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Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 6:02 pm
by 8bit-Dude
Symoon wrote: Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:18 pm I think PASE interface was quite popular in the early years. A few program patches were sold to let players use the joystick with popular games.
Then came the programmable interfaces.
Have you got any game disk patched for PASE, IJK or ALTAI, which I can load on the cumulus?
I woud like to test my implementation.

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 6:40 pm
by Dbug
I'm not quite sure, I know Pulsoids support joypads, just not sure which ones.

On a side note, makes sure you also support arrows + space, it's a commonly used set of keys, and my own "home made" joystick connector is done by soldering wires on the keyboard on these keys :D

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 8:07 pm
by Symoon
Lots of PASE converted games in disk format here (Dominique's old pages):
http://dominique.pessan.pagesperso-oran ... ystick.htm
Beware that those disks may be slave disks, i.e Sedoric without operating system on them. If so, you need to boot first on a Sedoric master disk, then inster those disks (or better, leave Sedoric in drive A, and insert games disks in drive B).

IJK and Altai: no idea sorry (not sure I have ever seen an Altai interface BTW?)

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2019 10:32 am
by 8bit-Dude
Thanks for these Symoon. I finally got the PASE interface working, but it was a battle!!
I will probably implement one more, you guyz prefer IJK or ALTAI?

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2019 3:25 pm
by 8bit-Dude
Today's update on the "8bit-Hub":

(1) Implemented LCD screen.
(2) Implemented PS2 mouse support.
(3) Implemented PASE Interface.
(4) Implemented Option for selecting boot mode (Ethernet+4Joy, Ethernet+2Joy+Mouse, PASE Interface)

Todo next: Implement ALTAI or IJK (tbd). Start tidying the big mess of wires I have created!

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2019 3:53 pm
by Symoon
8bit-Dude wrote: Thu Jan 10, 2019 10:32 am I will probably implement one more, you guyz prefer IJK or ALTAI?
Seems incredible.
I have never heared of Altai, so I suspect IJK (or OPEL?) would be a candidate. Would be cool if a UK user could tell us more which one was more popular.

But I have a stupid question : could this last availble 'slot' (not sure how to call it) be used for RS-232? I suspect not, but IMHO that could be a nice addition.

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2019 4:05 pm
by 8bit-Dude
What you call a "slot" has a different meaning. It refers to different communication modes between the Arduino and Oric.
(In effect, I emulate legacy joystick interfaces. The code for reading joysticks inside the arduino is the same).

I am currently maxed-out on pins with the following peripherals:
- Atmos printer port (11 digital pins)
- LCD screen (2 analog pins)
- Ethernet (4 digital pins)
- Joysticks (4 x 1 analog pin)
- PS2 mouse (2 digital pins)

So there is no way that an RS232 can be added unless using an Arduino Mega.

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2019 4:23 pm
by Chema
IIRC only IJK made sense, because
1/ it plugs in the printer port and can be used with a disk unit
2/ it uses the STROBE signal so sound is not corrupted

But I may be wrong and only a few games support it. Blake's 7 does (or should do, at least it works on the emulator)

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2019 5:30 pm
by Symoon
8bit-Dude wrote: Thu Jan 10, 2019 4:05 pm So there is no way that an RS232 can be added unless using an Arduino Mega.
Ok thanks, I was pretty sure that it was a bit dreaming ;)

8bit-Hub Concept

Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 6:16 am
by 8bit-Dude
I started cleaning up the mess of wires, and soldering some DB9 connectors... I will post another update video this week-end.
The concept as it has evolved up-to now is summarized in the picture below.

I have already placed an order for 4 black cases (See here).

One is for me, the others are for 3 early adopters, willing to help me with testing 8bit-slicks and 8bit-Unity for the Oric (As bonus, you will also benefit from the IJK/PASE interface). I would like to charge between 100-150 GBP per unit + shipping cost (this is a bargain when you consider the amount of soldering I will have to do on each unit).

P.S: One caveat is that the joysticks need to be "low resistance type" (less than 100 ohm, like like this one). The internal resistance on some Atari, Tack 2, and Amstrad joystick switches I checked is so random (some switches <100 ohm, others >10K ohm) that it messes up the voltage divider... I will try to address this issue in future...

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 4:49 pm
by ibisum
Whoa, I would love to have the gumption to jump on this, but I'd kinda rather build my own .. will you be making this closed/open, design-wise?

Re: Networking Orics.

Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 2:40 am
by 8bit-Dude
The communication code will be released open-source, as part of my 8bit-Unity SDK (written for cc65, but the communication code can be picked-up and integrated into any other project such as OSDK or pure ASM).

So far I have released 8bit-Slicks for free, will release 8bit-Unity for free (the code for both hosted on GitHub). But for the 8bit-Hub, I will first try to talk to some specialized manufacturers like Lotharek or iComp, to see if they are interested in selling the unit. This may ensure a bigger impact than releasing the design as open-source and seeing only a couple dozen people ever assembling it...