=========================================================================

INFO-ATARI16 Digest         Tue, 10 Apr 90       Volume 90 : Issue  435
 
Today's Topics:
           Bus errors (was re: _memlow / _memtop / phystop)
                     Gribnif: what does it MEAN?
                     INFO-ATARI16 Digest V90 #426
                      Moving hardware to Europe
                         pc-speed with 80286
                 PC Ditto 3.0, ICD Adapter, DOS BOOT
                        PC rag notices the TT
                        play.arc on terminator
               Spectrum picture posting:A call to arms!
                         Welltris for the ST?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Date: 10 Apr 90 20:27:20 GMT
From: portal!atari!apratt@apple.com  (Allan Pratt)
Subject: Bus errors (was re: _memlow / _memtop / phystop)
Message-ID: <2137@atari.UUCP>
 
achowe@tiger.waterloo.edu (anthony howe) writes:
>Is a bus error generated if a memory reference is made to memory
>outside the range specified in system variables [_memlow, _memtop] or
>on the range [0, phystop]?
 
You shouldn't rely on getting a bus error (or not getting one) anywhere.
People can muck with the variables you mention, so you really can't
count on them.
 
This is a good time to publish my universal bus-error code fragment. It
works on any CPU and it doesn't even have to check what CPU it's on. Of
course, it must run in Supervisor mode, because it fools with the bus
error vector.  The key to the code is that it cleans off the bus error
exception from the stack regardless of how much the CPU put there.  It
does this by saving the original SSP and restoring it later, rather
than adding a constant number of bytes to SSP. (If you DON'T get a bus
error, the final "move a1,sp" is a no-op.)
 
begin:
        move.l  $8,a0
        move.l  sp,a1
        move.l  #berr,$8
 
* Do something that might cause bus error
        move.l  testaddr,d0
 
* If you get to the next instruction, you DIDN'T get a bus error.
* Handle that case here (zero a flag), then branch to berrdone.
 
        sf      berrflag
        bra     berrdone
 
* If you get to this label, you DID get a bus error.  Handle that
* case (set a flag), then fall through to berrdone.
 
berr:   st      berrflag
 
berrdone:
        move.l  a0,$8
        move.l  a1,sp
 
============================================
Opinions expressed above do not necessarily     -- Allan Pratt, Atari Corp.
reflect those of Atari Corp. or anyone else.      ...ames!atari!apratt
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 10 Apr 90 22:51:47 GMT
From: cbmvax!andy@uunet.uu.net  (Andy Finkel)
Subject: Gribnif: what does it MEAN?
Message-ID: <10761@cbmvax.commodore.com>
 
In article <261E6C25.10489@maccs.dcss.mcmaster.ca> johns@maccs.dcss.mcmaster.ca
 (Conan the Barbarian) writes:
>In article <3132@water.waterloo.edu> ljdickey@water.waterloo.edu (L.J.Dickey)
 writes:
>>In article <3143@castle.ed.ac.uk> aimd@castle.ed.ac.uk (M Davidson) writes:
>>I have a feeling I have heard this word somewhere before, perhaps
>>in a TV show.  Does anybody know the meaning of the word?
>
>       You're absolutely right.  My bubugged the girl that works the
>Gribnif booth in '88 about the meaning in Gribnif, and never got an
>answer.  Undaunted, he tried again this year, and still got nowhere.
 
 
Are you talking about standard Gribnif or Royal Gribnif ?
 
There are significant differences, you know.
 
                andy
--
andy finkel             ?uunet|rutgers|amiga?!cbmvax!andy
Commodore-Amiga, Inc.
 
"Not everything worth doing is worth doing well."
 
Any expressed opinions are mine; but feel free to share.
I disclaim all responsibilities, all shapes, all sizes, all colors.
 
------------------------------
 
Date: Tue, 10 Apr 90 21:32:02 EST
From: Brian <UOG91270@vm.uoguelph.ca>
Subject: INFO-ATARI16 Digest V90 #426
 
Thanks for the updated format list Ian.
 
