Atari_Safari Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 Hello there, I recently found a 1010 tape recorder at goodwill and was super excited to hook it up to my 800XL and try some software. I tried to play my copy of Zaxxon shortly after it arrived from EBay and it seemed to be loading the program fine but then it goes into test mode. I play cartridges on my Atari 800XL just fine so I'm confused. I'm new to 8-bit computers and have never used cassettes before. Do you have any knowledge about these cassette programs and if the tape might be the issue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoundGammon Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 Did you hold down "otption" while you turned on the computer? That disables the built in basic so the game can load. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 Hold option do disable basic, as well as 'start' to engage the tape loader. When you hear the beep, press play on the 1010, and then return on the computer. Then come back in 20 minutes 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari_Safari Posted July 15, 2017 Author Share Posted July 15, 2017 You guys are misunderstanding and I am. It explaining myself well enough. I can get the thing to start loading just fine and it even goes into the Zaxxon loading screen so all seems well when all of a sudden it just goes into a test mode and there doesn't seem to be any way to boot into the game. I can only test my ram and sound etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari_Safari Posted July 15, 2017 Author Share Posted July 15, 2017 It fails at pretty much the last moment for some reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Almerian Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 Some things to try. - Does the Option key work in the self test? - Do the the ROM an RAM test ok? Repeat several times while leaving the machine on. - Try another known good tape game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baz67 Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 Sounds to me like the tape's possibly suffering drop out towards the end of the recording, fella. As the lads suggest, have you any other tapes to try and/or try cleaning the 1010s play head with a bit of isopropyl alcohol and a cotton bud? Have another go after the clean - you never know... else test some other tapes, bud. Good luck - there's something about the old tapes that really adds to the nostalgia and sentiment we all feel for these great old classic machines. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baktra Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 You guys are misunderstanding and I am. It explaining myself well enough. I can get the thing to start loading just fine and it even goes into the Zaxxon loading screen so all seems well when all of a sudden it just goes into a test mode and there doesn't seem to be any way to boot into the game. I can only test my ram and sound etc. I beg to differ. For the sake of clarity, please confirm that you were powering up the computer with both START and OPTION keys pressed. Just to explain. Atari BASIC ROM occupies 8KB of address space (A000-BFFF). The game might expect RAM at these addresses. That's why BASIC has to be disabled by pressing the OPTION key. The tape can be faulty, so you might try a different tape if you have one on hand or get one. If you happen to own an ordinary cassette recorder (a boombox or something better), you can record your own tapes.There is an easy-to-use software for authoring of your own tapes available. Another possibility is to use a cassette adapter. A footnote: Atari tapes are terribly slow - 600 bps. If you would like to use your Atari computer on regular basis, get one of the disk drive replacements. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari_Safari Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 Yes, I am holding those keys down and explaining that I had gotten past that part but neglected to wait for all the tests to run so I might try that. The tape did seem to have a bit of slack on first inspection like it was loose but I'll have to rewind and see if it still looks that way since I opened the package and started messing with it. Unfortunately I do not have any other tapes on hand or a way to record my own to continue testing it. I will get some isopropyl and give my tape recorder a cleaning because I haven't done any of that yet. Thanks for all the advice. I am interested in the machine and would like to play some games and experience what it was like to run programs off of a cassette. It blows my mind that it's possible. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari_Safari Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 By the way I meant to say that I was NOT explaining myself very well and apologize for the typo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nukey Shay Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 The tape and equipment are probably fine. The initial release of Zaxxon is incompatible with the XL operating system...requiring the use of the Translator disk to get around that issue. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari_Safari Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 Alright thank you. I will try to get one that that is compatible this time and hopefully it fires up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baz67 Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 Good luck, fella! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swami Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 double post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swami Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Alright thank you. I will try to get one that that is compatible this time and hopefully it fires up. Get space invaders on tape as a test tape, what is more inexpensive, low memory, common, universal and still fun? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.