Cumana Reborn wanted

Anything related to the tools Tap2Wav, Tap2CD, Tap2Dsk, Sedoric Disc Manager, Tape Header Creator, WriteDsk, and generaly speaking tools related to the management of Oric data files and devices.
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Steve M
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by Steve M »

Isn't that for the Greaseweazle?

I thought Cumana Reborn used HxC firmware?


Tatung Einstein has the floppy controller built in so you don't need a Cumana Reborn, just the Gotek.
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iss
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by iss »

Here we need some clarifications:
1. Cumana Reborn is commercial hardware product. It combines Cumana FDC and Gotek clone. It works with free open source software/firmware - FlashFloppy.
2. HxC is commercial hardware product and has paid firmware. HxC provides also paid firmware for Gotek.
3. Greaseweazle is open source/hardware project for backup floppy disks.
4. Keirf is the author of both Greaseweazle and FlashFloppy.
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xahmol
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by xahmol »

Steve M wrote: Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:35 am I thought Cumana Reborn used HxC firmware?
The Cumana Reborn ships with the FlashFloppy firmware, at least mine did.

The Cumana Reborn can run the HxC firmware as well. I actually have migrated from FF to HxC firmware because the HxC creator indicated it would solve my issues. But also the HxC firmware does not handle Oric .DSK natively (so still conversion to .HFE is needed), also the HxC firmware did not solve my biggest issue, namely that when an HFE image is modified on the Cumana Reborn it can not be converted back anymore to a DSK that Oricutron understands (see my issue above, including link to the forum topic discussing this with the HxC firmware creator).
HxC firmware is not free, and afaik the advantage over FF is small. Also the process of activating HxC firmware on the Cumana Reborn is somewhat cumbersome with manual steps and communication with its creator needed, so presently I do not feel that it is an advisable migration given the price, effort and little added benefit. Of course the effort needs to be done only once, future upgrades do not require activation anymore. And it works at least as well as the FF firmware. Reason for me stick with HxC.

So I actually have used the Cumana Reborn with both FF as HxC firmware, now use HxC.
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Steve M
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by Steve M »

Thanks for clarifying. It's so confusing !

I've used flash floppy (I think) with the Greasweazle and found it difficult to get the resulting HFE files to work as Dsk files. (Iss converted them for me. )

I was told the HxC emulator software worked now with converting to Oric .Dsk files but I haven't tried it again recently.

I'm not sure why these things can't be made to use the Oric.Dsk files, like the Cumulus did?
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xahmol
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by xahmol »

Steve M wrote: Mon Jun 20, 2022 4:51 pm I'm not sure why these things can't be made to use the Oric.Dsk files, like the Cumulus did?
Priority for the firmware makers. Oric DSK is a VERY small format, Oric is already a computer with a small user base and within that base only a small minority ever used disk drives.
Also afaik the DSK MFM implementation is not very clean implemented as well, making it also not easy to support it and have it running with all images.

Can all be solved of course, but can fully understand that for those firmware writers a lot of prio goes to other platforms.
So I have learned to accept it as long as I do not have the capability nor time to improve it myself.

And yes, the HxC software can now write DSK, but the problem that HFEs altered on the Cumana Reborn and converted back do not work in Oricutron and Oric Explorer (but do work in Euphoric) remains (although I still have to check if that is still the case in the newest Oricutron builds).

Would be great if any of the great Oric wizards here came up with a solution that natively supports DSK.

Preferably also with a major update of the OSDK tools to directly build and manipulate DSKs in a much better fashion, instead of my present work chain to first create a raw binary (as for some reason the TAP files that CC65 creates in the default config for the Atmos target do not work with the Tap2dsk tool), than add a header to create a working .tap, then build a DSK old format from all seperate .tap files, then convert to the new format with old2mfm and than convert to HFE. Managed to automate it all now in my Makefile, but it is a bore nonetheless. But also here, can not improve myself, so motto is accept instead of complain.
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by xahmol »

Link to my present Makefile for Oric projects as background to my last post:
https://github.com/xahmol/OricScreenEdi ... n/Makefile

See this section for the create DSK and convert to HFE chain:

Code: Select all

# Build disk
$(DISK_DSK): $(PROGRAM)
	$(OSDK)header $(PROGRAM) BUILD/$(PROJECT).tap 0x0501
	$(OSDK)tap2dsk -iCLS:$(PROJECT) -c20:3 -n$(PROJECT) BUILD/$(PROJECT).tap OSEHS1.tap OSEHS2.tap OSEHS3.tap OSEHS4.tap OSETSC.tap $(DISK_DSK)
	$(OSDK)old2mfm $(DISK_DSK)
	cd $(HXCFE); ./hxcfe -finput:"$(mkfile_path)/$(DISK_DSK)" -foutput:"$(mkfile_path)/$(DISK_HFE)" -conv:HXC_HFE
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by stainlessstephen »

Folks

The Cumana Reborn arrived over the weekend. Tonight I've had a play.

All I can say is - wow, just wow.

Thank you Zaxon.

Next question, can I convert tap files to disks like the Rhetoric disks?

Very impressed with this.

Here is a photo of the Oric family.
16564469289537763612682976262846.jpg
Cheers
Steve
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Steve M
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Re: Cumana Reborn wanted

Post by Steve M »

It depends on how the program is made. i.e there can be a loader screen and then the program. The tap files with two part combined will need separating.The loader will need instructions to load the main program which will need changing from cassette loading instructions to disk loading ones. Not too difficult in BASIC.
With Euphoric you could easily generate a blank disk. This isn't so easy with other emulators etc so you need to make one and then copy it so you can add your programs. You may need a menu prog or a little bit of code to load the files. Sometimes you need ot use commands like QUIT or GRAB prior to loading.
If the progs are in machine code then you need to hack into them to change any loading instructions. If you're lucky and the prog is one file it should be pretty easy to convert. Sometime you will need a prog to stop the autorun. There's one or two on the Rhetoric disks.

Finally there is a utility tap2disk which will convert program for you.

Many of the programs have been converted already so if you are wanting to convert a commercial prog ask, as someone has probably already done it.

Some of the programs have been updated debugged or had joystick code included, so there are enhanced versions available which aren't simply tap files put on disk.
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