Stuart

If I could send them to you Jim for Chicago, as I'll include various other RAMs and some other bits and bobs that people might find useful? Can I use you Alexandria PO Box number you've given me before?

I've got a load of 27C64 / 27C128 / 27C256 EPROMs I've been given - about 25 in all. Far more than I would ever need. These will work in the bank-switched cartridge boards, yes? If so, anyone willing to take them to the Chicago fair to be shared out amongst interested parties? I'll post them to you from the UK. Stuart.

I was talking about the specific case of passing "a parameter" - just *one* parameter. XOP @>1234,R1 where the parameter >1234 is passed in the instruction itself uses one less instruction than having to MOV that parameter somewhere then calling BLWP which then retrieves it. It you want to pass *lots* of parameters, then there is of course no benefit at all.

This one as well: http://atariage.com/forums/topic/164295-gcc-for-the-ti/?p=2952493

Confuses the hell out of me too! I would think XOP is slightly quicker than a BLWP if you want to pass a parameter. So with your BLWP following by a DATA statement above, with the XOP you don't need to MOV your parameter value (from a register or elsewhere) to that DATA location?

Yes, I think you're right. Also, if you do XOP @>FF00,1, the value in R11 will be >FF00. Now, what if you do XOP *R1,1?

The XOP instruction works, but because the address and workspace vectors they use are hard-coded in the ROM on the 4A, they are of limited practical use. XOP 1 and XOP 2 could be used if you put the code and workspace where the hard-coded values say, but the other XOP vector addresses are used for code in the ROM.

Jim, do Sitopway have an 'online quote' facility? Can't see one with a very quick browse of their website. I'm looking at doing a small run of TM990 8-slot backplanes. Stuart.

The cassette port is exactly the same across all the models. It's only the video port connector that is different.

Systex, by Barry Boone, is a program that can do this.

Be aware that you'll probably find that two diagonally-opposite pins on each chip were folded flat against the board prior to soldering, so as well as melting/removing the solder you've also got to bend up a couple of pins that are soldered to the board. It's not just a case of melting the solder and the chips fall out ...

I'd say a bad video RAM chip. Very common problem. If you have an F18a, trying on this console would confirm whether its a bad video RAM chip or not as the F18a doesn't use them.

Because to use SD you'll need a microcontroller as part of the interface. CF is far easier to interface to systems such as the TI, and is plenty fast enough to work at the speed of the TI.

Some basic pics here: http://webpages.charter.net/nanopeb/ NanoPEB has a serial port. CF7+ has a parallel port. So "which one is best" depends on what (if anything) you want to connect them to. Both use a CF card. There is no case for it, but a few people have made their own.

Exactly. Had to fit a second hard disk to the PC just to get Google to translate that!

Don't forget though Mark that the speech synth can only pronounce German if the memory expansion is present. So it can cope with those situations where they've strung half a paragraph together into a single word ...

If you take the floppy card apart, are the ROMs original? http://nouspikel.group.shef.ac.uk/ti99/fdcard.htm Have you got other cards in the PEB that *do* work? That I think would rule out problems with the PEB power supply. Next I think I would replace the 5V regulator on the floppy card (because it's easy) then look at replacing the 74LS245.

Have you got a MiniMem cartridge, then you can check the DSR? You'll need to power on the console first, then the PEB. Then with the MiniMem cartridge you need the following (IIRC): (1) From the MiniMem menu, select EasyBug. (2) C 1100 1 <Return> [Floppy LED should light] (3) M 4000 <Return><Space><Space>... [To read out memory] Compare the data you're getting against this: http://nouspikel.group.shef.ac.uk/ti99/dc1.txt. If you see errors, then a common point of failure is the 74LS245 on the floppy card, which runs rather hot and has a bit of a hard time.

You say "When the card is accessed". Does the LED flash when you power on the console, and hangs when you then try to load or save? Or is it hanging when you power on the console?

You can connect a Microsoft serial mouse to a nanoPEB. www.avjd51.dsl.pipex.com/ti/ti.htm#connecting_serial_mouse

Wasn't the RAM pack wobble solved with a sausage-shaped piece of blu-tak?

Plus of course this one: http://blog.modernmechanix.com/two-bytes-are-better-than-one-2/ "EXPLICIT manual included or available separately at £35"!

Try a slither of insulating tape over the cartridge edge connector pin 34, which is the cartridge ROM /CS. Totally reversible if it doesn't work.

Just as an aside, I saw a link to this today - a full 3A switch mode regulator in the same TO3 package as the linear regulator used for (IIRC) the +5V PEB supply for the floppy drives. http://www.ezsbc.com/index.php/featured-products-list-home-page/psu5.html

I thought with XB, variables are stored in VDP RAM? So they don't encroach on the program in CPU RAM at all?