So I found a 1050...

[zylon]

I've managed to find a 1050 drive for my 600xl. It came in original box with both cords and seems to power up fine. What I need to know is how to use it. I'm familiar with my C= 1541's and commands, but not with Atari. None of the manuals came with the drive. I have 2 dual-system disks to try that have Atari program on one side and C= on the other.

[+Allan]

I've managed to find a 1050 drive for my 600xl. It came in original box with both cords and seems to power up fine. What I need to know is how to use it. I'm familiar with my C= 1541's and commands, but not with Atari. None of the manuals came with the drive. I have 2 dual-system disks to try that have Atari program on one side and C= on the other.

There are a ton of manuals for the 150 on Atarimania.com.

 

http://www.atarimania.com/documents-atari-400-800-xl-xe-manuals_2_8.html

 

Allan

[russg]

I've managed to find a 1050 drive for my 600xl. It came in original box with both cords and seems to power up fine. What I need to know is how to use it. I'm familiar with my C= 1541's and commands, but not with Atari. None of the manuals came with the drive. I have 2 dual-system disks to try that have Atari program on one side and C= on the other.

I don't remember the DOS for C=64. Seems like Commodore doesn't 'boot' like an A8. The Atari needs to boot DOS to do usual things. Or it can boot a boot disk game. The 600xl only has 16K, so it can't boot DOS.

You could buy a boot disk game, maybe that would work on 16K. For your 600XL to be much use, you need to boost the RAM, it is fairly easy to boost to 64K, which will run 99% of A8 utilities and games.

There are 16 meg game compilations that work using a SIO2PC adapter and PC, that would be a possibility, I think they use mypicoDOS, which may boot with 16K. You can run most cartridge games on it.

Edited March 14, 2014 by russg

[+slx]

Basically you need a DOS to allow access to the disc drive (all else being veeeery low level). Switch on the drive first, then insert a DOS disc, close the drive and turn on the computer. If it works you'll here a series of beeps indicating data transfer and your Atari will load the DOS. If you don't do anything else you should end up with a READY prompt and can then type DOS to access the DOS Menu (actually called the "Disk Utility Package"). If you boot the 600XL with the OPTION key depressed it should boot right to the DOS menu.

 

If you use a non-Atari-DOS you might get a prompt (like MS-DOS) instead of the menu.

 

You can use the menu to format a disc and then use commands like SAVE "D:PROGRAM.BAS" to your disc or LOAD "D:PROGRAM.BAS".

 

If you have game discs they probably need to be loaded with the OPTION key depressed (but otherwise as described above). The Atari supports autoboot/autostart and many bootleg game discs have been made with a menu allowing you to select one of several games. (So no more LOAD "*",8,1...)

[+slx]

.For your 600XL to be much use, you need to boost the RAM, it is fairly easy to boost to 64K, which will run 99% of A8 utilities and games.

 

Yeah, 16K won't leave a lot of RAM after DOS is loaded and won't do for many disc based games (and there's no RAM where cracked cartridges load to).

[Bryan]

I don't remember the DOS for C=64. Seems like Commodore doesn't 'boot' like an A8. The Atari needs to boot DOS to do usual things. Or it can boot a boot disk game.

Right. Atari doesn't have a filesystem in the OS, but it can boot from a floppy drive. It's more flexible to not lock the system into a single DOS for all eternity, but it's a little bit more bother to boot DOS before using the drive.

[zylon]

Ok. I saw some DOS disks in a lot of old floppies I bought on Goodwill's auction site. I'll tinker with it more after they arrive. I figured time was right to get a drive since boatloads of old floppies have been up for sale lately for mere pennies.

My old C= commands were pretty simple for just game playing: Load"*",8,1 loaded and auto-ran 1st PRG on disk and Load"$",8 was for disk directory.

My 600xl has the add-on 1064 RAM module, so memory shouldn't be much of an issue.

[Kyle22]

Load"*",8,1 loaded and auto-ran 1st PRG on disk and Load"$",8 was for disk directory.

My 600xl has the add-on 1064 RAM module, so memory shouldn't be much of an issue.

 

(Why is the quote function broken so much of the time here?)

 

The Syntax for Atari BASIC is: LOAD"D:FILENAME.EXT, where D: means disk (default in AtariDOS is D1:, in SpartaDOS-X, it's the currently selected drive), and FILENAME.EXT is an (up to) 8 character filename, and EXT is (up to) 3 character extension.

 

An example would be: LOAD"D:GAME.BAS" or LOAD"D1:GAME.BAS" or for Drive 2, LOAD"D2:GAME.BAS"

 

To load .COM, .EXE, .XEX, .OBJ, and other machine language programs, HOLD OPTION down while turning on machine, and select L (for Load) from the DOS menu, and then type the name of your program. OPTION on boot disables BASIC and frees the RAM in that area, $A000-$BFFF.

 

 

Much more advanced DOSs are available. My favorite is SpartaDOS-X, which operates almost like CP/M and MS-DOS.

 

 

Good luck, and Welcome to Atari

[Paul Westphal]

If you want to just load a disk based game : Turn on the disk drive. Put in game disk, turn lever. Turn on computer. It will auto load. No typing needed. You might need a Translator disk for older 400/800 games.

