :).
> 2. Get a Retro Printer and Centronix-Parallel printer cable ordered
> (saving up), installed, and running. Hopefully, it's like having an
> Epson MX-80 without the noise, greenbar and ribbon fuss. I do still want
> to print out pages and pages of dot matrix listings, but to my laser
> printer!
> 3. Make a new Cassette Cable for my Califone AVR tape recorder which has
> MIC, not LINE. Got a plan, need cables - sheesh, amazon is expensive for
> 5 pin DIN male aluminum solderable, 2.5mm TS mono, 3.5 mm TS mono, 1/4
> inch mono cable, and? 570M ohm resistor ($36 USD). but I want to try the
> DIY route and I don't know where else to look for this kinda stuff...
> Yeah, I know cassettes are so 70's, but hey I wanna see it work in 2022
> and compare the experience with my PAL-1 (KIM-1) cassette stuff - which
> was dismal - very, very unreliable and fickle. I'm hoping to learn a
> bit, play a bit, and have it actually work more often than not.
> 4. Write a disassembler or maybe even a monitor for the M100 based on
> what I've read about (Jake Commander's article) and experienced KIM-1,
> Apple ii-e, Commodore, etc. Surely, I don't have to live in BASIC?
> 5. Disassemble the M100 ROM - I know it's been done before, but surely I
> can do it too, right?
>
> That's what I have planned anyway, as it proceeds, I'm sure I'll get
> distracted with shiny objects and other interests, but hey, better to
> have a plan than not! This weekend, I have to update a couple of
> Research Unix howtos (v6 and v7), so I doubt I'll get much m100 stuff,
> but I just might :).
>
> Here are a few questions related to the plan - please feel free to
> answer them or to make comments or suggestions related to the plan!
>
> q1. Will the retroprinter let me print reams of dot matrix pages to
> laser printer or do I have to go to PDF and then print the PDF?
> q2. Is there a monitor for the M100 available?
> q3. Does anybody know of any available commercial assembler that runs on
> the M100 (I know about cross assemblers, but that's not what I'm looking
> for here and I know about cmzasm.ba, and byteit.ba, I'm looking for
> something commercial? - say the Tandy Assembler or the Custom Software
> Assembler)
>
> Thanks!
>
> Will
>
>

[M100] Keycap compatibility between models

[Charlie Hoey]

Does anybody know off hand which, if any, keycaps are swappable between
model T models?

I've got a caps lock key from a 100 that looks _awfully_ close, but doesn't
quite snap into my 200. Wondering if my keyswitch is gummed up/damaged, or
if they're just not compatible.

Re: [M100] is the m100 a trs-80? In walks like a, not is categorized as a

[John R. Hogerhuis]

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 2:51 PM David Szasz  wrote:

> Interesting discussion, but it's all a little like saying which came first
> "chicken or the egg."  Without BASIC the model 100 would have no charm at
> all.
>
> BTW: I see from the auction link for the Bill Gates Model 100 that it sold
> for around  $30K. That reminds me of many Ebay auction prices I've seen!
>
>>
>>
And it's an interesting BASIC, tailored for the laptop, with decent
interfaces/abstractions for all parts of the system even including the
UART, power management, real time clock, initial program load, interrupts,
in-memory file system, etc.

Microsoft clearly put a lot of thought into it.

-- John.

Re: [M100] is the m100 a trs-80? In walks like a, not is categorized as a

[David Szasz]

Interesting discussion, but it's all a little like saying which came first
"chicken or the egg."  Without BASIC the model 100 would have no charm at
all.

BTW: I see from the auction link for the Bill Gates Model 100 that it sold
for around  $30K. That reminds me of many Ebay auction prices I've seen!

