Marius

I agree for 100% with you. Problem is with my own bbs that this is not so easy to change. The 'newuser' command automatically asks these things, and the userlog database expects this data. By the way: in fact that is the fun too ofcourse. You login on something old, so it is an old way-of-doing-things But I will ask Stehpen J. Carden if things could be more simplified ineed. But... I give it not much chance. Thanks for your feedback Marius

@DocClu, Cool man. I'll try that very soon. I have had good experience with Mousenet a week ago. Not tried now. I have one question: that prison board... that makes a connection to my board... but is it possible to use Atascii then? In my opinion my BBS is the coolest on Atascii (and the fastest)... Any idea's? I'll try. Btw. Mousenet seems not to support 40 column width Atascii... only 80. i don't have xep80 and I don't want one... i love 40 column width )) Marius

The only thing that I would love is a switch or keycombination to switch fast D1: and D2: Sometimes games wants to swap disk pretty regular. Is it possible with a hardware switch or jumper? (in place of jumper I could put a switch) ... or isn't this possible at all? No problem if it isn't, but it would be cool. Marius

Thanks to you all! That is very helpful! @Curt I could not find your post. It is hard to search on "OS" or "XL" because the search engine won't let you search on words below 3 characters. Finally I found your post, but that is with the same (rev. 5) os source. I found an interesting post of you mention you would put all file version of os (sources?) in a special section. Is there a place I could find that? Thanks a lot! Marius

@pigula For about 4 days I've been playing around with the Sio2SD's you've made, and I must say: a wonderful job. Thanks a lot. After the little slowness problem (that is fixed) I have had only very good experience with sio2SD. So in near future I'll order another pair of these great devices. I'll let you know. I think everybody will LOVE sio2SD. Sio2IDE is cool, but sio2SD is even cooler. A real must-have for every atari 8bit user. In combination with a highspeed OS like Qmeg it is a very good stand-alone system (fast and flexible) Marius p.s. What should be done to atari to get that HSINDEX 0..5 seting working It works from HSINDEX 6 perfectly here, all lower settings (extreme fast speed would that be!!) do not work yet. So is there a solution? I already did remove the capacitors along the Sio pins in my atari XE computer. (I wonder why they were installed at all...)

Thanks! Perhaps this was a typo? I know there is a 800XLF (that is a normal 800XL with Freddie Chip). I would be very glad with that atascii file. Studying sources of the OS, can clear up a lot of atari things for me Marius

Hi folks, Another question, and for some reason I can't imagine this subject is not on the forum, but with the search function I could not find a thing. I'm looking for the SOURCE code of Atari Basic (rev. C, but older versions will do too) and the Atari XL/XE OS. I'm working on some personal modifications, but it is hard without documentation or sources. thanks Marius

Thanks guys for all your kind replies. Best conclusion for me personal is I should not copy file-by-file to a 16MB partition. I should setup the partition first on a NON-flash partition (or on PC, or on atari harddisk) and when it is finished, it should be stored as one file on a Flash device. And when there are any import things, backups are your friend (but that was already known haha) file-by-file copy is slow and not needed. Pfff yesterday I backed up 1560 files from 16MB atr to 16MB myIDE partition ... using standard SIO speed, file by file (with a tool called 'hardback') ... that is asking for trouble ofcourse. It took the atari over 3 hours to copy all that files. @hiassoft: I have to test your tool. Could you give me a link to your site where I can find the most recent version? EDIT: Forget about the link hias, I have your tool. And it is outstanding!!! What a fantastic thing. It is amazing, this increases functionality of MyIDE! Thanks. (Btw. extracting a 16MB partition takes a lot time, is this due of my USB 1.1 Card Reader, or is it also slow on USB 2.0?) Thanks a lot. This forum is really a great resource of help and info to me! Great. Marius

