Commodore AMIGA 1060 SIDECAR User manual

Personal Computer
AMIGA 1060
SIDECAR
USER MANUAL
Commodore

Table of Contents
1. Introduction.... ^..........^...... 3
1.1 Atiachmg Ihc Sidecar lo the Amiga ^..^..,^..... 3
2. Aclivating the PC from the Worlil>ench 6
3. Acliialing Ihu PC from aCLI 7
4. Emulaline the PC 8
4.1 Display modc^-. ..-.„.„. .,..-..-... 8
4.2 Kethoard 9
4.3 Patallcl Fort 10
5. The PC Display Windows 12
5-1 Boiders 12
5,2 Siie of the window --.,,.-,,--,,-,,---,-,.-,.-„-„-„, 12
5-3 Number ot Text colors ,.--.-,.-- .13
5.*l Changing colors -..-,,-,.--.--,-,,-,,-,,-,,-,,-14
5.5 Mulliple windows -......tS
5.6 Display priority-,,-,.-,.--.--.--.--.,-,,-,,-.,-..-..-..- 16
6. Pulldown ineniTJ of the PC-winJow ,,-,,-,,-,,-.--,--.,„,-., -17
Appendix A:DIP switches, -.,-,.-,,--,-,,-,. --.,-.,-., 20
Appendix B:Expansion slots for cards ,...-.,- 25
Appendix C:Connecting exlernal disk driyes ...27
Appendix D;Installing ahard disk .,-,.-..-,.-,,- 29
Appendix E:The S0B7 numeric cu-processnr -.--.--.-,.,-,,-.,33
Appcndi.x F:HAM expansion for Ihe PC 35
Appenjix G;RAM expaosion for the Amiga ....37

'• :.
PICTURE 1
^L. w
PICTURE 2
^r
'••-"••••'
^t5J^
1POWER SWITCH
2POWER CORD
3FLOPPY DISK COWNECTOR
4EXPANSION PORT
5MOUSE CONNECTOR
SJOYSTICK CONNECTOR

1. Introduction
Welcome lo the Commodore Sidecar, asystem that combines
hardware and software lo give complete TBM-PC compatibility
to your Amiga 1000 computer This brief Eutorial describes how
to set up and use the Sidecar. It presumes thai you have already
put together your Amiga and that you know how to operate it.
Please refer to the manual "Introduction to Amiga" for
information about setting up and operating your Amiga.
NOTE: The Sidecar can only be used on an Amiga expanded to
51? KB by means of installing the memory expansion cartridge
(A 1050) in the front of the main computer housing.
This document is not atutorial on using the IBM-PC, For
information on the correct usage of the PC, you will have to
study the documentation that comes with the IBM-PC operating
system and any application software you choose to use with
your Sidecar.
If you are wondering what IBM software will work with your
Sidecar, the answer is simple: all IBM-PC software will work
with the Sidecar.
1,1 Altachin^ the Sidecar to the Amiga
WARNING: Before you start, you must make sure that your
Amiga is powered off.
The Sidecar plugs into the side of the Amiga. It fits onto both
the Amiga expansion port and the connectors where the mouse
is attached. The expansion port and connectors are located on
the right side of the Amiga box (when facing the front of the
Amiga).

To attach ihe SidecaT, fir?t you have to clear the way: unplug
the mouse« and remove the cap that covers the Amiga expansion
port. There's alittle slot beneath the cap, where you put your
fingertip to pry the cap off. Apply gentle pressure and the cap
will come loose. Save this cap ia case you ever want to detach
the Sidecar from your Amiga, Next, place the Sidecar to the
right of the Amiga and line up the Sidecar's plug? wlih the
Amiga's connectors. The face of the Sidecar should be flush
with the face of the Amiga, When all the Sidecar plugs are
lined up with Amiga connectors, slide the Sidecar gently but
firmly into the Amiga sockets.
You do not have to run anew power cable to the Sidecar,
because the Sidecar has aconvenient power-cord e:^ tender.
Notice that acable comes out of the back of the Sidecar. This is
the power-cord extender. Find the cable that runs from the
power outlet to your Amiga, unplug this cable from the Amiga
and plug it into the Sidecar. Then plug the Sidecar's power-cord
extender into the Amiga, in ihe socket where the power cable
had been attached to the Amiga. Electricity flows into the
Sidecar, and then through the extender to the Amiga,
On the front of the Sidecar cabinet are the connectors for the
mouse and other controllers. Plug the mouse into the left
connector.
Now you can turn on the power for both the Sidecar and the
Amiga. The power switch for the Amiga is on the left side of
the Amiga, and the power switch for ihe Sidecar is on the back
of the Sidecar. Turn on the power switch for the Aniiga.
Because the Amiga gets its power through the Sidecar, the
Amiga won't power up until you turn on the po^ver to the
Sidecar. Now turn on the power switch for the Sidecar.

