I have successfully built a rl02 disk using pdpgui on a windows XP laptop,
the newer version works on window 10. All you need other than the software
is a serial card like a m7800. Pdpgui acts as a gui. Do you have a m9312
rom/terminator card with a terminal console rom?
Bill Degnan
twitter: billdeg
vintagecomputer.net
On Nov 11, 2017 7:04 AM, "Aaron Jackson via cctech" <cctech at classiccmp.org>
wrote:
> Well, some progress.
>
> It seems that a terminator is not required so long as the cable is VERY
> short. The controller RLV12 controller appears to have a few termination
> resistors on it anyway. There is no fault light appearing and the drives
> spin up fine. Mine cable is less than 20cm and the PDP is sitting just
> on top of the drive.
>
> I can see that the drive is communicating because the lsb of the csr
> changes flips between 0 and 1 when I load and unload the drive.
>
> I wanted to try and dump the disks using vtserver, but when I run the
> copy program I end up with the following
>
> ]] Enter name of input record/device: rl(0,0,0)
> ]]
> ]] Can't get rl(0,0,0) sts
> ]] rl(0,0,0) err cy=0, hd=0, sc=2, rlcs=142205, rlmp=0
> ]] rl(0,0,0) error reading labelsector
> ]] Enter name of input record/device:
>
> The same happened on both packs - they have both been cleaned and look
> as though they are in good condition. The heads have been cleaned too.
>
> Given that the drive appears to be communicating with the PDP-11, where
> might this problem come from?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Aaron.
>
> Aaron Jackson via cctech writes:
>
> > Hi everyone,
> >
> > I have managed to hook up an RL02 drive to my PDP-11 (thanks to Dave
> > Wade for the drives) . This took me longer than I thought it would - I
> > tried with a flat ribbon cable with a DIY terminator going straight into
> > board , but couldn't get it to work. Removed the terminator, and the
> > fault light turned off. So that's positive.
> >
> > I tried to load a cartridge, which I had cleaned, inspected and
> > generally appears to be in good condition. It started to spin up and I
> > could hear it getting faster, but after 30-40 seconds the fault light
> > returns. I made a short video demonstrating this:
> >
> > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=japwBBodO8U
> >
> > According to the manual the fault light can appear for the following
> > reasons:
> >
> > - Drive select error... Surely this would come on at the start?
> > - Seek time out error... I'd have to hear the heads move first
> > - Write current in heads during sector time error... Same as above
> > - Loss of system clock... The fault light would be on from the start.
> > - Write protect error... I don't think it got that far
> > - Write data error... Same as above
> > - Spin error... Is this the only remaining fault?
> >
> > So could the only cause be a spin error? I am wondering if the belt is
> > slipping or something like that?
> >
> > Can anyone offer some advice?
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Aaron.
>
>
> --
> Aaron Jackson
> PhD Student, Computer Vision Laboratory, Uni of Nottingham
> http://aaronsplace.co.uk
>
> From: Aaron Jackson
> The RL02 technical manual says to figure out why a drive error
> occurred, I can execute a get status command (?) and then perform an
> MPR read (?). So while I don't know how to do that,
RLV 12 User Guide, section 5.2.
Noel
Many Thanks for this.
A useful addition to our HP docs here.
Ed# _www.smecc.org_ (http://www.smecc.org)
In a message dated 11/9/2017 7:29:40 A.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
cctalk at classiccmp.org writes:
The manual has been scanned and is on our FTP server:
ftp://computermuseum.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/hp/hp2648/13245-90001_2640S
eriesCharacterSetGeneration_Oct1975.pdf
Enjoy :-)
@Al: you may push it to bitsavers
Christian
I wonder if there is any better archive of the original DejaNews and
peoples personal archives than Google Groups.
When the Google Groups took over I know a lot of stuff I had
participated in was dropped for not reason from Googles take on the
import of data.
And the BBSs I used were generally participating in such discussions as
technical ones on hardware and the like, and went directly in some cases
to usenet discussions as that became available.
I'd be interested in hearing recollections.? I'd not recalled DejaNews
in a long time.
Main reason is this weeks Minix kerfuffle in the press.? I exchanged
emails and comments with Tanenbaum when he published the system in his
original book.? I don't have any info around at hand to look at what I
did beside run it, but one of my main interests in any platform at that
time was to be able to compile the system on itself.
thanks
Jim
My first FPGA-Elf (2009) used an FPGA board that is long-since obsolete,
and while I updated it last year, it used an FPGA board that was not
commercially available, and would have been frighteningly expensive if it
was. For the most recent RetroChallenge, I updated the FPGA-Elf to work on
a readily-available, inexpensive FPGA module, the Digilent CMOD-A7-35T,
which is available for $89. (It can also be made to work on the $75
CMOD-A7-15T, but I recommend the -35T as it can provide more RAM.) As part
of the RetroChallenge, I added emulation of the CDP1861 PIXIE graphics.
Various photos can be seen at:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/22368471 at N04/albums/72157687136287141
The project progress is described, in reverse chronological order, on my
blog:
http://whats.all.this.brouhaha.com/category/computing/retrocomputing/retroc…
I designed a base PCB into which the which the CMOD-A7 module plugs. The
base board provides for use of hexadecimal displays (either HP or TI) for
data and (optional) address, a connector for the switches, a serial port, a
composite video ports, and an optional MicroSD breakout board. A 5V 2A
regulated wall-wart provides power.
There are a few issues with the board design requiring a few traces cut and
jumpers and resistors added, and I haven't yet written any software to deal
with the MicroSD card. I plan to have a new revision of the main board
made to correct the known issues. The switch PCB and bezel PCB don't need
another revision.
I still need to write some documentation, but I've put the rev 0 main board
Eagle files, Gerber files, and PDF files of the schematic and layout at:
http://www.frobco.com/e1000/
I'm willing to make bare boards available for those who want to build their
own.
This version runs at 256x the speed of a normal Elf w/ PIXIE. It's clocked
at 56.34 MHz, but it executes all instructions in one-eighth the clock
cycles required by an 1802. My 1861 implementation uses a dual-port RAM to
allow the CPU to run fast while still producing normal NTSC-rate video. I
plan to make the processor speed configurable to 1x or 256x, with perhaps a
few intermediate choices.
I know around the 20th I wasn?t the only one having problems. Are there still issues?
Oddly enough, once I got access back to my Aracnet email address, and even though it has problems receiving email, it?s getting classiccmp just fine. Which a surprise, considering I didn?t think my Aracnet account existed for much of that time.
OTOH, I?ve not received any from classiccmp at this address since the 20th. I seem to be having problems logging into the website to check my preferences, and can?t even get it to send me a password.
It will be interesting to see if this makes it through.
Zane
I am looking at buying a pocket PC / PDA, so I can write idea/notes when
I am away from my computer
the [Psion 3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psion_Series_3) and [Psion
5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psion_Series_5) look like good options,
but i read about the hinge/screen issues
I am leaning more towards the Psion 5 because of the easy of getting
accessories,
but it has more things to break
but I am wounding about other options?
