testers needed for +D

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C.Born
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testers needed for +D

Post by C.Born »

Hello,
i rewrote the FORMAT routine from the +D discinterface
I dont have a real +D and i only use FUSE as emulator
So i want to ask if people want to TEST my "direct Format" routine, which installs and replaces the normal format routine.

www.cborn.nl/zxfiles/DirectFormat.mgt

it will FORMAT A DISK
so if you use a REAL 48k SPECTRUM
IT WILL REALY FORMAT IT!!!
SO BE CARE FULL NOT TO DESTROY A REAL DISK while testing this routine
i have a tread on WOS aswell, i hope i reach other people here aswell
https://www.worldofspectrum.org/forums/ ... zx-not-128

plz put yr comment down here
thnx
Chris
C.Born
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Posts: 202
Joined: Sat Dec 09, 2017 4:09 pm

:oops: testers needed for +D

Post by C.Born »

I probably have to decline it
i can NOT reproduce the disc i did format before
it keeps crashing al the time....sh!t
I was at first bussy with the debugger of fuse (1.4.1) and even had the speed off fuse on 1%
then the OK message came and i tried it again.
But i did not save the image and cannot check what happend
so , probably
this a blunder , all by myself...
Today i had another problem
suddenly fuse did not recognise any disc as system disc, despite changing them and reseting the system fully
i had to CLOSE fuse and after a restart of fuse itself the system disc did start up again.

thanks for trying, but i am sorry.
but please dont ruin a disk for it !!!
C.Born
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Posts: 202
Joined: Sat Dec 09, 2017 4:09 pm

Re: testers needed for +D

Post by C.Born »

HI,
I have made another attempt, which does give a decent "sector error" mesasage, but its not exactly 'new software'.
Is it possible to move this tread to "development"?

Then it makes sence to link to my latest attempt, which at least does a kind off format, but not correct.
First the asm then:
www.cborn.nl/zxfiles/FORMAT_051_exe.asm
and a disk image for +D
www.cborn.nl/zxfiles/DirectFormat001.mgt

There were are load off stupid mistakes, i hope the bugs left are not that obvious like using a RET, which uses the stack, while builing an 'savestack'. it crossed each other...

I was and i am 'in a struggle' which the E register.
http://www.biehold.nl/rudy/plusd/disk.htm

It is used for 'skew' aswell and i probably need to implement is better.
The following code determines the skew, i.e. the shifting between the sectors of a track
and the previous track. The +D uses a skew of +2, so sector 1 on track T lies adjacent to
sector 9 on track T+1.

0C61 DEC E
0C62 JR NZ,#0C66,FRMT_2 Jump if sector >= 1.
0C64 LD E,10 Sector numbers have range 1..10.
0C66 FRMT_2 DEC E
0C67 JR NZ,#0C6B,FRMT_3 Jump if sector >= 1.
0C69 LD E,10 This instruction is never reached ??
0C6B FRMT_3 JP #0C41,FRMT_TRK Format the next track.
Its a lot af reading if you read both the changed asm and the original.

I hope i am on the right track (pun not intended but nice)
meanwhile i think to have discoverd fuse is not 100% complete in the +D emulation since a general "disk syntax error' message is apperently set for BOTH DISCS at the same time while i only format disk TWO......but that is only AFTER my DF attempt.
If such strange things happend please mention it here and plz just restart your emulator without saving anything

i wish you peace on your path
C.Born
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Posts: 202
Joined: Sat Dec 09, 2017 4:09 pm

Re: testers needed for +D

Post by C.Born »

well, al hapens while using fuse_1.4.1 as emulator, I could save a "direct format" disc and save On it.

but at first its behaviour, (or fuses,) is strange, so i cannot say its a real alternative for the regular format command.
www.cborn.nl/zxfiles/+D_Direct_Format_asm.zip

I start fuse in 48k mode with only +D(2a) and printer attached.
Fuse can import BIN files so imported all files on a NORMAL FORMATED disk and saved it.
Then i execute the special executefile which installs the "Direct Format" routine which is a 90% copy off the main "FORMAT_RUN" routine
I changed 2 routines and i hope the "skew" is done properly now. I thoughed it would be a hardware part, formating another bit of disc, but it apears to be a number_shift only... which does has its influence on hardware USE.

after installing "DF0052eXe"X i can use the standard command "FORMAT d2"
i FIRST remove disc ONE, the system disc, Yes even in the emulator i do so.
Then i press enter and Yes
The normal borderchanges happens after a while (and the disc led indicator lights up)
The full disc apperas to be formated and the OK messages and i can do a normal CAT 2
BUT
if i check the now removed discONE is gives an error and it keeps makeing the "missing disc" error now for BOTH drives. even while just before the CAT 2 gave an OK after showing an empty disc.

if i write on the disc is seems NOT to happen.

now the next challange is to SHOW both 'normal and 'direwct' formatted disc next to each other and show the FULL format, probably just a normal hexviewer ??
C.Born
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Posts: 202
Joined: Sat Dec 09, 2017 4:09 pm

Re: testers needed for +D

Post by C.Born »

Hello people's,

Is there any one who maybe had a look at or maybe even realy has tried the last version of "direct format" ??
and of course if you did, may i ask on what platform?
I want to try it on my XP machine with RealSpectrum emulator but i have to get the parts complete again...tja.
i need to make a testdisk which will format dis 2 and the does a load off disc excersize with saving, verifiing and loading off all possible types/extentions...save"name"X,adres is only 1 of 9.

actualy i have another question as well.
Would the original programmers like Miles or Gordon have intresse for this aproach?
Are they, or other developpers still around?? DIVide is a child from the MGT configuration afaik.
I copy thgis to other fora aswell.
Chris
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