[Coco] Re: Disk Basic and 512 byte block floppies.

[Gene Heskett]

On Monday 19 January 2004 13:22, Ray Watts wrote:
>John E. Malmberg wrote:
>
><snip>
>
>> My OpenVMS system can not read or write 256 byte block sector
>> floppies, and my Microsoft Windows 2000 system can not either. 
>> And apparently the newer Microsoft operating systems can not
>> either.  And I do not want to have to reboot the Microsoft system
>> down to DOS just for reading a floppy image.
>
><snip>
>
>> -John
>> wb8tyw at qsl.net
>> Personal Opinion Only
>
>John,  I just installed VirtualPC Windows 2000 emulator on my Mac,
> then configured the Command Line window and installed the USB
> Superdisk driver.  Haven't had time to  test run it with CoCo disk
> images, etc. When you say you have to reboot down to DOS for
> reading a floppy image I become confused.  Are you saying the
> Command Line window in 2000 Pro is not putting you back into DOS? 

Thats correct.  That looks like a dos shell, but its still in 
protected mode, and cannot directly access the hardware.  Thats been 
a major bone of contention with me in using some of the tools to tune 
up our DVC-PRO tape machines.  I find I must reboot, and catch it at 
the boot prompt, making it run a dos from there before I have any 
access to the $1500 data collection card in the machine.

But, the point is when you try from a dos shell, windows never tells 
you that the operation was denied, and the driver software doesn't 
tell you it can't see the card, it just reports a constant stream of 
data errors.

Squawking at the card vendor or the software supplier does no good, 
they presume you have an old dos-3.2 machine at your disposal just 
for this.  In the real world there isn't even room for the winderz 
box on the bench let alone an old dos box too.  Arrogant B*ds.

> This is an important distinction for me since I run Mac OS 9.1 with
> no command line capability and VirtualPC is my only link to what
> most of you are discussing.  I also plan to use it, if feasable,
> for burning CD's that will run on Mark's/Boisy's Super SCSI CoCo
> CD.
>
>Thanks,     Griz

-- 
Cheers, Gene
"There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap,
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Copyright 2004 by Maurice Eugene Heskett, all rights reserved.