Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!think!ames!lll-tis!helios.ee.lbl.gov!nosc!ucsd!ucsdhub!loral!dml
From: dml@loral.UUCP (Dave Lewis)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.m6809
Subject: Re: CoCo 3 suggestions
Summary: Uses for Multi-Pak
Keywords: MPI
Message-ID: <1821@loral.UUCP>
Date: 15 Aug 88 16:11:29 GMT
References: <4503@saturn.ucsc.edu>
Reply-To: dml@loral.UUCP (Dave Lewis)
Followup-To: comp.sys.m6809
Organization: Loral Instrumentation, San Diego
Lines: 35

In article <4503@saturn.ucsc.edu> sneezy@ucscb.UCSC.EDU (Frank Farm) writes:

>If there really IS a future in cartridges, it won't include me.
>I *don't* have the MultiPak.  I'm certainly not going to risk plugging
>and unplugging my disk controller, and I'm not excited about paying for
>an MPI that will take up EVEN MORE of the limited desk space that I have
>simply to be able to play a game at the flick of a switch.  And what
>happens after you've bought four or more game cartridges?  Do the
>plug-unplug procedure again?  Why buy the thing in the first place?
>You can plug and unplug to your heart's content WITHOUT the MPI.

  Well I *do* have a Multi-Pak, and all 4 of its little slots are full of:

* Disk controller (of course)
* Deluxe RS-232 pack (on sale, $30, who could resist)
* George Indorf/Intronics EPROM programmer, modified to run with OS-9
* ummm...well...Polaris. I admit it.

  Thing is, I HAVE to have the Multi-Pak to use my system the way I'm used to.
I run a 9600 baud terminal off the RS-232 pak because the CoCo's 32 X 16 Ugly
font is too painful to contemplate, and since I modified the EPROM programmer
I can use all those neat OS-9 utilities (some of which I wrote) to diddle the
binary files. There's also the OS-9 L1 assembler, and the Z-80 assembler I
made by replacing the mnemonic table, code generate, and address mode sections.

  Point is, I need to run all this stuff (except Polaris) at the same time.
Let's see you do that without a Multi-Pak. (Don't talk to me about Y-cables)
And since it's all hooked to a CoCo 2, I don't have to worry about PLA mods.
(I've got a CoCo 3 too...just don't have a disk controller for it yet. The
CoCo 2 and the Amiga keep me busy enough as it is...)
-- 
Dave Lewis      Loral Instrumentation      San Diego    (619) 282-3341
  ihnp4 --\   bang --\ kontron -\
  hp-sdd --\ calmasd ->-> crash ->--> loral!dml
  sdcrdcf -->--------> sdcsvax -/      (uucp)