Loadstar 128 #21

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Text File | 1990-01-01 | 20.7 KB | 470 lines

* * * * * DISKSERVANT V1.0 * * * * * By Alf H. Jonassen DISKSERVANT is a program offering a variety of disk utilities. It is designed with maximum convenience, compatibility and security in mind, making it unusual or even unique in many ways. But they all say that, don't they? Docs are generally boring reading, and these are particularly detailed. There's really no need to read these docs at once if you're a fairly confident 128 user. Rather, I suggest you return to the docs when you're stuck or want a thorough description of a specific feature. DISKSERVANT is designed with focus on being user-friendly, so just play around and have fun! * * * TABLE OF CONTENTS * * * Docs Part 1: Preface Table of contents Hardware requirements General information Disk drive check Quick keys: Swap main/copy Directory Extended directory Disk report DOS command (enhanced; please read) RAM Expansion Unit on/off Configure drives Interleave set File copier Docs Part 2: Scratch files Unscratch Edit directory Print directory Disk copier Docs Part 3: Header/format Docs Part 4: Autoboot Tool Docs Part 5: Reverse/Escape Codes Hardware problems Customizing the program (please read) * * * HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS * * * Minimum hardware: - Commodore 128 or 128D - Any Commodore compatible disk drive (or 128D internal drive). - 40 or 80 column (or both) monochrome or color monitor. Hardware supported but not required: - Additional disk drive(s), devices 4 through 29 supported. - 1700, 1764 and 1750 memory expansion units. Upgraded REU's supported up to 1Mb. RAMDOS is supported where appropriate. - 64K VDC RAM is automatically detected and utilized. SPECIAL NOTE to owners of the 1764 RAM expansion unit: Despite what your 1764 manual tells you, the device will work perfectly with your 128 and DISKSERVANT can utilize it to maximum advantage. * * * GENERAL INFORMATION * * * When DISKSERVANT menu is run, it will analyze the disk drives connected to your computer. DISKSERVANT checks all device numbers 8 through 12 for active disk drives. It will adopt the first disk drive it finds as the main drive. Then, the next drive found becomes the copy drive. If only one drive is connected, that drive will become both the main and copy drive. The MAIN drive is the source drive for the Disk and File Copiers, and all other operations are performed on this drive. The COPY drive is the target drive for the File copier and Disk copier. The Interleave set feature always affects the COPY drive. SPECIAL NOTE to 1581 users: All operations will be performed within the currently selected partition unless indicated otherwise. Disk errors: Most errors are reported using the standard disk error messages. Please refer to your disk drive manual for interpretation of the error messages. IMPORTANT! - ESCape keys: DISKSERVANT respond to the ESC key as an all- purpose panic button. The ESC key will let you exit from everything everywhere! The only exception is when a disk operation is in progress (reading or writing to disk). Then, the STOP key will in most cases be able to abort the process. Please note that the RUN/STOP key may have to be held down firmly for several seconds before DISKSERVANT responds. HELP: While using features involving a disk directory, you may notice it says <HELP> on the top left of the screen. By pressing the HELP key, you may view the general cursor movement and file selection options available. I should note that DISKSERVANT uses burst mode whenever possible (with the 1570, 1571 and 1581), but otherwise it does not attempt to speed up disk operations. Sorry, no disk turbo for 1541s. * * * DISK DRIVE CHECK * * * DISKSERVANT figures out by itself the type of drive(s) connected. The supported drive types are as follows: Not active: DISKSERVANT can't find a disk drive with the device number specified. In that case, check that the disk drive is properly connected and turned on. Also check that you have selected the proper device number. Unknown: DISKSERVANT has detected a drive that doesn't match any of the Commodore disk drives. DISKSERVANT will assume the drive to be 1541 compatible. That is, single sided, 35 tracks, directory on track 18. If your drive doesn't fit this description, only the Scratch, File Copy and Autoboot Tool utilities will work. 1541: Commodore 1541 or compatible. The Commodore 1570 is also identified as a 1541, but DISKSERVANT will use burst mode when communicating with the 1570. 1571: Commodore 1571 or compatible in double sided mode. 1571 side 0: Commodore 1571 set to 1541 mode. For maximum performance, you should switch the drive to 1571 mode. 1571 side 1: Commodore 1571 in 1541 mode using the back side of the disk. DISKSERVANT fully supports this mode of operation. 