RDROYA01@ULKYVX.BITNET.UUCP (05/28/86)
Re: A pipeline to DRI I've been reading info-atari16, and there are DRI people on that node. I got the impression from their answers to some of my questions that CP/M-68K is a "taboo" subject. They denied any real similarities between it and the Atari-ST O/S. Then the respondent went on to flame one of the 68K developers. I suspect that some corporate shake-ups set up a situation where it's politically unsound to discuss the older system. Also, if people discover that 68K *can* be used to develop Atari-ST applications, that might not set well with Atari management. It was interesting that my question about basepage format similarities between Atari-ST programs, bugs in the Alcyon compiler also in the ST developer's compiler, and identical command lines for the linker were brushed away as coincidence by the Atari and DRI folks, and flamed by the Atari users. However, not too long ago I happened upon this note on info_atari originally from Jwahar Bammi in which he thoroughly described the format for a CP/M-68K REL file. I abbreviate it here: > Date: 17 May 86 15:48:57 GMT > From: imagen!turner@ucbvax.berkeley.edu > Organization: The Houses of the Holy > Subject: Re: TOS/PRG executable file format > Message-Id: <368@imagen.UUCP> > References: <8605160517.AA07779@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> > Errors-To: <info-atari16-request@score.stanford.edu> > To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu > > I'd like to know the meaning of the information that is stored at the > > beginning of a TOS executable file. > ask and thou shalt recieve: > Date: Sun, 22 Dec 85 22:14:31 est > From: decwrl!decvax!cwruecmp!bammi (Jwahar R. Bammi) > To: decvax!decwrl!imagen!turner > Subject: Format of '.prg' files > Cc: decwrl!bammi > I extracted the following info. from documents that came > with the development system. I have only found the .prg (output > of relmod) format, and not the .o format. The input of > relmod is the standard cp/m-68K relocatable files, so I > guess the .o format is the same as for cp/m-68K. I am not at > all familiar with cp/m-68K, and i could not find anyting in the > documents I have about the format of .o files. Maybe you are > familiar with cp/m-68k or have access to the relevant cp/m-68k > documents. Looking forward to your PD diss assmebler. Mr. Bammi has been a prolific contributor to the Atari-net, and no one seems to have disputed his claims. I'm not encouraging guerrilla action against the Atari-net, but the only way I have been able to get any answers about DRI products from DRI workers has been through that net. Perhaps we could contact some of the readers directly. Two addresses are hplabs!amdahl!drivax!alexande@ucbvax.berkeley.edu (Mark G. Alexander) and decwrl!pyramid!nsc!amdahl!drivax!holloway@ucbvax.berkeley.edu (Bruce Holloway) Now for something completely different. Has anyone developed a DESPOOL type facility for CP/M-68K? I have been thinking about how to do this without having to wire it into each individual program. It should capture all calls to the printer, load the file[s] into a buffer in high memory and send the output to the printer as it becomes ready. Ideally, it should stay resident so you can exit a program before the job is complete. My major dificulty here is how to do the checking necessary. I know how to get printer ready status, but I don't know how to decide when to check the status. Can someone offer some suggestions? Another question. There is a commercial product that allows a 68000 to emulate a Z80. I am using a 68000 co-processor through a Z80 and have a load of Z80 programs I would like to run while in the 68000 environment. Does anyone know the name and address of the company that makes this emulator? I would use the 8080 emulator, but the programs I have require a Z80 to run. Thanks, rdroya01@ulkyvx.bitnet (Robert Royar)