E.R.I.C. cart (Electronic Retail Information Center)

[AtariGeezer]

Those bars are from the $A000-$A7FF block of $FF's which happen to be where 2 Display Lists are pointing to

[Savetz]

 

Did you Swap the LOW and HIGH ROMs yet?

 

Your still getting that Display List code in your 16k dumps

Try just using the cart dumper ATR and save the 16k directly to that and post the ATR, that way we can see what's happening...

 

 

I didn't swap them — I'd hate to break pins.

 

I DID just use the cart dumper ATR and save directly to that ATR. Then I pulled the file off using Atari800MacX.

 

Kevin

[AtariGeezer]

There doesn't appear to be any corrosion on the pins, so removing them gently should be okay.

 

Which version of the Cart Dumper are you using?

[Savetz]

There doesn't appear to be any corrosion on the pins, so removing them gently should be okay.

 

Which version of the Cart Dumper are you using?

 

 

D501 00 - 1999. Nir told me to use that one.

 

Kevin

Edited May 8, 2017 by Savetz

[AtariGeezer]

Try one of these...

cartdump.atr

Cartridge Dumper 2.0 (2001)(Jindroush)(Cz).atr

 

[Savetz]

I had let this project drop.

 

Here we are almost exactly a year later. I have now acquired an E.R.I.C. laserdisc, and have the hardware setup to control it from the Atari. I searched for info on the software to control it, and found this thread that I had forgotten about.

 

So, if I understand this, even with the "corrected" cart we're still missing some data. I believe I need to swap the ROMs, and put them in another cart that has two 2732's re-dump. Is that right?

 

Can someone recommend a common cart that meets that specification?

 

thanks

—Kevin

[AtariGeezer]

Dp you have any Epyx carts like this? They have 2 2732's...

[Defender II]

I had let this project drop.

 

Here we are almost exactly a year later. I have now acquired an E.R.I.C. laserdisc, and have the hardware setup to control it from the Atari. I searched for info on the software to control it, and found this thread that I had forgotten about.

 

So, if I understand this, even with the "corrected" cart we're still missing some data. I believe I need to swap the ROMs, and put them in another cart that has two 2732's re-dump. Is that right?

 

Can someone recommend a common cart that meets that specification?

 

thanks

—Kevin

 

Do you have the list of hardware you are using?

Do you have the floppy diskette someone mentioned for it?

[Savetz]

I do have some EPYX carts. Will use one. Thanks.

 

Dp you have any Epyx carts like this? They have 2 2732's...

[Savetz]

 

Do you have the list of hardware you are using?

Do you have the floppy diskette someone mentioned for it?

 

My hardware: 850 interface connected to a Pioneer LD-V2200 laserdisc player (there are a few Pioneers models that will work) via a custom serial cable. I have figured out how to control the laserdisc player via BASIC. I know Atari's kiosk setup also used a Pioneer laserdisc player, but don't know for sure if it was the same configuration using the 850. So I don't know if the cart will end up running the disc properly, even if I had the floppy disk. But it's worth dumping the cart anyway. Perhaps we can reverse engineer it to figure out what it expects on the floppy.

 

Even if I can't get it to work using the cart, it should be trivial to recreate the E.R.I.C. kiosk experience using a BASIC program that I'll write.

 

—Kevin

[AtariGeezer]

I do have some EPYX carts. Will use one. Thanks.

 

Scratch that, those are 2764's in those. I've seen 2732's in some recently, will check....

[+Nezgar]

Kevin, I saw you were active in a recent facebook thread where someone else also seems to have a cart PCB with these EPROMS.

 

I seem to gather from this thread there is some debate as to whether your PCB board the EPROMS are mounted in is fully functioning/compatible with the chips... Since these are 2732 EPROM's they're easier to dump since its a common/better supported type. I have the TL866 burner, its as cheap as $45 free shipping from china/ebay with no adapters and it supports this chip. (eg https://www.ebay.com/itm/180926954184) I don't think there's mac software for it though. I have used this burner to read/write 2732's for my 1050's ie for US Doubler.

 

I'll make the same offer I did on the FB thread to the other guy, if you want to mail it to me (I'm in Canada, but they're small and should still fit in a letter-mail type envelope, maybe ditch the PCB and stick them in antistatic foam if you have any ) I would dump the 2 chips with my hardware and then mail them back, with extra copies burned if you like...

[Savetz]

Kevin, I saw you were active in a recent facebook thread where someone else also seems to have a cart PCB with these EPROMS.

 

I seem to gather from this thread there is some debate as to whether your PCB board the EPROMS are mounted in is fully functioning/compatible with the chips... Since these are 2732 EPROM's they're easier to dump since its a common/better supported type. I have the TL866 burner, its as cheap as $45 free shipping from china/ebay with no adapters and it supports this chip. (eg https://www.ebay.com/itm/180926954184) I don't think there's mac software for it though. I have used this burner to read/write 2732's for my 1050's ie for US Doubler.

 

I'll make the same offer I did on the FB thread to the other guy, if you want to mail it to me (I'm in Canada, but they're small and should still fit in a letter-mail type envelope, maybe ditch the PCB and stick them in antistatic foam if you have any ) I would dump the 2 chips with my hardware and then mail them back, with extra copies burned if you like...

 

Thanks for the offer, but I'm not going to trust a rare cart to the perils of international shipping. It should be possible to dump it myself, or at least more local to me.

