--- /dev/null
+Date: Sat, 11 Jul 92 15:00:00 EDT
+From: Charles Lasner <lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu>
+Subject: A few more release files for Kermit-12
+
+ Now available are two new versions of K12DEC and K12ENC, which
+have a new feature for image transfer of an entire device optionally
+split into two parts. This comes at the request of a user, and was
+quite easy to add. As before, the sources document how to use the
+programs, etc.
+
+ The new files have been installed in the regular places:
+
+BITNET/EARN Internet
+KERMSRV@CUVMA watsun.cc.columbia.edu Description
+
+ K12MIT ANN kermit/d/k12mit.ann Announcement of KERMIT-12
+ K12MIT UPD kermit/d/k12mit.upd Release update (this) file
+ K12ENB PAL kermit/d/k12enb.pal .BOO-format encoding program
+ K12DEB PAL kermit/d/k12deb.pal .BOO-format decoding program
+ K12MIT NOT kermit/d/k12mit.not Release notes file
+ K12MIT DSK kermit/d/k12mit.dsk Description of RX02 diskettes
+
+------------------------------
+Date: Wed, 11 Mar 92 15:52:25 EST
+From: Charles Lasner <lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu>
+Subject: A few more release files for Kermit-12
+
+ Now available are two new versions of K12DEC and K12ENC, which
+have a new feature for image transfer of an entire device. This
+comes at the request of several users, and was quite easy to add. As
+before, the sources document how to use the programs, etc.
+
+ I am working on an upgrade (specifically a handler) for OS/278 to
+allow complete transfer of RX50 diskettes as an encoded ASCII-fied
+file. This utility merely handles records available to the normal
+file structure, but in the OS/278 RX50 case (from DEC) this is not
+the entire disk structure. In part this is a safety feature, so you
+can't access the "slushware" tracks; you can't transfer an entire
+image of an RX50 currently. When the system is upgraded with a
+suitable handler, the encoder and decoder gain access to the entire
+device; all other system utilities can utilize the entire RX50 as an
+effectively larger device.
+
+ If the handler project takes too long (it is actually quite
+involved surprisingly enough) I will possibly resort (by popular
+demand) to releasing an interim program that does its own RX50 I/O as
+a special case of encode and decode. That would be withdrawn later
+when the handler is available. (DECmates are becoming available to
+various people around the world, but they don't have the support
+software to get it running; this method would allow them to get their
+machines up after they had merely an OS/278 bootable disk (available
+from DECUS) and the Kermit-12 files :-).)
+
+ The two new utilities are currently useful for other devices.
+For example, an entire OS/8 RX01 or RX02 can be encoded as a file.
+With the WPS-oriented handlers installed (commonly available), images
+of an RX01 WPS document disk can be encoded/decoded directly. (This
+even includes bootable WPS RX01 systems diskettes, or even RT-11 RX01
+disks!) The existant WPS/COS-style handlers allow transfer of any
+RX01 as long as track zero can be ignored. This is generally the
+case on RX01/02, but NOT RX50, thus the above problem.
+
+ The new files have been installed in the regular places:
+
+BITNET/EARN Internet
+KERMSRV@CUVMA watsun.cc.columbia.edu Description
+
+ K12MIT ANN kermit/d/k12mit.ann Announcement of KERMIT-12
+ K12MIT UPD kermit/d/k12mit.upd Release update (this) file
+ K12ENB PAL kermit/d/k12enb.pal .BOO-format encoding program
+ K12DEB PAL kermit/d/k12deb.pal .BOO-format decoding program
+
+------------------------------
+Date: Mon Oct 21 1991 12:00:00 EDT
+From: Charles Lasner <lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu>
+Subject: Release of Additional Kermit-12 Utilities
+Keywords: .BOO, PDP-8, PDP-12, VT-78, DECmate, OS/8
+Xref: DEC PDP, See PDP
+
+ This is a release of companion utilities to KERMIT-12 for the
+purpose of enhancing file distribution. Two areas are addressed: 1)
+Initial program acquisition, 2) Binary file encoding.