It is not something in my code. I first saw the problem on severval 16 MB partitions, and then tried to isolate the problem in a tool. My read tool simply accesses sectors, that is all. Just the way all dosses do it. As told before: it has something to do with the FAT and the size of the clusters. I mailed with the designer of Sio2SD and he explains this problem. Jacub wrote in a mail to me: Yes. It's obvious. Searching FAT causes this problem. In FAT32 standard cluster size is 4k as I remember. For 16MB file you have about four thousands clusters. In one fat sector there is info about 128 clusters only. So for reaching last sectors of 16MB file you have to read at least about 30 fat sectors. But when you have 64k clusters then 16MB file have only about 256 clusters and allocation map of whole file typically is stored in only three fat sectors. He also wrote: I think that the solution is to improve fat cache. Now I have fat cache of course, but it seems to need some redeveloping. With my solution (larger cluster size) the problem is gone, so I'm happy. 1GB SD cards are not that expensive anymore, and even with 512MB card you can have 100% result (like pigula wrote above). With my 256MB card I get nice performance (8MB on full speed, and the second 8MB of partition on almost full speed). So it is not really an important issue at all. Thanks for all your help and interest in this. Marius p.s. my program does set the right parameters on $0300 - $030B and then jumps to $e459 to read one double density sector right through the SIO, this is repeated $ff times. And that on several locations. That is a reliable test routine.

thanks for you info... Your solution is cool for Sio2IDE and Sio2SD... but at this moment I'm writing back my ATR to MyIDE :s.... I know there is a tool to write MyIDE CF cards too by PC, but I don't think that tool works with 16MB partitions. but your solution is cool indeed.... I'll think that over. Marius

Hi, In the past I have heard several times there is a serious limitation of write cycles on Flash memory cells. Ofcourse 10.000 or 100.000 times or whatever between it... sounds as very much, but there is a small problem: when you fill a 16MB partition, loaded with atari files, the files are stored one-by-one, so for every file the VTOC sectors are updated. When I fill my 16MB partition the boot sectors of this ATR are updated thousands times! I was wondering if this kind of writing is also limited to that virtual 10.000? Is there a difference between writing/updating and erasing? I've also heard that formatting is pulling the cell back to ZERO, and erasing is less 'aggressive', so erasing/writing/updating could be done much more than real formatting. who knows more? Marius

Upgrading memory is a whole different story. And there are plenty programs using the extra memory. Especially demo's. But i'm a demo lover It is said more in this topic, and it is my opinion too. It is very cool to add extra's to our so beloved atari's, but as soon as it changes the typical computer characteristics (is this a word?), it is not so interesting anymore. I love the limitations. And I love to see how programmers make the best out of the limitations, and/or write cool and compact routines to bring the standard atari-hardware to a higher level. Why do I love memory upgrade and extra OS? etc. Well only to make programming easier. All the software I write runs on 64KB XL/XE, but programming on a expanded atari (loaded with extra memory and High Speed SIO OS's) are making life easier and faster ... to make a final result (a program) compatible on stock atari. It is al opinion ofcourse. I do have ST, I do have Falcon, nice PC and Mac too, but the only computer I really like is my Atari 8bit. So I'd say: don't change the soul of the machine. Marius

WOOOOHOOOO It seems I found myself a solution! When you increase clustersize on the format of your disk, it fix the problem. Beware: You need a 64KB/Cluster to have full speed on 16MB ATR partition. If your card does not support that size try 32KB (8MB atr on full speed) or 16KB (4MB atr on full speed). 8 KB/cluster results in a 2MB ATR on full speed etc. I have now a 1GB SD card with a 64KB/Cluster format, and that works great. Unfortunately smaller cards do not accept 64KB/Cluster format but try to get as high as possible. You can change this in windows, but I don't have English version of Windows, so I can not describe. In dutch (free translated to english) it is in (windows 2000) Configuration Screen System management Computer management and then drive options. It absolutely not needed to go above 64KB/Cluster. Good luck! Marius

Is it possible to make a switch on my atari that makes a jump to the QMEG menu without pressing reset? I would like to jump into the ML monitor, and sometimes in the drive config, without pressing reset. I know on the MUX rom you had a mini-ml monitor which you could enter by pressing a hardware switch (soldered on two pins on the motherboard) thanks Marius

To use less words: On each new 1MB border the speed slows down again. This 1MB border is absolute: On single density the first slowness starts on sector $2000, the next on $4000... On double density the first slowness starts on sector $1000, the next on $2000.... I heard from Beetle this is a FAT-related issue. I'll wait for reaction of the designer Marius