Then you go through the normal start-up procedure for your
Amiga* which includes using your own Kicksiart and
Workbench disks to initiate the Workbench display.
BEWARE: You must never turn on power to the Sidecar unless
Ihe Amiga is aiready powered up. Doing so can seriously
damage the Amiga hardware. Thi? is espedalfy important to
note if you do not use the Sidecar power-cord extender and you
choose insiead to have separate power cables for The Amiga and
the Sidecar. If you follow the normal procedure of plugging the
Sidecar power-cord extender into the Amiga, you can prevent
this problem entirely.

2, Opening the Sidecar display programs
When you pul the Sidecar disk inlo one of the disk drives, an
icon for the disk will appear on the Workbench screen. Double-
click on the Sidecar disk icon to open the disk's top drawer. Tn
(he top drawer you will see, among other things, two icons that
look like graphical representations of IBM Personal Computers,
These two icons allow you to open programs that emulate the
two IBM-FC display types: Monochrome and Color.
Notice that one icon is in two colors and has the words "PC
Mono" beneath it. This icon opens the IT3M-PC Monochrome
display cmulator.The other icon is in 4colors and is labelled
"PC Color. 11 opens the program that emulates the IBM-PC
Color display. To open either display, double-click on the
appropriate icon.
When you first unpackage your Sidecar, it is configured to
power up in Monochrome mode, so if you double-click on the
Monochrome icon you will see the diagnostic messages that
come up when the Sidecar is powering up. If you double-click
on the Color icon, you will see a blank window. The displays
will Slay like this until you put some software into the Sidecar
disk drive.
If you want to use the colour PC screen, no system messages
will appear. When the screen is opened the cursor will be in the
home position and you must type the following 'blind':
<RZTURK> <RETURH> MODE COSO <RETUEN>
Then the DOS prompt (A> )will appear and you are ready to
enter commands in the usual fashion.
At this point the Sidecar is ready to run EBM-PC software. You
should put aPC system disk of your choice into the Sidecar's
floppy disk drive. It might be aPC-DOS disk, an MS-DOS
disk, aCP/M disk, or any IBM- PC application.

3. Activating the PC mode from a CLI
On ihe Workbench disb that is supplied with the Sidecar there
are two programs that activate the PC mode. To use these from
the CLT, install Ihe Sidecar and turn on ihe sytem as described
above. Insert the KICKSTART disk in the drive and when the
Workbench prompt appears, insert the disk contaioing the
Sidecar software. When the disk Icon appears, double click on it
to open aworkbench.Next open aCLI window by opening the
system drawer and clicking on the CLI icon, if you wish to
operate the Sidecar as a monochrome PC type :
RUN 'PC MONO' <RETURN>
If you tvish to operate as acolour PC, type:
RUN 'PC COLOR' <RETURH>
You can then proceed as described above.

4. Emulating the PC
This section describes some of the IDM-PC characterisUcs and
how they are emulated by the Sidecar.
4,1 DhpUy Modes
The PC has two standard display modes: Monochrome and Color
Display, Both of these display modes are available on the
Sidecar by using the PC Mono and PC Color DispLay programs.
Running one of these programs is similar to turning on avideo
monitor attached to Ihe PC, except that the PC requires a
separate monitor for each mode while the Sidecar requires only
one monitor. The Amiga conveniently creates windows and
screens which allow multiple display types (such as the IBM-PC
display types) to appear on asingle monitor.
The IBM-PC Monochrome mode normally displays only one
color (green) on adark background. Programs can display an
intensified version of the one color* and can also reverse the
color with the background so that dark characters appear on a
color background.
The Sidecar Monochrome display emulates this mode without
these chromatic restriciions. In the Sidecar Monochrome mode,
the color of the i^xt^ the intensified text and the background
are independent of each other, and you are able to modify these
colors in arty way you choose by selecting the COLOR menu
option (see the MENUS section). Normally the text of the
Monochrome display appears inawindow on the Workbench
screen, although the Monochrome display window will move to
its own screen if you choose to use fewer colors than the
normal 4colors of the text display.
In the IBM-PC Color Display mode, both text and graphics can
be displayed. Text can be rendered in up to 16 colors, and
graphics can be up to 4colors. The various Color display modes
of the PC are generally incompatible with the display
8

