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echo: classic_computer
to: Andy Ball
from: John Guillory
date: 2014-06-03 23:49:42
subject: Re: More Old Stuff

AB>     Yesterday, while I was looking for something else, I
AB> found a box with an Amiga 600 that I brought with me in a backpack when I
AB> moved to the U.S.  I also have a C= 64 that a friend gave me.  I should
AB> probably wire them up to see whether either of them still works.
   I've got a lot of Commodore stuff that I once had a dream of setting up in 
my garage.  Since I've got married, we've yet to make it back to Louisiana to 
move any of the rest of my stuff over, or sell the house.  Just as well in a 
way.  We really don't have room to move the rest of the stuff over.  About the
only way I can see possible is if we tear out the wall between the office and
the spare bed room over here, to expand the office.  I'd kinda hate to do 
that, because as is we already have one of my wife's kids stay off and on in
that room, and we're now keeping one grand child possibly for the summer... 
What I really would love to have over here, and if I could get it working, I'd
bring it and a few other things for it in a heart beat!  I have a C128D and a
CMD 1.6mb 3 1/2" floppy drive that can read IBM 3 1/2" 1.44mb floppy's.  
Actually, it's a 1.44mb Teac with a Commodore compatible controller card 
built into the case!  I did have a C128 that worked as well, and a C64C, but 
The C128D was my favorite!  O.k. so I wouldn't have the place for the 80 
column monitor and the 40 column monitor, as well as the keyboard...  In fact,
I'd be doing good to fit both the 40 column monitor and keyboard on the only 
extra desk I have for it.  But being that it could run CP/M, C128, and C64 
mode from one machine would be the ultimate.  O.k. I know very little about 
the 128 mode.  I got into computers around the end of the CP/M mode, and the
only real CP/M mode I know was small main frames, or at least it appeared to 
be CP/M.  Since I started programming on the 6502/6510 assembler, then quickly
moved to 8086... One would expect the 8080 to be a fairly easy move, but lots 
of things are different.  In fact, the 8080 is actually more closer to some of
the microprocessors, like the PIC, ARM, etc. I guess when Intel made the 8086,
they learned a lot!  The Z80 is definitely another planet for me!  I do 
remember Robert Reagan once telling me that the 8080's serial port (and z80) 
was programmed in a mannor that I later discovered was very simliar to PIC 
microprocessors and other chips.  In that: your baud rate is determined by 
the delay loop you setup between sending bits out to the serial line.  You 
really can program some super funky serial transmissions that way.  It'd be
awesome for in-house designs on systems you control the entire setup, but
for maintaining compatibility.... Forget it!  I mean, if you wanted to, you 
could design a 18,750 baud transfer that would be equiviliant to N,32,0!
Send the bytes backwards if it pleases you!  And CP/M mode would probably
be closest to Linux in a way, but I think if I had good assembler, and could
hash out all the registers of the 8080 and all, I would be able to write a
small CP/M program.  Basically, you act like your writing a ms-dos program,
but every time you use INT 21, you have another instruction.  I think it's 
INTO or something like that.  You definitely don't have the luxary of 4
16-bit registers and 4 16-bit segment registers!  I think you get 1 16-bit
and 2-3 8 bit registers if I'm not mistaken.  

--- Renegade vY2Ka2
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