Now I have to find some time to work on it and have a viewer/converter
for the Amiga.
 
BDS.
 
------------------------------
 
Date: Tue, 10 Apr 90 23:07:20 EDT
From: clark@mshri.utoronto.ca
Subject: Moving hardware to Europe
Message-ID: <9004110307.AA28181@lash.utcs.utoronto.ca>
 
        A friend of mine is moving to France from Toronto and is worried
about problems that he may have with his ST. He has a step-down transformer
to get to 120 V, but can't do anything about the difference in frequency.
I expect that there won't be a problem for the computer itself, since it
rectifies everything to DC anyway, but what about the colour and monochrome
monitors, and the hard disk drive (sorry, I didn't think to ask the make).
He also has Spectre 128 and the Translator. Are there any other problems he
should be aware of, such as incompatibility of European software on North
American machines?
 
        Any info would be greatly appreciated. You can mail to me directly or
post to the net, since I read the Bitnet compilations regularly.
 
 
Steve Clark
 
clark@mshri.utoronto.ca  (Internet)
sinai@utoroci            (Netnorth/Bitnet)
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 10 Apr 90 20:37:56 GMT
From: mcsun!unido!gmdzi!focke@uunet.uu.net  (Stefan Focke)
Subject: pc-speed with 80286
Message-ID: <2191@gmdzi.UUCP>
 
Hello,
 
I got a letter from 'Heim-Verlag', the german distributor of PC-Speed.
They told me, that a 80286 Version will be available in June. The did
not tell anything more.
 
 
-------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Stefan Focke                  Tel. 02241-14-2265
GMD-Z2.W                      e-mail: focke@gmdzi.uucp
Postfach 1240                         focke@gmdzi.gmd.de
5205 St. Augustin 1                   ...!?uunet!mcvax!?unido!gmdzi!focke
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 10 Apr 90 23:42:56 GMT
From:
 pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!cs.utexas.edu!psurge@t
 ut.cis.ohio-state.edu  (Troy Carpenter)
Subject: PC Ditto 3.0, ICD Adapter, DOS BOOT
Message-ID: <8354@cs.utexas.edu>
 
In article <16000044@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu>, cs325ec@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu writes:
>
>
>       Has anyone gotten PC Ditto 3.0 (Software version) to boot from
>       a hard disk with an ICD Boot also?  I tried setting the third
>       through (nth?) bytes with $90 IBM  3.3, but apparently DOS looks
>       for more before deciding that the disk is bootable.
>
>       Any help appreciated...
>
>       -- Greg
 
Well, let's see if I can remember back that far...I think this is how I did it:
 
First, format drive C and set it to autoboot with the ICD software.  If it is
already set to autoboot, then copy all files off of the drive because you are
about to erase everything.
 
Second, boot up pcditto and issue the command FORMAT C: /S
This will logically format the disk and write the system and boot sectors onto
the partition sector (0).  When  finished do the <CTL><ALT><DEL> thing and go
back to the title screen.  Reboot the IBM mode from the hard drive this time to
see if that works at least.  When you have the IBM system booting off the hard
drive then go back to ST mode.
 
Finally copy your ICDBOOT.SYS back to drive C and now boot the ST to make sure
that works.  Then run pcditto again and make sure that works.  If I remember
correctly, that is how I did it and it works on my system.
 
Once you can boot off both systems then you can put all your files back on drive
C and continue as normal.
 
Oh, one thing...You cannot have a disk in drive A: when booting from the hard
drive in IBM mode, the program will lock up.  However, after the boot cycle is
over, it is wise to put a disk in drive A: and access it, otherwise the motor
will keep running (my drive light is not on, but the motor is running, this
shuts it off).
 
