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Trouble Accessing BBS with Tandy 2000

R

rmartin65

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Joined
Jan 26, 2021
Messages
18
I would like to connect to some BBSs using my Tandy 2000. I'm using Windows 1.01 and a 300 Baud Radio Shack TRS-80 Modem I B. I'm getting the error message ''Cannot communicate with the modem''. In the terminal program, I set the Baud rate at 300 (it was set at 1200 by default) and tried all the possible settings combinations without success. The modem is connected in the RS-232 port using a Radio Shack round cable. The modem lights up and when I pick up the phone I hear the computer tone. Everything seems to be working properly, except no connection.
 
The Modem I B is a 'dumb' modem, no autodialer. Sounds like the terminal program you're using expects something with the 'AT' command set. With this modem you manually dial the number on a connected telephone, then after the machine on the other end picks up, flip the switch on the modem to 'orig' (originate) and hang up the telephone.
 
I have the modem instructions and tried that with no success. Maybe the modem is not compatible with Windows 1.01? I cannot test it with DOS 2.11 as I don't have any software for it.
 
I have a FOSSIL driver for the Tandy 2000 which I copied to the Windows start up diskette (T2Kcomm.sys) and then added it to the config.sys file (device =t2kcomm.sys). Still no luck.
 
Do you have the Tandy 2000 windows driver disk? I'm guessing you do. Is T20COMM.DRV loading in Windows?

https://blog.krnl386.com/index.php?post/2018/10/16/Windows-1.0-for-Tandy-2000-found!

From the FAQ for the 2K
Code: 
30) Is it possible to get 'online' with a Model 2000?
------
    Yes, though only for calling a BBS or accessing the Internet through a
UNIX shell account.  There is no software for making a TCP/IP connection
directly.  A good terminal program, which also doubles as a BBS host, is
called GT-Power.  It's quite a powerful package and utilizes a FOSSIL driver
to access the Model 2000's serial port, so the standard IBM version could be
used as long as you're able to find the correct FOSSIL for the Model 2000.
There was an excellent BBS run out of Andrews AFB in Washington D.C. around
1987, called TandyDC, and it was run on a Model 2000 and GT-Power.  It must
be noted that there were two varieties of GT-Power produced, one which wrote
directly to the serial port of an IBM-compatible and doesn't require the
FOSSIL driver, and the version that used the FOSSIL driver to access the 
serial ports.  The Model 2000 can only use the FOSSIL version.

    The main choice for running a BBS host on a Model 2000 is GT-Power.  Due
to thier usage of a FOSSIL driver though it may be possible to get either
FIDO or OPUS to run on the Model 2000 as well.  It should be noted though
that at this stage the versions being referred to are upwards of 10 years
old and may no longer be supported or no longer available online. 



32) Can I run Microsoft Windows on the Model 2000?  
------
     The only version of Windows that will run on the Model 2000 is Windows 
version 1.  It requires a special driver disk, sold by Tandy under part#
7002611.  It supported the Model 2000's high resolution graphics as well as
the Digi-mouse.  Programs written to run under Windows 1 were then usable on
the Model 2000, such as Pagemaker 1.
 
Ah! We may be on something here. I have Windows on 2 diskettes, but I have no driver diskette. I did a "dir" on the 2 diskettes to see if the files from the driver diskette are on the Windows ones but I don't see them...
 
Windows 1 drivers often get rolled in to one single ".bin" file to speed up load time. So the individual file may not appear in the the windows directory. Check the documentation to see if that is the case for this specific file.
 
SomeGuy said:
Windows 1 drivers often get rolled in to one single ".bin" file to speed up load time. So the individual file may not appear in the the windows directory. Check the documentation to see if that is the case for this specific file.
Click to expand...

Since he said he didn't have the Tandy 2K driver disk I think we're on track to find the answer.
 
kb2syd said:
Do you have the Tandy 2000 windows driver disk? I'm guessing you do. Is T20COMM.DRV loading in Windows?
Click to expand...

Hi, I built the Startup/System disks for rmartin65 (and myself). While the T20COMM.DRV is on the driver disk, it doesn't end up on either the startup or system disk. I'm guessing as SomeGuy points out - they get rolled into the WIN100.BIN file? I just went through the whole build process again - no .DRV files end up on the final disks.

kb2syd said:
It must be noted that there were two varieties of GT-Power produced, one which wrote directly to the serial port of an IBM-compatible and doesn't require the FOSSIL driver, and the version that used the FOSSIL driver to access the serial ports. The Model 2000 can only use the FOSSIL version.
Click to expand...

Anyone know where I can download this version?
 
My understanding was that the 2000 was a DOS compatible, not an IBM compatible. It runs DOS, but the hardware is different enough that incompatibilities with some software crop up sometimes.
 
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