ŠĻą”±į > ž’ ¤ ¦ ž’’’ ” ¢ £ ’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’ģ„Į )` šæ T5 bjbjUU 26 ł? ł? Ā¾ ’’ ’’ ’’ ¤ f “E ¾Ž ¾Ž ¾Ž ¾Ž \ ß D N rā @ ją ją ją ją ją Eį Eį Eį
į į į į į į į $ ²ć h ę j «į Eį Eį Eį Eį Eį «į ją ją Ū ,ā Uį Uį Uį Eį ją ją
į Uį Eį
į Uį Uį Uį ją ^ą ?CŁĪ ¾Ž Eį Uį
į Bā 0 rā Uį ę Uį ę Uį Uį ę iį Eį Eį Uį Eį Eį Eį Eį Eį «į «į Uį Eį Eį Eį rā Eį Eį Eį Eį N N N ¤ ¾Ž N N N ¾Ž ¤ ŗ Ø b ’’’’ by
D. J. Walker
CONTENTS
1. BACKGROUND
2. SHAREWARE and REGISTRATION
3. GETTING STARTED
4. MAIN MENU
4.1 Directory of a device
4.2 Copying files
4.3 Erasing files
4.4 Alter Device Details
4.5 Swap Device Details
4.6 View Disk Parameters
5. SPECIAL OPTIONS
5.1 Registration
5.2 Save Settings
5.3 Load a Translation Table
5.4 Clear a Translation Table
5.5 Load a Format Definition
5.6 Clear a Format Definition
5.7 Format a Disk
6. FORMAT SPECIFIC DETAILS
6.1 QDOS
6.2 IBM/Atari (PCDOS/MSDOS)
6.3 CPM
6.4 BBC DFS
6.5 BBC ADFS
6.6 UNIX CPIO
6.7 Spectrum Disciple/Sam Coupe
APPENDICES
A. Disk Drive Compatibility
B. Error Messages
C. Update policy and Contact address
D. Modifications for Single Density Drives
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 1 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
1. BACKGROUND
The widespread use of Personal Computers has led to an ever-increasing problem with transfering data between machines. The most obvious and convenient candidate for such transfers is via Floppy disks. Unfortunately, there are a wide variety of operating systems in use, and an even larger number of variations on disk formats.
The DiscOVER software was developed to help address this problem for users of the QL and its derivatives. Compatible machines such as the various models of Thor and QL emulators on the Atari and Amiga are also supported. All references to the QL apply equally to such machines.
DiscOVER is designed to allow floppy disks in the MSDOS and PCDOS formats to be read and written on the QL. The DiscOVER software can also be run in an enhanced mode (known as MULTI-DiscOVER) which also handles CPM, BBC DFS, BBC ADFS, Unix CPIO and Spectrum/Sam Coupe disk formats. This manual covers both versions as they have exactly the same User Interface.
The facilities offered by the DiscOVER software can be summarised as follows:
- Simple menu-driven operation makes the transfer of files easy even for the in-experienced user.
- Files that are on Floppy disks in a wide variety of formats can be be copied to and from QDOS format media.
- The QDOS files can be on any valid QDOS media. This includes devices such as MicroDrives, RAM disks and Neworked QL systems.
- The program will automatically detect whether it is running on 40 track or 80 track drives, and adjust itself accordingly. 40 track discs can be read (and normally written as well) on 80 track drives with no problems.
- Gold Card users who have suitable drives can also use the new HD and ED disk types for transferring files to and from IBM (and compatible) machines.
- Translation between character sets can be carried out "in-flight" while copying files.
- The use of Directories is supported whenever the format in use supports them.
| |
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 2 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE | Atari ST Users |
| |
| Please note than the Atari ST disk format is based |
| on the IBM MSDOS format. This means that DiscOVER |
| can handle Atari ST disks under the "IBM" format. |
| Unless specifically mentioned otherwise all the |
| references in this document to the IBM or MSDOS |
| formats also apply to the Atari ST format. |
| |
The DiscOVER software can be used in most instances without reference to supporting documentation. For those instances when it is required a comprehensive User Guide (this document) is supplied in the form of a Quill file.
2. SHAREWARE AND REGISTRATION
The DiscOVER software prior to version 4 was sold through normal commercial channels. It has been decided that as the QL market is diminishing in size this is no longer a viable distribution mechanism.
The DiscOVER software will now, therefore, be made available on a Shareware basis. This means that the author retains copyright, but allows the software and its accompanying documentation to be freely distributable. Any prospective user can try the software out without any committment. Once you have tried the software out, then if you decide you want to use it on a regular basis you need to pay a fee and register it. The standard DiscOVER and the more powerful Multi-DiscOVER version have now been combined into a single version - the registration key used will determine what level of facilities are available.
The DiscOVER software as initially supplied is fully functional except for one small limitation - it will not let you copy files that are larger than 2048 bytes in size. When you register you will be sent your own private registration key. Entering this key into the DiscOVER software will remove this restriction.
When you apply for a registration key you have to decide if you want the basic DiscOVER capabilities which only allows you to use the IBM/Atari disk format, or whether you want the enhanced (Multi-DiscOVER) option which in addition to the IBM/Atari format will also give you the ability to handle CPM, BBC DFS, BBC ADFS, Unix CPIO, and Spectrum/Sam Coupe disk formats.
The fee for registration of the software is
DiscOVER (standard version) ż’1 5
D i s c O V E R ( m u l t i v e r s i o n ) ż’2 5
( c ) 1 9 8 8 - 9 6 D . J . W a l k e r L a s t c h a n g e d : 2 3 F e b 9 8 P a g e 3 D i s c O V E R v e r s i o n 4 : U S E R G U I D E U p g r a d i n g f r o m s t a n d a r d t o M u l t i v e r s i o n ż’1 0
T h i s f e e s h o u l d b e s e n t t o t h e a u t h o r . T h e r e l e v a n t a d d r e s s i s g i v e n i n A p p e n d i x C o f t h i s d o c u m e n t .
A n y u s e r s w h o h a v e p r e v i o u s l y b o u g h t D i s c O V E R o r M u l t i - D i s c O V E R s o f t w a r e w h e n i t w a s being sold through commercial channels can apply for a registration key for the Shareware version of the same program with the dame level of facilities. Such users must provide their serial number as proof of purchase. The cost of the registration key depends on which commercial version of the software you already have as follows:
v1.xx or v2.xx ż’5
v 3 . x x f r e e
T h i s u p g r a d e w i l l n o t , h o w e v e r , i n c l u d e t h e n e w f a c i l i t y t o a c c e s s f i l e s o n a n I B M o r A t a r i f o r m a t h a r d d i s k s . I f y o u a l s o w a n t t h i s f a c i l i t y t h e n t h e u p g r a d e r e g i s t r a t i o n f e e i s i n c r e a s e d s l i g h t l y a s f o l l o w s :
v 1 . x x o r v 2 . x x ż’8
v 3 . x x ż’5
v 4 . x x ż’5
D e t a i l s o f h o w y o u e n t e r t h e r e g i s t r a t i o n k e y s u p p l i e d a r e c o v e red in Section 5. When you have entered your registration key, the main screen will in future display the name you entered during registration, and your serial number. (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 4 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
3. GETTING STARTED
Issue Files
When you receive the DiscOVER software then if you have been given the complete set of files then you should find the following files on the issue medium.
BOOT A file that will automatically load the DiscOVER software.
DiscOVER The standard DiscOVER program.
DiscOVER_DOC A Quill document containing the User Guide (this document) for the DiscOVER software.
DiscOVER_log A text file containing details of the changes between different releases of the DiscOVER software.
DiscOVER_ref A Quill document containing information about the various disk formats supported by the DiscOVER software. May be of interest to some users.
Printer_dat Quill printer defintion for a 'default' printer. See section 4 for when this might be used.
There will then be a series of files ending in _def. These are IBM style Format definition files as described in section 6.2. They allow DiscOVER to handle disks that are in PCDOS/MSDOS format except for the first sector on the disk.
