Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!ucla-cs!zen!ucbvax!COGSCI.BERKELEY.EDU!bryce From: bryce@COGSCI.BERKELEY.EDU.UUCP Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Battery-Backed Clock Goes Back Message-ID: <8708300822.AA20905@cogsci.berkeley.edu> Date: Sun, 30-Aug-87 04:22:07 EDT Article-I.D.: cogsci.8708300822.AA20905 Posted: Sun Aug 30 04:22:07 1987 Date-Received: Sun, 30-Aug-87 19:43:28 EDT References: <3854@well.UUCP> Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Organization: Institute for the Criminally Congested, UC Berkeley Lines: 103 Keywords: Spirit Tech, clock, battery, fertilizer, Auto-Config, adjustments [ We interrupt this article to bring you a special broadcast: A while back I was typing in an acticle and wrote a sentence that I felt was awkward. The problem was "he did..." I made a flipant little remark that a neuter personal pronoun should be developed and popularized so that "he" will no longer need to take the ambiguous sexist double meaning of both "he" and "she". I'm very sory I started a flame war in the wrong place. Please stop commenting on this to this group. If you want I'll collect everybody's favorite and make a final posting. I've already had about 5 sets sent to me. They range from "yah" to "see" to "gree" etc., etc.] In article <> ewhac@well.UUCP (Leo 'Bols Ewhac' Schwab) typed: > > Well, I finally gave up on the Spirit Technologies battery-backed clock I > got. I was willing to hold on to it only if it kept good time. It didn't. > It gained about ten seconds a week. In my book, that's awful. So, back it > goes. There is a solution... that clock is _software_ adjustable. Simply pull out your handy-dandy Thomson Components-Mostek MK48T02/12B-20 data sheet and read page 5. What?? You don't have one?? Well then, I'd better commit a violation of federal law and type in the relavant information for you! Here goes: The calibration register occupies [bits zero to four] in the control register {$DC0FF1 on the Spirit board}, bit five of the same byte is a sign bit, "1" indicates positive calibration {ie. faster}, "0" indicates negative calibration {ie. slower}. {Set bits six and seven to 0, or you'll screw up the clock.} $DC0FF1 - 0 0 S X X X X X That information really should have been in the user manual. :-( The main reason that this clock chip uses software calibration is that it emulates a 2K*8 bit static ram; there are no extra pins for crystals or trim pots or such. In fact, with your Spirit board you have 2040 bytes of completely useless non-volitile battery backed static ram. ---> Can *you* think of a use for 2040 bytes of battery backed ram on an Amiga? Remember the restriction that you have to load code, probably from disk, in order to read it! <--- The Spirit software has no support for setting the calibration so you'll need to yank out wack or some other memory editor. > In the meantime, my little Amy has her RF shield back, and is > happy as a clam. Having to modify/bend/mangle/remove the RF shield is reason enough to return that clock. Please tell them so. > It should auto-config. I want to be able to reset the machine, and during > the reboot process, have the system time be set. I would prefer that I > didn't have to clutter my Startup-Sequence with Yet Another Command. I agree 100%. Doing it on the other hand is another problem. It might make sense for clock reading software to be in the ROMs of the two machines with a standard hardware clock (The A500 and A2000). [Side note: Certainly the $C00000 RAM test should be able to tell the differnce between the clock and bad ram, and stop $C00000 sizing at that point.] In a more general case, you can't set the clock until the system is up, and Auto-Config happens kind of early in the boot sequence. What would be needed is a varriation of the init/diagnostic vector that would could copy from Auto-Config ROM into ram then execute *after* the timer.device, DOS, etc. is up. After all such code has been run, the initial startup-sequence would be hit. A very minor open question would be for machine-stealling programs that boot from code in the boot sector. Do you want your various configured devices to come up, or should some bit in the boot sector say "I'm going to steal the machine... don't bother configing for me." > The battery should last "forever". In other words, I want to see > the battery trickle-charged by system power when the system is on. The A501 board uses a ni-cad. Of course you'll need an Amiga 500 to use it :-). It features a much more primitive clock chip, the OKI MSM6242B. Adjustment is by trim capacitor. Works ok, however. To replace the battery on the Spirit chip would be an adventure. It's sealed as part of the chip's "Top Hat" along with the crystal. Even though it's backing up 2K of static ram in addition to the clock that battery should last somewhere in the range of 10-30 years This "top hat" is also 1/2 reason that the Amiga's RF shield won't fit back into the Amiga with this clock installed. :-( The other half is that the pins on the Spirit module are too long. :-( :-( Disclaimer: I have no future financial interest in Spirit Technologies, makers of this clock board. I did a few hours of work for them once, and was paid in full. End of relationship. |\ /| . Ack! (NAK, EOT, SOH) What's the difference between an Ack and {O o} . a Nak? Go ahead... try and say it. (="=) bryce@hoser.berkeley.EDU -or- ucbvax!hoser!bryce U If "hoser" does not work, try my old address at "cogsci"