exram and "AVAIL" words...

[jimturpin]

Hi all,

I have an IsoPodX with IsoMax V.6 software, and a newbie to Forth as well. I apologize in advance for any dumb questions I may ask. I do try to research the documentation

I am trying to decern a way to determine how much extended ram I have available. I have looked through the documentation and can't seem to find the appropriate command. I apologize for having to ask, but is there one? I thought of stuffing the extended memory with "FF's", then testing all locations and tallying the values. I need to write data to extended memory and want a way to keep track of available memory as an ongoing process.

Of the choices I have AVAIL(data ram), EEAVAIL(eprom -data flash), PAVAIL(program ram), and PFAVAIL(program flash), none seem to return anything different regardless of the position of J6. Understandably these are for other area's of memory and should return anything different, but I tested just to make sure I wasn't over looking anything.

I have to admit I am certainly enjoying the programming experience and using the IsoPodX. The more I explore its' features, the more impressed I have become. Am I correct in saying its' ability to perform transcendental functions in hardware (barring other DSP's micro's) make it somewhat unique in the micro-controller world?

Also, last question. Is there any timeline when the "official" V1.0 release of IsoMax comes out?

[jimturpin]

In the first paragraph, "I do try to research through the documentation and this support board before asking questions".

In the third paragraph, "should" should be "shouldn't return".

[nmitech]

IsoMax does not check the external memories automatically. You must enable it by setting the DP and PDP where the memories are available. See the test below,

IsoMax V0.6
\ onchip ram, IsoPod OK
HEX OK
AVAIL U. 5B9 OK
PAVAIL U. 1E0 OK
OK

\ offchip ram, IsoPodX OK
HEX OK
10 C00 ! ( enable external memory ) OK
2000 DP ! ( external data ram starts ) OK
8000 PDP ! ( external program ram starts ) OK
OK
AVAIL 2000 - U. C800 OK
OK
PAVAIL 8000 - U. 7FE0 OK

Is there any timeline when the "official" V1.0 release of IsoMax comes out?
As far As i know there is no exact timeline, but the next release could be Version 1.0. We are in the process of testing the beta Version. So it's not going to be far away if everything is going smoothly.

[jimturpin]

That got it! I tried running the the prescribed routine with the J6 jumper in position 1-2 and it worked. Removing the jumper or putting it into position 2-3 (with PD0 high)resulted in everything going hay-wire, which was expected.

I called myself looking through the documentation but couldn't find any references to turning the extended memory on, other than a reference to EXRAM (future).

------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: Document correction request:

Document: IsoPodX.pdf
Date created:10/07/03
Page: 85

Error as printed: (paragraphs six, seven, and eight)
PD0 controls the GRN LED
PD1 controls the YEL LED
PD2 controls the RED LED

Requested change (as tested on IsoPodX):
PD0 controls the RED LED
PD1 controls the YEL LED
PD2 controls the GRN LED
----------------------------------------------------------------

Of note, it might be a good idea to mention that the RED LED and the extended memory on PIN 3 of J6 do share the PD0 port, which is kind of handy, since you can look right over on the board to see if extended memory is on (RED LED OFF) or extended memory is off (RED LED ON). I run the example program CHASELED from AUTOSTART, as a "heartbeat" to make sure I haven't hosed up the processor with my newbie programming efforts, and was soundly shooting myself in the foot while testing the PD0 functionality since it was constantly changing.

Thanks for your help. It is very appreciated!

Best Regards,

Jim

[nmitech]

Jim, Thanks for the info. Will correct the manual shortly.