No work bench?

[bryce_boi]

hi, im kinda new to all this stuff just dug out my amiga and trying to get it all working again, so i bought a compact flash PC adapter so i could transfer, ADF files across to the amiga and onto amiga floppy disks, now didn't realize this when i bought it but ofcourse it makes sence to me now, you need a set of workbench disks to get this thing working, witch i dont seem to have anymore, i have an ADF of workbench and was wondering if there was a way of using my old laptop (witch has a floppy drive) to make an amiga disk using this ADF.

I know about the null-modem cable but i dont actually have a desktop computer only a laptop so thats not an option...

Please can anyone help, maybe theres some windows software that writes amiga disks from adf's or somthing.

[eLowar]

Sorry, I'm afraid with a laptop that's pretty much impossible. The only way I'm aware of to write Amiga floppies with a PC is using the Catweasel controller, which is a PCI (or ISA) card though, so you can't use it in a laptop.

Edit: Maybe you can find someone in the London area to do it for you.

[Marcuz]

all the solutions i can think of require already a working Workbench* on disk... the only rewriting software on PC that i know of, it doesn't exist yet and maybe ever: the SPS tool that would require also special hardware i think... i'm sorry... anybody else?
[edit] oh yes there's also the catweasel, as eLowar says, but it requires a PCI. if you could grab hold of an old PC there would be also the expense for that card though
* i.e. a mountlist, a workbench disk, not strictly an official worknebch, the transdisk program... if you have that and an Amiga with at least 2Mb (or 1? don't remember) you could try with the diskdrive of your laptop or an external one. Graham tryed ages ago, maybe it worked?

[bryce_boi]

so i guess it would be cheaper to get a set of workbench disks off ebay!... i believe i saw them for like £14...

[eLowar]

Cheaper (and easier) to just buy a set of Workbench disks from Vesalia (watch out, version 3.1 only, requires Kickstart 3.1, also for sale at Vesalia and other places, but may be more hassle). You might be able to find more (also other versions) on eBay or elsewhere.

[bryce_boi]

sorry i sound like a total noob, but i was like 6 when i actually used the amiga the first time around... but now im confused about the whole kickstart thing, am i write in thinking kickstart is the boot screen you get when you switch on the amiga, because i get a pink screen with a rainbow arrow on the left saying 3.00 ROM 39.106 and then the amiga copyright, and an animaged disk to the right... i dont get the white screen with the hand holding the disk that i remember seeing all those years ago...

[eLowar]

Well the Kickstart ROM is an IC on your Amiga's mainboard, it's basically like a PC's BIOS. It's responsible for preparing the boot process (and much more ). The screen you see is your Kickstart telling you that you have to insert a disk (as it has nothing to boot from).

I take it you have an unupgraded A1200 probably then?

Workbench 3.1 disks probably won't work with Kickstart 3.0 (somebody correct me if I'm wrong). You'll probably need Workbench 3.0 or older (preferably 3.0).

Further reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AmigaOS#Kickstart

[eLowar]

With an A1200 (or any other Amiga that comes with an internal HD) you may actually be able to install AmigaOS to the internal HD (by taking it out and attaching it to a PC; again, laptop probably no good, although a cheap USB interface may work (?)) using WinUAE. I don't have any experience with this, but I'm pretty sure it's possible.

[Marcuz]

I suggest not older than 3.0
workbench 1.3 has some uncompatible command, if i remember right and mounting list (if needed for transdisk) is a bitch. i don't know about 2.0: i had only amiga 500 and 1200, not the in-between...

[bryce_boi]

connecting a hard disk to my laptop wouldn't be a problem i have an external 2.5" caddy i can take appart and just pop it in that...

however i did just by an amiga hard disk on ebay and it does say it has 3.1 installed on it :S looks like i made a mistake there, so looks like maybe i should upgrade it to the 3.1 rom...

is this what i need...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Amiga-3-1-A120...QQcmdZViewItem

[eLowar]

Originally Posted by bryce_boi

is this what i need...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Amiga-3-1-A120...QQcmdZViewItem

Well, if (and this is important) you have an A1200 (I don't think you confirmed yet; and while it's likely that you do, it's important you have the ROMs for the right model), those would enable you to use Workbench 3.1 (and above), yes.

Also make sure you feel able to replace them, it's pretty easy to bend or even break off pins if you don't know what you're doing.

And maybe wait until somebody confirms what I say, as, while I'm pretty sure, I'm no expert on Amiga hardware and haven't properly worked with any for ages.

[Marcuz]

if you can use winuae and link the harddrive to the laptop, maybe it's not needed, because you could install workbench 3.0 on it.
for your question and for the in-depth installing on an amiga HD, it's better that someone with more knowledge there answers.

