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+--- Thread: New Model Development Updates (/thread-449.html)
RE: New Model Development Updates - johnhalk - 09-05-2025
(19-04-2025, 04:38 PM)RedskullDC Wrote: Just waiting for you to say that orders are open Ewan!
Take our $$$$
Cheers,
Leslie
Hi Ewan,
Can't wait until I can place my order. But take my money first before Leslie's
Regards,
John Halk
RE: New Model Development Updates - RetroBee - 13-05-2025
(02-05-2025, 05:18 PM)MbeeTech Wrote:(02-05-2025, 04:35 PM)RetroBee Wrote: Any chance you can include more 'hardware sprite' support ie) 8 at least? I know we have the new Microbee running at 20MHz but it will take pressure off the CPU. I really want to use this for 2D game development for lots of moving and colourful sprites on the screen. This would go a long way.
Cheers,
RetroBee
It is on the wish list.
Whether more sprites are implemented prior to release is yet to be determined.
It would certainly be nice to have more, but at some point I just have to just get the machines into production.
The benefit of having the screen section implemented in the FPGA is that I can just do a firmware update to include
new stuff like more sprites.
Thanks for the suggestion.
No problems Ewan, I completely understand. Is there a wishlist of things people can add their suggestion to? I have a few things to add.
Many thanks,
RetroBee.
RE: New Model Development Updates - MbeeTech - 14-05-2025
(13-05-2025, 07:07 PM)RetroBee Is there a wishlist of things people can add their suggestion to? I have a few things to add. Wrote: Many thanks,
RetroBee.
Just pop them down in this thread. That way others get to see them and comment on them, and I can see what people really want.
RE: New Model Development Updates - MbeeTech - 27-06-2025
Just a little update for now.
Not really anything to show at the moment, but that doesn't mean things have stopped.
There has been quite a bit of software development going on.
A couple of the things I've been working on include:
* DMA like disk interface for the floppy disk emulation. Normally the under the floppy disk emulation each byte that is read or written to/from the disk images
is handled byte by byte, exactly the way it happens when accessing a floppy disk. Under this new arrangement, whole sectors of 512 or 1024 bytes (depending
on the disk format) are read / written to the SDcard by the MC68SZ328 processor direct from Z80 memory space. This greatly improves the speed of disk access
while using emulated floppies (disk images). This means a new version of the boot disk / BIOS as well, to make use of the better performance.
* Operating system for M68K mode. Some of you that are familiar with the Premium Plus will recall that I released uClinux as an OS for the Premium Plus to
operate from in 'Coldfire / M68K ' mode, so rather than booting into normal Microbee Z80 mode, you could use the more powerful Coldfire processor on that model.
Similarly, with these new models, you'll be able to boot into M68K mode and run code on the M68K processor. To start with, I've been working on implementing
CP/M-68K (ver 1.3) . While it is a non-multitasking OS, it is relatively simple to implement & has a lot of tools with it, including an assembler, C compiler, linker etc.
all bundled in.
There are other options I'm looking at (for alternative OS's ) but CP/M-68K will be a good start.
Software dev is taking up a lot of time, but it is essential for a well rounded release.
RE: New Model Development Updates - MbeeTech - 17-07-2025
Another quick update.
As part of the OS development work, I've now implemented system support to be able to access the files on the SDcard (in the FAT FS) so that you can directly read or write
the files from CP/M rather than just the files available through the Microbee Disk images. The method is practically the same as calling CP/M's BDOS routines - in fact they have all
the same Call Numbers eg: Open File = 15, Close File = 16, Read Sequential = 20, Write Sequential = 21, Set DMA address = 26.
It involves writing to 3 I/O ports : one for the Call Number, one for High DMA / FCB address, one for Low DMA / FCB address. Write the address bytes first (if required) then the write
to the Call number triggers the M68K processor to handle the request and DMA the result back to Z80 memory space (for example).
Off to Canberra tomorrow for the Canberra Vintage Computer Exhibition.
RE: New Model Development Updates - kuroneko - 25-07-2025
Something I forgot to ask you whilst at the Exhibition, is the Z80's bus exposed on the new model (so we can tack on custom hardware?)
RE: New Model Development Updates - MbeeTech - 25-07-2025
(25-07-2025, 10:49 AM)kuroneko Wrote: Something I forgot to ask you whilst at the Exhibition, is the Z80's bus exposed on the new model (so we can tack on custom hardware?)
Yes it is. There is the standard 50 way header on the left side of the board near the PIO.
I know that is not really accessible if you have the board inside the case, but that was the only place I could put it.
You should still be able to put small extension boards within the case though.
RE: New Model Development Updates - kgilmore - 01-08-2025
(27-06-2025, 11:10 AM)MbeeTech Wrote: * Operating system for M68K mode. Some of you that are familiar with the Premium Plus will recall that I released uClinux as an OS for the Premium Plus to
operate from in 'Coldfire / M68K ' mode, so rather than booting into normal Microbee Z80 mode, you could use the more powerful Coldfire processor on that model.
Similarly, with these new models, you'll be able to boot into M68K mode and run code on the M68K processor. To start with, I've been working on implementing
CP/M-68K (ver 1.3) . While it is a non-multitasking OS, it is relatively simple to implement & has a lot of tools with it, including an assembler, C compiler, linker etc.
all bundled in.
Will this mean the new Bee will be similar to the old Gamma model with the 68k mode?
RE: New Model Development Updates - MbeeTech - 01-08-2025
(01-08-2025, 03:24 AM)kgilmore Wrote: Will this mean the new Bee will be similar to the old Gamma model with the 68k mode?
You could say that.
The full graphics resolution is less than the Gamma's (640 x 256 as opposed to the Gamma's 720 x 350) and they do not have a Memory Management Unit.
Aside from those 2 items, the new models have all the features of the Gamma and more.
RE: New Model Development Updates - kgilmore - 03-08-2025
(01-08-2025, 10:19 AM)MbeeTech Wrote:(01-08-2025, 03:24 AM)kgilmore Wrote: Will this mean the new Bee will be similar to the old Gamma model with the 68k mode?
You could say that.
The full graphics resolution is less than the Gamma's (640 x 256 as opposed to the Gamma's 720 x 350) and they do not have a Memory Management Unit.
Aside from those 2 items, the new models have all the features of the Gamma and more.
That’s great news. Just the Z80 side of the Bee will be more than enough; I suspect that some are thinking about porting GSX to the Microbee. As a one-time owner of an Atari ST, hearing the new Bee has 68K potential made me wonder about the potential for porting Emutos to it as a proof of concept.
Enough rambling; thanks again for undertaking this monumental project.