1581: Commodore 1581 disk drive. It is indicated if your drive will access the root directory or a partition. If a partition is selected, the start track of the partition will be displayed as well. 17xx RAMDOS: Commodore RAMDOS. DISKSERVANT can use RAMDOS as any other disk drive within the capabilities of RAMDOS itself. If the copy drive is identified as a 1541 or 1571 (in all modes) then the drive's sector interleave setting is displayed. If your disk drive is equipped with JiffyDOS the interleave will be zero unless it has been set to another value previously. Please refer to your JiffyDos manual for details. For a full explanation of the sector interleave, please refer to the section of these docs dealing with the Interleave Set feature. DISKSERVANT always checks if the drive(s) you are using is compatible with the utility you select, and adjusts itself automatically to your setup. Don't worry about compatibility, DISKSERVANT will handle it for you (unless your drive is identified as "unknown", see above). * * * QUICK KEYS * * * SPACE, Swap main/copy: Your main drive will become the copy drive and vice versa. F1/F2, Directory (main/copy): Displays a directory from the specified drive. To select a 1581 subdirectory, place the cursor on the subdirectory name and press RETURN. Press "/" to select the root directory. You can press F1 through F4 directly to access the other directory types and/or the other drive without returning to the DISKSERVANT menu. F3/F4, Extended dir (main/copy): Displays ALL files in the directory including any deleted files. In addition, each file's start track (T) and sector (S) is displayed. Unrecognized file types are displayed with "???" in the file type column. Positions in the directory without files of any kind are listed as "- Empty slot -". This will normally occur at the end of the directory. Extended dir won't support RAMDOS. F5/F6, Disk report (main/copy): This feature will produce a statistical overview of a disk. If you're using a 1581, only the currently selected directory is taken into account. The disk name and ID is printed first. Then a list of how many files there are of each type, along with the sum of the disk blocks each file type uses. Also, the total number of files and the blocks they occupy is displayed. Finally, the number of boot sectors (if any), blocks free and total blocks on disk is displayed. Please note that improperly closed files (splat files) are NOT included in the file count. Also please note that DEL files in the list DOES NOT mean scratched files. Only files that appear as DEL files in a normal directory will be counted. A DEL file, if properly closed, is a completely legitimate file type which can be read as any SEQ file. Regarding boot sectors, you'll see "0" or "1" most often, but multisector boot areas can also be encountered. There are two cases where you'll see "(N/A)" where the number of sectors should be: RAMDOS can't have boot sectors, and for the 1581, the boot area of track 1 is accessible only if the root directory is selected. The "Grand total" is the sum of the blocks used by files, boot blocks and blocks free. Normally this should add up to the total capacity of your disk. There are, however, a number of reasons why this might not be the case. For example, the blocks that are counted for each file in the directory may in some cases not reflect the actual size of the file. It is possible to alter the number of blocks in the directory without changing the length of the file (and vice versa). Disk blocks may also be marked as used without being part of files (this is what Commodore disk manuals refer to as "random files"). Bear this in mind if the grand total doesn't make sense. Actually, the grand total is an excellent indicator that something might be wrong with the disk. Errors in the BAM occur more often than you think. Validating the disk might then be a good idea. F7/F8, DOS command (main/copy): This will let you send a CBM DOS command over the disk drive command channel. You will se a '@' character at the bottom of the screen along with the device number you will be using. After a DOS command has been performed, the drive status is displayed. You can press RETURN without entering a command if you only want to view the the drive status. Please refer to your disk drive manual for interpretation of the status messages. You may recall the last DOS command by pressing SHIFT/RETURN while the cursor is flashing on the DOS command line. Please note that the recall feature is only effective as long as you stay within DISKSERVANT. If you exit, and then re-run DISKSERVANT, any previous command is erased. The useful commands are as follows: C0:newfile=oldfile Copy a file on the same disk. I0 Initialize disk. N0:diskname,ID Format (header, new) disk. Use with caution. R0:newfile=oldfile Rename a file. S0:filename Scratch (delete) a file. UJ Reset disk drive. U0>M0 Force drive into 1541 mode (1571 only) U0>M1 Put drive into 1571 mode (1571 only) U0>H0 Select head 0 (1571 in 1541 mode only) U0>H1 Select head 1 (1571 in 1541 mode only) U0>V1 Write verify OFF (1571 with new ROM and 1581) U0>V0 Write verify ON (1571 with new ROM and 1581) V0 Validate disk. PLEASE NOTE: This command has been enhanced. Unlike the standard validate command, it will protect boot sector(s), if present, from being overwritten later. Please note that the boot-protect won't work with drive 1 