Cammy's tight little A600 hardware

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 00:41

Hey everyone, I just thought it was about time I posted some photos of my tightly packed Amiga 600, complete with A603, Real-Time Clock, Subway USB card, USB numeric keypad, USB mouse and USB control pad, 2MB ChipRAM, IDE-CF Adapter with Compact Flash HDD, Kickstart ROM Switcher with 1.3 (patched for IDE) and 3.1, and a PCMCIA Ethernet card. I have it dual-booting into either Workbench 3.1 or Workbench 1.3, both of which work fine with all the USB peripherals, I can surf the net, chat on IRC, MSN, play MUDs, download/transfer files, read email and news, play games, write, paint, draw, listen to music and use the calculator with my right hand.

All this yummy USB stuff wouldn't be possible without the excellent 68k USB stack Anaiis.

Hopefully some day I'd like to stick a lovely A608 in there, and maybe an Indivision ECS if it'll fit (ooh I want low-res 256 colour chunky mode in my A600). All in good time, of course.

asm1 · 11 October 2009, 00:48

Nice A600

...
also nice Risc PC you've got as a monitor stand

Leffmann · 11 October 2009, 01:06

Pretty cool. But you gotta work on those Workbench colors a bit xD

Reynolds · 11 October 2009, 01:09

Ql Stuff. the only thing I'd do different is to lead out the USB on the opposite end, at the top of the joyports. Just because of the joypad, and because then you 'd keep more space (probably, but not surely at the left side.
Respect.

Reynolds · 11 October 2009, 01:10

Leffmann: Why? pink fits well for a girl :P

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 01:25

I worked very hard on that Workbench theme, it works very well for 4 colours. I have a whole bunch of preset palettes I can switch between if a boy wants to use it anyway.

I never liked having cords hanging out on the same side as the mouse, which was the reason I put the USB port on the other side, so I could finally use my A600 without the mouse and control pad plugs hanging out 10cm over the mouse pad.

Notice that the Acorn RiscPC I'm using for a monitor stand is ALSO a 600

Peter · 11 October 2009, 01:29

Excellent stuff Cammy - I have got to investigate the 68k USB stack Anaiis as this obviously allows USB without the need for an 030 like Poseidon.

I guess this setup would really benefit from an A608 - my A600 has been waiting for one for ages (hint, hint)

Can you post some more details about the Rom switcher - how is it patched?

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 01:33

Sure thing!

I'm using the KickStart ROM Switcher v2.0 from http://www.amigamaniac.com . It allows you to switch between the two ROMs by holding down the reset keys for an extra second or so.
He also makes a v1.0 ROM Switcher which uses a toggle switch instead of the key-reset method to choose a Kickstart.

The patched 1.3 EPROM is also available from AmigaManiac, or you can burn one yourself if you have the equipment. It basically is the same as an A500 Kickstart (for PERFECT A500 floppy game compatibility) but it's patched with a scsi.device that recognises the A600's internal IDE port and can boot from it.

asm1 · 11 October 2009, 01:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cammy

Notice that the Acorn RiscPC I'm using for a monitor stand is ALSO a 600

Yes the thought did cross my mind lol

2x 600's Very nice

Peter · 11 October 2009, 01:42

Thanks for the info... it would be nice to get my A600 to dual boot - what set up and software did you use to configure your dual boot process...

Looks like Amigamaniac has sold out of his Rom Switchers for the minute - I might drop him an email tomorrow to see if he is likely to be making anymore...

I didn't know that you could boot an A600 into 1.3 ??

fryguy · 11 October 2009, 02:10

Cool A600 indeed!
And í've never seen one of those RiscPC's before...

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 04:40

The dual boot process is easy, I have Workbench 3.1 installed on HD0 and Workbench 1.3 installed on DH0. Under 3.1, I can hold down the mouse buttons when rebooting and select different boot options.

An Acorn RiscPC was an ARM-powered desktop computer running RiscOS. They're great computers, and we could see them return soon in the form of the new Efika, which has dropped PPC in favour of ARM, which means MorphOS has to find a new home.

lolafg · 11 October 2009, 08:30

Hello Cammy ,

very nice A600 here !!

