Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

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Derek_Stewart
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by Derek_Stewart »

Hi,

The modification to the Q68 case is major change.

The holes for the QLAN sockets are drilled 6mm Dia. With 8mm counter-drill on outside to accommodate the socket securing nuts.

Internally, a small section of the top 2 upper fixed metal rails is removed, to allow the sockets to be mounted and secured as detailed above.

The position of the QLAN sockets is on the right-hand side of case looking from the front and 30mm from the back giving enough clearance for the VGA Socket.

The installation of the twin network QLAN sockets require the Q68 programming socket to be replaced with a 90 degree header, this allows the Q68 PCB to slid into the case without contacting the QLAN circuitry, which is constructed inline with the wiring and shrink wrap insulated.

I fitted a male expansion header and connected the QLAN circuitry wiring to the correct pins, using the two 2x2mm connectors.

All new Q68 boards will have an male expansion port header fitted.


Regards,

Derek
afx
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by afx »

Hi, Peter.
Peter wrote:Did you try your Q60 instead of QPC? I can not see the same effect there (but my Q60 installation is rather old).
Unfortunately I don't have Q40/Q60 ... :-( ... (By the way, are Q60 units still being manufactured?).
Peter wrote:Which baudrate are you using? 115200 Baud here.
Yes, I use 115200 baudrate.
Peter wrote:Are you using a USB-Serial converter for the PC? In that case, all kinds of odd slow-downs are possible depending on timings and bad luck. Better use a decent serial card directly on PCI/PCIe.
I'm not using usb to rs232 adapters. My PC motherboard has a built-in RS232 port.

Best regards.


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Peter
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by Peter »

afx wrote:Unfortunately I don't have Q40/Q60 ... :-( ... (By the way, are Q60 units still being manufactured?).
Sorry, I thought you had one. There is a slow-going effort to build a few Q60 from leftover parts, but I see no predictable outcome yet.

The sad thing about the Q60 ist that almost no flatscreen monitors can decode the screen resolution correctly. Otherwise, a remake would make more sense.
The OSSC video converter was reported to give acceptable Q60 results, but is more expensive than a whole Q68, and makes the overall setup quite clumsy.

I keep considering a totally new '060 machine, the effort would be not much higher than solving the video issue. But a huge effort.
My motivation for so much work is limited, because the machine can not be as fast as emulation today.
Also, the CPU would make it less QL-compatible than the Q68.


Derek_Stewart
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by Derek_Stewart »

Hi,
Peter wrote:There is a slow-going effort to build a few Q60 from leftover parts, but I see no predictable outcome yet.
These Q40 boards and parts were the old stock left over from the Q-Branch production, given to me by Tony Firshman. The boards all had construction faults, mainly down to bad soldering techniques, by persons unknown.

I think it would be better to make more PCBs and start from new, as tgere were no failures on the Q60 boards produced.

I have been given 2 of my old production Q60 boards to resale, but one Q60 has problems with the CPU been heat damaged.

This I think happened due an article in QL Today, describing problemms with a certain 68060 CPU version. To establish the correct CPU version, the heat has to removed. The heat sink looks to of been replaced on the 68060 incrrectly and the CPU overheats after more than 30 minutes.

Another Q60 sent back for reoairs has the same fault, the CPU heat sink was loosely placed on the CPU, in this CPU failure.

I just all these "so called experts" would not do this type thing, as 68060 COU are still available, but at a price and also there is a risk of fraudulent CPUS.

While a working Q60 is a wonderful machine, a Q68 is better, in that the display is more up to date, which was the limiting factor of the Q60. The Q68 is more compatiable with older existing QL software.
Peter wrote:The OSSC video converter was reported to give acceptable Q60 results, but is more expensive than a whole Q68, and makes the overall setup quite clumsy.
The OSSC looks a good solution, to the video display but very expensive. However the OSSC designs are oen source, I think a cheaper version could made...


Regards,

Derek
afx
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by afx »

Peter, Derek, ... thank you for clarifying the status of Q60.

From what you say, it seems that the evolution of Q68 is a better strategy. A Q68 version 2 with better speed, especially in high resolution graphics, could be a very good alternative.

Best regards.


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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by bixio60 »

Hi all,
I am not sure that is the right thread to post it but... Ill do... :)

My Q68 is part of a bigger Lan and it act as a bridge for 2 QL, I mean:
" QL NET 1 ----> Q68 (Net 2) ----> QL Net 3"

I share the resources of the 2 QL to the other Component of the Lan (PC running SMSQE/emulators) and the Q68 act as a bridge, so far everything works perfectly.

