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Help Identifying a Mod


spookt

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This is a really interesting thread for me, not least because I have the Controller Card in my 130XE and just posted on FB seeing if anyone had the controller software (my disk is literally rotten and I haven't been able to access the card for decades). I'm looking forward to firing it up later. I was about 14 when I had it installed, spent a long time on the phone with the guy from Computerhouse back in the day, he was really helpful and I met him one time at an Atari show. Unaware of the back story of course. It was a great product and I spent many happy hours mucking around with it.

 

You must have met Jon, (short, mousey blond short hair, normally wore fingerless gloves because of eczema type condition, very chatty but wasn't very clued up in truth. I doubt you met his partner Chris, long hair, said little, more of a thug type (in real life too)..

 

Would be interesting to see how many boards they sold as the makers got zip....

 

Obviously you were not to know Matt and I know Dave and Mike would have loved that their board was being used, whatever the circumstances..

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That's the guy! Yes I remember him well. You know when you build up a picture of what someone looks like on the phone, and then you see them and they are completely different. He was on the Computerhouse stand at one of the shows in Olympia I think, flogging the card. I think it cost me (well, my parents) £60 to send off my 130XE and get the card installed. Lots of money in 1987/8. Anyhow yes the circumstances and the stitch-up were clearly really unfortunate. To this day I still regard this as a great piece of kit.

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Hey mattskilondon it was me who replied to your post on Facebook asking for pics of the board.

 

Thanks GreyHobbit for the disk images. Hope we can get the others recovered somehow. There are plenty of folks here who have the skills and kit required.

 

Before the disk images were posted here I reached out to Dean Garraghty of DGS Software as I found a very old (1990's) review he wrote on the Controller Card. I asked if he'd ever imaged the disks and amazingly he replied within a couple of hours with the attached files. One is side A and B of the DMS Master Disk which I think may already have been posted now. He also took the time to scan his printed manual and send it over. For completeness I've attached both below. The manual is just a series of jpegs which need a bit of tidying and cropping and compiling into a PDF. I'll look at that next week when I get a bit of time.

 

I'm glad I finally figured out what this board is. When my new keyboard mylars from Simius arrive I'll have a proper play with it.

 

EDIT - Just noticed together with the image posted above there are three different version numbers of the software v4.20 A, B, & C.

 

CH-Manual.zip

CompuerHouseSW.zip

Edited by spookt
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EDIT - Just noticed together with the image posted above there are three different version numbers of the software v4.20 A, B, & C.

 

The label on the picture of the floppy disk in post #18 seems to indicate a V4.20D as well, it looks like a D has been written on over the original label.

 

The version I uploaded was definitely 4.20C by the title screen when I loaded it into the emulator.

 

Geoff

 

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk

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Hi Spookt,

 

Is the CW software meant to be 2 of the same disk?

 

Will look again...Just in case..

 

Paul,,

 

EDIT: Nope, they are indeed different, they control panel is 4.20a on one and 4.20b on the other..I guess you need the card for the full differences.. :)

 

Sorry for the mistake..

 

Paul..

Edited by Mclaneinc
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I don't know, The holes being so consistently off center doesn't seem homemade. Materials and construction, including the sanding of the chips, are very similar to the original Omnimon boards for the 400/800. Almost seems like a memory expansion that never got completely installed.

agreed - prompted me to re-examine my 1050 copycard board, and i feel this may not be "home-made" either.

 

 

thanks to @jaybird3rd for tidying up the clutter in this thread - so quickly after my earlier request.

(apols to others for my part in the de-rail) - back on track now.

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EDIT - Just noticed together with the image posted above there are three different version numbers of the software v4.20 A, B, & C.

 

attachicon.gifCH-Manual.zip

attachicon.gifCompuerHouseSW.zip

 

there's a "D" version also - but i did note that the D is handwritten on the disk label (many thanks 8bitbaz for his ATR). The software screens do identify it as version D, though.

 

post-39567-0-14858000-1560113646.jpg

Edited by Guest
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  • 2 years later...
Did the disk ever get preserved/archived or dumped Geoff?
I sent all the disks to Matt (who was also posting on this thread) since I don't have the hardware mod anymore.

I didn't hear if he was ever able to preserve or archive any of the ones I wasn't confident about copying.

Sent from my AC2003 using Tapatalk

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