Commodore 64 disk / tape emulation

Commodore 64 disk/tape emulation and data transfer comprises hardware and software for Commodore 64 disk & tape emulation and for data transfer between either Commodore 64 (C64), Commodore (1541) disk drive or Commodore (1530 Datasette) tape deck and newer computers.

There is a large variety of adapters for C64 disk/tape emulation and data transfer, and an even larger variety of compatible software. Many of the adapters are interfacing the original serial bus disk drive plug or the C2N tape interface. Other connects to either the user port or the cartridge expansion port using either standardized RS232 interfaces or proprietary adapters. In combination with software (or firmware), the adapters can either fully support the original communication protocols, provide partial support or apply proprietary communication protocols. Different solutions allows for letting the C64 access programs stored on another computer or the Internet, and for accessing the C64 disk station and tape deck from other computers.

History

Some of the oldest adapters are the C64 user port to RS232 converters. Those were standardized and originally designed to connect printers and other 3rd party hardware, including modems. Later, those adapters have also been adopted for disk drive emulation and even Internet connections. However, the most widespread adapters were probably the different disk drive and printer plug C64 serial bus to Parallel port adapter that evolved for transferring data between disk drives and parallel port supplied computers. Because of hard timing requirements on the C64 side, those are unfortunately not applicable to laptops or multitasking operation systems. There also exist a more limited number of adapters for the C64 tape interface. While the data transfer over the user port is usually limited to 2.4 kbit/s, the C64 expansion port cartridge interface supports transfer rates of one to two magnitudes higher through proprietary protocols. There exist C64 expansion port adapters that support both hard disks, memory cards, USB-disks and Ethernet connections.

The software is typically open source, and so is most of the hardware designs. You can therefore build most of the hardware yourself, though they are usually also available from online shops.

Software for C64 disk & tape emulation

This section comprises software for emulating the 1541 disk drive or the Commodore 1530 Datasette tape deck on external computers, making them available to a physical Commodore 64.

Remote software Remote OS Remote interface C64 software C64 emulation mode Compatible Hardware
1541-III firmware - - Disk 1541-III
1541EMU MS-DOS GUI no Disk, Fastload 1541EMU
1541Ultimate firmware - menu Disk, Fastload 1541U-I, 1541U-II
64HDD MS-DOS GUI no Disk X1541, Power-Loader
C2N Windows (Command), Linux, MS-DOS, AmigaOS text no Tape, Turbotape C2N232
C2NLOAD Windows (Command), Linux, MS-DOS, AmigaOS text no Turbotape C2N232
CMBLINK Windows (Command), Linux, MS-DOS, AmigaOS text no/yes*,** Tape C2N232, X1541, PC64
IEC-ATA firmware - - Disk IEC-ATA
MMC2IEC firmware - - Disk MMC2IEC
Over5 Windows 98, Linux, MS-DOS ? yes Disk UserPort-RS232
uIEC firmware - - Disk uIEC
Prlink Linux, MS-DOS, AmigaOS text yes** Tape PC64, Prlink, X1541, (64NET)
sd2iec firmware - - Disk SD2IEC
Serial Slave Windows, Linux, AmigaOS, MacOS, Web interface no yes Disk ExpansionPort-RS232
V-1541 Web interface Web page yes Disk UserPort-RS232
VC1541 MS-DOS GUI no Disk X1541

.* no software required with C2N232, but with X1541 and PC64

.** a simple Basic version of the software on the C64 side is available for typing in to the C64 before the first use.

Software for PC to disk & tape transfer

This section comprises software for transferring files and images between the 1541 disk drive or the Commodore 1530 Datasette tape deck and an external computer different from the Commodore 64.

Remote software Remote OS User interface Transfer mode Compatible Hardware
C64S x x x x
Disk64 x x x x
Linux Server 64 x x x x
MNIB ? text Disk ?
mtap & ptap DOS ? Tape X1541, C64S tape adapter
NIBTOOLS Windows XP (etc.)*, Linux* text Disk X1541&XP1541, XU1541
OpenCBM Windows XP (etc.), Linux ? Disk X1541, XP1541, XU1541, ZoomFloppy
Personal C64 x x x x
Star Commander DOS ? Disk X1541, XP1541
TRANS64 x x x x
X1541 DOS text Disk X1541

.*This software requires that OpenCBM is available.

Hardware

The following table addresses hardware for connecting the Commodore 64, the 1541 disk drive or the Commodore 1530 Datasette tape deck to external computers, data storage (such as disks and memory cards) or the Internet.

Hardware Type[1] C64 interface 1541 / C2N interface Remote interface Compatible software
1541-III Adapter Disk connector SD card, MMC card firmware
1541EMU Connector Disk connector[2] Disk Parallel, game port 1541EMU
1541U-I Cartridge Expansion port, disk connector SD card, MMC card firmware
1541U-II Cartridge Expansion port, disk connector MicroSD card, USB flash drive, Ethernet Integrated
64NET Cable ? Parallel Prlink
C2N232 Adapter Tape connector Serial C2NLOAD, CMBLINK
C64S tape adapter Adapter Tape Parallel mtap & ptap
Cassadapt Adapter Tape Audio TapWav, TAPClean, AudioTAP, WAV-PRG
Comet64 Adapter User port Serial, Ethernet V-1541
Handic V24 Adapter User port Serial Over5
IEC-ATA Adapter Disk connector ATA hard disk drive firmware
MMC2IEC Adapter Disk connector MMC card firmware
PC64 Cable User port Parallel CBMLINK, Linux Server 64, Personal C64, Prlink
PRLINK Cable User port Parallel Prlink
Power-Loader Cable User port Parallel 64HDD
SD2IEC Adapter Disk connector SD card firmware
Silver Surfer Cartridge Expansion port Serial Serial Slave
Swiftlink Cartridge Expansion port Serial Serial Slave
Turbo Chameleon Cartridge Expansion port Disk Ethernet, MMC card, SD card Http-Load, WarpCopy64, Contiki
Turbo232 Cartridge Expansion port Serial Serial Slave
uIEC Adapter Disk connector CF card, SD card, IDE hard disk drive firmware
VIC-1011A RS232C Adapter User port Serial Over5
X1541 Cable Disk connector[2] Disk Serial X1541, Star Commander, CBMLINK, Prlink, disk64, c64s, 64HDD, VC1541, trans64, mtap & ptap
XP1541 Connector Disk Serial, parallel Star Commander, OpenCBM
XU1541 Adapter Disk USB OpenCBM
ZoomFloppy Adapter Disk USB OpenCBM
USB2IEC Adapter Disk USB OpenCBM, VICE Emulator

