New Finds: AIM-65 and Acorn documents - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

25 Jun 2003

On Jun 25, 19:30, Jules Richardson wrote:

...
  Acorn Technical Manual - dated 1979, for a 6502-based
SBC. Display is quoted in
...
  the manual as being 9 digits with the leftmost one
unused, which may identify
...
  the machine. Possibly a System 1-4 ?? 
No, it wasn't a System device.  That's the original Acorn SBC, I think.
 I've got the matching User's Manual.

...
  Acorn 6809 users manual - dated 1980, this looks to be
for a SBC a little more
...
  'modern' than the one above. There are
fragments of schematics in the manual,
...
  plus an overview of the board layout, construction
guide, monitor ROM listing
...
  etc. but no complete schematic. 
Mine has a fold-out circuit diagram inside the back cover.

...
    Atom Disc Pack construction notes, schematics etc.
(anyone got a dump of the
...
  ROM to go with this?) 
Yes :-)

...
    Document called "A redefinable telesoftware
format" - was that what went on
...
  to become prestel in the UK? 
The same basic CET (Council for Educational Technology) format was used
for BBC Telesoftware (on Ceefax), Prestel (Micronet800, Viewfax258 etc)
and a few bulletin boards (including Acorn's own Support Information
Database -- SID).  It went through a few revisions, but the basics
didn't change.  I wrote some software for that.

...
    "Operating Instructions for the Progressive
Establishment Testing System for
...
  the BBC Microcomputer". Blimey. Documentation for
a hardware unit that hooked
...
  up to the BBC machines in order to perform hardware
tests on them for engineers
...
  by the looks of it. Wonder if any of the hardware
still exists? :-) 
Probably.  I'll pay money for one -- I still have most of the other
Acorn test equipment.  A PET was used to diagnose faulty systems; it
could deal with pretty dead machines and/or some obscure faults --
though an experienced engineer could usually do it just about as fast
without it.

...
    "Operating Instructions for the Final
Inspection and Test System for the BBC
...
  Microcomputer". Blimey again. Did these ever even
see the light of day? Seems
...
  to have been another hardware unit for use by field
engineers but I've never
...
  heard of it before. 
Yes, I've got one -- and every Beeb I've ever repaired has passed the
FIT.   You need the software for it; I think the basic A version is
printed in the manual but there's a B version as well (is that also in
the manual?  I've got one, but not to hand).  Every Approved Service
Centre was required to have one.

There's a companion set of "Test Procedures For The ..."  6502 2P, Z80
2P, Prestel adaptor, Teletext adaptor, ...  and other test equipment
such as the Watchdog for an Electron and a PIT (sort of combined
FIT/PET) for later machines, and an Econet test box.

-- 
Pete						Peter Turnbull
						Network Manager
						University of York