+
+1) Utilities are provided to create and load copies of KERMIT-12 "on
+the fly" from a server such as a remote time-sharing system or a
+local PC on the other end of a "clean" connection to the PDP-8.
+
+ Unfortunately, most PDP-8 family systems lack a communications
+predecessor to KERMIT-12. Most communications applications were
+limited to terminal emulation only, so it is rare that any PDP-8
+system has an existing utility sufficient to acquire KERMIT-12. (Of
+course some sites have prior versions of KERMIT-12 already.)
+
+ Assuming an error-free serial connection to the other system, it
+is possible to down-load KERMIT-12 directly into the PDP-8 memory
+without a protocol. This is similar to the process used for years by
+DEC field service to load paper-tape copies of diagnostics. Loading
+is limited to a single PDP-8 field at a time. Performing several
+load operations yields intermediary image files which can be combined
+into K12MIT.SV identical to the release version (except for
+irrelevant loading artifacts which is a consequence of the operating
+system itself).
+
+ The format chosen for Initial Program Load (.IPL) is an encoding
+that yields ASCII files that should pass through any system with
+ease. The scenario of loading is assumed to be either direct
+system-to-system, or between a remote system and one of its
+terminals. All control characters (such as CR and LF) are ignored,
+thus the encoded files contain frequent line breaks to make the
+encoded file pallatable to the serving system. Strictly lower-case
+letter messages are added at the beginning and end of the file to
+serve as leader trailer fields as well as file documentation. Please
+note that while spaces are insignificent, the rest of the ASCII
+character set is used for loading information, so editing of .IPL
+files must scrupulously avoid changes to the "body" of the file.
+
+ A simple program (K12IPL.PAL) is provided for .IPL loading of a
+single field. The user must customize it for local requirements, and
+then enter two variant forms of the loader. (Future releases could
+require additional variants to be created. The current release
+occupies two fields.) This process is similar to customizing the
+communications requirements of KERMIT-12 itself. The program is
+sufficiently small to allow manual entry into the system debugger
+(ODT) directly. Examples of such an entry session are provided as
+K12IP0.ODT and K12IP1.ODT. The source program may also be retyped by
+any available means (TECO, EDIT, etc.) if desired. Only standard
+PDP-8 peripherals are supported such as KL8E, KL8-JA, etc., as
+opposed to KERMIT-12 itself which supports various DECmate
+communications hardware as well. It was felt that the greatly
+increased complexity of supporting the DECmate communications ports
+would make this process too unwieldy. However, it is possible to
+load the data through the DECmate's printer port. The VT-78 and all
+prior PDP-8 models are fully supported.
+
+ Distribution files include K12FL0.IPL and K12FL1.IPL which are
+the encoded copies of field zero and field one respectively.
+K12IPL.DOC is a discussion of the .IPL encoding format itself.
+K12IPG.PAL is the utility used to create K12FL0.IPL and K12FL1.IPL
+from the standard release file K12MIT.SV. (K12MIT.SV is itself
+distributed in encoded form as K12MIT.ENC and now also K12MIT.BOO
+(see below). K12IPG can be used with other programs for similar
+purposes if required.)
+
+2) Utilities are provided for encoding and decoding arbitrary OS/8
+files using the popular .BOO format encoding scheme. .BOO format
+should be compatible across dis-similar systems thus avoiding
+intermediary "hazards."
+
+ While quite popular in the MS-DOS world for file distribution
+purposes, .BOO format as originally designed has an inherent weakness
+that makes reliable use on OS/8 family systems impossible. I have
+designed an extension to the format to make .BOO format sufficiently
+reliable to allow implementation of an encoder and decoder for OS/8
+systems. Note that ENCODE format is still the format of choice for
+file distribution because of its more robust nature, but the shorter
+files created by a .BOO encoder may be desirable in certain
+circumstances. .BOO format files cannot pass through WPFLOP "paths"
+to distribute files on DECmates or VT-78, so ENCODE format is
+mandatory on systems used this way.
