#Assemblers and Equates
25 messages in this thread
What are the quirks of the PD assemblers? I'm itching to find
an assembler that will work with Lattice's V3.10 C compiler to
produce relative addressing similar to the way Manx's assembler
works with their compiler. But so far everything strikes out.
Anyhow, what do the compilers not support? Local labels?
Cheath,
A68K has trouble with referencing labels outside sections, but I can't
remember if it was just for branches and jumps or for data refs too. Asm68K
seems tobe a little more solid, but I can'r remember what I had a problem with.
I'll fire it up again tonight and take a look.
I was hoping for great things from the assembler on Fish 50, but I couldn't
seem to get IFD working. I use a number of macros which call associated
subroutines, and being the type that likes small code, I have a macro called
USE that I SET labels with, then use IFD to conditionally include the macro
definition/subroutine code. Unfortunately, it accepts my IFD, but doesn't
assemble the code. Apparently a SET label isn't a condition for IFD.
I will be playing a bit more with this one tonight as well. I would really
like it if everyone had access to a good assembler at small cost.
Regards, Larry.
Good. Is the NEC P7 better/hardier/sturdier than the 24-pin Toshiba? Epson? I
may look at a Nec here. James Boatwright.
I've heard the Toshiba referred to as reliable, excellent quality, and built
like a tank. I know about 4 people who have them and they are all ver pleased
with them.
Regards, Larry.
Thanks for input. But how about driver for it for Amiga, etc? I have heard
that it has non-epson codes — hard to program for. May be in same trouble as
with MT-180L. James Boatwright
James,
The Amiga uses standardized codes (far greater capability than the
Epson ESC/p set) and then uses drivers to convert the codes. That way, a
programmer can write one program that will handle any possible printer, the
programmer doesn't have to worry about HOW to tell the printer to do it's job,
the programmer just tells the printer WHAT to do.
Since the Amiga comes standard with dirvers (including Epson) that will
fit about 90% of the printers (including some Laser printers) then all Amiga
software can be said to be fully Epson compatible, fully <you name it>
compatible….it's the way thing should be done.
Example, I've got an AT&T at work and use WS2000+, it has a whole list
of supported printers and drivers for them…fine (whoever wrote WS2000 also
had to write all those drivers), now I switch to DisPlayWrite III and I've got
to load a whole new set of drivers for it (and someone had to write all those
drivers also–they are not compatible with the WS2000 drivers). Now, if I
switch to a CAD program, I need another whole set of drivers and so forth.. you
get the picture. On the MS-DOS machine, I need separate drivers for each
program…on the Amiga I need 1 driver for ALL programs.
Don
Fine. I have a Mannesmann Tally 180L. The Epson driver and some others will
make it print, but I have yet to be able to make it go into say the NLQ mode
or/and Proportional spacing by sending the Amiga escape codes to PRT:. I've
been programming computers since 1957: LGP-30, IBM-650, -704, -7040, -7044,
-360, -etc, SEL-810B, IBM-and-so-on. James H. Boatwright.
LGP-30!!! How are ya old timer! <grin>
The last LGP-30 I saw was in an engineering place in Vancouver. It was being
dismantled and sent to the computer museum at NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute
of Technology). At the time, CDC still had spares for it, and they were being
scrapped, so I managed to lay my hands on the Frieden Flexowriter, built a
driver and interface for it, and hooked it up for a brief time to my home built
computer. Neat stuff. It brings back memories (and not of the rotating drum
kind.. <grin>)
As for PRT: codes, the RKM details the codes you need to send to PRT: in
order to do any functions supported by your driver. If you don't have a copy of
it, there is a file in either DL 10 or DL 9 that has a fairly complete listing
of them. Try a BRO/KEY:PRT* or BRO/KEY:ESC
Regards, Larry.
How about that…
I had a surplus Frieden Flexowriter hooked up to my Sphere 330 for a while.
<True Story>
Quite a beast, that Frieden. I was quite conversant with the mechanism, having
worked on it in its original form, the IBM Model B typewriter.
(Boy, did that make me feel old!)
Regards, Larry.
Yeah. I ripped the tape punch and reader off each end, trashed the long
casing, built up a HV supply and interface using the ferroresonant that was
inside it to start, and drove it from a 6820, closed loop.
Actually it worked quite well for the years I had it.
Rick
Yeah, those "good old days". The Flexowriter even had both lower and upper
case. That and the Danish GIER computer were the first computer devices I ever
worked with. The GIER (5K core memory, 1962) happily compiled and ran 2000
lines ALGOL program How? Virtual memory and a drum, but nobody talked about it.
The system programmers had just programmed it, because they needed it. About 10
years later IBM announced this big new invention: Virtual Memory !