There are also a series of files with names ending in _cpm. These are CPM style Format definition files as described in section 6.3. They tell Multi-DiscOVER how to handle a variety of CPM formats against which Multi-DiscOVER has been validated.
If you produce format definition files of your own to cover formats which are not on the standard issue disk, then we would be grateful if you could send in the details. This will allow us to include these additional format definition files on future versions of the standard DiscOVER issue disks.
Finally there will be some files with names starting with Translates_. These are sample translate files as outlined in section 5.1.
Backing Up the DiscOVER software
The first thing that you should do is make a copy of the (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 5 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE issue cartridge or disk. The DiscOVER software can be copied using standard SuperBasic COPY commands. You should then put the original in a safe place, and run from the copy.
Please do not give copies of the software to other people as this is illegal. Each copy of the software contains a unique serial number (which is displayed on the title screen) so that the original purchaser can be identified if pirate copies are found.
Loading the DiscOVER software
The DiscOVER software can be loaded by commands of the form
EXEC_W xxxn_DiscOVER
or EXEC xxxn_DiscOVER
where 'xxxn' is the device that the DiscOVER software is to be loaded from (e.g. FLP1). The first variant is used if the DiscOVER software will be the only program running, and the second variants allows for the DiscOVER software to be multi-tasked against other programs.
If you have Super Toolkit II (or an equivalent) available, then there is an extra option that can be invoked. It is invoked by using the EX or EW commands to load the DiscOVER software as follows:
EX xxxn_DiscOVER;"retries"
or EW xxxn_DiscOVER;"retries"
where
xxxn identifies the device from which the software is being loaded
retries sets the maximum number of attempts that will be made to read or write a sector on the disk if an error occurs. Increasing this value may be useful if you having trouble reading a particular disk. Default: 1
As an example, the command
EX flp1_DiscOVER;"5"
would invoke the DiscOVER software, loading it from FLP1, and asking for a maximum of 5 retries to be attempted on reading or writing any sector if errors occur.
The DiscOVER software has been validated as running correctly in multi-tasking mode under TASKMASTER and the QJUMP Pointer Environment. There is no reason to suspect that it will not perform correctly under the other "Front End" packages available on the QL or Thor.
When using TaskMaster, the shareable option MUST be set to NO (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 6 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE and the value of the 'Workspace' set to 100 (the DiscOVER software will dynamically request workspace from the Common Heap as needed, and release it when finished with it).
GOLD CARD USERS
The DiscOVER software is also able to handle HD and ED disks assuming you have suitable drives connected. It has a built in "Density Detection" capability so that you do not ever need to specify what density disks you are using.
If you are using HD or ED disks, however, then you will find that the first time you access a disk of a particular density, you get a lot of retries (typically about 18) before the DiscOVER software reads the disk. The automatic disk density dectection code in the DiscOVER software cannot try a new density until it gets an error return from trying the previous density, and this retry mechanism is built into the Gold Card ROM.
To speed up subsequent access, the DiscOVER software will always try first the density that it last successfully read. Therefore if you put a disk of a different density in the drive, this retry effect can occur again. (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 7 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
4. THE DiscOVER MAIN MENU
The options offered by DiscOVER are grouped under a number of headings on the Main menu. These options are discussed in the remainder of this section. In practice, prompts are given at all times so that the software can be used with the minimum of reference to this User Guide.
If the ENTER key is pressed on any menu, then the option that is highlit will be selected. You can change which option is highlit either by using the cursor keys, or by pressing the first letter of an option (if more than one option has the same first letter then they will be selected in turn).
The bottom of the Main Menu screen will display the current settings of the devices and the corresponding formats that will be used for both Source and Target files. If a directory has been set (as discussed later), this will also be displayed.
4.1 DIRECTORY
This option will allow you to obtain a directory of either the Source or Target devices. You will be shown the current settings of the Source and Target Devices, and asked to select one.
If you have set a Directory name as mentioned under "Altering Device Details" later in this section, then only those files that form part of this directory will initially be displayed.
A status line will be displayed showing the device to which the file list belongs, the format of that device, the total space available on the device, and the amount of space still free. The values for the total space and free space are in bytes
The following key sequences will be recognised at this point:
Up Arrow Move the cursor 1 file backwards through the directory list.
Down Arrow Move the cursor 1 file forward through the directory list
CTRL Up Move the cursor 1 Screen backwards through the
SHIFT_UP directory list
CTRL Down Move the cursor 1 Screen forwards through the
SHIFT_DOWN directory list
ALT Up Move to the start of the directory list
SHIFT_ALT_UP
ALT Down Move to the end of the directory list
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 8 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE SHIFT_ALT_DOWN
F3 Toggle between displaying file names in the format of the device selected, and the form that they will be converted to if the file is copied to the format of the other device.
F2 Only relevant if the format supports sub-directories. Change to a lower level sub-directory, and show the files at that level. For non-QDOS format disks this will only be accepted if the cursor is currently flashing against a file which has the
attribute. For QDOS media, this will cause the directory name to be extended by examining the filename against which the cursor is flashing and adding up to the next underscore to the current directory name.
SHIFT F2 Only relevant if the format supports sub-directories. Move up a directory level and show the files it contains. For a non-QDOS disk format this will return to the next higher directory level. For QDOS format media, this will cause the current directory name to be truncated back to the previous underscore character.
F4 View the file which currently has a cursor flashing against it. The contents of the file will be copied to the screen. Any characters which do not form part of the printable ASCII character set will be displayed as the 'back arrow' symbol (but any data translation that has been specified will first be applied). On completion of the view, the original list of files will be restored.
R Rename a file. You will be prompted for the new name. If you press ESC, or do not change the name, then no rename will be attempted.
ESC Leave Directory mode and return to the Main Menu
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 9 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
4.2 COPY FILES
This option allow you to control a copy. You first select the files you wish to copy. When you have finished selecting them, you can then start the copy to transfer them from the source to the target.
You will initially be given a list of files exactly as when you request a Directory. You can move around this list of files using exactly the same keys as in Directory Mode.
You now need to select which files are to be copied. Any files that are already selected will be highlighted. The highlighting will be in red if data translation would be active for the file, green if not.
All key sequences available in Directory mode also work when in this mode. In addition, there are extra key sequences that are used to Select/Deselect files and to start the copying process. They are as follows:
TAB Changes the selection status of the file
or SPACE entry on the screen that currently has a cursor flashing next to it. If it is currently unselected then change it to selected, and if it is already selected then change it back to unselected.
SHIFT TAB As for TAB, except that any character
or SHIFT SPACE translation will be disabled.
F1 Select all files in the current Directory.
SHIFT F1 As for F1, but with any character translation disabled.
F5 Select all files on the Disk. This will include all levels of directory, even though they are not currently displayed. An exception to this rule is on QL's or Thors with hard disks when only files in the current 'hard' directory will be selected.
SHIFT F5 As for F5, but with any data translation disabled.
ENTER Terminate the selection phase, and start the copying of all files selected.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 10 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
Once the copying process starts, then messages detailing progress will appear on the screen. If any file already exists on the target, then the following message will be displayed:
TARGET FILE ALREADY EXISTS
OVERWRITE (Y/N/Q/A)
where Y(es) it is OK to overwrite this file.
N(o) do not overwrite this file. Abandon the copying of this file, and continue with that of the next selected file (if any).
A(ll) means overwrite this file and if, when copying further selected files, there is found to be a file with the same name already on the Alien disk, then overwrite it without displaying any further prompt.
Q(uit) the copying process and return to the Main DiscOVER Menu.
4.3 ERASE FILES
This option can be used to delete files. You will be given a list of files just as with the Copying Process, and asked to select those files that are to be deleted.
The only difference is that when the deletion of the files starts, you will have a message displayed of the form
DELETE XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
CONFIRM (Y/N/A/Q)
where the meaning of the Y, N, A and Q options is as for the copying process.
4.4 ALTER DEVICE DETAILS
This option allows you to specify the details of the devices that will hold the Source and Target files.