If you have any questions feel free to send me mail:
 
 
                                 Troy Carpenter
                        Department of Computer Sciences
                        THE University of Texas, Austin
                              psurge@cs.utexas.edu
 
------------------------------
 
Date: Tue, 10 Apr 90 23:33:56 EDT
From: clark@mshri.utoronto.ca
Subject: PC rag notices the TT
Message-ID: <9004110333.AA29102@lash.utcs.utoronto.ca>
 
        Having to deal with mserable-dos machines at work, I try to keep up
with the field be reading a few pc publications. One of them, PC WEEK, is a
weekly tabloid-style rag with lots of product anouncements and
advertisments that they will send you free if you can convince them that
you are responsible for buying lots of hardware or software for your
company. (It's actually quite useful, and they are frequently very
critical of IBM, which matches my opinion nicely.) One of the must-read
columns is called Rumor Central, by "Spencer F. Katt", on the second last
page. In the issue of March 26, 1990, he describes his trip to Taiwan to
see what Intel is up to with the 586 processor, then continues:
 
        "Of course, the Katt didn't return straight home from the land of
Chiang Kai-shek. He hopped Lufthansa to Germany for the Hannover Computer
Fair, and feasted his eyes on goodies being shown there, including a new
Atari machine -- which runs Unix on a 68030 processor and will sell for
less than $2000."
 
        This reference to the TT is the only thing he says about the
Hannover show. True, this wasn't a front page article, but maybe things
aren't beyond hope for Atari if they can get some attention in a
publication that describes itself as "THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER OF CORPORATE
MICROCOMPUTING". (Being a Canadian, I will give them the benefit of the
doubt and assume that by _national_, they mean _not-regional_, and don't
mean U.S.A.)
 
        I just thought there might be some interest.
 
 
Steve
 
clark@mshri.utoronto.ca  (Internet)
sinai@utoroci            (Netnorth/Bitnet)
 
"Nothing in biology makes sense except in the context of evolution"
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 11 Apr 90 01:30:16 GMT
From: haven!wam!dmb@louie.udel.edu  (David M. Baggett)
Subject: play.arc on terminator
Message-ID: <1990Apr11.013016.21118@wam.umd.edu>
 
>
>  Has anyone been able to successfully un-arc play.arc on terminator. Everytime
>I d/l it and try and unarc it there is garbage in the archive.
 
Perhaps it's been munged.  I'll upload it again; look for play2.arc.
 
Dave Baggett
dmb@cscwam.umd.edu
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 10 Apr 90 22:00:14 GMT
From: chinet!saj@gargoyle.uchicago.edu  (Stephen Jacobs)
Subject: Spectrum picture posting:A call to arms!
Message-ID: <1990Apr10.220014.3240@chinet.chi.il.us>
 
In article <9004081735.AA08871@jade.berkeley.edu> WSCART01@ULKYVX.BITNET writes:
>
>OK, I am sure to make some people happy and to forever piss others off.
>In that vain, i was wondering if people would like me to post some
>spectrum pictures here. Most of you fall into two groups:
 
I'd like the pictures, but I don't want non-text postings in this newsgroup.
The standard way to handle this kind of thing is to make a mailing list...
I'm not exactly sure, but I think that just means setting up a mail alias
and sending the stuff to the alias.  Or you might set up a group in the alt
hierarchy: alt.pictures.spectrum, perhaps.  Of course, even some people who
wanted them might find an alt group hard to get.
                                Steve J.
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 10 Apr 90 19:44:23 GMT
From: sdd.hp.com!hp-pcd!hplsla!andyc@think.com  (Andy Cassino)
Subject: Welltris for the ST?
Message-ID: <5440113@hplsla.HP.COM>
 
Has anyone heard whether Spectrum Holobyte has "Welltris" (3-dimensional
Tetris) in the works for the ST? I played it on a friend's PC the other
day and I stand ready to buy it the second it's available!
 
    %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
    % Andy Cassino                                                  %
    % uucp: hplabs!hplsla!andyc  domain: andyc%hplsla@hplabs.hp.com %
    % Hewlett-Packard              Lake Stevens Instrument Division %
    % 8600 Soper Hill Road                   Everett, WA 98205-1298 %
    % (206) 335-2211                                                %
    %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
 
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End of INFO-ATARI16 Digest V90 Issue #435
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