test-drb August 2015

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

206 participants
257 discussions

by marc.verdiell＠gmail.com

I have connected a 1.2M 5.25" floppy to my computer. After a bit of jumper learning and setting, it's recognized and reads my old DD and HD floppies fine. But for the life of me I cannot write to it. Not under DOS, Win98, or WindowsXP. Which all read fine. But can't add a file. It goes through to the motions and makes the noise, heads moves as if everything went fine, but if I take the disk out and put it back in, the file is not there. I can't format either. Fails after a while on the above OS'es with different error messages without the head moving past track 0, suggesting it can't even read back the first track it's trying to format. Formatting from ImageDisk or OmniDisk looks like it works (head goes through the motions over the whole disk). But nothing seems to be written on the disk: neither utility can read the formatting back. Both HD and DD. On the same cable there is a 3.5" A: drive which reads and writes fine. Can't be the controller since it works on the 3.5" drive? The cable maybe? I tried several. Anyone has had this happened ever? Time to bring out the o'scope?

9 years, 4 months

VT100 keyboard (source?)

by hilpert＠cs.ubc.ca

Would anyone have a surplus-to-needs, or know of a source for, a VT100 keyboard? This would actually be for the DECmateI/VT278 I mentioned on the list a couple weeks ago, Rob and I are looking into doing something with it. Alternatively, does anyone know if there is any degree of signalling compatibility between the VT100 and VT220/320 keyboards? Those RX floppies in the pedestal on ebay mentioned a week or two ago were just what was needed to complete it, as they actually looked like they were part of a 278, but the listing was removed from ebay.

9 years, 4 months

Manuals Plus preservation efforts update

by tothwolf＠concentric.net

In Realtime: We are barely halfway done http://ascii.textfiles.com/archives/4711 They are still looking for volunteers tomorrow (Tuesday, August 18). Anyone in or near Baltimore might want to go help.

9 years, 4 months

VCF Midwest: Last Chance for Rooms

by silent700＠gmail.com

Hello all - I thought they did this weeks ago but the VCFMW hotel has informed me that they still have the special rooms pricing block open. It will close "for real this time" at the end of the day this Friday the 21st. A rather humbling number of rooms have been reserved so far - well beyond our expectations - but there is room for a few more. Follow the link at http://vcfmw.org for details. See you next weekend! -j

9 years, 4 months

DECmate I floppies (was Re: VT100 keyboard (source?))

by ethan.dicks＠gmail.com

On Wed, Aug 19, 2015 at 5:48 PM, Brent Hilpert <hilpert at cs.ubc.ca> wrote: > Thanks, that was a question I had been intending to ask, but to confirm: > If one obtained (as appropriate) bare RX01/2 floppy drive(s), it would > just be a matter of power supply for the floppies, and passive cabling > to interface the drives to the CPU/display? Yes. There's a board that goes under the wooden "top" that has a DB25 on one side, a Berg 40 on the other, and some wires and ferrite beads in between. It should be the identical board that's in the RX01 enclosure for the MINC-11 and/or WT78. The pinouts should be the same even if those use a different part number for the board. > I actually have the DB25-to-DC37 cable that goes between the disk unit and the DC37 connector on the CPU/display unit. Right. Well documented and easy enough to make, but good you have one. What I need to make (since I've never seen one) is the DC37-dual-DB25 cable to hang all the drives off of the DECmate I. 100% passive and just a few dozen solder joints. > If we move this along we may be asking for system software in the future, > I haven't looked at what may be readily available (i.e. bitsavers) as yet. I think mine came with WPS-8, but it should run OS-278. You just need to find a way to write RX02 floppies. I need to come up with a semi-portable PDP-11 rig with RX02s and 256K of RAM so I can cut floppies with vtserver (and probably some RL01 and RL02s while I'm at it) -ethan

