RS-232 port mod

[Richard Andrews]

I have been contemplating a mod to the XL-XE line of Atari
computers. It is a uart (RS-232 port). The way that I see it, it
wouldn't require too much work. It would be interrupt driven for receive
and transmit. There are two unused interrupt vectors in the OS, namely
VPRCED and VINTER at locations $202-203 and $204-205. The uart would be
mapped to $D700-$D70F. The code for the actual IO would boot from disk like
the the 850 code does now. I have the chip count up to 3 chips and now
I have two questions-

1) Is anyone interested in such a mod either internal or external to their
machine as a public domain item? (internal would be neat...just a DB-25
connector out the rear.)

2) Is anyone interested in marketing such a modification?

The total cost to build should be around $25-$30 tops.

Any comments?????? reply to....

Rich Andrews
...ihnp4!chinet!cabbie

[C. David Young]

An internal uart would be wonderful because we could then run disk I/O and
printer I/O simultaneously with serial I/O. I heartily recommend a public
domain item.

David Young
-------

[j...@mitre-bedford.arpa]

I understand the R:Verter gives you another very cheap way to get an RS-232
port, namely use the existing serial I/O channel used for the peripherals,
together with MC1488-14889 level converters, the only external chips you need.
The "UART" is already implemented in the POKEY chip and all you need to make
it work is the software (which may be tricky, but as it uses no silicon,
software is free, isn't it?). Does anyone out there in net-land know where to
get a driver for the R:Verter? Is is Public Domain?

-John Sangster
j...@mitre-bedford.arpa

[j...@mitre-bedford.arpa]

The little general purpose interface people were asking me about (and of which
I sent schematics out to a lot of people) has a MC6850 ACIA port, which can
run 19.2 Kbits/sec independent of the SIO bus. I could probably get my
cousin to do up a PC board of this thing if I wheedled him a little.
It is designed to run from the parallel port of the 800XL, but maybe there's a
way to bring it out of the cartridge port on the old 800. I wouldn't mind
having one of that type myself now that I have an 800 sitting around also.

David, what do you have down there, an old 800 or other assorted 8-bitters?

-John Sangster
j...@mitre-bedford.arpa
...ihnp4!linus!mbunix!jhs

[Eric Sharakan]

A.I.D. (makers of the r:verter) used to have a BBS where any owners of
R:verters can login using the serial number of their device. The BBS
contained all versions of their handlers, as well as some other neat
things. I don't know if it is still operational, you should call them
to find out. (They are located in Fla.)

I have yet to see any of their handlers in the public domain.
--

Eric Sharakan, Thinking Machines Corporation, Cambridge, Ma., 02142
ARPA: SHAR...@THINK.COM
UUCP: ...!{ihnp4,seismo,...}!think!sharakan

[Richard Andrews]

In article <65...@think.COM> shar...@godot.think.com.UUCP (Eric Sharakan) writes:
>A.I.D. (makers of the r:verter) used to have a BBS where any owners of
>R:verters can login using the serial number of their device. The BBS
>contained all versions of their handlers, as well as some other neat
>things. I don't know if it is still operational, you should call them
>to find out. (They are located in Fla.)
>
>I have yet to see any of their handlers in the public domain.
>--

The R-VERTER and any of the software is NOT in the public
domain. R-Verter is a copyrighted program of Advanced Interface
Devices, Inc.

Rich Andrews
...ihnp4!chinet!cabbie