blakespot

I just installed an F18a in my TI-99/4A - awesomeness. Now I am trying to get online using a WiFi232 and the Myarc RS-232 card in my PEB. I'm not seeing communication between TIMXT and the modem, though. It's always been the case that the RS-232 card shows a red LED when PEB is on but TI-99/4A is off. When the '99 goes up, the LED goes dark. Is the card bad? https://twitter.com/blakespot/status/866052556602081281 I ran DU2K and it found the card, it seems. https://twitter.com/blakespot/status/866045419385753600 So, it doesn't seem it's completely dead. I tried TIMXT and TEII (setting to 9600 baud and 1200 on TIMXT and 300 on TEII). Any ideas, here? Thanks. bp

Just got my FlashROM99 -- amazing. Does this FTP folder exist elsewhere now? The link is presently dead. Will the FlashROM handle Atarisoft images? Thanks. bp

I just posted my little Holiday Demos roundup (sixth year in a row now). If anyone is interested: Have a Helping of 8-bit Holiday Cheer! (2016 Edition) Cheers! bp

I thought some folks here might like the blog post & video I made yesterday. http://www.bytecellar.com/2016/11/14/procedural-planetary-exploration-across-the-decades/ Cheers! bp

I wrote a blog post that's a little more story-telly than normal for my site. In case anyone might enjoy a little walk down memory lane: http://www.bytecellar.com/2016/11/10/the-year-that-starglider-and-the-atari-st-saved-halloween/ bp

Thought some of you might enjoy this walk down memory lane... http://www.bytecellar.com/2016/07/03/33-year-old-roll-of-film-offers-a-glimpse-of-my-vintage-computing-beginnings/ Cheers. bp

Is there a PAL and NTSC ver? Like 520 can NTSC do PAL fine? I'm stateside.

Well, I have 3 Amigas. 1 520ST 4MB. Falcon would be nice. Can the 16-bit bus be addressed with an accelerator? Surely not cheaply.

I've got Atari STs and Amiga's in my past and in my computer room, but I've been more of an Amiga guy. I'm loving the Falcon scenedemo releases though. I kinda want one. How hard is it to find a Falcon and how much do they usually go for? I see none on eBay right now. Thanks. My 520ST: http://www.bytecellar.com/2007/06/17/my_atari_520st/

The best Asteroids of them all. And was basically a pack-in. Megaroids (Atari ST game) Apple Watch face by Blake Patterson, on Flickr bp

Is there no way to clone the ROM of the carts to spread BattleSphere to users? Is the author against this? Is it technically impossible? It seems insane that this game is not in the hands of every Jaguar owner. Does the author not want this? bp

I thought this was an interesting development, so I wrote it up on my blog. http://www.bytecellar.com/2015/09/07/the-mockingboard-sings-a-few-new-songs/ Cheers. bp

So, what should I do here? This 520ST has been lying in pieces for nearly 3/4 of a year after attempting two different Xtra-RAM upgrade boards. After killing the PLCC socket on first ST, I replaced its motherboard and tried with a second RAM board. Neither are recognized. Contacts seem good as the ST functions, but without recognizing RAM. I am reluctant to leave the PLCC shim and cable in place, removing the RAM board, and closing up shop and giving up on the upgrade, as it seems wrong to have that just hanging off the PLCC unused. I've got the RAM board soldered to ground, fwiw. Do I wait for another to come along, spend another $100 and try again, maybe needing to replace the motherboard again if failure? are there other types of RAM upgrades for the 520ST that are more likely to work? Note that I prefer the formfactor of the orig 520ST(M) and I've mounted a SD card drive emu inside an ext SF54 that I want to use as the A: drive -- so I am not looking to move to a 1040ST or an ST with internal boot floppy. Any advice here? Frustrating having this ST in pieces on the floor. https://www.flickr.com/photos/blakespot/2376515667/in/album-72157604329654261/ Thanks. bp

On another board, after removing the PLCC insert, yes - I had to use a small hook to pull the contacts back and that worked. But, contact isn't the problem here. On this board, I've never removed the PLCC insert -- it's still there, with the ribbon cable coming off of it. If I remove the ribbon cable from the RAM board, leaving the PLCC shim in place, the ST works fine. The ST works fine with the RAM board connected also - but just not with any more RAM than the std 512K. The fact that it works fine with the PLCC shim in place and the ribbon cable not connected to the RAM board shows that it's not a contact issue. For the system to be functional, signal must be passing from socket contact to shim pin to PLCC chip contact for each contact. So contact is being made. That said, what are the odds that the RAM chips are bad? Is it worth buying more RAM chips before I try to replace the RAM board itself (order another kit)? This is a pain in the a**, I must say. I hate seeing my ST lying there in pieces. I need to get this sorted. bp

I thought about grabbing this, but I'm not going to. (I am going to try and get my 520STM 1MB upgrade working, instead.) So...I'll share. :-) There's an NTSC 1040STE with nice additions on eBay now, from CA, US: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Atari-1040STe-GBS8200-/151516526751?pt=US_Vintage_Computers_Mainframes&hash=item234716b89f bp

I see several PAL units moving through. How rare is it to see an NTSC unit come in? bp

So, I have gotten a Frontier Xtra-RAM 512K. I installed it in my 520STM and I just got various yellow screens with it in place. I removed the socket inserts and saw that he socket contacts no longer work for simple PLCC DMA chip (could be pulled back into place maybe, it now occurs to me) -- so I bought another STM... I tried the install this time and the system works fine with the Shifter and DMA chip inserts in place, and with the two ribbon cables attached to the Xtra-RAM board ... or with them not attached to the RAM board. However, SYSINFO shows no memory over the standard 512K on the ST. I had soldered in the ground wire to an edge tab and recently soldered in a second ground wire that the instructions suggested may be required. Still no recognizing the 512K on the board. How likely is it that the RAM chips are dead? Any other ideas on this? It's upsetting that my ST is in pieces and I feel strange about zipping it back up with ribbon cables tied to nothing. Some pics: https://twitter.com/blakespot/status/533680289495908352 Any thoughts? Thanks. bp

How do I tell what TOS version I have? The Atari menu offers nothing. Tnx bp

So, I found these on eBay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Rainbow-TOS-1-4-Atari-ST-STF-STFM-Mega-ST-New-2-Chip-/140953378159 "TOS 1.4 (RAINBOW TOS)" According to some searching, this is likely version 1.04 that you speak of. Do you agree? Tnx. bp

Thanks. I actually found a 512K RAM expansion board on eBay last night. Ordered. There's one left, also. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Atari-520-ST-STM-early-computer-Frontier-Xtra-Ram-512K-memory-upgrade-kit-tested-/161415635676?pt=UK_VintageComputing_RL&hash=item25951f22dc I will hunt down TOS 1.04. bp

Pseudo-related. I have a 512K original 520ST. What is the best ROM version to have in this unit as far as best compatibility. Always looking for a 512K upgrade board floating around on eBay. No luck yet. :-( bp

This demo is astounding. bp

Is anyone out there running an HxC2001 on an ST and using it for dual drive emulation? If so, can I get your pinouts? I am using mine in an external drive enclosure on a 520ST which has no internal drive. I am discussing my issues here: http://torlus.com/floppy/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1478 Can't get the B: drive emu working. Thanks. bp

I have an (unfortunately) unexpanded 520ST and I'm wondering if nearly all the demoscene prods out there require 1MB+ or do many run under 512K? Tnx. bp

Now that I have my HxC2001 on the 520ST, I do really want to get this original 520ST up to 1MB RAM... bp