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Amiga News and Community Announcements => Amiga News and Community Announcements => Amiga Hardware News => Topic started by: mr.vince on February 18, 2010, 08:33:44 PM

Title: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 18, 2010, 08:33:44 PM
Hi there,

this is not directly a piece if hardware for the Amiga, but might be very helpful anyway I guess...

---------------------------------------------------------------------

====== KryoFlux Beta 2 Released - Apple 400K/800K Sector Dump Support ======

//2010-02-18//

We have just released KryoFlux (http://www.softpres.org/glossary:kryoflux) beta 2. You can get the complete package and manual from here (http://releases.softpres.org/kryoflux/kryoflux_1.0b2.zip) or just the updated "host" software from beta 1 here (http://releases.softpres.org/kryoflux/dtc_1.0b2.zip). KryoFlux is free for private, non-commercial use. Beta 2 adds support for sector dumps of Apple 400K/800K disks. This means we now support the vast majority of popular sector formats.

If you are new to KryoFlux, you can read more about it here (http://www.softpres.org/glossary:kryoflux), and see the info-trailer here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjfT-F0GUl4).

KryoFlux supports dumping any floppy disk to "stream files", which contain the raw flux transition (http://www.softpres.org/glossary:flux transition) information. It supports output of a range of common "sector dumps" to allow you to use your dumped images right away in your favourite emulator, Apple 400K/800K support being the most recent addition.

Like the sound of it? Great. You might have already known this much, but did you also know that KryoFlux:

  * Checks the data for sector formats to ensure data integrity.
  * Allows you to indicate the target platform even when dumping to stream files in order to still do appropriate integrity checks.
  * Allows you to dump disks to stream files and to a more emulator-friendly image formats **at the same time**. So for a dual format Amiga/Atari ST disk, KryoFlux can produce stream files, a .ADF and a .ST all on-the-fly while dumping the disk.
  * Allows you to use stream files dumped previously as a "virtual floppy" in order to produce sector dumps later.

A rather insane amount of work has been put into this system to resolve the ongoing issues we see in the retro-computing and preservation world. All this for the cost of building/buying the hardware detailed by our public domain / open hardware designs (Hardware manufacturers: Did you just hear us say public domain hardware design? Yes you did! You can build this hardware right now and sell it with no further input from us. If you would like to sell it under our "KryoFlux" or "KryoFlux Compatible" trademarks (and you probably do, given this will get your product officially endorsed and promoted by us), no problem! You just need to obtain a license and certification - please contact us for more information.).

In summary, here are the image types supported in beta 2:

  - KryoFlux stream files
  - CT Raw image, 84 tracks, DS, DD, 300, MFM
  - FM sector image, 40/80+ tracks, SS/DS, DD/HD, 300, FM
  - FM XFD, Atari 8-bit
  - MFM sector image, 40/80+ tracks, SS/DS, DD/HD, 300, MFM
  - MFM XFD, Atari 8-bit
  - AmigaDOS sector image, 80+ tracks, DS, DD/HD, 300, MFM
  - CBM DOS sector image, 35+ tracks, SS, DD, 300, GCR
  - Apple DOS 3.2 sector image, 35+ tracks, SS, DD, 300, GCR
  - Apple DOS 3.3+ sector image, 35+ tracks, SS, DD, 300, GCR
  - DSK, DOS 3.3 interleave
  - Apple DOS 400K/800K sector image, 80+ tracks, SS/DS, DD, CLV, GCR
 
Given that "FM sector image" and "MFM sector image" doesn't sound very glamorous, let us just point out that due to intelligent handling, this supports basically any normal disk used for systems that contain a generic FM or MFM FDC - for example, all those weird synthesiser sample disk formats should work right out of the box!

Also, as far as we are aware, KryoFlux is the only system free for private, non-commercial use that can produce sector dumps for both Apple DOS 3.2 and 3.3 disks without interfacing to original drives and/or machines.

All this means we support pretty much any platform already: Acorn Electron, Apple, Amstrad CPC, Archimedes, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, BBC, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, MSX, IBM PC, PC-8801, Sam Coupe, Spectrum, and many, many others.

Join the beta...
Title: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: fiath on February 18, 2010, 08:49:32 PM
KryoFlux is an advanced software-programmable FDC (Floppy Disk Controller) system that runs on small and cheap ARM7-based devices and connects to a host PC over the ubiquitous USB connector. It reads (and in the future, will write) flux transitions from magnetic media (most commonly, floppy disks) at a very fine resolution. KryoFlux can read data with no regard for what disk format or copy protection a disk may contain, and it can also read disks originally written with different (and even varying) bit cell widths and drive speeds, with a normal fixed-speed drive.

