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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : CMM2 Floppy Drive, Is it possible?
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| Kingeorg Newbie  Joined: 28/12/2020 Location: United StatesPosts: 11 |
Hello. I am brand new to the world of Color Maximite 2, but I'd like to know if it's possible to connect a Floppy Drive to the Color Maximite 2 to add the perfect touch of "age" I think it needs (Besides, I have hundreds of floppy disks that are sitting around). Can I connect it directly to the 40pin with a ribbon? (I noticed that the floppy ribbons are smaller...) Is it even feasible?  Thank you for your help in advance. |
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TassyJim Guru  Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5898 |
Short answer - No. Long answer: If you had a USB floppy drive you might be able to find a version of the HobbyTronics host board that can talk to it. The HobbyTronics firmware does support USB flash drives so that's part way there. There are a few USB host devices out there so you might have a long search. Look for something for Arduino or RPi. Much easier to transfer the floppy data onto SDcards. You certainly can't plug the floppy drive into the expansion port. Jim VK7JH MMedit  MMBasic Help |
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Grogster Admin Group  Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9059 |
Hello and welcome.  I concur with Jim. I'm not saying it is impossible, but it is pretty much the next thing to impossible.  You might have more luck using a CMM2 to build a floppy-drive music machine like this one here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGfkPCZYfFw[/YRL] These are clever! But back to your original question - no, I don't ever see that happening. The SD-card interface is also not broken out to the I/O connectors, so there is no way to interface with the filesystem on the CMM2 via the I/O connector anyway - it is all done via the SD card which is fixed, so I don't like your chances.  Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9059 |
GIZMO: Can't edit the link mistake above. Every time I try, I get the following error: Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5012 |
Yep, I can see that error message to. Makes no sense, its smaller than posts I can edit. Put the corrected link below Grogster. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| zeitfest Guru Joined: 31/07/2019 Location: AustraliaPosts: 377 |
You can find SPI-driven IDE drive adapter projects, even older formats as well. So I guess the spi pins could be used. The projects generally use atmega and assembler, so I guess it could be done but with a large effort. (caveat - I don't use Maximites/MMBasic/etc) |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5012 |
There are hidden escape sequences in one of those links. [/YRL] These hidden escape sequences are causing all sorts of issues lately. The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| Kingeorg Newbie Joined: 28/12/2020 Location: United StatesPosts: 11 |
Wow, you are all awesome. I didn't think I was going to receive so many responses. If it's so complicated I'll definitely pass, but I will put more effort in understanding and learning what I CAN do with it instead. Thanks everyone... |
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| robert.rozee Guru Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 2285 |
one could always go for an fdd attached via the serial port: http://cowlark.com/fluxengine/doc/disk-fb100.html a while ago i did look into an SD card attached to an MX170 micromite via the serial port, for which the hardware already exists - an atmel 328p handles the translations. but there was little interest in developing the idea. cheers, rob :-) |
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Turbo46 Guru Joined: 24/12/2017 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1593 |
My old 8-bit 1MHz Signetics 2650 had dual floppies way back when. So I'm sure it's possible - all it needs is time, dedication and skill. I might have the time but I lack the other two. Bill Keep safe. Live long and prosper. |
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| Kingeorg Newbie Joined: 28/12/2020 Location: United StatesPosts: 11 |
Well, I don't have the skills nor the time, I just thought it would be interesting to try, but I didn't want to break anything either. Thank you to all for the time. P.S: Let me know if someone somewhere achieves this though. |
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| George H Newbie Joined: 03/07/2020 Location: United StatesPosts: 24 |
I'd be more interested in interfacing an IDE HD drive... |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 3509 |
Look at Ebay to find a WD1771 chip to control your floppy interface. Connect it to the 40pin connector. From there at can all be done in basic. Totally useless, but ha...it is fun... Watching TV is also useless. PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| Kingeorg Newbie Joined: 28/12/2020 Location: United StatesPosts: 11 |
Really? All I can find when I search "WD1771 chip" is an Allen Bradley... Thing? Honestly I wouldn't know what to do with this, unless it was something I could connect directly to an old FDD or a newer USB FDD... |
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RetroJoe Senior Member  Joined: 06/08/2020 Location: CanadaPosts: 290 |
While we are on the topic of obsolete storage technology, I always thought it would be cool to interface one of those old core memory modules you see on Ebay from time to time, like this one Enjoy Every Sandwich / Joe P. |
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| TassyJim Guru Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5898 |
Try googling FD1771 It won't get you very far. Reading the floppy is only the first step. Then you have to work out the storage system and how to de-cypher it. Jim VK7JH MMedit  MMBasic Help |
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| Kingeorg Newbie Joined: 28/12/2020 Location: United StatesPosts: 11 |
Thank you Jim, I'll try to do some research, but I can tell the whole thing (currently) surpasses my skills. Thank you nevertheless. |
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| Turbo46 Guru Joined: 24/12/2017 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1593 |
I'm pretty sure that's the chip my 2650 system used. The circuit and operating system was designed by two fellows in Canberra. I built it using wire-wrap, sorry I have no more information - it was almost 40 years ago!  Bill Keep safe. Live long and prosper. |
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| RetroJoe Senior Member Joined: 06/08/2020 Location: CanadaPosts: 290 |
It’s way beyond my skill level too, but I think a CMM2 floppy controller would need to channel the spirit of Steve Wozniak. People think that the Apple Ii computer “made” Apple... but it was actually the “Disk ][“ drive and Woz’s ultra-clever controller design. Because of his ingenuity, the controller had a very low part count and very high profit margins, fueling Apple with tons of cash for R&D, and transforming the Apple ][ from a novelty to a serious business machine. Most floppy drives of that era did everything in hardware (the C64 disk drive even has its own 6502 CPU!), whereas Woz’s design did most of its stuff in software. Fascinating story here Edited 2020-12-30 11:26 by RetroJoe Enjoy Every Sandwich / Joe P. |
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vegipete Guru Joined: 29/01/2013 Location: CanadaPosts: 1082 |
No doubt Woz's wizardry was instrumental in Apple's early success, but Visicalc, the first killer app, may have been just as significant. ========= A FDC37C78-HT Floppy Disc Controller chip might be another option. Available, although kinda spendy. Visit Vegipete's *Mite Library for cool programs. |
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