Excelerator Plus FSD-1 User manual

FSD- 1
FLOPPY DISK
USER'S MANUAL
v-i

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
1. Introduction 2
2. Specifications 3
3. Installation 5
Box Contents 5
Cable Connections 5
Turning On Power 5
Disk Insertion 5
4. Us ing Programs 6
Using Prepackaged Software 6
The Disk Directory 7
Pattern Matching and Wild Cards 8
5. Disk Commands 10
Reading the Error Channel 13
6. Sequential Files 14
7. Random Files 16
Using Random Files 20
8. Relative Files 25
Using Relative Files 26
9. Programming the Disk Controller 30
10. Changing the Device Number 33
Software Method 33
Hardware Method 34
Appendices
A. List of Commands 35
B. Description of Error Messages 36

1. Introduction
The FSD-1 Disk Drive is a versatile and efficient disk drive
built
for the Commodore series of personal computers. This drive
is fully compatible with the Commodore 64 computer and directly
replaces the Commodore 1541 Disk Drive, giving much better
performance in terms of data loading and writing speed and memory
buffer size.
If you are a beginner, the first few chapters will help you
install and operate the disk drive. As your skill and experience
improves, you will find more uses for your disk drive and the
more advanced chapters will be very helpful.
If you're an experienced professional, this manual can give
you the information you need to take advantage of all tne FSD-1 s
power and features.
Regardless of the level of your programming expertise, the
FSD-1 will greatly increase the efficiency and capability of your
computer system.
Please be aware that this manual is a reference guide to the
operation of the FSD-1 While it contains step by step
instructions and a section to let you easily use prepackaged
software, you should become familiar with BASIC and the computer
commands that help you operate your computer and its peripherals.
Remember, you don't need to learn everything in this manual
at once. The first three or four chapters will let you use the
disk drive for most applications, and the following chapters tell
you how to set up files, access any data, and program the disk
drive itself at the machine language level.
NOTES: In FORMAT examples, lower case words need to be
replaced by an appropriate word or number that you
choose.
In this manual, zeroes look like this: 0; and the letter
"oh" looks like this: o or 0.

2. SPECIFICATIONS
FSD-1 FLOPPY DISK DRIVE
*Slim line construction (low profile) and fully Commodore
compatible.
*Disk size: 5-1/4 inch diameter.
*Capacity
Per Disk 174.8 kbytes
Directory Entries 144/disk
Sector/Track 21
Bytes/Sector ... 256
Tracks 35
♦Average MTBF rate of 8000 hours.
*Power Requirements
Voltage 117 VAC, 220/240 VAC optional
Frequency 50/60 Hertz
Power Dissipation 24 Watts
♦Mechanical Dimensions
Height, width, depth 70 X Ib3 X 330 mm.
Weight 2.8 Kgs.
*A11 metal vented chassis.
*Solid state power supply.
*Dual serial port with chaining option.
*5-l/4 inch industry standard format.

r
FIG. 1 FSD-1 FLOPPY DISK DRIVE
POWER INDICATER
POWER SWITCH
AC INPUT
-SERIAL BUS
4-A

FIG. FSD-1 FLOPPY DISK DRIVE
POWER INDICATER
POWER SWITCH
Note: Above diagram is of alternate version of the FSD-1 with identical performance
to the model pictured in original diagram but slightly different appearance.
4-B

