[Coco] Nitros9 and Smartwatch

[Robert Gault]

piperfox74 wrote:
><snip>
> <rant on>
> Regarding software and documentation, I find it a bit odd to argue that any piece of software, no matter how simple, “does not need documentation”. I’d say a pervasive attitude like that in the community could turn away newcomers. I’ve been away from the CoCo seen for a very long time, and I was quite young back in the ‘80s and ‘90s when I was heavily into these computers. I’m eager to get back in, learn as much as I can, and help out others if possible, but the overall lack of consistent documentation for all of the new toys (especially DriveWire and Nitros-9) make this endeavor more of a struggle than it perhaps needs to be.
>
> Regarding the Smartwatch integration in Nitros-9. All I could find was the repository disk image smartwatch.dsk with three executables: getclk, swread and swset. No documentation at all. How is a newcomer supposed to know how these work, and know there’s “no good reason to use getclk”?
>
> I’m not meaning this to sound like I’m jumping on you. I appreciate your help, as I appreciate this entire community of bright, eager people looking to keep the CoCo alive as long as possible. I’m just hoping to express that focusing a bit on documentation and covering those topics that the “old timers” consider common knowledge or too simple to document might encourage more participation and help bring in new people to the community.
> <rant off>, and thank you!
>
> Christopher
>
>

If you are serious about understanding OS-9/NitrOS-9, you will have to do much 
reading and studying. At least go through the Level-2 owner's manual. It looks 
like the manual has been broken up into several parts in the O section of
http://www.colorcomputerarchive.com/coco/Documents/Manuals/Operating%20Systems/

Unfortunately you will find that the OS has evolved since sold by Tandy and many 
of the efforts found in the NitrOS-9 project are undocumented. Getclk seems to 
turn the Smartwatch into a stop watch based on a test I ran today.

Your current problem with the Smartwatch not working has nothing to do with lack 
of documentation. You could determine what is wrong via tests of your hardware 
which is what I asked.
You have shown you can read EPROMS in both sockets of the Disto mini controller. 
That should mean that the Smartwatch would work if plugged correctly into either 
socket and suggest that your Smartwatch may be either damaged or the battery has 
failed.

Robert