Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watnot!watmath!clyde!rutgers!daemon From: daemon@rutgers.UUCP Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: KickStart Eliminator Message-ID: <1072@rutgers.RUTGERS.EDU> Date: Mon, 2-Mar-87 13:48:43 EST Article-I.D.: rutgers.1072 Posted: Mon Mar 2 13:48:43 1987 Date-Received: Tue, 3-Mar-87 21:37:23 EST Sender: daemon@rutgers.RUTGERS.EDU Lines: 79 From: Thomka.OsbuSouth@Xerox.COM At the Commodore Show in San Francisco I purchased the "KickStart Eliminator" from Creative Microsystems. It is a grand idea. But there may be problems for you, as there are for me. First the idea of the "KickStart Eliminator" is to: 1. To put the 256K bytes of Kickstart 1.2 in ROM, and in your Amiga, thus you will have the "put workbench disk" icon on the screen in about 3 or 4 seconds. Instead of the 30-33 seconds it takes using the usual boot KickStart process. 2. To allow your Amiga to be a "turn-key" machine. That's where by just having the proper "Startup-Sequence" you can have your desktop arranged for you (or CLI window(s), or whatever) soon after turning power on. All with no additional operator entry. That means if you have your Amiga is being used by less knowledgable people, who don't know how to adjust things the way that is best for them, you can set up a startup file that will do it for them. 3. (and this is the one that I liked best) Since the WCS (Write Control Store) RAM is no longer needed, it is re-addressed to a usable place to you. For your own FastRAM use. So now your get a "free" 256K of FastRAM in your Amiga. The typical 512K Amiga now becomes a 768K Amiga. 4. The new KickStart v1.2 ROMs are identical to what has been released by Commodore/Amiga (it is licensed). They are to be installed on sockets so that you can later (if needed) replug in the old Boot ROMs to get back the way it used to be. Special note here: CMI will give you a HACKER wiring modification where you can install a 4PDT switch and you'll be able to easily go back and forth between the two booting processes at power turn on. 5. Since the ROMs are to be installed in sockets (two are presently in your Amiga, used by the Boot ROMs, and two new sockets are in the kit) you can later easily send in your "old" v1.2 ROMs when any newer KickStart is released (v1.3?? v2.0??). BUT the problems I've found in the kit I bought: 1. Two of the four (27512) ROMs were marked identically. I do know that they are not identical, because I read them at work and that are vastly different. 2. prob 1, by itself is not catastrophic because I could just install the ROMs one way in the provided sockets and if that doesn't work just try the other way. BUT THERE IS ANOTHER PROBLEM. Seems that two of the KickStart ROMs must be installed under the disk drive. The drive I have is a NEC drive. Seems that NEC did not follow the exact physical specification, and there is not sufficient clearance under the drive for both the ROM and socket. I can solder the 2 offending ROMs to the motherboard. BUT because of prob #1, I don't know which should be where! 3. A couple of the flow-through feed holes that you have to clear for the instalation of the new parts are connected to the ground plane, of course. And CMI does state in their manual that you might have a more difficult time in clearing those holes, because of the heat sink the ground plane acts as. Well, they weren't kidding!! I had my wife remove the old PAL chip (one that you replace with a socket and new PAL). My wife is a professional NASA qualified electronic rework/assembly person. She had a bear of a time getting those holes clear. Oh, it can be done. But if you are not experienced in this type of work you could easily hurt the sensitive etches on the board. Remember, too much heat and those traces will lift from the board surface; but too little heat and you'll never get that solder to soften. (By the way, yes, we were able to do a good job, and everything did clear properly, after some careful work.) So, because of problems #1 and #2 I could not finish the job. So after getting the new PAL in, I set the new board jumper to use the old Boot ROMs and buttoned the Amiga back up. It still works as before. So for now my $115 (show special,vs the $130 retail) is tied up into 4 ROMs that are sitting on my shelf at home. Sigh. Chuck