KryoFlux supports dumping any floppy disk to “stream files”, which contain the raw flux transition information. It supports output of a range of common “sector dumps” (e.g. ADF) to allow you to use your dumped images right away in your favourite emulator.

KryoFlux is available for free for private non-commercial use. You will of course need to build or buy a board based on our open hardware design.

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjfT-F0GUl4
Info: http://softpres.org/glossary:kryoflux
Beta 2 Release News Item: http://kryoflux.org/news:2010-02-18
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: fiath on February 18, 2010, 10:35:46 PM
Haha... Fancy meeting you here Mr. Vince.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: Karlos on February 19, 2010, 12:08:13 AM
You guys pretty much posted parallel threads so I thought it prudent to merge them :)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: Dr_Righteous on February 19, 2010, 02:00:37 AM
I have been instructed to inform you that this project endangers one of the Amiga community's few remaining hardware manufacturers. Please for the sake of the community as a whole discontinue this project.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: Trev on February 19, 2010, 03:53:39 AM
@Dr_Righteous

I own four Catweasels, three of which are boxed because Jens hasn't produced a 64-bit Windows driver. Legitimate competition is a good thing.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: fiath on February 19, 2010, 06:33:09 AM
Quote from: Dr_Righteous;543920
I have been instructed to inform you that this project endangers one of the Amiga community's few remaining hardware manufacturers. Please for the sake of the community as a whole discontinue this project.

I would be quite surprised if that is the case, but even if it was, we have spent hundreds and hundreds of hours, and quite a lot of money on this project.... With all due respect, I don't really think we should have to discontinue it to protect a monopoly.

KryoFlux was created by us at the Software Preservation Society and was motivated by our own needs. For example, as it is, we have to lug around an Amiga + TV when we are on the road doing preservation. It would be just as bad having to lug around a PC and screen. With KryoFlux, we now use an EeePC!

Besides, KryoFlux has already been released. There is nothing that can be done about that now.

Anyway, rather than talk about other systems here. Let me say that we are currently readying the beta 3 release. Watch this space!

Trev: KryoFlux does indeed work on Windows 64 right now.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: motorollin on February 19, 2010, 07:06:57 AM
Quote from: Dr_Righteous;543920
I have been instructed to inform you that this project endangers one of the Amiga community's few remaining hardware manufacturers. Please for the sake of the community as a whole discontinue this project.


Instructed by whom?

--
moto
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 19, 2010, 08:38:51 AM
Quote from: Karlos;543910
You guys pretty much posted parallel threads so I thought it prudent to merge them :)

Excellent. I bet I just overlooked this... Thanks!

Quote from: Dr_Righteous;543920
I have been instructed to inform you that this project endangers one of the Amiga community's few remaining hardware manufacturers. Please for the sake of the community as a whole discontinue this project.

Give me a second to gather my thoughts... Ok, here's the reply (please feel instructed to report back): No.

Quote from: Trev;543926
@Dr_Righteous

I own four Catweasels, three of which are boxed because Jens hasn't produced a 64-bit Windows driver. Legitimate competition is a good thing.

I think it is. KryoFlux works fine in 64bit Windows (have not seen it personally, but beta testers report it does) and has USB support, which is nice, I guess.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: dammy on February 19, 2010, 01:08:51 PM
Quote from: mr.vince;543868
Hi there,

this is not directly a piece if hardware for the Amiga, but might be very helpful anyway I guess...


I'm sure those using OS4/MOS/AROS will find it very helpful in using their stack of old floppies.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: Ral-Clan on February 19, 2010, 01:14:16 PM
So, does the external floppy drive have to be an Amiga drive, or just any PC drive in an external case?
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 19, 2010, 01:57:18 PM
Quote from: ral-clan;543945
So, does the external floppy drive have to be an Amiga drive, or just any PC drive in an external case?

All you need is an ordinary PC HD 3.5" drive (if you want to image Amiga disks that is) which you can get for a few bucks on eBay. Got mine for EUR 2,-... eBay... brand new.

Generally speaking there are some specific models out there, some with SD card reader built in, which don't work. Therefore I recommend getting different brands/models and use the one that works best.

