SEAN McNAMARADATE BY
19 APRIL 2015
(SOLID) STATE OF THE NATION
OzKFest 2015
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Who am I?
Computer user since 1980 (TRaSh-80)
Apple ][ user since 1982
Mac user since 1984
Mac/Apple consultant since 1997
Apple ][ hoarder collector since 1998 (thanks, Craig!)
Contacts:
europlus@mcnamaras.id.au
europlus on a2c.chat
@apple2europlus on Twitter
europlus.a2hq.com (currently inactive)
Fair use of copyrighted material for non-profit
educational purposes is claimed for this presentation.

My Retro Solid State Story
Semi Virtual Diskette
“I Conner store no more, Cap’n!” –
IDE to Compact Flash
CFFA3K
SCSI Card Reader
SCSI to Compact Flash
Floppy Emu

Why Solid State?
Vintage magnetic media can
fail (bit rot, mould, physical
damage)
Mechanical drives can fail
Access to media from modern
computers
Difficulty sourcing new media
Convenience/flexibility

Types of Solid State Storage
for Retro Computers
Compact Flash
SD and its variants
USB
Servers, other devices acting as
storage devices
Custom devices
I’m technically including some
mechanical media

Types of Solid State Solutions
for Retro Computers
Interface adaptors
Device emulators
Server-style solutions

Interface Adaptors
Allow old devices/cards/cases to use
solid state media in place of spinning
disks
Compact Flash to IDE (40 and 44 pin)
Compact Flash to SCSI

Focus card
An early (apparently the first)
IDE controller for slotted
Apple ]['s (][, ][+, //e, IIgs)
44 pin IDE connector
Block level access to media
Optional rails to hold
2.5" drive in place
Can power 2.5" drive
Not strictly solid state, but often used with an IDE to CF adaptor
http://16sector.com/shop/featured/focus-ide-hd-controller/

MicroDrive/Turbo
IDE controller for the Apple IIgs
40 pin IDE connector
Dual IDE support
Block level access to media
Supports DMA
Includes a dual CF adaptor
Requires ROM1 or ROM3
Not strictly solid state, but most often used with an IDE to CF adaptor
http://www.reactivemicro.com/product_info.php?products_id=34

Classic IDE
IDE controller for the Apple ][,
Apple //e and Apple IIgs
40 pin IDE connector
Dual IDE support
Block level access to media
Supports DMA
Not strictly solid state, but most often used with an IDE to CF adaptor
http://tecnobytescc.blogspot.com.au/p/classic-ide-for-apple-ii.html

Device emulators/
controllers
Semi Virtual Diskette
CFFA/CFFA3000
UNISDISK/UNISDISK Air
Floppy Emu
MicroDrive/Turbo
Classic IDE
X/Profile
Smartport Virtual Hard Drive
iPod, Audio Sources

Semi-Virtual Diskette (SVD)
Originally designed for TRS-80
Disk drive emulator, disk
images loaded over serial link
from modern computer
256KB built-in memory
Apple ][ support through
adaptor cable
Low availability
http://www.rothfus.com/SVD/

CFFA3000
Hard drive, SmartPort and two-drive floppy interface emulation
On screen controls
CF and USB storage
Optional external
switches to cycle
through disk images
Currently unavailable
(ETA Nov 2015)
NB: CFFA1 is a version
for the Apple 1
http://dreher.net/?s=projects/CFforAppleII&c=projects/
CFforAppleII/main.php

UNISDISK/UNISDISK Air
Emulates 5.25" and
SmartPort devices
UNISDISK Air Series uses
Toshiba FlashAir SD card to
incorporate a web server for
image transfer and
management
http://tulip-house.ddo.jp/
DIGITAL/english.html

Floppy Emu
Originally designed as
floppy drive emulator for
early Macs
Firmware is upgradable for enhanced functionality and
additional device emulation
Now also emulates an HD20 on external floppy port of
compatible early Mac models
Now also emulates an external 3.5" floppy drive for the
Apple IIgs
http://www.bigmessowires.com/macintosh-floppy-emu/

X/Profile
Replaces proprietary drive interface
device in Profile drive cases with
Compact Flash or IDE drive
http://sigmasevensystems.com/xprofile

Smartport Virtual Hard
Drive
SmartPort device for
mounting hard drive images
from USB storage
Very hard to get a hold of
http://pcedric3.free.fr/
SmartportVHD/

iPod, Audio Sources
Use any audio source with
digitised cassette-style data
in place of cassette drive
Cheap and easy, but not
particularly fast

Server-style Solutions
A2SERVER
http://ivanx.com/a2server/
Apple Games Server
http://asciiexpress.net/
gameserver/

Resources
CiderPress
Disk image management
http://a2ciderpress.com/
Asimov Images, info
ftp://ftp.apple.asimov.net/pub/apple_II/
What is the IIgs? Images, info
http://www.whatisthe2gs.apple2.org.za
Brutal Deluxe BenchmarkeD Apple IIgs ProDOS benchmarking
http://www.brutaldeluxe.fr/products/apple2gs/benchmarked.html
BenchmarkeD Results Google Sheet

Caveats
Compatible file formats
Block level vs disk image use
Some brands/sizes cause issues
Backup!