[Kyle22]

If you want to just load a disk based game : Turn on the disk drive. Put in game disk, turn lever. Turn on computer. It will auto load. No typing needed. You might need a Translator disk for older 400/800 games.

Very true, sorry, forgot about that method. I am more the programmer type than the game type, so I forgot about auto-boot game disks.

 

Just make sure in all cases to turn the disk drive power on FIRST, then load the disk into the drive, then turn the computer on.

[RickR]

Very true, sorry, forgot about that method. I am more the programmer type than the game type, so I forgot about auto-boot game disks.

 

Just make sure in all cases to turn the disk drive power on FIRST, then load the disk into the drive, then turn the computer on.

Hold down the "Option" key when turning on the computer to disable BASIC.

[zylon]

Next I'll need to assume "Fox viewing positions". I tried the above method of turning on computer with disk already in powered up drive and got somewhere with one game, but nowhere with the 2nd disk. I'll try again next time with holding Option.

I've got about 120 disks coming in that previously mentioned lot. Mostly looked like homemade disks.

 

MS DOS? Is that any relation to the one I use in my Tandy 1000?

Edited March 15, 2014 by zylon

[Bryan]

 

(Why is the quote function broken so much of the time here?)

 

If you need to go back and fix some quotes, just put [quote] and [/quote] around it and it'll go into a box...

 

 

 

like this

[Kyle22]

 

MS DOS? Is that any relation to the one I use in my Tandy 1000?

SpartaDOS-X uses MS-DOS style commands, for example DIR REN COPY.

 

It runs Atari programs, like AtariDOS does, but it uses a command line interface like MS-DOS.

 

So, to answer your question, Yes, it is related, but no, it won't run Tandy 1000 programs.

[Kyle22]

 

If you need to go back and fix some quotes, just put

and

around it and it'll go into a box...

 

 

Thanks!

[1050]

I thought zylon was kidding, good one I'm thinking, but I guess not? Youngsters just might NOT know after all I supose, but MS-DOS was the first product that Bill Gates sold to IBM way back when and he got to keep full ownership rights in the deal as he did so. Still boggles my mind as to why IBM went for that deal, they must have been thinking that this skinny geek type guy will never amount to much anyway, give him a cookie already. The rest is history as they say. So MS-DOS wound up loading windows 3 point yuck, again as they say, and all of the 9x windows versions, 95, 98, ME. Micro Soft - MS. Used to be two words, now it's one.

[zylon]

My lot of disks arrived yesterday, over 200 of them. Found a couple DOS disks Atari 2.5 and 3.0 that work and one of my drives doesn't work. That's ok since I only had cables for one. I can only get directories to work on 3.0. 2.5 just gives a sectors free number.

Still haven't been able to load anything from the homemade game disks thus far.

Edited March 16, 2014 by zylon

[RickR]

3.0 and 2.5 aren't compatible. So I'd guess you'd do something like this to load those disks:

1. Put DOS 3.0 in the drive, turn on Atari while holding "option".
2. After DOS is booted, put one of the homemade disks in. Do a directory command, then a load on whatever game you wish to load.

3. Once you get tired of all this, buy an SIO2PC or SIO2SD and enjoy.

The broken drive probably just needs a good head cleaning.

[zylon]

3.0 and 2.5 aren't compatible. So I'd guess you'd do something like this to load those disks:

 

1. Put DOS 3.0 in the drive, turn on Atari while holding "option".

2. After DOS is booted, put one of the homemade disks in. Do a directory command, then a load on whatever game you wish to load.

3. Once you get tired of all this, buy an SIO2PC or SIO2SD and enjoy.

 

The broken drive probably just needs a good head cleaning.

I do have the Maxflash cart setup and Myide II which work great. I'll putz with this some more and hopefully, I can use it for some cool original disks. Not much coin lost in this venture. One of these days, I'll try out the tape loader as well.

This experience has given me a new appreciation for the C=1541 and Apple II disk systems that I learned on.

Edited March 16, 2014 by zylon

[RickR]

I do have the Maxflash cart setup and Myide II which work great. I'll putz with this some more and hopefully, I can use it for some cool original disks. Not much coin lost in this venture. One of these days, I'll try out the tape loader as well.

This experience has given me a new appreciation for the C=1541 and Apple II disk systems that I learned on.

Cool. You have a great attitude. It *is* really fun to fiddle around with these things.

 

I myself grew up on Atari, and have played with the C64 disk drive lately.

[zylon]

Cool. You have a great attitude. It *is* really fun to fiddle around with these things.

 

I myself grew up on Atari, and have played with the C64 disk drive lately.

I've had great success with the new things being made for A8's, but terrible luck with new C= items. last thing I tried was some sort of XU1541 interface.

There's a few more different DOS disks to try including: SpartaDos 1.1 and 2.3. The "broken" drive will get kept for parts or I'll get a manual and try to fix it. My current 600xl is a "saved" piece that I put a cart port in from a 400.

Some of these homemade disks have an AUTORUN program on them. I'm looking into trying those next.

[zylon]

Success! I managed to get the homemade copy of Threshold to work. My attempts at copying it failed, but I'll take a win when I get one.

[zylon]

I think I've got this down well enough for my uses. I've now gotten about 20 game collection disks to work.

 

Thanks, guys.

[pixelmischief]

When it comes to copying, use a sector copier. "Disk Wizard II" is my favorite.