🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <9312090717.AA06622@relay1.UU.NET> you write:
>About a week ago I got a Trakker-250 tape drive from Colorado Memory Systems.
> This drive uses a 1/4" tape cassette and can store up to 250MB.  It runs
>off of the PC's parallel printer port so I figured "hey, I have a parallel
>port.  Maybe I can make it work under OS-9!"  Well, here's how it's going:
>
[stuff deleted]
>
>So at this point I have several options:
>
>    - Give up on the parallel port idea and make the tape drive work
>      using the MFM interface.  This would be good for everyone who wants
>      to use a tape drive but don't have a parallel port, since we could
>      use the standard floppy controller and cable.
>
>    - Disassemble the software from Colorado Memory Systems.  This would be
>      a great intro to 8086 assembly language but vey time consuming.
>
>    - Hook up a monitor to the parallel port of a PC and watch it talk to
>      the tape drive.  I would have to build a monitor.
>
>    - Write a formal-looking letter from the "QIC committee of the OS9
>      User's Group" (assuming I can get Boisy et al to go along) to the
>      engineering department of CMS requesting the specs and explaining
>      how we could expand their market for free.  I could even sign non-
>      disclosure agreements and not give the source code to anyone.
>
>    - Give up and go home.
>
>Well gang, any ideas?  This isn't going to be as easy as I thought (as
>usual!)
>
>   -Rich

I would say, contact the UG (Not Boisy now, is it Carl Boll?) and try that
aproach first. If you do it that way, the driver could later be donated to
the UG and would make a really nice addition to the library. (Assuming you
would want to do that!)

Second aproach pick would be to play with the floppy controller idea.

If you can get either the parallel port or floppy controller method to work
under OS-9, I would be very interested in getting one of the beasts myself.
(How much was it?)

Scott

--
 Duct tape is like the FORCE! |  smcgee@microware.com (Scott McGee)
 It has a light side and a    |==============================================
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 universe together.           |  believed me yet! Would you?