On Thu, Oct 6, 2022 at 3:54 PM Brian K. White  wrote:

> On 10/6/22 15:09, John R. Hogerhuis wrote:
> > "HH/OS (Hand Held OS)"
> >
> > Probably better to keep it always abbreviated, at least for the 600 ;-)
> >
> > I guess the 600 is more hand-held than, say, a Compaq or Kaypro luggable.
> >
> > -- John.
>
>
> It is quite difficult to hold it in merely one hand. It's like over 9
> lbs? You need at least an arm. Arm Held OS? Back Packable OS?
>
> I know what it's rightful name is, Donky Back OS
>
> --
> bkw
>
>

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Will Senn]

Got it and I appreciate the positive atmosphere!

On 10/19/22 2:06 PM, John R. Hogerhuis wrote:



On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:55 AM Will Senn  wrote:

Hi John,

Thanks, but no worries, I didn't take offense. Unfortunately, I'm
not a hardware guy, so I need to be steered to a better site for
these things! the resistor is pennies on the dollar, it's those
blasted cables that cost...

Will


I understand.

This is a 99% unmoderated list but we try to keep discussion nice and 
positive, helpful, no swearing, no politics, high signal to noise, 
minimal metadiscussion (I know, like this post), etc. When it goes off 
the rails I see the unsubscribes start to mount almost immediately.


Every once in a while things get out of hand and I have to flip a 
moderation bit or two.


I don't always succeed, sometimes I make things worse, but I endeavor 
to put out flames quickly.


Ultimately it takes everyone to maintain the atmosphere though.

I think overall we manage to get it right.

-- John.

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Will Senn]

David,

Ah, good points. The pi ecosystem is no problem. I have a couple of 
handfuls of them lying around doing duty as my entertainment center, my 
simh host, my network lab, etc. I don't mind tasking one to the 
retro-printer. You are absolutely correct that I could just save the 
files over serial, but I want the retro feel and be able to "print 
screen" and what not. I figure if the retro-printer works well enough 
and is emotionally satifying, great, if not, next up is to try a real 
printer.


Will

On 10/19/22 3:05 PM, David Szasz wrote:
Your project "todo" list is very concise. Reviewing the 
"Retro-Printer", you will also have to purchase, set up, and learn the 
Raspberry Pi ecosystem to use it. A humble alternative is to redirect 
the printout from your model 100 via a null modem cable to an empty 
file on your personal computer via the serial terminal on that 
personal computer (or removable memory device).  That would require a 
highly modified "PRINT" or "PRINT USING" command which is beyond my 
age-addled mind at the moment. Or just print or save to an empty file 
on model 100 and transfer that separately. Since you would be most 
concerned with program listings, just saving the listing to a text 
file and transferring that back to your desktop PC is the cheapest and 
most expedient solution.


Regards, good luck

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 2:02 PM Peter Vollan  wrote:

36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked
us first, there's lots of other places.

On Tue, 18 Oct 2022 at 17:03, Will Senn  wrote:

I'm loving my m100. It's an endless source of fascination -
very old school, but amazingly well preserved and usable. I
haven't done much with it beyond learning about how to connect
it to my Mac via serial - which works flawlessly in both
directions with TEENY.CO  and dl, yay,
running stuff from club100 on it - go Starblaze :), and
refreshing on BASIC sans renum and tron/troff! Mostly, I've
been reading everything in sight (virtually speaking) and
preparing to dive into its software guts more seriously -
quickly moving into 8085 territory.

BTW, I did get my BASIC banner program written and working as
I remember it did in the 1984 timeframe based on the bitmaps
in ROM (basically just asks for a string, get's each character
of the string's character map, asks the user for a character
to print and one to not print, pixel on char and pixel off
char, asks for a multiplier, then prints to screen with the
multiplier applied in both rows and columns, nothing fancy) -
thanks for pointing me to the ROM address of the characters
set. But other than that, It's all been reading and
planning... which brings me to the weekend projects I have
mapped out for the next bit of time:

1. Get a REXCPM (ordered up) installed and running doing
whatever it is that it does :).
2. Get a Retro Printer and Centronix-Parallel printer cable
ordered (saving up), installed, and running. Hopefully, it's
like having an Epson MX-80 without the noise, greenbar and
ribbon fuss. I do still want to print out pages and pages of
dot matrix listings, but to my laser printer!
3. Make a new Cassette Cable for my Califone AVR tape recorder
which has MIC, not LINE. Got a plan, need cables - sheesh,
amazon is expensive for 5 pin DIN male aluminum solderable,
2.5mm TS mono, 3.5 mm TS mono, 1/4 inch mono cable, and  570M
ohm resistor ($36 USD). but I want to try the DIY route and I
don't know where else to look for this kinda stuff... Yeah, I
know cassettes are so 70's, but hey I wanna see it work in
2022 and compare the experience with my PAL-1 (KIM-1) cassette
stuff - which was dismal - very, very unreliable and fickle.
I'm hoping to learn a bit, play a bit, and have it actually
work more often than not.
4. Write a disassembler or maybe even a monitor for the M100
based on what I've read about (Jake Commander's article) and
experienced KIM-1, Apple ii-e, Commodore, etc. Surely, I don't
have to live in BASIC?
5. Disassemble the M100 ROM - I know it's been done before,
but surely I can do it too, right?

That's what I have planned anyway, as it proceeds, I'm sure
I'll get distracted with shiny objects and other interests,
but hey, better to have a plan than not! This weekend, I have
to update a couple of Research Unix howtos (v6 and v7), so I
doubt I'll get much m100 stuff, but I just might :).

Here are a few questions related to the plan - please feel
free to answer them or to make comments or suggestions related
to the plan!

q1. Will the retroprinter let me print 

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[David Szasz]

Your project "todo" list is very concise. Reviewing the "Retro-Printer",
you will also have to purchase, set up, and learn the Raspberry Pi
ecosystem to use it. A humble alternative is to redirect the printout from
your model 100 via a null modem cable to an empty file on your personal
computer via the serial terminal on that personal computer (or removable
memory device).  That would require a highly modified "PRINT" or "PRINT
USING" command which is beyond my age-addled mind at the moment. Or just
print or save to an empty file on model 100 and transfer that separately.
Since you would be most concerned with program listings, just saving the
listing to a text file and transferring that back to your desktop PC is the
cheapest and most expedient solution.

Regards, good luck

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 2:02 PM Peter Vollan  wrote:

> 36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked us first,
> there's lots of other places.
>
> On Tue, 18 Oct 2022 at 17:03, Will Senn  wrote:
>
>> I'm loving my m100. It's an endless source of fascination - very old
>> school, but amazingly well preserved and usable. I haven't done much with
>> it beyond learning about how to connect it to my Mac via serial - which
>> works flawlessly in both directions with TEENY.CO and dl, yay, running
>> stuff from club100 on it - go Starblaze :), and refreshing on BASIC sans
>> renum and tron/troff! Mostly, I've been reading everything in sight
>> (virtually speaking) and preparing to dive into its software guts more
>> seriously - quickly moving into 8085 territory.
>>
>> BTW, I did get my BASIC banner program written and working as I remember
>> it did in the 1984 timeframe based on the bitmaps in ROM (basically just
>> asks for a string, get's each character of the string's character map, asks
>> the user for a character to print and one to not print, pixel on char and
>> pixel off char, asks for a multiplier, then prints to screen with the
>> multiplier applied in both rows and columns, nothing fancy) - thanks for
>> pointing me to the ROM address of the characters set. But other than that,
>> It's all been reading and planning... which brings me to the weekend
>> projects I have mapped out for the next bit of time:
>>
>> 1. Get a REXCPM (ordered up) installed and running doing whatever it is
>> that it does :).
>> 2. Get a Retro Printer and Centronix-Parallel printer cable ordered
>> (saving up), installed, and running. Hopefully, it's like having an Epson
>> MX-80 without the noise, greenbar and ribbon fuss. I do still want to print
>> out pages and pages of dot matrix listings, but to my laser printer!
>> 3. Make a new Cassette Cable for my Califone AVR tape recorder which has
>> MIC, not LINE. Got a plan, need cables - sheesh, amazon is expensive for 5
>> pin DIN male aluminum solderable, 2.5mm TS mono, 3.5 mm TS mono, 1/4 inch
>> mono cable, and  570M ohm resistor ($36 USD). but I want to try the DIY
>> route and I don't know where else to look for this kinda stuff... Yeah, I
>> know cassettes are so 70's, but hey I wanna see it work in 2022 and compare
>> the experience with my PAL-1 (KIM-1) cassette stuff - which was dismal -
>> very, very unreliable and fickle. I'm hoping to learn a bit, play a bit,
>> and have it actually work more often than not.
>> 4. Write a disassembler or maybe even a monitor for the M100 based on
>> what I've read about (Jake Commander's article) and experienced KIM-1,
>> Apple ii-e, Commodore, etc. Surely, I don't have to live in BASIC?
>> 5. Disassemble the M100 ROM - I know it's been done before, but surely I
>> can do it too, right?
>>
>> That's what I have planned anyway, as it proceeds, I'm sure I'll get
>> distracted with shiny objects and other interests, but hey, better to have
>> a plan than not! This weekend, I have to update a couple of Research Unix
>> howtos (v6 and v7), so I doubt I'll get much m100 stuff, but I just might
>> :).
>>
>> Here are a few questions related to the plan - please feel free to answer
>> them or to make comments or suggestions related to the plan!
>>
>> q1. Will the retroprinter let me print reams of dot matrix pages to laser
>> printer or do I have to go to PDF and then print the PDF?
>> q2. Is there a monitor for the M100 available?
>> q3. Does anybody know of any available commercial assembler that runs on
>> the M100 (I know about cross assemblers, but that's not what I'm looking
>> for here and I know about cmzasm.ba, and byteit.ba, I'm looking for
>> something commercial  - say the Tandy Assembler or the Custom Software
>> Assembler)
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> Will
>>
>

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[John R. Hogerhuis]

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:55 AM Will Senn  wrote:

> Hi John,
>
> Thanks, but no worries, I didn't take offense. Unfortunately, I'm not a
> hardware guy, so I need to be steered to a better site for these things!
> the resistor is pennies on the dollar, it's those blasted cables that
> cost...
>
> Will
>

I understand.

This is a 99% unmoderated list but we try to keep discussion nice and
positive, helpful, no swearing, no politics, high signal to noise, minimal
metadiscussion (I know, like this post), etc. When it goes off the rails I
see the unsubscribes start to mount almost immediately.

Every once in a while things get out of hand and I have to flip a
moderation bit or two.

I don't always succeed, sometimes I make things worse, but I endeavor to
put out flames quickly.

Ultimately it takes everyone to maintain the atmosphere though.

I think overall we manage to get it right.

-- John.

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Gregory McGill]

I have cassette cables in stock at retrocomputershopper.com and
arcadeshopper.com

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:54 AM Will Senn  wrote:

> Hi John,
>
> Thanks, but no worries, I didn't take offense. Unfortunately, I'm not a
> hardware guy, so I need to be steered to a better site for these things!
> the resistor is pennies on the dollar, it's those blasted cables that
> cost...
>
> Will
>
> On 10/19/22 1:46 PM, John R. Hogerhuis wrote:
>
>
>
> On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:03 AM Peter Vollan 
> wrote:
>
>> 36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked us
>> first, there's lots of other places.
>>
>>>
>>>
> Please keep the discussion positive. In any event I think he was
> discussing potential ideas for his next projects.
>
> I have no idea what that resistor should cost but no matter what it's his
> money to spend if he wants to. No call to hassle/tease.
>
> -= Model T's Forever =-
>
> -- John.
>
>
>
>

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Will Senn]

Hi John,

Thanks, but no worries, I didn't take offense. Unfortunately, I'm not a 
hardware guy, so I need to be steered to a better site for these things! 
the resistor is pennies on the dollar, it's those blasted cables that 
cost...


