Starting Point for Diagnosing Model 4?

[troj]

When I last put my Model 4 away, it was operating correctly and would boot from floppies. I (finally) got a FreHD and decided that before I installed the new FreHD boot ROM, I'd make sure things were working properly....but they're not. Holding down break, it'll boot into Cassette BASIC. However, if I don't hold down break, the first drive spins and I never get a "Diskette?" prompt (no floppy in the drive).

It's a Non-Gate Array Model 4; originally shipped with 16K of RAM, upgraded to 128K prior to landing in my hands.

-Kevin

 

[pski]

What happens when you boot with a known good floppy disk in the drive?

 

[TRS-Ian]

That's normal on the early M4s with Gen 1 rom set. Put a disk in drive 0 and don't close the door. Press reset and it should ask Diskette?

 

[troj]

That's normal on the early M4s with Gen 1 rom set. Put a disk in drive 0 and don't close the door. Press reset and it should ask Diskette?

Thanks, Ian - that was it! Ah, the little things I've forgotten about these machines over the years....

Now on to getting the FreHD up and running!

-Kevin

 

[Holmes]

That's normal on the early M4s with Gen 1 rom set. Put a disk in drive 0 and don't close the door. Press reset and it should ask Diskette?

Hey thanks for this tidbit of info! My Model 4 has always done this, and I always thought it a bit odd, especially as everyone else was saying their computers prompted for "diskette?" without having to RESET after turning on.

 

[troj]

Thanks to me missing little things, my FreHD is now up and running!

Now to start working on what I'd like on disk images. I have some software hunting to do. I'm also curious to see how the sector editor I wrote back in the 80s works with hard drives.

-Kevin