Visual 1083 Commuter: Part 3 (Booting)
14Finally got the power supply sorted: converted to 230VAC and replaced the three RIFA X-class safety capacitors (a 0.1µF and two 0.01µF). I also installed a new 230VAC fan - I chose one with decent throughput yet pretty quiet.
There was no socket for the 8087 so I installed one for later.
The simplest video output is composite via the DIN socket so I whipped up a cable and connected it to a small Eyoyoyoyoyoyo display.
Found an MS-DOS 6.22 disk and ... it booted. Well, first time I tried without the disk drives connected and got the ROM diagnostic menu. It is also possible to choose a terminal mode.
I tried formatting a disk in drive B: but had issues - not sure if it's a 40-year-old drive issue or a 40-year-old disk issue.
I need to finish off some work on my IBM PC/XT ... once that is back up and running (via CF) I can copy some files to 5¼" disks to run on the Commuter.
Next plans: replace the 8088 with a V20, create an external ISA expansion (via the DC62 socket) and figure out a display for it.