mellis

Well, Shawn, this all sounds doable them. I will endeavor to work on what sources I have. Still looking for a 6502 cross-assembler for DOS or UNIX (preferably Solaris) cc65 includes a cross assembler called "ca65". I built it successfully on Mac OS X, and I would expect you'd have a similar experience with Solaris. Check it out at: http://www.cc65.org/

Actually there are more North American buyers, but it my case, I've already used WU to transfer money to Mikro independently.

I was reduced to emailing support at moneybookers.com to ask exactly how to use their money transfer service to actually -- you know -- transfer money. It's a little bit unnerving.

The 5200 is my favorite too (followed by the Jag). I find the design of the 5200 to be absolutely amazing. A 5200 with the track ball positioned right next to it is, to this day, the coolest looking system around, and I love the fact that you can control the entire system directly from the joysticks. That is common now, but it was a first back then.

Hi Allison. Is there a good source for 520/1040ST schematics on the web? As I mentioned above, I am considering performing your 72-pin SIMM procedure on my 520STfm. In my case, this is complicated by the fact that my ST has a different revision of the motherboard. On mine, the RAM chips are in two rows positioned toward the front of the case (under the keyboard). The MMU is located toward the rear and to the right relative to those rows of chips. I would like to adapt your procedure to my motherboard, but to do that, I would benefit from having a proper schematic for the 520ST/1040ST motherboard. Thanks for your thoughts.

BUMP! Hellllooooooooo!!!!! Has ANYONE trued the main code features of the new assembler? While I've used SMAC and SLN to compile and link, until the Skunkboard arrives it's all theoretical for me.

Thanks, Alison. I'm intrigued by the desoldering iron (the vacuum pump one). Do you have a manufacturer/model number for that one?

Speaking of soldering, I am considering updating my setup. I've been using a non-variable 15W iron for about 20 years, and although it has served me well, I am ready to upgrade. Also, upgrading old computers often presents desoldering opportunities. I have had some success with desoldering braid, but I'd love any suggestions about soldering stations and related desoldering tools. I've had no success with a desoldering bulb. Does anybody have a favorite tool for either/both of these jobs? What do you feel is the best value? Thanks!

I too have a 520STfm to upgrade, but instead of going to 1MB (which is still not enough RAM for the software I think you're going to want to run -- I had a 1040ST (1MB RAM) that I needed to upgrade back in the day) I'm shooting for 4MB. I found this document describing installing a 72-pin SIMM to be compelling. This procedure is a fair amount of work, but soldering in 16 more ICs is a fair amount of work too. I figure while I'm soldering, I might as well take it all the way up to 4MB. 72-pin SIMM upgrade Also, the traces on the ST motherboards are extremely fragile. If you were to populate those RAM banks, I would install sockets first. Of course, if you go with the 72-pin simm upgrade, you can skip installing the sockets. One thing to mention: I plan to use a rotary cutter to remove ALL of the RAM from my ST's mainboard. Once the chips are gone, I will desolder each stub one-by-one. At that point, the board will be ready for the upgrade. Of course, Best Electronics does sell SIMM upgrade kits, but they cost more than a second-hand STe would. For that reason, I think I'm going to go for it!

Yep -- that's the crux of my question: is the rectifier sufficient to provide true isolation? I was already somewhat skeptical that this would work (per my follow-up post), and I appreciate your insight. Thanks!

Thanks for your thoughts, poobah. I've found its better to ask about these crazy ideas than to find out the hard way.

I wouldn't dare to comment on the specifics of the Atari ST power supply, but in theory this sounds good. I remember reading about the voltage differential technique in an article on under-volting PC fans. It would certainly be nice to run the entire system off a single mains plug. I'm still in the dark as to whether to expect a payment request, having registered on Saturday: I'll just assume the worst, then maybe I'll get a nice surprise. My biggest concern with my proposal is that you've got what amounts to a +5V "ground" powering the UltraSatan, while there is a +0V ground on the signal side. Let me clarify: you've got the UltraSatan connected to the ASCI port, and the signal ground reference for that is +0V. Meanwhile, you're powering the UltraSatan off of a +5V ground. For the sake of powering the device, the differential is +7V (+12V - +5V), but if you measure the power connector's ground relative to the signal ground, the difference is +5V (+5V - 0V). I am concerned that this could lead to a situation where, from the UltraSatan's perspective, the data signals appear to be between -5V and 0V, which would be a very bad thing. However, it is possible that the UltraSatan's power circuit is effectively isolated from the data circuit within the box, and in that case, the differential between the grounds does not matter. I was hoping that somebody with better EE skills than I might have some thoughts. As to the UltraSatan payment, I would log into your account on the website and see if the status reads "We're currently awaiting your payment." If it does say that, then you should be able to PayPal over the money.