3. INSTALLATION
CONTENTS OF BOX
The FSD-1 Disk Drive consists of the disk drive, power cable,
serial bus cable, and this manual. The power cable has a
connection for the back of the disk drive on one end, and a
connection for a three-prong electrical outlet on the other end.
The serial bus cable has a six-pin DIN plug on both ends.
CABLE CONNECTIONS
First, plug the power cable into the back of the disk drive.
It won't go in if you try to put it in upside down. Next, plug
the other end into the electrical outlet. If the drive makes any
sound at this time, turn it off using the switch on the back! Do
not plug .any other cables into the drive with the power on.
Second, plug the serial bus cable into either one of the
serial bus sockets on the back of the drive. Turn off the
computer and plug the other end of the cable into the back of' the
computer. You're ready to go!
If you have a printer or another disk drive, attach its cable
to the remaining serial bus socket to "daisy chain" the devices.
If it's a disk drive, you will need to change one of the drives
device numbers.
TURNING ON THE POWER
When all the devices are hooked together, the power may be
turned on. It is important to turn them on in the correct order:
the computer is always last. Also: make sure there are no disks
in the disk drive when you turn on the power.
DISK INSERTION
To insert a disk, simply turn the lever to a horizontal
position, slide the disk in gently till it stops, and turn the
lever down. The disk goes in face up, with the large opening
going in first and the write-protect notch (a small square cutout
in the disk) on the left.
Never remove a disk when the drive light is on! And
remember, always remove the disk before the drive is turned on or
off! Data can be destroyed by the drive at this time!

4. USING PROGRAMS
USING PREPACKAGED PROGRAMS
If you want to use a program already written on a disk, such
as a video game, here's all you have to do.
Turn the lever up and insert the preprogrammed disk so the
label on the disk is facing up and closest to you. There should
be a little notch on the disk (maybe covered with tape) that
should be on the left. Turn the lever down. Now, type in LOAD
"program name" and hit the RETURN key. The disk will make noise
and your screen will say:
SEARCHING FOR PROGRAM NAME
LOADING
READY
When the screen says READY, just type in RUN and hit the
RETURN key- your program is ready to use!
LOAD COMMAND
PURPOSE: To transfer a program from the disk to the
computer's current memory.
FORMAT: LOAD"program ,ame", device #, command #
The program name is a character string, that is, either a
name in quotes or the contents of a given string variable. The
device number is preset on the disk drive's circuit board to be
8. If you have more than one drive, read the chapter on changing
the device number. This manual assumes you're using 8 as the
device number for the disk drive.
The command number is optional. If not given, or zero, the
program is loaded normally, into the start of your computer's
available memory for BASIC programs. If the number is 1, the
program will be loaded into exactly the same memory locations
from which it came. The command number 1 is used mainly for
machine language, character sets, and other memory dependant
functions.
EXAMPLES: LOAD "TEST",8
LOAD "Program #1",8
LOAD "Mach Lang",8,1
LOAD A$,J,K

CAUTION: Besides putting your program into the
computer's current memory, LOAD wipes out any previous
program there!
NOTE: As in the last example, you can use variables to
represent strings, device numbers, and command numbers;
just be sure they are all previously defined in your
program. Also, see the note on file names on page 9.
THE DISK DIRECTORY
Your disk drive is a random access device. This means the
read/write head of the drive can go to any spot on the disk and
access a single block of data, which hold up to 256 bytes of
information. There are 683 blocks on a disk.
Fortunately, you don't have to worry about individual blocks
of data (check chapter 5 if you do). There is a program in the
disk drive 'called the Disk Operating System, or DOS, that keeps
track of the blocks for you. It organizes them into a Block
Availibility Map, or BAM, and a directory. The BAM is simply a
checklist of the blocks, and is updated every time a program is
SAVEd or a data file OPENed.
The directory is a list of all programs and other files
stored on the disk. There are 144 entries available, consisting
of information like file name and type, a list of blocks used,
and the starting block. Like the BAM, the directory is updated
each time a program is SAVEd or a file OPENed. However, the BAM
isn't updated until the file is CLOSEd. If not CLOSEd properly,
all data in that file will be lost. More on this later.
The directory can be LOADed into your computer memory just
like a BASIC program. Put the disk in the drive and type:
LOAD"$",8
The computer will say:
SEARCHING FOR $
FOUND $
LOADING
READY
Now the directory is in current memory, and if you type LIST
it will be displayed on the screen. To examine the directory
from inside a BASIC program, see chapter 6 concerning the GET#
statement.

