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| [[Image:Red_logo_small.png||center]]<br/> | | [[Image:Red_logo_small.png||center]]<br/> |
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| == What Is REX ==
| | <big> '''REX Products for Model T laptops! '''</big> |
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| REX is completely plug and play flash memory upgrade. REX plugs
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| into the Option ROM slot, with no soldering or necessity to open
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| the laptop case.
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| REX provides support for up to 8 | | <table border="0"> |
| in-circuit selectable option roms. That means, you can have 8 different
| | <tr><td>[[Image:REXCPM.PNG]] </td><td> All of REX + CP/M support! ---></td><td>[[REXCPM]] </td><td>[[Image:rexcpm.jpg]]</td></tr> |
| software packages on one Option ROM, and select between them without
| | <tr><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr> |
| physically unplugging anything.
| | <tr><td>[[Image:REXsharp.PNG]] </td><td> Next Gen Flash based REX ---></td><td>[[REXsharp]] </td><td>[[Image:rexsharp.jpg]]</td></tr> |
| | <tr><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr> |
| | </table> |
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| In addition, REX is in-circuit, software
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| reprogrammable. That means you can change, patch, or replace an Option ROM image
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| without any special hardware or physically unplugging REX.
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| [[Media:Rex_OverviewV4.2.pdf|Rex Overview PDF]] | | <big> How to order ---></big>[[Ordering Information]] |
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| == REX Manager ==
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| REX comes pre-programmed with REX Manager software. REX
| | {| class="wikitable" |
| Manager allows you to pick which of the 8 ROM images is the one
| | |'''Type'''||'''Supported Models'''||'''Memory type'''||'''CP/M?'''||'''Option ROMs?'''||'''RAM backups?'''||'''PCB2MOLEX Carrier?'''||'''Robustness improvements?''' |
| currently in use.
| | |- |
| | |REXCPM||M100, T102||Static RAM, 2MB or 4MB||YES||YES||YES||YES||YES |
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| | |REXsharp||M100, T102, T200, NEC||Flash, 1MB||NO||YES||YES||YES||YES |
| | |- |
| | |} |
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| REX Manager operates "behind the scenes" to make sure the currently
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| selected Option ROM image is automatically enabled on every power cycle.
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| This is an impressive trick since REX does not receive power while
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| the laptop is off (unlike the RAM memory circuit).
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| Also, REX Manager is able to do this while using a minimal amount of RAM space (about 10 bytes)!
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| == Advanced BASIC ROM Replacement Mode (OPTIONAL) ==
| | No longer orderable (from me), and end-of-support: |
| | <table border="0"> |
| | <tr><td>[[Image:REXclassic.PNG]] </td><td> Classic Flash based REX ---></td><td>[[REXclassic]]</td></tr> |
| | </table> |
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| For users with the do-it-yourself spirit, an optional
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| feature of REX can be enabled.
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| With a single wire soldered in place, REX permits BASIC ROM replacement!
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| This means that you can disable the built-in BASIC/TEXT/TELCOM ROM
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| on your motherboard and replace it with a specific block of REX flash memory.
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| Typically, this will be the same BASIC/TEXT/TELCOM ROM image we know and
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| love, with a few changes. So, you can
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| upgrade your Model T with little tweaks like Y2K, the lomem patch, new
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| character sets, put your name on the main menu, etc.
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| == Installing REX Manager - It's Easy ==
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| From a cold restart, simply typing
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| <code><pre>CALL 63012</pre></code>
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| will install the REX system.
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| To start REX Manager, press and hold reset,then press and hold ESC. Keep ESC down until you have released the reset button.
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| Then from
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| basic type:
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| <code><pre>CALL 911</pre></code>
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| REX Manager will start, allowing you to manage
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| which ROMs stored in REX can be used, and when.
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| == Additional Utilities ==
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| A separately loadable utility allows you to burn ROM images into REX.
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| == Future Roadmap ==
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| Future releases of REX will have a built in file system for managing
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| REX files, TPDD files and RAM files.
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| There will be approximately 512K of
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| file storage.
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| A likely future feature is a facility for freezing/thawing RAM images to/from flash. This would offer an easy way to quickly backup all RAM to flash, or switch between multiple snapshots of RAM. This is similar to the "fast switch environments" on Remem: it would be like having multiple laptops in the same case!
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| [[Category:Model T Hardware]] | | [[Category:Model T Hardware]] |