Maybe I’ll just bite the bullet and use Minerva
Will build a new MK2 and fit in my main QL
Please don’t waste any more time on this, again apologies for wasting your time
Many thanks
Tony
Floppy Drives with TrumpMini3 Woes
Re: Floppy Drives with TrumpMini3 Woes
This is my guest of what is happening:
The initial idea of RES_128 is to remove the interface, entirely, by software, so no more memory and no floppy, to be used with some revel microdrives that refuse to operate in other configuration.
So in a original Trump Card, JS Rom, using RES_128 cause a soft-reboot and no initialization of the trump card, no message.
This is caused by JS bug that made interfaces only initialize if it is located in a specific memory position, 0x0C000, or 0xC0000.
So trump card made a trick, first no ROM (so QL can found real memory space), then ROM in 0xC0000, and finally rom in the empty space (0x1000), this 3 state machine only go back to original position, by the hardware signal reset, so when you do a soft-reset, the JS rom can not found it.
everything works as expected.
Then appears Minerva, that search for interfaces in all available space, this include 0x0c000, 0xC0000, any other address in increased of 16Kb, AND in 0x10000.
So when you do a soft-reset, it appears again, initializate and work, because minerva found it in 0x10000.
And when you do a RES_128 and reboot you continue to have floppy, and autoload is from floppy not from microdrive, and RAM space is reserved for the floppy, and some revel microdrive do not work, not because minerva, but because the trump card.
So somebody patched Trump 2.18, with a trick, force a hard-reset by software is complicated, but if you have 128Kb, do not inizializate the disk drive, and you get the desired efect, RES_128 cause no extra rom and no extra floppy, and no TK2!!
The Trump Card Manual indicate:
To run programs unable to run on expanded QL's like Psion Chess enter RES_128 after F1 or F2
after switch on. The QL will now look as though it is unexpanded to the software.
[...]
This includes floppy disk and RAM disk drivers, a dynamic printer buffer, a
versatile screen dump utility and the invaluable SuperToolkit II. Just in case you have some
software which is written assuming that you have an unexpanded QL, there is also a command
to make all our hard work disappear. This command is "RES_128".
So in my opinion, no disk and no TK2 after RES_128 is the original, and desired effect.
Using extra toolkit to get RES_256, RES_512, or try to use disk drive with only 128Kb was not in the plan of developers, and well, we see that not alwais have the same efect.
The initial idea of RES_128 is to remove the interface, entirely, by software, so no more memory and no floppy, to be used with some revel microdrives that refuse to operate in other configuration.
So in a original Trump Card, JS Rom, using RES_128 cause a soft-reboot and no initialization of the trump card, no message.
This is caused by JS bug that made interfaces only initialize if it is located in a specific memory position, 0x0C000, or 0xC0000.
So trump card made a trick, first no ROM (so QL can found real memory space), then ROM in 0xC0000, and finally rom in the empty space (0x1000), this 3 state machine only go back to original position, by the hardware signal reset, so when you do a soft-reset, the JS rom can not found it.
everything works as expected.
Then appears Minerva, that search for interfaces in all available space, this include 0x0c000, 0xC0000, any other address in increased of 16Kb, AND in 0x10000.
So when you do a soft-reset, it appears again, initializate and work, because minerva found it in 0x10000.
And when you do a RES_128 and reboot you continue to have floppy, and autoload is from floppy not from microdrive, and RAM space is reserved for the floppy, and some revel microdrive do not work, not because minerva, but because the trump card.
So somebody patched Trump 2.18, with a trick, force a hard-reset by software is complicated, but if you have 128Kb, do not inizializate the disk drive, and you get the desired efect, RES_128 cause no extra rom and no extra floppy, and no TK2!!
The Trump Card Manual indicate:
To run programs unable to run on expanded QL's like Psion Chess enter RES_128 after F1 or F2
after switch on. The QL will now look as though it is unexpanded to the software.
[...]
This includes floppy disk and RAM disk drivers, a dynamic printer buffer, a
versatile screen dump utility and the invaluable SuperToolkit II. Just in case you have some
software which is written assuming that you have an unexpanded QL, there is also a command
to make all our hard work disappear. This command is "RES_128".
So in my opinion, no disk and no TK2 after RES_128 is the original, and desired effect.
Using extra toolkit to get RES_256, RES_512, or try to use disk drive with only 128Kb was not in the plan of developers, and well, we see that not alwais have the same efect.