9 years, 4 months

Probs w. M3119 CXY08 MUX on VAX VMS 7.3

by dave＠mitton.com

From: Paul Koning <paulkoning at comcast.net> >> ... > Ok. RSTS does indeed check for duplicate vectors. It also checks for > devices interrupting at too high a priority. > It?s pretty neat code. Back in 1977 or so when that came out, it may > have been one of the first autoconfig systems, at least in DEC. It > could probe almost all devices supported by RSTS (and some not > supported); the exceptions being card readers and the DT07 bus switch. > But it would do hairy things like the KMC-11 and DMC-11, for example. Wait? What was tricky about KMCs and DMCs? They used the same algorithms, I had it down cold at the time. Speaking of which, I have one copy of the KMC-11A Programmer's Guide if anyone needs it or would like to scan it? Dave (KMC-11 Tools Developer, RSX and VMS) PS: I used ALGOLW on MTS in one of my ECE classes because we could represent processor registers and operations using bit arrays/vectors and boolean operations. Thus building working models of systems in code.

9 years, 4 months

Analog to Digital Converter

by dj.taylor4＠comcast.net

I have a number of laboratory instruments that are from the 1990 time frame. They produce digital data that is the digitized signal from a detector, the data can be from 512 to 65K samples long. The ADC used in these instruments is a 16bit 100ksample/sec design. The ADC is in a 3 by 4 inch metal box with a row of pins on each long edge. I think some of them are failing because I get the full 16 bit resolution from one machine, but not the others. This was determined by taking the digital samples and sorting the values and computing the increments between the adjacent values. In some cases the output looked like 14 bit resolution and in one case 6 bit resolution. Does anyone have any experience with technology? Who was the manufacturer? (There is no id on the outside) What is inside the box? Is it a hybrid circuit? Doug

9 years, 4 months

Probs w. M3119 CXY08 MUX on VAX VMS 7.3

by holm＠freibergnet.de

Hi guys, I'm fiddeling around for hours now to get an M3119-YA CXY08 Multiplexer to work in my VAX4000/300 on VMS7.3. The Card is properly detected it seems.. Device Device Error Name Status Count FTA0: Offline 0 OPA0: Online 0 TNA0: Offline 0 TNA2: Online 0 TXA0: Online 4 TXA1: Online 0 TXA2: Online 0 TXA3: Online 7 TXA4: Online 0 TXA5: Online 0 TXA6: Online 0 TXA7: Online 0 VTA0: Offline 0 . SYSGEN> SH/CONF System CSR and Vectors on 17-AUG-2015 19:17:01.69 Name: PAA Units: 1 Nexus:0 (CI ) Name: PAB Units: 1 Nexus:1 (CI ) Name: EZA Units: 4 Nexus:2 (NI ) Name: PUA Units: 1 Nexus:3 (UBA) CSR: 772150 Vector1: 154 Vector2: 000 Name: PTA Units: 1 Nexus:3 (UBA) CSR: 774500 Vector1: 260 Vector2: 000 Name: PTB Units: 1 Nexus:3 (UBA) CSR: 760404 Vector1: 300 Vector2: 000 Name: TXA Units: 8 Nexus:3 (UBA) CSR: 760440 Vector1: 310 Vector2: 314 SYSGEN> ..and it is the first card left of the CPU in the QBUS Backplane followed >from an working CQD200/TM. AThe DIP Switches are set like the standard in some CXY08 Manual, the MUX is set to DHU11 programming model. I've first tried to connect a serial line pronter with no luck so I've tried to connect a 2nd VT420 and have no luck again. I know of the meaning of the several modem control signals and how they should be wired, have connected such a "null modem RS232 device" that shorts 4 to 5 and 6+8 to 20. I've tried to copy data from a file to the lines and I have shorted 2+3 of the Muxer Pins from the line and done a SET HOST/DTE/ESC=E TXA0:,allt that ends with an timeout writing to the lines and the lines acting identically, regardles which one I try to use. $ copy SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM txa3: %COPY-E-WRITEERR, error writing TXA3:[]SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM;5 -RMS-F-WER, file write error -SYSTEM-F-TIMEOUT, device timeout %COPY-W-NOTCMPLT, SYS$COMMON:[SYSMGR]SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM;5 not completely copied $ sh term txa3 Terminal: _TXA3: Device_Type: Unknown Owner: No Owner Input: 9600 LFfill: 0 Width: 80 Parity: None Output: 9600 CRfill: 0 Page: 24 Terminal Characteristics: Interactive Echo Type_ahead No Escape No Hostsync TTsync Lowercase No Tab Wrap Scope No Remote No Eightbit Broadcast No Readsync No Form Fulldup Modem No Local_echo Autobaud No Hangup No Brdcstmbx No DMA No Altypeahd Set_speed No Commsync Line Editing Overstrike editing No Fallback No Dialup No Secure server No Disconnect No Pasthru No Syspassword No SIXEL Graphics No Soft Characters No Printer Port Numeric Keypad No ANSI_CRT No Regis No Block_mode No Advanced_video No Edit_mode No DEC_CRT No DEC_CRT2 No DEC_CRT3 No DEC_CRT4 No DEC_CRT5 No Ansi_Color VMS Style Input $ Depending on set term/modem or set term/printer the modem control lines are changing the level, that's ok. But I can't get a single character printed to the terminal which I have verified with an USB to serial cable already, the terminal is ok and I have an LED-Analyzer for RS232 between the RS232 Plugs.. Since I'm a total VMS Noob I now have some Questions: .. have I missed something? .. is the CXY08 bad? .. what could I try next? ...is there some diagnosting software for the CXY08 existing for VMS and if yes, where can I get it? Thanks in advance, Holm -- Technik Service u. Handel Tiffe, www.tsht.de, Holm Tiffe, Freiberger Stra?e 42, 09600 Obersch?na, USt-Id: DE253710583 www.tsht.de, info at tsht.de, Fax +49 3731 74200, Mobil: 0172 8790 741

