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Text File | 1992-09-24 | 21.2 KB | 482 lines

The following is a first draft of a translation into english of the TFPCX Documentation. Translated by : Wolfgang Hartmuth,DG2MDJ PR-Mail : DG2MDJ@DB0KCP.DEU.EU E-Mail : wolfgang_hartmuth@mentorg.com Any comments or correction are welcome. Comment : Due to changes in Y2 call signs may change ! ==================================================================== TFPCX v1.00 - resident Firmware for SP ( PC ) without TNC (Free for Ham's, may not be used comercially) René Stange, Y51GE Introduction ============= Finally it is finished. Now the comfortable and wide spread terminal program SP developed by Sigi (DL1MEN) may be used on IBM's and compatible ( minimum required XT 8MHz ) without the need for a TNC. All you need a simple modem ( like Baycom or Digicom ) attached to COM1-4 or LPT1-4 and the program TFPCX. TFPCX interacts with SP similar to TFPCR, the KISS driver which is part of SP. Handling of TFPCX is similar to TFPCR. For more information read the SP documentation [1]. On the other hand TFPCX is more or less compatible to TheFirmware v2.1c of NORD><LINK. This software is used on the TNC2. Some knowlegde in how to work with TheFirmware is a good advantage. The program may also be used without SP and therefor contains some simple terminal routines, which is of interest for owners of slow PC's. The program does not work on ATARI ST. Copyright --------- TFPCX is a Public Domain program and may be used by hams. It may be distributed. Comercial use or comercial selling is strictly prohibited. No warranty for any failure of this program. The author shall not be liable for any damage what so ever, which may be related to the use of this program. The program was written by Y51GE using sources of the PD program TFPCR v1.60 (DL1MEN), which uses PD sources of TheFirmware v2.1c by NORD><LINK (DC4OX/DF2AU) Warning ------- If you find out that the program can not correctly decode or encode AX25-frames, immediately stop the program and use other solutions. This should be done in order to relieve the digipeater of useless transmisions. Specially on XT's you should observe the monitor window, in order to judge on the quality of decoding/encoding. History of developement ----------------------- March 1990 I started having interest in packet radio, but I did not want to buy standard equipement. I heard about the program DigiCom and was sure that a similar solution for the PC must be feasible. I started to collect information about AX25 protocol and with the help of a PC and tape copies of the Berlin QRG I tried to decode AX25. That's the way the routine for decoding were developed. The biggest problem arose in calculating the CRC and creating the routine for transmision. At that time I did not have a license, so my brother Mike (Y42LK) took over first tests. He also supplied me with modems. So I proved that the PC is capable of directly controling a modem. When I first puplished my idea in oct. 1990, there was lots of interest in my program. Also I had good feed back that the DigiCom team was working on a similar solution. When I asked Johannes (DG3RBU), I got the answer that the Baycom solution was about to be finished. At that time I came in touch with terminal programs for the TNC, so I had the idea of extenting those programs with my HDLC routines. I started with Superkiss 3.0 and wrote a driver which redirected the KISS data onto my routine. Next followed SP5.02 and the TCP/IP package by KA9Q. All these solutions were working well, but had a big disadvantage. There was a need of patching the terminal programs, which is not a portable solution and must stick to specific versions of the terminal program. Because of this I wrote to Sigi (DL1MEN) who imediately gave me the sorce code for TFPCR ( again, many thanks to him). Quickstart ----------- For those who have a Baycom modem for 1200 baud and want to test it themselves : - those who are still working with a XT should better continue reading, it must be tested if this machine is fast enough - install SP (v5.02 and higher) as if you want to use TFPCR - replace TFPCR.COM with TFPCX.EXE - attach the Baycom modem to a com port - enter the command 'TFPCX -PCOMn' where n represents the number of the com port used. - startup SP - if there should be problems continus to read - the command 'TFPCX -U' will remove the driver from memory How it works ------------ TFPCX is a TSR program, which must be activated before SP is called. TFPCX installs itself in memory. After that you get back to the DOS prompt and may start the next program. The system will now behave as if you had a normal TNC with a terminal progam. You may be connected from outside and incoming messages may be stored. As soon as the terminal program is started you will see the incoming text on the screen. Communicatio