Date   : Sun, 28 Jun 2009 23:09:28 +0100
From   : dm.hunt@... (David Hunt)
Subject: Master 512 boot problem

> David Hunt wrote:
> 
> > I am trying to boot a Master 512 using a 3.5" floppy. The boot image I
> am
> > using comes from the DosPlus Boot Disc from the BeebEm emulator. I put
> that
> > image onto a 3.5" DD floppy, then booted the 512. On booting, it gets
> past
> > the Digital Research logo and tries to start COMMAND.COM at this point a
> > whole bunch of invalid op-code messages come up and then it tells me to
> > insert a disc with COMMAND.COM, but then doesn't actually try to read
> > anything else from that point on.
> 
> How have you formatted the 3.5" disk ?  As I recall, the 5.25" DOS+ boot
> disk is a 640k "ADFS L" disk, but the ADFS filesystem doesn't occupy
> much of the disk - the rest is a DOS+ filesystem.
> 
> I suspect the 3.5" floppy might have to be formatted as 640k.

Yes, I have formatted the floppy as an ADFS L disc, I used OmniFlop to do
that and then put the ADL disc image from BeebEm into that disc. The disc is
a split format, with a boot file that you can run from the * prompt that
gets you as far as I got.

Is there a nuance between 3.5" and 5.25" ADFS L formats ?

Damn, I wish I could find those 80186 5.25" discs!!!

Dave