PATTERN MATCHING AND WILD CARDS
To make LOADing easier, pattern matching lets you specify
certain letters in the program name so the first program in the
disk that matches your pattern is the one loaded.
EXAMPLES: LOAD "*",8 (LOADs first file on disk)
LOAD HTE*",8 (LOADs first file that starts with
TE)
LOAD "TE??",8 (LOADs first file that has four
letters and begins with TE)
LOAD "T?NT",8 (LOADs first file that has four
letters but could be TINT, TENT, et cetera)
The asterisk (*) tells the computer not to worry about the
rest of the name while the question mark (?) acts as a wild card.
The above can also be used when LOADing the directory into
current memory. This allows checking for a list of specific
programs. The procedure is the same as above except for the
addition of a "$:" :
EXAMPLE: LOAD "$:T?ST*",8 (LOADs all file names in the
directory that have the correct first, third, and
fourth letters)
SAVE
PURPOSE: Transfer a program in current memory onto the disk
for later use.
FORMAT: SAVE"program name", device #, command #
As before, the command number is optional. If there is
already a program or file by the same name on the disk or there
isn't enough room on the disk, an error signal will be generated.
If there isn't enough room, other programs will have to be erased
or use a different disk.
EXAMPLE: SAVE"HOMEWORK",8
SAVE AND REPLACE
PURPOSE: Replace an already existing file with a revised
version.
FORMAT: SAVE " (§0 : program name", 8

If you edit an existing program and want to save, it under the
same name, SAVE AND REPLACE does so automatically. If you want
to keep the old version, save the new version under a different
name •
EXAMPLE: SAVE"@0:HOMEWORK",8
VERIFY
PURPOSE: Checks current program with one on the disk.
FORMAT: VERIFY"program name", device #, command #
VERIFY does a byte by byte comparison of the program in
current memory with one on the disk, as specified in the VERIFY
command•
EXAMPLE: VERIFY"OLD VERSION",8
NOTE ABOUT FILE NAMES: File names must begin with a
letter not a number. Spaces are permitted. While there
is no restriction on the length of a file name, all
commands must be 58 or fewer characters in length.
For example, in the above VERIFY command, there are 10
characters besides the actual program name, so the
maximum name length, in this case, is 48 characters.

5. DISK COMMANDS
So far, you have learned the simple ways of using the disk
drive. In order to communicate more fully with the diskf disk
commands need to be used. Two of these, OPEN and PRINT#, allow
the creation and filling of a data file on the disk. Just as
important is their ability to open a command channel, allowing
the exchange of information between computer and disk drive.
OPEN
PURPOSE: Creates a file by OPENing a communication channel
between computer and disk drive.
FORMAT: OPEN file #, device #, (command) channel #, text
string
The file number should be any number from 1 to 127. Numbers
from 128 to 255 can be used but should be avoided as they cause
the PRINT# statement to generate a linefeed after carriage
returns. The device number is usually 8.
The channel number can be any number from 2 to 15. These
refer to channels used to communicate with the disk, and channels
0 and 1 are used by the operating system for LOADing and SAVEing.
Channels 2 through 14 can be used to send data to files while
15 is reserved as the command channel.
The text string is a character string that is used as the
name for the file created. A file cannot be created unless the
file name is specified in the text string. If you attempt to
open a file already opened, the error signal "FILE OPEN ERROR"
will be generated.
10