I'm an A600 user too , mine got the 3.1 rom ,CF ide 1go + classic workbench for 3.1 rom ,2mb chip + 4mb fast ram (pcmcia), whdload registered , ps2 pad adaptor...and in some time i hope the A 608 from Zetro.

BUT i'd like more info about your usb hardware and software , cause i thought that a 68020 or + was the way to have usb on a 600...

So if an A 603 + subway do the job , i think i'll do it on my 600...

Thanks in advance for your infos and really nice A600 here

ps: are the keyboard and all usb stuff detected on booting the A600 ?

kriz · 11 October 2009, 08:57

yeah! Cool pictures, more of workbench would also be welcome

coze · 11 October 2009, 09:03

great A600 setup cammy

I have one in the works too, I slashed her face little bit, but once I fix her face I'll put up some piccies here as well

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cammy

I can surf the net, chat on IRC, MSN, play MUDs, download/transfer files, read email and news,

with a 68000 + 2 mb chip ram ?

is it really possible ? lowest config I tried to surf was a A1200 with 4 mb fast ram, and it was already a pain...

play MUDs ? you mean MUD somekind of RPG or was it a typo, playing amiga mods ? (music)

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 09:07

Ooooh, I'm so jealous of your 4MB SRAM card! I'd also love some Playstation pad adapters, but hopefully we can get a whole batch of them done up soon so everyone can get in on the action.

The Subway can easily be added to any Amiga with a clockport, but the software that comes with it, Poseidon, requires a much more expanded Amiga to run. Poseidon is an extremely flexible and powerful USB system, far more advanced than what is available in Amiga OS4.1 even.

When using the Subway or Highway cards with low-end Amigas, you need to use the much quicker Anaiis USB stack. Anaiis runs on any Amiga, even 1.1 256kb A1000s. It allows you to use USB mice, keyboards, joysticks and control pads, hubs, and printers. Maybe in the future we'll get flash media support and rocket launcher control, who knows!

Anaiis is available here - http://aminet.net/package/driver/other/anaiis

I'll be writing up some reviews and articles on pimping up old Amigas, as well as making a few more videos. Hopefully the articles will be published in AmigaGuide magazine (in English and Norwegian) and the videos broadcast on AmitopiaTV, both of which are free to download.

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 09:11

As long as you stick to using only two or three internet applications at a time, surfing the net on the A600 is no problem.

I have Grapevine set up for IRC and MSN (through Bitlbee), and AmiMUD for Multi-User Dungeons/Domains. MUDs are like a cross between IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and a Text Adventure, with RPG elements. I was very surprised to find so many MUDs in use around the world. If you can't get into the gameplay right away, there are always other users online to chat with who can help you.

The A600 can play MODs as well as MUDs

I use QuadraPlayer for playing MODs on it, which you can see an old (pre-A603) demo of it runing back when it had 1MB RAM here - [ Show youtube player ]

coze · 11 October 2009, 09:24

cammy just curious, which browser are you using ?
and, does anaiis support USB - ethernet cards ? (poseidon does)
I have a 4mb SRAM too, and would like to free PCMCIA until the A608 arrives ... (though that would mean I have to buy a(nother) subway for the A600

)

Cammy · 11 October 2009, 10:11

Unfortunately I haven't installed and configured a browser yet. If anything will work at all, it would be ALynx or AMozaic. I'm going to try those soon

Unfortunately Anaiis doesn't support Ethernet cards yet. But now that Poseidon is open-source, who knows. I think it's possible for other people to make plug-ins or modules to use with Anaiis, maybe someone will code an Ethernet driver. I'm hoping we get a port of RocketTool so I can fire foam rockets around the office and at the cat.

lolafg · 11 October 2009, 10:22

Thanks for your explanations Cammy ,

just one more thing , i read in aminet that we must keep the original keyboard and mouse to play games , is that true too when playing games with whdload ?

Thanks !!

