[Coco] NitrOS9 LEVEL 2 running on Multicomp

[Dave Philipsen]

That is really cool, Neal.  I am looking forward to seeing it when you 
get it ready for release.  I have a couple of different boards I'm 
playing with that I'd like to try it on.  The first one I'd like to try 
is the Cyclone IVb: Cyclone IVb 
<https://www.retrobrewcomputers.org/doku.php?id=boards:sbc:multicomp:cycloneiv-b:start>
mentioned on the retrobrew site.  Have you run yours through any paces 
yet?  The IVb board has 3 serial ports, VGA, keyboard, 1MB 55ns RAM, and 
ESP8266.  The only thing I wish it had was an RTC but I may hand-wire a 
module to it.

I assume you have left out GrfDrv and the windowing system.  Also, have 
you modified the VGA interface to accept OS9 display codes instead of 
the ANSI?

Dave




On 4/6/2017 2:09 AM, Neal Crook wrote:
> Dave,
>
> thanks for an excellent summary.
>
> News update: I now have the L2 port running on real hardware (I tried to
> post a photo but, of course, it bounced: too big)
>
> Neal.
>
> On 5 April 2017 at 19:23, Dave Philipsen <dave at davebiz.com> wrote:
>
>> So multicomp is actually a multi-computer design in vhdl of a 6502, 6809,
>> and Z80 CPU with PS/2 keyboard, VGA output, and memory. It was designed so
>> that even a novice could piece together a system by picking and choosing
>> the parts that he wants to include. Neal's link showed a Cyclone II and a
>> few other boards. Shortly after I discovered the Multicomp a couple of
>> years ago I ported it to the DE1 and even another Cyclone IV board not
>> mentioned on the retrobrew site.
>>
>> For us as CoCo enthusiasts the attraction is primarily to run a 6809-based
>> computer which is not necessarily CoCo-based. However, the 6809 version of
>> Multicomp has the ability to run a modified version of the Microsoft BASIC
>> that was used in the CoCo albeit without the graphics modes and some other
>> features.  If you have a penchant for the 6809 this is a fun project and
>> could even be used as the basis for serious embedded projects.
>>
>> The multicomp design is really just a starting point since the SD card was
>> left incomplete, or at least Grant did not provide any software to support
>> it and there was no easy way to load/save programs from the BASIC
>> interpreter.  There were also some little 'bugs' here and there that have
>> been fixed.  Neal's design takes the multicomp a step further and makes it
>> possible to run NitrOS9 Level 2.  So essentially what you have is  a fast,
>> compact, expandable 6809 computer that is not necessarily CoCo 3 compatible
>> but shares some design elements with it.
>>
>> The cool thing about the project (and actually the CoCo3FPGA project too)
>> is that with the hardware and software source codes and a little hardware
>> hacking you can actually morph this into your own personal project.  So
>> let's say Neal gets this all finished and posts the final design.  You
>> could take it and port it to whatever FPGA platform you wanted (an Altera
>> DE1 for example) and then add things to it or modify it.  Maybe you want an
>> OS9 computer with 16 serial ports or maybe you want an 800x600 VGA display
>> so you can have a 100x37 text mode.  Or maybe you want a few midi ports or
>> you want to add a temperature sensor or an LCD display.  All within the
>> realm of possibility.  A custom made 6809 computer with a little more
>> horsepower under the hood than a CoCo.
>>
>>
>> Dave Philipsen
>>
>>
>>
>> Dave Philipsen
>>> On Apr 5, 2017, at 12:30 PM, Neal Crook <foofoobedoo at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> See:
>>>
>>> https://www.retrobrewcomputers.org/doku.php?id=boards:sbc:multicomp:
>> cycloneii-c:start
>>>> On 5 Apr 2017 18:22, "rcrislip" <rcrislip at neo.rr.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, 4 Apr 2017 20:44:41 +0100
>>>> Neal Crook <foofoobedoo at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> "Official release" (ie in the sourceforge vault) is probably a couple
>>>>> of months away. I will release an SD-card image snapshot once we have
>>>>> it up and running successfully on real hardware - maybe a couple of
>>>>> weeks, spare time permitting
>>>>>
>>>>> Neal.
>>>>>
>>>>> On 2 April 2017 at 01:15, Kip Koon <computerdoc at sc.rr.com> wrote:
>>>> <huge snip 8-)>
>>>>
>>>> /Ignorance on/
>>>>
>>>> what is Multicomp? TIA
>>>>
>>>> /Ignorance off/
>>>>
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