[Coco] dw 3

Aaron Wolfe aawolfe at gmail.com
Tue Nov 23 12:24:43 EST 2010


On Tue, Nov 23, 2010 at 7:46 AM, Robert Gault <robert.gault at att.net> wrote:
> Aaron Wolfe wrote:
>
>><snip>
>>
>> I feel like we are playing "Who's on first" here.
>
>><snip>
>>
>> Unless I am completely misunderstanding what we are talking about, the
>> DW4 alternate mode already allows coco 1,2, or 3 to copy and backup
>> directly from any of all 256 .dsks to another.
>>
>
> Exactly the problem. :) You refer to 256 different 35-track .dsk images
> mounted in DW4. Well any of the tools we now have, imgtool/wimgtool,
> toolshed, or emulators permit this type of transfer without using DW4. Of
> course they don't work with url mounted .dsk images so there you have
> created something new and valuable. I think Roger's CocoNet has this ability
> also.
>
> There is still the other issue of moving files between the large (256 drive
> per .dsk) images, one DW4 slot to another. Users need a convenient method
> for transferring a file from a PC to say drive#132 on a 256drive.dsk image
> or from drive#132.dskA to drive#74.dskB. Even worse is a backup from
> drive#35.dskA to drive#100.dskB .
>

How about a tool to turn these 256drive.dsk images into a directory of
separate .dsk files and automatically generate the dw4 disk set
definition to load them together?  The user can then temporarily map
in a disk from any source, including another "converted" 256drive.dsk
and do the copy or backup directly.  The disk set definition allows
these files to be loaded together into the 256 "drives" just like a
256drive.dsk.

I am basing this solution on the 256drive.dsk format being used only
with drivewire and hdbdos.. nothing else reads these, so we aren't
losing compatibility with anything by just getting rid of them,
correct?

> A further issue related to 256drive disks, is how to handle MESS and VCC
> .vhd disks on Drivewire. The former have an OS-9 offset while the latter
> does not.

I can add a parameter to a disk set that tells dw4 to compensate for
this offset, and add a matching per drive setting with a 'dw' command
to toggle it.  Similar to hosw things like write protect work.  Would
that work, and if so, how do i compensate for the offset?

>
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