Heresy! AvP is one of my favorite games of all time on any computer/console. I'd rank it up there with Carrier Command (Atari ST), DOOM (Jaguar), and Dungeon Master (Atari ST). To each his own, though. AvP is not really supposed to be fast-paced like DOOM is, and I think that's where it falls short of some folks' expectations. That said, you might prefer playing the Predator instead of the Alien or the Marine (although, the Alien is the fastest of the three).

I've got a new copy of Towers II (no shrink wrap, but the cart is still sealed and has never been opened or used and the box and printed materials are perfect) that I can part with. I would ideally like to trade it for another rare game (maybe Zero 5 or something of similar rarity). However, I'd be willing to sell it for the right price. Please PM me if interested.

I've been considering how I want to power my UltraSatan once it arrives. Is there any reason why I can't pull +7V off of my 520STfm's internal power supply? Going from memory, I believe there are +5, +12, and GND lines coming off of it (just as you would find on a PC), and I don't believe the UltraSatan will be too much of a current sink (maybe I'm wrong about that - anyone know?). Shouldn't I be able to hook the + line of the UltraSatan lead up to +12V from the the ST and the - minus up to +5V for a +7V voltage differential? I'm thinking that I'll then run a little connector out of the ST through a vent hole in the case, and I should be in business. In that configuration, I'll have one cord going from the wall to the ST, with the UltraSatan connected to my custom power cable and the ASCI port. Any thoughts?

Yep, I got the new keyboard and RAM upgrade for the 8-Bit from Best Electric, so I'd be happy to deal with them again. Their ST/VGA cable is a tad overpriced, though, so I'm making my own (see other thread). I mainly want to run the ST in hi-res mode, and I'd really like to do a bit of C programming, perhaps write a few desk accessories, so a hard disk would be useful although they all seem quite pricey. I'll get a SCART cable so I can run low/medium resolutions when I need to. The manual mentions that the floppy drive may be 360K/720K depending on the model: I'm assuming mine is a single-sided, 360K drive. I didn't actually power up the ST for the first time until I'd stripped it down and cleaned it as best I could, but it works perfectly. I got the thing for 10 GBP on eBay, just bidding for the hell of it; I didn't really have any objective in mind for an ST apart from restoring it to pristine condition (which is going to need the Retrobrite treatment), so I can't really justify spending large amounts of cash on it right now. I'm commited to a big 8-bit project at the moment, but when I get time I'm going to enjoy tinkering with the ST. I only wish I'd got hold of one twenty years ago: I would have used it for word processing and had a blast writing software for it. Speaking of software, I have precisely none (apart from the slew of games that came with it), so I'll need a word processor, and some flavour of C. Neodesk 4 looks good, too (I've tried it on STeem). Anyway, thanks for those useful links! I had an ST in its heyday, and I absolutely adored it. Unfortunately, I had to sell it in 1993 in order to acquire my first Mac (an LC II). About 10 years ago I acquired an excellent condition 520STfm that a friend had no further use for. As I had sold my valuable ST hardware years before, I no longer have a hard disk for it but I do still have all of my ST software. Recently the perfect solution presented itself. In a different thread here on AA, they are currently accepting orders for a new run of UltraSatan disks, and I think you really should consider this option. In a nutshell, it allows you to use SD, MMC, and SDHC cards (the same as you'd use with a digital camera) as an ST hard drive. As you know, these cards are plenty large for storing ST software, they're inexpensive, and they're very reliable. For around $100 (US), you can add what amounts to an ST hard drive that is several gigabytes in size and you don't have to comb through old stock trying to find a small, compatible SCSI-1 hard drive to use with the ST. Also, my understanding is that the memory cards can be formatted so that they can be used with a PC (via card read) and with the ST, thereby giving a great way to shuttle software between the two (although I've never actually done this). As to developing for the ST, I really think you should consider setting up a GCC cross compiler so that you can write/compile software on your host PC and then run it on the ST. It will be worlds faster, and modern GCC compilers are sooooo much better than any C compiler that was released back in the day. Combine a cross-compiling GCC on your PC with an UltraSatan, and you have a good way to test, as you can switch the SD card between the ST and the development host. Hope this helps...

Were the problematic drives made by Rodime, by any chance? Those drives were the only brand of Apple OEM drives I've not personally owned. The Connor and Quantum OEM drives (circa 1992-1996) always worked well for me. Cheers!

