199 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
199 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
atapi.FAQ - Your most frequently asked questions about
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ATAPI/IDE CDROM drives.
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Author: Mathew E. Kirsch
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Systems Manager - Computing Graphics Engineering Technology
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SUNY at Alfred, Alfred NY 14802
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kirschm@snyalfva.cc.alfredtech.edu
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Revisions:
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1.0 - First public posting, 951010
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1.1 - Added Q5 and Q6, 951011
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1.2 - Added Q7, courtesy Steve Clarke; renamed the ATAPI CDROM FAQ
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1.3 - Added Q8, due to number of people with this problem
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Q1: Is the <Insert your brand/model here> IDE CDROM drive supported?
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A1: Yes, of course it is. It is an ATAPI/IDE CDROM drive, meaning it utilizes
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the IDE hard drive interface that is present in most typical home PC's
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today. It has been like this since kernel version 1.1.85.
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Q2: I already have two IDE hard drives. Will my ATAPI CDROM still work?
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A2: Yes, but you need to have a second IDE interface card to make it work.
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Unfortunately, not just any IDE card will work. The secondary interface
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card that you choose must have jumper-selectable IRQs and base addresses,
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or, you need to purchase a card that is specifically manufactured for
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use as a secondary interface. One such card is the Data Technologies
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model 2183. Its typically only $15, so its not a big expenditure on your
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part. If you bought a Mitsumi with an interface card, use that one.
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Another option is an EIDE card with dual IDE "ports", meaning it has
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two IDE/EIDE interfaces on the same card. I've been out of circulation
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for a while USENET-wise, but I heard that the 1.3.x kernels fully support
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EIDE interfaces.
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Q3: I can't seem to find the driver for the FX400 in the kernel source,
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what should I be looking for?
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A3: There isn't a SPECIFIC driver for the Mitsumi FX400 (or for any other
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ATAPI/IDE CDROM drive for that matter). What you need is the ATAPI
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CDROM driver that has been included in the kernel source officially
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since at least kernel version 1.1.85. It can be enabled just like any
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other driver when you "make config" and recompile the kernel. Recompiling
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the kernel is an entire FAQ in itself, so I won't cover it here.
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Q4: What options should I enable so I can use my new
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<insert brand name/model here> ATAPI CDROM?
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A4: Here is an excerpt from the "make config" sequence:
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*
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* Please see drivers/block/README.ide for help/info on IDE drives
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*
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Use old disk-only driver for primary i/f (CONFIG_BLK_DEV_HD) [n] n
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Use new IDE driver for primary/secondary i/f (CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDE) [y] y
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Include support for IDE/ATAPI CDROMs (CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDECD) [n] y
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As you can see, you do NOT want to use the old disk-only driver, and you
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DO want to use the new IDE driver and include support for ATAPI CDROMs.
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Also, make sure you enable ISO9660 filesystem support (the standard
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CDROM filesystem type). Compile your kernel, and copy the compressed kernel,
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vmlinuz, from /usr/src/linux/arch/i386/boot to / and do the same for
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System.map. If you are using an older version of Slackware (older than 2.2),
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you also need to run a short script to create the device nodes (in /dev)
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for the two devices on that secondary interface. The script is located in
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/usr/src/linux/drivers/block, and is called MAKEDEV.ide1.
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Update LILO or loadlin (whichever you prefer to use) as needed,
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reboot and away you (should) go. As long as you have your secondary IDE
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interface on IRQ 15, and at port address 170h-177h (the defaults for the
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DTC 2183 interface, but always double-check factory jumper settings, and
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as always: when in doubt, ask someone), things should work admirably.
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Linux should have no problem recognizing the secondary interface, and your
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bootup sequence should look something like this:
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hda: WDC AC1210F, 202MB w/64KB Cache, CHS=989/12/35, MaxMult=16
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hdb: Maxtor 7345 AT, 329MB w/64KB Cache, CHS=790/15/57, MaxMult=32
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hdc: FX400_02, ATAPI, CDROM drive
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ide1: secondary interface on irq 15
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ide0: primary interface on irq 14
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This may seem a bit confusing, so I'll translate. The first line indicates
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that my first hard drive (/dev/hda) is a Western Digital 202MB hard drive.
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The second is a Maxtor 329MB drive. hda is the first drive on the first
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interface, and hdb is the second drive on the first interface. hdc is the
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first drive on the second interface, and hdd (not used on my system, yet :)
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is the second drive on the second interfae. The third line, therefore,
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indicates that there is an FX400 ATAPI CDROM located on the first device
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of the second interface. The final two lines indicate that there are two
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IDE interfaces, one on IRQ 15, one on IRQ 14. The drives you have will
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show up differently, but the format will be the same. Remember where the
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CDROM was recognized, as you will have to make a symbolic file link to the
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/dev/cdrom device. Do this by typing (from anywhere):
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ln -s /dev/hdc /dev/cdrom
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Once booted, you should now be able to insert your favorite Slackware
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distribution CDROM and mount it by typing:
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mount /dev/cdrom /mnt
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Pretty simple, eh?