 

-Kevin

[Savetz]

I spent the weekend writing a BASIC program called E.R.I.C. POP #1 player. It does what the E.R.I.C. cart does: play the interactive POP videodisc from an Atari computer. it probably doesn't work EXACTLY like the E.R.I.C. cart, but unlike the cart (which hasn't been dumped yet) my BASIC version can be easily modified.

 

You probably can't run this because it requires a Pionner LD-V4400 or compatible laserdisc player, E.R.I.C. POP #1 laserdisc, and Atari 850.

 

If you have all that, the software is attached.

 

ERIC.atr

ERICPOP.TXT

 

I may make a video of it in action. I will definitely be showing this off at the some vintage computer show eventually.

 

My next thing will be to try to control a DVD player via serial. If that works with proper exact frame control, I should be able to copy the E.R.I.C. laserdisc to DVD then modify my program to run from DVD. Industrial DVD players with serial control are a lot easier to find than E.R.I.C. laserdiscs.

 

—Kevin

 

 

[Savetz]

Oh, here's a frame-by-frame scene breakdown of the E.R.I.C. POP #1 laserdisc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sKoIZE6eSeove81hqnm2pnDaBodS6G0lbaYlHEQZA2o/edit?usp=sharing

[Savetz]

 

My next thing will be to try to control a DVD player via serial. If that works with proper exact frame control, I should be able to copy the E.R.I.C. laserdisc to DVD then modify my program to run from DVD. Industrial DVD players with serial control are a lot easier to find than E.R.I.C. laserdiscs.

 

—Kevin

 

 

 

 

Ooh, it works. It works really well. With barely any changes to my program, it can now play the E.R.I.C. demo from DVD, using a Pioneer DVD-V8000 DVD player connected to an 850 interface. This model of DVD player is easier to acquire and more reliable than a Laserdisc player, and the DVDs can be easily copied, unlike laserdiscs. Accessing data on the DVD is faster than the laserdisc, too.

 

ERIC.atr

ericdvd.txt

 

I will make the E.R.I.C. video available on DVD for $10+cost of shipping to anyone who proves to me already have the DVD-V8000 player.

 

—Kevin

 

 

 

 

Edited June 5, 2018 by Savetz

[NISMOPC]

Will this work with any RS232 capable DVD player?

[Savetz]

Will this work with any RS232 capable DVD player?

 

 

The program as written assumes the Pioneer serial protocol. (eg FR12345SE to search to a particular frame number.) I don't know if other brands follow the same protocol, but doubt it.

 

—Kevin

[KLund1]

Here is a video about Atari's Cyan Engineering. Near the beginning they talk about why they made this video disk. Though they do not call it ERIC.

 

ERIC POP number #2 (XL version) here, just the video not the disk.

 

They show what looks like a 1200XL on the desk, but video #2 shows equipment choices 600XL, 800XL, 1400XL, 1450XLD. So are they really using a 1400XL in the demo?

[Savetz]

Nice.

 

I'd like to make a version of the ERIC POP Player that works with #2, but I'm going to wait to get my hands on the laserdisc so I can digitize it myself, or at least for someone to make a higher-quality digitized version.

[Curt Vendel]

Kevin,

 

Just came by this old thread. I have the source codes to the ERIC and also versions that run Space Ace and Dragons Lair, I'll be making ATRs of them and posting this week.

[+Mr Robot]

Really glad to see you back and feeling well, Curt

[+Brentarian]

Kevin,

 

Just came by this old thread. I have the source codes to the ERIC and also versions that run Space Ace and Dragons Lair, I'll be making ATRs of them and posting this week.

Very cool! How did the Space Ace and Dragon's Lair versions come about? I bet we can get Dragon's Lair working with the 20th Annv. DVD on the V8000. Not sure the scenes are in the same order as the LD, but that shouldn't be too hard to account for. Looking forward to you posting those. Thanks!

[+Nezgar]

Man, from a preservation perspective though, I'd still sure like to get those original cart ROM's dumped... Since Kevin's not willing to mail the ROM's/Cart, I've been trying to think of another solution that is as simple as possible since it seems the logic chip in the existing PCB may the culprit of the 'dead areas' in the dumps.

 

2732's seem to be uncommon on an Atari cartridge PCB. Looking around, there is such thing as a 2x2532 ROM cart PCB, but not 2x2732 at B&C/MyAtari. I don't have the BEST catalog handy at the moment to check, but it seems an unlikely combo there too.

 

So: I have these 2732-->2532 adapter PCB's from Brian Brzezicki aka "Pengoland" who runs arcade-cabinets.com. With these, you could individually take each 2732 EPROM one at a time, and plug it into an 8K 2x2332 cart PCB, for example Atari BASIC brown shell cart. The 4K will mirror twice across the 8K cartridge space in the Atari, but with a separate dump for each chip, the whole 8K can be reassembled afterwards.

 

http://www.arcade-cabinets.com/board_hacks/2732-to-2532/

 

He sells them via Etsy normally, but there's none listed at this time, so I don't know if he's truly out of stock. There's a contact link on the site.

 

Kevin, if he is out of stock, I'm willing to send you one of my assembled adapters if you're wiling to give it a try.

[Curt Vendel]

All of the development disks with the source code and compiled usable code for the Atari ERIC laserdisc system (including code for ERIK II, Dragons Lair and Space Ace) have been posted up on the new section under the newly redone Atari 400/800 computer section of the Atari Museum. Still a lot of work in progress on that section, but it'll all be completed in the next 2 weeks:

http://www.atarimuseum.com/computers/8BITS/400800/ERIC/index.html