[Coco] Utility of large MPI (was: Re: ROM Cart registers)

[Francis Swygert]

Date: Tue, 2 Feb 2016 18:59:43 -0500
From: S Klammer <sklammer at gmail.com>

Jim, to add to your "thinking out loud"...

- a parallel port might be useful only if it merely is able to take the
bit-banger or, at worst, the RS232 data to minimize software changes.
- definitely sound, Orch90 and/or Speech&Sound emulation would be nice, but
including a MOD or MP3 player with multiple selectable banks and mixer,
that can play independently, but through the Coco.
- USB.  Programmable drivers on the same SD card if the CocoSDC is also
there.  Keyboards, mice, serial converters, wifi, bluetooth, etc. could
potentially all be available.  The cart would manage the "dirty" work.
- Using the "menu" program idea could permit many options to the user, such
as storing default RGB/Composite, 32/40/80, boot to NitrOS9, Drivewire,
ECB, SECB, etc
- oh, there is so much more... maybe later if there is still interest :)

Are you sure you couldn't use some CF cards for the Glenside? :)
==================================
Adding my own thoughts to this...
- With a CF or SD card, there is no need for a hard drive, except to transfer data from an old HD to the CF or SD. Cf seems to be easier to implement, but it's also an older technology that's getting harder to find, so I'd ditch it now! We already have an obsolete machine, why cripple it with waning tech now? Of course the IDE has already been implemented, and there are cheap IDE to SD and IDE to CF adapters that let the system read the memory cards as if they were HDs... so the IDE interface is probably the way to go. That would make one interface work for three different types of drives (physical IDE HD, SD card, CF card). 

- No real need for a parallel port, unless you want to use implement it fully, as a bi directional port, so it can be used for other I/O projects and not just a printer. There are few modern printers with a parallel port (if any... most are made to keep old industrial stuff going, like the Panasonic dot-matrix printers still in production). There are also few with a serial port. A micro controller programmed to emulate a printer and send the signal through a USB port to drive a modern "dumb" USB printer would be a great idea. One font built in, then take the old MX-80 dot matrix graphics codes. That would let all existing CoCo software print, even in different fonts, since the old software used the graphics code to make different fonts. The ability to use a modern, inexpensive printer is imperative! I think I'd rather see a small box that plugged into the bit-banger port though. That would free the expansion slot for other things, and be transparent to use with DECB (RS-DOS) and OS-9. 

- A floppy controller. I have mixed feelings on this. There is the nostalgic feel, but the things are wearing out and there are no new ones. The floppy discs themselves are getting old and wearing out as well. At this point, just about all CoCo software has been transferred to virtual disk files. I'd say a super CoCo cartridge with a serial port, IDE, and the printer driver described above would be great. You'd have to use an old floppy controller and DriveWire, or an older PC with a real floppy drive, to transfer old disks, but once what you have is transferred (or downloaded from others) you can pack the floppy up and use your super cart. 

- Oh yeah, an RTC... mainly for OS-9 users. And some flash ROM space...

- For utility, put a single open slot on the super cart. It could be decoded in such a way that you could put a FDC in it. Would probably be hard to use all the "super cart" functions and the FDC at the same time, but even if limited to just the FDC and IDE with an FDC plugged in it would be useful for transferring files. 

So lets see.... a SuperCart with IDE, an RS-232 port, RTC, and an additional cartridge slot would be sufficient for 90% of CoCo users needs.I'd make the cartridge port vertical, with some kind of snap on end support for the super cart in the CoCo and the one in super cart. Add the "printer dongle" to the bit banger and you have a great, compact system. If you have some special card or want to use a legacy card for something there is a connector for that. Heck, go ahead and buffer that extra port so it will support a y-cable... but is that really necessary? Few use the speech/sound pack or anything else, so with all the general I/O taken care of one extra slot will serve 90% of that 10% "my" fictional super cart wouldn't take care of...
 Frank Swygert
 Fix-It-Frank Handyman Service
 803-604-6548