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Patching CLOAD in MITS 4.0 4K or 8K basic for a different port

C

Corey986

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Ok here is the dilemma, I’m working on hooking up an OP-80A to an ALTAIR. The challenge I have is the IO card on this machine is a 3P+S configured to look like an SIO-2 at ports 20/21. The problem is that the parallel ports are now at 22/23 and I can’t change them to be anything else without losing the SIO-2 compatibility.

So here is my question so I can use the parallel input on the 3P+S which is at port 23 and 24. Does anyone know the memory locations to bootstrap either 4K or 8K basic CLOAD commands. I know that deRamp has patched an SSM card’s parallel to port 6 to use CLOAD with basic, but I can’t do that so I need to modify/patch basic in memory itself to get mine working without adding another card to the system.

Anyone have MITS basic 4.0 patching information?

Thanks,
Corey
 
4K BASIC does not have CLOAD or CSAVE commands. In 8K BASIC 4.0, cassette input loop is at 1140h. The output loop is at 114Eh.

Mike
 
Code: 
1140 : DB 06		"  "		in	006H
1142 : E6 01		"  "		ani	001H
1144 : C2 40 11		" @ "		jnz	L1140
1147 : DB 07		"  "		in	007H
1149 : C9		" "		ret
 
I think I decided since this is for an exhibit at the VCF museum that I'll hook up the OP-80A to a UART (should be simple to wire up since it's only input) and plug it into the back of the ADM3A extension. This way visitors can load programs and see the characters "typed" into basic as they pull the tape though the OP-80A using a tape winder.

I may need to modify Martin Eberhard's MBLe to "read" an extra character for the SIO-2 like he does for the PIO to let the OP-80A load basic without being so testy on the tape starting position. That's an easy mod, Martin provides the source.
 
Loading of BASIC is full 8-bit, so I’m not sure what your ADM will do with the 8-bit characters and possible unintended escape sequences it sees. I don’t recall how “dumb” the 3A is. Maybe dumb enough that the data doesn’t bother it.

Once BASIC is running and you use a tape to load a BASIC program as text through the console port, you’ll have to pull slow enough so that BASIC can keep up.

Mike
 
deramp5113 said:
Loading of BASIC is full 8-bit, so I’m not sure what your ADM will do with the 8-bit characters and possible unintended escape sequences it sees. I don’t recall how “dumb” the 3A is. Maybe dumb enough that the data doesn’t bother it.

Once BASIC is running and you use a tape to load a BASIC program as text through the console port, you’ll have to pull slow enough so that BASIC can keep up.

Mike
Click to expand...

I currently use a high speed paper tape on my personal Altair running though the 3A's extension port. it's rather dumb and really only pushes the data over to the main serial port. I usually punch a bunch of nulls (5 or 6) at the end of each line for basic to keep up since it's the line processing that causes it grief. I guess I'll do the same for the tapes I use in the museum exhibit with maybe a few more nulls for overzealous visitors. I do plan on punch out mylar instead of paper for this also.

When it's all done in a few weeks, I'll post some video of the exhibit.

Cheers,
Corey
 
Sounds like a good plan. For short programs, I’ve found that 200ms of delay after CR gives reliable loads. For larger programs, 300ms is necessary. Not easy to reliably translate that into a number of nulls on a hand pulled tape though...

Mike
 
OK, plan might change in the short term. I found a SSM IO-4 board in our warehouse. I was able to spend some time digging though boxes in our S100 section that should have not had cards, but did.

Figure the shorted path to getting this exhibit up and running is to copy what you did in this post

http://www.vcfed.org/forum/showthread.php?70024-OP-80A-Paper-Tape-Reader

1st question, can you post your jumper settings for the serial and parallel configuration?

2nd question, do you have any more of those adapter boards from the 16 pin OP-80A to the IO-4?

Thanks,
Corey
 
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