[bryce_boi]

sorry yes its A1200, so this rom is good right?...

i think i can replace roms no problem, i mean i can build a whole PC no problem, this retro stuff cant be all that differant right?

[eLowar]

Originally Posted by bryce_boi

sorry yes its A1200, so this rom is good right?...

Should be, assuming they work.

Originally Posted by bryce_boi

i think i can replace roms no problem, i mean i can build a whole PC no problem, this retro stuff cant be all that differant right?

Well in a PC you generally don't have to remove ICs with many pins from the board and replace them (except when you're changing the CPU and then only if it's not a land grid array or slot CPU). If you have the right tools and/or are careful it's no big deal, really. Just a friendly warning.

[bryce_boi]

kewl... thanks for all your help, i just ordered the replacement roms, ill post back with how i get on when i get all the stuff i have ordered from ebay, and assuming all goes well, if anyone wants a set of 3.0 roms let me know and ill see what i can do.

[fc.studio]

Originally Posted by eLowar

Workbench 3.1 disks probably won't work with Kickstart 3.0 (somebody correct me if I'm wrong). You'll probably need Workbench 3.0 or older (preferably 3.0).

Further reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AmigaOS#Kickstart

No: Workbench 3.1 works with Kickstart 3.0. I tested it for years on my A1200 and I had no problem.

Obviously Kickstart 3.1. is the optimal choice since:
- it patches little Kickstart 3.0 errors
- it allows upgrades to OS3.5 or OS3.9
- it has very little improvement. (e.g.: execute command is now font sensitive)

[Flashlab]

You don't need 3.0 roms to run WB3.1.

[eLowar]

Well, I'm not to be held responsible, I did say wait for expert opinions. Sorry though.

[bryce_boi]

thats ok now i have spairs.... lol

[bryce_boi]

ok so i got the hard drive and the 3.1 roms and installed them ok, work bench is running fine from the HD, but now when i write any software to a disk, IE games or even kickstart, i get a software error message, could this be a hardware problem....

Dont know if this means anything but the error message im getting when i try to run kickstart from a floppy disk is:

Software Failure
error: A27A 01EC Task: 203A01E2

[Bloodwych]

How big is the hard drive and each partition?

[bryce_boi]

its 2.1Gbs i dont know about the partitions i think it might just be the one partition. but i could be wrong as im not exacly confidence in workbench...

I was thinking it could be a problem with the floppy drive as i just got fantastic dizzy working randomly and its been giving me software errors all morning....

[Bloodwych]

Oh, you meant floppy disk. Sorry, I read your post wrong and thought you were having issues with the hard disk.

Yes, it sounds like a floppy drive issue.

[bryce_boi]

i dont remember the amiga being this unreliable, i can sometimes get games working but i remember not having a lot of trouble with it the first time around, is it possible it could be somthing more serious than the floppy drive or is this a major course of software failure...

[Bloodwych]

Amiga's are reliable but they are also getting on in age now. What you're describing isn't normal behaviour. Some thoughts:

What kind of disks are you using? PC HD disks or normal 880K DD ones? Disks have a limited lifespan and some PC HD can cause problems for some people, but they've always worked for me.

Does your A1200 have a RAM expansion? Have you tried a memory test utility? There should be one on Aminet I would have thought. Memory can sometimes cause random issues if it's gone bad, not compatible or the expansion isn't seated correctly.

People's floppy drives do die, but far more common on A1200's are the CIA chips (do a search on this forum).

[Bloodwych]

I should also add that the A1200 isn't compatible with a lot of A500 games!!! Many will fail when loaded from floppy. You have do downgrade it for better compatibility (search for "relokick").

The best way to play games on an A1200 is WHDload, but you will need more than 2MB memory for many titles:

http://guildserver.co.uk/kgwhd/

many useful links here:

http://wiki.abime.net/

This might come in useful as well since you have a Workbench ADF:

http://classicwb.abime.net/

[bryce_boi]

i've been to aminet for the test utilities, but i dont understand how to use these LHA files, i thought they were just like draws or somthing, i tried putting them on my CF card but workbench couldnt see them so i tried extracting them in windows but workbench still didn't like it... :S im confused...

[Marcuz]

they are compressed files, you need the LHA program to expand them, check on aminet

[bryce_boi]

yep, figured that out just after i left that message... winrar can extract them...

as for the files im left with they ether dont show on my amiga or they give me messages like no "installer" or somthing,

[Marcuz]

installer is another program in workbench 3.0 (or even 2.0?); sadly i don't remember where it was, i guess it should be somewhere in the complete package, in one of the 6 disks...
try Aminet:
http://aminet.net/search?query=installer