11 October 2009, 00:41	#1
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	Cammy's tight little A600 hardware Hey everyone, I just thought it was about time I posted some photos of my tightly packed Amiga 600, complete with A603, Real-Time Clock, Subway USB card, USB numeric keypad, USB mouse and USB control pad, 2MB ChipRAM, IDE-CF Adapter with Compact Flash HDD, Kickstart ROM Switcher with 1.3 (patched for IDE) and 3.1, and a PCMCIA Ethernet card. I have it dual-booting into either Workbench 3.1 or Workbench 1.3, both of which work fine with all the USB peripherals, I can surf the net, chat on IRC, MSN, play MUDs, download/transfer files, read email and news, play games, write, paint, draw, listen to music and use the calculator with my right hand. All this yummy USB stuff wouldn't be possible without the excellent 68k USB stack Anaiis. Hopefully some day I'd like to stick a lovely A608 in there, and maybe an Indivision ECS if it'll fit (ooh I want low-res 256 colour chunky mode in my A600). All in good time, of course. Last edited by Cammy; 25 February 2010 at 20:14.

11 October 2009, 08:30	#13
lolafg Registered User Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Tours/France Age: 52 Posts: 1,233	Hello Cammy , very nice A600 here !! I'm an A600 user too , mine got the 3.1 rom ,CF ide 1go + classic workbench for 3.1 rom ,2mb chip + 4mb fast ram (pcmcia), whdload registered , ps2 pad adaptor...and in some time i hope the A 608 from Zetro. BUT i'd like more info about your usb hardware and software , cause i thought that a 68020 or + was the way to have usb on a 600... So if an A 603 + subway do the job , i think i'll do it on my 600... Thanks in advance for your infos and really nice A600 here ps: are the keyboard and all usb stuff detected on booting the A600 ? Last edited by lolafg; 11 October 2009 at 08:56. Reason: info sup

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11 October 2009, 00:48	#2
asm1 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Glasgow, Scotland Age: 44 Posts: 637	Nice A600 ... also nice Risc PC you've got as a monitor stand

11 October 2009, 01:06	#3
Leffmann Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 2,269	Pretty cool. But you gotta work on those Workbench colors a bit xD

11 October 2009, 01:09	#4
Reynolds Alien Breeder Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Szigetszentmiklos / Hungary Age: 46 Posts: 1,096	Ql Stuff. the only thing I'd do different is to lead out the USB on the opposite end, at the top of the joyports. Just because of the joypad, and because then you 'd keep more space (probably, but not surely at the left side. Respect.

11 October 2009, 01:10	#5
Reynolds Alien Breeder Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Szigetszentmiklos / Hungary Age: 46 Posts: 1,096	Leffmann: Why? pink fits well for a girl :P

11 October 2009, 01:25	#6
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	I worked very hard on that Workbench theme, it works very well for 4 colours. I have a whole bunch of preset palettes I can switch between if a boy wants to use it anyway. I never liked having cords hanging out on the same side as the mouse, which was the reason I put the USB port on the other side, so I could finally use my A600 without the mouse and control pad plugs hanging out 10cm over the mouse pad. Notice that the Acorn RiscPC I'm using for a monitor stand is ALSO a 600

11 October 2009, 01:29	#7
Peter Still an Amiga user Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Kent Age: 55 Posts: 2,715	Excellent stuff Cammy - I have got to investigate the 68k USB stack Anaiis as this obviously allows USB without the need for an 030 like Poseidon. I guess this setup would really benefit from an A608 - my A600 has been waiting for one for ages (hint, hint) Can you post some more details about the Rom switcher - how is it patched?

11 October 2009, 01:33	#8
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	Sure thing! I'm using the KickStart ROM Switcher v2.0 from http://www.amigamaniac.com . It allows you to switch between the two ROMs by holding down the reset keys for an extra second or so. He also makes a v1.0 ROM Switcher which uses a toggle switch instead of the key-reset method to choose a Kickstart. The patched 1.3 EPROM is also available from AmigaManiac, or you can burn one yourself if you have the equipment. It basically is the same as an A500 Kickstart (for PERFECT A500 floppy game compatibility) but it's patched with a scsi.device that recognises the A600's internal IDE port and can boot from it.