+
+ The relevant problem with .BOO format has to do with file length
+anomalies that are a consequence of the format itself. .BOO files
+either end on a repeat compression field or a complete three-byte
+data field expressed as four characters, each only six bits
+significant. Should a file end with only one or two eight-bit data
+bytes, two or one additional null bytes will be appended to pad out
+the last data field. This leads to files that are one or two bytes
+longer than intended. At least this is the behavior on systems like
+MS-DOS which maintain a file byte count. Since OS/8 files are
+multiples of whole records, each of which can be viewed as a
+collection of 384 bytes, any change in a file's length of even a
+single extra null byte will cause the creation of an extraneous whole
+record. Besides wasting space, it is conceivable that an OS/8 file
+corrupted in this manner could actually be dangerous to use! Note
+also that this problem can be cumulative in that repeated
+transmission between systems where the file is stored locally in some
+decoded form, and then encoded locally before transmission to another
+site, can cause the problem to worsen indefinitely. Clearly, .BOO
+format must be firmed up to prevent this form of file corruption
+before it can be used safely on PDP-8 systems. (It has also been
+noted that widely distributed .BOO encoding programs exist on certain
+systems which exhibit defects such as erroneous appendage of
+additional null bytes onto the end of the file not indicated by the
+file's contents. This is clearly a program bug and not an inherent
+problem with .BOO format design.)
+
+ The method chosen to correct the existing .BOO anomaly is to
+append a correction field to the end of every file requiring it. The
+basic correction unit is ~0 which means literally a repeat
+compression field with a count of zero. This construct is ignored by
+most .BOO decoders because it contributes nothing to the file. (At
+the bare minimum, .BOO decoders should implement the robustness of
+ignoring this type of data. It is conceivable that due to design
+error, a decoding program could "blow up" when encountering this
+data. Imagine a file lengthened by 2^32 null bytes! The exact
+amount of extraneously generated null bytes would likely be 2^{how
+many bits wide are integers on the machine} or one less than that.)
+
+ .BOO-encoded files may now contain either ~0 or ~0~0 at the end
+to indicate whether one or two bytes are to be "taken back"
+respectively. Tests on MSBPCT.BAS and MSBPCT.C as currently
+distributed by CUCCA indicate that these corrections are perfectly
+ignored, thus decoded files are erroneously inflated by one or two
+bytes. This is the expected behavior of these older decoders. When
+used with PDP-8 DEBOO.SV (distributed in source form as K12DEB.PAL),
+the correct file length is maintained. PDP-8 ENBOO.SV (distributed
+in source form as K12ENB.PAL) is the first encoding program that
+creates the correction field as necessary. It is hoped that this
+"pioneering" effort will cause other systems' encoders and decoders
+to be similarly updated.
+
+ Overall program operation for the encoder and decoder is
+identical to the equivalent programs for ENCODE format.
+Documentation is contained in the source files. As in the ENCODE
+format decoding program, the target file name can be taken from the
+original file name imbedded within the file, or optionally the user
+can specify a target file name as well as a target device. When
+encoding, the imbedded file name will always be the original name of
+the file supplied as input to the encoder. The user can specify any
+valid combination of output file name and device for the resultant
+encoded file.
+
+ OS/8 files passed through ENBOO/DEBOO are packed/unpacked
+according to the standard OS/8 "3 for 2" scheme to ensure byte
+accuracy where relevant. This allows files which are ASCII, but too
+"delicate" for ordinary transfer to be sent between unlike systems
+with total accuracy. This includes any file where the precise
+placement of CR and LF may be critical, or contains unusual
+characters in the file such as BEL or ESC. A perfect example of this
+is the interchange of TECO macros between PDP-8s (used with OS/8
+TECO.SV) and IBM-PCs (used with MS-DOS TECO.EXE) with a unix system
+as an intermediary storage site. Both end systems use like line
+termination schemes incompatible with the intermediary system. Since
+both systems support .BOO format, the files can still be sent without
+loss.
