[getting old punched cards read]

From: Ethan Dicks <erd_at_infinet.com>
Date: Thu Apr 23 22:07:39 1998

>
> John Foust wrote:
> >
> > Ethan Dicks <erd_at_infinet.com> wrote:
> > >Been there, done that. There's a commercial program to convert .WAV
> > >files of C-64 data tapes back into usable files. It also works if
> > >you hook a real C-64 datassete to the parallel port.
> >
> > I know these programs exist. There are some for the Spectrum and ZX-81,
> > too. However, I could generalize and say they were all DOS-based,
> > written in Pascal or assembler, don't come with source code, have
> > poor documentation, etc. and I want to roll my own in straight portable C.
> > I'd rather make it general to handle old S-100 tapes, C-64 tapes, etc.
> > instead of just hard-coding one flavor. It should be ready in
> > the year 2010.

I'd love to help add formats to a generic program. The one I have right
now is TAPEIO.EXE, from the C-64 emulator C64S. I _wish_ I had source.
I thought about banging together something, but I just don't have that
kind of time. A punch card OCR program is about all I can manage right
now.

> I use a binary file -> .WAV file conversion program written in C, with
> source code included, absolute freeware, and already successfully ported
> to PC, Amiga, and Linux. It lays down a header specific to an Atari
> 2600 cassette add-on, and it doesn't reverse the conversion, but
> extending/genercizing it shouldn't be a lifelong project. Let me know
> if your interested and I'll send it to you.

I'd love to see the code. I hack Amigas and UNIX.

One format that eludes me - PET Rabbit. I've got the tape version of the
Rabbit (with original tape!) and the ROM Rabbit for BASIC 2.0. I haven't
gotten around to disassembling the code and reverse engineering the format,
but I think I'll have to... I've got a box of tapes and no working 2.0 machine
at the moment (just a couple of 8032's).

-ethan
Received on Thu Apr 23 1998 - 22:07:39 BST