EXAMPLES: OPEN 5,8,5, "TEST" (creates a file called TEST)
OPEN 15,8,15,"I" (sends command to disk on command
channel)
OPEN A,B,C,Z$ (these variables must be defined)
PRINT#
PURPOSE: Fills a previously OPENed file with data.
FORMAT: PRINT# file #, text string
The PRINT# command works exactly like the PRINT command,
except the data goes to a device other than the screen, in this
case the disk drive. When used with a data channel, PRINT# sends
information to a buffer in the disk drive which then LOADs it
onto the disk. When used with a command channel, PRINT# sends
commands to the disk drive. The command is placed inside quotes
as a text string.
EXAMPLES:
INITIALIZE
PURPOSE:
FORMAT:
PRINT# 7,C$ (fills file 7 with text string C$)
PRINT# 15,"I" (sends disk command on command
channel)
Initializes disk driver to power up condition.
OPEN 15,8,15, "I" or
OPEN 15,8,15 : PRINT#15, "I"
Sometimes, an error condition on the disk will prevent you
from performing an operation. INITIALIZE returns the disk drive
to its original state when power is turned on.
NEW
PURPOSE: Formats new disk or re-formats used one.
FORMAT: PRINT#15, "NEW 0: disk name, id#"
This command formats a new disk. It is also useful to erase
an already-formatted disk, as it erases the entire disk, puts
timing and block markers on, and creates the directory and the
BAM. The disk name is for user convenience while the id# is a 2
digit alphanumeric identifier that is placed in the directory and
every block on the disk. If you switch disks while writing data,
the drive will know by checking the id#.
EXAMPLES: OPEN 15,8,15, "NEW 0: TEST DISK, Al"
OPEN 15,8,15 : PRINT#15, "N 0: MY DISK, MY"
11

If the disk needs erasing but not reformatting, the same
command is used, but leave out the id#.
EXAMPLE:
SCRATCH
PURPOSE:
FORMAT:
OPEN 15,8,15, "N 0: NEW INFO"
Erase a file or files from the disk.
PRINT#15, "SCRATCH 0: filename"
This command erases one or more files from the disk, making
room for new or longer files. Groups of files can be erased at
one time by naming all of them in one scratch command.
EXAMPLES:
PRINT#15,"S 0: TEXT" (erases file called TEXT)
PRINTU5, "SCRATCHO: TEXT, 0:TEST, 0: MUSIC"
(erases files TEXT, TEST, and MUSIC)
COPY
PURPOSE:
FORMAT:
Duplicate an existing file.
PRINT#.15,"COPY 0:newfilename=0 oldfilename1
COPY allows you to make a copy of any program or file on the
disk. The new file's name must be different from the old one.
COPY can also combine up to four files into one new one.
EXAMPLES: PRINT#15,"C 0:BACKUP=0 : ORIGINAL"
PRINT#15,"COPY 0 :NEWFILE=0: OLD1,0: OLD2,0"
(combines OLD1 and OLD2 into NEWFILE)
RENAME
PURPOSE: Change the name of existing file.
FORMAT: PRINT#15,MRENAME0: newname=0: oldname"
This command lets you change the name of a file once it's in
the disk directory. RENAME will not work on any files that are
currently open.
EXAMPLE: PRINT#15,"R 0:GOODNAME=0: DUMBNAME"
VALIDATE
PURPOSE: Removes wasted spaces on disk.
FORMAT: OPEN 15,8,15,"V0:"
12

