Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!cmcl2!nrl-cmf!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!hplabs!well!dsmall
From: dsmall@well.UUCP (David Small)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac,comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Magic Sac
Message-ID: <4538@well.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 26-Nov-87 03:04:43 EST
Article-I.D.: well.4538
Posted: Thu Nov 26 03:04:43 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 29-Nov-87 16:09:02 EST
References: <4340@mnetor.UUCP> <2214@brspyr1.BRS.Com>
Reply-To: dsmall@well.UUCP (David Small)
Organization: Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link, Sausalito, CA
Lines: 24
Xref: mnetor comp.sys.mac:10336 comp.sys.atari.st:6503


In the referenced article(s), there's discussion of the Translator One,
a peripheral that makes Atari drives Mac compatible.
   The Translator plugs in "between" the Atari and its disk drive(s).
We say this to try to make clear to many people that it is not a mod to the
Atari drive, but rather a "translator". As it so happens, it can plug
in anywhere on the drive chain, as long as it can sample the read/write
signals. Since the internal drive is also on this chain it can work with
the internal drive as well; I use one on a 1040 in the office.
  We use the MIDI ports to send commands to/from the Translator, and can't
loop with other MIDI devices.
  The Translator only turns on when a Mac disk is put in the drive; it
is idle otherwise. Hence your drives act like Atari drives until they
need to act like Mac drives. We compensate for the varying speed Mac drives
by varying our read/write clock rate, rather than tweaking drive speed.
   I hope this answers some of the Translator questions.
 -- Thanks, Dave
Dave Small / Engineer / I designed the darned thing and look where my
summer went... / Data Pacific

p.s. I am usually not very successful at replying to netmail; this is solely
because I don't know what I'm doing. I've got the necessary manuals and
am trying to learn, so if you've sent me mail and had no reply come back,
that's why..