Minerva4Q68 v1.70 released

[Peter]

Porting the QL-SD driver might be an option; it contains some BASIC commands like WIN_DRIVE, WIN_USE and WIN_CHECK which are not present in the current driver. On the other hand, CARD_INIT is missing which is something of a surprise as QL-SD supported two SD drives like the Q68?

Since cards are now automatically detected, CARD_INIT has little practical use left.

The (non-Qubide) QL-SD driver was derived from the Q68 driver by Wolfgang. So at least in early versions, re-replacing the low level loutines should have been relatively easy. Marcel has touched lots of the code though - I don't know how much impact that had on the low level interfacing.

[Peter]

You must use the 1.98j1 Minerva version included in the distribution to use it from Minerva. With other versions you will get the HISTORY device, but no command line history (it required changes to the Minerva code too).

Before burning a 1.98j1 ROM for SGC testing: Could you easily generate a DE language binary?

[Derek_Stewart]

Hi

Are the keyboard languages built-in like SMSQ/E?

I would rather that this is loaded at bootup like other version of Minerva.

[janbredenbeek]

Hi Peter,

Before burning a 1.98j1 ROM for SGC testing: Could you easily generate a DE language binary?

Should be easy, I could replace the language-dependent files with those from Marcel at https://github.com/MarcelKilgus/Minerva ... /tb/german. I have to rework my make_bas program first though to allow for both versions to be build.

I'm currently investigating an issue with the MDV driver in the Q68 version. For some reason this still gets linked in, which is obviously undesirable and even can cause a lock-up (just try DIR mdv1_...). The Q68 driver ROM should unlink the MDV driver but for some reason this isn't happening.
So, expect a new version to be out in a few days...

[janbredenbeek]

Hi Derek,

Are the keyboard languages built-in like SMSQ/E?
I would rather that this is loaded at bootup like other version of Minerva.

For the Q68 version, you can select the keyboard layout using the KBTABLE command (it currently accepts 1, 44 and 49 for US, UK and German layouts, with a default of US).
(Yes, I know SMSQ/E uses KBD_TABLE but I deliberately left out the underscore so you don't have to search for it if you have to type the command in. Maybe I should still add it as alias command).

For the standalone Minerva, I have to re-assemble it using Marcel's language-dependent source files (see my reply to Peter's post). As there seems to be demand for it, I will release it shortly since I need to adapt some files in my building environment first.

[Derek_Stewart]

Hi Derek,

Are the keyboard languages built-in like SMSQ/E?
I would rather that this is loaded at bootup like other version of Minerva.

For the Q68 version, you can select the keyboard layout using the KBTABLE command (it currently accepts 1, 44 and 49 for US, UK and German layouts, with a default of US).
(Yes, I know SMSQ/E uses KBD_TABLE but I deliberately left out the underscore so you don't have to search for it if you have to type the command in. Maybe I should still add it as alias command).

For the standalone Minerva, I have to re-assemble it using Marcel's language-dependent source files (see my reply to Peter's post). As there seems to be demand for it, I will release it shortly since I need to adapt some files in my building environment first.

Hi Jan,

I am not totally against the inclusion of Language files in SMSQ/E or Minerva, but if the desired language is not included, then another foreign language would have to be used. I prefer the Minerva method of load language and keyboard tables on boot up. Where new specific language files can be generated as required.

The SMSQ/E system, I can not unload anything I do not need, this should of been modular, but changes to operating system like SMSQ/E just happened without anyone being consulted. Like the design of SMSQ/E with the Pointer System included and no way to start the system without it.

[ql_freak]

The only thing that always bothered me about the "Berlin clique" was their sometimes nasty grumbling about SMSQ/E and PE in general. Hans-Peter and Boris's software was mostly quite usable.

Boris didn't grumble about SMSQ/E, it was just hpr (who does not use capitals). Joerg Schiemann wrote even one of the best graphics program for the QL (QDesign) and he has had even licensed the Pointer Environment for it. And (R)Alf, albeit not living in Berlin, but he visited us sometimes was one of the first developer who published PE applications.

[janbredenbeek]

I'm currently investigating an issue with the MDV driver in the Q68 version. For some reason this still gets linked in, which is obviously undesirable and even can cause a lock-up (just try DIR mdv1_...). The Q68 driver ROM should unlink the MDV driver but for some reason this isn't happening.
So, expect a new version to be out in a few days...

Okay, this was a serious bug... Due to a change in a table used for populating Minerva's extended system variables (sx_*), these variables were incorrectly allocated. I'm a bit surprised that this version even worked at all...

So please upgrade now to v1.71 and Minerva 1.98j2. And for the users with German keyboards, there is now Minerva 1G98j2 available!

https://github.com/SinclairQL/Minerva4Q ... /tag/v1.71

Jan

[ql_freak]

Hi Jan,

Hi Peter,
I'm aware of Boris's HISTORY driver. I have observed several problems with it, especially in conjunction with Qemulator and sQLux (to the point that it renders the system unusable).

Interesting, I'm using Boris History with UQLX and sQLux and have never detected any problems. Do you have an example where it fails?

I have tested my version of Minerva on several platforms and haven't seen any problems yet - it's a clean implementation and uses code known to be stable.

Is it also implemented as a device driver?

Also, the source code is available so if any problems emerge they can be tracked down and fixed by anyone with sufficient skills.

Yes that's a problem. Unfortunately I do no more have any contact to Boris (left Berlin in 1998). Have googled for him, but without success.

And last but not least, like Popopo said - being able to write your own software solutions is perhaps most of the fun of our hobby!

That's of course true. Another problem: Is it possible to use the history device with other, none SuperBASIC programs? It would be extremely useful in e.g. monitor programs like ComputerOne Monitor. Until now I have no idea how to enable the history device in such programs (which have a command line). Would also be very useful in Metacomco like editors like your QED or DME. BTW: DME is a great editor, can load multiple files, is programable (albeit not as mighty as MicroEMACS) AND (if I remember correctly) can mark blocks which may start/end in the middle of a line as The Editor from Digital Precision. Can the improved versions of The Editor handle multiple files – this is IMO the biggest problem of The Editor, as it is quite large (and as a Turbo program is not reentrant, i.e. the code must be loaded for every file, which one wants to edit).

But currently I have another problem and have no time to investigate much work in exploring the History (device). As I have holiday, I'm working on my Reflection Toolkit again and have the problem to understand the parameter fetching (without using CA.GET...). I do not understand, what the second longword (pointer into the Variables Value Area) in the Name Table is meaning. I load 4(a6,a3.l) (for first [and only] parameter) to d7 and then use #VALUE_OF_D7(a6,28), but this does not work (does not point to the parameter, a string parameter in my case). It's also not an absolute pointer relative to A6, i.e. #VALUE_OF_D7(a6) does also not work. I must try (a6,#VALUE_OF_D7.l) which seems to be different to #VAL...(a6). It's a long time ago, when I was quite good in 68000 assembler :‑( I will eventually try another monitor (perhaps yours), but I don't think, that ComputerOne Monitor is faulty. I never have detected a bug in it (in my active QL times).


Cheers Peter

[ql_freak]

... Like the design of SMSQ/E with the Pointer System included and no way to start the system without it.

♥