The format can be any of those displayed. Those formats that you can only use in demonstration mode will be listed using black ink, while those formats for which you have full facilities will be displayed with white ink. In other words for the standard version of DiscOVER QDOS and IBM/Atari will be displayed in white, while for MULTI-DiscOVER the additional formats of CPM, BBC DFS, BBC ADFS and UNIX CPIO will be displayed in white.
For the device settings, it is assumed that you will most likely want to keep the name FLP, but perhaps need to change (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 11 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE the drive. At this stage, therefore, you can change the drive by merely pressing the corresponding numeric key.
If you want to change the Device Name, then there you can change it to FLP, MDV, RAM or WIN by pressing F, M, R or W respectively. You can then press the relevant numeric key to set the drive number.
To change the device name and drive number to a combination not allowed for by the single keypress methods mentioned above, then press F1. This will allow you to change the device name and drive number to any name you like. The editing keys available are the same as are available when editing a BASIC Command. To give maximum flexibility, no checks are made on the value you give, so please ensure you get it right. If you do not, an error will be reported when you later try to access the device. The other important point to note is that if you intend to copy files the device names plus drive numbers for source and target must be different. If not, then you will get an error message when you attempt to start the copy.
If you have a Qubide Disk interface and you select the IBM/Atari format, then you will be offered the special device 'QUBIDE'. In this case you MUST select the device by pressing the key 'Q' - typing in the name manually will not work. The fact that you have even been offered the QUBIDE device means that DiscOVER has recognised that you have a system that could support non-QDOS hard disks. Normally these would be exchangeable hard disks (such as a SyQuest or Easi-Drive), but DiscOVER would also recognise a genuine IBM fromat fixed hard disk. By selecting the QUBIDE device you are instructing DiscOVER to auto-search such a device to see if it can find an IBM DOS partition - any QDOS format partitions will be ignored. The following restrictions apply on the hard disk formats supported:
- For IBM (MSDOS) format media only a primary MSDOS partition is supported. Any logical drives in extended partitions will be ignored. From the user perspective this means that the first MSDOS partition on a hard disk will be found, but not any further ones.
The next input field allows you to specify the directory you wish to use. If the disk is not in QDOS format, and you want to use multiple levels of directory, then each level must be separated by the backslash character (just as when you specify a path name under MSDOS or PCDOS). By default the Root Directory will be assumed.
The way directories are used depends upon whether the disk is the source or target disk. For the source disk, it determines the point at which the display of the file list starts (you can still use the facilities provided to go up or down directory levels). For the target disk, this is the directory into which all files that are selected for copying (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 12 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE will be copied.
4.5 SWAP DEVICE DETAILS
This option merely swaps over the details of the Source and Target devices. Any translation tables associated with the devices will also be swapped.
4.6 VIEW DEVICE DETAILS
This option is really for information purposes only. It displays details relating to the format of the Source or Target Device. You should insert a disk of the required type in the drive before using this option as for most formats the DiscOVER obtains some of the details by reading the disk in question. (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 13 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
5. SPECIAL OPTIONS
These menu options are used to access facilities that the average user will rarely use.
The Data Translation and Format Definition files mentioned in this section are simple text files. If you have any of the many editors available on the QL (such as THE EDITOR, Metacomco's ED, etc.) then you can use these to set up and change these files.
If you do not have such an editor, then you can use QUILL (or the QUILL option of XCHANGE)to do the job.
Using standard QUILL to do this editing, the following points need to be noted:
a) You need to use a PRINTER_DAT file with QUILL that defines a 'Default' printer. To save you having to make up a new PRINTER_DAT file, there is a suitable one already prepared on the disk containing the DiscOVER software.
b) If you want to edit an existing file, then it should be loaded into QUILL using the 'Import' command (which is obtained by pressing the key sequence F3 F3 F I).
c) To produce a new output file, you use the Print command within QUILL. When you reach the option within the printer command where it puts up the prompt 'printer', change this to the name of the file that you wish the output to go to.
Using QUILL from within XCHANGE to do this editing, the following points need to be noted:
a) If you want to edit an existing file, then it should be loaded into XCHANGE using the 'Import' command (which is obtained by pressing the key sequence F3 F3 F I).
b) To produce a new output file, you use the Export comaand (which is obtained by using the key sequence F3 F3 F E).
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 14 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
5.1 REGISTRATION
This option allows you to enter the special key that you get when you register the software. You are also given the option to enter your name to personalise your copy of the DiscOVER software. You can enter anything you like into the name field, but you must enter the registration key exactly as supplied (although case for letters is not significant).
When you have entered the relevant details, then the DiscOVER software will go into an automatic "Save Settings" mode as described below in section 5.2. This will obviate the need to re-enter this registration key on future uses of the DiscOVER software.
Once you have entered your registration key and gone through the "Save Settings" mode then in the future when you load the software it will automatically run with the options relevant to the registration key you entered. Your serial number will be displayed within the title bar, and the name you entered during the registration will be displayed at the bottom of the main screen. If you only registered for the standard version, then when you select "Alter Details" from the main menu those formats for which you have not registered will be displayed with the text in black rather than white. You can still use these formats, but with the file size restrictions that are relevant to an unregistered version of the software.
Note that if you wish to give a copy of the DiscOVER software to a friend then you should only give them an unregistered version. You can convert a registered version into an unregistered version by entering a random registration key.
5.2 SAVE_SETTINGS
This option allows you to save the current settings for DiscOVER to make them the default settings next time you load the program. This means if you regularly you use the same settings you can avoid the chore of having to set them each time you load DiscOVER.
The settings that are saved are:
- The format type for the Source and Target devices.
- The names and drive numbers of the Source and Target Devices.
- The names of the Source and Target Directories if they have been set.
- The most recently used disk density as the one that should be tried first in the future.
- The name of the Translate file if one has been loaded, (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 15 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE and the values of the translates that were loaded from this file.
- The name of the Configuration file if one has been loaded. The current settings of the Configuration information for IBM and CPM format disks will also be saved.
- The name of the program file that contains DiscOVER.
| |
| IMPORTANT |
| |
| The option to Save the current settings works by |
| patching the DiscOVER program. Therefore it is |
| strongly advised that you do not configure the copy |
| of the programs on the original Issue disk, but |
| only configure a backupcopy. You have been warned! |
| |
When you select this option you will be prompted for the name of the program file (if your DATA_USE setting is correct for the location of this filename, then, you can omit the device and/or directory name). The program will open the program file you have specified, check that it reaaly is a copy of the DiscOVER program file, and then proceed to attempt to patch the file. If any error occurs then this will be indicated.
5.3 SET DATA TRANSLATION TABLE
The default option when copying using the DiscOVER software is to make no change at all to the data. This is what is needed when copying program files, or text files containing only data from the standard ASCII character set.
The QL and Thor allow for characters with internal values outside the normal ASCII character set to be used to represent a number of 'foreign' characters. The mapping of such characters is by no means standard, so the target machine is extremely unlikely to use the same representation of these characters as the QL. The DiscOVER software therefore provides a mechanism for allowing user defined data translation to be invoked.
This is done by loading a 'translation table file' set up by the user. The "Load Translates" option on the main menu allows you to load such a file (prepared as indicated below).
When you select this option, you will be prompted for the name of the file containing the translation file. If the file is on the DATA_USE device, then you can optionallly omit that part of the filename.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 16 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE The file consists of a series of lines of the form:
;ST #nn; #ii, #jj, #kk (etc)
;TS #mmm; #pp (etc)
A line that does not have a semicolon ";" in column 1 is treated as a comment line.
The entires that start with the letters "ST" refer to translation that should be done when copying form the Source Device to the Target Device (using the Device settings at the point in time when the Translation Table file is loaded). The entries that start with "TS" refer to the translation that will be required if copying from the Target to the Source (i.e. if the "Swap" option is used to reverse Source and Target Devices). If the above is not clear, then I suggest that you look at the comments in one of the sample Translate files such as TRANSLATES_IBM.
The #nn is the decimal code value of the (incoming) character to be translated. If #ii and #jj etc are present, then they represent the decimal code values of the replacement characters. It is only necessary to specify translation for those characters which are to be altered. Lines may occur in any order in the translation file.
For example, the following lines will cause any upper case "A" in the source stream to be changed to lower case in the target stream, and lower case "z" in the source stream is deleted. In addition, the LF code is expanded to CR and LF.
;ST #65; #97
;ST #122
;ST #10; #13, #10
Once a Data Translation table has been loaded, then the default is to use this for the conversion of all files for the duration of the session; or until an alternative Data Translation file is loaded; or the table is cleared. You can, however, suppress the translation when selecting files by using the SHIFT key in conjunction with the relevant 'select' key. On the Copy screen, if translation is in effect for a file, the file name will be shown on a red background. If translation has been disabled for a file (or if no translation file is active) the file name will be shown on a green background.
5.4 CLEAR TRANSLATION TABLE
This option merely resets the DiscOVER software to its default state regarding Data Translation. That is that no data translation will be performed.
5.5 LOAD A FORMAT DEFINITION
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 17 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE There are a number of circumstances in which the DiscOVER will need to be told something about the layout of a disk it is to read or write. This is done by using the option to load a Format Definition file.
When you select this option ,you will be prompted for the name of the file containing the format definition details. If this file is on the DATA_USE device, then that part of the filename can (optionally) be omitted.
Much of the content of the Format Definition File is format specific, and is discussed in the next section under a particular disk format. There are some elements, however, that are common to all formats:
a) Any line that starts with the hash (#) symbol will be treated as a comment line and ignored.
b) A parameter line will start with special keywords defining the format that will be used. Following the keywords, any further explanatory text can optionally be included as long as it does not contain a colon (:).
c) The keywords (and any explanatory text) are followed by a colon. This is followed by the value of the parameter. Any spaces between the colon and the start of the parameter value will be ignored.
5.6 CLEAR IBM FORMAT DEFINITION
This option clears down a loaded format definition for an IBM format disk, and causes DiscOVER to once again read the disk for its format data (see section 5.2). If you forget to do this, you will have trouble reading IBM format disks that do not need a format Definition file as the presence of a loaded IBM format definition over-rides the normal default action of attempting to read the format details from the first sector of the disk.
5.7 FORMAT A DISK
******* WARNING *******
The format options completely clears all the information on the disk. Be certain that you mean it before you decide to proceed.
When you select this option you will (if it is appropriate) be offered a choice between a FULL FORMAT and a QUICK FORMAT. The difference between these two is that the FULL FORMAT option can be used on a disk which has never been formatted before, while for the QUICK FORMAT the disk must have been previously formatted.
The format of the "Target Device" is the one that is assumed. You are asked to confirm the details before proceeding. If (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 18 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE you are formatting to QDOS format, you can optionally add a Medium Name to the device name displayed.
FULL FORMAT OPTION
This option is only available for those disk types where the physical format is the same as that used on the QL. This is currently the QDOS, IBM/Atari and CPIO formats.
This limitation applies because this option works in two stages:
a) A physical level format is done using QDOS (which thus creates a disk with a QDOS style control information). If a failure occurs at this stage, then you are given the option to retry it.
b) If stage (a) completes with no errors, then DiscOVER converts the disk into the desired target format by automatically performing a QUICK FORMAT (see below) to rewrite the directoy and other control areas.
Notes.
1. You can only format disks that have the same physical characteristics as your drives. This means:
a) It is not possible to format an 40 track disk in a 80 track drive. DiscOVER can read and write such disks, but is unable to format them.
b) It is not possible to format a double-sided disk in a single sided drive.
c) It is not possible to format a non-QL disk in ED mode on Gold Card as the QL format is non-standard at a sector size of 2048 bytes.
QUICK FORMAT
The is option is currently supported for the QDOS, IBM/Atari, CPIO and PlusD/Sam Coupe formats.
This option is used on disks that have already been formatted previously, but that either have the wrong logical format or merely as a quick way of deleting all files. It works by rewriting the directory and control areas of the disk to the state appropriate to a freshly formatted disk.
It can be particularily useful for clearing down a disk which previously had a lot of files on it, or also for converting an already formatted disk between QDOS and IBM formats.
When you tell the DiscOVER software to proceed, it will first perform a check that the disk has:
a) been previously formatted,
b) the format is compatible (at the physical level) with (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 19 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE the format to which you are asking the disk to be set.
In the case of "IBM" Double Density disks you are given a choice of Single-Sided or Double-Sided disks. The Single-Sided option is included primarily for compatibility with Atari ST machines which only had single-sided drives (although all those sold for the last few years have double-sided drives).
Notes
1. It is not possible to use the QUICK FORMAT option to convert an ED disk between IBM and QDOS formats. This is because they use different physical formats. If you attempt this you will get an error message indicating that the check of the physical format has failed.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 20 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
6. FORMAT SPECIFIC DETAILS
This section covers details that are specific to a particular format.
6.1 QDOS FORMAT MEDIA
This is the native format of the QL and QDOS compatible machines. The DiscOVER software will support all QDOS media that supports a QDOS Directory type of filing system. This therefore means that the QDOS media can be any of Winchester Disk (WIN), Floppy Disk (FLP or FDK), Ram Disk (RAM) or Microdrive (MDV).
For QDOS media, setting a Directory invokes the QDOS 'Soft Directory' option. In QDOS terms, this means that all files that have names starting with the supplied Directory name are considered as part of that Directory (this is the same sort of Directory as is implemented by the QJUMP TOOLKIT2). The default is no directory. This means all files on the disk are considered as in the same directory.
An exception to this rule occurs if you have a system that supports "Hard Directories". Most QDOS Hard disk systems support 'Hard Directories'. DiscOVER will not initially recurse down 'Hard Directories' on the disk (for performance reasons). Lower level sub-directories will only be read as required. DiscOVER will recognise files that are Hard Directories and list them as type in the file listing.
6.2 IBM/ATARI FORMAT DISKS
The introduction of the IBM PC and its domination in the business micro-computer world has led to the floppy disk formats used by this machine becoming de facto standards.
These standards are known as PCDOS standards when running on a real IBM PC (or clone), and as MSDOS when running on a machine from some other manufacturer - e.g. Apricot or Sirius. In this User Guide the term IBM is used as a generic name to cover both sets of standards.
This standard has become so pervasive that even machines that do not run PCDOS or MSDOS are quite likely to use this disk format. A typical example of this is the Atari ST.
The various models of the IBM PC introduced disks with ever increasing capacities. The same standard, however, is used on all these formats with only some of the fine detail changing. The DiscOVER programs will automatically handle these variations as long as your disk drives have the physical capability of reading the disk you are using.
High Density (HD) and Extended Density (ED) Disks
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 21 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE Most modern IBM (and compatible) machines have High Density disk drives which are of 1.44Mb capacity. The very latest ones can even have Extended Density (ED) disk drives which are of 2.88Mb capacity. Standard QL disk interfaces are not capable of handling HD or ED disks. The FORMAT command available under PCDOS or MSDOS will allow you, however, to format disks of lower capacity in such drives.
The QL Gold Card will handle such disks if suitable drives are fitted, and on such systems they will be recognised by the DiscOVER software. On Gold Card systems it is possible to read and write both HD and ED type disks. Formatting of HD disks to the MSDOS format is also supported on Gold Card systems, but not formatting of ED disks - these need to be formatted on the MSDOS machine.
If you have an Atari ST QL emulators fitted with the (non-standard) hardware feature that allows for reading and writing HD disks in Atari mode then DiscOVER will read and write HD disks in MSDOS format. It is not possible, however, to format HD disks to MSDOS format using DiscOVER on such systems.
The variants of the MSDOS FORMAT command that you may find useful are:
5.25" disks
High Density drives of this size will normally format to a capacity of 1.2 Mb. Most QL systems will not have hardware that is capable of reading this type of HD disk. You can format lower capacity disks as follows:
FORMAT A: /4 Will produce a 40 tracks Double sided disk capable of holding 360Kb. This is the format that is most common, and the one in which virtually all commercially sold IBM software is issued.
FORMAT A: /4 /1 Will produce a 40 track Single sided disk capable of holding 180Kb.
With these format variants it is preferable to use disks that have not previously been formatted in some other mode. In particular be wary of using disks that have been previously formatted to 80 track mode. This is because sometimes the re-format to 40 track leaves residual information behind which QL 80 track disk drives detect. This then causes Read/Write failures to occur.
3.5" disks
High Density drives of this size will normally format to a capacity of 1.44 Mb. You can format lower capacity disks as follows:
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 22 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE FORMAT A: /N:2 /T:80 DOS 3.1 or later
or FORMAT A: /F:720 DOS 5.0 or later
This will produce a 80 track Double sided disk capable of handling 720Kb. This is the format that will be suitable for most QL drives.
Loading a Format Definition
In normal use the DiscOVER software is able to 'auto-recognise' the details of the format of a PCDOS or MSDOS format disk by reading the first sector. It has been found that there are a couple of machines that did not record the information required in this first sector although they conform to MSDOS standards in all other respects.
The DiscOVER software is only able to read such disks if this information is provided in some other way. The method selected is to read this information from a file. Once such a file has been invoked the DiscOVER software stops attempting to get this information from the disks being read or written.
A number of format definition files are included with the software. If you wish to define a new format, then use one of the supplied files as a model. Edit the values to those that are suitable for the disks you wish to use.
6.3 CPM DISK FORMATS
This option is only available using MULTI-DiscOVER.
The CPM operating system was the one that became the de-facto standard for 8 bit micros. There is therefore a large amount of software available designed to run on CPM systems, and much of this software is in the Public Domain.
In addition, the QL has two different CPM emulators that were sold by Sandy and Digital Precision.
Sandy CPM emulator users
If you have the Sandy CPM emulator, then files on QL media in CPM format will all start with the copyright symbol. You will find it convenient when setting the device details in the DiscOVER software for the QL media to set the directory field to the copyright symbol.
The effect of doing this will be that when you directory the QL media, only the CPM format files will be displayed, and when you copy to the QL media, the copyright symbol will automatically be added to the start of the filename.
Details of a CPM Format Definition File
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 23 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE There are a wide variety of CPM formats available on different machines in the marketplace. It is not possible for DiscOVER to tell which format is in use merely by examining the disk. Therefore DiscOVER has to be told which CPM format you intend to use, and some details about how that particular CPM format lays its files out on the disk. This requirement is handled by providing an option on the DiscOVER main menu to load a CPM format definition file that specifies the details of the particular CPM format you wish to use.
NOTE. There is a restriction in that only a single CPM Format Definition file can be active at any point in time. If both the Source and Target devices are to be in CPM format, then it must be the same CPM format.
Format Definition files for a number of CPM formats are included as part of the distribution disk. You can make up new CPM Format Definition Files if your format is not one of those supplied, and you have sufficient information about the CPM format yopu intend to use. You should examine these if you wish to see an example of such a file.
This section covers the keywords used in the file, the values allowed for the parameters, and the default value that will be assumed if you omit any particular parameter from a Format Definition.
FORMAT NAME:
This is merely a name that identifies the format. It will be displayed if you take the option to view the disk parameters.
Default: None (this parameter is mandatory)
DENSITY:
This is a character that allows you to specify the density of the disk.
D = Double Density
S = Single Density
H = High Density
NOTE. Not all QL disk interfaces will support the reading and/or writing of Single Density disks. (See the section on BBC DFS format for more details). High Density disks can normally only be handled on Gold Card based systems.
Default: Double
TRACKS:
This allows you to specify how many tracks there are on the CPM disk.
Default: 80
SIDES:
This allows you to specify the number of sides used on the disk.
1 = Single Sided
2 = Double Sided
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 24 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE Default: 2 (= Double Sided)
SECTORS/TRACK
This allows you to specify how many sectors are present on a track.
Default: 9
FIRST SECTOR:
This specifies the lowest sector number used on a track. For the majority of formats it will be 1. It is also not that uncommon to encounter formats that start at 0. You ocassionally get more esoteric values such as the Amstrad CPC which starts at 128 for its single-sided 40 track format.
Default: 1
BYTES/SECTOR:
This specifies the number of bytes in each sector.
Default: 512
SECTORS/CLUSTER:
Disk space is allocated by CPM in units that is larger than the sector size. If you do not know the correct size, then for 40 track disks the most likely size is 1Kb, and for 80 track disks it is likely to be 2Kb or 4Kb.
Default: 2
INVERTED DATA:
There are a small number of machines in which the data bits are inverted (ie 1's changed to 0 and 0's changed to 1) by the hardware as they are read.
0 = No
1 = Yes
Default: 0 (= No)
CLUSTERS/EXTENT
The maximum size of a file that can be covered by a single directory entry under CPM is called an EXTENT. When the file gets bigger than this, additional extents are used, each having their own directory entry.
A single extent can be a maximum of 16 times the Cluster size. However, occasionally a different multiple is used. In this case the multiplication factor is normally chosen such as to make the area controlled by an Extent exactly 16Kb.
Default: 16
SIDE USAGE:
This option is only relevant to Double sided disks. It indicates how the sides of the disk are used.
1 = ALTERNATE. This is the most common. It means (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 25 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE that when a track on one side of a disk has been used, then the same track on the other side is next to be used. When the tracks on both sides have been used are the disk heads moved to the next track.
2 = INDEPENDENT. This means that although the disk is double sided, the two sides are not related. Each side will therefore have its own directory.
3 = IN TURN. This means that all tracks on one side of a disk are used before any tracks on the second side. When using the second side, the lowest numbered track will be used first.
4 = BACKWARD. This is similar to the IN TURN option, except that when the second side of the disk is used, the highest numbered track is used first,
5= REVERSE. This option is similar to the ALTERNATE option, except that on each track side 2 is used before side 1.
Default: 1 (= ALTERNATE)
INTERLACE:
To improve performance, many CPM systems do not put adjacent logical sectors on a track in adjacent physical sectors. Instead they are spaced out (to give the system time to get ready for the next logical sector). The interlace factor indicates the value by which physical sector numbers increment to give the next logical sector number. A value of 1 indicates that logical and physical sector numbering coincide.
Default: 1
SKEW FACTOR:
This is another factor introduced for performance reasons. It indicates how much the first logical sector on one track is displaced from the similar logical sector on the previous track. A value of 0 indicates that there is no relative displacement between tracks.
Default: 0
SECTOR FACTOR
This is a factor that is rarely needed. It is needed when the physical sector size is different to the logical sector size. It indicates the number of physical sectors that make up a logical (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 26 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE sector. The only case encountered so far of this being a value other than 1 is the format used by the Z80 second processor on a BBC.
Default: 1
DIRECTORY ENTRIES:
You will need to tell the program how many entries are in the Directory. Each directory entry is 32 bytes. It is normal for this value to be chosen so that it just fits into one or two Clusters.
If you get this value too small, you may find that not all the files will be displayed when you ask for a directory of the disk (but there should be no other side effects).
Default: 64
RESERVED SECTORS:
It is normal with most CPM formats for space to be reserved at the front of the disk for holding copies of CPM itself. This area is not usable for holding data. It is necessary to tell the program therefore where the Directory (which is the beginning of the usable area) starts. If in doubt, examine the disk until you find the start of the directory. This is easily recognisable as it consists of regular 32 byte entries with the file names in bytes 1 to 12.
Default: 9
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 27 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
6.4 BBC DFS DISK FORMATS
| WARNING |
| This option can only be used if your disk |
| interface supports Single Density disks |
| (see below). |
This option is only available using MULTI-DiscOVER
The original BBC disk format is known as DFS (for Disk Filing System).
DFS disks are always Single Density, with either 40 or 80 track disks. They may be double sided, but in that case the two sides are treated on the BBC as though they were two separate disks, each with its own directory.
DFS formats support a simple form of directory in that a one character prefix can be used with the filename. If this is supplied, then all files with the same prefix are considered as part of that directory. The default for this character is the dollar ($) character. DiscOVER will support this form of sub-directory.
There are a number of constraints imposed by DiscOVER as follows:
1) The DiscOVER program will only let you access the first side of a DFS format disk.
2) DFS imposes a constraint that all of a file must be held in contiguous sectors on a disk. This can lead to situations in whcih it is impossible to copy a file to a disk even though the total unused space is enough because there is no section large enough. On a BBC machine there is an option to 'compact' a disk to bring all the free sectors together. No such option is (currently) available with DiscOVER.
Singe Density Disks
Some QL disk interfaces do not support the reading or writing of Single Density disks. If you have one of these interfaces, then you will be unable to read Single Density Disks. BBC DFS disks are always Single Density (although BBC ADFS in contrast is always Double Density) and so are some CPM formats. Appendix D contains some information on how to overcome this limitation for those who are prepared to make hardware alterations to their systems.
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Disk interfaces that are known to fall into this category are:
Medic
Trumpcard
TreyCard
Atari QL Emulator
If you wish to check if your disk interface supports Single Density disks, then try the following.
a) Put a disk (any one will do) in FLP1 (some systems will work correctly for step b) even if you omit this stage.
b) Get to the SUPERBASIC command line and type in the following command sequence:
OPEN_IN #3,"Flp1_*d1s"
CLOSE #3.
If these commands produced no error message (and do not try to access an alternative drive), then your disk interface probably does support Single Density disks. The only recourse is to make hardware modifications to your system as outlined in Appendix D.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 29 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
6.5 BBC ADFS FORMAT DISKS
| WARNING |
| This option can only be used if your disk |
| interface supports 256 byte sector disks |
| However, the vast majority of QL disk |
| systems do support this option. |
| |
This option is only using MULTI-DiscOVER
At a later stage in the life of the BBC Micro, the ADFS (Advanced Disk Filing System) was introduced. This format is now probably the most widely used format on the BBC. It can also be used on the Acorn Archimedes where it is known as the L-Format.
It supports 40 track single sided disks, and 80 track single sided or double sided disks, although they are always Double Density. The most significant difference from DFS is the support for a hierarchical directory structure. This also removes for all practical purposes the limit of the number of files that can be held on a disk. DiscOVER supports the use of this directory structure.
The ADFS format has one failing in common with the DFS format. This is the fact that the whole of a file must be held in contiguous sectors. As with DFS, fragmentation of the free space can therefore occur. (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 30 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
6.6 CPIO DISK FORMATS
This option is only available using MULTI-DiscOVER.
The CPIO disk format is one that originates on Unix machines. Utilities also exist on many other operating systems to produce disks to this format. The CPIO format was specifically designed for the transfer of files between Unix machines that could be of dissimilar types. It takes its name from the Unix CPIO utility that is used to create and read such disks.
NOTE. The -c option on the cpio command should be used when producing disks on a Unix machine which are to be interchangeable between different machines. It must also be used when producing disks that are to be read by DiscOVER.
The format used by the CPIO command was changed slightly when Unix System V.4 was released. DiscOVER can handle both the old and new formats completely transparently to the user. If a disk is formatted by DiscOVER, then it will always be formatted in the older format. This is to avoid you having to know which version of Unix is to use the resulting disk. The version of the Unix CPIO command introduced with Unix System V.4 will recognise the older format and handle it with no problems.
Unlike the other formats supported by DiscOVER, the file and directory names used by the Unix CPIO format are case dependent. This means that care must be taken when copying files which are spelt the same, but with different case. On many target formats that ignore the case of filenames this would result in the second file overwriting the first one.
There are a number of constraints imposed by DiscOVER as follows:
1) DiscOVER is only capable of handling CPIO disks which satisfy one of the following physical parameters:
Double Sided
512 byte Sectors
9, 15, 18 or 36 sectors per track
Double Density, High Density or Extended Density
DiscOVER will automatically detect any of these variants. Note however that to use High Density or Extended Density disks, you must have an interface that supports this mode of operation plus a suitable drive(s). This limitation should not be a problem as all modern Unix systems would be expected to use one of these sets of values.
2) DiscOVER is not capable of handling CPIO variants that were not written on Unix without using the -c option (or (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 31 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE an equivalent) to the CPIO command. This is because the header information is then stored in a machine specific way that DiscOVER is unable to interpret.
3) The characteristics of the CPIO format mean that it is not possible to delete any file except the last one on the disk. This should not be a hardship as the CPIO format is normally only used for data interchange purposes. If you ask for multiple files to be deleted, then DiscOVER will therefore try and delete them in reverse order. If at any point during this process it finds that the file it is about to delete is not the last file (remaining) on the disk then it will abandon the deletion process with an error message.
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6.7 Spectrum Disciple/Sam Coupe
This option is only available using MULTI-DiscOVER.
| |
| There are many variants of the Disciple, Plus D |
| and Sam Coupe formats, so it possible that they |
| are not all handled correctly. If you find a |
| variant that MULTI-DiscOVER cannot handle, then |
| please submit an error report together with a |
| copy of the disk causing problems. Every effort |
| will then be made to get that variant supported. |
| See Appendix C for the address for error reports. |
| |
The Disciple (or Plus D) disk format was originally introduced on the Sinclair Spectrum computer.
The Sam Coupe which was designed as a "Super Spectrum" adopted a disk format based on the Spectrum Disciple format. A number of variants of this format were produced, but they are all close enough to each other that DiscOVER is able to handle all the known variants.
There are a number of constraints inposed by DiscOVER as follows:
1) The way that DiscOVER operates means that you are not given the Spectrum/Sam Coupe file type when obtaining the list of files. DiscOVER makes no distinction between the different file types - and merely treats them as a string of data bytes.
2) When DiscOVER is asked to write a file to a Disciple or Sam Coupe disk, it always set the file type up as type CODE.
It is not believed that this restriction will cause much of a problem as it is files of this type that are most likely to be the ones that the average user will wish to copy back to the Disciple/Sam Coupe format.
SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENTS
Any suggestions on how DiscOVER could be improved for users of Spectrum and compatible machines would be warmly welcomed. The author is not a serious Spectrum user, and so may well have missed some simple enhancements that would be of great benefit.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 33 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
APPENDIX A - DISK DRIVE COMPATIBILITY
This Appendix is meant to give some brief guidance on which disks you can expect to be compatible with your Disk Drive(s). It gives brief details of the items that vary between different types of disk and drives, and the effect.
Density
Floppy Disks come in a variety of 'Density' values. The term density is used to determine the quality of the magnetic coating on the Floppy Disk, and thus the density with which information can be recorded.
The values available are:
Single (SD) Also known as FM recording. Rarely used in modern disk drives. Some QL Disk interfaces do not support access to such disks. Examples of such interfaces are Medic and Trumpcard.
Double (DD) Also known as MFM recording. The commonest type of disk. All QL Interfaces support access to such disks. Disk capacity is typically either 360Kb or 720Kb depending upon the number of tracks (see below).
High Density Most modern IBM PC's now use this type of
(HD) disk. They typically have a capacity of 1.2Mb (5.25") or 1.44Mb (3.5") of data. This type of disk drive is NOT supported by standard QL disk interfaces, except for the Gold Card, and even then only the 3.5" variant.
Extended Density
(ED) The very latest IBM PC's use this type of
disk. They are always 3.5" and have a capacity of 2.88Mb of data. This type of disk drive is NOT supported by standard QL disk interfaces other than the Gold Card and Super Gold Card.
Sides
Single (SS) This means that only one side of a disk is used to record information.
Double (DS) This means that both sides of the disk are used to record information. Most modern disk drives fall into this category.
Tracks
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 34 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE Standard values for this are:
40 tracks (also known as 48 tpi on 5.25" disks, 80tpi on 3.5" disks). The standard 360Kb IBM disk format is of this type.
80 tracks (also known as 96 tpi on 5.25" disks, 135 tpi on 3.5" disks). This is the format of the 3.5" 720Kb disks used on the latest IBM PS2 PC's.