in a dual drive unit. /0:partition Change disk partition (1581 only). / Change to root directory (1581 only). Extra DOS command: #number Change/swap device number. Typing '#' followed by a number between 4 and 29 will change the device address of the current disk drive to that number. If the device number specified is used by another disk drive, the two drives will swap device numbers. DO NOT use this command if there's currently a disk drive with device number of 30. Device number 30 is used temporarily as the device numbers are swapped. Also, you can NOT swap devices with printers or other non-disk units. It will work fine with RAMDOS though. DEL, Ram Expansion Unit on/off: DISKSERVANT can use any Commodore Ram Expansion Unit as data storage when using the Disk Copier and File Copier. When turned ON, DISKSERVANT will analyze and display the size of your REU. Please note however, DISKSERVANT won't identify any REU to be bigger than 1Mb, even if your REU does has more memory onboard. Since duplicating 1581 disks is the most memory hungry job you're ever going to do within DISKSERVANT, this limitation won't hamper you. Turning the REU on then off again won't disturb its contents. However, you should NEVER use it if RAMDOS is active. The REU contents will be disturbed and then your system will crash as soon as DISKSERVANT begins to store data in the REU. * * * CONFIGURE DRIVES * * * To manually set which drives are to be the main and copy drives, press the C key. Enter the device number for the main drive, then the device number for the copy drive. DISKSERVANT will analyze your new configuration and the drive type(s) will be displayed at the top of the screen. * * * INTERLEAVE SET * * * You may want to adjust the sector interleave on your COPY drive. The drive in question will retain that interleave setting until you change the setting to some other value or reset the drive. You won't be allowed to set the interleave to a greater value than 16, as it may make your drive malfunction with potential loss of data as a result. In addition, the interleave should not be set to zero unless your drive is equipped with JiffyDOS. The interleave set feature will only be available if DISKSERVANT identifies your COPY drive as 1541 or 1571 (in all modes). What is sector interleave anyway? When data is saved to disk it is organized in tracks and sectors. The tracks are like concentric rings on the disk, and each track is further divided into subsections much like a pie. These subsections are called sectors. To read a sector the disk drive must make sure the read/write head is on the right track, and then wait for the sector to come around to the head's position where it can be read. This is where interleave comes in. If more than one sector on a track is to be read, which is most often the case, it is not desirable to have the sectors placed in succession. The drive needs a split second to process the data just read and send it to the computer. Then the next sector will have passed the read/write head and the drive will have to wait for nearly a whole revolution. When reading a large amount of data, a program for example, this waiting becomes quite noticeable. It is better to leave some space between each sector in a sequence so that the next sector is just ahead of the read/write head just when the drive needs it. Since the data has to be read in the same order it was written, the interleave between the sectors will have to be established as the data is written to the disk. The 1541 normally uses a interleave spacing of 10 (reading every tenth sector) while the 1571 uses a interleave of 6. If your drive(s) are equipped with JiffyDOS, it uses a custom interleave scheme when the interleave value is set to zero. Please refer to your JiffyDOS manual for details. The 1581 doesn't need sector interleave since it has enough internal memory to hold a whole track of data at the same time. But why tinker with the sector interleave? The faster the drive, the less sectors are to be skipped to maintain optimum reload speed. So if the data is to be read using another drive than the one used for saving, or if it is to be reloaded using some kind of fast load, adjusting the interleave will often improve loading speed. Furthermore, if the files you are going to save or copy are not programs, but data for some program, the program's access speed will often be affected by the interleave setting. Experimentation is the only way to get ultimate performance but here are some settings which can act as a rule of thumb: Reload drive Stock Using fastloader 1541 10 6 1571 6 4-6 This table is valid for program (PRG) files. For other file types the ideal interleave can only be found by experimentation. The above values may serve as a starting point, and you can try to increase or decrease these values. * * * THE FILE COPIER * * * A file copier is designed to copy one or more individual files from one disk to another. You may select which files to copy or not to copy. The File copier will work with all disk drives that can be hooked up to the 128, including RAMDOS. The file copier can copy files without