Won’t You Come Home, Don Dailey?
Dear Editor, I recently purchased a modified chip for the T/S1000 for use with the Byte Back interface from Don Dailey through an ad in your magazine.
I’ve got some questions about the program, specifically, setting the printer format for my 80-column printer and use of ZX PRO/FILE. I can’t figure out the program modifications.
I’ve tried reaching Don at the Montana address you gave in your ad, with no luck.
If you gentlemen have another mailing address or a phone number for Don I would appreciate it.
Louis Thorpe
Atlanta, GA
Don, are you listening? Please let us know where you are–we hate to lose a friend.
Incidentally, can any of our readers help, either to find Don or to answer the question?
Picking Up The PCs
Sergio Frost of San Diego writes a provocative letter. Rather than quote the whole letter, let me summarize it a bit.
Sergio comments on our recent mentions of the PC, and notes that the thing that keeps him from converting to the Other Guys is the fact that he has invested heavily in Sinclair-specific hardware and software.
He goes on (my apologies to Sergio for paraphrasing a bit here and there–blame the typos on me): “I think the column would have a chance (and readership would increase) if, for a while at least, the column was devoted to information on how to convert TS2068 hardware to IBM PC use.” He hopes that the modifications could be non-invasive, as the physicians put it, so you just plug in components, converters, emulators, or what have you.
How about it, out there? Anybody interested? More important, can anyone come up with even partial solutions to this problem that will probably bug all of us, sooner or later?
Fast-Load Won’t
Dear Editor, I have been using the excellent word-processing program, Word Sinc 340 successfully with my ZX81 and TIMEX 2040 printer. I have, however, not been able to get the fast load/save version to work at all despite many attempts.
Upon loading the short fast loader, all I get is a blank screen and thus no way to enter the GOTO 1000 command. To check the loading I have used the Bad Load utility (SWN 2:2, p.4) and get consistent listings of the loader that do operate with GOTO 1000. Can you or your readers assist me?
Ken George
Guanica, Puerto Rico
FRED REPLIES
I haven’t personally used WS-340, so I can’t address your fast-load problem directly. However, my experience with several different fast-load routines is that they are highly hardware- and firmware-dependent. By “hardware” I mean tape recorders, by “firmware” I mean tape.
Regarding hardware, some systems like to see a reversed playback phase in order to work properly. Make up a “backwards” loading cable; i.e., the “tip” of one goes to the “ground” on the other, and vice versa. Try using this to load your previously fast-saved programs/data. Be sure to disconnect the MIC (SAVE) cable! (Incidentally, this is always good practice.)
Regarding firmware, try different brands of tape. I’ve found that TDK chrome tapes work best for me. (Don’t worry about the fact that your recorder desn’t have a chrome setting. We’re not concerned with hi-fi here, only that we have a clean, bright signal.)
If still no go, contact Peter McMullin, [address omitted], Toronto Ontario for his sage advice.
More On The PC
Dear Editor,
1. Your module/checklist left out an essential item, the BIOS…and while I was trying to decide which 386 machine to buy, I learned that there are illegal ones and some very poor ones on the market. I wound up with Phoenix BIOS-386 and it works well on my ALR 386.
2. Your statement that DOS (MS or PC) automatically contains BASIC is wrong. It can be included as a “no-cost” extra, but unless the specs list BASIC, it won’t be there! Microsoft’s GW BASIC is identical to IBM’s “Advanced BASIC” (usually called BASIC A) with the same release number.
3. Get the highest release number of DOS and BASIC that your machine will handle.
4. And you should have mentioned the 8087 (80287-80387) when you were discussing TURBO PCs.
Dave English
Orange, CA
P.S. Oh yes! I had a heck of a lot more parts plugged and wired into my TS1000 than I need on my ALR.
REPLY (of sorts)
We’ll pass this one along without comment–probably Dave knows a lot more on the subject than any of us here at SWN. One thing that I (Basil) will heartily endorse, though: whenever you buy any software, it’s wise to get the latest possible version, unless you have a compelling reason not to. Or, as a piece of oral graffiti I once heard has it: never buy version 1 of anything.
Fury, No Sound
Dear Editor, I refer to Mr. Lou Dooly‘s letter in Vol. 5 #1 with reference to T. (J) G. Morley‘s letter about the screen tearing on the Sears TV/monitor.
My monitor now works perfectly. First, a TV repair man suggested that the sync on the composite output might be too strong, so I inserted a 10K pot in series with the composite output on the 2068. The TV cleared up at about 100 ohms. The solution was a 100 ohm 1W resistor in series in the composite cable.
I do not like using resistor circuits so instead of the simple circuit in the 2068 service manual I used a CMOS inverter and buffer circuit on the RGB output. No good. Finally, after much fiddling, I went to a transistor inverter and straight connections to RGB. What a beautiful sight! The color was a little different from the composite color, but very acceptable.
My only problem now is no sound. Why Sears (or anyone for that matter) would put out an RGB monitor without sound capabilities is beyond me.
It appears from the circuit diagram that the audio is disconnected when you switch from composite to RGB.
I would appreciate hearing what some others have done with the audio, short of a separate audio amplifier.
T. G. Morley
T or C, New Mexico
FRED REPLIES
The sound quality of the TS2068 speaker does leave a lot to be desired, as does its audio driver circuit. Furthermore, there is no way to vary the volume. Many composite monitors have a built-in amplifier and speaker, but as you pointed out, manufacturers of RGB monitors generally don’t include this for their own obscure reasons.
You do need some sort of external amplifier/speaker combo. Radio Shack has such a thing at reasonable cost (around $15).
Do you have an old portable radio kicking around? If so, try running the sound to the two outside terminals of the volume control, and tune the radio to a quiet spot on the dial. DO NOT use “AC-DC” type radios (e.g. the old “all-America 5-tube” sets, or the so-called “transformerless” sets) for this!
Another possibility is an old el-cheapo stereo with “line in” or “phono” input.
Finally, you can call your tape recorder into service. Run the sound into the MIC jack through an attenuator cable (from Radio Shack). Connect a speaker, in series with a 100-ohm rheostat (potentiometer) to the EAR jack. Put in a cassette with the tape cut or removed to allow enabling RECORD mode. Voila! Plenty of volume.
(Editor’s note): Don’t take that warning about “transformerless” radios lightly. If you make a direct ground connection to the wrong side of the line, you run the risk of blowing fuses, radio, and computer, or–literally–of killing yourself. Whichever comes first.
By the way, there’s a delightful geography lesson in this letter. There really is a T or C (Truth or Consequences) in New Mexico, on the Rio Grande, right between Elephant Butte and Caballo Reservoir. ZIP code 87901. What’s the story behind the name, T.G.?