Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cornell!rochester!udel!udccvax1!gdtltr
From: gdtltr@vax1.acs.udel.EDU (Gary D Duzan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.8bit
Subject: Re: DataQue Turbo-816 Speed
Message-ID: <3767@udccvax1.acs.udel.EDU>
Date: 5 Jun 89 23:41:24 GMT
References: <3753@udccvax1.acs.udel.EDU> <1711@zaphod.axion.bt.co.uk>
Reply-To: gdtltr@vax1.acs.udel.EDU (Gary D Duzan)
Organization: Galadrim (really a disorganization)
Lines: 52

In article <1711@zaphod.axion.bt.co.uk> iwarner@zaphod.axion.bt.co.uk writes:
=>
=>	Could you post some more information about the DataQue Turbo-816,
=>as this is the first I've heard of it.
=>
   Sure thing.

=>	From what you say, can I assume that it is a board that runs
=>standard Atari/6502 software, but using the 65816 instead of a 6502 ??
=>
   Correct. DataQue has also completely rewritten the Atari OS in the 65816
native mode. The basic upgrade will replace the OS ROM, 6502, add one wire
to the motherboard, and will initially run about $120. Supposedly they have
gone to great pains to maintain compatability with existing hardware and
software., and I understand they have had reasonable success. They will be
adding all sorts of neat stuff like a card bus, enhanced color graphics card,
RAM cards, accelerators, coprocessors, and some other stuff.

=>	I am interested because the final year project of my degree was
=>to add a 65816 2nd processor to an Atari 800XL. I ran the 65816 at 2.5MHz,
=>as I was not constrained by the graphics chips (Antic,GTIA) which require
=>the Atari to run at 1.79MHz. This meant that graphics progs would not work
=>unmodified, but stuff like BASIC, and Assemblers would.
=>The software ran twice as fast on the 65816 as on the 800XL (because the
=>6502 on the 800XL is slowed down by DMA performed by Antic).
=>
=>	I connected the two together using the 800XL's parallel port. Any
=>I/O operations (such as screen, keyboard and disc accesses) were passed
=>across the parallel port to be handled by the 800XL. Thus the 65816
=>took over the role as main processor, and the 800XL was an intelligent
=>terminal to it.
=>
=>
=>		Ivan Warner

   This sounds very interesting, and I have been thinking lately of similar
things myself. If you have your work written in some digital media somewhere,
I would be ever grateful if you could send me a copy. Thanx.

					Gary Duzan
					Time  Lord
				    Third Regeneration
				 Atari Enthusiast Extreme




-- 
+------------------------------------------+ UUCP: !uunet!udel.edu!vax1!gdtltr
| "Two hearts are better than one." -- Yes | Internet: gdtltr@vax1.acs.udel.edu
| "Don't listen to me; I never do." -- Doctor Who | Other: Relay through CUNYVM 
+-------------------------------------------------+        or something.