Joergen
James,
Maybe I'm misreading your messages…but I thought you were complaining
about the fact that the Amiga doesn't use Epson standard codes internally. I
answered that it doesn't…the conversion from the standard Amiga codes to the
Epson codes (which work fine on my Epson by the way) is done in the driver.
I know nothing about your particular printer…so I have no idea if it
should respond properly to the Epson codes.
The point I was trying to make is that it doesn't matter what printer
you are using…a driver can be made for it that will work across all the Amiga
software….not for just one piece of software. You don't need a different
driver for each piece of software like you do on most other computers.
I see that Joergen has also left you an answer…and by using his
printer driver generator (PRDRGN.ARC in DL 9) you can make a driver for your
printer that does work, and once it does, you never have to worry about it
again.
Don
James,
I uploaded a driver and source for the mt-160 which was made with
Joergen Thomsen's print driver generator. It is not bug free, but most things
work. You could try that. To send escape codes to the printer directly you
must send to PRN:.
Steve
Steve,
As far as I know, James already tried that, but he needs a driver especially
for Letter quality, A driver for both Draft and Letter mode is tricky on the
MT-180L, but I downloaded your driver and have started modifying it.
Joergen
Joergen,
The mannesmann printers are tricky in that you can switch between any
of the type sizes in draft OR letter quality, but to switch between the two
requires that an additional code sequence be sent. I believe the 160 and 180
are the same, except that the 180 is a 132 column wide carriage. If you need
any help with the coding, let me know. I would also like you to look (if you
are doing it anyway) at how to do the raise and lower needles stuff in graphics
mode. When I set up the driver, I did not try that at all. Please put the
finished product up here, because I am sure I can use the 180's driver.
Steve
Steve,
The raise and lower needles stuff can be used with PrtDrvGen 2.0 to produce a
higher density on the MT printers as well as on some Epson printers.
Joergen
BTW Steve, does the printer ignore the LQ commands (suffixed by "y") in Draft
mode and vice versa (the draft "w" commands in LQ mode) ? If so, both commands
could be issued e.g. ESC [4y ESC [4w at the same time and dependent on the
current mode only one of them would be executed.
I would appreciate some info on that.
Joergen
There is already a driver for it in DL 11, though it has a small bug (non
fatal). The author is currently working on it again, and has some interesting
things he is planning on doing in the driver. Should be remarkable fast.
Regards, Larry.
I downloaded and tried this driver or one like it and could not get it to work
right. It would do crazy things. I could not get it to go into NLQ when
requexted to by Preferences. Then it would lock up system in strange manners.
I reported by Compuserve and maybe letter to author, but never heard anything.
I have decided not to download so much any more. Rather costly. James
Boatwright. Thanks.
It was a hard competition between Toshiba and NEC before I decided upon the
NEC, mainly because of its 220 V/50 Hz capability, which is irrelevant for
people not planning to move to Europe.
Joergen
But how about Amiga drivers? Are full drivers available for bboth printers?
James Boatwright
James,
In addition to Don's response I can tell you that already now, there are
drivers available for both Toshiba and NEC. As far as I know, your main
application is word processing and that is the part which is covered fully by
most drivers. The tricky part is the graphics dump part which varies from
driver to driver.
Joergen
I could make my MT-180L print with some of the drivers supplied by Amiga, but
so far cannot issue Amiga escape codes to tell printer to say go into NLQ mode
say with Proportional Spaceing and other goodie like that. I found in public
domain a driver for the MT Spirit/Sprint-80(sp) printer and it does pretty good
but it over prints for Preferences NLQ setting – not the MT's real NLQ. That's
why I was overjoyed to hear you say you would write me a real driver for the
180L. I tried a driver somebody had on Compuserve for a 180L, but it would do
crazy fits so I gave it up. I will be happy in trhe highest to get a real
driver for the 180L and would really be in heaven with a word processor as good
as Steve Punter's WordPro-64(c) from Proline for the old C-64. It even had a
driver for the 180L! I'm counting on you or the driver. I don't know about a
good W. P. yet. Wordstar(c) is supposed to come out with one. Also
WordPerfect(sp)(c). I just want a good one that is not mouse-crazy and that
will let me don do underline, bouldfaace, different fonts, lpi, cpi, super-,
sub-script, headings, footings, centering, page cnt, columns, tables, etc.
Just the world. Mistype above. I'm counting on you "for" the driver. I wish
this thing had full screen edit or even cursor edit. Somebody is spreading
roomer at work that Commodore will offer trade-in of -1000 cpu for +$xxx for
-2000 cpu. James Boatwright
The 180L has an awkward set of command codes for draft and NLQ modes. I'll
probably make a couple of drivers and let you try them out.
Joergen