[Coco] Newly Restored FHL Color Computer FLEX 5.0:4 now Available!

Fri Jun 9 06:00:01 EDT 2023

On 6/9/23 02:01, Michael R. Furman via Coco wrote:
> ========================================================================
> 		 Obsolete Computer Systems - Announcement
> 			   General Availability
> 			      Newly Restored
> 			 Color Computer FLEX 5.0:4
> 			from Frank Hogg Laboratory
> ========================================================================
> 
> 
Never had it, I went with os9 when I discovered the coco in '85. All I 
can say is WOW!!

> The FLEX single-user Operating System initially released by Technical
> System Consultants in 1978 was the most widely adopted operating system for
> Motorola 6800 and 6809 systems.  FLEX has a large catalog of applications
> including: word processors, spreadsheets, general business applications,
> and many editors, assemblers, tools, and programming languages.  Frank Hogg
> Laboratory brought FLEX to the Color computer in 1982, almost a full year
> before Microware's OS-9 came to the CoCo in 1983.  FLEX was largely
> forgotten in favor of the more powerful and flexible OS-9.  While not
> completely lost in the modern age the existing versions available in the
> archives were not runnable.  Today Obsolete Computer Systems is happy to
> announce the General Availability of the newly restored Color Computer FLEX
> 5.0:4 from Frank Hogg Laboratory.  These have been imaged from physical
> disks in the Obsolete Comptuer Systems (MikeyN6IL) collection and restored
> to formats which are usable for CoCo users in the 21st century, including:
> XRoar emulator, on a real CoCo with a CoCo SDC or Floppy Drive, or even
> right in your web browser!
> 
> Link to this announcement:
> http://www.ocs.net/2023/06/08/general-availability-of-fhl-color-flex-5-04/
> 
> 
> ========================================================================
> Table of Contents
> ========================================================================
> 
> 0. QuickStart
> 1. Background
> 2. FLEXing the Color Computer YouTube Series
> 3. Frank Hogg Labs Color FLEX 5.0:4
> 4. Frank Hogg Labs Color Utilities
> 5. Frank Hogg Labs "ED" Editor
> 6. Technical Systems Consultants Extended BASIC
> 
> ========================================================================
> 0. QuickStart
> ========================================================================
> 
> a. Run a FLEX Demo Right in your Web Browser!  Go to:
> 
>      http://flex.ocs.net
> 
> And click on the first link "Live Demo"
> 
> b. Download the zip file from the Internet Archive:
> 
> https://archive.org/details/color-flex-5.0.4-frank-hogg-laboratory
> 
> c. Using with XRoar
> 
> Use XRoar 1.4 or later.  Set up to run as a CoCo and use the DMK format
> disk images.  To start FLEX type:
> 
>      RUN "FLEX
> 
> d. Using with a CoCo SDC
> 
> Copy the SDF disk iamges to your SD Card.  Use SDCX or DRIVE commands to
> attach the disk images.  To start FLEX type:
> 
>      RUN "FLEX
> 
> e. Using with physical disks
> 
> Use a GreaseWeazle, FluxEngine or similar to write the SCP Flux images to
> make exact copies of the disks.  Both 5.25" and Double-Density(720k) 3.5"
> disks may be used.  To start FLEX type:
> 
>      RUN "FLEX
> 
> f. Additional FLEX Software available:
> 
> https://archive.org/details/color-utilities-flex-frank-hogg-laboratory
> https://archive.org/details/ed-editor-flex-frank-hogg-laboratory
> https://archive.org/details/extended-6809-basic-flex-technical-systems-consultants
> 
> ========================================================================
> 1. Background
> ========================================================================
> 
> While there have been disk images for FLEX floating around the interwebs
> for some time, if you tried to use these images they simply would not work.
> The reason why is FLEX has unique disk formatting with a Single-Density(FM)
> track 0 containing 10-sectors and the rest of the tracks are
> Double-Density(MFM) containing 18-sectors.  Most emulators by default do
> not expect this.  They default to having all of the sectors of the disk
> uniformly formatted with the same number of sectors on every track.  When
> FLEX tries to access Track 0 it fails because of this assumption.
> 
> To restore these disk images, I simply had to correct the formatting issues
> and provide the disk images in useful formats which maintain the proper
> formatting.
> 
> I have gone over the restoration process in detail in a YouTube Video:
> 
> https://youtu.be/Uj2AK9lkVe0
> 
> ========================================================================
> 2. FLEXing the Color Computer YouTube Series
> ========================================================================
> 
> For more information please see one of my YouTube videos:
> 
> PlayList:
> https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKZPh42EUcynotoZhJ6Z7dN0DUDfs2OaU
