=========================================================================
 
INFO-ATARI16 Digest         Sun, 14 Jan 90       Volume 90 : Issue   43
 
Today's Topics:
              CO-Processors---(Atari!) ARE NICE PEOPLE!
MC68881 trap handler wanted (Was: CO-Processors--MOTOROLA ARE NICE PEOP
                             PC Emulators
                           Sound question.
                              TOS 1.6...
                        TOS 1.6 and the 68030
                          Turbo C/ST: Update
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Date: Mon, 15 Jan 90 00:33:12 SET
From: VBRANDT%DBNUAMA1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: CO-Processors---(Atari!) ARE NICE PEOPLE!
 
Hello all,
 
In Info-Atari16 Digest #40, mcsun!ukc!newcastle.ac.uk!tadhg!chris@uunet.uu.net
(Chris Forker - Nav  Arch-) said:
 
>You mention that the Alcyon C compiler uses the 68881 if it is there,
>otherwise the software emulation. How does it manage this. With
>Prospero's compilers, ( I use Fortran & Pascal ), the result will be a
>bus error on machines with no 68881. Does TOS1.4 have some trap that I
>can call from Fortan or Pascal which will indicate the presence of a
>68881 ??
 
No, there is no such trap.  The correct way to test for a 68881 is to redirect
the error handler, then try to reset the 68881.  If your program continues
normally, there is a 68881 present.  If the error handler is called, there is
none.  Then all you have to do is to reset the error handler.
 
The Alcyon compiler does not do any 68881 checking.  There simply is a library
provided that replaces the original software floating-point library.
 
If you need software that checks for an 68881 and runs unchanged on systems
with AND without FPU, check out Turbo C/ST by Borland.  It has that feature
built in, without the need to buy additional libraries (such as the Prospero
lib, which costs about as much as the entire Turbo C !!!)
 
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Date: Sun, 14 Jan 90 23:59:04 SET
From: VBRANDT%DBNUAMA1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: MC68881 trap handler wanted (Was: CO-Processors--MOTOROLA ARE NICE PEOP
 
Hello all,
 
In Info-Atari16 digest #31,  dsl.pitt.edu!pitt!cuphub!kar7481@pt.cs.cmu.edu
(Dan Karbowsky;AtariEliteOfPghPa bbs412-384-5609) writes:
 
>I DID call Motorola in Illinois and explain my problem to them.
>...
>       They were VERY responsive; The "Applications note" is a 41-page
>    document CLEARLY WORDED and INCLUDES SAMPLE 68000-ASSEMBLY SOURCE
>     CODE DRIVERS!!!: EVERYTHING SOMEONE WITH A DECENT ELECTRONICS BACKGROUND
>       COULD EVER WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THE CHIP-- Charts, diagrams, pinouts,
>        etc... are given.  My biggest problem is that I wish I had enough
>      time to get used to 68000 machine code ?this VAX drives me nuts?.
>          The source code has about 15 pages!!!
 
Does this include a trap handler for the 68881 that catches those '020/'030
floating-point ops and executes them on an 68000??  If so, could you explain
a little more?  Or is there anyone out there who has this (or any other such)
software on-line or in electronically readable format and could email me a
copy ???  Thanks VERY much!!
 
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------------------------------
 
Date: 14 Jan 90 20:49:59 GMT
From: matthews@umd5.umd.edu  (Mike Matthews)
Subject: PC Emulators
Message-ID: <5946@umd5.umd.edu>
 
In article <1217@jpusa1.UUCP> scott@jpusa1.chi.il.us (Scott Van Court) writes:
>
>Has anyone heard what is going on with the PC Ditto II?
>I'm sure there must be someone that has heard something.  I can't beleive
>I've waited this long.
>--
>scott
 
A user on a local board (local as in Washington DC metropolitan area) has just
received PC Ditto II.  Others on CI$ and GEnie have also, or so I hear.
 