restrictions between dissimilar drive types. The file copier can copy program (PRG) files, sequential (SEQ) files and user (USR) files. It can not cope with relative (REL) files. Please note that the file copier can not handle GEOS files (which are marked in the directory as USR) because of their non-standard structure. SPECIAL NOTE to 1581 users: The file copier will fully support subdirectories. If you're using two disk drives (even if one or both are 1581s) the 1581(s) will access the subdirectory (or subdirectories) currently selected. However, if the main and copy disk drive is one and the same, you must enter the directory paths individually. The cursor appears, and you may enter the subdirectory name. To use the root directory, press RETURN at a blank line (do NOT enter "/" in order to select the root directory). Use cursor left/right, INST, DEL, CLR and HOME to edit if necessary. You can access several levels of subdirectories by separating the directory names using commas (directory1,directory2,directory3). You must enter the whole directory path from the root on (but DON'T specify the root itself, this is done automatically). If the drive can't find one of the subdirectories you have entered, you will be informed about the error and prompted to correct the directory specification. To copy files from one subdirectory to another on the same disk, leave the same disk in the drive when you are prompted for the target disk. When the file copier is selected, you will be prompted for the source disk (or both source and target disk if you're using two drives) and an options menu will appear. The options are as follows: Auto replace: The file copier will automatically replace any files on the copy disk with the same names as the ones being copied to it. Multi output: Will let you make several copies of the files. After every pass you will be asked if you want to make another copy of the files. Insert a new disk and press Y for YES. If you don't want any more copies, press N for NO, and another read pass will begin if there are more files to be copied. Delete source: This option will let you scratch the copied files from the source disk. Using this feature, the files are effectively MOVED to the copy disk. The scratch operation is done using an extra pass after finishing the actual copying. Only the files which were successfully copied will be deleted. Press the SPACE BAR to continue. The directory of the source disk will now be read into the computer's memory. If there are no files on the disk that the file copier can copy, the message "No valid files" will appear, and the file copier will be aborted. Press the HELP key to view your options for cursor movement and file selection. Mark the files you want to copy. To start copying, press F1. The file copier will start loading the files into memory. If you haven't selected any files, the message "No valid files" will appear, and the file copier is aborted. Errors may occur during the reading. If a file can't be read, the file copier will inform you about the problem and ask you if you want to retry reading the file. You may want to remove the disk and then re-insert it as this may align the disk more correctly and the disk drive might just be able to read the file. If you don't want to retry the file, that file will be skipped. If a file is too large to fit into the computer's memory altogether, the message "File too large" will appear, and the file will have to be skipped. When the computer memory is filled up (or there's no more files to be read) the computer prompts you for the target disk. If you're using two drives however, the copy process will continue without delay. Again, errors while saving files to the target disk may occur. The file copier will monitor how much space there's left on the disk, and inform you if the space is insufficient. If a file can't be written properly, the file copier will inform you about the problem and ask you if you want to retry writing the file. You may then elect to skip the file, try again, or insert a new target disk to continue. If the file exists, you will be asked if you want to replace the file. The existing file is erased, and the new file (the one being copied from the source disk) will then be written. PLEASE NOTE: Despite DISKSERVANT's safeguard system, there are two reasons why you might encounter the error message "disk full". Some disk drives have a quirk which throws up this error if you try to save a new file when the number of blocks free are 3 or less. The error message will also appear if you exceed the maximum number of files allowed on the disk. Unfortunately, odd things sometimes happens to the disk in these cases, especially in the latter case. To be safe it is probably best to validate the disk if you encounter the "disk full" error message with the file copier. So far, I haven't been able to circumvent those problems. The file copier will make every effort to avoid error conditions on the copy disk. It will even validate the disk if found to be necessary to recover safely from an error. AJ ***** End of DISKSERVANT Docs Part 1 -- Press RETURN for Menu *****