Will

On 10/19/22 1:46 PM, John R. Hogerhuis wrote:



On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:03 AM Peter Vollan  
wrote:


36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked
us first, there's lots of other places.



Please keep the discussion positive. In any event I think he was 
discussing potential ideas for his next projects.


I have no idea what that resistor should cost but no matter what it's 
his money to spend if he wants to. No call to hassle/tease.


-= Model T's Forever =-

-- John.

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Will Senn]

On 10/19/22 1:01 PM, Peter Vollan wrote:
36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked us 
first, there's lots of other places.


Haven't bought it yet - so suggest away.

Will


On Tue, 18 Oct 2022 at 17:03, Will Senn  wrote:

I'm loving my m100. It's an endless source of fascination - very
old school, but amazingly well preserved and usable. I haven't
done much with it beyond learning about how to connect it to my
Mac via serial - which works flawlessly in both directions with
TEENY.CO  and dl, yay, running stuff from club100
on it - go Starblaze :), and refreshing on BASIC sans renum and
tron/troff! Mostly, I've been reading everything in sight
(virtually speaking) and preparing to dive into its software guts
more seriously - quickly moving into 8085 territory.

BTW, I did get my BASIC banner program written and working as I
remember it did in the 1984 timeframe based on the bitmaps in ROM
(basically just asks for a string, get's each character of the
string's character map, asks the user for a character to print and
one to not print, pixel on char and pixel off char, asks for a
multiplier, then prints to screen with the multiplier applied in
both rows and columns, nothing fancy) - thanks for pointing me to
the ROM address of the characters set. But other than that, It's
all been reading and planning... which brings me to the weekend
projects I have mapped out for the next bit of time:

1. Get a REXCPM (ordered up) installed and running doing whatever
it is that it does :).
2. Get a Retro Printer and Centronix-Parallel printer cable
ordered (saving up), installed, and running. Hopefully, it's like
having an Epson MX-80 without the noise, greenbar and ribbon fuss.
I do still want to print out pages and pages of dot matrix
listings, but to my laser printer!
3. Make a new Cassette Cable for my Califone AVR tape recorder
which has MIC, not LINE. Got a plan, need cables - sheesh, amazon
is expensive for 5 pin DIN male aluminum solderable, 2.5mm TS
mono, 3.5 mm TS mono, 1/4 inch mono cable, and  570M ohm resistor
($36 USD). but I want to try the DIY route and I don't know where
else to look for this kinda stuff... Yeah, I know cassettes are so
70's, but hey I wanna see it work in 2022 and compare the
experience with my PAL-1 (KIM-1) cassette stuff - which was dismal
- very, very unreliable and fickle. I'm hoping to learn a bit,
play a bit, and have it actually work more often than not.
4. Write a disassembler or maybe even a monitor for the M100 based
on what I've read about (Jake Commander's article) and experienced
KIM-1, Apple ii-e, Commodore, etc. Surely, I don't have to live in
BASIC?
5. Disassemble the M100 ROM - I know it's been done before, but
surely I can do it too, right?

That's what I have planned anyway, as it proceeds, I'm sure I'll
get distracted with shiny objects and other interests, but hey,
better to have a plan than not! This weekend, I have to update a
couple of Research Unix howtos (v6 and v7), so I doubt I'll get
much m100 stuff, but I just might :).

Here are a few questions related to the plan - please feel free to
answer them or to make comments or suggestions related to the plan!

q1. Will the retroprinter let me print reams of dot matrix pages
to laser printer or do I have to go to PDF and then print the PDF?
q2. Is there a monitor for the M100 available?
q3. Does anybody know of any available commercial assembler that
runs on the M100 (I know about cross assemblers, but that's not
what I'm looking for here and I know about cmzasm.ba
, and byteit.ba , I'm looking
for something commercial  - say the Tandy Assembler or the Custom
Software Assembler)

Thanks!