characteiistics of the Amiga Workbench screen, so a new screen
is created for the Sidecar Color display. You can modify the
colors of the Sidecar CoIot display windows to any colors that
suit you by selecting the COLOR menu option (see the MENUS
section).
IBM-PC applications will require either the Monochrome or
Coior display modes. Some programs may support both. The
documentation provided with the appiication wili tell you what
display it will use. You should activate the appropriate Sidecar
display program to create the required display, in the same way
that you would turn on aPC video monitor to interact with the
application.
The only PC display characteristic that's not supported by this
release of the Sidecar is the blinking of teil. Extremely few
IBM-PC software packages use Ihe blink characteristic, because
it is widely regarded as distracting and hard on the eyes. It was
lefi out of the Sidecar display programs in order lo improve the
performance of text rendering.
4.2 Keyboard
You send input to your IBM-PC programs through the Amiga
keyboard. You simply activate any of the Sidecar display
windows by clicking on it, and then you type as normal.
For installing the national keyboard driver you have to load the
appropriate driver from your Sidecar System disk. There are
four keys on the PC keyboard that aren't on the Amiga
keyboard. However, by typing certain control sequences you are
able to send these key sequences to PC programs running on the
Sidecar. The following table lists the PC keys and the Sidecar
translations. Notice that the translations are mnemonic to help
you remember them.

PC KEY STDECAR EQUIVALTENT
Num lock Righ: AMIGA and N
Scroll Lock Right AMIGA and S, or
Right AMIGA and HELP Key
Ptr Sc *Kight AMIGA and P
+on Keypad Right AMIGA and +
You can view acopy of this list by selecting the convenient
INFO menu option. See the "MENU" section for details.
4.i Parallel Port
Some IBM-PC applications running on the Sidecar will be able
to print via aprinter attached to the Amiga parallel port.
On your Sidecar Workbench disk you will find an icon that
looks like aprinter sitting atop an IBM-PC. The icon is named
"LPTl" (which is the IBM-PC acronym for "Line Printer 1").
This icon represents the ability to assign the Amiga parallel port
to the Sidecar. The Sidecar can then use the Amiga parallel port
as an IBM printer port, which is Che most common use of the
IBM-PC's parallel port.
Before you can use the Amiga parallel port from the Sidecar,
you have to dedicate the parallel port exclusively to the Sidecar.
This is because only one application at atime can have access
to the Amiga parallel port, When any application is using the
Amiga parallel port, no other application is able to use it.
When you double-click on the LPTl icon, aprogram runs
which attempts to obtain the paiallel port for Sidecar usage. It
is successful only if the parallel port is not currently in use. If
the parallel port is in use by some other system software, you
will receive an error message and the Sidecar will not be able to
print via the Amiga parallel port.
10

If the LPTl program is able to get the parallel port for the
Sidecar, the LPTl program puts up asmall title bar on the
Workbench screen with the words
"Parallel Port allocated to Sidecar LPTl,"
Note that when the parallel port is in use by the Sidecar, it is
not avaifable to Amiga programs.
You release the parallel port from the exclusive use of the
Sidecar by hitting the close gadget of the title bar. After you do
this, the Sidecar will no longer be able to access the Amiga
parallel port.
Because of limitations in the Sidecar system, using the Amiga
parallel port as an IBM-PC printer port will work only for
certain applications on the Sidecar. There is no convenient way
to describe which print applications will work and which won't.
Vou will have to use trial and error to discover if agiven
application will work.
The reason for this is technical: LPTl on the Sidecar side works
only for applications that use interrupt handshaking,PrinC
routines that use busy-wait loops (like the routine that runs
when the user hits the "Prl Sc" key) will not work dependably.
11

