making a standard laptop into a MAME Geneve laptop

[making a standard laptop into a MAME Geneve laptop]

I did something similar with my younger son's old college laptop and ran it for many years before it finally died. It was a Toshiba Satellite and I had it so it booted up the OS {I think Windows XP} and then it immediately displayed the TI99/4A 1981 title screen as its wallpaper and after you hit the space bar it booted up Win994a!

 

I used to use it instead of my desktop all the time. The CD/DVD drive was useless but since every piece of TI99/4A software fit on its hard drive that was a moot point. With the Win994a setup I had a "classic" TI99/4A with three (3) floppy drives and three (3) hard drives.

 

It was a perfect use of an obsolete Toshiba Satellite for a TMS9900 Series hobbyist to use since it was really dead to the PC world since it couldn't run the latest Windows OS! 

[Which emulator?]

In my opinion when it comes to Emulators/Simulators it all depends on what you want to experience!

For the better graphics I strongly suggest that Classic999 is the program to use.

For sound reproduction that is most like the original TI99/4A, then I suggest using Win994a.

For speech reproduction that is most like the original TI99/4A, again I suggest using Win994a.

For versatility in adding features to the original console I strongly suggest that Classic99 be used with Mame as a strong second choice.

 

Attached are two files that compare the Sound & Speech reproduction of the programs Classic99 and Win994a; you can immediately hear the difference(s) between these two programs. Mame and the other emulators are on par with Classic99 when it comes to those two area of reproduction!!

Lincoln Classic99.mp3 Lincoln Win994a.mp3

[win994a simulator and Win 10x64]

This is probably due to the fact that somehow something has changed some Windows registry entries, and the current version that is trying to load doesn’t understand these changes. 

1.) If you can, start the RegEdit.exe program (it’s in your C:\Windows folder). 
2.) Expand the HKEY_CURRENT_USER item. 
3.) Under that, expand the Software item. Then, BurrSoft. You’ll see Win994a. 
4.) Right click on that and click on Delete to eliminate the entire Win994a entry. 

 

At this point, Win994a doesn’t have any previous information about previous runs.
Win994a should start up, but you’ll have to set your Preferences again.

[Running EA3 or EA5 files from Basic/XB]

"MINI"

E/A5 (Program Image) file loader [by Todd Kaplan] that allows programs that run under Editor/Assembler Option #5 to also be launched from Mini Memory.

Select MM LOAD & RUN
Type in DSK1.MINI,
Type in the path and program to RUN.

"YLOAD"

This program allows the user to load EA-programs with either the Mini-Memory, Myarc FDCC, or any of the many Extended Basic cartridges in place.

1. Mini-Memory Cartridge-choose TI Basic

2. Myarc FDCC-choose TI Basic

3. XB Cartridges-choose XB

In the command mode enter the following:

Mini-Memory and XB Cartridges

CALL INIT
CALL LOAD("DSKx.YLOAD")
CALL LINK("LOAD","DSKx.{EA-5 PROGRAM}")

Myarc FDCC

CALL ILR
CALL LR("DSKx.YLOAD")
CALL LLR("LOAD","DSKx.{EA-5 PROGRAM}")

 

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AjWNjAZpt3oL80JjqGllDSClzvle?e=JPcfWN

YLOAD.TIDisk

[Mechatronic XB II+]

On 12/30/2019 at 10:36 AM, globeron said:

 

I got this one to work, but I could not get it to work in  Classic99,  JS99er.net,  V9t9 

I also noticed that the menu 2 option is sometimes different in description (It should show  MECHATRONIC PS/EXTENDED BASIC)

 

If it is MECHATRONIC EXTENDED BASIC (then it is a normal Silver one)

and the Extended Basic Plus is I think another type of module.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know that this cartridge uses 8K GROMs instead of the normal 6K GROMs!

[TI Calc and Bank Switching on the UberGROM]

Does anyone know for sure if the cartridges TI Calc and TI Planner are actually the same program except one was released in the U. S. and the other was released in Europe?

[What was your #1 cartridge from the old days?]

For me it was ALWAYS the "SuperCart" because with it in place I could run my copy of the 128K OS & Myarc XBII+ and any of the E/A loaded programs. Using the "FunnelWeb" program system I had access to all sorts of third-party programs; we in the PATIUG had the E/A5 versions of 90% of the TI cartridges, so you never had to change the "Supercart". I also had a Myarc FDCC, so I could also load E/A3 & E/A5 programs from TI Basic.

 

The other two cartridges I kept in my 'widget' were the Microsoft Multiplan cartridge and the PLATO cartridge; that covered 99.9% of all the software that I ever ran on the TI99/4A.

[New Card to allow Speech Synth to go Into P-Box]

There is a schematic at http://www.mainbyte.com/ti99/speech_peb/speech_peb.htmlthat shows exactly how to make a circuit board to do such an act as to add the speech synthesizer to the PEB!