with SP is done with a sofware interrupt. TFPCX can be compared with the module L2 which is part of the Baycom package by Flori(DL8MAT) and Johannes (DG3RBU). SP takes the role of the terminal program as SCC does with Baycom. The real new compared to TFPCR is, that TFPCX can directly controle a modem and is capable of sending and receiving AX25 frames without the need for a TNC. TFPCX uses a different methode than Baycom which has advantages and disadvantagess. As the required timing standart, the system timer (8253 chanel 0) is used, which drives interrupt 8 3600 times per second active. That requires a minimum of CPU power. A XT running at 4.77 MHz is most likly not fast enough for TFPCX and SP, but 8MHz probably should be sufficient. The biggest problem is that the interrupt may not be delayed too long otherwise incoming packet will not be decoded properly and outgoing packets will be corrupted. This may happen when e.g. accessing the disk. A AT should have no problems. Best would be if you try it yourself. Some more hints will follow. Another problem are programs also making use of the timer chip like MS-Windows, some mose drivers or MS-QuickC 2.51 ( the compiler I use ). You should not use any of these programs as long as TFPCX is active. Other wise you will be punished with a wrong system time, slow running system or even system crash. Up to now I only talked about disadvantages. Now some advantages: Not talking about more features in SP then in Baycom, which is available for a longer time, TFPCX does not require a full compatible COM port, because it will be used as a simple I/O latch. There is no need that the port can drive an interrupt so you may also use anny available LPT port ( e.g. for DigiCom modems, which produce ttl level only). Some hope for those people who were not successfull with the Baycom modem.!? Modem connection ---------------- It was not possible for me also to develope a new modem, there are others who do it better. So I adopted the Baycom 'standart', which already is in use by many YL's and OM's. Additionally you may connect another modem ( e.g. DigiCom) to the Centronics port. Here is the pinout of the interface : Com port : Signal 25-pin 9-pin used as DTR 20 4 transmit data +/- 10 V RTS 4 7 PTT, high active, -10V=RX, +10V=TX CTS 5 8 receive data GND 7 5 ground LPT port : signal 25-pin used as DATA7 8 transmit data TTL level DATA8 9 PTT, high active, 0V=RX, 5V=TX BUSY 11 receive data GND 18-25 ground TheFirmware v2.1c ----------------- Here some short notes how TF v2.1c is realized within TFPCX. The Firmware may be used in two different modes ( terminal and host mode ) just like with every TNC2. The only difference to a normal TNC is, that data are not exchanged via a serial port but with the use of software interrupts. The various functions of the interrupt are described in the apendix. When in terminal mode TFPCX can be used as a normal terminal which must use the interrupt. Such a terminal routine is already contained in TFPCX. The Firmware now offers the user a number of commands, which start with the escape key and are executed pressing the enter key. The apendix contains a short summary of all implemented commands. In [2] you will find a detailed description of TheFirmware. The following commands have not been implemented : 'A' 'E' 'H' 'K' 'QRES' 'Z' '@K'. The terminal mode is not the best solution. SP will use host mode of TheFirmware. TFPCX has been compiled for 10 channels. The TF v2.1c is probably not the state of the art ( v2.3 is currently available ) because newer protocol elements are not implemented (IPOLL, DAMA, RTT), but is still in use with many TNCs. If there is a DAMA digipeater in Berlin I will think of an extension. Realized is a defensive slot time handling ( the software will wait in any case for the slot time before it starts to transmit ). If someone wnats to work in full duplex ( for what ever reasons ) he may do so ( enter the command '@D1' to switch to fdx ) but keep in mind that this will put some extra load on the CPU. So probably you should not do so on an XT. In simplex, TFPCX will not decode incoming packets when it is transmitting. Startup of TFPCX ---------------- TXPCX is started with the following command line at the DOS prompt : TFPCX [-PCOMn | -PLPTn] [-Bnnnn] [-Ixx] [-N] [-D] [-Ffile] [] = optional | = alternative n = decimal number x = hex number All parameters are optional and mus begin with the minus sign. Additional paarameters must be seperated with a space. Within a parameter string no spaces are allowed. The software is not case sensitive. After successful startup you should see the following startup screen : ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │ TFPCX v1.00 (Sep 11 1991) by Y51GE │ │ TF v2.1c by NORD><LINK (DC4OX/DF2AU) │ │ Portions by DL1MEN │ │ Free for non-commercial usage │ ├──────────────────────────────────────┤ │ COM1, 1200 Baud, Int FE, 10 Channels │ └──────────────────────────────────────┘ and the dos prompt should appear. TFPCX is now installed and uses approximately 46 Kb of main memory. Here an explanation of all command line options : -PCOMn (Baycom-) modem attached to COM port n ( possible are COM1 to COM4 ) -PLPTn Modem attached to LPTn ( LPT1 to LPT4 ) The bias address of the comm port will be retrieved from the bios data area. But keep in mind that some versions of the bios don't do that for COM3 and COM4. -Bnnn Baudrate at modem (300,1200,2400,4800,9600) The maximum baudrate is limited by the cpu power. 