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Transferring Floppy Images via FreHD?

NF6X

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Sep 9, 2013
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I've been reading up on the FreHD, and I figure I'm pretty likely to buy one in the very near future. The utilities for transferring files between the SD card and the VHD images look like a very handy way to get files on/off the TRS-80 machine. That has me wondering whether there are any TRS-80-based utilities for reading/writing .DSK images from/to floppy drives. If so, then it seems to me that using a FreHD might be a handy way for reading floppies into .DSK image files and then transferring them to a modern floppyless machine, as well as taking downloaded images and writing them to floppies.

Do such utilities exist already?
 
There is a utility (LDOS only) to read .dsk image. It's a LDOS driver, which mounts a floppy image (JV1, JV3 and DMK) read-only. You can then use DISKCOPY/CMD to make a real floppy.

The set of utilities that you are talking about are "nice to have". FreHD provides a generic API to read/write files on the FAT filesystem. So a utility to low-level read a floppy disk and save it in DMK format is doable. I just don't have time to do that, but contributors are always welcome.

On the FreHD news : I now have a boot menu working, on almost all models (need to finish some 4P support). With a patched rom and a FreHD, no more need for floppies. The menu allows to select the boot image from the SD card. Will post a video soon (or ask Ian to do it ;)

-Fred
 
Also worth noting that the FreHD VHD files are compatible with most emulators including XTRS, SDLTRS and the latest version of TRS32. If you have collected virtual floppies and want to get these onto VHD volumes this is the quickest way.
 
Thank you! The API for accessing the FAT filesystem sounds interesting and useful, and I'm looking forward to seeing that boot menu.
 
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