Re: C= and internet

From: Ruud Baltissen (Ruud.Baltissen_at_abp.nl)
Date: 2001-02-15 09:28:55

> > If this could be made to work, it would provide a very
> > expeditious method of interfacing with a PC or Unix
> > network. I can see my C64 under NeworkNeighborhood
> > already  ;)
>
> Why all this talk about getting on the net?  It's been done already, both
> on stock machines (LUnix, Novaterm 10) and Super-CPU accellerated machines
> (JOS, Wheels/The Wave).

You should not forget one thing. For some people certain things are complete
black boxes which they use but have no idea how it works. That's, for a big
part, the case for me with internet. The fact that you can read this email
does not mean that I understood how it got to you.

My goal: connecting a C= to the internet. My only condition is that as much
as possible inteligence is on the C= it self. Using the C= just as a dumb
terminal is out of the question. At least the browser must run on the C=.
Also think of another aspect. Try to explain people that you are browsing
the web with your C= while next to it stands a big, ugly, PC. Using the
words of William:

> Interesting.  Now all they need to do is incorporate that into a modem
> with a standard serial interface and you would have an internet modem.

People can accept a modem as they know there exists external ones and
probably also know there aren't internal ones for a C=.

> What we need, in my opinion, is not a new TCP/IP stack, those already
> exist.  We don't need PPP, we already have it.

OK, so we have it. How does it look like, green with orange stripes? No
offence meant, but what for some people is very obvious, for others isn't.
Just have a look at my site and you'll see I'm not a dumb guy. But you'll
also see that I'm hardware orientated.

So again, if we have it, in what form is it available? Maybe it has been
told before, but most probably I haven't understood it. This card is a real
thing which looks as something I can understand as it is HW.

>  What we need is an Ethernet card for the C64/128.
> Ethernet would be the best thing, since it's more widely accepted than
> RS232 in high-speed situations (cablemodem, anyone?).

Yes and no. I now one occasion where a Ethercard would be handy but at home
I do not have a network.
Just a thought: what about a ISDN-interface? Or may be better/ easier to
realize, connecting an ISA-ISDN card to a C=? Does anybody know if a ISDN
card uses DMA? I presume not but it could. If it doesn't then we have some
other nice options. FYI, connecting a PC card to a C= is no problem. I've
done it, including 16 bits! (OK, no DMA)

> The HART Cartridge (Hatronics, uses a 16550 UART) is better since it's
> primary chip requires one fourth as much interrupt usage.  In fact I
> wouldn't be surprised if it were possible to extend this to use modern
> versions of the 16x50 that have even larger buffers (one model has 64
> bytes!).

I already used the the 16450 with my C64 in 1987, first using the above
interface, later directly at the expansion port. Great speeds etc. As I
said, HW is my speciality. To be honest, I haven't even a design of it
because it so obvious to me how to connect one to, AFAIK, _any_ C=. If
someone is interested, I'll draw a SCH.

OK. Having visited the FlatStack site, I have one question for sure which
probably is answered by William: Just this card and a Modem are enough? Or
is still something else needed?

Thanks.

Groetjes, Ruud

http://home.hccnet.nl/g.baltissen/index.htm



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