This newsletter is dedicated to the ongoing support for the Texas Instruments 99/4a and Myarc Geneve 9640 user community and is published by SHIFT838.
In this addition I was able to talk with the inventor/designer of the CF7+ and nanoPEB and I have published his response below for your enjoyment.
Thanks to all that have subscribed!
Interviews
Custodio Malilong
I reached out to Custodio Malilong to ask a couple of questions that I am sure most of us have often wondered.
How and why the idea of the CF7 and Nano-PEB was conceived? What’s new on the horizon for these devices?
I received the below quote from Mr. Malilong explaining this.
“I had a TI-99/4a back in the 80's while I was a hardware/software developer. It was the typical console with Peripheral Expansion Box. That box had two floppy disk drives, 32K of RAM, Serial/Parallel ports and USCD pSystem.
I later sold that system.
Around the 2000 I started back up with the TI-99/4a. However, when it came to the PEB and I remembered how bulky and noisy it was. So I decided to investigate what 21st century technology I could apply.
The IDE interface that is supported by Compact Flash seemed to an easy interface to the console's data bus. Also, EPROMs were readily available through eBay. So I used the Speech Synthesizer's signals to drive the compact flash. This was the original CF7: no memory, ran off the console's power, couldn't be used with a speech synthesizer and didn't work with Editor/Assembler.
To make CF7 more compatible with a real PEB I decided to use a CPLD to make all the "TTL glue" logic necessary to emulate the PEB and its boards. That was CF7+ with had 32K of RAM and a parallel port.
nanoPEB Version-1 came about because devices with parallel ports were becoming increasingly rare. So I modified the CF7+ to replace the parallel port with a TMS9902 serial port.
nanoPEB Version-2 came about because the TMS9902 is hard to find and is limited to 38400 bps. So I replaced the TMS9902 with an industry standard 16C550. Now 115200 bps is possible. In fact, even higher speeds are available but the TI-99/4a can't handle it!
What's on the horizon? Well, for starters the Compact Flash is becoming obsolete. Also, they (and SecureDigital) now come with 8gb or more. That is far more capacity than a TI-99/4a can handle. In addition, serial port devices are becoming rare too. Although I can't give any specifics at the moment, this is the problem I'm trying to solve today.”
If you would like more information on the CF7+ and nanoPEB please visit the website at http://webpages.charter.net/nanopeb/
I can tell you, that I have both version 1 and version 2 of the nanoPEB and both are rock solid. The developer is extremely helpful if you experience any issues or just want to ask questions.
SysOp of Heatwave BBS (Kyle)
I also reached out to Kyle, SysOp of Heatwave BBS to ask a few questions about his BBS that I thought might be of interest to the TI/Geneve readers.
Q: Why did you choose a Geneve 9640 instead of a TI-99/4A?
A: Partly due to a fascination with its concept, a “computer on a card”. After I acquired one in late 2010 I decided that I would use it for the BBS mainly due to the increased speed and the PC keyboard.
Q: What other BBS programs have you run before and why did you settle on
S&T Software?
A: This is my first “modern day” BBS. S&T is the Cadillac of BBS software for the TI/Geneve, plus Tim (the T in S&T) still supports it, so choosing it was a no-brainer for me.
I ran a PC bulletin board from 1991-1995 which primarily ran using LSD BBS software, although I did also use Celerity for about 6 months initially. Summer vacation of 1988 I ran a small BBS with my TI, side-car disk controller, side-car RS-232, single floppy drive and a 300 baud Anchor Automation Mark III modem; do not recall which software. That particular modem did not have auto-answer, so whenever the line rang I would run into my bedroom and throw the answer switch. I was 13 at the time and was able to convince my dad to let me use his fax line for my summer BBS. Think I ran it til around Halloween, so it was up for about 5 months.
Q: Explain how you have your telnet and modem working on the Geneve.
A: I use a Lantronix UDS-10 serial/Ethernet server to establish TCP/IP for the Geneve, just think of it as a serial-to-Ethernet converter. When properly configured, and with some basic port forwarding settings in my cable-modem/router combo, the BBS is accessible over the internet with the Telnet protocol. Heatwave also has dial-up access (yes, even in 2015!), and for that I use a program on an older XP laptop called SEXPOTS, along with an external USR 14.4k dual-standard modem. SEXPOTS basically just telnets a dialup call to whatever IP address you designate in the configuration file. The reason for answering the call with a PC is simply that the BBS software does not support multi-node, although Tim is looking into some software modifications which may allow this someday.
Q: What was the slowest baud rate you remember surfing the BBS' with.
A: 300! Still have that old Anchor Automation modem I mentioned earlier, and every now and then if I have the patience I will use it with my TI and Telco to call Richard’s board, The Hidden Reef.
Q: What kind of system did you have when you first started BBSing.
A: First time I called a BBS was in 1987, using my dad’s brand new XT clone and a 1200 baud internal modem.
Q: What does running Heatwave BBS involve?
A: Running the board does not really require much attention, for the most part. About once a month I will back up the contents of the BBS from SCS1 to SCS2; I’m running two EZ-135 SCSI drives BTW. Until a month ago I also had an HFDC in the PEBox, so occasionally I would even back things up from SCSI to the Seagate ST-251 MFM hard disk. I also update the ANSI welcome and logoff screens about once a month. But for the most part the BBS is on autopilot and does not require much attention. The only thing I do on a daily basis is turn on the monitor just to see if everything looks like its running ok. I have found the board crashed a few times in the past, and I’m sure it will happen again in the future. I must say that none of the crashes were software related, Tim’s S&T BBS seems to be bullet-proof in that regard. The crashes have all been due to some sort of equipment failure, like a dying MFM drive. So the last thing I want to see when I turn on the monitor is the blue Extended Basic screen.
