Summary The Sinclair QL Forum • New to forum - hello www.qlforum.co.uk
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Scott, the new QL owner, discovers a bargain setup with compatibility issues, leading the community to suggest that a converter may not be sufficient, prompting him to explore a QDOS emulator on the Amiga.
Slides
Slide Presentation (13 slides)
Key Points
- The Sinclair QL Forum is a forum for discussing the Sinclair QL computer
- The forum members are discussing a new member, Scott, who recently acquired a Sinclair QL with microdrives and external drives
- Scott is trying to get the external drives working with his QL, but is having some technical issues
- The forum members are providing advice and suggestions to help Scott get his QL setup working
- Scott has a collection of other vintage computers, including a Spectrum +3, CDTV, CDi, Amiga 1200, Commodore Plus4, and Atari 800XL
- Scott found an emulator called QDOS4amiga1 that may be useful for getting his QL drives working on an Amiga
Summaries
24 word summary
New QL owner Scott finds bargain setup with compatibility issues. Community suggests converter may not suffice. Scott plans to explore QDOS emulator on Amiga.
48 word summary
New forum member Scott shares his QL experiences, finding a bargain setup with compatibility issues. The community suggests a parallel-to-serial converter may not suffice. Scott plans to explore a QDOS emulator on Amiga to experiment with QL capabilities. The forum supports QL enthusiasts in sharing knowledge and assistance.
137 word summary
Scott, a new member, shares his recent experiences with the Sinclair QL and other retro computing systems. He attended events where he found a QL setup with microdrives and external drives for a bargain price. Scott has a diverse collection of vintage and modern systems. The QL's external drives seem to have compatibility issues, as the 3 1/2" drive uses a parallel interface, which is unusual for a QL. The community provides helpful insights, suggesting the parallel-to-serial converter may not be sufficient. They also mention the keyboard ribbon cable and power supply appear to have been upgraded, indicating the previous owner's care. Scott plans to explore a QDOS emulator for the Amiga as a way to experiment with the QL's capabilities. The forum provides a supportive environment for QL enthusiasts to share knowledge and assist each other.
373 word summary
Welcome to the Sinclair QL Forum! Scott, a new member, shares his recent experiences with the QL and other retro computing systems.
Scott recently attended the ZZAP LIVE! event in Kenilworth, where he had a great time. He also visited the Princethorpe radio rally, where he found a QL with microdrives and two external drives - a 3 1/4" and a 5 1/4". He managed to get this setup for a bargain price of £30, and it all seems to be working.
Scott has a diverse collection of vintage and modern systems, including a Spectrum +3, CDTV, CDi, Amiga 1200, Commodore Plus4, Atari 800XL, GameCube, Dreamcast, and modded Game Boy and Game Gear.
Regarding the QL setup, Scott is unsure about the functionality of the external drives. The 3 1/2" drive appears to have an MGT board inside and can spin disks, but he's unable to format or access the disks using standard QL commands like "format flp1_" and "dir flp1_".
The community members provide some helpful insights. They suggest that the 3 1/2" drive likely uses a parallel interface, which is unusual for a QL setup. Typically, QL disk drives would connect to the expansion slot on the left side of the QL, using a dedicated disk interface card. The parallel-to-serial converter that Scott is using may not be sufficient to fully utilize the drive.
Additionally, the Amiga's disk format is incompatible with the QL, so direct data transfer may not be possible. However, the Amiga can write to PC-formatted disks, which could potentially be used to transfer data to the QL.
One member mentions that the keyboard ribbon cable and power supply on Scott's QL appear to have been upgraded, which is a positive sign that the previous owner took good care of the system.
Scott also discovers a QDOS emulator for the Amiga, which he plans to explore as a fun way to experiment with the QL's capabilities.
Overall, Scott's new QL acquisition seems to be a promising find, and the community members are eager to help him troubleshoot and get the most out of his vintage computing setup. The forum provides a supportive environment for QL enthusiasts to share knowledge and assist each other in their retro computing adventures.