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Plato PCD2


etownandy

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Geez dude, I would LOVE that! (I spend hours with the Plato series - it's like having a home version of "Are you smarter than a 5th grader" (or 6th grader, or 10th grader...))

 

Keep us in the loop if you find it coz I would be so on that!!

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I was reading the Plato manual the other night, and saw that TI offered the "PCD2" package for people to create their own Plato lessons.

 

 

I was working with Plato on a CDC mainframe and talking to TI about taking existing lessons to the TI99 but nothing ever came of it. I have seen pictures of TI gear with CDC labels.

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The Plato Course Development System was a terminal that talked to the CDC Mainframe. It had options to compile the files for mainframe or standalone use (TI output was for standalone use). I have a brochure on it around here somewhere. It was never intended to be a software package that would run on a TI, it was always a terminal that communicated with the CDC mainframes to be compiled into functional lessons there.

 

I have a TI console with the CDC firmware (only the title screen is different, and it otherwise uses the V2.2 OS), and I have seen PEBs (and PEB cards) with the Control Data logo. These were sold to school systems to use with standalone Plato installations and were made to fulfill TI's contract with Control Data. They were some of the last TI hardware built in the US.

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FWIW

 

I use a Supercart version of Plato. I successfully hacked it so it looks at sector 1 instead of sector 167 for the fdr records.

 

I then use Myarcs MDM5 to create a DS/DD diskette. I name the disk LESSON1. I then create 3 directories named LESSON2, LESSON3 and LESSON4.

 

I transfer 4 complete PLATO disks from my PC using TI99-PC which writes to TI formatted SS/SD 3.50 disks.

 

Going to my TI - I use a short XB program written by Barry Travers which will copy sector 167 to secor 1 on the disk.

 

Back to MDM5 I copy all files from the first disk to the main part of the 5 1/4 DSDD floppy. I then copy LESSON2 to the same named directory, LESSON3 to LESSON3 and LESSON4 to LESSON4.

 

I thern insert my supercart and load PLATO. I take the first lesson.

 

Once completed I drop out of Plato and run InsaneMultitaskers SWAPDIR - I select dir 1 - which is named LESSON2. I continue this until I've completed the courses.

 

This is really much simpler than it sounds and once you've created the 5.25 with directories you just go back and delete the files once done and add new ones.

 

This effectively gives you 4 courses on one disk.

 

I like playing Plato as well as it hopefully helps keeping my cranium from filling with anymore excrement.

Edited by sparkdrummer
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I like playing Plato as well as it hopefully helps keeping my cranium from filling with anymore excrement.

 

 

 

Neat process!

 

As adults, we definitely lose some of the knowledge we gained in school but haven't used since. Physics and Chemistry don't really come into my daily sphere at all, so it's nice to go back and refresh myself from time to time. My newsletter writings are a pretty good indicator of how badly I needed the writing lessons, too. Although...gimme a break, I was under 18 at the time. <g>

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Neat process!

 

As adults, we definitely lose some of the knowledge we gained in school but haven't used since. Physics and Chemistry don't really come into my daily sphere at all, so it's nice to go back and refresh myself from time to time. My newsletter writings are a pretty good indicator of how badly I needed the writing lessons, too. Although...gimme a break, I was under 18 at the time. <g>

I was never under 18! (or at least I enjoyed it so much that I can't remember any of it!)

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  • 9 months later...

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