test-drb April 2013

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

205 participants
273 discussions

by mcquiggi＠me.com

If all else fails, I can take a voltmeter to my cable and make you a pinout table. Let me know. Kevin > Message: 3 > Date: Sun, 28 Apr 2013 09:24:27 -0400 > From: Rick Murphy <rick at rickmurphy.net> > To: cctalk at classiccmp.org > Subject: RRD50 Cable documentation > Message-ID: <201304281324.r3SDOTpE032247 at rickmurphy.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed > > I'm in the process of trying to resurrect a MicroVAX-II system. > I have a RRD50 cd reader and the associated KRQ50 controller. What I'm > missing is the cable between the cabinet kit and the drive. > > I've tried various incantations, including a AUI cable (DA15 to DA15) > and what I think is a straight-through cable. I also hooked the cabinet > kit DA15M direct to the drive with no success. > > In most cases the drive spins up but when I try to boot it, the red > error LED on the drive blinks then it spins down. > > So, I've got to build a cable. Does anyone have documentation of the > pinout of what I need to build? > Thanks, > -Rick Sent from my iPad

12 years, 2 months

CERN/NeXT/recreating the first web server

by toby＠telegraphics.com.au

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22249490 "Soon to be refurbished: The NeXT computer that was home to the world's first website" "Mr Noyes is reaching out to ask those who were involved in the NeXT computers used by Sir Tim for advice on how to restore the original machines." --Toby (NeXT owner)

12 years, 2 months

CQD-220 and CD-ROM redux

by fraveydank＠gmail.com

After several days of trying to coax reliable results out of my Pioneer DR-US124X CD drive on the CQD-220, I finally gave up and acquired a proper Plextor drive. The Pioneer had various issues, some of which may just be due to it being in bad shape - I'll have to test it out on some of my Macs to see if that's the case. In case anyone stumbles upon this in an archive, I thought I'd list the symptoms: - After it warmed up, it would throw errors when operated in sync mode, even in the CQD-220's built-in drive test - When not in sync mode, it would work on the built-in test, but would periodically just stop responding. VMS would eventually (after a good 5 minutes or so) give up and declare it "not software enabled". This had an annoying tendency to happen during lengthy installs. - All the other drives in the SCSI chain (a hard drive, a Zip drive and a Jaz drive) seemed to work just fine, so I'm relatively sure it wasn't a termination issue. And yes, the drive was jumpered to 512 byte blocks. It would boot the VMS install CD without the jumper, but it would never proceed to executing the standalone BACKUP program. Someone was selling a 20x Plextor drive on eBay for a pretty good price, so I snapped it up. It's worked 100% reliably since I plugged it in. Perhaps their SCSI implementation is more compliant? All I know is that they have an extremely good reputation, and their user manuals seem to be cognizant of the various reasons you might want to run in 512-byte block mode. - Dave

12 years, 2 months

Kaypro System disks?