+
+ Most of the existing K12MIT-related files are unchanged.
+K12MIT.DSK is updated to reflect all new files pertaining to .IPL or
+.BOO utilities. K12MIT.ANN and K12MIT.UPD are updated per this
+announcement. All files distributed in ENCODE format are replicated
+in .BOO format.
+
+ The new files have been installed in the regular places:
+
+BITNET/EARN Internet
+KERMSRV@CUVMA watsun.cc.columbia.edu Description
+
+ K12MIT ANN kermit/d/k12mit.ann Announcement of KERMIT-12
+ K12MIT UPD kermit/d/k12mit.upd Release update (this) file
+ K12MIT DSK kermit/d/k12mit.dsk Description of RX02 diskettes
+ K12MIT NOT kermit/d/k12mit.not Release notes file
+ K12IPL PAL kermit/d/k12ipl.pal .IPL loading program
+ K12IP0 ODT kermit/d/k12ip0.odt ODT session creating IPL0.SV
+ K12IP1 ODT kermit/d/k12ip1.odt ODT session creating IPL1.SV
+ K12FL0 IPL kermit/d/k12fl0.ipl .IPL encoding of K12mit (FL0)
+ K12FL1 IPL kermit/d/k12fl1.ipl .IPL encoding of K12mit (FL1)
+ K12IPG PAL kermit/d/k12ipg.pal .IPL-format encoding program
+ K12IPL DOC kermit/d/k12ipl.doc Description of .IPL format
+ K12ENB PAL kermit/d/k12enb.pal .BOO-format encoding program
+ K12DEB PAL kermit/d/k12deb.pal .BOO-format decoding program
+ K12MIT BOO kermit/d/k12mit.boo .BOO encoding of KERMIT-12
+ K12PL8 BOO kermit/d/k12pl8.boo .BOO encoding of PAL8 Ver B0
+ K12CRF BOO kermit/d/k12crf.boo .BOO encoding of CREF Ver B0
+ K12GLB BOO kermit/d/k12glb.boo .BOO encoded TECO file macro
+
+[Ed. - Thanks, Charles! Additional information can be found in the new
+file, k12mit.not (K12MIT NOT), a message from Charles to the "PDP-8 lovers"
+mailing list.]
+
+------------------------------
+Date: Thu Sep 6 1990 11:00:00 EDT
+From: Charles Lasner <lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu>
+Subject: Announcing KERMIT-12 Version 10g
+Keywords: PDP-8, PDP-12, VT-78, DECmate, OS/8
+Xref: DEC PDP, See PDP
+
+ This is a maintenance release of KERMIT-12. A minor problem
+relating to incorrect CPU identification messages has been fixed.
+The problem only appeared when the CPU was a KK-8A single-board CPU;
+this configuration was previously untested. Thanks to Johnny
+Billquist of Sweden for his assistance in pinning down the problem.
+
+ KERMIT-12 operation was not affected in any other way, as only
+the DECmate-specific identification is crucial; earlier PDP-8 family
+members are treated in a generic fashion except for the "frill" of
+model identification (all PDP-8, PDP-12, VT-78 models use
+software-compatible port hardware; all DECmates are incompatible and
+must be handled individually). We are still looking for volunteers
+to test the various DECmate III and DECmate III+ configurations.
+
+ The rest of the release concerns the encoding of files into the
+"ASCII-fied" format. The format has been modified to be more robust,
+since the original method has proven itself to be problematic in
+certain practical circumstances (as reported in K12MIT.BWR).