After a disk has had many files saved and erased, small gaps
in the data begin to accumulate and waste memory space on the
disk. VALIDATE reorganizes your disk so you can get the most
memory from the available space. Also, this command removes
files that were OPENed but never properly CLOSEd.
CAUTION! VALIDATE erases random files (see chapter 7).
If your disk contains random files, DO NOT use this
command!
READING THE ERROR CHANNEL
Without the DOS Support Program, there is no way to read the disk
error channel since you need to use the INPUT# command, unusable
outside a program. Here is a simple BASIC program to read the
error channel:
10 OPEN 15,8,15
20 INPUT#15, A$, B$, C$, D$
30 PRINT A$, B$, C$, D$
When you use an INPUT# from the command channel, you read up
to four variables that describe the error condition. The first,
third, and fourth are numbers so numberic variables can be used.
The inputs are organized as follows:
First: error number (0 means no error).
Second: error description.
Third: track number where error occurred.
Fourth: block (sector) in track where error occurred.
Errors on track 18 concern the BAM and directory.
CLOSE
PURPOSE: Proper allocation of data blocks, closes entry.
FORMAT:. CLOSE file#
This command is very important. Once a file that was opened
is no longer needed for data entry, IT MUST BE CLOSED OR ELSE ALL
DATA IN THAT FILE WILL BE LOST.
It is very important that the data files be CLOSEd before the
error channel (channel #15) is CLOSEd. Otherwise, the disk drive
will CLOSE them for you but BASIC will still think they are open
and let you try to write to them. The error channel should be
OPENed first and CLOSEd last of all your files.
NOTE: If your BASIC program leads to an error
condition, all files are CLOSEd in BASIC, but not on the
disk drive. This is VERY DANGEROUS! Immediately type:
CLOSE 15: OPEN 15,8,15: CLOSE 15
This will re-initialize your drive and make all your
files safe.
13

6. SEQUENTIAL FILES
Sequential files are stored and read sequentially from
beginning to end. There are basically three different types of
sequential files that can be used. The first is the program
file, which is abbreviated in the directory as PRG. The PRG is
the only sequential file that can store and read programs. The
second file, sequential (SEQ), and the third file, user (USR),
are for data handling. These two files must be opened just like
the command channel in the last chapter.
OPEN
PURPOSE: Open a sequential file.
FORMAT: OPEN file#, device#, channel#, "0: name, type,
direction"
The file number is the same as in previous uses of the OPEN
command, the device number is usually 8, the channel number is a
data channel, 2 through 14. It's a good idea to use the same
number for both file and channel numbers, for easy remembering
(you may have noticed this in previous examples).
The name is the file name, for which no wild cards or pattern
matching may be used if you're creating a write file. The type
can be any one from the list below, or at least the first letter
of one. The direction must be READ or WRITE, or at least their
first letters.
FILE TYPE MEANING
PRG Program file
SEQ Sequential file
USR User file
REL Relative (not implemented in BASIC 2.0)
EXAMPLES: OPEN 5,8,5, "0: DATA, S, R"
OPEN A,B,C,"0:TEXT, P,W"
OPEN A,B,C,"0:M +A$+ "U,W" (OPENs a write file
with a name specified by the string variable A$)
OPEN 2,8,2 "@0: PHONES, S, W" (replaces old
version of the file with a new one)
Once a file has been opened for reading or writing, three
commands can be used to actually transfer the data. These
commands are PRINT#, INPUT#, and GET#.
14

PRINT#
PURPOSE: Directs output to previously opened file.
FORMAT: PRINT# file#, data list (no space allowed between
PRINT and #)
The PRINT# statement works exactly like PRINT: formatting
capabilities for punctuation and data types work just the same.
But that means you need to be careful when putting data into
files. The file number is the one just OPENed and the data list
consists of variables and/or text inside quotation marks.
Care must be taken when writing in data so that it is as easy
as possible to read out later. Commas used to separate items
will cause spaces to be stored on the disk. Semi-colons will
keep spaces from being stored. If both commas and semi-colons
are absent, a carriage return (CR) will be stored at the end of
the data that is written in. Consider.the following example
program:
10 A$="THIS IS A"
20 B$="TEST"
30 OPEN 8,8,8, "0:TEST ,S,W"
40 PRINT#8,A$,B$"OF THE DISK"
50 CLOSE8
60 END
If you could see the data and its position on the disk, it
would look like this:
1 2 3 4 567 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
THISISA TESTOF
26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35
THE DISKCR eof (end of file)
The comma, semi-colon, and carriage return have special
meaning when stored to the disk. When used inside a string or
quotes, they will be stored as regular characters. When used as
a separator between fields, the comma inserts spaces (usually a
waste of memory), the semi-colon doesn't, and the CR stores a
carriage return on the disk. These are important when you use
GET# or INPUT# to retrieve the data you stored.
GET#
PURPOSE: To get data from the disk byte by byte.
FORMAT: GET# file # ,• variable list
Data comes in byte by byte, including CR's, commas, and other
separators. Generally, it's safer to use character string
variables to avoid error messages.
15