by dave13＠dunfield.com

>That was the end of my successes. > >testfdc sees the drive, but only 300kB DD seems to work. I tried making >an image with the 1.2MB drive, but every sector said write error: no >data, so I gave up. >Then, I took a working Kaypro drive and put it in the PC, and tried >testfdc. I overrode it as 360kb 5.25 drive, and testfdc finds the >drive, but it immediately gives up stating "!No FDC Interrupt" > >So, if there is "a way to do it...", it continues to elude me. An assortment of notes: You need to boot to real/raw DOS ... IMD doesn't work under windows. If you are booting from a floppy, know that IMD reconfigures the controller rendering it inaccessable by DOS while IMD is accessing the disk - so it can't read/write the image file from/to a different floppy. I have a boot disk image on my site that boots and runs from a RAMdisk and contains network tools to transfer the image off (or you can ZIP it to a floppy after IMD is finished). If you are booting to real/raw DOS ... does the drive work under DOS.? Can you FORMAT 1.2M and 360k disks under DOS and read/write them.? If not, you have a hardware problem (for DOS, make sure it is configured correctly in BIOS - IMD doesn't use BIOS settings though). Make sure you are using DD media, and NOT HD media - for 5.25" diskettes, DD media usually has a reenforcing ring around the edge of the center hole, and HD diskettes usually do not have it 1.2M drive spins at 360rpm ... DD drive spins at 300rpm ... my Keypro disks were read on a real DD drive, so they are encoded at 250kbps. If you write them to a 1.2M spinning at 360rpm, you need to set a speed translate 250->300 in order for the density to come out right. My docs and help contain more details on this. I assume It goes without saying, but to use 1 2M drive, you need an AT or later style controller capable of handing HD drives. If you use a DD only controller, you need to tell IMD this - there's a command line option - note that this would only work on DD drives (obviously). I've had issues with 300kbps on certain controllers - mostly with single- desnity (IIRC k4 disks don't use SD) --- I've got info on my site on modifying 1.2M drive to run at 300rpm/250kbps which may work better for you. Also IIRC, some of my kay disks have an extra SD track-40 (41), which existed on the original disks ... I doubt it's required, but I left the images exactly as read when I posted them - if your setup only fails on track-40, try the disks as they will probably work anyway. 1.2M drive is a 96tpi drive. Kaypro disks are for 48tpi drives - you will need to set double-stepping when recreating the disks -- otherwise you won't be able to read them in the 48tpi DD drive. 96tpi drives (like your 1.2M) lay down thinner tracks than 48tpi drives (regular DD drives) - you may have issues reading disks that were written on 48tpi, then re-written on 96tpi, then read on 48tpi ... note that most of the time it works for me, and it would not be the cause of errors writing and reading on the 96tpi drive ... only reading them on the 48tpi after rewriting them on 96tpi ... you can bulk erase the disk prior to creating it in the 96tpi drive if this is causing you grief. If none of the above help, get back to me with exactly what your hardware setup is, what media you are using, what speed your drive is running (There's a test-RPM command in IMD) - and I'll try to come up with some more suggestions. Dave PS: Regarding using TM-100 in PC ... I believe I have gotten one to work, but I find more "modern" 1/2 height DD drives much easier to work with on a PC - PC expects drive to be jumpered as drive 2 (or 1 if counting from zero) and has issues with signals due to it's "rolled cable". IRC you need to jumper the drive (or connector) to provide motor-on with select - it's been quite a while since I worked with one of these drives on a PC. PPS: I've got about 2 dozen "nearly new" Teac 1/2 height DD drives in a box in my basement - If anyone needs one, get in touch with me and we can work something out. -- dave13 (at) Dave Dunfield dunfield System/Firmware development services: www.dunfield.com (dot) com Classic computers: http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield

12 years, 2 months

Kaypro System disks?

by dave13＠dunfield.com

>Yes, it's possible to write a 360k disk in a 1.2MB drive. See >http://www.classic-computers.org.nz/blog/2010-02-18-writing-cpm-from-1.2mb-… Bulk-erasing before writing on a 96tpi and NOT re-writing on a 48tpi is a good tip, and does work. However (from the references web page): >A further tip: when writing new floppies with IMD (to generate original Kaypro bundled >software for example), I found it easiest to Format the floppy under 22DISK first, as it >knows the correct settings for a Kaypro floppy, then use IMD to write to the formatted >floppy. Doing this meant the only setting I had to set on IMD is the Double Step (as I >have a 1.2MB (80 track) drive, not a 360KB (40 track) drive. Makes no sense. IMD knows the exact format of the particular disk that it is writing as this was determined at the time it was read, and is represented in the metadata of the IMD file - it also formats the disk as it writes it, removing any previous formatting. And ... if he's writing on a 1.2M drive (presumed in a HD controller) , he WILL need to set a 250->300kbps translation in addition to double-stepping in order to write the disks. Dave -- dave13 (at) Dave Dunfield dunfield System/Firmware development services: www.dunfield.com (dot) com Classic computers: http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield

12 years, 2 months

My Mattel Aquarius on YouTube

by terry＠webweavers.co.nz

The dawning of the Age of Aquarius. A new collection video looking at this short-lived 1983 offering from Mattel. http://youtu.be/YpzHPfqKLb8 Terry (Tez)