+
+ The new ENCODing format is based on five-bit encoding with repeat
+compression. As much as 256 repeated 12-bit words will be expressed
+in a five character field. Any repeated 12-bit value can be
+compressed, as opposed to simple zero compression, as in other common
+encoding schemes. (PDP-8 files often have repeated strings of the
+value 7402 octal, which is the HLT instruction.)
+
+ The only printing characters required to pass through any
+distribution "path" are 0-9, A-V, X, and Z. The alphabetic characters
+can also be lower-case. All command lines are framed by ( and );
+all data lines are framed by < and >. These characters can be
+changed if required, as they are not part of the data; they could be
+replaced by W (w) and Y (y) if necessary. (Changing the framing
+characters requires slight modification of the ENCODing and DECODing
+programs.)
+
+ The new format supports a 60-bit file checksum to ensure proper
+decoding at the other end. The former 12-bit checksum could be
+compromised on long files.
+
+ The new ENCODing programs creates internal (REMARK commands
+stating the ENCODed file's creation date, and the original file's
+creation date. This will aid in distribution of PDP-8 files where
+the user wishes to maintain proper file dates. The date algoritm
+used is the one proscribed by the OS/8 DIRECT program. (OS/8 systems
+only OPTIONALLY support file dates, and there is an eight-year
+"anomaly" associated with identifying the year; the user must
+determine the credibility of the year portion of the date. The value
+provided by the ENCODE program for the original file creation date is
+always today's year or the previous seven years as necessary; this
+field will not be provided if the system doesn't support the required
+AIW feature.)
+
+ Overall file size is theoretically as much as 6/5 of the original
+encoding format (as the earlier format was based on six-bit
+encoding), but actual size varies downward due to slightly less file
+overhead (wider lines mean less CR LF; there is now less
+automatically generated verbiage), and the random improvement
+afforded by simple repeat compression.
+
+ Virtually all K12MIT-related files are re-released at this time.
+There are several new files. Due to the "fragile" nature of TECO
+macro files, the file K12GLB.TEC is no longer being distributed
+directly; the file K12GLB.ENC is the same file in the new ENCODE
+format.
+
+ The new files have been installed in the regular places:
+
+BITNET/EARN Internet
+KERMSRV@CUVMA watsun.cc.columbia.edu Description
+
+ K12MIT ENC kermit/d/k12mit.enc Encoded binary of KERMIT-12
+ K12MIT DOC kermit/d/k12mit.doc Documentation file
+ K12MIT BWR kermit/d/k12mit.bwr Updated "beware" file
+ K12MIT DSK kermit/d/k12mit.dsk Description of RX02 diskettes
+ K12MIT ANN kermit/d/k12mit.ann Announcement of KERMIT-12
+ K12MIT UPD kermit/d/k12mit.upd Release update file
+ K12DEC PAL kermit/d/k12dec.pal Decoding program
+ K12ENC PAL kermit/d/k12enc.pal Encoding program
+ K12PL8 ENC kermit/d/k12pl8.enc Encoded binary of PAL8 Ver B0
+ K12CRF ENC kermit/d/k12crf.enc Encoded binary of CREF Ver B0
+ K12MIT PAL kermit/d/k12mit.pal Main source file of KERMIT-12
+ K12PCH PAL kermit/d/k12pch.pal KERMIT-12 source patch file
+ K12CLR PAL kermit/d/k12clr.pal Memory clearing file
+ K12MIT LST kermit/d/k12mit.lst Symbols-only listing file
+ K12PRM PAL kermit/d/k12prm.pal Sample VT-78 config file
+ K12GLB ENC kermit/d/k12glb.enc Encoded TECO file macro
+ K12ENC DOC kermit/d/k12enc.doc Encoding format description
+
+[Ed. - Many thanks, Charles. Believe it or not, there are still quite a
+few PDP-8 based systems out there, and even some PDP-12s. You won't find
+very many other new software packages that support them!]
