Atari-Collector
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Posts posted by Atari-Collector
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Just to stick my nose in quick.. I just brought my BBS live after a 20 year break
While running on a PC, the files areas are going to me mainly for Atari stuff (and Trekkie things)
telnet://holodeckbbs.noip.me
It's still a work in progress, so be kind
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Yes, I did put a diode (1n4148) in the interface, I just finished putting the 600xl back together after removing the interface to be located externally.. I also fixed the power LED that wasn't coming on, and added the AV line output mod to it too. So tomorrow I'll get at modding the SIO cable
btw the power LED just needed pulling out of it's socket, some contact cleaner, a slight twist to the pin to increase tension and put it back in
I left the original 5mm LED. Back in my 800 days.. I switched it's power LEDs to green.. so somewhere out there is an tank case 800 with green power likes on it and it's 810 drive... -
Carefully make a cut in about the middle (*) of the SIO cable. Just the outer isolation so you can see the wires. Check which 4 wires you need by opening 1 of the SIO connectors and take the signals you need from there. Can be done without having to cut a single wire. Use a small project box to mount the RS232 connector and just guide the whole SIO cable thru it. It may be useful to mount a switch to disable the SIO2PC interface while you're at it.
(*) About the middle, because then you can place the interface closer or further away from the Atari by just reversing the SIO cable.
I like that idea! I have the interface soldered to the inside of the 600xl's connector right now. but there really isn't enough room to mount it in the case. I guess an 800xl would have had more room.. But I know it works now, although a experienced some glitch, it work better using DSR instead of RI (I put a 3 pin header on the board and a jumper to switch between the two) and I also notics some times there at pauses of several seconds during loading.
and I also discovered I can't copy a disk (atr) image to a real flooy on mt xf551 using the DOS disk dupe.. But I seen another interface/software the allows a PC to connect to a floppy drive with not actual Atari computer for writing disks.. so i guess thats my next project
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I'm not saying it's harder or easier to put the device into a computer or disk drive. The point is that placing the device inside an SIO connector means zero alteration to the hardware (which, let's face it, some people find objectionable). The case of one's A8 is rather a bigger sacrifice than an SIO connector, which can at least then be plugged into any machine you choose. There is then no debate about where to fit the interface.
I agree. I don't really want to cut a hole in the 600XL's case, but to get a SIO connect I'd have to buy a full cable on ebay and use it.. and that's about $25 by the time you get shipping to Canada on that.. And I've already pushed my budget pretty far on this.. what I was thinking is just run the serial cable out the expansion slot (or maybe a vent hole) and put a hood on it. Then when I can find a SIO cable at a more reasonable price, remove it from the computer and make it external.
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I have an XF551 drive, so yes I could put it in there use as easily. I prefer serial ports to USB. my PC has 3 serial ports, two in use by my ham radio, leaving one free.
And it's fairly common that high RF from transmitting will temporally knock out a USB port. I've tried USB to serial adapters in the past, that is why I spend the money to had the extra real serial ports to my computer...
At this point I've solder all the capacitors and socket to the project board, just got to add the DB9 and the wiring for the SIO side.
And I'll debate putting the device in the 600XL or the XF551, In the 600XL I don't have to have the really floppy attached all, so that would be a plus I think.
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I'm about to start work on building a SIO2PC board from scratch. and lacking a SIO cable to cannibalize or the connector, I figure I'll install the board right in the 600XL case even though it means cutting a hole for the DB9 serial connector (cringe)
My question is, are that any drawback to doing this? like interfering with normal real floppy use. I figure just turn the floppy off when i use the SIO and the exit SIO software when use the floppy. is it possible to use both? so i copy copy atr disk images to real floppies?
thanks
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Last week I got the Atari 600XL that I bought on the evil auction site, and was pretty happy with it. But wasn't a lot I could do with just a few game cartridges I bought from another seller (only 3 of the 6 worked.. see my last post about that rant)
Today the Atari XF551 floppy drive arrived!
