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Anybody Got A Portable?
- Thread starter Mac128
- Start date
I have a portable that I'm in the process of restoring. I'm working on putting in a new hard drive (I have no idea what happened to the original!) but for now I have it booting off a System 7.5 Disk Tools disk.
Once I have the thing up and running with the hard drive, what would I need to do?
Once I have the thing up and running with the hard drive, what would I need to do?
There's a piece of software you can get here:
http://minivmac.sourceforge.net/extras/copyroms.html
You just run it and produce the file in the same directory as the application. That's it. Thanks!
So I ran the CopyRoms software on my Portable... It started up, created a file called "unknown.ROM" and quit. Upon further investigation, I discovered, however, that the size of the unknown.ROM file was only 4 bytes, hardly enough for a system rom. I was expecting it to be 128K.
I've run it under System 7.1 and System 6.0.8 with the same results each time.
Any thoughts?
Brian
I've run it under System 7.1 and System 6.0.8 with the same results each time.
Any thoughts?
Brian
I also attempted to run the old vMac "CopyRom" rather than the mini vmac "CopyRoms" with similar results -- the application closes as soon as it opens, but yields no file on the disk.
odd. The ROM image should be 256K, whatever it is called.
Try GetRom: http://home.tampabay.rr.com/osemu/n800/software/GetRom.sit.hqx
People seem to be having success with that.
At this point I am looking only for the original non-backlit Portable ROM. Anyone with the original Portable giving this a shot would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Try GetRom: http://home.tampabay.rr.com/osemu/n800/software/GetRom.sit.hqx
People seem to be having success with that.
At this point I am looking only for the original non-backlit Portable ROM. Anyone with the original Portable giving this a shot would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Oh mine is the backlit portable. So you're not interested in that rom then?
I am curious, you mention Portable and/or PowerBook 100, then go on to exclude the backlit Portable. Why is the PB100 okay, but not the backlit Portable?
Sadly, my Portable is not only backlit, but currently dead. I do have a working PowerBook 100, if you decide you would like that ROM.
Sadly, my Portable is not only backlit, but currently dead. I do have a working PowerBook 100, if you decide you would like that ROM.
I actually don't know if it's upgraded or not. I don't see a model number anywhere on the device. There's a notice on the bottom indicating that it hasn't yet been approved by the FCC and is not available for sale. (This is different than the common models that say that it's a demo unit and not available for sale.)
Brian
Brian
Sorry, since I started this thread I have acquired both the 100 and backlit Portable ROMs. Now all that's missing is the original non-backlit Portable – and for good measure, the original Portable that has been upgraded (which should be the same ROM).
The idea is to compare all three: Portable 1, Portable BL, PowerBook 100. Apple says the PB 100 ROM is identical to the Portable's, indeed requiring a special CPU GLU logic chip ID register in the 100 to differentiate the two during software installs. However, the PB 100 is capable of SCSI disk mode which Apple says is built into the ROM. I find it unlikely that the original Portable ROM had that much forward thinking built-into it 1989 (especially since the Portable didn't offer it). Also, the original Portable could support a maximum 9MB RAM. The PowerBook 100 and Backlit Portable both share an 8MB limitation. The Backlit Portable was also introduced the same year as the 100, all of which suggests that they share a revised ROM and this is the identical ROM to which Apple refers. If true, then the BL Portable is likely capable of SCSI disk, depending on what else is involved. I expect to find the BL Portable & 100 identical and the original Portable to be different, namely no SCSI disk mode code (Apple also indicates something about video addressing refresh). I am curious about the upgraded Portable though. It required the backlit LCD to be plugged into a special card which occupied the ROM expansion slot. Presumably this provided the extra RAM decoding necessary for the backlight state monitoring, while allowing the original Portable to retain 9MB RAM maximum, or it simply patched the original ROM with the new 8MB ceiling reserving 1MB for the backlight state. Apple's Developer Notes indicate that this ROM card actually contains a revised ROM that replaces the original onboard ROM. I would be curious to see how GetRom would see this patched ROM. Further, since expansion to 9MB was only achievable through third party 8MB RAM cards utilizing the PDS slot, this ROM card may well limit a Portable upgraded with a backlight display to 2MB RAM only accommodated by Apple's 1MB max. RAM expansion slot (which was incompatible with RAM inserted via the PDS slot in any event), or the revised ROM may have allowed it use the 3MB version offered with backlit motherboard (though that was a completely different kind of incompatible RAM with a different connector, unless they made it for both types). It's all very odd really. For instance, I understand the PDS RAM cards were compatible with both models. But if you put the 8MB card in the backlit, did it just ignore the extra MB? And used with the original, upgraded to backlit, did it lose that top MB as well? I also found reference to the fact that the backlight upgrade was offered after the debut of the Portable and abruptly discontinued prior to the 100 intro. It was like a $1500 option. Clearly it was not a very profitable item for Apple which had more economically re-engineered the logicboard to accept the backlit display readily, leaving the RAM, ROM & PDS slots free for future expansion.
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Ah. Mine must be the actual backlit model then, because I have nothing in my ROM slot, and the screen and backlight share a single cable that plugs in directly to the mainboard.
Here's an interesting observation: The Portable was the last of the original Snow White design projects at Apple started by Frogdesign. Now, every Snow White product I have ever seen from the Apple //c through to the Mac II and external drives have those damn dust-collecting lines all the way around them, included the bottom of these devices which sit on a desktop never to see the light of day. EXCEPT the Portable! The only Snow White product which is intended to be set upright on it's rear like a briefcase and it has a completely flat bottom, with no detailing whatsoever. Go figure!
Here are the results. The backlit ROM has a different checksum than the PowerBook 100 as well as some startup code differences. Which is surprising since Apple says they are identical to the point where:
It is possible that your backlit contains a pre-release ROM prototype. In which case it might also be the ROM replacement on the ROM card for the backlit display upgrade and different from the 5126. That is the reason I want to see the ROM from that as well as the production backlit.
One other note of mention is that this backlit ROM is identical in the SCSI implementation with the 100, which means the Portable can do SCSI disk mode. I then found an Apple tech note confirming that a third party cable product made that possible:
https://developer.apple.com/technotes/hw/hw_540.html
Connecting two Macintosh systems via SCSI
Date Written: 12/12/90
Last reviewed: 7/26/91
However it is not clear whether it refers to all Portables or just the backlit models, but the dates seem to suggest only the backlit which shares a similar ROM to the 100.
Only analysis of the original 5120 Portable ROM will confirm this - HINT HINT
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You refer to 'your ROM' but I was never able to successfully extract my ROM for you.
To whose ROM do you refer?
Brian
To whose ROM do you refer?
Brian
Actually Copy roms will create a file with just the checksum of the rom if it doesnt recognize the model of the macintosh. Can you tell me what the checksum was? The code would have to be modified to recognize the rom and dump it. I would like to see the rom extracted and could probably do the mods to the dump program.
F-
I don't have a portable... I have a Powerbook 180 running System 7.1 though.