Acknowledgements
Andrew Roughan, Jason Griffiths and the other organisers of
OzKFest 2015
Tony Diaz for coming all the way from Up Over with such an
extensive collection of gear and knowledge to share
Andrew Roughan, Jason Griffiths, Tony Diaz, Craig, Jon Co and
Alex Lukacz for adding their devices to the table for viewing
Peter Wong, Henry Courbis and Steve Chamberlin for info and
thoughts from afar (see following slides)
OzKFest attendees for their insights and experiences with solid
state solutions across the whole OzKFest weekend

From: "Peter Wong" <pitz.wong@gmail.com>
I've also been making use of solid-state solutions, specifically with the
Apple IIgs.
One particular category is making use of SCSI. I use the Apple II High
Speed Card on my Apple IIgs for these solutions (though this would be
limited to ProDos and HFS disk partitions, and does not apply to DOS 3.3
disk images).
* http://www.codesrc.com/mediawiki/index.php?title=SCSI2SD
This is the adapter that I make use of the most. A disk image(s) containing
multiple ProDos partitions can be loaded into a microSD card by mounting
the raw microSD card in modern machines (e.g., Windows) and using some
raw read/write utility like dd.exe. I use CiderPress in Windows to load and
extract files from the microSD directly.
* SCSI/IDE adapter
There are a series of SCSI-IDE adapters like those marketed as ACARD
AEC-xxxx adapters. They serve as a bridge from SCSI to IDE. With these
adapters, you just need an additional cheap $5 IDE-CF or IDE-SD adapter
to make it a true solid state solution.
* SCSI/CF adapters
An older set of SCSI/CF adapters, the Microtech PCD-xxxx set of adapters,
also work. It doesn't bridge to IDE, but bridges directly to the CF (or SD)
cards inserted in the adapters.
* SCSI CDROM or MO or ZIP?
Not exactly solid-state, but you can boot GS/OS from a CDROM (sorta like
a Live CD). There are some additional details in my blog, and this
mechanism has been around for a long time.
All the SCSI-based solutions also work with other platforms that make use
of SCSI (older Macs, NeXT). One caveat with the SCSI solutions is that with
the Apple SCSI cards, SCSI termination power is not provided by the card,
unless the card is modded to do so. Another device in the SCSI chain has
to provide SCSI termination power.
Then there's the regular direct bridge to IDE approach. The Focus card or
the MicroDrive cards offer an IDE interface. With the cheap IDE-CF or IDE-
SD adapters added, this also becomes a solid-state solution. I've
personally tried the Focus card, but not the MicroDrive cards. The CFFA
cards also work the same way -- the older version pre-CFFA3000 offers an
IDE interface aside from the direct CF slot. For several years, this has been
my preferred solid-state solution, booting my IIgs from the CF card.
The new CFFA3000 card still offers the CF slot which I boot from, but also
adds the capability to have disk images stored on a USB thumbdrive.
These disk images can be mapped to the Apple slot/drive combinations and
they appear as regular DISK II or Smartport drives. In short, this card is
awesome.
One category which is getting popular lately is to provide solid-state
solutions through the external disk interfaces (e.g., the DISK II Interface card
connectors, or through the DB-19 disk connectors). Several vendors, from
Bulgaria, to Korea, to Japan (see csa2 discussions) regularly offer these in
eBay or direct purchase. Another domestic (U.S.) one (http://
www.bigmessowires.com/2015/04/01/apple-ii-800k-3-5-disk-emulation/) is
also in the works. I've only had the experience with the UNISDISK from
Nishida Radio. It's also a great solution, but since I prefer an internal
solution over an external solution, I mostly use the SCSI2SD or the CFFA
approach.
Another (maybe a little off-topic) category is remote-booting from an
AppleShare system. AppleShare servers were initially used in Macs, but
there is a port to Linux (netatalk). Steven Hirsch and Geoff Body have
extensive backgrounds on this approach. The Linux box is essentially a file
server, and the Linux box could run off a solid state device like an SD card
or a USB thumb drive. I think Ivan Drucker has ported it to the Raspberry
Pi. The IIgs natively supports AppleShare servers; the IIe needs the Apple
Workstation card.
Those are all my thoughts on solid-state solutions. Hope it helps.
/pitz
http://peterwong.net/blog/?tag=apple2

