PCjs Machines

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PCx86 INT 14h TSR

INT14.ASM is a Terminate-and-Stay-Resident (TSR) utility that scans the ROM BIOS Data Area for a COM port whose I/O address is 0x2F8 (or 0x3F8 if the /1 option is specified). If the port is found, then the utility installs replacement INT 14h services for that port. Also, unless the /P option (“polled mode”) is specified, the utility also installs a hardware interrupt handler for IRQ3 (or IRQ4 if /1 is specified) and enables interrupt-driven I/O for the COM port.

Note that a serial adapter with address 0x2F8 is normally named “COM2”, but not always. For example, if it’s the only adapter in the PC, then DOS will name it “COM1” even if it’s using the traditional COM2 address.

INT14.COM and INT14.TXT were built with Microsoft Macro Assembler 4.00 using the following commands:

masm int14,,int14.txt;
link int14;
exe2bin int14.exe int14.com

INT14.COM is intended to be run on an actual IBM PC/XT/AT, so that the PCjs TestMonitor Utility can be used to control the PC from the command-line.

Here’s the procedure:

You should now be able to control the PC using the TestMonitor utility, in your choice of either “terminal mode” or “command mode”.

If interrupt-driven I/O doesn’t seem to be working, then try installing INT14.COM with /P for “polled mode”:

INT14 /P

In “polled mode”, no hardware interrupt handler is installed. Instead, the INT 14h functions attempt to control the flow of incoming characters by toggling the RTS line. However, that may not be sufficient for high speeds (e.g., 9600 baud), so it’s recommended that you use the PC’s COM port at the default speed of 2400 baud, which you can also set with the DOS MODE command:

MODE COM2:2400,N,8,1

testmon.js uses the same default speed of 2400 baud, which you can explicitly set or change as needed:

node testmon.js --baud=2400

There are currently no parity, databits, or stopbits overrides, so you should always use “N,8,1” with the DOS MODE command.

To create a disk image containing the INT14 source code, run the following DiskDump command in the testmon directory:

diskdump --path="int14/INT14.ASM;DOWNLOAD.ASM;FAKECTTY.ASM;MK.BAT" --format=img --output=INT14.img --normalize --overwrite

A disk image named “PCjs INT14 Utilities” for use with PCjs machines has been created as follows:

diskdump --path="int14/INT14.ASM;INT14.COM;DOWNLOAD.ASM;DOWNLOAD.COM;FAKECTTY.ASM;FAKECTTY.COM;MK.BAT" --format=json --output=INT14.json --normalize --overwrite

Additional DOS Utilities

The following DOS utilities require that INT14.COM be loaded first (and with the same /1 option, if any):

Before using DOWNLOAD.COM, be sure sure to heed the advice at the top of DOWNLOAD.ASM:

This very tiny and simplistic file downloader relies on having our
INT 14h	extensions TSR (INT14.COM) loaded first.  You may load INT14.COM
in "polled mode" (/P), but if you do, it's probably best to use the COM port
at its default speed of 2400 baud.  Also, if you loaded it for a non-default
port (/1), then make sure you run DOWNLOAD.COM with the same option (/1).

The 'protocol" is currently very fragile, and if unusual things happen
(eg, a block is interrupted or comes up short), we may wait indefinitely;
fortunately, you should always be able to press a key (eg, ESC) to abort
the operation and try again.

Currently, the only component that knows how to send files to DOWNLOAD.COM
is our Node test utility: https://www.pcjs.org/software/pcx86/test/testmon/testmon.js:

	node testmon.js [--baud=xxxx]

After running DOWNLOAD.COM, run testmon.js and press Ctrl-F to initiate a
file transfer.  You can use the DOS MODE command before running DOWNLOAD.COM
to specify a baud rate other than 2400, eg:

	MODE COM2:9600,N,8,1

but make sure you pass the same baud rate (eg, --baud=9600) to testmon.js.