> 
> MikeyN6IL's VLOG $0D: FLEXing the CoCo Ep.1: History::
> https://youtu.be/wxjyv4LzXe8
> 
> MikeyN6IL's VLOG $0E: FLEXing the CoCo Ep.2: Editing and Assembling
> https://youtu.be/XD7kG-iluwE
> 
> MikeyN6IL's VLOG $0F: FLEXing the CoCo Ep.3: Restoration
> https://youtu.be/Uj2AK9lkVe0
> 
> MikeyN6IL's VLOG $10: FLEXing the CoCo Ep 4: Artifacts
> https://youtu.be/E30y-yEvGDE
> 
> MikeyN6IL's VLOG $11: FLEXing the CoCo Ep 5: Release
> https://youtu.be/uBkrlUfA_5Q
> 
> 
> ========================================================================
> 3. Frank Hogg Labs Color FLEX 5.0:4
> ========================================================================
> 
> https://archive.org/details/color-utilities-flex-frank-hogg-laboratory
> 
> This package contains FHL Color FLEX 5.0:4 copied from a physical
> floppy disk found in MikeyN6IL's Collection.
> 
> The same disk image is provided in 3 different formats: SCP, DMK, and SDF
> 
> Note that DSK or IMA format sector images are not provided because they are
> not useful on a CoCo.  HxCFlopyEmulator Software or Mikey's dmk tool can be
> used to create them.
> 
> ---
> Package Contents::
> 
> fhl_flex_5_0_4.scp
> 	The SCP image was made from a physical disk using a GreaseWeazle
> 
> fhl_flex_5_0_4.DMK
> 	DMK conversion of above.  This is usable in XRoar and Emulators.
> 
> fhl_flex_5_0_4.SDF
> 	SDF conversion of above for the CoCoSDC
> 
> ---
> Also in this package:::
> 
> fhl_flex_5_0_4.png
> 	Image of the original floppy disk
> 
> 
> =======================================================================
> 4. Frank Hogg Labs Color Utilities
> ========================================================================
> 
> https://archive.org/details/color-utilities-flex-frank-hogg-laboratory
> 
> This package contains FHL Color Utilities copied from a physical floppy
> disk found in MikeyN6IL's Collection.
> 
> The same disk image is provided in 3 different formats: SCP, DMK, and SDF
> 
> Note that DSK or IMA format sector images are not provided because they are
> not useful on a CoCo.  HxCFlopyEmulator Software or Mikey's dmk tool can be
> used to create them.
> 
> ---
> Package Contents::
> 
> fhl_color_utilities.scp
> 	The SCP image was made from a physical disk using a GreaseWeazle
> 
> fhl_color_utilities.DMK
> 	DMK conversion of above.  This is usable in XRoar and Emulators.
> 
> fhl_color_utilities.SDF
> 	SDF conversion of above for the CoCoSDC
> 
> ---
> Also in this package:::
> 
> fhl_color_utilities.png
> 	Image of the original floppy disk
> 
> 
> ========================================================================
> 5. Frank Hogg Labs "ED" Editor
> ========================================================================
> 
> https://archive.org/details/ed-editor-flex-frank-hogg-laboratory
> 
> This package contains FHL "ED" Editor copied from a physical floppy disk
> found in MikeyN6IL's Collection.
> 
> The same disk image is provided in 3 different formats: SCP, DMK, and SDF
> 
> Note that DSK or IMA format sector images are not provided because they are
> not useful on a CoCo.  HxCFlopyEmulator Software or Mikey's dmk tool can be
> used to create them.
> 
> ---
> Package Contents::
> 
> fhl_ed.scp
> 	The SCP image was made from a physical disk using a GreaseWeazle
> 
> fhl_ed.DMK
> 	DMK conversion of above.  This is usable in XRoar and Emulators.
> 
> fhl_ed.SDF
> 	SDF conversion of above for the CoCoSDC
> 
> ---
> Also in this package:::
> 
> fhl_ed.png
> 	Image of the original floppy disk
> 
> 
> 
> ========================================================================
> 6. Technical Systems Consultants Extended BASIC
> ========================================================================
> 
> https://archive.org/details/extended-6809-basic-flex-technical-systems-consultants
> 
> This package contains TSC Extended BASIC copied from a physical
> floppy disk found in MikeyN6IL's Collection.
> 
> The same disk image is provided in 3 different formats: SCP, DMK, and SDF
> 
> Note that DSK or IMA format sector images are not provided because they are
> not useful on a CoCo.  HxCFlopyEmulator Software or Mikey's dmk tool can be
> used to create them.
> 
> ---
> Package Contents::
> 
> tsc_extended_basic.scp
> 	The SCP image was made from a physical disk using a GreaseWeazle
> 
> tsc_extended_basic.DMK
> 	DMK conversion of above.  This is usable in XRoar and Emulators.
> 
> tsc_extended_basic.SDF
> 	SDF conversion of above for the CoCoSDC
> 
> ---
> Also in this package:::
> 
> tsc_extended_basic.png
> 	Image of the original floppy disk
> 
> 
> 

Cheers, Gene Heskett.
-- 
"There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty:
  soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order."
-Ed Howdershelt (Author, 1940)
If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable.
  - Louis D. Brandeis
Genes Web page <http://geneslinuxbox.net:6309/>