Apple /// Serial card weirdness

6 posts / 0 new
Last post
Verault's picture
Offline
Last seen: 5 months 2 weeks ago
Joined: Dec 21 2017 - 14:19
Posts: 372
Apple /// Serial card weirdness
What can you guys tell me about these Apple /// 820-0071-D (670-0129) Serial Cards? I have 3 of them and they puzzle me, especially with that giant pushbutton. I cant find any documentation about them. Are they identical to the RS-232 port on the main board but a secondary device? Need info please!
Offline
Last seen: 7 hours 53 min ago
Joined: Jun 6 2020 - 10:50
Posts: 453
The link below talks about

The link below talks a little about the card.  At the bottom is mentions the button.  Apparently the button makes it act like a modem eliminator cable is being used?  I suspect that changes the pinout at the port to turn a regular cable into a null modem cable perhaps?  I'm not sure though.

 

https://www.apple3.org/Documents/Technotes/TA27977.html

 

 

 

MacFly's picture
Offline
Last seen: 1 day 4 hours ago
Joined: Nov 7 2019 - 13:49
Posts: 484
Neat
nick3092 wrote:

Apparently the button makes it act like a modem eliminator cable is being used?

 

Indeed the layout shows all signals from the RS232 connector are routed to the switch - so the switch is obviously there to switch the pin mapping of all signals. Neat. So you only needed one type of cable - and could use it to connect to a modem (a DCE device) - or to another computer (a DTE device). Instead of using separate crossed (Null-modem) cables or non-crossed cables, you simply switched the card... I've never seen an RS232 card with such a feature...

The electronic looks the same like the onboard Rs232 (same controller). So, I guess it's likely software compatible - except for a different (base) address.

Verault's picture
Offline
Last seen: 5 months 2 weeks ago
Joined: Dec 21 2017 - 14:19
Posts: 372
Do we have a list of the base

Do we have a list of the base addresses (board and card) I can reach out to the ADTPro forum and see if they can tweak the SOS adt client to add support for the card since apple /// support is limited.

MacFly's picture
Offline
Last seen: 1 day 4 hours ago
Joined: Nov 7 2019 - 13:49
Posts: 484
Device Driver Writer's Guide
Verault wrote:

Do we have a list of the base addresses (board and card) I can reach out to the ADTPro forum and see if they can tweak the SOS adt client to add support for the card since apple /// support is limited.

The serial interface is described in the Apple III Device Driver Writer's Guide. The controller of the onboard serial interface is mapped to C0F0 (C0F0-C0F3). I/O slot #1 uses base address C080, slot #2 C090, slot #3 C0A0 etc. I guess the controller of the serial card is simply mapped to the slot's I/O space.

If you know what you're doing, you could probably patch the ADTpro binary yourself, replacing the C0F0 address with C090 (for slot #2, as an example).

 

 

Verault's picture
Offline
Last seen: 5 months 2 weeks ago
Joined: Dec 21 2017 - 14:19
Posts: 372
I wish, I am more of a

I wish, I am more of a hardware guy. If anyone here knows how to do this I can do all the testing they require.

Log in or register to post comments