+
+------------------------------
+Date: 05-October-1989
+From: lasner@cunixc.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner)
+Subject: Announcing KERMIT-12 Version 10f
+Keywords: PDP-8, PDP-12, VT-78, VT-278, DECmate, OS/8
+Xref: DEC PDP, See PDP
+
+ This is to announce the release and availability of a highly
+revamped KERMIT program for the complete family of Digital Equipment
+Corporation 12-bit computers, known as KERMIT-12 (or K12MIT), Ver.
+10f. Unlike its predecessors (K08MIT and K278, upon which it is
+partially based, as well as prior versions of KERMIT-12), KERMIT-12,
+as now distributed, will run on any PDP-8 model (8, LINC-8, 8/i, 8/l,
+8/e, 8/f, 8/m, 8/a), PDP-12, VT-78, or DECmate (VT-278, aka DECmate
+I, DECmate II, DECmate III, DECmate III-plus) under any OS/8 family
+member operating system. Proper operation is accomplished
+automatically. Companion utilities are provided to deal with
+"ASCII-fied" binary files in ENCODE format (a mechanism designed by
+Charles Lasner and Frank da Cruz as a proposed successor to BOO
+format); ENCODE format has been employed to distribute the binary
+portion of this release of KERMIT-12.
+
+ Due to the myriad port requirements of the various models,
+conditional parameters have been provided in the source (as well as a
+separate patching file) for models prior to DECmate I. The program
+auto-configures for all models of DECmate; parameters are available
+to select the DECmate ports (DP278, communications, printer, etc.)
+where applicable.
+
+ Many improvements have been provided to get this KERMIT "up to
+speed" relative to other KERMITs. KERMIT-12 has been tested
+successfully with many KERMIT implementations and will run at the
+maximum baud rate (and sometimes beyond the DEC-stated limit!) of the
+relevant interface. Any console terminal configuration acceptable to
+OS/8, etc. can be used at any baud rate as long as local flow-control
+protocol is obeyed; remote flow control can be disabled at console
+speeds higher than the remote line rate. Connect mode I/O is fully
+ring-buffered in all directions with local flow control always
+enabled for all console terminal operations. (This should satisfy
+all console terminal requirements ranging from 110-baud teletypes to
+built-in 350-Kbaud VT-220 emulators, since any of the gamut of these
+ASCII terminals could be the system console terminal for any of the
+KERMIT-12 supported computer configurations!).
+
+ KERMIT-12 will run anywhere OS/8 does, so it runs on any perfect
+look-alike suitably configured. Some known compatibles are:
+
+ - TPA made in Hungary, this machine is an 8/l except for the silkscreened
+ letters which are Magyar, not English.
+ - Fabritek MP-12
+ - Intersil Intercept
+ - Pacific CyberMetrix PCM-12
+ - Digital Computer Controls DCC-112 and DCC-112H
+ - Computer Extensions CPU-8 (a drop-in replacement for the 8/e or 8/a cpu
+ for a PDP-8/A-400 or -600 hex-wide box)
+ - Computer Extensions SBC-8 (a single-board computer -8 compatible based
+ on the 6120 like a DECmate, but compatible with -8 peripherals, not
+ DECmate peripherals; it also supports up to 16 comm ports)
+
+ Various emulators are available for PDP-10, 15 and the IBM-PC
+which will also support KERMIT-12 if suitably configured.
+
+ Distribution files are available from CUCCA. Testing is under
+way for some of the more obscure configurations (e.g., DECmate III
+with comm port); volunteers are welcome for this task. The author
+can provide copies to interested parties on virtually all of the
+popular PDP-8 media on a time-available basis.
+
+[Ed. - Many thanks, Charles! The files are in Kermit Distribution area D
+with prefix K12, and the previous PDP-8 versions having prefixes K08 and
+K278 have been retired. Internet users may ftp the files as kermit/d/k12*,
+and BITNET users can get them from KERMSRV at CUVMA as K12* *.]
+
+------------------------------
projects / pdp8.git / blobdiff