************ Topic 17 Date: Thu Dec 19, 1985 DEB [*Sysop/deb!*] Sub: 2400 baud and UartART 2400 baud on a C-64...?! ------------ CHARRINGTON Can anyone pass on some advice on the US Robotics Courier 300/1200/2400 modem? I have one on order...and could use some ideas as to what is a GOOD PD term pgm for it like Comm Term III etc. ------------ LAPTOPS I & a friend both have US Robotics Courier 2400 modems. I've never had any trouble with it & I use many of the arcane S register commands. Its command set is much simpler than the Hayes 2400. (It doesn't let you program European guard tones, CCITT 1200bps, or synchronous operation.) I love the x6 fast dialing mode & the > to redial 10 times. The US Robotics is the modem used by the 5 local 2400 bps BBSs that I know. ------------ DEB Weeel, Courtney, first item on the agenda to note is that a C64 will not *work* at 2400 baud. Some of my favorite 1200 baud PD terminals include XMOBUF, Cand COMMTERM. But Sixth Sense really spoiled me &`I rarely use anythin but 6th or BobsTerm Pro anymore. ------------ CHARRINGTON Hi Deb! I picked up a US Robotics Courier & seems to work great..at 300 & 1200. Question: why won't the 64/128 work at 2400? I had thought 9600 was the top end for data xfer. Don't tell me I gotta buy an Amiga to get 2400?!? There's a C64/128 BBS in Calif that is planning to go 2400 in about 2 weeks. I thought the sysop said he got it all worked out. ------------ DEB Courtney...the C-64/128 is running as HARD & as FAST as it can at 1200. Unless someone completely re-writes the RS-232 drivers/kernal, 2400 baud is not possible. So far, no one has written it that I know of. It just *might* be possible on the c128 in the New Version of Sixth Sense that Rick Sterling is writing, I really know, but could ask. Let's hear it for CBM's Non-UART!!! ------------ CHARRINGTON Please don't be upset...but I up'd a small effort on my part that runs at 300/1200/2400 baud. It should show up in the C64 Telecommunications library in a couple of days. It's called 2400 term & it supports punter or xmodem at all 3 speeds. It does show a few line errors at 2400 when calling long distance, but it successfully downloaded a 73K program between Hawaii & California at 2400. Maybe someone can improve upon it a bit. It's pretty simple, but I was working more to get it completed than get it pretty. Now! Let's see if we can get to 4800 baud!!! Courtney ------------ LFRANKLIN [Mr.Wizard] Why doesn't someone come up with a little UART board for the 64/128 with an on-board baud-rate generator & rs232 level conerters preferably. It shouldn't be too difficult for a halfway decent hardware type. Of course, it wouldn't help those with Commodore modems, but then again, the present hardware doesn't handle anything over 1200 anyway (at least not reliably) so commodore will probably never come out with a 2400 baud modem. But is sure would be a help for those with those non-commodore modems! If anybody is interested, I think I still have 1 or 2 prototyping boards for the expansion socket on the 64/128. ------------ CHARRINGTON I've done a bit more work on the 300/1200/2400 terminal prograam for the c64. It's been uploaded into the telecommunications DB under "300-2400 term". Not Not completely full featured but looks a lot better than the original work. ------------ DEB Courtney...I'll make that term program available right now. Thanks! You ACTUALLY got 2400 baud on the 64 using the existing drivers???! LF...YOU have a board that replaces the UART? Do tell us more..!!! ------------ Message 10 Date: Thu Dec 19, 1985 LFRANKLIN [Mr.Wizard] DEB...no, that's not what I said...what i said (or at least meant to say is that I have a couple of Prototyping boards for the C64 expansion jack in the back...these are perf boards with a card-edge connector to 1 side that plugs into the expansion connector on the back of the C64 or 128. Hardware types can use these to create prototype boards from just looking at the Schematics of the 64, I am thinking that it should not be too difficult to create a UART board for the 64/128...of course, to talk to the board you'd have to talk directly to the hardware, or put in patches to the Kernal RS232 routines to talk to the UART..but this would be the only RELIABLE way I know of to get speeds above 1200 baud....any hardware types out there who want to try it, they are available from Boreas Products in Colorado Springs, Co for 15.95 (the board is 6.5 by 4.5 inches) or 12.95 (for a 4.5 by 4 inch version) &, for those who are interested, the plated thru holes have .100 (vert) by .300 (horz) inch spacing. Their number in Colorado is (303) 593-1274. I'd try to build 1 myself but who has the time? ------------ Message 