I found out that older models from around 2000 or slightly older work better than the cheap crap they sell today. The problem is that newer models more often use thin metal cases which can get out of alignment if you screw them into a case to firmly. When buying 5.25" drives try to get some that are made of a solid block of aluminum instead of metal sheets.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: dammy on February 19, 2010, 02:15:06 PM
When are you projecting the custom boards to be ready and what retail sale price level are you aiming at?
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 19, 2010, 04:19:03 PM
Quote from: dammy;543952
When are you projecting the custom boards to be ready and what retail sale price level are you aiming at?

hmmm... hard to tell. you might have read elsewhere that we're very picky about things. we want to make sure everything works as expected, so we'll definitely do a first run with very limited quantities only. if these do work, we'll team up with more hardware manufacturers to do local runs, e.g. separate batches for e.g. germany, uk and the us.

it is very hard to tell prices because these vary depending on units made in one batch.

if you look at prices for parts, the most expensive thing, the cpu, costs about eur 8,- here (if you buy only one that is), i think i have seen prices of us$10,- somewhere. pcbs are very expensive when you do only 10 (about us$20 per board), but much cheaper when bought in larger lots (guess we could reach us$10 or less).

seeing that atmel dev boards with similar and more parts sell for about us$70-80 (i assume they do larger batches of them at one time), kryoflux should not be more expensive. could happen though, but i wish (!) we can make it happen for less.

please note that this is an estimate only, and i must admit i have no idea how much margin hardware sellers usually have / must have.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - USB Floppy Controller Beta Released
Post by: Trev on February 19, 2010, 04:32:10 PM
Quote from: Trev;543926
@Dr_Righteous

I own four Catweasels, three of which are boxed because Jens hasn't produced a 64-bit Windows driver. Legitimate competition is a good thing.


Plus, KryoFlex and Catweasel have different functionality--for now. Re: 64-bit, if Toni (or anyone else) went back to direct I/O for Catweasel access, the 64-bit problem could be solved as far as WinUAE is concerned.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: nyteschayde on February 19, 2010, 07:32:59 PM
I'm not a hardware person. Where can I buy an assembled one?
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 19, 2010, 09:49:59 PM
Quote from: nyteschayde;543994
I'm not a hardware person. Where can I buy an assembled one?

Please stick to this thread... we'll make an announcement. Will take some weeks, though...
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: Dr_Righteous on February 19, 2010, 10:23:41 PM
Quote from: mr.vince;543937

Give me a second to gather my thoughts... Ok, here's the reply (please feel instructed to report back): No.


Hey, I'm just the messenger. I did my part and now I'm out of it.

That said, any reason one couldn't use a SAM7-H256 and solder the floppy cable connections directly to the board in place of the headers? ...instead of using one of the larger development boards with extraneous parts. Sure would make stuffing everything into a small case easier.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 20, 2010, 10:19:51 AM
Quote from: Dr_Righteous;544002
Hey, I'm just the messenger. I did my part and now I'm out of it.

i understand. i just wasn't aware of people being available for taking instructions and spreading other people's opinions. ;)

your request reminded me of a fictious email from bill gates to steve jobs which i find quite amusing:

Quote
Redmond, December 16th, 2002

Dear Steve,

I hope, you are well. I think it is correct to say that we've never been very close friends, but we always respected each other. To be honest, I sometimes got a bit off the track and made up small puns at your cost, but what can you do when you're the richest man on earth?! As you might know, Windows is still selling very well. I mean, I am not surprised about this, they don't have a choice right now, do they?

You might be pleased to hear that Melinda and the kids are fine, especially Phebe Adele is doing very well. She really comes after her mother. I had some trouble last week when our gardener Jose had a little accident and scratched the driver's door of my 1989 Porsche. Luckily, he did not hit the green Maserati, which was standing nearby.

It came to my attention that your new OS X is making rapid progress and gaining market share, dragging away customers from the Windows platform. In regard to Melinda's and my foundation, our continuing expenses (e.g. school fees etc.), and the fact that we'd like to stay market leader, would you mind considering discontinuing your product line? Your efforts endanger one of the PC community's few remaining software manufacturers. I mean, we nearly drove all of them out of business, so who can help should we decide that selling Windows isn't profitable anymore?

Steve, I really appreciate your understanding and if you like, maybe we should have a brief conversation on the phone to discuss details.