5, The PC display windows
This section describes the characteristics and capabilities of the
Sidecar display windows-
5.1 Borders
The ^'border" of awindow is Ihe area around the perimeter of
the window. The border contains the "gadgets" you use to size
and position your window.
You can choose to have the window borders be visible or
hidden. When the window borders are visible, you can use the
window gadgets as usuaf. When ihe borders are hidden, you can
?ee all SO columns and 25 lines of the Amiga display. You can
always use the menus whether or not the borders are visible.
You can make Che borders of your display window appear and
disappear by double-clicking in the window. Alternatively you
can use the BORDER menu option to make the borders come
and go.
When you size the window to fill the entire screen, the window
borders vanish aulomaticalJy. Likewise, when you select the
FULL SIZE menu option, the borders vanish antomatically
after the window is enlarged to the full size of the screen. If
you select the SMALL SIZE menu option the borders reappear
automatically.
5.2 Size of the Window ^
You can enlarge the window to the full size of the screen
antomatically by selecting ihe FULL SIZE menu option. The
window will revert to its small size when you select the SMALL
SIZE option.
12

When the window is the full size of the display* and the borders
are hidden, the full SO-column by 25-iine dimensions of IBM-
PC text wiJl be displayed.
5-3 Number of Text Colors
Normally, PC Monochrome text can appear in up ;o 4colors.
PC Color teAt can appear in up to 16 colors. The Sidecar display
emulator will create all of these colors for you. However,
because of restrictions in the Amiga hardware, the more text
colors you use, the harder the Amiga must work and the longer
ic takes for your text to be displayed. Fortunately, you can use
fewer colors if you wish ro have better performance and are
willing to sacrifice some of the colors. Sidecar lets you choose.
Using all of the text colors both slows the text display and
slows the performance of other programs running on the Amiga.
However, if you use fewer texi colors, the Amiga will be able
to work much more efficiently.
There are menu options available to let you choose how many
colors of text you want to have displayed. These options let
you choose to have 2, 4, S, or 16 colors in Color display, and 2
or 4colors in the Monochrome display.
The performance improvement from 16-color to 8-coIor text is
significant.
Note that these options are for text only; they have no effect on
the color graphics display, which is always 2or 4 colors,
depending on the display type created by aparticular
application.
13

5.4 Chansing Colors
You can change any of Ihe colors of your display window by
sekciing ihe COLOR menu option.
When you select this option, a special color requester appears.
This requester has these features:
In the lower-right there are rectangles of color. Each of these
rectangles represents one of the colors of the display. By
selecting one of these rectangles you choose to work with a
parliicular color.
You select acolor rectangfe by moving the pointer over that
color and then clickina the left mouse button once. The color
that you have selected fills the box at the top left of the
requester. After you have selected a color, you can modify it by
using the sliders at the top right of the requester. Acolor slider
is awide box with asmall rectangle inside it. There are three
sliders, one for each of the three components of Amiga color:
red, green, and blue. The sliders are labelled with the initials
''R^ "G", and ^'B" to indicate which slider controls which color
component. Whenever you select a color, these sliders are
changed to reflect the amount of red, green and blue currently
in the color youVe chosen.
You adjust aslider by moving the pointer over the slider's
"knob" (the small rectangle inside the wide box), pressing down
the left button and holding the button down while moving the
mouse left or right. If you move the knob to the left, less of
that color component will be added to the color. If you move
the knob to the right, more of the component will be added to
the color. For instance, if you select the knob of the "R" slider
and slide the knob all the way to the left, there will be no red
in the current color. If you slide it all the way to the right, the
color will have as much red as it can. You can control the green
and blue color components in the same way.
14

