Q68 New users and general usage thread

Nagging hardware related question? Post here!
User avatar
Peter
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1953
Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2011 8:47 am

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Peter »

duncan wrote:I have also found a PS2 mouse that will stop the Q68 boot after displaying the PC.CLOCK.
Thank you for reporting.
duncan wrote:Curiously an old and cheap optical USB mouse works perfectly with a USB to PS2 adapter.
I have not yet come across a USB+PS/2 combo device that would not work. No need to look for "pure" PS/2.


User avatar
Sparrowhawk
Super Gold Card
Posts: 624
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2010 12:33 pm
Location: @131072
Contact:

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Sparrowhawk »

Hi Derek,

Thanks - I was just curious as I don't know QL/E at all. I wondered whether it was unzipping or getting data over the internet, which would be very cool.

Personally though, I will mostly be using the Q68 in pure text mode, for writing SBASIC programs and maybe playing with Archive. I also might try out ACT again after all these years, now that you mention it.


a.k.a. Jean-Yves
Derek_Stewart
Font of All Knowledge
Posts: 3928
Joined: Mon Dec 20, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Sunny Runcorn, Cheshire, UK

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Derek_Stewart »

Sparrowhawk wrote:Hi Derek,

Thanks - I was just curious as I don't know QL/E at all. I wondered whether it was unzipping or getting data over the internet, which would be very cool.

Personally though, I will mostly be using the Q68 in pure text mode, for writing SBASIC programs and maybe playing with Archive. I also might try out ACT again after all these years, now that you mention it.
With the SD Card supplied, the Q68 boot to DISP_MODE 1, 512x256 Mode 4. Which is the normal QL MOde 4 screen or Classic QL Mode as some people have been saying.

If you like this screen mode, then also try DISP_MODE 6 : 512x384 Mode 33, which gives all the extra colours and not much slow down as seen in the high resolution screen modes.

I have been using the DISP_MODE 4 : 1024x768 Mode 4, most of my programming experience is that screen resolution.


Regards,

Derek
Derek_Stewart
Font of All Knowledge
Posts: 3928
Joined: Mon Dec 20, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Sunny Runcorn, Cheshire, UK

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Derek_Stewart »

vanpeebles wrote:How are you getting on with ACT? I'd love to hear about that :)
I have just installed it and I am reading the manual, just need to start ACT programming.

I did think about porting the INFOCOM games to ACT, but the INFOCOM system runs well on the Q68 with my basic selection wrapper programme to select the INFOCOM games. As these games are text only then Q68 DISP_MODE 4 would be perfect for the games.


Regards,

Derek
User avatar
Pr0f
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1298
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:54 am

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Pr0f »

I did a search, but seemed to come up short on this query.

With regard to the Q68 and creating QLWA file system containers - how do I do this in a 64 bit Windows environment? I don't mind dropping to the command line to run something.

I looked at the tools for QL-SD, and tools for creating virtual hard disk for qxl, but can't see anything that appears relevant. The manual for the Q68 says I must create the files on the SD card straight after formatting, so that they will be contiguous sectors. I will have to create the file with the correct number of bytes, but I presume there is some sort of header that must be created in the file to make it work with the Q68.

Any pointers greatly received...


User avatar
tofro
Font of All Knowledge
Posts: 2685
Joined: Sun Feb 13, 2011 10:53 pm
Location: SW Germany

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by tofro »

What you need as a base for a QXL file system is just a plain file of a certain size. No other requirements (everything else will be handled by formatting the drive from SMSQ/E).

From Linux, you'd simply issue a command like

Code: Select all

dd if=/dev/null of=QXL.WIN count=10M
From Windows CMD prompt, you can use the fsutil command

Code: Select all

fsutil file createnew QXL.WIN 10000000
And, even simpler, you can create a QXL container file from Q68 SMSQ/E directly by (refer to p. 26 of the Q68 manual)

Code: Select all

CARD_CREATE 1, 10, "QXL.WIN"
All of these create a file of ~10M that can then be formatted using normal FORMAT commands.

Tobias


ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ ǝq oʇ ƃuᴉoƃ ʇou sᴉ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ʇxǝu ʎɯ 'ɹɐǝp ɥO
User avatar
Sparrowhawk
Super Gold Card
Posts: 624
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2010 12:33 pm
Location: @131072
Contact:

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Sparrowhawk »

Out of interest, does it make much difference whether the card is type 4 or type 10, given the relatively small file sizes for QDOS/SMSQE programs? I have a 16GB type 10 which I could use as an extra drive, but that seems overkill, so I am going to buy a 4GB one instead. I note that the card supplied with the Q68 is a 4GB type 4, so my guess is that this is more than sufficient?


a.k.a. Jean-Yves
User avatar
Pr0f
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1298
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:54 am

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Pr0f »

Many thanks.

I won't be running SMSQ on this particular card, but I should still be able to format it. I did wonder about FSUTIL, but I assumed perhaps incorrectly that the file had to have some sort of header in it, even before being available to the Q68.


User avatar
Pr0f
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1298
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:54 am

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Pr0f »

Sparrowhawk wrote:Out of interest, does it make much difference whether the card is type 4 or type 10, given the relatively small file sizes for QDOS/SMSQE programs? I have a 16GB type 10 which I could use as an extra drive, but that seems overkill, so I am going to buy a 4GB one instead. I note that the card supplied with the Q68 is a 4GB type 4, so my guess is that this is more than sufficient?
The cards I bought are 4Gb Panasonic 10's , the one suppiied with the Q68 is a 4 speed. I suspect either speed will be ok, but they do have to be SDHC according to the manual. Standard SD cards not supported (I don't know if they will work or not - it says not to use them).


User avatar
Sparrowhawk
Super Gold Card
Posts: 624
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2010 12:33 pm
Location: @131072
Contact:

Re: Q68 New users and general usage thread

Post by Sparrowhawk »

Hi Pr0f - Thanks for the reply. Yes, the ones I am looking at are all SDHC. The 16GB one I have is also SDHC (type 10), but I don't have anything like 16GB of QL progs or data, so it would be quite wasteful to use it for that purpose. I suspect that my entire QL collection of software would happily for on a 2GB card with oodles of room to spare, but they seem to be retailing for more than the 4GB ones!

UPDATE: Actually the 2GB ones all seem to be SD, so they would be no good anyway


a.k.a. Jean-Yves
Post Reply