Hard disk loading system - final solution

[Petari]

This is certainly last step in development. What's the point ? What I wanted from beginning is fast and fluid loading from hard drives, without interrupts, flashings, knacks and similar. But by games which have direct FDC access it is very hard achievable - because we need to switch to working TOS and activate hard disk driver, TOS filesystem etc. It requires MFP handling what is slow, disabling interrupts of game etc. The result is normally some flashing by load and sound with interrupts.
So far, fluid load was possible with RAM disk solutions. What I did is fluid load without RAM disk, working by loading data from hard disk while game's interrupts may still work in background. To clarify right at beginning: it works only with mine hard disk drivers, and only with later versions. The reason is that hard disk driver must not use MFP for timing and some other things.
I made special version of GOS5, which supports mentioned kind of loading, and so, that it is compatible with later launchers, those TT compatible.
It has fastest loading as no any MFP dealing, CPU vector dealing, just jump in TOS in high RAM and loading data form hard drive. While it, interrupts of game may work normally. Only in few cases interrupts must be disabled before disk access, and it is by games which change some CPU registers with interrupt rutines. Sorry for this technical talk, but some people may be interested.
I tested so far with some 60 games, and only in 2 cases needed to disable interrupts, what is good ratio. Game 'Creatures' loads without any flashes.

It would be good to do some testings, as this will be base for 'all adapts' image. But of course, it will affect only games with direct FDC load, what is in fact less than 1/3 of adapted ones by me. Others use TOS calls for load.
So, I plan to put together one smaller image, with about 100 games, which all will work via GOS5. So, may test on diverse configs. Including TT.
It should be done in a week.

Launchers stay same, except few, where IR disabling is necessary. Only files D15R_5H.FIC and D15R_5F.FIC are new (I kept same names for compatibity with launchers), and of course hard disk driver must be proper.

By me, it is something ideal for modern Atari gamers:  making things to work best together. Not by approach: 'Hddriver is best, others are crap, etc..'. There are things which can be solved better than in Hddriver, especially considering gaming support. And not only for TOS call less games.

[Petari]

I posted image :  http://atari.8bitchip.info/ppsd.html

It is on Megaupload, some 42 MB with 60 games. Mostly updates and TOSles loaders. Good for Satandisk, UltraSatan, ACSI attached SCSI disks on MegaSTE or via some IDC. Or even with Steem, Hatari. IDE support soon - at moment I can not test on Falcon - problems with it.
There are latest versions of DM (1.2) and CSB (2.1), with gamex and special cheats too. Enjoy