8-bit IDE

From: Richard Erlacher <edick_at_idcomm.com>
Date: Tue Apr 18 15:06:17 2000

NO! It's not a requirement at all, but I do find it aesthically preferable
to use same-generation hardware together. That's just a personal
preference, however. If you want to run your IMSAI with an ESDI interface,
and use a flat-panel display for the console and talk to other systems on
the MBEthernet, it's entirely up to your. It is, after all, YOUR computer,
not mine. I find it strange somehow, to see a living room furnished in
'70's Spanish style with a '50's danish-modern coffee table and a strictly
art-deco set of lamps, vases, and pictures, but if one can do it, one can do
it tastefully.

I have a selection of 8" drives and controllers, and several of the early
5-1/4" full-height models as well. A few years back, I gave away my 20 MB
Century Data Marksman. which was one of those 14" drives with a parallel
port interface on it (driven by a couple of ports in a 6821 PIA.)

I made an S-100 board for a co-worker to use in combination with one of the
1/3-card WD HDC's from the XT generation, together with a 1/3-card
Hercules-style graphics/monochrome text board. Using what he knew about the
keyboard, he built an interface to an XT-class keyboard and hooked his
monitor up to the mono card, thereby giving himself access to quite a bit of
hardware with very little hassle. The driver code (maybe not the best of
it, though) is in the IBM tech ref manual. The HDC is quite
straightforward. The XT-keyboard interface was a piece of programmable
logic, possibly a MOT MCU.

Dick
----- Original Message -----
From: <allisonp_at_world.std.com>
To: <classiccmp_at_classiccmp.org>
Sent: Tuesday, April 18, 2000 10:40 AM
Subject: Re: 8-bit IDE


> > ... and they're of about the right capacity for an old-style CP/M setup,
if
> > you want to be true to the period. They make the typical
> > parallel-port-driven SMD or other setup typical of the 1976-1981
timeframe
> > look pretty bad, though.
>
> I do have one of those 8-inch monsters, runs too. However you seem to
> assume that many of the CP/M systems I have are required to be of "period"
> design. FOO on that. I have many that are simply restored and they stay
> that way. However I have several that are upgraded where possible to get
> more performance for actual practical use. Those systems run faster Z80s
> or have SCSI, big IDE (by CPM standards) and the like.
>
> > I have one old data book from WD that has some of the XT-type
controllers in
> > it, but lacks that one. What are the characteristics of this one?
>
> So do I, but I built a useable controller from it without that. Actually
> there are three versions of the 1002 for the Xt bus, all look different
> but operate the same due to the base chip, the 1100 series. I used some
> PC source software , plus PC programming books to figure out the
> registers. It was a very black box approach but I got a working MFM
> subsystem that works well. The end result looks like a 1002-HDO in many
> respects.
>
> Allison
>
>
Received on Tue Apr 18 2000 - 15:06:17 BST

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