Re: Commodore drives can be controlled on Apple II serial!

[dr.ido@usa.net]

In article <1998032005101901.AAA23881@ladder01.news.aol.com>,
  supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer) wrote:
>
> dougkalley@aol.com (DougKalley) wrote:
>
> The 1541 is more common, but the 1571 is the one that can read
> MFM disks (and MS-DOS in particular) that makes it useful to run
> on an Apple II.  The Apple II needs hardware to read MS-DOS disks
> and these drives are plentiful on a level at least equal to the Disk II.
The other way read/write MFM disks on an Apple II would be to use a controller
card that can control standard PC floppy drives.  I have such a card somewhere
around here.  I have never gotten around to trying anything with it, but I
know it has a standard floppy controller IC on it.  As it is I am selling my
Apple stuff off (more interested in Atari and Commodore) so if someone wants
it make me an offer (I am in Australia, but seeing it's a small item I will
send it overseas if appropriate arrangements can be made)..

> I'll post a request for the technical information on comp.sys.cbm.
> Do you think it is possible to control a serial drive like the 1571
> using ProTerm or Spectrum?  Can code be uploaded to the 1571
> using these terminal programs and the 1571 then controlled using
> macros?  It may be too much to ask to have a program written
> for the 1571's processor that can act as an interface for a terminal
> program, I know, but there is a computer in there...
While Commodore drives are serial, they are not RS-232.  Every adapter that I
have seen to run then from a PC uses the parallel port.  It may be possible to
run one from an RS-232 port, but it would take more than a cable.  Somethine
like a MAX232 would be needed to handle level conversion at the very least.
Then once you have an RS-232 interface you would have to get the IIe to
communicate with this interface at 3600bps (1571 burstmode uses a higher
rate, but I can't remember what it is).  I very much doubt that using any from
of terminal program (if there is one that can be set to 3600bps) is feasible,
but once the hardware side was taken care of communicating with the drive
could be handled in software.  Probably best to contact one of the authors of
the programs to connect a 1571 to a PC for info on communicating with the
drive....


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