The following table shows the relationship between the Tracks on a disk and the ability of drives to access the disk
| IBM DISK TYPE |
| QDOS || 40 Track | 80 Track | 3.5" types |
| DRIVE TYPE || SS | DS | SS | DS | HD | ED | |--------------++-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
| 40 Track SS || C | ? | x | x | x | x |
|--------------++-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
| 40 Track DS || C | C | x | x | x | x |
|--------------++-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
| 80 Track SS || R | ? | C | ? | x | x |
|--------------++-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
| 80 Track DS || R | R | C | C | x | x |
|--------------++-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
| HD 3.5" || R | R | C | C | C | C |
|--------------++-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
| ED 3.5" || R | R | C | C | C | C |
| || | | | | | |
where C Fully Compatible
R Read Compatible. Depending upon drive tolerances of the other machine, you may also achieve Write Compatibility (tends to work OK with most modern drives).
x Incompatible. You will not be able to use this combination of disk and drive type.
? Incompatible. You may not get an error indicated by the hardware.
If the hardware gives an error when the DiscOVER software attempts to open a channel to the drive (as it should), then the you will get a message that will tell you exactly what the problem is. If no error is reported, then the DiscOVER software will fail with Read/Write errors when it tries to access the disk. (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 35 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
HD and ED disk types
The latest IBM (and compatible machines typically come with HD (1.44Mb) and ED (2.88Mb) 3.5" drives. The only QL disk interface capable of handling these drive types is the Miracle Systems Gold Card. If you have one of these fitted to your machine AND you have a suitable drive then DiscOVER will automatically read and write these disk types.
The formatting of HD disks to IBM/Atari format is also supported on such systems by DiscOVER. Formatting of HD disks will be transparent to the user as when the QL format has completed DiscOVER will automatically detect the fact that the disk is an HD disk, and write the IBM/Atari directory information appropriately.
ED disks, however, can only be formatted in QL mode. This is because the QL ED disk format uses 2048 byte sectors while the IBM ED format uses 512 byte sectors. If you try and format a disk to ED format then the QL part of the format will proceed, but when this has completed DiscOVER will then give an error message. This is because it is only when the disk has been formatted in QL mode that DiscOVER can detect the fact that it is an ED disk.
Sector Size
Sector sizes can be 128, 256, 512, 1024 or 2048 bytes. The size that is used by the QL (and most other formats as well) is 512 bytes.
There are a few older QL disk interfaces will not support access to sector sizes other than 512 bytes. This would be relevant if you were trying to use BBC DFS ir BBC ADFS (which has 256 byte sectors) or a number of the CPM formats. The symptom of this is getting "Unable to open drive" messages from DiscOVER.
Recording Method
The recording method used on the QL disks is what is known as MFM recording. There are some computers that use an alternative method known as GCR. Such disks cannot be read by QL disk interfaces. A common example of such a machine is the Apple Macintosh. The Commodore Amiga also sometimes writes GCR format disks (although it can also write MFM format ones).
Drive Speed
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 36 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE The standard for floppy disks drives is 300 rpm for msot drive types although 360 rpm is used on 5.25" High Density didks. There are (mostly obsolete) a number of machines that do not conform to this standard. The commonest culprit is the Apple range as they have traditionally used variable speed drives, with the speed varying depending on the track being accessed.
Sector Header Layout
Another characteristic that is invisible to the avaerage user is how the control bits are written to the disk. This determines for instance how a sector header should be identified. The commonest standard for this is the one that was defined by IBM for the original IBM PC, and which has been carried forward into all PC compatible systems.
To keep costs down in manufacturing PC systems, this standard was subsequently built into the disk controller chips that most machines use. This therefore became a de-facto standard for much of the computer industry.
This standard was (quite sensibly) adopted for use on the QL, Most QL disk interfaces use the WD1770 or WD1772 chips which implements this standard in hardware.
There are a few machines (the Commodore Amiga being the commonest example) which adopted alternative standards for writing this hidden control information. Disks in such formats are incompatible with all QL disk interfaces.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 37 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
APPENDIX B - ERROR MESSAGES
The following is a consolidated list of the Error Messages that can appear. Most of them are self-explanatory but where they are not additional information is given.
80 Track disk, 40 Track Drive
This message indicates a disk that is incompatible with your drives.
Bad Sectors during Format
A disk has completed its physical format, but some areas are doubtful. It is worth retrying to see if the problem persists. If it does, then the disk should be regarded as unusable for use by DiscOVER. You may still be able to use for QDOS work although it is not advisable - disks are cheap and your data is not!
Directory is full
This message will only occur when copying to a disk that is not in QDOS format. It means that although there is spare space on the disk, there are no free entries in the directory.
Disk Check failed
An error occured while checking a disk prior to writing a new directory as part of a format operation.
Disk corrupted or incorrect format
The program includes a number of checks on whether a disk conforms to the format specified. This message indicates that one of these checks failed. It is possible that for IBM or CPM disks you will need a suitable Format Definition file to be loaded.
Disk is full
Self explanatory.
Error reading file
Self explanatory
Error while read FAT
The DiscOVER software was unable to read one of the sectors that make up the File Allocation Table (FAT) of an IBM/Atari format disk. This message will have been preceded by an message telling you exactly which sector could not be read.
Error while writing FAT copy n
The DiscOVER software got a write failure while trying to write an updated FAT (File Allocation Table). This message will have been preceded by a message indicating exactly which sector failed. There are actually normally two copies of the FAT although most software only uses the first one. Therefore if the failure was not on copy one you can probably reasonably safely (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 38 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE ignore this error in the short term. However it is probably worth replacing the disk in question at the earlies opportunity.
Error writing file
Self explanatory. The output file is closed so that any data already written can be accessed. The file will, however, be incomplete.
Failure reading Directory
This should not happen unless you change the medium while it is still in use.
File not found
Self explanatory
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 39 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
Format Definition file not needed
This message indicates that you have asked for a format file to be loaded for a format which the program understands well enough to make such a format file irrelevant.
Format Failed
This message indicates that QDOS has indicated that a physical level format has failed. If it happens almost immediately, then check that it is not something obvious like having the disk "Write-Protected". It is always worth retrying at least once, but if this problem persists the disk should be regarded as unusable.
I/O failure on Sector t s n
An error has occurred reading or writing a sector. The numbers give the track, side and sector number that has caused the problem.
There are a number of common mistakes that can lead to this error message. They are as follows:
a) There is no disk in the drive.
b) The disk in the drive is write protected.
c) Are you trying to read a High Density disk in a QL drive? IBM High Density disks (i.e. 1.2Mb on 5.25" or 1.44Mb on 3.5") cannot be read on standard QL systems. This is a limitation of the QL disk interfaces, not of the DiscOVER software. IBM High Density drives can also format, read and write low density disks (i.e. 360Kb on 5.25", 720Kb on 3.5") so this is the type you should use.
Gold Card users can use High Density (HD) and Extended Density (ED) Drives. If they are present, then the DiscOVER software will be able to read High density and Extended Density disks.
d) If this is the first access to the drive since the machine was switched on, then the disk driver software in the disk interface may not yet have calibrated itself to the drive. The solution in this case is to put a QL disk in the drive in question, do a directory of it, and then try again the action that caused the problem.
Invalid Format Definition file
This will only occur if you change the text part of a Format definition file. You should only alter the values, not the text.
Invalid Program File
You have elected to save the current DiscOVER settings (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 40 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE as the new default values, and the program file you specified is either not the DiscOVER program file or it is for a different version of the software than the one currently in memory.
Invalid Registration key
There is something wrong with the Registration key you have tried to use. If you are sure that you have type it in exactly as supplied, then contact the author for a new key.
Invalid Sector Size
You have specified a sector size that is not one of the values 128, 256, 512 or 1024. These are the only sector sizes the hardware used can handle.
No Files Selected
Self explanatory
No free Qubide WIN number
This can occur if you are trying to read files off an IBM format disk attached to a Qubide disk interface. It indicates that you have all the possible WIN drive numbers (WIN1 to WIN8) in use. You need to use the WIN_DRIVE command to unmount one of the QDOS format partitions to give DiscOVER a free WIN device with which it can work.
No IBM/Atari partition found
This can occur if you are trying to read files off an IBM or Atari format hard disk. It indicates that the DiscOVER software has located a hard disk, but has not been able to find a DOS (for IBM) or TOS (for Atari) format partition on the drive.
