From: cohen@GOMEZ.phys.virginia.edu
Subject: Re: NCTIS report
Reply-To: cohen@GOMEZ.phys.virginia.edu
Organization: Dept. of Physics, University of Virginia
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 20:33:35 GMT

In article <1jp9seINNbqj@mailgzrz.TU-Berlin.DE>, willi@zrzsp5.chem.tu-berlin.de (Winfried Winkler) writes:
>
>I mentioned DD-diskcontrollers, because for some programs it is really "a pain
>in the ass" :-> to use'em with SD-drives only -- or very annoying for the one
>who's writing software to assume only SD-disks available...
>In the first category  FunlWeb, TI-ArtistPlus, etc come to my mind.
>About the second category:  Remember that Graphics-Adventure "Legends" ?
> It had to open a "dummy"file for read and check error-conditions very often
> if it was loading one of *several* sub-files with additional data... 
> Just to find out, wether the right (single density) disk was in the drive.
> (It could've read disknames or similar things  to stay "fool-proof"...)
>As Text/Data on adventure-type games or graphics (at least for VDP9938!) fill 
>up a 720 sector-disk very soon sometimes - do you agree? - I think it would at
>least be easier to assume DD-disks for "D2" or "E" Level, too !
>That "check for which disk" could be eliminated or completely different, faster
>(sector-based, for example) options only available with DD could be used.
>Comments ?

Yes.  Any program should be unprotected and best sold on a set of 1S-1D 
diskettes.  users with higher disk capacity, RAM disks, HD's, etc. can transfer
the files to their choice of disk format.  Thus users with original TI issue
disk system can still use the programs, and those with more advanced capacities
will have an easier time.  But this is NOT a new level of hardware.

[It is really annoying to find a little 20K program on a protected disk,
not being able to transfer it anywhere, but I think this is the legacy of the
past.  At least all those protected programs were doomed to be forgotten
in favor of unprotected ones.  Who is still using the Quality 99 Software
disks?  they published dozens of programs on heavily-protected diskettes,
many of the programs were very small (one pathetic example was an XB 
autoloader... can you imagine that small thing on it own protecteed disk? :-);
seems to me they spent more time on protection schemes than on S/W development!
Now they are museum pieces.]

If you adopt  DD controllers as a new level, you get into a real chaos.  Soon
people with HRD-4000 will ask for support of 1-2 Meg RAMdisks, etc.

Perhaps you could say that HD's are a new level, like they have changed the
programs for in the PC world, but since most people do not use those, and there
are so many problems with them, they are best left as an option as well.

>
>>> shouldn't be a GRAM-device on that list, too ?
>Anything *I* learned about GPL I got from one book stating:
>"Anything in this book comes from hand-analysing the ROM-Code and, after being
>able to program a disassembler for GPL, hand-analysing some GROMs ..."
>By the way:  as this book seems to be long out of print -
>   what about making the (uncommented, as I will not translate and 
>   type all these german comments in !!) complete GROM #0,1,2 and
>   console ROM sourcecodes, similar to the ones in this book available ? 
>   (I could post it as TIED-Archiver file, ready-to-assemble)

You are undoubtedly talking about "TI INTERN".  There is an english translation
of this book.  It is also available on disk as TI-Writer text files from
some Users Groups.

>But back to our topic :->
>You've "level E" for Geneve ... well there's a GRAM device already so wide-spread
>and compatible to another TI99-GRAM (MG's GRAM-Cracker?) !

And also the Gramulator and the P-GRAM card (both in production and readily
available).  All are GK compatible.

>There are already several GPL Free/Fairware programs available, from austrian and
>german, as well as some american users, their number is growing and may grow even

What are these programs?  In the US there is very little software in that arena.
I think OPA is the only software house that supports GPL.

>Isn't there a copy of TI's own "GPL Manual" floating around at some user groups ?

Yes.  There is also a TEX file to print this complete book, but I have not been
able to find it yet.
The book is about as thick as the EDT/ASM manual...