#book8088 — Public Fediverse posts

More portable #retrocomputing philosophizing: Whether a machine has "Instant-On" makes a huge difference in the tasks it's useful for. By this, I mean whether the machine returns to the same program and screen where you left it, when powered back on from inactivity.

Without "Instant-On", the machine demands to be used for long sessions, (else the boot time is too inconvenient) and demands your constant attention (else the power draw of leaving it sitting around powered on is wasted). Using the machine involves clearing your schedule and devoting yourself to it, like reading a book.

Examples of machines without "Instant-On": DOS-era laptops, #Book8088, #GameBoy, #MailStation.

With "Instant-On", the machine is useful for PDA-style quick jottings, grocery lists, etc. It is also useful for fun activities even in circumstances where you are likely to be interrupted.

Examples of machines with "Instant-On": #HP200LX, #HpOmniBook, #PalmPilot, #PocketPC, #TI92 (and other TI calculators), and, of course, smartphones.

While machines in the first category may offer a more immersive experience, they are far less useful to me than machines in the second category. It's like the difference between a luggable and a true mobile computer.

A few weeks with the Pocket 386, an early-‘90s-style, half-busted retro PC - Enlarge / The Pocket 386 is fun for a while, but the shortcomings and t... - https://arstechnica.com/?p=2034561 #retrocomputing #pocket386 #windows95 #features #book8088 #ms-dos #intel #tech

Experimentos novos com ingredientes clássicos

https://retropolis.com.br/2024/06/27/experimentos-novos-com-ingredientes-classicos/

#MundoRetro #Amiga #AmigaPCI #BOOK8088 #ECS #Intel80386SX #MSDOS #Neo6502 #Neo6502pc #OCS #Olimex #OPL3 #PCI #Pocket386 #usb #Windows31 #Windows95

Yesterday, I released Free #FDISK 1.3.15. This version works around a #Book8088 BIOS bug and fixes a regression that prevents the user from changing the type of already existing partitions. This version will be part of the next #FreeDOS test release T2406.

https://github.com/FDOS/fdisk/releases/tag/v1.3.15

#FreeDOS

So I found an interesting laptop named #Book8088 on #AliExpress.
According to the description and reviews, it's a 80s' #i8088 (V20 to be exact) based #MS-DOS laptop but brand-new and in production!
I would have bought one if I were in that generation.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005528944178.html

The Book8088 Gets a Post-Hype Review - Last year, a couple of rather unusual computers emerged from China: a 386sx-based ... - https://hackaday.com/2024/02/22/the-book8088-gets-a-post-hype-review/ #retrocomputing #book8088 #v20

So I've done some testing of this on my #Book8088
and it seems to mount everything the older driver does and is a lot faster.

FreddyV #CH375 driver 0.22

(#v20 book8088 can use the 286 optimized version 😁)

VOGONS Vintage Driver Library
https://www.vogonsdrivers.com/getfile.php?fileid=1991&menustate=0

Open source 8088 BIOS version 1.0 released after a dozen years of development #8088, #8088Bios, #Bios, #Book8088, #Intel8088, #OpenSource, #SergeyKiselev

https://liliputing.com/open-source-8088-bios-version-1-0-released-after-a-dozen-years-of-development/

#GEOS #GeoWorks still hanging at "Initializing Drive module" on #book8088

I have this terrible feeling that it's trying to look at A: and B: .... Which do not exist...

OTOH this operation should eventually time out. i think ...

#Book8088
#Tandy1000 #PCXT

a good source of old manuals for 8bit isa cards

https://www.minuszerodegrees.net/manuals.htm

specifically including the #dtk pii-108 #rs232 card thats all over ebay. i needed the manual for the second serial port connector pinout!

So I'm trying to get #GEOS #Geoworks running on the #Book8088. tldr not working yet.

10x 360k virtual disks. Extracted the files with dcfr. Won't run like that it has to be installed, almost all the files are actually compressed. The installer will ONLY install from a: or b:

fine. copied the files onto a new sd card that the #book8088 has decided to talk to, once a fat16 partition has been set up.

used SUBST to assign b: to the d:. edited geos.toc to only refer to the one disk 1/2

still looking for msdos virtual disk handling programs for 8086:

dim14a.zip requires 286.
fakedisk.zip hangs on #Tandy1000
fdrv-3.zip requires 286, wants 386.
img1_21e.zip hangs on Tandy 1000

dcfr still looks like the best hope. im hoping to try it on the #Book8088 mañana.

#VirtualDisk #DiskImage #DOS #MSDOS

Got a #3com etherlink II, an 8 bit ethernet card. Gonna try it on the #Book8088 ...

might be interesting... if you set the io address to be in the 0x200 range it uses irq 3. if you set the io address to 0x300 it uses irq 2. These are your only choices.

I guess I'm disappointed. this card was made in 1990... by 1990 im sure it was quite clear that you don't make xt bus cards like that!

extrac21.zip also hangs #Tandy1000

Ill probably try it on #book8088 but im not very hopeful.😢

#DiskImage #DOS #MSDOS #VirtualDisk

HRurmph

The fanciest printing I can get out of PipeDream 2 or First Choice is early laserjet (pcl).

