TI99 CF7+

03/05/10 13:22 Filed in: Computer
TI99 user group which is hosted by Yahoo! Groups.  This group has 619 members from all around the world and is very active with over 72000 messages in the past 10 years.  The group also has two user conferences in the Fall each year.  One conference is in Chicago while the other moves around in Europe.


I have a couple of new additions to my old TI99 computer systems in the last week [May 2010].  First, I now have 10 reconfigured cartridges that include brand new circuit boards with a 64k EPROMs.  These were developed, manufactured and distributed by members of the international
ti99-cf7
These new circuit boards include sockets for the 64k EPROMs which can be programmed with a long list of TI99 programs, some new and some old and very rare.  There are jumpers to configure the board for 8/16k, 32k or 64k EPROMS. I have three 64k versions, one with TI-Workshop and the other two set up as multicarts.  A multicart can hold up to 7 regular 8k programs along with a Multicart program that switches between them. The other 8 EPROMs are set up as 16 or 32k and include one program each.  It is possible to put multiple 16 or 32k programs on a 64k EPROM, but then the circuit board need to be modified with jumpers and switches.  Each new circuit card is mounted in an old TI-Invaders cartridge with a new label added. Additional information can be found at Jon Guidry's web site. Note that the cartridge with the white label in the picture is a multicart.
The second addition to my TI99 systems is a CF7+ Slim Profile card that attaches to the side port on the TI99/4A computer console as shown in the above picture.  This is normally where the PEB (Peripheral Expansion Box) cable attaches.  The CF7+ is circuit board that includes a Compact Flash memory card that emulates an array of floppy disks and three disk drives.  The number of floppies emulated depends upon the size of the CF.  A 32MB CF can emulate 39 floppies that can in turn be mounted on one of the three emulated drives.  The card also includes 32k of RAM that can be used to extend the main TI99 memory. The card includes a PIO parallel expansion port that can be used for a printer.  In essence, the CF7+ replaces a PEB with memory card, printer card and disk drives and controller.  The only limitation is that there is no serial RS232 port or other expansion capability.  I am not sure where the "7+" portion of the name comes from.  I think an earlier version did not have the PIO port or 32k RAM.  Earlier versions also extended outward from the TI99 console whereas this Slim Profile version has all components parallel to the side of the case and extends out only about 3/4 inch.  The card itself is 3 inches high by 3.5 inches long. [Since this was published, I obtained a version with an RS232 port in place of the PIO port]
Another part of the CF7+ system is software that runs on a Windows PC, Win98 on a Dell PC in my case. Two DOS programs come with the CF7+, a dsk2cf.exe to transfer .DSK images files to the CF and a cf2dsk.exe to backup CF volumes to the PC.  A CF To Disk Transfer Utility program that is a graphical front end to the previous two transfer programs and further documentation is available on Stuart Conner's web site.
 

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