Larry

Thanks, got it working. I missed the "View" setting toggle. That XEP80 display is impressive!

I need help with the XEP-80 in Altirra (4.10). As I understand it, a real XEP-80 has two roms: the 2364 OS rom, and a 2764 character rom. But Altirra evidently has the character rom fixed, so all that must be added for firmware is the OS rom. When I try to add Mytek's OS rom, the Altirra firmware manager tells me that I need to set the type, but when I scroll through the available options, the XEP-80 isn't on the list. What am I doing wrong?

IIRC, the Last Word has an 80-column mode, similar to the ACE-80XL, but are there any others -- like a version of Atariwriter?

Thanks! Murder on the Zinderneuf (ATX) loads and appears to work properly with a short play. Those EA programs are picky, so this looks good to me.

Is it currently possible to test this in Altirra?

I believe that the only (side 1) difference you would find is that the format interleve (skew) could be different resulting in slower reading of some disks. Same issue that I mentioned above. But, yes, they will read and write to each other. The XF551 is a better drive, but the 1050 is more versatile (with mods like the Happy, Super Archiver, etc.) I've never been a fan of DSDD disks from the XF551. And for the same reason, ditto for 130K Enhanced Density. The "lowest common denominator" is SSSD 5-1/4". Oh, and without special hardware, you can't format the back side of a disk, since the XF uses the timing hole to format. I believe (but not sure) that on some XF551's, you cannot even write to the back side on a "flippy." And one more advantage for the XF is that it has a better data separator, so some disks that just can't be read with a 1050 can be read with an XF.

As can be seen in the (previous) Drive Configuration Page, after I got past the first large partition, I allocated 1000 sectors to the 720-sector drives for easy math. BITD with small drives, I wouldn't have been so wasteful. With the Floppy Board attached, it really is a beast, but I've 99% moved on to ATR's, so I will likely not use the FBs anymore.

From memory: There are a couple of vectors that need to be changed to get 800 programs to boot/run on an XL. This doesn't cure all programs, but will fix many. I have used these before, and have the info written somewhere, but I can't find it. Does anyone remember these? I'm pretty sure this info is in Mapping, but can't locate it.

@EdwardianDuck is there any reason that these type programs can't be launched as Atari provided -- load dos (2.5, etc.) and run the program as an Autorun.sys? It also appears from the OP testing that this was prepared as a 400/800 type program. (?) It executes perfectly for me using the NTSC OS-B with no Basic.

Which version did you have?

I substituted the Altirra 3.34 XL OS and Altirra Basic 1.58. Still doesn't run here. But as before, if I type DOS, it loads and executes the game.

Thanks. I'll try it with the Altirra OS and Altirra Basic.

It is a bit like apples and oranges, but I have spent some time exploring the features of the Black Box and comparing those to the Ultra Speed Plus OS. Here's what you get, and what you are missing. Black Box Typically A user-selected single OS (usually the XL/XE OS). So you have no easily switchable OS selection. But you can have a multi-OS eprom board like the RamRod XL or a 4-in-1 using switches and a 27512 eprom. My everyday Atari computer is a 600XL with an Antonia 4MB, so that is another way to get multi-OS. I don't remember if the BB is compatible with the Ultimate 1MB. Easily swappable drives from the BB drive configuration menu. 96 partition selections chosen from the BB menu. High-speed (3X) SIO No special 720-sector ramdisk (as with the US+), but you can set up 720 (or 1040) sector partitions on your hard disk or compact flash card in single or double density. I've used ACARD SCSI to IDE converters, but now I use an "Aztec Monster" which includes a built-in CF adapter. It also works with SD card adapters. (Attached is a screen shot of the Drive Configuration page showing two 720-sector drives.) You also get RS-232 and a printer interface + optional print buffer, but I haven't used those in many years. You can also add the Floppy Board and get even more flexibility. Now, what you are missing from the US+ OS. Keyboard lock Screen DMA toggle Key click toggle Internal Basic toggle Key repeat selection Adjustable screen colors Cold start without memory loss Built-in mini sector copier Built-in configuration editor 38/40 column switchable Fast Math package Better memory test Many of these are just a POKE to the XL/XE OS. If I had to choose, I'd pick the Black Box, but the US+ is a really nice product, too, and well worth having.

Requires Basic? And does not autorun (on Altirra)? When I tried it without Basic, I got "Internal Error 2590." I got it to load/run by typing "DOS." Can you provide a few details on how to correctly launch it?

I updated the Freezer software, but it still results in locking up. So no luck with this approach.

If you solder it on top of the 4050, does it degrade the UAV S-Video output?

Thanks! I'm a creature of habit, and have always "double clicked" an image to D1: or used the "drag and drop" method. That "Load Image" is super-handy!

Thanks! I'll try it this week.

I spent a couple of hours today working with the US+ and the Freezer. I cannot get the Freezer to work with the US+ module. That includes the regular XL/XE OS contained in the module. Pressing the Freezer button locks up the system. The computer is a 320K XE and the US+ is a V1.5. I tried with other computers (no US+), and the Freezer works perfectly. So my conclusion is they are incompatible. ☹️

How? When you mount the ATR, it displays the title, but I don't see a way to show the contents. I'm using 3.0.11. Maybe in a newer release?

Steve had a useful utility that (IIRC) allowed a Happy 1050 to properly a format in UltraSpeed. I didn't see it in the downloads section, but it may be in the Toolkit. That reminds me -- is there any app for Windows that allows one to look at the contents of a Sparta-format ATR? Atadim does a great job, but only works for Atari Dos types. If you are not familiar with it, you just drag an (Atari Dos) ATR to the atadim desktop icon and it immediately shows the contents, and also allows adding and deleting files (of simple ATR's). It also can display the contents of MyDos subdirectories. This has been posted before, but here's a link: http://raster.infos.cz/atari/forpc/atadim.htm

What are the differences between 1.4 and 1.5, and if you know 1.2?

Hi Guus- But how? To date there is no successful dump of the US+ OS, at least that I'm aware of. But Doc is correct -- the Black Box gives you the major features. Even the 720 sector ramdisk is simulated by creating 720 sector hard disk partitions (99 of them!). And the BB menu gives you easy access to all the features. Plus you get that cool BB SIO sound at no extra cost! 😄 Edit: Or perhaps you are saying that you could freeze the US+ and then re-load it? I had not thought of that angle -- very interesting! I will give that a try. And thinking ahead, the freezer might provide a good dump.

Hot keys -- such as Start + Reset. If one ditches the Self Test and cassette code, it makes quite a bit of room.

Boot from a drive other than D1:. Swap a disk for game play. D1: is a hard drive, and you need to boot from a floppy. Boot from a ram disk. I think those are all plausible.