Subject: I hope I'm not too late to be getting anything out of this.

From: "microguyalso" <jack@...>
Date: Sat, 07 Oct 2006 03:09:41 -0000

I bought a MS 100 (DET1 I think) a while back simply because I was
looking for the parts. (case, LCD, keyboard etc...)

What I had planned on doing was ripping out the main board and
replacing it with one of my own design.

But after finding out that this is a Z-80 based system (what I had
planned to use), it'd be really nice to be able to use it as is.

So what *I* would like to do is re-blast the system to make it a
simple, single board computer, with (to start) machine code entry,
then use that (plus a PC) to get it up to a system that could enter
regular Z-80 assembler, then compile and run.

(I guess connect it to a PC to blast the code to the MS and then boot
it up, then I can use the keyboard from there)

I don't want fancy-schmancy email or anything.   Just run simple code.
 Although using the ports and modem later for stuff is certianly an
option later.

Anything close to that out there or am I better off ripping everything
out and putting my own guts in there??

Thanks, and thanks for the work done up til now, I'm pretty impressed
with the level of work done on this thing.

---

From: "Neil Morrison" <neilsmorr@...>
Date: Fri, 6 Oct 2006 21:15:14 -0700

Have you looked at the old messages and the files?

Neil

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: microguyalso 

  .

---

From: "John R." <jhoger@...>
Date: Sat, 7 Oct 2006 09:39:41 -0700

Yes, there is a target debugger in the files section.

-- John.

---

From: "Cyrano Jones" <cyranojones_lalp@...>
Date: Sat, 07 Oct 2006 18:45:55 -0000

> regular Z-80 assembler, then compile and run.

Blast away!  But unless you are a reeeeeally good programmer, and
won't need to reflash a second (or 498th) time, you will want to 
be careful to not erase the reflash code.  :-)

In the files section there is a remote debugger (mailbug) which is
still a work in "progress" (ha ha ha).  The currently posted 
version (0.0.3, I think) will let you install a program called
"sboot" into the mailstation codeflash.  After sboot is flashed,
mailbug will use it (sboot) to load the remote half of the debugger,
called "mbug" into mailstation RAM.  Together, mailbug and mbug
give you access to the mailstation hardware.  You can load code
into the RAM and execute it, or flash it somewhere in codeflash.

With sboot flashed into your codeflash, you will need to keep
your mailstation connected to your PC (via parallel laplink cable),
because all sboot knows how to do is load mbug over laplink.
You can test your code in ram, or flash it to high codeflash
page, but you will need the PC and mailbug to execute it.

You could always overwrite sboot with a jump to your new code
after you've tested it, but then, unless you leave some kind of
back door, you won't be able to flash any newer version of
your code.

I was kicking around various ideas on how a next version of sboot
would work, (in particular I wanted it to both be able to boot 
directly to your new code without PC attached, and still give 
mailbug access if PC was attached), when I figured out enough
about how the mailstation apps work to write a simple app.

I wrote an app that just dumped the codeflash over the laplink.
Pretty cool!  (At least I thought so.)  The only problem was
I had to enter it via the mailstations hex editor.  Why not
use mailbug to load it, you may ask.  Because installing
sboot entails erasing the mailstation codeflash.  And you can't
dump it after it's erased.  :-)

Mailbug, in addition to the remote debug type of functions,
has a few functions that work with stock mailstation (read
serial number, reflash code, load splash screen data).
I started to add function to catch the dump over laplink, 
but before I got it polished up, I decided a better 
idea would be to just load a version of sboot as an app.  
I actually poked in a shortened version of sboot, about 
150 bytes, with the hex editor.  It worked, sort of.  But 
entering with hex editor was kind of tedious.

Then I had a brainstorm!  Why not embed the app in the splash
screen data!!!  Then I'd only need to type enough bytes
with hex editor (in the app space) to jump to the splash screen!
That works, but there is still a bit of work to do to get
mailbug to sync up with the "bootapp".

I got side-tracked from that a couple of months ago, when
I found an example showing how to control the parallel port
from windows, (theoretically including XP).  So, for
the last several weeks, I have been converting mailbug
to a win32 application.  Just about 3 days ago, I got 
this version to "talk to the port", but I've only tested
under 98 so far.  The dll is supposed to work with any 
version of windows, I just don't have NT, 2000, or XP.

There is still a whole lot to do to get it working with all
the functionality of the DOS version.  Things like project
selection, and file selection were somewhat crude in last 
version, but they use standard open dialogs now.  Yay.

> Thanks, and thanks for the work done up til now, I'm 
> pretty impressed with the level of work done on this 
> thing.

:-)

--
CJ