Hi Brian, Thanks for the details, it'll take me a while to work through this, but it sounds believable and achievable. I have purchased one of the ideal cables you mention. If I understand correctly, the ideal cable should work fine hooked up between my dell and the m100 because the dell has a db-9 serial port. My mac on the other hand doesn't so I require a USB-Serial adapter to make like the Mac has a DB-9 serial port? Then, I should be able to start talking to the m100 via the ideal cable and USB-Serial connector plus any gender changer needed between cable and USB-Serial adapter, right?
As for the TPDD stuff, once I get the cables sorted out, I will work on bootstrapping and getting the client on the M100 and a server for my mac. Thanks, Will On Tue, Sep 27, 2022 at 8:23 AM Brian White <b.kenyo...@gmail.com> wrote: > I've documented some all-in-one correctly wired serial cables, and what > makes them special, to go from a pc to a 100 here: > http://tandy.wiki/Model_T_Serial_Cable > > And the most convenient way to move files is with a tpdd emulator, or at > least a bootstrapper. It's not convenient that you have to install a tpdd > client, but it addresses a couple major points: > > 1 There is no binary-safe way to transfer data in the stock rom except > cassette tape. You need some other added software to do it. You could > install an xmodem app but tpdd is more convenient and the smallest tpdd > client is smaller. > > 2 Even for plain text data, nothing in the stock rom really does this in a > way that cleanly begins and ends a file. You just manually start capturing > in telcom or in basic, and then stop capturing, and it's up to you to > ensure there is not a single byte of extra junk before or after the actual > file contents. > > tpdd is a file transfer protocol and handles binary or text data equally, > and the file is always a clean verbatim copy like you expect from any other > file transfer method. It also checksums each 128-byte packet during the > transfer which again a plain text telcom transfer does not do. (TPDD is a > disk peripheral that connects by serial, which we now just emulate on the > server side and use the existing disk operating software on the client side) > > So all in all, it's invaluable to install a tpdd client and run a tpdd > server on your pc. > > There is another process for doing a one-time transfer which is usually > used to bootstrap installing a tpdd client, since a tpdd client app is > itself a binary program that needs to be transferred somehow, before you > have it installed to do exactly that job... > > Bootstrapping just simplifies the serial port stuff as much as possible so > there is less room for the user to get some detail wrong, and relies on the > binary payload being packaged up into a loader, which is a BASIC program > that contains a text encoded version of the binary as a big data payload > and a small program that knows how to create the binary from the data. > > Bootstrapping is most commonly used to install a tpdd client but it's > generically useful to transfer and run (or just transfer and save) any > BASIC program, because the sending side is very simple and the receiving > side doesn't require anything extra not part of the system rom on the 100. > IE you can do it even right after a hard reset that wipes everything. > > And for ultimate quality of life, just get a REX#. It allows to have the > best tpdd client in rom where it survives resets, does not consume precious > ram, and doesn't even consume the single option rom slot, becuase REX# is > an on-board option rom library not just one rom. So you can have all the > option roms. > > Now to define all those terms... > > For tpdd servers, there are several, but the two you are interested in are > LaddieAlpha and dlplus, as they are both current and usable on mac. > http://tandy.wiki/TPDD_server > > <http://tandy.wiki/TPDD_Server> > For tpdd clients, there are several, but the 2 most interesting are TS-DOS > and TEENY. TS-DOS is most full featured and user friendly, but it also > consumes a lot of ram if you need to use the ram version. TEENY is teeny, > but also the very definition of the absolute minimum necessary > functionality. > http://tandy.wiki/TPDD_client <http://tandy.wiki/TPDD_Client> > > For bootstrapping from mac, dlplus includes a bootstrap function and also > comes bundled with all the tpdd client loaders. There is also a bootstrap > function in pdd.sh which is a tpdd client bash script, but on mac it needs > a newer bash from macports or homebrew etc. Or, the function is simple so > it could be extracted out to a simple standalone script and be compatible > with the stock osx bash. > > Everything I said that works from mac also works from linux and even > freebsd. > > Links to everything I mentioned are on those two pages above, and REX# is > http://bitchin100.com/wiki/index.php?title=REXsharp > -- > bkw > > On Mon, Sep 26, 2022 at 8:24 PM Will Senn <will.s...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> So, I've read up and looked around for this and haven't found quite the >> answer I was looking for, so I'm asking here (don't worry, I'm not gonna >> eternally spam y'all, but I've got these initial questions...). >> >> I've got a Mac Pro (big honking Mac machine from 2010 with 6, 3 ghz intel >> xeon processors, and a boatload of ram along with a 30 inch display) >> running Monterey (latest -1). I'm entirely comfortable with the Unix that >> lies underneath and have several FreeBSD and Linux boxes around the house. >> >> I'm using Minicom to talk with my PAL-1 (a KIM-1 clone), my Raspberry Pi, >> and my beaglebone black. So, I'm reasonable comfortable, but by no means >> expert, on talking to devices over serial. >> >> I believe that I ought to be able to hook up a Male DB-25 to the M100, >> connect that to a null modem cable and that to a DB-9 to USB adapter that >> is attached to my Mac Pro's usb port and fire up Minicom to send and >> receive ascii files to and from the M100... but, honestly, it's just >> conjecture at this point. I'll have to find the DB-25, null-modem adapter, >> and DB-9 to USB adapter in the correct genders to make the hypothetical >> connection real. In the meantime, here's the question - does what I've >> suggested sound rational and likely to succeed or am I missing some key >> idea in the M100 to modern computer hookup equation? >> >> Thanks, >> >> Will >> >
