19 Oct
2006
19 Oct
'06
8:11 a.m.
Chuck Guzis wrote:
Hmmm, I've still got a few 3.5' BP drives in
original shrinkwrap...
The backpack controller itself is little more than an NS 80277, a bit of
RAM and what looks like a custom-programmed single-chip MPU. Conversation
with it is via a 4-bit data path. The neat thing is that you can program
that 82077 just like the one on an ISA floppy controller.
The amazing thing about MS was their absolute refusal to discuss
programming of th thing--I had to take apart their driver myself to figure
it out so I could write a Win95 VxD for it.
Gah - the BP drive is my least-favourite device of all time. I spent many
hours struggling to get one working under Linux a few years ago with no luck -
this was including lots of talking to the developers of the Linux BP drivers
and sending trace logs back and forth; they couldn't make any sense of it
either. Makes me wonder if the timing protocol changed at some point or something.
The experience certainly did a lot to put me off external floppy devices,
anyway. :-(
cheers,
Jules