11 October 2009, 01:42	#10
Peter Still an Amiga user Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Kent Age: 55 Posts: 2,715	Thanks for the info... it would be nice to get my A600 to dual boot - what set up and software did you use to configure your dual boot process... Looks like Amigamaniac has sold out of his Rom Switchers for the minute - I might drop him an email tomorrow to see if he is likely to be making anymore... I didn't know that you could boot an A600 into 1.3 ??

11 October 2009, 02:10	#11
fryguy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Skarabörg, Sweden Age: 44 Posts: 1,019	Cool A600 indeed! And í've never seen one of those RiscPC's before...

11 October 2009, 04:40	#12
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	The dual boot process is easy, I have Workbench 3.1 installed on HD0 and Workbench 1.3 installed on DH0. Under 3.1, I can hold down the mouse buttons when rebooting and select different boot options. An Acorn RiscPC was an ARM-powered desktop computer running RiscOS. They're great computers, and we could see them return soon in the form of the new Efika, which has dropped PPC in favour of ARM, which means MorphOS has to find a new home.

11 October 2009, 08:57	#14
kriz Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: No(R)Way Age: 41 Posts: 3,190	yeah! Cool pictures, more of workbench would also be welcome

11 October 2009, 09:07	#16
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	Ooooh, I'm so jealous of your 4MB SRAM card! I'd also love some Playstation pad adapters, but hopefully we can get a whole batch of them done up soon so everyone can get in on the action. The Subway can easily be added to any Amiga with a clockport, but the software that comes with it, Poseidon, requires a much more expanded Amiga to run. Poseidon is an extremely flexible and powerful USB system, far more advanced than what is available in Amiga OS4.1 even. When using the Subway or Highway cards with low-end Amigas, you need to use the much quicker Anaiis USB stack. Anaiis runs on any Amiga, even 1.1 256kb A1000s. It allows you to use USB mice, keyboards, joysticks and control pads, hubs, and printers. Maybe in the future we'll get flash media support and rocket launcher control, who knows! Anaiis is available here - http://aminet.net/package/driver/other/anaiis I'll be writing up some reviews and articles on pimping up old Amigas, as well as making a few more videos. Hopefully the articles will be published in AmigaGuide magazine (in English and Norwegian) and the videos broadcast on AmitopiaTV, both of which are free to download.

11 October 2009, 09:11	#17
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	As long as you stick to using only two or three internet applications at a time, surfing the net on the A600 is no problem. I have Grapevine set up for IRC and MSN (through Bitlbee), and AmiMUD for Multi-User Dungeons/Domains. MUDs are like a cross between IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and a Text Adventure, with RPG elements. I was very surprised to find so many MUDs in use around the world. If you can't get into the gameplay right away, there are always other users online to chat with who can help you. The A600 can play MODs as well as MUDs I use QuadraPlayer for playing MODs on it, which you can see an old (pre-A603) demo of it runing back when it had 1MB RAM here - [ Show youtube player ]

11 October 2009, 09:24	#18
coze hastala vista winny vista Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: mt fuji Age: 46 Posts: 1,335	cammy just curious, which browser are you using ? and, does anaiis support USB - ethernet cards ? (poseidon does) I have a 4mb SRAM too, and would like to free PCMCIA until the A608 arrives ... (though that would mean I have to buy a(nother) subway for the A600 )

11 October 2009, 10:11	#19
Cammy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Tasmania, Australia Age: 39 Posts: 1,189	Unfortunately I haven't installed and configured a browser yet. If anything will work at all, it would be ALynx or AMozaic. I'm going to try those soon Unfortunately Anaiis doesn't support Ethernet cards yet. But now that Poseidon is open-source, who knows. I think it's possible for other people to make plug-ins or modules to use with Anaiis, maybe someone will code an Ethernet driver. I'm hoping we get a port of RocketTool so I can fire foam rockets around the office and at the cat.

11 October 2009, 10:22	#20
lolafg Registered User Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Tours/France Age: 52 Posts: 1,233	Thanks for your explanations Cammy , just one more thing , i read in aminet that we must keep the original keyboard and mouse to play games , is that true too when playing games with whdload ? Thanks !!

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