"Network" device to share a single Disk Drive

[manterola]

Just yesterday came to my mind a memory of a device I used when I was in high school, that allow us to share a single 1050 with multiple (about 20) Atari 800XL computers in the computer lab of our school.

As I remember, each "node" consisted in a small box with with a DB9 or maybe DB15 female connector and two cables: 1 SIO cable with connector (to plug it to the Atari) and a long cable with DB male connector to connect the node to the next node and so on, to you create a Trunk. Each SIO cable to each Atari might be the "Spurs".

The last Atari computer, obviously, ended up very far from the Disk Drive that use to be connected to the first node, which I suspect had little different box

Once a computer was accessing the 1050, all other computers got errors if try to do something with the drive, if you keep trying to get access it worked once the drive was not busy anymore.

Anyone, knows about this type of networking or devices? Any name for such device?

Thanks

 

[+Nezgar]

Reminds me of the system described in ANTIC Interview 10 with John Harris, who "developed "Classroom Star", classroom networking hardware for the Atari 8-bits"

 

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-10-the-atari-8-bit-podcast-mark-rustad

[xrbrevin]

you had ataris in your school?!

did you get any work done? hehe

 

..we only had acorn BBC model Bs and later on, Amstrad PCWs (yawnsville...)

[manterola]

There were some PC clones, Sinclair spectrum and very few commodores in my country. Mostly Ataris, so we used them for programming in turbo Basic, Logo and some word processing. We were not allow to play during computer lab time.

[JR>]

Not the one you are describing, but there was the Supra/MPP micronet. There was also the "Multiplexer"

 

http://www.nleaudio.com/css/products/multiplexer.htm

Edited August 15, 2018 by JR>

[RodLightning]

This reminds me of the computer lab in my school. We had two such devices, sharing two Commodore 1541 floppy drives with two separate groups of C64s. Fond memories are of playing Infocom games sharing a single game disk between machines. I was not aware such a device existed for Atari 8 bit. That sounds great to have Atari in school. One thing, I can remember is; due to the nature of C64 disk access, those machines would just pause for however long until the disk drive was free.

[+David_P]

Not the one you are describing, but there was the Supra/MPP micronet. There was also the "Multiplexer"

 

http://www.nleaudio.com/css/products/multiplexer.htm

 

It sounds like the Supra Micronet - review at https://www.atarimagazines.com/v4n10/productreviews.html

 

And another in ANALOG at http://analog.katorlegaz.com/analog_1987-02_120dpi_jpeg_cropped/analog_1987-02_076.html

[JR>]

 

It sounds like the Supra Micronet - review at https://www.atarimagazines.com/v4n10/productreviews.html

 

And another in ANALOG at http://analog.katorlegaz.com/analog_1987-02_120dpi_jpeg_cropped/analog_1987-02_076.html

Functionally similar, but physically very different from his description. The micronet is just a single box with 9 SIO connectors. No separate boxes for each machine and no 2nd DB type cables.

[SS]

I have one of Lotharek's SIO hubs. It's awesome and totally solved my 1050 and SIO2SD's communication issue. I do kind of wish, though, that it had two output ports so that I could set up the 800XL and 600XL permanently next to each other and have them share the same SIO devices without having to swap the plugs around each time.

[Mathy]

Hello guys

 

@SS: Lotharek's SIO hub is the opposite of what is being talked about in this thread. His SIO hub connects multiple peripherals to one computer, what TS is talking about is a device to connect multiple Atari computers to one chain of peripherals.

 

@All: Don't forget A2RI.

 

Sincerely

 

Mathy

[SS]

@SS: Lotharek's SIO hub is the opposite of what is being talked about in this thread. His SIO hub connects multiple peripherals to one computer, what TS is talking about is a device to connect multiple Atari computers to one chain of peripherals.

 

Yes. I guess that I wasn't clear. I love Lotharek's device and what it does. I just wish that it was able to perform BOTH things at the same time - connecting multiple devices *and* connecting to multiple computers.

[JR>]

Yes. I guess that I wasn't clear. I love Lotharek's device and what it does. I just wish that it was able to perform BOTH things at the same time - connecting multiple devices *and* connecting to multiple computers.

 

I have a Deluxe Quintopus that I use in conjunction with my Micronet to do exactly that. In fact the switches on the Quintopus allow you to change which SIO devices are active at any given time So multiple configurations can be shared with multiple computers, all without moving any cables..... So why do I still find myself always moving cables..... :? .

[Mathy]

Hello SS

 

Lotharek is doing something similar with SCART connectors, so who knows?

 

Sincerely

 

Mathy

[manterola]

I finally found the device, in a page of "Turbonews" magazine. It was probably locally developed.

 

[jamm]

That's very interesting!  What country did you grow up in?

[Sikor]

Game_Link_II (also known as Multilink): http://atariki.krap.pl/index.php/Game_Link_II

Up to 7 Ataris.

[manterola]

BTW, the device I am talking about is the one shown on the bottom of the page, the one with the db9 connector.

They were used to share a single Atari disk drive and/or printer with multiple Atari computers (no communication b/w the computers).

This make a lot of sense in a time and place (Chile around 1989-90) were a disk drive cost were about 1.3 to 1.5 times the cost of a pack with 65XE, joystick and XC12 cassette recorder. And the price of computer pack was already high:about US$500 maybe more (money of today) depending on the exchange rate.

 

 

[StickJock]

I remember a computer lab in college that had a bunch of Atari 800s that all shared a single hard drive.  IIRC, they had cables plugged into the upper joystick ports.  I don't remember if it was just port 4, or if it used both ports 3&4 (probably the latter).

 

In high school, we had a lab with a couple of dozen Atari 800s, each having (I think 2) 810 floppy drives, monitor & 80 column Atari printer (825?).  I guess that they must have had an 850 as well to go with the printer.

[+CharlieChaplin]

12 hours ago, Sikor said:

Game_Link_II (also known as Multilink): http://atariki.krap.pl/index.php/Game_Link_II

Up to 7 Ataris.

Up to 8 Ataris.

Most programs are for 1 player per Atari and thus 8 players max., but there is one (or maybe two?) program(s) that allows split screen and 2 players per Atari for a max. of 16 players...

 

[Kyle22]

9 hours ago, StickJock said:

I remember a computer lab in college that had a bunch of Atari 800s that all shared a single hard drive.  IIRC, they had cables plugged into the upper joystick ports.  I don't remember if it was just port 4, or if it used both ports 3&4 (probably the latter).

 

In high school, we had a lab with a couple of dozen Atari 800s, each having (I think 2) 810 floppy drives, monitor & 80 column Atari printer (825?).  I guess that they must have had an 850 as well to go with the printer.

That sounds like a Corvus system. Very nice.

 

[StickJock]

Yeah, I was thinking Corvus, but it was 35 years ago so I wasn't sure. 

 

I think that we also used Wordstar on some MPM (Multi-user CPM, iirc) systems. 

[+hunmanik]

I found another picture of that device.

source: https://retrogames.cl/foro/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2549#p24086 

[manterola]

Thanks!  So the mystery is solved.. It's quite a nice collection the guy in the link has. I encourage everyone to. Check this out, there are some nice and not known devices,  boxes, manuals, etc. 

The guy also has the manual I remembered in Spanish for the 65xe/130xe. I did not remember it was for both computer models. 

 

 

 

Edited May 3, 2020 by manterola