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Note that in some cases you may have to add the following line to your
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/etc/lilo.conf or to your loadlin script (whichever you use):
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append="hdc=cdrom" <--- for lilo.conf
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hdc=cdrom <--- from the lilo "boot:" prompt
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Q5: I've installed the drive as the only device on the secondary interface,
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with the CDROM drive jumpered as SLAVE/SINGLE, and Linux won't
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see it. What am I missing?
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A5: Well, quite a lot, to be frank. 99.99% of the ATAPI CDROM drives
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are shipped jumpered as SLAVE or SINGLE, and this simply will
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not work with Linux. By the IDE standard, a single
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drive on an interface must be jumpered as MASTER. There isn't (or
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shouldn't be) a specification for SINGLE in the IDE standard.
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Change the jumper on the back of the CDROM drive to MASTER,
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and follow the directions in Question 4, and you should be set to go.
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Q6: I've heard that putting my ATAPI CDROM and my IDE hard drive on the same
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IDE channel slows down the hard drive. What is the story?
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A6: From my personal experience (and the experience of several others who
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commented on the subject), there is no truth to the rumor that putting
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the CDROM and HDD on the same channel slows things down.
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The rumor states that the MEDIA TRANSFER RATE is set to the speed of
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the slowest device on the IDE channel. This is wrong.
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The real rumor should be that the INSTRUCTION TRANSFER RATE is set
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to the speed of the slower device on the IDE channel. Since the
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instructions are handled in firmware (the logic chips on the control
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boards on the drives) rather than on the spinning media, the only
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reason the INSTRUCTION TRANSFER RATE would be slower on one device
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is due to a poor design by the manufacturer.
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You mileage may vary here, because the rumor may actually be true
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if you're using certain IDE/EIDE controller boards. If you are
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experiencing the slowdown when your CDROM and HDD are on the same
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IDE channel, send the brand and model of your controller to me,
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and I'll list it here.
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Q7: I just got kernel 1.3.(19-30), and my ATAPI CDROM quit working. Why?
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A7: Somebody reworked the IDE/ATAPI drivers for kernel versions
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1.3.19 through 1.3.30, and they got broken in the process.
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Don't ask me why, because as I see it, if it ain't broke, don't
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fix it! Another view on the subject is: If you don't want to be a
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guinea pig, don't get the odd-numbered (1.1.x, 1.3.x, 1.n.x) kernels.
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Stick to the even numbered, or production kernels, like 1.2.13.
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Q8: Why does my Mitsumi FX401 drive perform badly?
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A8: Mitsumi recently (about August '95) replaced the FX400 with the FX401.
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This model, although similar, has a few new minor features and a small speed
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increase. Unfortunately, the timing of this drive is slightly different and
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breaks the standard IDE/ATAPI controller in Linux 1.2.* - 1.3.26 with some
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EIDE controllers. The symptoms are break activity of the CDROM drive followed
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by about 10 seconds pause and an timeout/reset error message in a syslog
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file. The only known solution to this problem is to upgrade to a new
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development kernel 1.3.28 or later. The new code is stable in 1.3.30.
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Unfortunately, this new code doesn't work with several other drives.
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<thanks to steven.clarke@keble.oxford.ac.uk for Q7/A7>
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Q9: I just got finished wiring up my Sound Blaster 16 IDE, and the ATAPI drive
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isn't detected!
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A9: The most likely result of your troubles has to do with the base addressing
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of the IDE port on the Sound Blaster. This comes from the factory set to
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use the TERTIARY (third. Yes, there is a third and fourth IDE port now, but
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so far linux doesn't use them in the latest production kernel.) IDE port.
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Remember that for linux to see a second IDE port, it has to be at the
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secondary address (0x170-0x177, IRQ 15). This is the only way production
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Linux will ever see your second interface and ATAPI CDROM.
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You can also change a couple of lines in ide.c in the kernel source
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to probe for your secondary IDE card at the tertiary address/IRQ, but
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that's only for the adventurous.
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A second cause of your problem may be the fact that when Creative Labs
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manufactures a CDROM drive, they put the master/slave jumper on the
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SLAVE pins. It is pretty likely that the CDROM drive is the only
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device on the SoundBlaster IDE interface, and by the definition
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of the IDE standard, a single device on any given interface MUST
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be jumpered as MASTER. This doesn't bother DOS or any of the other
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inferior operating systems, because they are forgiving with regard
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to the manufacturer and user screw-ups. Linux is an operating system
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for someone that knows their computer fairly well, and it adheres
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to standards STRICTLY.
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You will also have to reconfigure your ATAPI CDROM and SB16IDE in
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DOS, Win 3.1x, Win 4.x, and OS/2, because the change of address won't
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be realized by these inferior (IMHO) operating systems.
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Epilogue: If you have any comments, questions, additions and/or corrections,
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let me know. I can be reached at kirschm@snyalfva.cc.alfredtech.edu,
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at my brother's email vp24njcb@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu, or at a new site
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kirschm@london.cgt.alfredtech.edu (hopefully by late August, this will be
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my main address).
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I will periodically update this listing with new questions, and
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contributions, and I hope that it will eventually grow into a general
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ATAPI FAQ.
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Cheers
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