From: "Steve Chamberlin" <steve@bigmessowires.com>
I'm relatively new to the Apple II world, but I wanted to call your
attention to some work I've been doing recently with a disk
emulator I designed called Floppy Emu. It's an external board
with a microcontroller and a CPLD - a versatile combination that
enables it to emulate many different kinds of floppy drives with
only a firmware change. Disk images are stored on a SD card in
Disk Copy 4.2, 2MG, or other standard image formats. You can
also pop the SD card in a modern PC and open the image files
with Ciderpress or other tools.
Originally Floppy Emu emulated 800K Macintosh floppies, and
I've since added 400K and 1.44MB Mac floppies, Mac HD20
hard drive, and Lisa 400K and 800K floppies.
Then just a few weeks ago, I started looking at Apple II floppy
emulation, and ProDOS 800K disk emulation is now working on
the Apple IIgs. There are still some kinks to work out, and a
ROM 3 compatibility issue, but I'm optimistic it will all get sorted
out. I've also researched 5.25 inch 140K floppy emulation, as
well as Smart Port emulation of Apple II hard drives, and both
should be possible with a firmware update on the current
Floppy Emu hardware. In the end, my goal is to have a single
device that works on any Apple II, Lisa, or Macintosh - for
floppy emulation as well as hard disk emulation where possible
(HD20 or SmartPort).
The Floppy Emu product page is here - http://
www.bigmessowires.com/macintosh-floppy-emu/ This page
doesn't yet mention the Apple II support, since it's still "beta"
You can follow the development history in a series of a few
dozen blog posts going back 3.5 years here - http://
www.bigmessowires.com/category/macintosh-floppy-emu/ The
most recent ones are all about the Apple II work.
Best,
Steve

From: "Henry S. Courbis" <support@reactivemicro.com>
My name is Henry from ReActiveMicro. I am writing to you in
reference to your posting on CSA2 asking for HDD experience
with solid state storage on the Apple II.
I happen to sell the MicroDrive/Turbo card and would be glad to
answer any questions you may have regarding the device. It is
the fastest controller out there since it's the only one to use
DMA reads and writes. It allows booting to all volumes while
resetting using the Open-Apple key and the volume number or
letter (if over 9 volumes). You can even 'skip' the MDT on boot
by holding down the ESC key. This is useful if the MDT is
installed in Slot 7 and you want to boot to the Floppy Drive.
Cards are being sold on eBay for $175USD, plug-and-play
ready for the enhanced IIe and IIgs.
Any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
Henry S. Courbis
www.ReactiveMicro.com
Office (no mail): 108F North Reading Road, STE 185
Ephrata, PA 17522-1668
SHIPPING: ADDRESS UPON REQUEST
Office Toll Free: (800) REACTIVE (732-2848)
Office/Mobile Direct: (856) 779-1900
facebook.com/reactivemicrousa - Blog and pictures, project
updates, and downloads!

A FEW PHOTOS FROM OzKFest 2015
17-19 APRIL 2015 – KEYSBOROUGH, VIC, AUSTRALIA
IN MEMORIAM:
CONNER CP-2024 S/N K0DKTX
1990-2007

Apple ][ Collectors Anonymous
The Apple ][ Collector’s Twelve Step Program
1. We admit we are powerless over Apple ][ collecting – that our collection has become unmanageable.
2. We have come to believe that a power supply greatly re-capped can restore us to sanity.
3. We have made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of Woz as we understand Him.
4. We will make a searching and fearless inventory of our Apple ][ collection.
5. We admit to Woz, to ourselves, and to one other Apple ][ collector the exact extent of our collection.
6. We are entirely ready to have Woz remove all defects of programming.
7. We humbly ask Woz to sign our collection.
8. We will make a list of all persons we have harmed and bored with our collecting, especially our spouses
and children.
9. We will make direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure our
collection.
10. We will continue to take a collection inventory, and when we are missing something, promptly bid on it.
11. We will seek through PEEKs and POKEs to improve our contact with Woz as we understood Him,
praying only for more of His signatures and a power supply with no magic smoke.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we will try to carry this message to other
Apple ][ collectors, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.