MyIDE quick start guide

[Paranoid]

I had a lot of difficulty setting up my MyIDE cart, and the biggest problem was that there was no document out there that told me what I could or couldn't do and what to expect from the various features of the cartridge.

 

This document isn't complete or comprehensive, but it is a start.

 

MS Word format document. Please check it out and get back with comments, criticisms, suggestions.

 

Thanks.

MYIDEguide.doc

[bluemax2006]

thanks very much - good

[+remowilliams]

That is some excellent work! One of the things most sorely lacking in the MyIDE Flash area is comprehensive documentation (that covers both of the major operating modes) to get you started.

[Paranoid]

That is some excellent work! One of the things most sorely lacking in the MyIDE Flash area is comprehensive documentation (that covers both of the major operating modes) to get you started.

 

That was my thought, too. I'm technically pretty saavy, and I had quite a bit of difficulty getting started with the cart, and at points I really thought the cart was broken. In each case, it was MOSTLY a case of not having a lot of documentation and not knowing what to expect that was the problem.

 

Wow. That is something I should put on my To-Do list for this document. A Troubleshooting Bullet List with some symptoms and solutions.

 

Anyhow, thanks for the feedback. I'll be adding a bit to the document before it is "done", but I wanted to get some initial impressions.

[zektor800]

Very good! In my quest to learn more regarding MyIDE and other new-age options, I could not find any documentation at all. I did learn some from Mr.Atari's forums, but your step-by-step documentation will be most welcome when I decide to give this a whirl. Thanks!

[tjlazer]

Is there a MyDOS manual out there? I need to know the file limit per partition.

[Paranoid]

There is a MyDos manual out there. You'll find it at this page....

 

http://www.mathyvannisselroy.nl/mydos.htm

[Paranoid]

My biggest fear is having something going wrong on one of these multi-cart devices I bought years ago and having to figure it out again today.
I think I would probably just give up and go with emulation - it has come so far since back then.

[Marius]

My biggest fear is having something going wrong on one of these multi-cart devices I bought years ago and having to figure it out again today.

I think I would probably just give up and go with emulation - it has come so far since back then.

 

 

What was the reason for bumping this thread?

 

This is what I do:

Every now and then I make a 100% image copy of my CF card using the 'dd' command on Mac OS X terminal (but this can also be done with Linux of course, and windows).

In case something goes wrong with my CF card, I can re-create it putting that image back.

 

And if MyIDE is too complicated (which I can understand, although I don't feel that way) why not stick to SIO based solutions like Sio2SD? Can't be easier.

 

There is no reason to leave the real platform. Emulation is great of course, but it will in now way bring you the thrill that the real equipment will give you. (Well in my case, perhaps for you it is different).

[Paranoid]

I haven't been a regular here in years, since I moved to Ohio. Now I'm in AZ. I'm setting up an X-Arcade Multicade with emulation and last night I was playing with MESS and this post turned up when I was doing some research. I forgot how active I was in contributing to the retro community at one point - and realizing that I had published my work made me glad I've never had any problems with my equipment. I just bumped the thread to keep it in my head that I've created my own documentation for recovery if necessary and that it is published online. MyIDE isn't that complicated - but if you haven't touched it for 10 years and something goes wrong and you try to recover without any documentation - that would be rough. Same for the CC2, when I think about it. After those two, I started buying the AtariMax 128-in-1 USB carts (5200, Coleco,) and things started getting very user friendly. But those early examples were a little primitive.

I'm not so much of a collector - I like my games to be enjoyed at parties - and honestly, in most cases in my game room people gravitate toward the emulators I've set up. They tend to have nice front ends, easy to navigate, I don't have to hover over them and help them once they get going - and they're not so afraid they're playing with an antique. The retro consoles just kind of set the mood. The people I play with don't want a dozen different 30+ year old consoles - but they're excited when I show them how easy they can do it with emulation.

If I started over today - I'd probably skip the retro consoles altogether. I just bought a new Coleco with video mod from a local vendor. It turns out my OTHER modded coleco has bad video RAM, the new one (also modded) won't work right with the 128-in-one cart (it registers an "always on" fire button in menu selection, but not in games,) and my original power supply is bad. The new power supply works with my 3rd non-modded Coleco and the 128-in-1 cart. My Gold Dot 5200 "Lifetime" joystick won't register fire button presses anymore, my Vectrex is a little flaky.

Emulation isn't as satisfying, but it is more reliable and far less expensive.