Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!bbn!rochester!PT.CS.CMU.EDU!andrew.cmu.edu!bk0h+ From: bk0h+@andrew.cmu.edu (Brett Kuehner) Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.8bit Subject: Re: Daisy-chaining two Atari 8bits Message-ID: Date: 16 Mar 88 01:30:47 GMT References: <1988Mar3.231347.12961@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> , <442@nunki.usc.edu> Organization: Carnegie Mellon University Lines: 20 In-Reply-To: <442@nunki.usc.edu> > wouldn't it make more sense to make SURE you don't turn on > both computers simultaneously? I would think that the proper way to do this > was to turn on Computer A, let it load DOS, then when that's done, turn on > computer B, and let it load DOS... Well, actually, you can't just turn on one computer. If they are both hooked together, as soon as you turn one on, the other will start sucking power from it over the SIO cable. You can just plug one cable into the drive, boot that computer, unplug the cable, connect it to the other computer, boot it, and then plug in the first computer again. However, the real solution, thought of by Steve Ross, is to put diodes in the 5 volt line of the SIO cable. Steve said he'd actually done this, and it worked fine. This is probably the main function of the multi-atari to one disk drive/printer/whatever boxes. Brett ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brett Kuehner bk0h+@andrew.cmu.edu Carnegie-Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA