1. Forum
  2. fsxNet
  3. Retro Computing/Tech Chat

  • Serial to IP adaptors

    From Bob Worm@21:1/205 to All on Fri Jan 26 07:11:15 2024
    Hi, all.

    No floral story this time, sorry. Well, maybe a short one.

    To get my Acorn A3020 and BBC micro online (or onto BBSes, at least) I'm currently just patching them via serial into a raspberry pi running agetty, logging into it and telnet-ing from there. Functional but it has a touch of the jank about it.

    I gather there are a few Pi and non-Pi based options out there, I wonder if anyone could share their thoughts on what works well / does not work well? I think TCPSer is one of them?

    Thanks, all!

    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)
  • From Nigel Reed@21:2/101 to Bob Worm on Fri Jan 26 14:29:25 2024
    On Fri, 26 Jan 2024 07:11:15 +0000
    "Bob Worm" (21:1/205) <Bob.Worm@f205.n1.z21.fidonet> wrote:

    Hi, all.

    No floral story this time, sorry. Well, maybe a short one.

    To get my Acorn A3020 and BBC micro online (or onto BBSes, at least)
    I'm currently just patching them via serial into a raspberry pi
    running agetty, logging into it and telnet-ing from there. Functional
    but it has a touch of the jank about it.

    I gather there are a few Pi and non-Pi based options out there, I
    wonder if anyone could share their thoughts on what works well / does
    not work well? I think TCPSer is one of them?

    Thanks, all!

    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)

    northdevonretroarchive.co.uk/getting-the-bbc-micro-online-via-wifi

    Two cheap parts plus a cable. I think its a plus if you have an Arduino (another cheap part) to flash the modified zimodem firmware.
    --
    End Of The Line BBS - Plano, TX
    telnet endofthelinebbs.com 23
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: End Of The Line BBS - endofthelinebbs.com (21:2/101)
  • From Bob Worm@21:1/205 to Nigel Reed on Fri Jan 26 23:33:12 2024
    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Nigel Reed to Bob Worm on Fri Jan 26 2024 14:29:25

    Hi, Nigel.

    northdevonretroarchive.co.uk/getting-the-bbc-micro-online-via-wifi

    I shall give it a look - thanks!


    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)
  • From Bob Worm@21:1/205 to Nigel Reed on Sat Jan 27 16:32:37 2024
    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Nigel Reed to Bob Worm on Fri Jan 26 2024 14:29:25

    Hi, Nigel.

    On a tangentially related note - where do you get your domino 5 pin DINs from? For my BBC serial connection I took a gamble that a 6 pin DIN with the "North" pin ripped out might be the right spacing - it was not! It was close enough that I could "encourage" the pins into a slightly different spacing with a pliers, leaving just enough pin to make electrical contact with the socket. It does work but it's not particularly pretty and with the shell off there's nothing to ensure it goes in the correct orientation.


    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)
  • From Nigel Reed@21:2/101 to Bob Worm on Sat Jan 27 21:52:41 2024
    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Bob Worm to Nigel Reed on Sat Jan 27 2024 16:32:37

    On a tangentially related note - where do you get your domino 5 pin DINs from? For my BBC serial connection I took a gamble that a 6 pin DIN with the "North" pin ripped out might be the right spacing - it was not! It was close enough that I could "encourage" the pins into a slightly different spacing with a pliers, leaving just enough pin to make electrical contact with the socket. It does work but it's not particularly pretty and with the shell off there's nothing to ensure it goes in the correct orientation.

    I hate to tell you, but with a 5 pin domino, it can be inserted 4 different ways :)

    Contact Mark Haysman at The Retro Clinic.

    http://www.retroclinic.com/

    He has a lot of Acorn stuff in stock or can get it. He also has recap sets in case your power supply releases its magic smoke, disk drives, goteks, rpi copros, and lots of other stuff.

    He also hangs around some of the Acorn groups like Acorn Computer and BBC Micro Enthusiasts. He can also refurb anything from an Atom to an Archie.
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: End Of The Line BBS - endofthelinebbs.com (21:2/101)
  • From Bob Worm@21:1/205 to Nigel Reed on Sun Jan 28 09:21:24 2024
    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Nigel Reed to Bob Worm on Sat Jan 27 2024 21:52:41

    Hi, Nigel.

    I hate to tell you, but with a 5 pin domino, it can be inserted 4 different ways :)

    I thought the shell had a dimple in it to prevent that? What a superb design...