All the best, yours truly,
Bill
hilarious, don't you think? :lol:

Quote from: Dr_Righteous;544002
That said, any reason one couldn't use a SAM7-H256 and solder the floppy cable connections directly to the board in place of the headers? ...instead of using one of the larger development boards with extraneous parts. Sure would make stuffing everything into a small case easier.

yes, i know someone doing that. works fine as it seems. i think it does not have leds, which was important for development. let me know if it works for you.

best,
chris
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: motorollin on February 20, 2010, 11:03:24 AM
Quote from: Dr_Righteous;544002
Hey, I'm just the messenger. I did my part and now I'm out of it.


I'm just interested to know who "instructed" you to make such an outrageous request. I have my suspicions, based on the assumption that it's someone who has an interest in the sales of Catweasel hardware, and who does not have an account here (any more...?) to make the request himself. It's not very difficult to work out who this might be, and if it is that person, then making such a request is potentially much more damaging to his business than a competing product could ever be.

Disclaimer - this is just my opinion and speculation. Terms and conditions apply. Your experience may vary. Always read the label.

--
moto
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: dammy on February 20, 2010, 12:54:50 PM
Quote from: Dr_Righteous;544002
Hey, I'm just the messenger. I did my part and now I'm out of it.


Regardless of who asked you to do that, it puts Jens in really a bad position as most of us automatically associate your post with Jens, if he requested you to do it or not.  I'm not really sure how Jens can rectify the situation, he is going to lose sales if he embraces his competition but that would signal it wasn't him making the request to you.  If he does nothing, he is going to be losing face and sales even if it wasn't him.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: kolla on February 20, 2010, 07:06:52 PM
Sheesh, people dont takes jokes anymore?

A USB floppy drive that can read/write amiga floppies would be nice, but every attempt at such project has dwindled away as people just cant leave it at that, and insist that it also must handle every obscure floppy format known to man, deal with all kinds of copyprotections and whatnot. And yes, I have three catweasels as well (mk2, 3 and 4), and two kywaldas.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 07:23:38 PM
Well, that is okay then, because KryoFlux supports basically all formats already :)

Copy protection is no problem either, KryoFlux reads disks at the flux transition level - copy protection is read just like any other data.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: B00tDisk on February 20, 2010, 08:41:26 PM
Quote from: fiath;544114
Well, that is okay then, because KryoFlux supports basically all formats already :)

Copy protection is no problem either, KryoFlux reads disks at the flux transition level - copy protection is read just like any other data.


Now, this Kryoflux thing you guys have invented, this basically "spans the globe" of data preservation, right?  I mean, we're not just talking about 800k mac disks, amiga and STs anymore.  You guys could corner the forensic disk preservation/restoration market.  Imagine being able to recover 8" floppies from the late 1970's/early 1980's (even partially).  

This is pretty revolutionary, and any petty jealousy needs to be disposed with (on your detractor's side - you guys are aces for producing this thing!)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 09:01:00 PM
Yes, we do hope (as our software technology is free, and the hardware is cheap and open so can be made by anyone) that we will basically nail this problem for good. Cheap, easy and reliable - we solve the technical issues, and get the community to help us with the problem of locating and imaging all those games where it was not possible or easy to do before.

8" preservation would be amazing. However, one of the biggest problems with that is getting hold of the drives. They seem very rare these days... With a drive, as long as we can interface it (which I don't think should be too hard), it should be easy to integrate imaging into our software.

As to "being disposed with", we have in fact already had some "problems" elsewhere. Talking entirely for myself, I think this is pretty pathetic and unprofessional. Still, this train has left the building, and so there is nothing anyone can do about it now.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: kolla on February 20, 2010, 09:12:15 PM
So can this be used to write out an amiga floppy, mount it and write out files to it? I know, very advanced tasks :)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: desiv on February 20, 2010, 09:16:30 PM
I asked this in another thread somewhere, but it got buried.. :-)

I no longer have a 5 1/4" PC drive.
Now, there's time, since I'm going to be buying one of your interfaces when it comes out, as my soldering skills are passable, but just barely.. :-)

So, I thought I'd start hitting the old electronic stores and looking for drive mechanisms..  

Is there anything I should be looking for?

Just any HD 5 1/4" PC floppy drive?  I saw something on one of your updated at mentioned heads stopping and not getting to -8, but only -4 or something like that..

Is that probably not a big deal and I should just grab any 5 1/4" HD drive?
I'm not really worried about flippies at this point (where I think the above issue was) and mostly thinking of C64 and Apple II floppies (and eventually Coleco Adam, as I do have one of those drives, which doesn't get much use..).

