Wilheim Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 Hi, everyone! I have some copy protected floppy disks that I want to preserve, but I don’t want ok spend money on using kryoflux or stuff like that. I also have a BitWriter on a 1050 drive, so I can duplicate any disk. Is it possible to create an ATX image from a floppy disk by using the Super Archiver software. If so, how can I do that. If not, is it possible to add this feature? Thanks and regards! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebiguy Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 (edited) 4 hours ago, Wilheim said: Is it possible to create an ATX image from a floppy disk by using the Super Archiver software. If so, how can I do that. If not, is it possible to add this feature? Yes it is possible! The limitation is that, if Super Archiver can not make a working copy, then RespeQt won't be able to make a working ATX. As of today, RespeQt does not emulate BitWriter but it emulates quite well Super Archiver. This will come one day but right now I have other active projects. The way to do that is very easy. In the following explanation, I assume that you have your real BitWriter drive as D1: 1) Make sure you have the latest RespeQt version 5.3. 2) Load Super Archiver in your Atari (using either RespeQt or the BitWriter drive). 3) In Super Archiver, change destination drive to D2: 4) In RespeQt, create a new disk image (menu Disk) . Move this disk to slot 2 if it was created in another slot. 5) Save the disk image using an ATX extension. 6) Still in RespeQt, make sure that the Super Archiver button is ON in the D2: slot toolbar. 7) Put your source disk in your real BitWriter drive. Start the copy. Edited June 3, 2020 by ebiguy 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilheim Posted June 3, 2020 Author Share Posted June 3, 2020 Good! I will give it a try as soon as I can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcokitt2000 Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 1 hour ago, ebiguy said: Yes it is possible! The limitation is that, if Super Archiver can not make a working copy, then RespeQt won't be able to make a working ATX. As of today, RespeQt does not emulate BitWriter but it emulates quite well Super Archiver. This will come one day but right now I have other active projects. The way to do that is very easy. In the following explanation, I assume that you have your real BitWriter drive as D1: 1) Make sure you have the latest RespeQt version 5.3. 2) Load Super Archiver in your Atari (using either RespeQt or the BitWriter drive). 3) In Super Archiver, change destination drive to D2: 4) In RespeQt, create a new disk image (menu Disk) . Move this disk to slot 2 if it was created in another slot. 5) Save the disk image using an ATX extension. 6) Still in RespeQt, make sure that the Super Archiver button is ON in the D2: slot toolbar. 7) Put your source disk in your real BitWriter drive. Start the copy. Thnxx Eric, Will it all so works with megaspeedy 1050 (speedy,happy etc or super archiver ?) i have 2 drivers with megaspeedy and 1 mini speedy 1050 1990-92(hss sector copier and bibodos) and a happy clone and several originals and a sdrive max and off course old rs 232 with usb to rs232 converter cable,a usb version a other 600xl and i have 3x los pcb board ft232 for use RespeQT. Gr. Marco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ijor Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 A SuperArchiver, or Happy or similar enhancements, are not really suitable for preservation. It won't work with all titles, and for those it will, it won't be very precise. It is ok if for some reason you want to make your private copies of your own disks. It is also acceptable, even for preservation, if you have some really ultra rare stuff (because any kind of dump is better than nothing) and you live on the moon where you can't contact somebody nearby to get those disks preserved properly with a SCP, Kryoflux, or other low level solution. I don't want to discourage you to make digital copies of your disks. Certainly not, after all I also started with a Happy many years ago. It might be even fun. Just be aware that this is not the best preservation method to say the least. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_The Doctor__ Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 bitwriter/sa is the best of the lot just below scp/kryo correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebiguy Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 22 hours ago, marcokitt2000 said: Will it all so works with megaspeedy 1050 (speedy,happy etc or super archiver ?) Yes if you put your MegaSpeedy in Super Archiver mode. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ijor Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 (edited) 23 hours ago, _The Doctor__ said: bitwriter/sa is the best of the lot just below scp/kryo correct? The SuperArchiver (standalone) and the BitWriter work at completely different levels. I don't have much experience with the BitWriter. Yes, it works at a lower level than enhancements like the SA or the Happy that sill depend on the FDC capabilities and limitations. The BitWriter is not a flux transition level device but it bypasses the FDC. I'm not sure how reliable it is, though. And because it uses a standard 1050 mechanism it still lacks the accurate index position. Note that there are (or were) a few other flux level devices, like the Happy Discovery Cartridge for the ST. And btw, there is a new device that is DIY and completely open source: https://github.com/keirf/Greaseweazle/wiki I'm not sure if somebody tried it with 8-bit disks, and I don't know if it supports the modded drives to easily read the flippy side. Writing might be problematic, but besides the flippy issue it should work for reading, at least with most drives. And if you build it yourself it is probably very cheap so not much harm is done trying. One more thing about imaging original disks with 1050 enhancements. As noted in may other threads, please be careful as some originals are extremely fragile and they might even tear off apart when attempting to read them. This could happen also when using a SCP or a Kryoflux. But it is worse, in this sense, with 1050 enhancements because it needs more revolutions per track, which means the fragile surface is "suffering" the friction even longer. Edited June 4, 2020 by ijor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_The Doctor__ Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 hmmm greaseweazle to displace catweazle :) Yeah I found double headed drive without the rabbit pad work way better on disk recovery/archiving/preservation... keep them clean and smooth... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ijor Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 1 hour ago, _The Doctor__ said: hmmm greaseweazle to displace catweazle Yeah Don't know if it's a coincidence or not. What I can tell you is that they are certainly developed by different people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilheim Posted June 5, 2020 Author Share Posted June 5, 2020 On 6/3/2020 at 4:42 PM, ijor said: A SuperArchiver, or Happy or similar enhancements, are not really suitable for preservation. It won't work with all titles, and for those it will, it won't be very precise. It is ok if for some reason you want to make your private copies of your own disks. It is also acceptable, even for preservation, if you have some really ultra rare stuff (because any kind of dump is better than nothing) and you live on the moon where you can't contact somebody nearby to get those disks preserved properly with a SCP, Kryoflux, or other low level solution. I don't want to discourage you to make digital copies of your disks. Certainly not, after all I also started with a Happy many years ago. It might be even fun. Just be aware that this is not the best preservation method to say the least. Certainly a Super Archiver/BitWriter will not be the best option, but I prefer this method rather than buying more hardware. Besides, the disks I want to preserve are not that complicated in their protection scheme. I can crack them, but I prefer to keep it that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebiguy Posted June 5, 2020 Share Posted June 5, 2020 21 hours ago, ijor said: Note that there are (or were) a few other flux level devices, like the Happy Discovery Cartridge for the ST. And btw, there is a new device that is DIY and completely open source: https://github.com/keirf/Greaseweazle/wiki Very interesting but what about the output of the software. Does it produce Kryoflux or SCP files? If we have no option to convert the image files to ATX, it is useless...until phaeron supports the greaseweazle file format. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DjayBee Posted June 5, 2020 Share Posted June 5, 2020 12 minutes ago, ebiguy said: Does it produce Kryoflux or SCP files? https://github.com/keirf/Greaseweazle/wiki/Read-Write Greaseweazle reads and writes SCP and HFE image files. Additionally, Greaseweazle supports writing IPF image files to disk (it is not currently possible to create an IPF). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ijor Posted June 6, 2020 Share Posted June 6, 2020 18 hours ago, DjayBee said: https://github.com/keirf/Greaseweazle/wiki/Read-Write Greaseweazle reads and writes SCP and HFE image files. Just a bit of a warning about the Greaseweazle. One thing I don't like too much is that the floppy interface, at least in the original version, is completely unbuffered which is not very robust. With very old drives it might not work and it might even damage the MCU (the main processor chip). That won't be the end of the world anyway because the Blue Pill that comes with the MCU is so cheap. It shouldn't be much concern as long as you use a not so old, 5.25 " HD 80-tracks drive. Just double checked in case this was fixed ... There is somebody that sells a "plus" version that adds buffers and ESD protection. But then the cost is no so cheap anymore: https://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/details/greaseweazle-f7-plus-usb-floppy-interface-flux-tool-usb-_b-43881 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfollowell Posted June 6, 2020 Share Posted June 6, 2020 A little more expensive than before, but still considerably cheaper than Kryoflux. Luckily, I got my Kryoflux a little cheaper through ebay from someone who bought I directly from Kryoflux, but then never used it. It was still easily over double the price listed for this buffered Greaseweazle though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ijor Posted June 7, 2020 Share Posted June 7, 2020 On 6/6/2020 at 10:50 AM, bfollowell said: A little more expensive than before, but still considerably cheaper than Kryoflux. I thought we were already hijacking this thread too much and I opened a new thread on the main subforum. Yeah, it is still cheaper than the Kryoflux or the SCP. Part of the extra cost is probably that uses a different MCU that is much more powerful. It uses the STM32 F7 variant that, IMHO, is completely overkill (~500MHZ DMIPS plus FPU). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Larry Posted September 4, 2020 Share Posted September 4, 2020 I have successfully made several atx images of protected originals using RespeQt + Happy. But is it possible to write those images out to a real disk using RespeQt 4.3 or 5.3 + Super Archiver or Happy? Or is that only possible using Supercard Pro (or Kryoflux) + a8rawconv or the SCP or Kryoflux software. Is the internal description of the atx copy protection "standard" regardless of what device the image is made on? (So if the atx was made using a Super Archiver, could it be written to disk using a8rawconv)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebiguy Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 You can write images to a real disk using RespeQt 5.3 if you have an ATX image. If you have a raw dump (.scp, or .raw files), then you either convert them to ATX using a8rawconv before writing them with RespeQt or use the corresponding hardware (Kryoflux, Supercard Pro) to write the image. There is no copy protection description in an ATX but only a track layout which can be "special". This track layout is interpreted as a protection by the Atari software. The answer to your last question is yes: an ATX mabe with Super Archiver and RespeQt can be written back to disk using a8rawconv to a Supercard Pro if you have one. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilheim Posted March 2, 2021 Author Share Posted March 2, 2021 Well, finally I dug up my 1050 with Super Archiver and BitWriter replica. And I can say that: 1. It's possible to create an ATX file from a protectedt disk, emulating the CHIP. However, some "fuzzy sectors" (phantom, weak) doesn't write properly. For example, AR: The Dungeon the fuzzy sector is detected like that but it's written as a CRC error sector. 2. For some reason, I have a conflict between the emulated drives without a disk image and real hardware. For some reason, Respeqt doesn't put the virtual drives with no image file as "unused". Not sure if there's a SIO2PC issue or something with RespeQT. Anyway, I could create a Dungeon ATX image by connecting and desconnecting each device as it they were D1:. I think it works. Regards! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle22 Posted September 27, 2021 Share Posted September 27, 2021 The Indus GT with its 4 Mhz Z80 is the most powerful of ALL drives, Especially if you have a (S)RAMCharger (+ 64 K) in it. This could be the ULTIMATE drive for breaking copy protection. Software needs written... The information is out there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemiel Posted October 8, 2021 Share Posted October 8, 2021 There is TOMS Multi Drive enhacement, but if can do copy od everything I am not sure. It is deep change in electronics. I am not sure if Duddie was going to produce that enhacement nowadays. TOMS Turbo is mostly software, but not copies to many protections. I have no time if Phaeron added those firmware to be usable with Altirra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Larry Posted February 26, 2022 Share Posted February 26, 2022 Has anyone tried making an ATX using the 1050 (Happy) Super Archiver? By that I mean the 1050 Happy drive converted to Super Archiver. Edit: I made a couple of ATX images this AM using the 1050 Happy Archiver and also then loading the Super Archiver. Both worked great and made working copies of my original disk. 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.