If you want lo copy the color you're currently using, select the
COPY'gadget at the lower right of the requester and then select
the color rectangle where you warn the current color to be
copied.
The RANGE-gadget allows you to cteaie arange of smoothly-
shaded colors. The colors thai you create wiH range from a
starting to an ending color that you choose. The starting and
ending colors are known as the "end points,"
To make arange, you select the RANGE- gadget, and then pick
the two colors that you want for the endpoints of the range.
The colors between your endpoints will then be filfed in
automatically.
Note that if you pick starting and ending colors that are very
different, the range will not be as smooth as if you pick colors
Chat are similar.
rf you decide that you don't like the changes you've made, you
can select the CANCEL-gadget. This will close the color
requester and restore the original colors.
Kyou are satisfied with the current colors, select the OK-
gadget. The color requester wiil close and then you can use your
display window with the new colors.
5,5 Multiple Windows
You can open multiple windows in any display mode. This
allows you to mimic the display of multitasking applications.
When you have multiple windows of adispfay^ you can freeze
the contents of any window simply by selecting another window
15

of that display type. You open another window by selecting the
menu option OPEN ANOTHER WINDOW.
Here*s an example of this powerful feature: Suppose you want
to write aletter using information from your spread-sheet, Tf
you have opened two display windows, yoa can make certain
information visible in one window and ihen select the other
window* which freezes the display in the first window, [f you
then exit the spread-sheet and open the text edilor, you can
compose the letter while referring to the spreadsheet
information still visible in the other window.
Here's another example: Software developers can do their
compilations in one window* and freeze the error messages
(weM, nobody is perfect) in thai window by selecting asecond
window to re-edit the file* referring back to the first window
for the error information.
5.6 Display Prlorily
This section is somewhat technical and may be ignored if you
choose.
All of the Amiga programs run at acertain "priority." The
Sidecar display task runs at the normal priority* which is
priority of when started from ihe Workbench and -5 when
started from the CLT, When the PC display is changing alot,
the Sidecar display emulator will try to consume alot of the
system time and resources. If Ihe display program runs at a
lower priority than Other tasks in the Amiga, the display will be
rendered unevenly. If the priority of the display program is too
high, then the other tasks will be held up and will run poorly.
You can change the priority of the display program to suit your
needs. Trial and error will help you decide on the best setting.
16

6. Pulldown Menus of the PC-Windows
The individual menu opiions displayed In the Sidecar window
are described briefly. They apply lo both display modes and are
activated by the righl-hand mouse button. Slide the cursor
down to the desired functions and press the command (left)
button simulaneously or simply release the rieht-hand button to
make your selection.
PROJECT MENU
SAVE SETTINGS
After you have configured the display lo your liking (by
various color selections), this command sets up an initialization
file on the Sidecar system diskelle so that during the boot
process your selected display colors are always used.
RESTORE SETTINGS
This restores the colour display to original settings. The display
file is simultaneously deleted from the system disk.
INFO
This provides an additional window giving brief information
and help in English.
CLOSE
Selecting this option is the same as selecting the window-close
gadget in the upper left-hand corner of the screen, i.e. it closes
aSidecar window.
17

DISPLAY MENU
SIZE
rOLL SIZE
The current active window is sized to SO columns by 25 lines.
The borders, if visible, become hidden automatically,
SHALL SIZE
This option will restore the window lo iis last less-than-full size
dimensions and location.
BORDER
SHOW
HIDE
These menu options allow the display window border to be
shown or hidden. [The same effect can be achieved simply by
double-clicking on the left hand mouse button with the pointer
within the PC window.)
COLOR
With this option you can set the colour of any display screen.
These colours are saved when you use the SAVE SETTINGS
option.
SET CURSOR BLINK RATE
1/2
I
2
4
You can choose how many times per second the cursor will
blink.
le

REFRESH DISPLAY
In case anything disrupts ihe display. Ihis option allows you to
have Ihe entire window redrawn.
DEPTH OF TEXT DISPLAY
2COLORS
4COLORS
8COLORS
16 COLORS
This option lets you select Ihe maximum number of colours for
Ihe te\L The fewer the colours, Ihe farcer rhe display will be
rendered. Hole That in monochrome mode you will only be able
to select from 3-colour and 4-colour options,
SET DISPLAY TASK PRIORITY
+10
+5
-3
-10
This option allows you to select Ihe display priority. Please refer
to Section 5.6 for further details. In principle, there is no need
to alter this menu option.
INTERLACE
OK
OFF
With this you can turn ihe Amiga interlace mode on and off. If
you have ahigh persistence monitor, the display is improved
when you turn on the inierlace-
19