23 Dec
2005
23 Dec
'05
noon
On Friday 23 December 2005 02:09 pm, Tony Duell wrote:
Oh joy...
Just being able to get info into and out of that machine would be nice.
I did look once a while back, but it's been a while and there's probably more
stuff out there now than there was. I guess I'll have another look...
--
Member of the toughest, meanest, deadliest, most unrelenting -- and
ablest -- form of life in this section of space, a critter that can
be killed but can't be tamed. --Robert A. Heinlein, "The Puppet Masters"
-
Information is more dangerous than cannon to a society ruled by lies. --James
M Dakin
On Thursday 22
December 2005 05:55 pm, Tony Duell wrote:
There is a scanned technical manual (.pdf) on various web sites, I think
it is on bitsavers, for example. Be warned that while it does contain
schemaitcs, these are very hard to read (at least the complete one at the
back) -- a combination of IMHO too low a reslution at one point in the
process (no idea if it was the original manual or the scanner) and a very
confusing layout. I am currently working on an Epson PX8 system. I
bought this on E-bay,
so the history is essentially unknown, but I was told it was 'untested'
which I took to mean non-working.
Speaking of which, I have one of those I'd forgotten to include in my
list I posted a while back. It used to work, doesn't work any more --
when I attempt to turn it on I get a low battery message, even if it's
been plugged in to charge for a long time. Know where I might find some
tech info on the innards of the thing? There are part diagrams to explain the various
sections, and these are a
lot easier to follow. THe PSU is not at all simple (and depends on the
NiCd to act as a shut regulator on the main logic supply line). Heck,
there's even a 4-bit microcontroller and a 6 bit ADC in the middle of it
all.
But I can try to talk you through it if you want me to.
Let me see what I can get a hold of.
<...>
It's not the same, but there are various drive emulators for PCs. The
'serial' port on the PX8 is at RS232 levels, and the disk drive just uses
the TxD and RxD pins (it's a subset of the pinout of the RS232 port
alongside it, you can use the same cables, essentially). It runs at 38400
baud. With it, I got a PF10 floppy drive. This is a
single 3.5" unit, with a
38400 baud serial interdace back to the PX8.
I'd love to find a drive for one of those. :-) I've downloaded a disk emulator for linux.
Pretty much what I run here -- which distro do you use?
The makefile and shell scripts need work (at least to
run on my machine),
Always. :-)
but the program compiled OK by hand and does work. I
think there's something
for MS-DOS too.
I regard mini-DIN plugs as one of the offspring of Satan :-).
:-D
I had to
make up my own cable, but I have checked and double-checked
it, and anyway it works fine to link a PX8 to a PX4 via the RS232
interfaces (essentially the same pinout as the 'high speed' serial
interface to the disk drive). In fact what I did was make up a cable
from the 8 pin nini-DIN plug to fit the PX8 to a DB25 plug,, wired as a
DTE and a second cable with a DB25 socket to a 8 pin mini-DIN, wired to
do the right swaps and jumpers.
I got a couple of connectors a while back, but my eyesight isn't what it
used to be, so I never did make up any cables. Do you have specific
cable wiring info, assuming I can get this thing working? I really hate wiring them, and the type you can wire
(as opposed to moulded
ones) are often too large tor fit through the hole in the case to mate with
the socket.
I do believe these will fit, and better yet, they appear to be Switchcraft.
I still don't want to have to wire them, though.
What I did was buy 3 cables from RS components which
had an 8 pin
mini-DIN plug moulded on one end and bare wires at the other.
I might have something around here I can chop...
I wired 2 of them to DB25 plugs, so that you got a DTE
pinout on said plug.
And the last one I wired to a DB25 socket with the apporpiate crosses and
interconnections so that when I pluged that one one of the first type of
cable, I got a crossover mini-DIN to mini-DIN cable which will like 2
PX8s (or PX4s), or link a machine to the PF10.
I can look up the wiring colours used in those RS cables if you like, they
are in the catalogue/on the web site, but I buzzed them out anyway just
to be sure.
Just the pin-to-pin connections would be of great help.
[Note for US readers. RS is not Radio Shack. It's
a large UK distributer
of electronic components, tools, materials, etc. Look at
http://www.rswww.com/]
I've heard that before.
First I've
heard of those. If I can get mine working, that would be a
nice way to store some data. What pc-based platform do they work under?
Well, certianly an old version of linux,, because that what I use. I
think I saw reference to an MS-DOS one. A google search for Epson PX8
and/or Epson PF10 should find them.