EXAMPLES: GET#8, A$
GET#5, A (only works for numerical data)
GET#A, B$, C$f D$ (GETs more than one variable at
a time)
The GET# statement is very useful when the actual data
content or structure is not known, such as a file on a disk that
has been damaged. If you are familiar with the file and there
are no problems, INPUT# is more efficient. But to look at data
in an unfamiliar or damaged file, the following example program
will read the contents out (in this case, from the file created
in the PRINT# example program).
10 OPEN 8,8,8, "TEST"
20 GET#8,A$:PRINT A$;
30 IF ST=0 THEN 20 (ST is a status signal)
40 CLOSE 8
50 END
INPUT#
PURPOSE: Retrieve disk data in groups.
FORMAT: INPUT# file #, variable
The file number is the same as the one OPENed and the
variable can represent character strings ox numbers. To read a
group of data, separators are needed to indicate the start and
finish of the group. These are the comma, semi-colon, and CR,
and work as explained in the section on the PRINT# command.
Numbers are stored with a space in front of them, which is empty
for positive numbers and contains a negative sign for negative
numbers. Here's a sample program:
10 OPEN 8,8,8, "<a0: DATAFILE,S , W"
20 FOR A=l TO 10
30
PRINT#8,A
40 NEXT A
50 CLOSE 8
60 OPEN 2,8,2,"DATAFILE"
70 INPUT#2,B : PRINT B
80 IF ST=0 THEN 70
90 CLOSE 2
100 END
This example program will write the numbers 1 through 10 to a
sequential file called DATAFILE. Lines 70 and 80 will read the
data from the disk and print it out. See page 20 for two useful
samp1e prog rams.
16

7. RANDOM FILES
Sequential files are fine when you're just working with a
continuous stream of data, but some jobs need more flexibility.
For example, if you have a large mailing list, it would be
inconvenient to scan the entire list to find one person's
address. A random access method would let you pick out the
desired data without having to read the whole file.
There are two file types that can do this: random files and
relative files. Random files are the best choice when speed is a
desired factor, as in machine language programs. This is
because locations of the data are maintained by the program when
random files are used, while relative file locations are
maintained by the DOS. The problem is random files are easy to
accidentally remove from the disk since the DOS doesn't maintain
them.
Random files are files that have been written to a certain
physical location on the disk. The disk is divided into 35
concentric rings, or tracks, with each track containing from 17
to 21 sectors.
TRACK NUMBER SECTOR RANGE TOTAL SECTORS
1 TO 17 0 TO 20 21
18 TO 24 0 TO 18 19
25 TO 30 0 TO 17 18
31 TO 35 0 TO 16 17
It is possible to read and write to any block on the disk, as
well as determine which blocks are available for use. The
following commands explain how to use the random file functions.
OPEN
PURPOSE: OPENs a data channel for random access.
FORMAT: OPEN file 4, device #, channel #, "#"
When working with random files, you need to have two channels
open
to the disk: the command channel (15) to send commands and
a data channel (2 to 14) for the data transfer. The data channel
for random access files is OPENed by selecting the pound sign,
"#", as the file name.
The additional "#" on the end of the command causes the disk
to allocate a 256 byte buffer for the purpose of handling the
desired block of data. If a buffer number is specified, the
allocated buffer will be the one you specified.
EXAMPLES: OPEN 5, 8, 5, "#" (you don't care which buffer)
OPEN A,B,C,It#2" (you specify buffer 2)
17