    Contact Mark Haysman at The Retro Clinic.
    http://www.retroclinic.com/

    Will definitely give that a look. I have a couple of ESPs and MAX232s on order now to build the mini serial WiFi adaptors - would be nice to get my Pis back :)

    He also has recap sets in case your power supply releases its magic smoke

    Sadly, I'm way ahead of you on this! Less of a "release" than an "extreme ejection" in my case. The smell :\

    disk drives, goteks, rpi copros, and lots of other stuff.

    Hmm... I could do with a Gotek. I feel like this could wind up being an expensive visit!

    Thanks again,

    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)
  • From Nigel Reed@21:2/101 to Bob Worm on Sat Feb 10 20:20:25 2024
    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Bob Worm to Nigel Reed on Sun Jan 28 2024 09:21:24

    I hate to tell you, but with a 5 pin domino, it can be inserted 4 different ways :)

    I thought the shell had a dimple in it to prevent that? What a superb design...

    The shell does, but I don't think the Beeb does.

    Contact Mark Haysman at The Retro Clinic.
    http://www.retroclinic.com/

    Will definitely give that a look. I have a couple of ESPs and MAX232s on order now to build the mini serial WiFi adaptors - would be nice to get my Pis back :)

    Yeah, I got some of those from Amazon, really cheap and easy to make. You'll need an Arduino to easily program the ESP with the specialized modem firmware. Not sure if you can do it with a rpi.

    Sadly, I'm way ahead of you on this! Less of a "release" than an "extreme ejection" in my case. The smell :\

    You never forget your first RIFA. Thankfully, the PSU will run fine without them, it's just some voltage smoother or something like that.

    Hmm... I could do with a Gotek. I feel like this could wind up being an expensive visit!

    Make sure you get all the cables you need too. If you have a floppy drive, you may need a splitter. Check with Mark to make sure.
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: End Of The Line BBS - endofthelinebbs.com (21:2/101)
  • From Bob Worm@21:1/205 to Nigel Reed on Sun Feb 11 22:28:29 2024
    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Nigel Reed to Bob Worm on Sat Feb 10 2024 20:20:25

    Hi, Nigel.

    Yeah, I got some of those from Amazon, really cheap and easy to make. You'll need an Arduino to easily program the ESP with the specialized modem firmware. Not sure if you can do it with a rpi.

    I just compiled zimodem straight onto it with the Arduino IDE - worked great.

    Unfortunately after an extended BBS session via it last night my A3020's serial port has now stopped working, I'm not sure if it's related or not. The ESP/MAX232 combo is still working fine when I plug it into other computers and the voltages are well within spec.

    I should say that fixing the A3020's serial port was pretty much the first thing I had to do when I started work on it - the line driver chip had died in the Tx direction. I bought two new old stock replacements, which were the only 2 I could find anywhere, and one of them was a dud so possibly they're quite fragile. This time it's died on the Rx direction. Sad times, I pretty much can't do anything on it without a serial port :(

    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)
  • From Nigel Reed@21:2/101 to All on Sun Feb 11 21:01:24 2024
    On Sun, 11 Feb 2024 22:28:29 +0000
    "Bob Worm" (21:1/205) <Bob.Worm@f205.n1.z21.fidonet> wrote:

    Re: Re: Serial to IP adaptors
    By: Nigel Reed to Bob Worm on Sat Feb 10 2024 20:20:25

    Hi, Nigel.

    Yeah, I got some of those from Amazon, really cheap and easy to
    make. You'll need an Arduino to easily program the ESP with the specialized modem firmware. Not sure if you can do it with a rpi.

    I just compiled zimodem straight onto it with the Arduino IDE -
    worked great.

    Unfortunately after an extended BBS session via it last night my
    A3020's serial port has now stopped working, I'm not sure if it's
    related or not. The ESP/MAX232 combo is still working fine when I
    plug it into other computers and the voltages are well within spec.

    I should say that fixing the A3020's serial port was pretty much the
    first thing I had to do when I started work on it - the line driver
    chip had died in the Tx direction. I bought two new old stock
    replacements, which were the only 2 I could find anywhere, and one of
    them was a dud so possibly they're quite fragile. This time it's died
    on the Rx direction. Sad times, I pretty much can't do anything on it
    without a serial port :(

    BobW
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)

    That sucks. I remember trying to find a UART - or as we called them
    Unavailable async transceiver :)

    Check with Retroclinic. If Mark doesn't have them I'd be surprised.
    --
    End Of The Line BBS - Plano, TX
    telnet endofthelinebbs.com 23
    --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
    * Origin: End Of The Line BBS - endofthelinebbs.com (21:2/101)