simon@ms.uky.edu (George Simon) (02/29/88)
I just bought a 1571 drive (and a 512K ram expansion) for my 128, and I have several questions... (1) Are there pd programs available to read/write/format MsDos floppies from either CBM or CP/M mode? I have heard of two, (CrossLink and Big Blue Reader) but I'm not sure if they are pd or not. (2) Is there a pd program to make my ram expansion into a CBM-mode ramdisk??? (3) I've heard a lot about ROM upgrades for various drives as well as new versions of the CP/M system. My current CP/M system disk (came with the ram expansion) seems to be able to work with my 1670 modem just fine. What is the most current version, and how can I tell if I need it, and most importantly, where can I get it??? So... if you have any info on these, I would be (very) interested in hearing from you. Thanks in advance... Simon Gales. <--------------------------------------------------------------------------> <--- Simon Gales@University of Ky 254-9387/257-3597 ---> <--- [simon@ms.uky.edu] | [cbosgd!ukma!simon] | [simon@UKMA.BITNET] ---> <-------------------------------------------------------------------------->
Geoffrey_Welsh@watmath.waterloo.edu (03/02/88)
> From: simon@ms.uky.edu (George Simon) > Message-ID: <8478@e.ms.uky.edu> > Date: 29 Feb 88 13:34:54 GMT > (1) Are there pd programs available to read/write/format MsDos > floppies from either CBM or CP/M mode? I have heard of two, > (CrossLink and Big Blue Reader) but I'm not sure if they are pd or not. Big Blue Reader is NOT PD. Miklos Garamszeghy (a user on my BBS before I moved out of Toronto) is the local authority on disk drives; he has written software that lets you read many formats using CBM 1571 and 1581 drives. Try writing The Transactor & asking if they have such utilities on their disks. > (2)Is there a pd program to make my ram expansion into a CBM-mode ramdisk? Yes, but the C64/C128 was not designed to allow installable device drivers and most commercial programs will grunge the links used by the utility. You should have received a disk or two with your RAMpack. > (3) I've heard a lot about ROM upgrades for various drives as well > as new versions of the CP/M system. My current CP/M system > disk (came with the ram expansion) seems to be able to work with > my 1670 modem just fine. What is the most current version, and > how can I tell if I need it, and most importantly, where can I get it? There were two updates to CP/M Plus on the 128; the first added support for the RS-232 port and the second added support for using the RAM cartridges as M: (RAM drive). If your version supports both, it is unlikely that you need an upgrade but, if you wish, contact Commodore at West Chester and ask for the latest copy (include your original disk and a few bucks, natch). The new 128 ROM corrects a few bugs, mostly in the BASIC interpreter (and again, mostly in things like graphics routines). It's (relatively) expensive, so I didn't bother. The 1571 update ROM corrected a few almost-bugs in the 1571's OS (including its nasty habit of going back to track 18 after writing each sector of a data file written to side 2 of the disk). THAT I bought. Geoff ( watmath!fido!221.171!izot ) --- ConfMail V3.31 * Origin: The Waterloo Window: WOC's out there? (1:221/171)