My CUPS-lpr server doesn't have gpcl on it so no luck there.

Also, when told to print to a file, they both filter out all the escape codes! resulting in a flat text file. d00d i can do that with fold(1) and pr(1)!

Tandy 1000 has wattcp's lpr. Book 8088 has sneakernet!

#Book8088 #Tandy1000 #PipeDream #FirstChoice

Oh and another #Book8088 hint from the #RetroHackShack guy:

windows 3 doesn't autodetect mice, you have to go into "control panel" and select the proper mouse...

(and then the book8088 will ask for Windows disk 3, but fortunately will accept D: as a source) 🤗

So the retro hack shack guy says the #book8088 bios blocks floppy drives even if a floppy controller is hooked up.

Can anyone confirm?

#RetroHackShack

Is #ELKS (8086 linux) still a thing? Would the #book8088 be a good machine for it?

I suspect the #XTCF BIOS wants a DOS4 style partition table so i dunno if the old 8086 UNIXes (#coherent, #xenix, #minix) would cooperate.

Then there's the whole issue of installing such a thing on a machine that doesn't support floppy drives... 😝

Is #ELKS (8086 linux) still a thing? Would the #book8088 be a good machine for it?

I suspect the #XTCF BIOS wants a DOS4 style partition table so i dunno if the old 8086 UNIXes (#coherent, #xenix, #minix) would cooperate.

Then there's the whole issue of installing such a thing on a machine that doesn't support floppy drives... 😝

Is #ELKS (8086 linux) still a thing? Would the #book8088 be a good machine for it?

I suspect the #XTCF BIOS wants a DOS4 style partition table so i dunno if the old 8086 UNIXes (#coherent, #xenix, #minix) would cooperate.

Then there's the whole issue of installing such a thing on a machine that doesn't support floppy drives... 😝

Is #ELKS (8086 linux) still a thing? Would the #book8088 be a good machine for it?

I suspect the #XTCF BIOS wants a DOS4 style partition table so i dunno if the old 8086 UNIXes (#coherent, #xenix, #minix) would cooperate.

Then there's the whole issue of installing such a thing on a machine that doesn't support floppy drives... 😝

Is #ELKS (8086 linux) still a thing? Would the #book8088 be a good machine for it?

I suspect the #XTCF BIOS wants a DOS4 style partition table so i dunno if the old 8086 UNIXes (#coherent, #xenix, #minix) would cooperate.

Then there's the whole issue of installing such a thing on a machine that doesn't support floppy drives... 😝

Per la nostra rubrica #retro parliamo di #Book8088, un portatile #XT basato su #Intel8088 che potete comprare nuovo oggi. La grande domanda è: ma dovreste? Analizziamo un po' di dati
#laptop #IBMPC #MSDOS

https://www.bufale.net/book-8088-il-retrolaptop-uscito-dagli-anni-80-che-forse-vorrete-anche-voi/

This is a fascinating writeup of the BOOK 8088 - a modern mini laptop with a decades-old Intel 8088 processor. It would have been a dream in 1981. Today it's a frustrating mess. But still kind of awesome. https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/07/going-deep-with-the-book-8088-the-brand-new-laptop-that-runs-like-its-1981/

#Intel8088 #Book8088 #MiniLaptop #RetroComputing

Going deep with the Book 8088, the brand-new laptop that runs like it’s 1981 - Enlarge / The Book 8088, a strange homebrewed curio that recalls the ea... - https://arstechnica.com/?p=1943551 #retrocomputing #ms-dosgaming #windows3.0 #intel8088 #features #book8088 #freedos #gaming #ms-dos #tech

#Book8088 mounts the #XTCF cf card (from my Tandy1000) in a USB adapter ! Now we're getting somewhere!

Edit specify using USB. In Theory should be able to swap cf cards but that's for later.
Edit again for basic grammar fail

#Book8088 mounts the #XTCF cf card (from my Tandy1000) in a USB adapter ! Now we're getting somewhere!

Edit specify using USB. In Theory should be able to swap cf cards but that's for later.
Edit again for basic grammar fail

#Book8088 mounts the #XTCF cf card (from my Tandy1000) in a USB adapter ! Now we're getting somewhere!

Edit specify using USB. In Theory should be able to swap cf cards but that's for later.
Edit again for basic grammar fail

#Book8088 mounts the #XTCF cf card (from my Tandy1000) in a USB adapter ! Now we're getting somewhere!

Edit specify using USB. In Theory should be able to swap cf cards but that's for later.
Edit again for basic grammar fail

#Book8088 mounts the #XTCF cf card (from my Tandy1000) in a USB adapter ! Now we're getting somewhere!

Edit specify using USB. In Theory should be able to swap cf cards but that's for later.
Edit again for basic grammar fail

A video review of the Book 8088 and Hand 386 portable retro computers that showed up at AliExpress recenly for under $200. Unfortunately they're no longer available. Or maybe fortunately because they're not great for much more than nostalgia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bODiZ5bP84

#RetroComputing #Book8088 #Hand386 #MiniPC