9 years, 4 months

More on manuals plus rescue

by tshoppa＠wmata.com

> IA saturates the channel. Jason and IA are deliberately working to redirect all search > traffic to IA from the original mirrors by constantly creating useless 'new' content that > Google thinks is real. > > I have watched over time as the volume of Google top search hits have migrated to IA hosted > content from the mirrors. I have occasionally stumbled into the bitsavers stuff on IA and was just confused and perplexed about what the IA guys are trying to do. Bitsavers has a perfectly obvious and navigable layout; IA makes no sense at all. (Of course I'm a little biased!!!) Tim N3QE

9 years, 4 months

Speaking of Creating 5 1/4" floppies

by marc.verdiell＠gmail.com

Try Imagedisk for DOS (with actually somewhat of an interface). Great software, superb manual. http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/img/index.htm Also Omnidisk for DOS (command line) http://www.shlock.co.uk/Utils/OmniDisk/OmniDisk.htm#Downloads And Omniflop for WinXP with a GUI http://www.shlock.co.uk/Utils/OmniFlop/OmniFlop.htm#Downloads All of them can read and write a particular sector. With Imagedisk you can image the original disk to a file image, and view the image data in a nice hex editor by sector, make your changes, and write back the modified version to a disk. All with a simple and efficient DOS GUI. Marc ----------------------------- jwsmobile <jws at jwsss.com> wrote: I wonder if someone can help with a bit of a problem I have. I have a compaq portable 3 system which has a working Pick (Non dos) system on it. It has the 5 1/4" floppy drives on it. I am looking for a bootable floppy or 2 with something like dos 6.x on it and some utility that can read and write disk sectors. Preferably the latter is a nice gui program, but beggers can't be choosers. I need to boot it up from the floppy drive and modify the pick system dictionary to remove the main password. So the change to the system will be surgical, just one sector. If anyone can help, can you send me a note and let me know how I can compensate you for your help. If I really move crap around I may be able to find a system with the 5 1/4" floppies on it, but I'm not sure I could get a program onto the system then out to the 5 1/4" drive and am also looking for suggestions about what disk utility / editor might be useful if anyone has suggestions on that. I'll go ahead and dredge up something soon if I can't get help from somewhere. thanks Jim Stephens -----------------------------

9 years, 4 months

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test-drb August 2015