Now I can load and save stuff finally! First thing I did was make a backup copy of the DOS 2.5 disk. As I write this, I'm trying to format some old floppies, but but seem to be having some problem and noticed the were the old "Steals" brand. Steals is a long gone computer chain, kind of like Staples, that sold a LOT of marginal quality computer items. Thanking about it, it was common to have two or three bad disks straight out of the box when they were new.
So I'm going to have to go find some better 5.25" disks to use, move their files to modern media if need be. But a couple disks formatted to Atari DOS ok. So the next step is to try writing some of the disk images I downloaded to my PC to the Atari formatted disks using an format emulator program I found..
So I'll see how that goes and post about it later, but for now, my Atari is working, talking DOS and chirping away happily, so I kind of feel like Christmas
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What are the titles that do work?
And what is the behavior when you plug in a non working cart? Black screen? Red screen? Something else?
Working are Centipede CXL4020, Dig Dug RX8026 and Joust RX8044
not working are Pac-Man CXL4022,Atari Writer RX8036, BASIC CXL4002
they all do the same thing. first a blue screen, and only a signal white block in the upper left and a fast ticking sound for a few seconds, then a green screen that has the self test options. I can run the tests from that point, if i reset the system it just start over same as a cold boot.
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Did you also try to clean the cartslot on the 600xl?
Some carts only seem to work when I pull them back a bit.
Still interesting btw .. If the working carts are the same type and the non working carts are different it still can be an issue in the Atari. If you have a mmu problem for instance.
Yes, cleaned the slot on the 600xl also, I tried the full in all the way to just barely in. They are all Atari made cartridges, cosmetically they all look fine.
I'm thinking I'll just download the disk image files of the dead carts and write them to a floppy.. at least I'll be able to use them.
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I finally got in the mood to attack that bad cartridges. Took one apart, cleaned it with contact cleaner and a briteboy and even reseated the two ICs. No change, and also re-flowed all the solder points adding solder as needed.. Still dead.. I haven't done anything with the other two, but I expect that same when I do..
It's either very bad luck getting 3 out of 6 bad, or just a bad seller passing of bad ones with good to clear them out. No idea which it right, but I do know I won't buy anything listed as "un-tested" again.. But I paid $25(US) for the bunch, so figuring it as 3 carts, I got a ok deal I guess..
as a foot note, while trying the cart the power LED came on for the first couple tries then flicked out.. So that I figure I just a loose connect and fixable.
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Unfortunately most 600XL sold here in Europe (perhaps also in other locations of the world) have terrible keyboards. There is only one 600XL keyboard that is of good quality (that is the version where the CONTROL and CLR and Arrow keys are in Inverse Video; and not just outlined). On 800XL the keyboard quality is much better. So a while ago I took one of my 800xl keyboards apart, and installed it in my 600XL ... what an improvement. I still type better on a 800XL... that is because of the space behind the spacebar where my wrists can rest. On the 600XL there is no room for that. But besides that... it's an awesome machine. And the PAL 600XL has a colorful composit video output so there is nothing to wish for (My televisions I use for a8 don't have Svideo, and are still tube tv sets (CRT))
Mine has the CLR, CONTROL and arrows in inverted style..solid white background . I just have to get in the mood to open it to check the LED...
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Have you tried each of the "dead" carts several times? Sometimes a cleaning isn't enough. Repeated inserts and removals will sometimes get a cart that appears to be dead working again. I've had that happen before.
A 600XL was my first computer. Didn't do much with it, played PacMan, Star Wars Arcade on cart and typed in BASIC programs that I saved on my 1010 recorder. But I always wished my computer had the 64K instead of just 16, or that it was an 800XL and I just hadn't noticed.
Back then I remember hearing about the magical memory expansion unit, the 1064, but never saw it until it popped back into my head many years later and the Internet allowed me to see an image of it.
But my memories of the 600XL were fond enough that even though I now have an 800XL, I bought a 600XL when the chance arose. I've even thought of getting the 1064 just to do now what I couldn't do nearly 30 years ago...
(expanding the memory internally is beyond my skill level)
Yes, I've repeated inserted and retried the bad cartridges with not change, the one thing I do notice it during the boot, the a low pop-like sound sort of like the sound you hear from loading a floppy by much faster. and on the dead carts there's some extra pops in there.. I'll try some more cleaning on them later, maybe use the brite-boy cleaner I use on my model train tracks. Think of it as an extra course rubber.. http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/attachments/thumbs/325000/Peco_RailCleaner.jpg
I plan on using it for games, and if I can get Atari-Writer to work, I'd like to do some writing on it too. I've here there's a way to get a telnet termail going so I though I may they that and call a few telnet bbs'.
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hmm all these carts should work without any problem at all in that 600XL (16K or 64K)
Did you do selftest from Basic (typing BYE) or did you do Selftest by holding option while switching the atari on?
With the option-method ramtest can also test the RAM-area that otherwise is occupied by the Basic ROM ($a000-$bfff -> 8K)
You'll notice that there will be 8 more squares on the screen then. Probably nothing wrong with the memory, but it might ... and if yes, that might also explain the issues with the cart. Btw: did you test the carts on your 800 too?
The self test comes up on it's own with the non-working cartridges plugged in.
I did try booting it once holding the option key down recalling hearing something about a test once..
I don't have an 800, that's what I had as a kid and foolishly sold...
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The non working carts are AtariWriter, PAC-MAN, and BASIC (yes I know the 600XL has BASIC built in and it works)
This 600XL was upgraded to 64K, and the seller even sent along the original 16K chips in a parts bag.
Cosmetically, it's in very nice shape, no signs of abuse.
I also bought a XF551 floppy drive from the same person, it was shipped separately, so I hope I will be here tomorrow or friday..
fyi, my original Atari was an 800 (tank case), so the 600XL is a bit different to me
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The Atari 600XL (64K upgraded) I bought on the evil auction site arrived today, and seems to work ok, except for the power LED.. the first time I turned it on the RED power LED was on,
But after then, I tried a few cartridges I bought from another seller, and noticed the LED no longer lights whether that's a cart in the 600XL or not. 3 of the 6 cartridges I bought do not work, the others seem to be ok so far (the lot was sold as untested so no recourse for the dead carts) I have tried cleaning them with rubbing alcohol, with no change, planing on picking up some contact cleaner on my way back from the doc tomorrow, but for the price, 3 working carts still isn't too bad except the 2 I wanted the most are amount the dead.
So what would make the power LED go out? just a fluke timing? btw, when it was booted with the 3 bad carts, the self-test screen came, and I did run them and they all passed.
thanks for any help
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I have 28 right now.. but I only decided a month or so ago to actively collect Atari stuff, and clost 2/3 of thoese have been bought in the last month..
I have a goal of 50 by the end of the year, it's a bit harder for me since shopping only line adds up in postage fast, generally buying from outside Canada is cost prohibitive due to postage. and I don't get around to the flea market stuff that much because of my health.. but still going to keep trying.. and oh yes,, I blew my budget buying an Atari 600XL and a floppy drive last week.
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If it doesn't work, I would be willing to repair it... I hate to see an XF go to waste.. Woodstock might not too far to ship it...
Hmmm Woodstock is about an hour tops I think, I'm in London. And I get an email back saying he tested ok, so I've paid for it and he's planing on mailing it tomorrow
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Just put double stick tape on the stuff you want them to stay off, cats hates the sticky.. Works with my cat
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That's why I prefer using mine (with the 320XL RAM expansion) over the 800XL. It's a tidy unit, not much bigger than the keyboard with a monitor port. I have the RAM chips (somewhere) to perform the 64K upgrade on both of my 600XLs and once I find the antistatic bag which contains them, my soldering iron is going on.
The 600xl I bought already has been upgraded to 64K of RAM
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You don't really need a real floppy, although it is handy to have occasionally. And although the XF551 is a really nice drive, it is also fraught with pcb/connector problems. Think twice unless the seller seems to have a good grasp of Atari hardware. TESTED and WORKING ( not just "the red light comes on") is a must with a "floppy drive of unknown origin."