9600 is perhaps a bit too much ( if there is 80586, maybe than). For other baudrates then 1200 you can not use the Baycom modem. If 300 baud are used the system clock will run false about 30 seconds per hour. -Ixx Software interrupt for communication with SP ( 40-FF) The default value is FE. This option is only required if other programs use a different interrupt. -N Supress system messages If you dislike the appearance of messages you may switch them off using this option. -D Test mode ( debug) When in this mode each timer interruppt will produce a change of the edge at the speaker input. At 1200 baud a clean 3600 Hz tone should be heard ( 3 * baud rate ). The tone should sound more or less clean. If the interruppt is delayed too long the tone will heavily distorted. If you only hear that noise, than probably your computer is too slow. it is difficult to give a limit because there will always be some basic noise. But if nothing is heard ( except at 9600 baud, which is 29 kHz ) something serious is wrong. -Ffile Initialization file ( default name TFPCX.INI) If this file is read all characters from it will be transmitted to the Firmware in terminal mode to enable default setting of parameters. This may be of special interest if the program should run in background mode without staing SP. During noraml operation you will not need this option. The file will be searched for in the current directory if the full pathname is not specified. Each '^' character will be translated to an escape charater, which is the first character when entering a command in terminal mode. Linefeeds will be filtered, so that you can create the file using your favourate ASCII text editor. As an example : ^F 6 ^I MYCALL ^N 16 ^O 2 ^P 64 ^R 1 ^T 25 ^U 1 Welcome in where-ever - TFPCX V1.00 - SP offline ^W 25 All options will be displayed when entering the command 'TFPCX -H' at the DOS prompt. If you enter TFPCX at the DOS prompt, the default options are -PCOM1 -B1200 -IFE. If you are working on short wave at 300 baud most likely the following command exemple will do : TFPCX -PLPT1 -B300 Installing TFPCX ---------------- (1) Install SP just if you would work with TFPCR ( see [1]). Specifically the following lines should be found in SP.CFG ( with SP6 CONFIG.SP) : CFG=TNCS:1 CFG=PORT0:5 CFG=CHANS0:10 SP version before 5.02 should not be used, because the TFPCR interface may not be incompatible to the current version. Highloading of the driver has not been tested with MSDOS or DRDOS V5.0. Those of you who are willing to try it are welcome, set CFG=PORT0:5H. This version assumes that TFPCX uses one TNC only. Multi TNC operation has not been tested but should theoretically be possible. Then TFPCX is most likely only usable for one HF port and TFPCR may not be loaded simultaniously. It must be clear that interruppts coming from serial ports which are connected to TNCS, may make it impossible to receive or transmit high quality AX25 frame. That is also why a fast PC is required ( how fast I don't know ). All files belonging to TFPCR (TFPCR.COM, UNTFPC.EXE, AUTOKISS.CFG ) may be removed from the SP directory ( but NOT from your original diskette ). Instead you copy TFPCX.EXE to same directory where SP.EXE is installed. (2) Now connect the modem to COM1-4 or LPT1-4 and startup TFPCX. If you are not using COM1, pass the port with the option -P to the program. If the system slows down dramatically ( specially during disk accesses ) probably the used baud rate is too high. Perhaps you may then start TFPCX in terminal mode ( see below ) which may only aply to computers where Baycom does not work. (3) Next startup SP. If SP's startup message is not displayed on the screen, 'TNC#0 - (TFPCR / FE) in Hostmode', something went wrong during installation of SP. Now look for a QRG with packet signals and enter the command <ESC> MISUC to turn monitoring on, you should see incoming packets. If no frames are displayed exit from SP and remove TFPCX from memory with the command TFPCX -U. Now restart TFPCX with the extra option -D. Now a 3600 Hz (at 1200 baud) should be heard from the PC's internal speaker. If nothing is heard, the timer may be incompatible ( stop everything and get a 100 % compatible PC ) or the internal speaker is defect( yes, I already had that