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Author Topic: SymbOS (Read 445424 times)

Offline Prodatron

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #150 on: 2014.November.06. 14:47:32 »
I wonder if it would be possible to fake an EXOS environment (RST, replacement memory allocation and video and editor device etc) in the SymbOS app's memory space, and then run IS-BASIC in a SymbOS window! :smt021
@Bruce, it would be really cool to have your impressive IS-Basic running in SymbOS! :) I am just afraid, that this would fail mainly because of the memory mapping requirements, which LGB already mentioned. We can't introduce additional mapping methodes in SymbOS as otherwise applications won't be plattform-independant anymore. I am currently reading your large QA-thread, and I also have to learn more about IS-Basic and EXOS. Maybe it's possible to emulate at least an EP64 environment!

Running "virtual CP/M 2.2 machines" in SymbOS (using the SymShell environment) should be possible without problems. We already had plans for this some years ago, but as I stopped working on SymbOS for a few years it hasn't been realized yet.

Offline lgb

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #151 on: 2014.November.06. 15:01:53 »
CPM running under Symbos - Sounds like getting a Rolls Royce and fitting it with an engine from a go-kart

:) No, it's like getting a Rolls Royce and leave the engine (it's the symbos kernel / system processes still) but using the car to transfer dirty potato from the field at country side :) But seriously: it's not a bad idea, I think,
There are many CP/M softwares (well, not the ones like wordstar, seriously, GUI based better one can be written for SymbOS) which are basically command line based stuffs, which can be useful (I even used CP/M based compiler on Linux because there was no modern version, but who cares if you need to give a single command like it would be a native cli app). You can think running them as symshell apps with some CP/M CBIOS/BDOS "glue" or whatsoever :)

Offline Prodatron

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #152 on: 2014.November.08. 18:51:07 »
Just a quick question, is it possible to skip the memory test at the beginning, when EXOS is "booting"? I would like to test with some more than 128K soon, and e.g. 512KB already needs ages to check...

Offline geco

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #153 on: 2014.November.08. 19:24:29 »
If you use emulator then please choose a config with EXOS 2.3, or with TASMON. The test will be much faster, and in EXOS 2.3 you can bypass memory test by a keyboard combination, unfortunately I do not remember for it, but booting screen shows it.

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #154 on: 2014.November.08. 19:52:01 »
If you use emulator then please choose a config with EXOS 2.3
Yes, my upgraded EXOS most recommended, also for your real machine :-)

Offline Z80System

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #155 on: 2014.November.09. 04:13:49 »
These means that unfortunately the original EXOS have no quick ram test feature or skip ram test feature (or we do not know about that). Probably they thought we would like to wait for booting this much ... And probably the warm reset will solve everything ... Or such ... :)

Some EP developers, especially Zozo created quick ram tests, but unfortunately that is tricky and difficult to integrate an already written ram test code to an extension ROM, and because of that, there is only a very limited number of extension ROMs containing a quick ram test part. Some ROM ASMON versions or ROM WP versions have that.

Or Zozosoft's enhanced EXOS ROMs have quick test, too. And Zozosoft's memory test have many functions as well, what other ram tests have not. Like faking 128K machine on a hardware extended memory configuration, and detailed test information, and such ones ...

Zozosoft modified EXOSes can be burned to an EPROM replacing the EXOS ROM on the motherboard, or other programs (like WP with Zozo's ram test, for example) can be burned to an EPROM to the cartridge.
« Last Edit: 2014.November.09. 05:30:36 by Z80System »
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Offline Zozosoft

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #156 on: 2014.November.09. 06:52:10 »
Zozosoft modified EXOSes can be burned to an EPROM replacing the EXOS ROM on the motherboard, or other programs (like WP with Zozo's ram test, for example) can be burned to an EPROM to the cartridge.
For the first way needed to open the machine but in this way bugs in the EXOS are also fixed.

Offline Prodatron

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #157 on: 2014.November.09. 14:17:57 »
Ok, I will update my EP128EMU with EXOS 2.3! :)

:smt026 A few minutes ago I got SymbOS nearly fully running on the EP :smt026



They grey colours maybe a little bit sad, but it shows again, that this is an Enterprise and not a CPC :D (which only has 1 grey).
"Only" the sector read/write routines for the WD are missing now...

Thanks to all of you for your great support here!! :)

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #158 on: 2014.November.09. 14:25:50 »
Amazing!!!
:smt038

Offline Z80System

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #159 on: 2014.November.09. 14:27:56 »
This thing will be cool ... :)

Is there a documentation for the settings and customization of the SymbOS ?

Can a user set the ICON captions (names) to transparent background ?

Can a user customize the colors ?

Till this point, what are the plans about EXOS compaibility ? Will SymbOS be a CAP to EXOS ? Will I be able to exit to EXOS ?
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Offline Prodatron

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #160 on: 2014.November.09. 14:40:41 »
Transparent icons and captions are not possible yet.
Colours can be customized. For all the settings please have a look at the screenshots of the control panel:
http://www.symbos.de/apps.htm?3#marke0
Regarding EXOS it seems, that it's quite easy to save its state during SymbOS is running, if your EP has enough RAM. So it will be possible to return to EXOS without a reset. As mentioned before SymbOS is not a cap of any existing OS, it has its complete own multitasking environment.

Offline Z80System

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #161 on: 2014.November.09. 14:54:46 »
Quote
Transparent icons and captions are not possible yet.

Okay, maybe I can set the ICON caption background color to the color of the real background = transparent ICON caption ... :)

Quote
Colours can be customized. For all the settings please have a look at the screenshots of the control panel:
http://www.symbos.de/apps.htm?3#marke0

Maybe it would be the time for me to run SymbOS in an emulator or such ... :)

Quote
Regarding EXOS it seems, that it's quite easy to save its state during SymbOS is running, if your EP has enough RAM. So it will be possible to return to EXOS without a reset. As mentioned before SymbOS is not a cap of any existing OS, it has its complete own multitasking environment.

Okay, I probably think of the state saving/restoring calling it "CAP", because a CAP do not have to call EXOS ... so when SymbOS is saving/restoring EXOS, it's a "CAP" not making a single EXOS call ... :)
« Last Edit: 2014.November.09. 15:04:13 by Z80System »
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Offline geco

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #162 on: 2014.November.09. 15:02:33 »
cool :smt041 :smt041

Offline Prodatron

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #163 on: 2014.November.09. 15:06:05 »
Maybe it would be the time for me to run SymbOS in an emulator or such ... :)
You can try it online here (and probably soon on LGBs emulator, too :) ):
http://symbos.cpc-live.com/
Use the Num-Pad (with "Num" switched off) to control the mouse.
There is a disc in drive A and drive B, for some apps you have to switch to drive B (Startmenu -> Run -> Browse).

Okay, I probably think of the state saving/restoring calling it "CAP", because a CAP do not have to call EXOS ... so when SymbOS is saving/restoring EXOS, it's a CAP not making a single EXOS call ... :)
In this case I agree :)

Offline lgb

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Re: SymbOS
« Reply #164 on: 2014.November.09. 16:49:16 »
You can try it online here (and probably soon on LGBs emulator, too :) ):

I still wish having boxsoft mouse support in SymbOS EP128 port, so you can try it with a mouse with my emulator on-line ...