Thanx,

desiv

p.s.  How come I can't order a case of 100 Elephant 5 1/4" DSDD floppies for $35 (OK, I don't remember how much, but it didn't seem like much) like I used to be able to... :-)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 09:55:53 PM
Quote from: kolla;544130
So can this be used to write out an amiga floppy, mount it and write out files to it? I know, very advanced tasks :)


Do you mean actually use it as a normal floppy drive from an Amiga or emulator?

Interesting question. It was intended as a preservation tool, and we don't really have that kind of usage in mind, so I doubt we would work on it ourselves. However, the source to the host software will be available, and once we have added writing support, I can't really see any reason why it can't be done. Maybe somebody will hack around with it and get it to do that... we certainly encourage that sort of thing (as long as the result is not for commercial use or product, or other non-private use - that would require a license).
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 10:02:02 PM
Quote from: desiv;544131
Just any HD 5 1/4" PC floppy drive?  I saw something on one of your updated at mentioned heads stopping and not getting to -8, but only -4 or something like that..

Is that probably not a big deal and I should just grab any 5 1/4" HD drive?
I'm not really worried about flippies at this point (where I think the above issue was) and mostly thinking of C64 and Apple II floppies (and eventually Coleco Adam, as I do have one of those drives, which doesn't get much use..).


As long as you don't need to do flippy disks, you can use any standard PC HD 5 1/4" drive, yes. However, if you are interested in C64 and Apple II disks, I guess you might want something that can do flippy disks? Yes, that may require a drive mod for many drives to step to -8. We are still researching what drives are best for doing it...
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: desiv on February 20, 2010, 10:10:11 PM
Quote from: fiath;544139
As long as you don't need to do flippy disks, you can use any standard PC HD 5 1/4" drive, yes. However, if you are interested in C64 and Apple II disks, I guess you might want something that can do flippy disks? Yes, that may require a drive mod for many drives to step to -8. We are still researching what drives are best for doing it...

Thanx for the heads up.

I might eventually be interested in flilppy's, so I'll be watching what you get on there.  But I think I'll start shopping (trying to find some that still work) for HD drives now.  That way, I will have something I can use when your card is available.

I might be able to mod it if/when I need flippy's, or just get another modable (is that a word?) drive when that happens.  :-)

Great news...

desiv
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 10:48:01 PM
Nice. Yes, we are hoping to get the hardware produced asap. You can of course get a development board like the ones we are using, and get going right now, but they are more expensive as they have stuff we don't use - hence why we got our own design done.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: Karlos on February 20, 2010, 10:50:01 PM
Does it work in a DeLorean?
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 10:52:21 PM
MINI FAQ:

Q. Why is it free?
A. Because we are a non-profit preservation organisation, and our ultimate goal is not financial, but to save all these wonderful games before they are lost.

Q. Do I need a special drive?
A. No. Just a standard PC drive and floppy cable is required to dump any media for that drive.

Q. Does it work with 5 1/4" drives?
A. Yes. Check 1min 10secs into the YouTube trailer. :)

Q. Will it work on a laptop?
A. Yes. It uses standard USB. We have it running on an EeePC.

Q. Why can't I just use the floppy drive in my PC?
A. The floppy controller in the PC can only read the very strict format PC disks, and not very much of anything from other platforms. Not only that, but any copy protection on disks is hard to extract properly without a "low level" read - which you can't do through a PC's FDC. For various reasons, we would strongly argue that images of disks read through a PC floppy controller are unsuitable for preservation.

Q. Is it Windows only?
A. The software is currently in beta, and only runs on Windows (32 or 64-bit, Windows XP or greater). The source to the host software will be available after we go final, and we are then hoping to get it ported to as many platforms as possible. The code was written with portability in mind.

Q. Is it command-line only usage?
A. For the beta, yes. However, we are working on a graphical user interface which will likely be available when we go final.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 20, 2010, 10:55:20 PM
Quote from: Karlos;544147
Does it work in a DeLorean?


Unfortunately the DeLorean has a legacy communications bus that is not supported. However, there is a hack. Set your circuits to 1st January 2010, and give your flux capacitor a small whack. Hopefully, if things go to plan, your DeLorean should now have USB fitted within the glove compartment.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: Karlos on February 20, 2010, 11:12:42 PM
:lol:
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: Karlos on February 20, 2010, 11:18:44 PM
On a serious note, I have to say, this seems like a great idea.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: kolla on February 21, 2010, 08:38:15 PM
Quote from: fiath;544137
Do you mean actually use it as a normal floppy drive from an Amiga or emulator?
Or from a linux pc (typically a laptop) with affs support in kernel, for example. Or OS4/MorphOS/AROS etc.


