Bob-O-Rama
Experienced Member
Hi,
I have a "computer" - its actually a digital carillon system implemented as an embedded system - that uses Y2K era PCMCIA linear flash ( memory mapped ) cards to store music and system backups. These are various models of 1MB ( 1 x8 bit ) linear flash cards. They have various part numbers and likely different chips sets internally. They are all readable by the carillon itself, so are known good.
I tried using a period Windows system on a 20 year old Compaq laptop. I could not get any of the cards to work and tried various tools supposedly able to read linear flash. No dice.
Modern linux, openSUSE with pcmcia services and AMT service to support these memory cards, I got one of the 4 to work - but it looks slightly newer, from 2007, and has a write protect switch. For the one that works, card services sees the card, hotplug kicks in and the AMT driver creates a device file which is easily imaged. For the other 3, it sees a card insertion event, but does not attempt to do anything further.
The device also has a 32MB CF card. But again, it seems to be a linear flash device which cannot be detected by a normal CF reader. Its possible that would work in a sufficiently old CF <--> PCMCIA adapter designed for for linear flash.
Has anyone successfully been able to deal with these cards? I see there is some $600 magic reader that supposedly will, but thats sort of off budget for a complete gamble. My current approach is try to get more of those "working" cards, and use them for system / custom music backup and restore. However without being able to read the original music cards those are at risk.
-- Bob
I have a "computer" - its actually a digital carillon system implemented as an embedded system - that uses Y2K era PCMCIA linear flash ( memory mapped ) cards to store music and system backups. These are various models of 1MB ( 1 x8 bit ) linear flash cards. They have various part numbers and likely different chips sets internally. They are all readable by the carillon itself, so are known good.
I tried using a period Windows system on a 20 year old Compaq laptop. I could not get any of the cards to work and tried various tools supposedly able to read linear flash. No dice.
Modern linux, openSUSE with pcmcia services and AMT service to support these memory cards, I got one of the 4 to work - but it looks slightly newer, from 2007, and has a write protect switch. For the one that works, card services sees the card, hotplug kicks in and the AMT driver creates a device file which is easily imaged. For the other 3, it sees a card insertion event, but does not attempt to do anything further.
The device also has a 32MB CF card. But again, it seems to be a linear flash device which cannot be detected by a normal CF reader. Its possible that would work in a sufficiently old CF <--> PCMCIA adapter designed for for linear flash.
Has anyone successfully been able to deal with these cards? I see there is some $600 magic reader that supposedly will, but thats sort of off budget for a complete gamble. My current approach is try to get more of those "working" cards, and use them for system / custom music backup and restore. However without being able to read the original music cards those are at risk.
-- Bob