SM7I wrote:Hi,
- How do I identify what model of QL I have ? I recon there´s alot of models around with different configurations and roms.
- There are a couple of ways of checking.
Find the ROM version with
PRINT VER$
- The Sinclair ROMs were PB, FB, AH, JM, JS, and MG (from memory) - MG was the last version produced, although a UK version was never released.
- JSL1 indicates you have a Minerva ROM (a later ROM replacement)
You can also get clues on the start up screen - is Toolkit II installed for example, or just a banner for the MicroPeripherals disk interface?
SM7I wrote:
- The floppycontroller has been identified as Micro Peripherals. Can I connect a regular PC 3,5" floppt to this with or without modifications and if so, how ?
Yes (and no) - ideally you want a 720K disk drive, with a jumper on it that you can set to DS0.
Unfortunately, most PC floppy disk drives are set as DS1 (slave) and are 1440K HD disk drives.
You can use a 1440K HD disk drive, provided you ONLY use DD floppy disks - you can use HD floppy disks (and cover over the HD identity hole on the side of the disk) - however, don't expect someone else to be able to read them on their own disk drives.
The other issue is making the drive into a master - if it has a jumper (or solder pad) you can alter to set it as DS0 then great. Otherwise, you need to start with a straight (untwisted floppy drive cable) and try swapping pins 10 and 12 - see
http://www.theqlforum.com/viewtopic.php? ... =swap+pins
SM7I wrote:
- Can one change ROM in the QL and if so, what ROM should I aim for and how to I aquire that ?
Yes - the ROMs are in sockets, so easy to swap by opening the case, levering the chips out carefully and popping in new ones. Ideally you want a minimum of a JM ROM.
Minerva is still available to purchase and offers faster speed, dual displays, and multitasking SuperBASIC. Unfortunately some of the very old games may not work on it.
See
http://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/detail ... m_ROM-1600
SM7I wrote:
- I´ve read that there might be solutions to up the RAM and CPU of QL, how and what do I need then ?
You need to keep an eye out for a Gold Card or Super Gold Card - although they do not turn up too often - these increase the speed of the QL dramatically (by replacing the processor) and add 2 or 4MB of RAM, plus a disk interface.
Next down the list is a Trump Card, which adds 768K memory and a disk interface.
Then there are expanderams which have a through connector, allowing you to connect your disk interface at the same time.
Unfortunately, these are becoming harder and harder to find!
SM7I wrote:
- Is it possible to transfer data between a PC and the QL ?
Yes - you are halfway there as you have a disk interface - see Dilwyn's site and the downloads sections for programs which run on the QL and can read PC formatted disks, or use one of the emulators on the PC to read and write directly to QL formatted fisks.
SM7I wrote:
- Is it still possible to aquire software for the QL ?
Yes - I have plenty available on
www.rwapsoftware.co.uk (new software) and also second hand items listed on
www.sellmyretro.com
SM7I wrote:
- I´ve got a printerlead for the QL (not shown very well). I recon it would be a pain to be able to use modern printers, or ?
Yes it is a real pain - some of the laser printers have a parallel / centronics port, but not many and most require the drivers to be built into Windows - some will accept plain text and ESC/P control codes, but not many !!
SM7I wrote:
- Maybe a strange question but can the QL be connected to Internet by some means ?
Ermm...... not really as there is no ethernet controller for the QL
SM7I wrote:
What upgrades do you recomend I do to get the best out of the QL today ?
As a trader, that is for others to comment!
The QL is a great tinkering machine but it does need floppy drives to get the best from it.