[gee, my system just crashed and burned... wonder if it was my, er, attempts at
GEM programming in Personal Pascal, or those (~&*$% ROM chips again]
 
Mike (wonder if my .signature file still errors out, too)
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 14 Jan 90 22:54:57 GMT
From: bgsuvax!sbrown@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu  (Scott F. Brown)
Subject: Sound question.
Message-ID: <5324@bgsuvax.UUCP>
 
        Well I figured out one of my problems with sound but the next problem
is purely due to lack of being able to find documentation on it.  My question
is what are values that must be placed in Sound registers 0-5 to achieve notes?
I am not musically inclined and I cannot tell by just listening.  To clarify my
question, what values must I use to "hit" certain notes?  Telling me what
values I need to hit certain wavelengths would also be acceptable.  Also, feel
free to include any extra info about sound since I am still learning it.
BTW:  I would prefer the answer to be mailed to me.  Thanks...
 
******************************************************************************
*       - The people of the earth stood waiting                              *
*         Watching as the ships came one by one                              *
*         Setting fire to the sky as they landed                             *
*         Carrying to the world Children of the Sun                          *
*       Billy Thorpe                                                         *
*                                                                            *
*                                               -Scott F. Brown              *
*                                                                            *
*                                              sbrown@andy.bgsu.edu.uucp     *
******************************************************************************
 
------------------------------
 
Date: Mon, 15 Jan 90 00:17:52 SET
From: VBRANDT%DBNUAMA1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: TOS 1.6...
 
Hello all,
 
In Info-Atari16 Digest #39, cs.utexas.edu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!utgpu
!watserv1!watcgl!electro!ignac@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu  (Ignac Kolenko)
writes:
 
>actually, darek mihocka and myself have an STE and we've disassembled the
>exception handlers in TOS 1.6, and sure enough, it checks some
>system variable which tells the software what type of stack frame it can
>expect.
 
This sounds suspiciously like the Cookie Jar.  Interesting...
 
>also, i remember vaguely reading some review in ST world on the STE when
>it was unveiled at the dusseldorf show, and they were saying it was running
>tos 1.6 at the time. but i could be wrong ...
 
This is true.  There are two versions of TOS 1.6 out now, one being a bug fix
release of the other.  I haven't taken more than a quick look at 1.6 yet.
 
PS: Ignac, I still can't get mail to you.  If you still want to have your
QuickST tested with Overscan, I could do that for you.
 
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------------------------------
 
Date: Mon, 15 Jan 90 00:25:52 SET
From: VBRANDT%DBNUAMA1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: TOS 1.6 and the 68030
 
Hello all,
 
In Info-Atari16 Digest #39, crash!pro-grouch.cts.com!bradm@nosc.mil
(Brad Martin) says:
 
>                 I have a friend who works for a company who makes 68030
>boards for 'other' computers who could have an '030 board out for the ST way
>before another well publisized project (Hi Dave :-) ).  ...                  I
>will have to convince them that they want to write the software to make it
>compatable (how would you like to have you ST running at 40mhz?).
 
I have such software.  The only problem is that Atari would have to OK the
distribution of it, which is probably not going to happen.  If you can get
an Atari OK, however, please contact me via email and we'll work something out.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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UUCP:    ...!unido!DBNUAMA1.bitnet!vbrandt             (Bonn, West Germany)
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------------------------------
 
Date: Mon, 15 Jan 90 00:58:47 SET
From: VBRANDT%DBNUAMA1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: Turbo C/ST: Update
 
Hello all,
 
I promised to keep everyone up to date on Turbo C for the ST, and here's some
news on this topic.
 
I called Borland Germany in Munich last friday, and spoke to one of the ST
programmers.  He said if all goes the way it's planned, Turbo C/ST v2.0 and
the source level debugger TD v1.0 will be released in March (1990 :-).
 
That date does *not* apply to the English documentation.  They still haven't
found a producer/publisher/whatever for that.  Sorry, no good news there yet.
 
There are all sorts of new goodies, such as a complete PC-compatible BGI
(= Borland Graphics Interface) implementation.  And TD is a sight to see ...
 
Incidentally, the person I talked to said that Borland Germany got a number
of complaints about the fact that TC/ST is not available in the US.  He
suggested that everyone who would buy TC if there was an official US version
should write to Borland USA and demand an English TC version.  It's entirely
up to Borland USA to make such a version available, Borland Germany is more
than willing.
 
Please remember that all of the above is not official in any way, it's just a
summary of a telephone call (and it might have been a bad line :-).
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bitnet:  VBRANDT@DBNUAMA1 (will go away some day ...)  Volker A. Brandt
          UNM409@DBNRHRZ1 (alternative)                Angewandte Mathematik
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End of INFO-ATARI16 Digest V90 Issue #43
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