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2012-09-30 11:21

Trouble

Registered: Jun 2004
Posts: 2

XE-1541 Star Commander help!

Hi guys... Copying files from a pc to my 1541 drive works well, however, copying files from the 41 to a pc disk image does not work. 41 seems to be running but files do not show up on the disk image. The only pc I am able to use with Star Commander is my old IBM Thinkpad with Windows 98. Seems to work pretty good. Please help!

2012-09-30 17:44

G-Fellow
Account closed

Registered: Jan 2004
Posts: 103

Quote: Hi guys... Copying files from a pc to my 1541 drive works well, however, copying files from the 41 to a pc disk image does not work. 41 seems to be running but files do not show up on the disk image. The only pc I am able to use with Star Commander is my old IBM Thinkpad with Windows 98. Seems to work pretty good. Please help!

Hi Trouble,

it seems you have some trouble... :P Ok, well, copy from your 1541 to PC not into a image, instead make a full copy from 1541 to your PC-HD. Press ALT than click on Cpdisk, make sure the drive 8: window is marked.

Use "Full disk copy", if errors happen during transfer than select "auto skip".

I hope this helps, let me know.

Edit: If sometimes a full disk copy do not work, but you think some single files could work, than try to make a single file copy, mark the file on 8: and click only on "Copy" in the Star Commander, but copy direct on to your PC-HD. Later you copy the file from your PC-HD with Star Commander on a .d64 image.

2012-09-30 20:41

SIDWAVE
Account closed

Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2238

try use another xfer program. cbm4win works good.

2012-09-30 23:22

G-Fellow
Account closed

Registered: Jan 2004
Posts: 103

Quote: try use another xfer program. cbm4win works good.

OpenCBM do not support XE-1541 cable.

Q: Why are the X1541 or XE1541 cables not supported?

A: Technical implications prevent reliable use of these cable types.

If I want to transfer to a VIC drive, the drive is allowed to block the transfer for as long as it needs (the so-called "listener hold off", T_H in the C64 Programmer's Reference Guide). If the drive is ready, it signals this with the DATA line. The controller - in this case the PC - has to react to this in not more than T_NE, "non-eoi response", with setting CLK active. T_NE is rather short, it must not exceed 200 us. Typically, it should be something around 40 us. If the controller exceeds this 200 us bound, the listener - the drive - thinks that we wanted to signal an End-Of-Information, thus, there is no more data. For the PC to be able to cope with that very low time bound, there are two options:

1. busy waiting
2. use interrupt

Q: Can a XE1541 cable be converted into a XM1541 cable and how is this done?

A: Yes, a XE1541 can easily be converted into a XM1541 cable

You only need to exchange lines 5 and 6 (RESET and DATA) at the DIN-Plug side of your XE1541 cable to convert it into a XM1541.
You also might consider building an adaptor, which just consists of two DIN plugs (one male, one female) which crosses the lines 5 and 6 (RESET and DATA). This way, you have a XE1541 if you operate your cable without the adaptor, or a XM1541 if it is operated with the adaptor.
The same idea (for being operated with an XEP adaptor) is available at The Commodore serial cable, twisted version

By the way, as easy as converting a XE1541 cable into a XM1541 is converting a XM1541 into a XE1541 with the very same methods described above.

Quote from: http://www.trikaliotis.net/opencbm#faq_hw in this faq also the link to a detailed tutorial how to change the cable.

And the latest Star Commander support OpenCBM:

2012-10-06 17:11

Trouble

Registered: Jun 2004
Posts: 2

@G-Fellows:

Its the same problem. 1541 runs, Star Commander counts tracks and sectors, and if system doesn't lock up, (which happens most of the time) nothing shows up on PC-HD. It could be something in settings, but everything logically looks good to me.

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