You're going to need a real serial port or at least a USB converter. Both APE and AspeQt are excellent products, especially if you are a Windows user. Lots of folks here like the SD card products (SIO to SD, SDrive), since you are not "tethered to a PC" as proponents mention. But if you have a laptop or PC handy, the convenience of a Windows GUI and the power of APE, etc. is tough to beat. I've run APE perfectly with a really old 75MHz Pentium laptop. (Clearly I'm in the GUI camp.)
Anyway, good luck, and let us know how you do!
-Larry
The seller agreed to the offer I made on the XF551, but told me to hold off on sending the money until he can test it on his 800XL, the 600XK I bought is already shipped. So I think that's a good sign. From what I've seen of the XF551 online, the drive itself looks like a standard 5.25" drive that you would find in a pc. and I have a few of those drives around here. I also have a couple old PC that could be used as dedicated SIO2PC platforms. May be a goo job for my old 400MHz K6-2 that's collecting dust.
I must say , I really do appreciate all the comments and ideas of this. It's great to know there;s other people out there that love the old machines and what to keep them going. I wonder if Windows hadn't happened, maybe it'd be Atari ruling the world:)
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My 2600 jr has an AV mod on it. But my LCD TV does support analog NTSC signals, so that's not a problem and I have a CRT TV in the bedroom. or I could even connect to the TV tuner card in my one PC and use it's screen. I've read you can do the same AV mod to the 600xl as the 2600, so there's a good chance I'll do that in time.
You may have a small bump with the 600XL. It doesn't have a monitor/composite port, just a RF/TV RCA connector, unless one was put in, which I doubt. Your 2600 probably uses a RF, so you may be OK there.
As others have said, a APE or SIO2PC interface would give you any DOS you want (except cart DOS). SIO2PC and APE come in USB varieties, but there are also RS232/serial ones. SIO2PC interface works with ASPEQT PC software,
which is free (I think). The APE interface works with APE software which is $50. There's a slightly disabled free, trial, APE software.
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The drive is a XF551, I don't know much about it except it's a newer Atari drive.
I have read about the SIO2PC option too. And even found a simple converter schematic using a MAX232 chip, oddly enough I have one left over as a spare from a ham radio project. So I'm guessing all I need is build it and get the software. I seen one program on source-forge, so I'm guess it's freeware, which would be a help since I've spent too much money already this month..
My old Atari discs (if I ever find them) are SD, made on a an 850 drive.
The floppies I have are DS/DD, and some I know I used for the Atari because the have the write notice snipped in to the other side to use the other side of the disk.
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If you seen my post yesterday, you know I just bought a Atari 600xl on the evil auction site, and patiently waiting for it to arrive, but still hoping to work out a deal with the seller for a floppy drive he has also.
Today I've been looking, but not finding, my box of old Atari floppies that had a few games, programs, and my writing on it.. So I've been thinking, is there any way to get a copy of Atari DOS? I heard about a program that lets you access Atari format discs on a PC, so is there a way to get a DOS image to write out that way? Or some other way?
And while I'm talking floppies, while I have a ton of PC 5.25" discs around that could be re-purposed, I was wondering if anybody makes new 5.25" floppies today?
thanks..
I hope this is rehashing something already cover.. I'm just want to get back up to 8bit speed with as few bumps as possible.
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Oh you want to hear about a static zap.. A few months ago I got out of bed and reached for my X-10 pluged-in style controller to turn the lights on. I've had it for years.. Touched the button and I got the nastiest static shock ever, and it killed the X-10 controller as well. I handed that thing every days for year, and I guess it's number was up.. Not it just randoms flashes and dims lights when I press a button on it.. OK, not Atari related, but a cautionary tale for sure...
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Atari 8-bit related BBS(s)
in Atari 8-Bit Computers
Posted
Thanks for the info.. the new fossil driver seem a bit trigger happy on blocking. I can log in with in my own network fine.
mite end up going back to the previous version since I know it worked on a live test a couple days ago
sorry for the mix up..