• Debug ROM image for Unix PC

    From Convergent MightyFrame@21:1/5 to All on Sat Oct 8 13:28:17 2016
    Does anyone know where to find ROM chip images of the AT&T Unix PC Debugger ROMs?

    Here's the context:

    AT&T Technical Reference Manual
    4 Logic Board Test Procedures
    4-6 Debugger Program

    On page 4-6 (PDF page 179), we read about the Debugger Program.

    Here's the link to that page in the manual:
    (WARNING: this URL loads the entire 488-page PDF, and then redirects to page 179. h/t DoN)

    http://www.unixpc.org/UNIXPC_Ref.pdf#page=179

    I don't see anything on Bitsavers at http://bitsavers.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/bits/ATT/unixPC/

    Further Google searching brings up a 16-year-old alt.folklore.computer post by jchausler discussing debug ROMs for the MC6800 (different than the MC68k) processor: "the debug ROM called MIKBUG."

    http://bit.ly/2dVzfNH

    This does not seem to be what I'm looking for, so I don't know if any of this is relevant, but I'm hoping it may spark someone's memory and interest.

    Thanks always,
    -AJ

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  • From DoN. Nichols@21:1/5 to Convergent MightyFrame on Sun Oct 9 01:58:07 2016
    On 2016-10-08, Convergent MightyFrame <mightyframect@gmail.com> wrote:
    Does anyone know where to find ROM chip images of the AT&T Unix PC Debugger ROMs?

    Here's the context:

    AT&T Technical Reference Manual
    4 Logic Board Test Procedures
    4-6 Debugger Program

    On page 4-6 (PDF page 179), we read about the Debugger Program.

    Here's the link to that page in the manual:
    (WARNING: this URL loads the entire 488-page PDF, and then redirects to page 179. h/t DoN)

    http://www.unixpc.org/UNIXPC_Ref.pdf#page=179

    I don't see anything on Bitsavers at http://bitsavers.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/bits/ATT/unixPC/

    I don't think that these were ever release by either AT&T or
    Convergent Technologies, so unless you can find someone who commercially repaired these systems, the odds are pretty much against you.

    Further Google searching brings up a 16-year-old alt.folklore.computer
    post by jchausler discussing debug ROMs for the MC6800 (different than
    the MC68k) processor: "the debug ROM called MIKBUG."

    MIkBUG was not really a debugging ROM -- but rather a monitor
    ROM -- used originally for a little prototyping board sold (and
    sometimes given away) by Motorola to encourage engineers to find
    applications for the MC6800 for whatever.

    It had the ability to dump the contents of a range of RAM or
    ROM, punch to punched tape via an ASR-33 Teletype (using Motorola's "S"
    hex format, to transfer process to a specified address, and to load into
    RAM from a "S" hex format tape. It used a PIA (6820) for both
    experimental control of whatever, and a couple of pins to talk to the
    Teletype -- via current loop, or RS-232 depending on jumpers on the
    board.

    I think that it was possible to set an interrupt on execution
    of certain addresses, and that plus the ability to examine and change individual addresses was pretty much the limit of its debugging
    capability.

    It was shipped with the SWTP 6800 kit computer as the monitor,
    and many programs used it for I/O, including various DOS versions for
    the 6800.

    The entire assembly language source for MIKBUG can still be
    downloaded somewhere. No point for the 7300/3B1 however.

    The whole program fit in 512 bytes, IIRC, and there was another
    monitor program which used a serial port chip (the ACIA -- MC6850) for
    talking to a console. Both were in the same ROM chip -- you selected
    which to run based on one address line tied high or low.

    The DEBUG ROMs for the Unix-PC likely included test routines for various parts of the circuitry.

    http://bit.ly/2dVzfNH

    This does not seem to be what I'm looking for, so I don't know if any
    of this is relevant, but I'm hoping it may spark someone's memory and interest.

    It is certainly not what you are looking for -- unless you drop
    back to playing with a SWTP 6800 or similar system.

    Enjoy,
    DoN.

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  • From Convergent MightyFrame@21:1/5 to DoN. Nichols on Sun Oct 9 00:38:30 2016
    On Saturday, October 8, 2016 at 6:58:43 PM UTC-7, DoN. Nichols wrote:
    I don't think that these were ever release by either AT&T or
    Convergent Technologies, so unless you can find someone who commercially repaired these systems, the odds are pretty much against you.

    DoN, I can't believe that we found this, but here is a post on this very forum on this very topic...but it's from 1992!

    https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.sys.3b1/UgUjwyDcVUk/nwS7-DVOMxEJ

    It was made by the late Thad Floryan, and you even weighed in on the topic. I'm not at all surprised that you wouldn't remember this, being that it was over 24 years ago!

    BUT, could you please re-read this post, and comment back here?

    Since you had archived one of Thad's resources for me before (tProbe), I'm wondering if you might have snagged and archived a copy of what he archived here?

    Thanks always,
    -AJ

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  • From Convergent MightyFrame@21:1/5 to All on Sun Oct 9 21:43:23 2016
    And DoN, I also wanted to thank you for your previous response here, on this thread, as well as every other post I've ever made here.

    As always, your knowledge is very much respected and appreciated by me, and I very much appreciate you taking the effort and time to share everything you have here, both recently and over the years.

    I just realized that I neglected to say that in my previous message, but I meant to.

    Best always,
    -AJ

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  • From DoN. Nichols@21:1/5 to Convergent MightyFrame on Wed Oct 12 03:31:16 2016
    On 2016-10-10, Convergent MightyFrame <mightyframect@gmail.com> wrote:

    And DoN, I also wanted to thank you for your previous response here,
    on this thread, as well as every other post I've ever made here.

    As always, your knowledge is very much respected and appreciated by
    me, and I very much appreciate you taking the effort and time to share everything you have here, both recently and over the years.

    I just realized that I neglected to say that in my previous message,
    but I meant to.

    Well -- thank you.

    Enjoy,
    DoN.

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  • From DoN. Nichols@21:1/5 to Convergent MightyFrame on Wed Oct 12 03:29:56 2016
    On 2016-10-09, Convergent MightyFrame <mightyframect@gmail.com> wrote:
    On Saturday, October 8, 2016 at 6:58:43 PM UTC-7, DoN. Nichols wrote:
    I don't think that these were ever release by either AT&T or
    Convergent Technologies, so unless you can find someone who commercially
    repaired these systems, the odds are pretty much against you.

    DoN, I can't believe that we found this, but here is a post on this
    very forum on this very topic...but it's from 1992!

    https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.sys.3b1/UgUjwyDcVUk/nwS7-DVOMxEJ

    It was made by the late Thad Floryan, and you even weighed in on the
    topic. I'm not at all surprised that you wouldn't remember this, being
    that it was over 24 years ago!

    That it has.

    BUT, could you please re-read this post, and comment back here?

    Reading through it, I don't see anything which suggests file
    names, and running a find on my 3B1 files does not show any files with
    'hi' or 'lo' in them, except a gazillion which have "files" in the path,
    and "archive" in the path.

    Since you had archived one of Thad's resources for me before (tProbe),
    I'm wondering if you might have snagged and archived a copy of what he archived here?

    It may not have ever been actually posted, which suggests that
    the clear copyright was not found. No permission from Convergent,
    perhaps.

    Good Luck,
    DoN.


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  • From Convergent MightyFrame@21:1/5 to All on Tue Oct 18 19:29:31 2016
    Thank you for checking for it, DoN. We'll keep hunting, somehow.

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