Now going to the point: on the Q68, in the boot, I run a little program that, using tcp, connect the Q68 to the site "time.nist.gov:13" and keep the Q68 system date/time updated, all is fine and everything works, in the program to open a channel I am using the SB line "100 OPEN_IN #4,"tcp_time.nist.gov:13"........

More than Q68, that is stable in keeping time, I would like to update the time on the 2 QL, connected to the Q68 using QLnet, and in doing this I changed the program on the QLs using "100 OPEN_IN #4,"n2_tcp_time.nist.gov:13". Net 2 is the Q68 in QLnet.

Results: doesn't work and the Q68 reboot after I run the program on the QL.

The QLs run SMSQ/E and both have SuperGC, Hermes etc etc

I am missing something? Do someone have a clever idea how to get this?

I hope to be sufficient clear in explaining the issue.

Thx


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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by tofro »

bixio60 wrote: Thu Mar 07, 2024 10:48 am Hi all,
I am not sure that is the right thread to post it but... Ill do... :)

My Q68 is part of a bigger Lan and it act as a bridge for 2 QL, I mean:
" QL NET 1 ----> Q68 (Net 2) ----> QL Net 3"

I share the resources of the 2 QL to the other Component of the Lan (PC running SMSQE/emulators) and the Q68 act as a bridge, so far everything works perfectly.

Now going to the point: on the Q68, in the boot, I run a little program that, using tcp, connect the Q68 to the site "time.nist.gov:13" and keep the Q68 system date/time updated, all is fine and everything works, in the program to open a channel I am using the SB line "100 OPEN_IN #4,"tcp_time.nist.gov:13"........

Results: doesn't work and the Q68 reboot after I run the program on the QL.
I'm pretty sure the only error that is ocurring here is that you don't get an error message and the network times out. I would be very (positively) surprised if the Q68 network driver(s) were intended to forward tcp traffic to QLAN.


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Derek_Stewart
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by Derek_Stewart »

Hi,

Sounds like the QL on NET1 and NET3 do not understand the Time format.

How are you translating the time received from time.nist.gov into a suitable for ADATE?

Could you not update the Q68 from time.nist.gov then update the QLs on power on to the Q68, reading the Q68 clock, making the Q68 the master time Sync hub for the network.


Regards,

Derek
bixio60
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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by bixio60 »

Derek_Stewart wrote: Thu Mar 07, 2024 11:39 am Hi,

Sounds like the QL on NET1 and NET3 do not understand the Time format.

How are you translating the time received from time.nist.gov into a suitable for ADATE?

Could you not update the Q68 from time.nist.gov then update the QLs on power on to the Q68, reading the Q68 clock, making the Q68 the master time Sync hub for the network.
This is the simple program that run on Q68:

110 ch=FOP_IN ("tcp_time.nist.gov:13")
120 INPUT #ch,a$ : REMark a$ is empty
130 INPUT #ch,a$ : REMark a$ contain Date & Time
140 CLOSE #ch
150 utc$=1
160 ye$ = a$(7 TO 8) : ye$='20'&ye$
170 me$ = a$(10 TO 11)
180 da$ = a$(13 TO 14)
190 or$ = a$(16 TO 17) : or$=or$+utc$
200 mi$ = a$(19 TO 20)
210 se$ = a$(22 TO 23)
220 :
230 SDATE ye$,me$,da$,or$,mi$,se$

The above prog is EX(ecuted) in the boot and it works.
At the same time, I know that I can open a SCR channel from one QL in the net to another one ....open#ch, n2_scr....and communicate: send messages and wait responses, so I thought it should be same using tcp_ channels.

BTW, it seems that on QL is waiting the answer from Q68, i dont have any Net abort message, but strangely after few seconds the Q68 reset itself...

On the QL is quite difficult to keep right date/time, system crash always affect date and time, so this is a reason i am looking for a brilliant solution to keep time updates from the net .

How on the QL, can I read, the right time from Q68 using the QLnet?


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Re: Announcing availability of a QLNET driver for the Q68 (ND-Q68)

Post by pjw »

bixio60 wrote: Thu Mar 07, 2024 12:22 pm <>
This is the simple program that run on Q68:

110 ch=FOP_IN ("tcp_time.nist.gov:13")
<>
I just get Not found. What driver do you load?


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