Commodore PET - Trouble! I Can Not Seem To Get This To Work! Try A Different Cable! - Episode 1498
6In the midst of all this testing, things were not going well...Not at all well...and there are only three variables...computer, cable, disk drive...so, assuming you have an extra PET-IEEE cable handy...swap it in and see if anything changes...it is best to be able to go from three things that are happy together, and then change other things to isolate what is not working, but sometimes that is not always possible...stay patient...and walk away if you are getting really irked!
Information from previous videos...that might be helpful!
How do you sometimes tell if a disk drive has been upgraded? Look for a sign...or perhaps a DYMO label...it could be a little paper tag attached to the power cable, or somebody might have engraved the status of the unit into the metal...but with this drive, it is the DYMO tape!
When you are mating your disk drive to your PET, you need the PET-IEEE cable...we have already talked about the PET side of the equation, here is a video on how you connect the same cable to the connector on the 4040 or for that matter, any other IEEE device such as a printer or a modem! The IEEE end of the cable is a D connector as one side of the connector is just a bit smaller than the other and sides are a little bit tapered...this ensures that it will only fit one way...it is pretty simple...make sure you get it the right way up and push it securely into position...and if there are screw sort of things on the cable and the drive has the receptacles, it is a very good idea to use them to secure the connection...even a bit of stress on the cable can cause it to tweak a bit and lean to one side or the other and the drive and the computer will not talk...if there is a ground strap put that between the receiver and the screw and secure it there...most cables did not have the grounding option, but some did...it will work find either way...
I am connected to a PET with BASIC 4.0 and it should let me use the CATALOG command and it should easily access the 4040 dual disk drive, but it is not happening...sigh...it does not help that the keyboard on this machine needs cleaning, but I must be doing something else wrong...back to the drawing board...
I was trying to access a disk drive that I had connected to this 32k PET computer, but the catalog command did not work, nor did the directory command...in other words, the ROM version inside of this machine does not support such commands therefore it has not been upgraded to BASIC 4.0, otherwise it would state that when you turn the computer on...but it does not mean that the drive can not access the drive...you have to revert back to the way to load a directory on the Vic-20 and the Commodore 64, and that is load"$",8. Now, while I was making these videos, I was having other troubles...and maybe a cable that was installed upside down so that did factor into my woes. But if you are sure you are connected and that things should work, it is a good idea to try loading from other devices, such as 9, 10, & 11. Drives could have been altered back the day if whatever they were being used for had more than one unit connected...people that ran BBS's were very often the people who would void the sacred warranty and alter the device numbers...and some would install switches, like Commodore started to do on the 1541-II and the 1581...but these switches were most likely of the toggle variety that might have been on the front or the back...out of the way, but at the ready in case they wanted to make a change...
Looking down from above, we can see the back of the PET and a PET-IEEE cable right side up...Always look for the logo...attach the cable when the computer is off...and enjoy! One thing, if your cable is not very long, try to make sure that the drive and the computer are close enough together that there is no stress on the cable...as they can pull off on an angle if under load as it were...if the other end of the cable has the screws still, do use them and ensure that the connection on the drive is secure and can not slip...if ever things do not seem to be working, before you panic, check to make sure that the connector is not at any sort of angle on the back of the computer...even a little such angle can leave pins not being connected to the edge connector...
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