Apple OEM drives were not crippled. I've used old Apple OEM SCSI drives on all kinds of hardware, and I've never had any trouble using them with other computers. Specifically, I have used 40MB, 80MB, 160MB, and 500MB Apple OEM drives (made by Connor and Quantum) on an Atari ST, a NeXT 040 Cube, and PCs with Adaptec SCSI card. The way that the drivers were customized is that Apple had the OEM include a custom ROM chip on the drive. In the System 7 days, the included "HD SC Setup" utility would check for the Apple ROM, and if it was missing, would refuse to format or install a driver on the drive. In those days, you could use a third party, non-Apple OEM drive if you used a third party formatter and driver. This "check for custom ROM" nonsense ended around the System 7.5-7.6 era.

Sounds like you need a Skunkboard. Tursi initiated a fairly recent thread about accepting reservations for the Rev. 2 boards; I'm sure if you look around here in the Jaguar forum you'll find it.

Hi Jaguar fans. I have the following games available for trade. All mint and complete in box at the very least. Alien vs. Predator - CIB, mint, instructions + overlays DOOM - CIB, mint, instructions + overlay Fight for Life - CIB, mint, instructions + registration card Iron Soldier - CIB, mint, instructions + overlay + registration card Raiden - CIB, mint, instructions Towers II - NEW in box: no shrink wrap, but sealed, unused cart, with all paperwork I am currently looking to acquire: Air Cars Atari Karts World Tour Racing Zero 5 If you want to negotiate a trade, please PM me.

Thanks to all involved for releasing this!

Hi Belboz. I am excite to play with the Mac OS X versions of these tools. Is there a location from which I can acquire them? Thanks!

The original 5200 box was the wide one. In 1985-86, the Tramiels started blowing out old video game stock they inherited from Warner. In doing so, they had all three game systems in stores at one point: the 2600 Jr., the 5200, and the 7800. However, when they started dumping the 5200, they redesigned the box so that it was much smaller than the original (to keep shipping and logistics costs down). The redesigned 5200 packaging differed in a few key ways: 1) The pack-in cart did not come in its own box 2) The controllers were shipped in the 5200's controller storage area, instead of separately 3) The pack-in cart was Super Breakout (as it had originally been) instead of Pac Man What's interesting is that most of the 5200 systems they shipped this way were four-port models with the automatic switch box. This suggests that when Atari decided to move to the 2-port model in 1983, they must have still had a stock of 4-port models which they suspended shipping. Presumably, they did this because the 4 port models were incompatible with the 2600 adapter, and consequently, the planned Slam Pam adapter would have likely been incompatible too. By minimizing the number of 4-port models on the market, I think Warner Atari envisioned a smoother upgrade path to the 7800. 2600 users would simply replace their console with a 7800, while 5200 users would buy a Slam Pam. Of course, your 5200 had to be Slam Pam compatible for that to work, and that meant a 2-port unit was required. I actually bought two 5200s (which I still own). The first was purchased in 1983, and it was a 2-port model that came in the huge box. In 1985, I purchased another 5200 in the smaller box. Why? Well, I figured that for $50 (that's what the one in the small box cost), I got two more controllers (can't have too many of those), a new game (Super Breakout was new to me, at least, as my other unit shipped with Pac Man), and I had access to spare parts (including a replacement power supply, if needed). Upon returning from the store, I was quite surprised to discover that my new unit was actually a 4-port with the automatic switch box. These days, the automatic switch box is often derided, but I adored it. In 1985, it was a real novelty to be able to switch from the TV to the game system simply by hitting the power button on the 5200. The automatic switch box also yielded a far superior picture to the image delivered by my mechanical switch RF switch. Suffice it to say, that to this day, my favorite 5200 is my shiny 4-port model that came in the small box.

There is an FAQ here which states the availability of source for Linux. This could likely be built on OS X. My main OS is Linux and my secondary is OS X so I intend to use the Skunkboard on one of these OS's when I can get my hands on one. Documentation and drivers are available here. There is a mention in the small changelog on that site about easier building on OS X. Thanks for the links! That's exactly the kind of information I was looking for. I believe, but am not 100% sure, that belboz over at Jaguar Sector has made an OS X binary available... Ok, I searched through the first 16 pages of the thread and found something about it: http://www.jaguarsector.com/index.php?show...st&p=258638 I'm not going any further, cause this took forever lol. You can start there and see if the binary was actually made available. I appreciate your slogging through that. I'll happily pick up from there. Even if the Mac OS X binary is unavailable or out-of-date, knowing that the linux source is available is probably good enough, as I could just port to OS X myself.

There is an FAQ here which states the availability of source for Linux. This could likely be built on OS X. My main OS is Linux and my secondary is OS X so I intend to use the Skunkboard on one of these OS's when I can get my hands on one. Documentation and drivers are available here. There is a mention in the small changelog on that site about easier building on OS X. Thanks for the links! That's exactly the kind of information I was looking for.