12 Date: Thu Dec 19, 1985 DAFORMAN I don't know about the C64, but the C128 in FAST mode can do 2400 baud. UART boards for C64 and C128 already exist in all of the MIDI music interfaces. Midi is VERY fast, & the software UART in the computers doesn't have a chance of keeping up so all the MIDI interfaces include a real live hardware UART. I don't know if it would be possible to use a MIDI interface to work with a modem, but it is evidently no big problem to get very high baud rates on a c64 or C128 by adding some hardware. Dean ------------ Message 15 Sun Jan 12, 1986 FAFHRD [Fafhrd] Has anyone seen any Joystick modems for the 64? I seem to recall the Atari being able to handle high bps via joystick port. Any comments? FAF ------------ ------------ BOBR [Bob Retelle] Actually, the real reason for the Atari modems which attaach to the joystick ports is to avoid having to buy the Atari interface module, which is somewhat like the US/ART board being discussed, but costs $100-$200... With the interface module, speeds up to 19K baud can be used. The joyports are parallel, so the serial/parallel conversion has to be done in software, but that's no real problem. Which all goes to say there probably wouldn't be much point in a modem which goes in via the joyports on the 64. When you said 'joystick modem', I thought you were referring to the actual terminal software! My favorite program lets me use a JOYSTICK to control the terminal, so I can just sit back and use the stick to CTRL S, CTRL Q, RETURN, CTRL O & whatever else... I only have to use the keyboard to actually enter text. & at 1200 baud, it's like playing a video game to keep up with the screen! ------------ SPLITR [SpLiT] At one point CBM stated flatly that the C64 would not function at 1200bps, hackers proved them wrong. They also said it would not work at 2400 bps, & again the programmers made it happen. But beyond 2400bps is not possible with the hardware (or lack thereof) present. Mainly because the c644 uses a Soft-U/ART. What do you expect? But a hardware U/ART inerface is not only possible, not only been done (MIDI, as stated earlier), but I am designing a multi-port expansion for the C64. This little baby is a computer in it's own right, & is expandible to 16 ports. We all know the C64 is not multitasking, but a tricky programer can make it multiuser if only he could get more than 1 stuck in the back of the thing. Don't belive me? Diversi-dial for the Apple ][ multiuser but not multitasking of course. With this in place & with the software drivers I am writing, a multiuser RTC or CB or Multiuser game (any maybe a multiuser BBS also) can be rigged. Since the expansion itself is a self contained computer, it handles all I/O (using smart software) & lets the C64 do what it wants until it requests something from the expansion. The system has RAM & EPROM (initilizing) and is capable of running the 6 U/ART system independent of the C64. At this time, most of it is on paper still. The testing prototypes have proved it is possible. My concern is that the system will be more expensive in the end than getting something that could do it already. But in the interest of hacking out the C64, how can I resist? SpLiT/ /iNfInItY ------------ Message 19 Sat Jul 05, 1986 LAPTOPS It says in different messages here that there IS 2400 baud code & then again that there ISN'T 2400-baud code. If any of you DEVELOPERS are interested, I've got 2400 baud code THAT WORKS. Even in full-duplex (both ways at once), it works fine & doesn't slobber all over the machine. The catch is that it's not free. After all, this is the age of Reaganomics (you only get what you pay for), & I'm not a tenured professor. Paul Schick (608) 258 7065 ------------ Message 20 Sat Jul 05, 1986 SURVIVOR [S. Gutknecht] There are some FREE 2400 baud terminal programs, they are not loaded with features, but they DO work. ML is the secret. Question: what are the 2 open bytes for 2400 that are a TRUE 2400?^ ------------ CHARRINGTON There is a 64 terminal program on GEnie that suppots 300/1200/2400. I wrote it. It ain't fancy, but it works. Maybe someone will add some bells & whistles on it. It's called '2400 term' Courtney ------------ Message 22 Tue Jan 13, 1987 PFOUNTZ [Greg] With the prices rapidly dropping on 2400 baud modems ( Ijust found 1 for $229), I feel we are going to see more & more c64 owners wanting to move up to 2400. I just reread the message thread in this topic (no messages posted since last summer) & last comment made was that it does work, but not as good as it should. When sending "AT" commands to the modem, quite often the command will garble and/or not take. Makes autodialing at 2400 a real chore. Once ...
Amiga7878