Datamaster troubles

From: Philip.Belben_at_powertech.co.uk <(Philip.Belben_at_powertech.co.uk)>
Date: Wed Jul 16 14:28:24 1997

Rich Cini wrote:

> Thanks for the error codes. I have no manuals for the Datamaster, so I'm
> flying blind. The code "09" is inverse-blinking, so there is a real problem.
>
> I'll try to pull the chips and re-seat them. The machine worked last summer
> and wasn't used since then, so I can't imagine the chip going like that.

Yes. Definitely!

The diagram in my last post should tell you which chip it is.

Now I think of it, I had a problem with my Commodore PET in which chips
would ease their way out of the sockets on the motherboard. In the end
I bought some decent turned-pin sockets and soldered these in place of
the originals. Problem cured.

One of the PET ROM chips lost a pin in the course of all this.
(AAARGH!). Solution here was to take a staple from my stapler, open it
flat, insert into socket in place of missing pin, and solder to the stub
on the side of the chip. Wire cutters then trimmed both ends, and chip
was as good as new!

> Thanks again for the help. I'll let you know what I find. My company has a UK
> office (Burdale-Holdings, a trade finance company). If I do need a new chip,
> maybe we could arrange it so that you could drop it off at our London office
> (if you're near it) and they could send it to me.

Why did I open my big keyboard?

Yes, should it come to that I shall be happy to do something of the
sort, but I don't (a) know what kind of chips they are or (b) possess an
EPROM programmer (shock horror!). There is at least one other
Datamaster owner on this list, so if someone out there is better
equipped than I am to help Rich, please speak up now!

Philip.
Received on Wed Jul 16 1997 - 14:28:24 BST