bug). Now restart SP. If the tone changes to noise only ( execept during loading of the program ), the PC is not fast enough for the interruppts of the timer chip. If the tone is relatively clean, the failure could be the modem itself or the TRX. (4) If the monitor is working you may try a connect. Here the PTT should be carefully watched. Theorectically all should work now properly. Think also that receiving frames works perfectly but transmitting frames does not. Removing TFPCX from memory -------------------------- You remove TFPCX from memory with the command 'TFPCX -U' at the DOS prompt. With TFPCX no extra program is required to remove it from memory. Terminal mode ------------- With the command TFPCX -T at the DOS prompt a simple terminal emulator will be started, so SP is not needed. But before that TFPCX must loaded into memory ( as described above ). So the program is call twice, but with different options at the DOS prompt. With ALT-X the terminal program is terminated, but before that you should disable monitoring if it was active with the command <ESC> 'MN', or monitoring will grap memory. Then SP may have problems starting up. If you only work in terminal mode I recommend to use the option -F to use default settings. The following batch file will be of some help : @echo off tfpcx -n -f tfpcx -t tfpcx -n -u Summary ------- At the end I want to share some expierience with you. I know that the presented solution is probably not without any problems. For newcomers I recommend Baycom, also SP is not so simple to handle. TFPCX is for hams already acustomed to SP, who do not want to get a TNC or want to operate portable and have time working with a PC and probably with one of the most comfotable terminal programs. If you are not one of those fell free using TFPCX. Because of increasing baud rates it may be useless getting the program. to give you some ideas here is a table what you can expect from a PC. The table is an approximation and without any guaranty. PC XT XT 286 386 MHz 5 8 12 20 ----------------------------------------- baud ST ST ST ST 300 ** ** ** ** 1200 /? ** ** ** 2400 // /? ** ** 4800 // // ?? ** 9600 // // // ?? S = with SP * = possible ? = don't know T = Terminal mode / = not possible You see there is a wide field for experiments. Test results are always welcome. Test have been carried aout under the following conditions. - PC : Carry-I (AT/286 12MHz) Amstrad PC 1512 (XT/8086 8 MHz) Tulip PC compact 2 (XT/V20 >9MHz) - Baycom modem connected to COM1 or COM2 - 1200 baud - SP 5.02.07 and 6.00.00 As one can see not all has been tested so you never know what will happen next. With the Amstrad PC do not load the mouse driver otherwise the clock will go wrong if using TFPCX. * * * Those who are interested in the program send a formatted diskette and a self addressed diskette mailer and enough IRC's to : René Stange O.-Grotewohl-Ring 34 O-1260 Strausberg possible diskettes : 3 1/2" 720K or 1.44M 5 1/4" 360 ( NO High Density) I do want to make profit sso stick to the above. I don't have the money to do more then copying and taking the envelope to the post office. Bugreports, testresults and enhancement requests are welcome 73's de René, Y51GE @ DB0GR.DEU.EU Apendix ------- TFPCX interruppt functions -------------------------- There are three subfunctions which are selected by a proper value in register AH passed to TFPCX. On return AX holds the result or FFFF if an invalid function has been selected. AH = 1 test for a received character return: AX = 0 no character AX = 1 character ready AH = 2 Get a received character. Call this only after function AH=1 returned a 1 return: AL character AH = 3 Send a character to the Firmware Parameter: AL character to send Commands of TheFirmware v2.1c [2] --------------------------------- Command parameter desciption C call1 [call2..call9] connect path (chan0: unproto) D disconnect F (4) 1..15 delay for answer (seconds) G [0] get information in host mode [1] get status in host mode JHOST(0) 0 terminal mode on 1 host mode on L [0..10] display status for channel M (IU) NIUSC+- monitor mode N (10) 0..255 P-persistence R (0) 0/1 digipeater off/on S (1) 1..10 channel number, 0 = unproto T (30) 0..127 txdelay ( 10ms steps ) U (0) 0/1 [text] enable/disable connect text V (2) 1/2 protocol version 1/2 W (10) 0..127 time slot for P-presistence ( 10 ms steps ) X (1) 0/1 disable/enable PTT Y (10) 0..10 Maximum number of connects @B display number of free buffers @D (0) 0/1 FDX off/on @S display link status @T2 (100) 0..255 timer T2 ( 10 ms steps ) @T3 (18000) 0..32767 timer T3 ( 10 ms steps ) @v (0) 0/1 disable/enable call checking [] optional parameter () default value Literature ---------- [1] DL1MEN : Manual for Eskay Packet (SP) for v5.02 and above [2] NORD><LINK : documentation for TheFirmware 2.1c ( May be available in PBBS's) [3] DL8MBT, DG3RBU: Baycom v1.40 - manual