Looking for North star software

[allison]

On 07/04/2018 12:39 AM, dwight via cctalk wrote:
> I'm told that the N* controller can write H89 formated disk but the H89 controller can't do N* format. I could have that backwards but that is what I recall. One can't do the other.
>
> The H89 hard sectored controller is single density only, while the newer N* can do both single and double density, still hard sectored though. There is always confusion on the N* controllers as to which can do double density. My research indicates that the MDC-nA are single density only and the MDC-nDA can do both ( n is a rev. number 1, 2, 3, or 4).
>
> Dwight
>
I had two H89s and neitehr coud do NS* format either way.  THe
controllers are very different.
I've seen more of them with softsector boards in them.

Allison
>
> ________________________________
> From: cctalk <cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org> on behalf of Fred Cisin via cctalk <cctalk at classiccmp.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, July 3, 2018 11:08:18 AM
> To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts
> Subject: Re: Looking for North star software
>
> On Tue, 3 Jul 2018, dwight via cctalk wrote:
>> I'm not as worried about 10 hard secrtored disk. I still have the punch
>> I had made for my H89. I can create 10 sector from old 360K disk.
> If you have a working H89 (hard sectored), then you should be able to
> write a program to run on the H89 to write hard sectored disk images!
> Can it do single density 256 byte sectors?  or MFM 512 byte sectors?
>
> .ASM for PCTOFLOP should be available, as a guide to what you need, but
> will need modification for the H89 disk controller.
>
> Most of the NorthStar disk images should be availablem once you've got the
> H89 writing disks from them!
>
> Once you've got the NorthStar booting CP/M plus a copy of PIP, you can
> then continue on it.
>
>