@pigula: I tested this on every SpeedIndex. It has nothing to do (I guess) with highspeed Sio or not. It is not the connection between the atari and the interface, it is the speed the firmware reads the data from SD card on higher sectors. Even when highspeed = off te problem still exists. I did mail the designer of Sio2SD, I hope he can fix this, and I hope he will reply! Do you know if he reads this forum? @Allas: I know it is also slower on MyIDE, but as far I can see this is another slowness: with sio2sd it is not the datatransfer rate the problem, but the speed it finds the sector. MyIDE has faster datatransfer, but since that difference is not the problem, I guess it is something else. Besides that with sio2SD every new partition starts at max. speed, with myIDE i have the feeling partition #3 is already slower than partition #1, but I'm not sure about that. Resume: It is not (as said to pigula) the data speed, but the speed the interface FINDS the right sector. And my tool is a simple test-problem-only-tool. When you use a very well filled 16MB partition, this problem is even bigger, files are coming in really slow, and the DOS switches from VTOC and file. This makes it even slower. If this problem can't be fixed the best solution will be using max. 1MB partitions ($0FFF x 256 bytes sectors (4095 sectors x double density) When you start from scratch: 1MB partitions are cool enough. But I use my 16MB partitions already a long time, and I'm very used to all the files on that partition. Marius p.s. and I know: SIO2IDE is another thing as SIO2SD... and the difference is also that this "slow"--problem is not on Sio2IDE ... That is very fast on all sectors.

Ok people... The first version was a bad program. I really was not clear in mind when I wrote it. This program is right. It loads 256 bytes a sector, and it uses right SIOV. (So now it works on default XL OS) But the real problem (very slow Sio2SD on high sectors) is still there. So please give this new one a try. Thanks Marius p.s. I really HAD to write it over ... before I went to bed.

Yeah. A little slower is no problem, but the slowness I have with sio2SD is terrible. Btw. my tool does something wrong, it only reads half the sector. (doesn't matter for the test). And... I stored my source on ramdisk... and switched off the Atari ... sigh. I'll write it again. And now better. Stupid me. I guess that half sector read is the problem on default OS. I'll write it again, but I guess that will be finished tomorrow. It is time to go to bed soon. Marius

The first version of the tool (deleted already) had a little bug in it. The newer version (below somewhere in this thread) does the test right... Marius

Ok ... I wrote a little test tool, and saved it on a 16MB MyDOS partition. Please download the ZIP file and unzip (16MB!) and put it on D1: of your Sio2SD Boot the ATARI (no basic) Choose on the MyDOS menu L and type D1:READTEST.COM Now the tool starts. It only READS so don't worry. It reads on a few locations on the 16MB partition 256 sectors in a row. 0000 - $00ff = fast 1000 - $10ff = a little slower 2000 - $20ff = pretty slower 8000 - $80ff = almost unusable slow C000 - $c0ff = pffff.... If you test this on Sio2IDE (only tested on 3.3a) or APE you will hear no difference in these area'. Hope someone knows a solution. Marius

I found out that higher sectors are always slower! Appears to be as a bug to me. I'm running a sector checker now, runs perfectly fast till $0FFF (full speed!), and as soon it reaches sector $1000 the I/O slows down a lot! As soon as the sector checker reaches $2000 it slows down again! I really hope this can be fixed. The I/O above $8000 is really SLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW Thanks Marius

Hi Fellows, Today I received SIO2SD. Very cool thing. But... I have a problem. I use 16MB SpartaDOS ATR's, and SIO2SD is extremely slow loading the higher-sectors. Really extreem slow. The same ATR runs perfect on Sio2IDE and perfect on APE/SIO2PC. (even from the same SD card!) I have the feeling this is a bug in the firmware. It is NOT a problem with the highspeed routine. Even with the highspeed routine turned off the problem is still there. The lower sectors -> normal speed. Higher sectors -> extremely slow. I hope someone knows a solution. Marius p.s. I never use mydos... Is this problem on mydos 16MB partition too?

Let me start saying: it looks very good. You've did a nice job on that. Especially the map looks very good. (The characters are a little bit too old-school PM graphics IMO, but ok they are still cool) I don't like mule. I never like games like that. So that is my problem ofcourse, but besides that: nice to see you made something new for a8. And I think it is good idea to release such teasers. I think more people should make such movies for their products! Keep doing the great work. Marius

True... but for atari hobby I have Win2K PC next to little atari. I need it anyway... my Eprom burner software only runs on Win. (no I don't have the great BOB-BURNER for atari 8bit) Besides that I have Remote Desktop Connection on my iBook and iMac. So I easily connect to my PC upstairs. It's not problem for me. Marius

Well... that is F A N T A S T I C! This a great help indeed. What a wonderful options in this Qmeg. Is QMEG free these days or is there still a place or person to buy it from? Marius