Will

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[John R. Hogerhuis]

On Wed, Oct 19, 2022 at 11:03 AM Peter Vollan  wrote:

> 36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked us first,
> there's lots of other places.
>
>>
>>
Please keep the discussion positive. In any event I think he was discussing
potential ideas for his next projects.

I have no idea what that resistor should cost but no matter what it's his
money to spend if he wants to. No call to hassle/tease.

-= Model T's Forever =-

-- John.

Re: [M100] Planning out some weekend projects.

[Peter Vollan]

36 dollars just for that?! For god's sake, you should have asked us first,
there's lots of other places.

On Tue, 18 Oct 2022 at 17:03, Will Senn  wrote:

> I'm loving my m100. It's an endless source of fascination - very old
> school, but amazingly well preserved and usable. I haven't done much with
> it beyond learning about how to connect it to my Mac via serial - which
> works flawlessly in both directions with TEENY.CO and dl, yay, running
> stuff from club100 on it - go Starblaze :), and refreshing on BASIC sans
> renum and tron/troff! Mostly, I've been reading everything in sight
> (virtually speaking) and preparing to dive into its software guts more
> seriously - quickly moving into 8085 territory.
>
> BTW, I did get my BASIC banner program written and working as I remember
> it did in the 1984 timeframe based on the bitmaps in ROM (basically just
> asks for a string, get's each character of the string's character map, asks
> the user for a character to print and one to not print, pixel on char and
> pixel off char, asks for a multiplier, then prints to screen with the
> multiplier applied in both rows and columns, nothing fancy) - thanks for
> pointing me to the ROM address of the characters set. But other than that,
> It's all been reading and planning... which brings me to the weekend
> projects I have mapped out for the next bit of time:
>
> 1. Get a REXCPM (ordered up) installed and running doing whatever it is
> that it does :).
> 2. Get a Retro Printer and Centronix-Parallel printer cable ordered
> (saving up), installed, and running. Hopefully, it's like having an Epson
> MX-80 without the noise, greenbar and ribbon fuss. I do still want to print
> out pages and pages of dot matrix listings, but to my laser printer!
> 3. Make a new Cassette Cable for my Califone AVR tape recorder which has
> MIC, not LINE. Got a plan, need cables - sheesh, amazon is expensive for 5
> pin DIN male aluminum solderable, 2.5mm TS mono, 3.5 mm TS mono, 1/4 inch
> mono cable, and  570M ohm resistor ($36 USD). but I want to try the DIY
> route and I don't know where else to look for this kinda stuff... Yeah, I
> know cassettes are so 70's, but hey I wanna see it work in 2022 and compare
> the experience with my PAL-1 (KIM-1) cassette stuff - which was dismal -
> very, very unreliable and fickle. I'm hoping to learn a bit, play a bit,
> and have it actually work more often than not.
> 4. Write a disassembler or maybe even a monitor for the M100 based on what
> I've read about (Jake Commander's article) and experienced KIM-1, Apple
> ii-e, Commodore, etc. Surely, I don't have to live in BASIC?
> 5. Disassemble the M100 ROM - I know it's been done before, but surely I
> can do it too, right?
>
> That's what I have planned anyway, as it proceeds, I'm sure I'll get
> distracted with shiny objects and other interests, but hey, better to have
> a plan than not! This weekend, I have to update a couple of Research Unix
> howtos (v6 and v7), so I doubt I'll get much m100 stuff, but I just might
> :).
>
> Here are a few questions related to the plan - please feel free to answer
> them or to make comments or suggestions related to the plan!
>
> q1. Will the retroprinter let me print reams of dot matrix pages to laser
> printer or do I have to go to PDF and then print the PDF?
> q2. Is there a monitor for the M100 available?
> q3. Does anybody know of any available commercial assembler that runs on
> the M100 (I know about cross assemblers, but that's not what I'm looking
> for here and I know about cmzasm.ba, and byteit.ba, I'm looking for
> something commercial  - say the Tandy Assembler or the Custom Software
> Assembler)
>
> Thanks!
>
> Will
>