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- Greetings from the REALM....
-
- Over the past couple of nights I've spent a couple bill-zillion
- hours trying to figure out how to hook my ST to my Portfolio. It
- seemed easy enough at first until I realized there is no way to send a
- file to the Portfolio without doing some strange things. I didn't
- want all my downloading time and problem solving to be wasted on just
- one portfolio so here's what I learned.
-
- The arc file contains the programs neccessary to download your
- first xmodem program, after that your home free. Your Arc should have
- contained the following:
-
- READTHIS.TXT (if your not reading this...Hmm! never mind)
- CHKSUM.COM (provides the checksum of bytes in a PF program.)
- HEXBIN.COM (switchs a Hexadecimal code into Binary code)
- TMXM2.HEX (a shareware terminal program for Xmodem and Text
- transfers)
-
- You need to provide the following items:
-
- Null Modem Cable (I think you can get a regular DB9 to DB25 Null
- Modem cable both ends female. If not buy a
- joystick extension cable at Radio Shack and hack
- off the Male end. Buy a DB25 Female end and a
- cover. Use a continuity tester to help connect
- the pins. There is a cable file in this library.)
-
- The Control Panel (the one that should have come with the computer,
- should be labeled CONTROL.ACC and contain both
- the PRINTER and RS232 Configure buttons. Set
- the RS232 to 1200 Baud, None, Full, On, Off,
- Off. Now set the Printer to Modem and that
- should be it for the control panel.
-
- A Control+Z txt file (You need to make a text file with the code
- for Control+Z or the code that lets the
- Portfolio know your finished. I went to the
- buffer in Flash, pushed Control Z, it made
- a weird small e and I saved it as Z.TXT)
-
- Hang in there, it took me forever to figure this out. I tried
- about ten different Terminal programs, read a couple gillion files and
- realized no one really knows how to do it. The bulk of the Idea come
- from a text file by ABGRAF (Thanks!) but I couldn't find a modem program
- that wouldn't mess up the files in transmission.
-
- Here is the idea at last. You will double click on the file you
- want to transfer (after installing and setting the control panel),
- then click "print" (it will be sent to the Serial Port) which in turn
- will be received by the Portfolio. Acting with cat like reflexes you
- then have to print the Control Z file to end the transmission.
-
-
- The Step by Step Part..........
-
- A. First make sure that both Serial Ports are set the same. Set your
- control panel as stated above. Set the Portfolio's Serial Port buy
- entering the Setup Mode and setting the RS232 port to match the
- Control Panel.
-
- B. On the PF, type: COPY AUX CHKSUM.COM [DO NOT PUSH ENTER]
-
- On the ST, Double Click on the CHKSUM.COM file [DO NOT PRINT YET]
-
- Push ENTER on the PF then pick PRINT on the ST. (It's quick!)
-
- When the ST is Done IMMEDIATELY! Double Click on the Z.TXT file and
- PRINT it.
-
- If you had all the connections correct the PF should say
- "1 file copied" if it says "error" you didn't get the Z.TXT file
- fast enough or the connections are wrong. Try a couple times and
- if it still doesn't work double check the cable and the terminal
- settings. If your PF is frozen push the REBOOT on the bottom.
-
- C. If it seems to have worked (check the file size) you can type on
- the PF: CHKSUM CHKSUM.COM the response should be 309A. If you don't
- get this try again. Repeat the above procedures for both remaining
- files HEXBIN.COM and TMXM2.HEX. There respective CHKSUM values are
- 4080 (HEXBIN.COM) and 0F7D (TXMM2.HEX).
-
- D. Glad you could make it! If you managed to get those three files to
- the portfolio you are in good shape the rest is easy. On the PF
- Type: HEXBIN TMXM2.COM almost a minute later the C> should return.
- When the C> returns type: REN RESULT.OUT TMXM2.COM (it's CHKSUM
- should be FC6D). To run the program just type TMXM2 and the
- results should allow you to use normal XMODEM transfer from this
- point on.
-
-
- Gosh! It seems pretty easy now that I look back. Hopefully you
- where able to get your PF up and runnen, if not you can contact me
- directly via GEnie Mail Address: REALM. Good Luck!
-
- Until later...
- REALM
-