12 years, 2 months

UK recycler

by sales＠elecplus.com

For those of you looking for recyclers in the UK where you might be able to scrounge, or ask them to save interesting bits, please take a look at this company. They caught my interest because they exclusively employ disabled/disadvantaged workers. Nice to see a company that helps others out! About Haven Recycle Haven Recycle is a social enterprise based in Glasgow which runs a Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment (WEEE) recycling and asset recovery operation. We are part of the Rehab Recycle group, servicing a number of large public and private sector organisations including Dell, Microsoft and the NHS. The services we offer include removal and disposal of all waste electrical equipment, secure data destruction both on and off site, office clearouts, asset recovery and re-marketing. We will seek to achieve maximum value from your waste material, with the absolute minimum going to landfill. The aim being wherever possible to reuse, and recycle all Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment. All work undertaken is fully compliant with all relevant legislation, and carried out to the highest possible standards demanded by the market. While operating as a business, Haven Recycle is also a social enterprise; our unique attribute being that the majority of our highly skilled and comprehensively trained workforce comprises of disabled and disadvantaged adults. We carry out ongoing programmes of training and integration to ensure that all our work is carried out to the highest possible standards demanded by the market, and our impressive client list is a testament to this. As such our customers can contribute significantly to their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) simply by engaging Haven Recycle as a supplier. Specialties WEEE Recycling, Asset Recovery, Information Security Management, Corporate Social Responsibility, Data Destruction - on & off site, CESG Approved Data Erasure - on & off site, ISO 9001 accredited, ISO 14001 accredited, SEPA Waste Management License: WML/L/1099035 . Headquarters 6 - 8 Watt Road Hillington ParkGlasgow, G52 4RY United Kingdom . Website <http://www.linkedin.com/redirect?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ehavenrecycle%2Eco%2 Euk&urlhash=_LQh&trk=Haven+Recycle_website> http://www.havenrecycle.co.uk . Industry Renewables & Environment . Type Nonprofit . Company Size 11-50 employees . Founded 1946 _____ No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2013.0.3272 / Virus Database: 3162/6281 - Release Date: 04/28/13

12 years, 2 months

Calling Tony Eros

by bob＠jfcl.com

Tony Eros - if you want your SBC6120, please contact me off list (or just respond to one of the other emails that I've sent you about it!). That's it. Sorry to waste bandwidth on this, but Tony appears to be a tough guy to get in touch with. Bob Armstrong

12 years, 2 months

on the Terasic DE0 board and general FPGA advice

by keithvz＠verizon.net

I bought the Terasic DE0 a little while back. This board is pretty decent, and I've used it for a few different projects. Regarding documentation, the docs are overall pretty good. Pretty much everything you need is either available at Terasic site if it's a board-specific item, or at Altera's if it's FPGA specific. I don't think I've looked for one thing ever that simply was missing, or wrong. There was one thing I suggested they add as an FAQ, and despite the fact that they told me they would, they haven't. If you need to use pin K22, you need to look here http://quartushelp.altera.com/current/mergedProjects/comp/comp/comp_tab_dp_… and set the nCEO (or was it NCSO) pin as regular I/O. Otherwise: you'll get a multiple drivers error during compilation, even though YOU aren't driving it more than once. This is important for VGA applications and affects one of the BLUE signals. The user manual pretty much gives you everything you need http://www.terasic.com.tw/cgi-bin/page/archive.pl?Language=English&Category… The control panel is useful, but I think a lot of the sample apps use NIOS, and unless you are going that route, the example code isn't helpful. Quartus II (free version) is pretty decent, at least in comparison to Xilinx's ISE (that I haven't used in a couple versions). It's smaller, faster, lighter, and so on. These tools are PIGS in general, so it's all relative. Learn how to use SignalTap II, the built in the logic analyzer, and life is very good. Memory controllers are the bain of FPGA hobbyists, I made minor changes to one I found online, and it works fine on the DE0. I'd give the link, but it seems to have gone offline. I'm working on a local mirror on my site. (http://web.archive.org/web/20130123011711/http://whoyouvotefor.info/altera_…) Yes, SRAM is easier, but usually less plentiful. There aren't many other options if you want a decent amount of memory. Here's 16-channels of 5v conversion for $15 off the shelf http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/logic-sniffer-16bit-input-buffer-wing-p-72… Here's what I created http://techtravels.org/?p=488 Works pretty decent Recommend http://www.amazon.com/Bebop-Boolean-Boogie-Third-Edition/dp/1856175073/ref=… and http://www.amazon.com/FPGA-Prototyping-Verilog-Examples-Spartan-3/dp/047018… or similar. Hope this helps, Keith

12 years, 2 months

IBM PCs and clones: mTCP 2013-04-26 (DOS TCP/IP apps) is available

by mbbrutman-cctalk＠brutman.com

And nearly another year has passed by ... This version includes: - improved TCP/IP lost packet and retransmit support - DHCP lease expiration detection and warning - IRCjr: mIRC color codes, improved logging support, 132 column awareness, bug fixes - FTP client: user input can be longer now (2 lines), 125 responses from the server handled better - FTP server: improved compatibility with more clients. - Telnet: improved emulation (scroll regions and DEC Origin Mode support) - Many other small fixes and improvements ... Everything is available at http://code.google.com/p/mtcp/ . Mike

12 years, 2 months

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test-drb April 2013