wyattMar 6
if i can find my second commodore IEC/serial cable, I have figured out a technique to very slowly copy 1541 disk images on a 1581 floppy to 5.25 inch disks in a real 1541.
might have to go to the storage unit though... :(
(Note: I can write 1581 disks with my 486 PC)
Show threadwyattMar 6

So the full chain:

  • Craft a “d64it” D81 floppy disk image and put the .PRG program file on it; also copy the D64 disk image I want to write on the 1541 to a user file on the same D81 image.
  • Copy resulting D81 disk image onto a 1.44 megabyte FAT formatted high density floppy disk using my USB floppy drive on my “modern” (2008) laptop.
  • Boot my 486 PC from hard disk into DOS; Put the 1.44 megabyte floppy in drive A after booted. Put double-density commodore 1581 disk in 486 drive B.
  • Using the DOS 1581COPY program (which I already moved to the 486), write the .D81 disk image (containing the D64It program and also the D64 image we want to write to 5.25” floppy) to the 3.5 inch 1581 formatted disk in drive B.
  • put 1581 disk in 1581 drive, set 1581 to drive ID 9 with dip switch on back.
  • chain 1541 and 1581 on the serial bus plugged into commodore 64.
  • power on C64, format a blank 5.25 inch double density floppy (OPEN 15,8,15,"N0:D64THINGY,01":CLOSE 15)
  • enter LOAD "D64IT",9,1:RUN at the BASIC prompt.
  • Set up D64It with the correct file name for the d64 disk image and tell it to target drive 8. Run it.
  • Wait like 4 hours or whatever for the 1541 to do its stupid slow thing.
  • Play your text adventure game for 10 minutes (assuming copy protection doesn’t become an issue with this stupid chain)
    • Show threadwyatt
    i wonder if a car cassette adapter in the datasette port would be faster (probably not)
    Mar 6 at 4:18amWeb
    Show threadmirabilosMar 6
    @wyatt probably not, they play in realtime after all
    Show threadwyattMar 6
    @mirabilos yeah :(
    but the disk copy thing is still quite slow
    Show threadKevin Karhan Mar 6

    @wyatt nope.

    Because the #Datasette has a fixed linear data transfer setup and is strictly transparent to the underlying medium.

    • Including that any error correction is static amd most likely some primitive FEC 3/4 or similar thing to handle random bitflips / reading errors gracefully!