No suitable Qubide device found
This can occur if trying to read files from an IBM/Atari formatted device connected to a Qubide disk interface. It indicates that the DiscOVER software has been unable to locate any devices attached to the Qubide interface.
Not enough space on disk for file
There is not enough space on the disk to hold the file. For BBC DFS and BBC ADFS formats this can also be due to the fact that no contiguous area is large enough to hold the file, even though the total free space is sufficient.
Only QDOS format Qubide drives found
This can occur if you are trying to read files off an IBM or Atari format hard disk. It indicates that the only drives the DiscOVER software can locate appear to be in QDOS format and not IBM format.
Out of Memory
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 41 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE The DiscOVER software has insufficient workspace to handle the disk being used. DiscOVER dynamically allocates itself extra memory as needed, so if there are other programs running, then removing these might give you enough additional space to handle the disk.
Same Device for Source and Target
You must have different device names for the Source and Target files when copying. At other times they are allowed to be the same.
Seek failed: sector t s n
An error occurred when trying to position the heads prior to a read or write.
Sub-Directories not supported
You have tried to either set a directory, or change directory levels on a format that does not support a directory structure.
There are no files on this disk
Self explanatory
This directory is empty
Self explanatory (but please note that there may be files on the disk in some other directory).
Translate area full
Too many characters have been specified (in total) as the destination codes.
Translate parameter syntax error
A line in a Translation file has been found for which one of the following conditions applies:
a) It begins in ';' and is followed by neither ST nor TS.
b) The target code is followed by a character other than semicolon (or end of line).
c) The destination code(s) are separated by a character other than comma.
d) A code is not immediately preceded by #.
Translated record too large
The codes specified in the translate file have resulted in a greater than 2 to 1 expansion of the input stream.
Unable to access disk on XXXX
It is either absent, corrupt or
incompatible with your disk drive.
This message will occur if the program cannot read any data from the drive in question. It means that the drive has been opened, but that no sectors have been read successfully. Note that the software cannot tell the difference between a disk being absent, or present (c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 42 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE but with a different sector size or disk density from that expected.
Unable to delete File
Means that the medium has been changed since you obtained the file list, or that it is write-protected.
Unable to establish path
This means that you have specified a sub-directory, and it cannot be found.
Unable to open Output File
Self explanatory. Probably due to the target media having been removed!
Unable to open drive
The disk is either absent, or the drive is being used by some other program.
The other (unlikely) possibility is that you have a disk interface which does not conform to Sinclair standards, and does not support Direct Sector Access. The only interface we know of that has this problem is the early Micro Peripherals interface (and that one can be upgraded by purchasing a new ROM from QJUMP or CARE Electronics). You can check this by putting a disk in FLP1, ensuring that there are no files currently open, and then checking that the following SuperBasic command sequence works without giving an error message
OPEN #3,"flp1_*d2d"
CLOSE #3
Unable to open directory
Means either that the Disk is not present, or that the disk is being used by some other program.
Unable to rename file
The rename has failed. Note that this error message always occurs if you try a rename on a CPIO format disk as the rename command is not supported for that format.
Unexpected fault:
This message should not appear as it indicates that internal consistency checks in the DiscOVER software have failed. A condition has been detected that was not expected to happen. It will often indicate a fault in the DiscOVER software. It will normally be qualified by an additional message indicating the problem.
If you have done something obviously wrong (such as removing a disk that DiscOVER is trying to use) then this error message may be superfluous and can be ignored. If it persists then please report the problem (See Appendix C for details on Error Reporting).
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 43 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
INVALID FORMAT MESSAGES
If you select the option to "View Details", then you may get messages indicating that consistency checks have failed when trying to read disk layout information. This will nearly always be caused by the fact that the disk that you are reading the details of is not really of the format type you have specified it as being.
Messages that can occur under these circumstances are:
Media Code Not Recognised
Number of Sides Invalid
Number of Tracks Invalid
Number of FAT's Invalid
Sector Size Invalid
Sectors/Track Invalid
Sectors/Cluster Invalid
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 44 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
APPENDIX C: Update Policy
The DiscOVER software is no different to any other computer software in that it is regularly being improved. Also (on occasion) users may find bugs that need correcting.
The basic policy is that registered users do not have to pay again for new releases. The key that a registered user is given on initial registration will stay valid for new releases of the DiscOVER software. The latest release of the DiscOVER software can always be obtained from the web site at:
http://www.chez.com/davewalker/
It can also be obtained via one of the many PD libraries that stock the DiscOVER software or (as a last resort) direct from the Author. If you chose the latter then there is a nominal ż’2 c h a r g e t o c o v e r h a n d l i n g a n d p o s t a g e . F o r u s e r s o u t s i d e E u r o p e t h i s i s r a i s e d t o ż’3 .
T h e a u t h o r c a n b e c o n t a c t e d a t :
D . J . W a l k e r T e l : + 4 4 1 7 0 7 6 5 2 7 9 1
2 2 K i m p t o n s M e a d , ( a nswering machine during
Potters Bar, working hours Mon-Fri)
Herts, Fax: +44 1707 850937
EN6 3HZ
U.K.
email: itimpi@msn.com
OR dave.walker@icl.com
web: http://www.itimpi.freeserve.co.uk
It is sensible (if feasible) to have previously phoned or sent an email to check that an upgrade is available and that you do not already have the latest version.
CPM Definition Files
Users who wish to read or write CPM disks will be using the 'Multi' version of DiscOVER. This needs a "CPM definition file" specifying various details about a specific CPM implementation. There are a large number of pre-prepared CPM definition files provided with DiscOVER. However, if you wish to use an implementation that is not already provided for then a new CPM Definition file needs to be created. It has been found that many users of DiscOVER have problems in setting up such a definition file.
You can get a new CPM Definition file prepared for you by applying supplying a sample CPM disk of the type you wish to access. This CPM disk should have at least one file on it (preferably containing readable text) that is larger than 16K. You will be sent back a new CPM definition file for the format in question, and this will be added to those available for this and subsequent releases.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 45 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE Please specify if you want the original CPM disk back, or whether you are prepared to accept a blank disk as a substitute. If the latter, then any upgrade charge is waived. This is because if the CPM disk can be retained it can be used as test material for any future releases.
Error Reporting
If you suspect an error in the DiscOVER software (yes, they have been known!) it is always advisable to check first that it is not
either already known,
or that is not perhaps due to a misunderstanding of the way that the DiscOVER software functions.
Havind said that, do not be afraid of reporting errors - they can only be fixed if they are reported. If the error is genuine, then you will receive a free upgrade to the version of DiscOVER that fixes the error.
To report an error please supply:
a) As much as you can remember about the circumstances leading up to the error.
b) A sample disk that produces the error. If you want the disk returned please say so. Otherwise a new blank disk will be returned instead and the sample disk retained for testing future releases of the DiscOVER software.
(c)1988-96 D.J.Walker Last changed: 23 Feb 98 Page 46 DiscOVER version 4: USER GUIDE
APPENDIX D. ODIFICATIONS TO USE SINGLE DENSITY DRIVES
*********************************************
** WARNING **
** **
** DO NOT ATTEMPT TO USE THE OPTIONS **
** MENTIONED IN THIS SECTION UNLESS **
** YOU ARE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND THE **
** CONCEPTS COVERED AS OTHERWISW YOU **
** COULD DAMAGE YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM. **
** **
*********************************************
Many of the QL disk interfaces on the market do not support Single Density Disk drives. If your disk controller uses one of the 177x family of chips (which the vast majority of QL disk interfaces seem to) then it is relatively easy to fit an external switch that will force a drive to be treated as Single Density even if the QL tries to use it in Double Density mode.
What you need to do is fit the switch so that pin 26 of the 177x chip on your disk interface can be switched between 5v (single density) and 0v (double density). To do this, fit the switch between pin 26 of the 177x chip on your disk interface and the 5v supply rail. You then also connect pin 26 of the 177x chip to the 0v line via a 2.2K resistor.
Having made this modification to your disk interface, you can then use DiscOVER z Ė
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