Lilith emulation

[Jos Dreesen / Marian Capel]

Jim Battle wrote:

> I've written a couple emulators using wxWidgets; it is highly 
> recommended.

I will have a look at  wxwidgets.

> 
> bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca wrote:
>> I want to cry out ... Real hardware I want It.
> 

> I don't get your reasoning.  Someone writing an emulator in no way 
> precludes you or someone else from building hardware.  In fact, it is a 
> good stepping stone towards building real hardware.  Even when building 
> new hardware, building a software model first is often useful.

One of the reasons for making this emulator ( the main one in fact ) is that I need a testbed for changing the drive in my real Lilith from the troublesome Honeywell Bull cartridge drive, with a propriatary interface, to a WD1001 / MFM drive combo . Might also go for an IDE disk.
It will involve adapting the microcode, the Medos code and interfacing to the Lilith IO circuitry, and I would much rather test on a piece of software than risk my irreplacable real hardware in the development process.

In a later stage I expect the emulator to use the real MFM ( or IDE ) substitute drive. Only when this works will I adapt the real thing.

>> Can  new bit slice version of the hardware be built?
Sure. Are you willing to invest in new PCB`s ? I will provide schematics in Eagle format.

>> Also did any of the 'Wirth'  languages have  plans  for 32 bit data 
>> and adresses?

After the Lilith the ETH  made the Ceres workstation series. And guess what, no bitslices, but a standard microprocessor (NS32032, later NS32532 )
A separate Lilith successor seems to have been the Eve series, of which I know nothing ( Richard, pictures !)

				Jos Dreesen