Quote
Interesting question. It was intended as a preservation tool, and we don't really have that kind of usage in mind, so I doubt we would work on it ourselves. However, the source to the host software will be available, and once we have added writing support, I can't really see any reason why it can't be done.


OK, so writing support in general is not implemented yet?

Anyways, cool project! :)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: fiath on February 21, 2010, 09:05:34 PM
Linux support is wanted by me too. :) I personally don't have a Windows machine at home.

No, writing is not implemented. Planned, but we decided to concentrate on the preservation aspects first.
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 23, 2010, 07:19:51 PM
Quote from: kolla;544271
Or from a linux pc (typically a laptop) with affs support in kernel, for example. Or OS4/MorphOS/AROS etc.

Speaking of possible or not: yes, it is. It somehow would need more hard work for a feature which is depreceated by us. You could easily damage or destroy a disk, just because most media is old. While we agree that it might be nice to be able to write back a whole disk (e.g. to restore a dead original disk), it does not really make sense to work "online" a real disk when you can have an image as well.

But again, this is possible. Please don't expect us to do this, because there are more important things to be done. :)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on February 25, 2010, 09:55:00 AM
====== KryoFlux Hardware ======

//2010-02-24//

We hear you! We have had an amazing response so far, and we have understood that many would love to buy a complete solution rather building it. Therefore we are pleased to announce that we have our first hardware partner to enable us to deliver quality KryoFlux products in the not-too-distant future. Their engineers have already started enhancing our reference design to include changes that were previously planned for a later release, like increasing stability when using older 5.25" drives and to enable the use of 8" drives.

There will be more details available on this in due course. Please note that we are NOT YET ready to take pre-orders, but please spread the word that we're making progress!

We would like to take this opportunity to point out that the preservation work we do is expensive. We are are a non-profit preservation organisation and we receive no income other than donations. We specialise in the development of preservation technology, most recently KryoFlux, and the preservation of digital objects, but we also have to maintain our infrastructure. In return, we hope to dramatically improve the quality and quantity of the preservation tools available, for the benefit of everyone. Our ultimate goal is to save all those wonderful old games before they are lost, so if you appreciate what we do, you can support our efforts by making a donation, here (http://www.softpres.org/donate).

Every Euro, Pound or Dollar helps covering development costs and at the same time shows that we're not on our own. Many thanks to those who already donated, your help and encouragement is very much appreciated!
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: Evillord68 on February 25, 2010, 05:29:03 PM
Your KryoFlux is a great thing. Good work. ;)
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on March 12, 2010, 06:24:14 PM
Join us on Facebook...

...if you want to, that is! :)

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Software-Preservation-Society/322949344929


We're also on Twitter:

http://twitter.com/softpres
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on March 16, 2010, 07:42:34 PM
KryoFlux 1.0 Beta 4 is out...

http://www.softpres.org/news:2010-03-16
Title: Re: KryoFlux - High Definition Flux Sampler for USB
Post by: mr.vince on December 31, 2010, 05:42:40 PM
Hi, there has been so much progress you have not seen since it was moved to a dedicated site & forums:

http://www.kryoflux.com

http://forum.kryoflux.com


It's working fine so far with many 3", 3.5" and 5.25" drives. More drives are under investigation.

We currently do have support for FM, MFM (this includes IBM PC, Atari ST and many others, including many musical instruments), AmigaDOS, C64, many Apple formats and Emulator I+II from E-MU Systems. More formats will be added.

One key feature is the option to do forensic dumps regardless of the format, so even alien formats can be read and archived and then processed later.

Writing does work, we have tested the hardware and can confirm it can write data to disk. We just have not finished this part of the software, because other features (ports, GUI) seemed more important and we all do work full time besides doing this.

The software, including a GUI, is available for Windows (and yes, we *do* support 64bit :p) and Linux, with a Mac port in production. The software is completely free for private, non-commercial use = the community gets it for free. Pro-users need to get a commercial licence for it. These will help to fund further development.

Here's a quick overview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjEPo2pRGjY

Basic (older) schematics are included with the software, and we plan to release the current schematics (which do use bus drivers) with the next release.

We also have pre-built boards available, so you don't have to etch your own boards and start soldering. Many people that originally intended to built their own decided to go for a ready-made product when they saw the pitch used here (the components are *really* small).

Anyway, if you want a board, you can get them here: http://webstore.kryoflux.com/catalog

Cheers,
Chris