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From: jhs@MITRE-BEDFORD.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.micro.atari16
Subject: Re: Questions re. hard disks, clocks, and neil harris.
Message-ID: <8609241706.AA03213@mitre-bedford.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 25-Sep-86 03:39:31 EDT
Article-I.D.: mitre-be.8609241706.AA03213
Posted: Thu Sep 25 03:39:31 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 25-Sep-86 07:28:00 EDT
References: <1086@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU>
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Organization: The MITRE Corp., Bedford, MA
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Re: O/S Updates

It is not putting the O/S in ROM that frees up memory space.

It is putting the O/S up at the top of the address space that frees up
RAM space.

Why not use one of the CMOS battery backed up memory chips that is pin for pin
compatible with standard ROM (not sure if it's the RIGHT ROM tho) in an ST
and load it with the ROM version of TOS?  Or any other desired O/S?  If you
wanna be fancy it could go on a piggyback board, much like the RAMrod board
for the 8-bit Atari 800XL, and let you switch the RAM section to

	(1) act like RAM just below the normal ROM (or wherever you feel like
		putting it)
or

	(2) replace the standard O/S ROM.

Then you could load it under the control of standard software and then with
one magic write to a control address it would replace the standard ROM.
With this arrangement it wouldn't even need battery backup unless you wanted
to remove the standard ROM for some reason.

-John Sangster
jhs@mitre-bedford.arpa