Software by C64 compatibility

Full emulation of the Commodore 1541 disk drive or Commodore 1530 datasette is required e.g. to support fast loaders. Software that supports the basic transfer protocols, such as load and save, will not support fast loaders.

Software exists that replaces the basic transfer protocols with proprietary alternatives. These protocols require special software on both the host side and the Commodore 64 side.

Some software supports transfer between a disk or tape drive and a computer other than a Commodore 64.

Floppy disks

Full emulation
Partial emulation
Proprietary options
Disk transfer

Cassette tapes

Full emulation
Proprietary options
Tape transfer

Hardware by C64 compatibility

Tape connector adapters
Disk connector adapters
RS232 user port adapters

The User Port RS232 adapters provides a low-speed serial port for Commodore 8-bit computers, originally for connecting printers etc. They can operate at speeds of up to 2.4 kbit/s.

Proprietary user port adapters
RS232 expansion port adapters
Expansion port cartridges provides a high-speed connection to an external computer and/or the Internet. The output interface is a RS232 interface for connecting to an external computer. Internet connection can be obtained through the external computer or via a series to Internet adapter.[38] Some adapters also have separate Ethernet interface for connecting to Internet. The most common cartridges for external connection is listed below.[39]
Proprietary expansion port adapters

References

  1. Cable: Wires and plugs only, Connector: Wires, plugs and simple components, Adapter / Cartridge: PCB with standard and or programmable components
  2. 1 2 Disk connector interfaces (e.g. x1541/xp1541 cables) have hard real-time requirements, and are in general not compatible with Pentium and newer PCs or multitasking operation systems.
  3. 1 2 "Home of 1541EMU". Kotinet.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  4. 1 2 3 "Home of 1541 Ultimate". 1541ultimate.net. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  5. "1541 Ultimatec on the 64-Wiki". C64-wiki.com. 2010-11-30. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  6. "Home of the 64HDD project". 64hdd.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  7. "Home of VC1541". Vc1541.sourceforge.net. 2003-07-29. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  8. "Home of Over5". Kahlin.net. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  9. Home of Serial Slave
  10. "Official blog of Commodore Server". Commodoreserver.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  11. "NIBTOOLS at the Disk Preservation Project". diskpreservation.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  12. "Home of cbm4linux". Lb.shuttle.de. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  13. "OpenCBM on Spiro's home on the web". Trikaliotis.net. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  14. "Home of Personal C64". Zimmers.net. 1997-06-05. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  15. "Home of Star Commander". Sta.c64.org. 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  16. Documentation of StarCommander, section 3
  17. 1 2 "Marko Mäkelä's old computers: Commodore C2N Datasette Codec c2n". Ktverkko.fi. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  18. "Marko Mäkelä's old computers: Commodore C2N datassette emulator with RS-232 interface". Ktverkko.fi. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  19. "Home of Linux Server 64". Rll.home.insightbb.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  20. "Minstrel's Commodore page: mtap & ptap". Markus.brenner.de. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  21. "Markus Brenner: The C64S tape adapter". Markus.brenner.de. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  22. "C8D Cassadapt". Cbm8bit. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  23. "1541-III". Jderogee.tripod.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  24. 1 2 "The X1541 Shop". Sta.c64.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  25. "The X-series interfaces". Sta.c64.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  26. "64Copy Central". Ist.uwaterloo.ca. 2012-01-12. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  27. "The XP1541 interface". Sta.c64.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  28. "Spiro's home on the web: The XU1541". Trikaliotis.net. 2008-01-28. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  29. "Nate Lawson: The ZoomFloppy manual" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  30. "Nate Lawson: The XUM1541 firmware". Root.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  31. IEEE Connector:. "Go4Retro online store: ZoomFloppy". Store.go4retro.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  32. "The Comet64 Internet Modem". Commodoreserver.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  33. "Everything Commodore The EZ-232 manual". Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  34. "Denial Wiki: VIC-1011A RS232C adapter". Sleepingelephant.com. 2012-01-25. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  35. "The Joe Forster/STA: PC64 overview". Sta.c64.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  36. "The Joe Forster/STA: Power-Loader". Sta.c64.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  37. "Using a UDS-10 (UDS-100) Device Server". Armory.com. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  38. "Silver Surfer". Ar.c64.org. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  39. Vesalia.de online store: Silver Surfer.
  40. Replay Resources: The SwiftLink manual Archived March 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  41. "Andreas Andersson: Over5 and Swiftlink clones". E.kth.se. 2002-04-21. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  42. Replay Resources: The Turbo232 manual Archived March 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, March 02, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.