--- Ernest <ernestls_at_home.com> wrote:
>
> What's the story with these things? ... What do you do with them? What system
> are they for?
In addition to the TRS-80, which I think these were the most popular system
for, I happen to have a PAL blaster that has a string-floppy drive built into
the back, and a box of 3 or 4 tapes that my employer bought with it.
We abandoned this PAL blaster later because, I think, it only understands
an obsolete version of PALASM. The idea is that you would interactively,
over a dumb terminal, enter the equations, then use the internal microprocessor
to validate and compile the PAL, then press the "burn" button on the front
to make devices. The stringy floppy was there to save your work. We hooked
this thing up to a VAX and did our editing and backups there. The PAL blaster
was a read-only device - no local editing allowed.
We replaced it with that up600a I'm still seeking an update for. I have
the last version of the software for it, minus one. I'm hoping that the
last version supports additional (read "newer") devices.
But your question was about the stringy floppy and my answer is that they
were found on embedded devices as well as microcomputers of the early 1980s.
-ethan
=====
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Received on Wed Jun 20 2001 - 02:14:37 BST