Falcon bizarre floppy problem

[Badwolf]

I only found one "problem" with UIPtool, but it might just be me using it wrong. I tried downloading files back from the Falcon onto my PC, by dragging from the browser window.

I may be wide of the mark here, but I thought you downloaded files by simply clicking on them. Is it possible by dragging them out of the window you're actually saving a (1k) HTML error message onto your desktop?

BW

[jms2]

That sounds entirely plausible to me, thanks! I got carried away by the "filer-lookalike" user interface and the way that you drag files into the window to upload them. It made sense that I could also drag them out to download. But I'll try clicking - I'm sure that will fix it. Thanks!

That said, I may well have deleted all the bad files off the Falcon now, because using UIPtool I have replaced anything that was suspect. I guess I could re-copy them from the floppy drive to recreate the evidence. I'm intrigued to see how they are getting messed up.

Apart from the joystick issue, I'm finding that quite a few ST->Falcon adaptations (from this excellent site: https://atari.8bitchip.info/fromhd2.php) don't work. Many do... but some don't - they either bomb out or freeze at a corrupted screen etc. These are games that the site says are Falcon compatible. This doesn't bother me too much because I get the feeling that it may not be specific to this particular machine (it's not an instant fail like I was getting before). Maybe the compatibility table on there isn't completely to be trusted?

A random example would be Supercars 2.

[smoore100]

That sounds entirely plausible to me, thanks! I got carried away by the "filer-lookalike" user interface and the way that you drag files into the window to upload them. It made sense that I could also drag them out to download. But I'll try clicking - I'm sure that will fix it. Thanks!

That said, I may well have deleted all the bad files off the Falcon now, because using UIPtool I have replaced anything that was suspect. I guess I could re-copy them from the floppy drive to recreate the evidence. I'm intrigued to see how they are getting messed up.

Apart from the joystick issue, I'm finding that quite a few ST->Falcon adaptations (from this excellent site: https://atari.8bitchip.info/fromhd2.php) don't work. Many do... but some don't - they either bomb out or freeze at a corrupted screen etc. These are games that the site says are Falcon compatible. This doesn't bother me too much because I get the feeling that it may not be specific to this particular machine (it's not an instant fail like I was getting before). Maybe the compatibility table on there isn't completely to be trusted?

A random example would be Supercars 2.

If I get chance I will try Supercars 2 tonight, but I've had mixed success with these games.

Best first step is a clean boot and set resolution to SL Low

[jms2]

I did wonder about how resolutions worked. Also, I am using one of Exxos’ VGA converters with an LCD monitor. It is actually fairly tolerant of lower resolutions but it’s not fully multisync.

Can games not change the resolution to what they need it be? It’s a bit odd to have to set it in advance.

Anyway, it’s reassuring to know that those games are not entirely reliable.

[smoore100]

I couldn't get Supercars 2 to work but there are a whole host of potential reasons:

My Falcon is using an accelerator board.
I didn't try using Backward (or whatever it is called) which can help with older s/w compatibility.
I've heard anecdotally that some of the conversions work better with the drivers available from the website, I use HDDriver on the falcon.
I did use the PP drivers on my ST and they worked great.

I have a few that work well probably 50/50, and am grateful for the conversions, I can let you know a couple of examples if you would like to test them out?

Many thanks,

Simon

[jms2]

Thanks Simon,

My success rate is about the same as yours actually - around 50:50.

I had a go at uploading a couple more games this evening, but bizarrely UIPtool (previously 100% reliable) is now struggling. I was uploading Outrun, and I found that the first few files uploaded OK but then it would bomb out at a specific file every time. The same thing happened with Outrun Europa (at a different file of course). Rebooting didn't help, it behaved exactly the same.

Separately, I downloaded a file that works and also the same file in "non working" form to see what the difference was. It's very obvious - the non working file is the right length, but is entirely full of zeroes. I don't know if this is a particularly useful clue or not!

I also noticed the machine makes a few pops and crackles on startup (but not at any other time).

This Falcon is wearing me down to be honest - it's just so unpredictable and generally difficult. It works OK with a reasonable number of games, which is a big improvement, so I think I'll release it back to the museum to use for a bit and see what the feedback is. I don't want to dive into trying to fix it (when I'm not really that confident of what the problem is), and run the risk of breaking it completely.

[smoore100]

Don't give up on the Falcon, it's probably the most interesting Atari machine out there.

Take a look at http://www.d-bug.me/patch.php

I downloaded three games at random this morning and they all worked:

Speedball 2
Xenon 2
F19

[mikro]

@jms2 to me it seems like you have lost your focus. You started great, comparing various copy methods and noting their results but in the end you just chaotically test one game after another and make conclusions from that, completely drifting away from your original goal (diagnosis of what's wrong and under what conditions).

Diagnosis of broken/unwell retro hardware always requires patience and dedication.

[jms2]

Don't give up on the Falcon, it's probably the most interesting Atari machine out there.

Don't worry, I haven't given up on it! ;) I just want to pause for a bit.

to me it seems like you have lost your focus.... Diagnosis of broken/unwell retro hardware always requires patience and dedication.

I agree, that's totally fair. However there are some other factors that you probably weren't aware of:

1) There are other machines which also need my attention, and which will be easier to sort out than this one.
2) It's not mine... so the decision as to what to do next is not totally my call.
3) It's important that people get to see and use this machine, rather than it just being stuck "under repair". As it does actually work (from the casual user's perspective), I'd rather let it see some use. This may generate a bit more useful feedback.
4) The opportunity to compare with another Falcon is in the pipeline as well.

I absolutely couldn't have got as far as I got without the help of people on this forum, so the advice is all very much appreciated.