1.) I once made a wild mix of "Hiragana, Katakana, Romaji and Kanj" using the DOS tool vgafed30. Just to get a glimpse of "how it could have looked"....as I cant find DOS/V and or japanese BIOS ROMS anywhere. 2.) Im also wondering if a "Sega Teradrive HDD dump" is existing anywhere and if the menus of the "TeraDrive" are stored as files or within the BIOS.
The TeraDrive is one thing I'd like to get before I leave Japan next year, so I might be able to help out at some point.
Wish I could help but unfortunately the hard drives I used in my Model 3 shipped with no hard drive... Had to scavenge some cables from an IBM PS/2 80286, not the 8086! The hard drives I ended up with were zeroed out pulled from working non-TeraDrives. Nemesis is definitely the man with the full hard drive image, but he only appears sporadically... Or maybe it is me who appears sporadically? As a side note, I use the XTIDE BIOS with some disk on modules to keep them living. But if anyone ever does need a TeraDrive compatible hard drive, feel free to message me. I've got three of the things and only one of those is installed
Here you go: http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/TeraDriveHDD00000201.7z Meant to circulate this years ago. This image has the famed "Puzzle Construction" software on it. To my knowledge, this is the only copy that has ever surfaced of this software. This unit originated from within Sega itself. It appears it was a demo unit or reference unit kept within a sales department of Sega, which makes sense given the low serial number (201). I managed to salvage email fragments from this drive image, some of which I put up here: http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/Email1.txt http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/Email2.txt http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/Email3.txt http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/Email4.txt There's also pieces of inventory data scattered across the drive image. Makes for some interesting digging. I paid over $2000 for this unit back in the day (including keyboard/monitor), which was a small fortune, but the data finds made it worth it. Oh, and the software. Here's some floppy disk images I've made/acquired: http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Software/Driver Disk J4.0 serial.ima http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Software/Driver Disk J4.0 no serial.ima http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Software/IBM DOS J4.06.ima http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Software/IBM DOS J4.07.ima http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Software/IBM DOS J4.0-V Rev 4.06.IMA http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Software/IBM DOS J5.0-V Rev 1.2.IMA And here's some pictures: http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Pictures/ http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/Pictures/HDD/ I've never properly dumped the BIOS files from the TeraDrive, but that would be worthwhile doing. I had plans to make a website with info about my collection, but I've never got around to it.
I had a bit more of a dig at that drive, and retrieved some more internal data from Sega. Here's a presentation which was apparently prepared for the CEO of Sega on the TeraDrive. It may have been incompete at the time, because it really only seems to show manufacturing numbers for the Mega Drive. The file was prepared as a "Harvarrd Graphics" show (powerpoint in the days before powerpoint), but I've converted it to something that can actually be opened nowadays. There are also a few extra/unused slides that were in the same folder: http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/PROTO1.SH3.pptx http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/$01.CH3.pptx http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/MAK_PVAC.CH3.pptx http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/TOT_REC.CH3.pptx And here's the source manufacturing data on the Mega Drive that was used to make the above presentations. This was in a Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet, but I've converted it to an Excel spreadsheet: http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/MASTER.xlsx http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/RECENT.xlsx And here's some of the complete recovered emails I had in text form before. These were WordPerfect docs that I've converted again" http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/19JUL91.FAX.docx http://nemesis.hacking-cult.org/MegaDrive/TeraDrive/HDD/Salvaged/TRAN.FAX.docx There's also that inventory of Teradrive hardware I talked about. It appears to be in a database format with a "DAF" extension, which may or may not be related to the "Digital Anchor" database tools I can find only vague information about. The files seem to contain equipment/stock listings, including serial numbers for TeraDrive hardware, and references to other equipment. It's hard to get useful info out of it without opening it in the proper program to read it, but it would be interesting if they could be recovered and opened.
I can't get access again to it this very moment. I'm actually about to walk out of my hotel in Denver and begin a 30 hour journey back to Sydney. All the data is in that HDD image I posted above though. I used R-Studio to scan the drive for data, and pulled those files out of deleted directories. Some of the data is partially or entirely overwritten. There are a number of deleted database files on the drive, and a few of them may be entirely entact, but most of them are going to be at least partially corrupted, if not entirely overwritten. There's probably large chunks of recoverable data though. I'd suggest getting R-Studio and doing your own scan of the drive image, and you'll be able to find the files yourself, as well as anything else that looks interesting.
Its all spread fragments and a mess, but it is fun to explore the "deleted" stuff and very interesting : #isho.dic contains the mentioned serial numbers and all kind of TeraDrive Models enlisted. Probably fragents of a IBM Multiplan format, like some of the others, if not the japanese Lotus 1-2-3. WordPerfect is enlisted right after the huge data table of TeraDrive Models. The word SONY shows up a lot...Toshiba... #gbdosv.sys contains all text from the game SIM CITY and enlists the TERRAIN EDITOR as well. There are many references to the assembler and C files enlisted, probably the whole source code of SimCity. Which got released in 2008 anyway, but this 90s version could be truly different. Its a "DOS-V Version By Kiyotaka Kono" #agepro.exe references to : C:\123\DAYLY\MASTER'S.WJ2 C:\123\DAYLY\INPUT'S.WJ2 (jap. Lotus 123) C:\HG3\DATA\ROCKTOP.PCC (HGcopy Utility) ___________________________________________________________________________________ The music files dont look like the MegaDrive CYM format. The file header starts right with the instruments. Anyone got an idea ? There are many many patterns that look and feel like parts of graphics, layouts and / or music...but as mentioned, it is a mess. Now I know the CD ROM (Mega CD) never was released for the Teradrive and only 2 prototypes existed according to http://segaretro.org/Teradrive. So what about this tool/loader, why it already mentions MEGA-CD and who would SILKA (Lily of The Valley) be ? The exe file says : PRODUCED BY OR UNDER LICENSE FROM SEGA ENTERPRISES Ltd.
Even the musicbox.doc example-letters(?) are still complete (search the adress or names and even google has it ready to download. __________________________________________________________________ Director of Sales Swiss America, Inc. 1030 Harrington Blvd. Newark, NJ 07112 ________________________________________________________________ The largest fire of Lone Pine National Park's history ________________________________________________________________ Corporate Marketing Conference for December 6, 7, and 8 to be held at the Parkway Inn in Buffalo, New York. _________________________________________________________________ When flying saucers were seen hovering last September over a cornfield in Iowa, a music box was blamed. _____________________________________________________________________ Other buzzwords : -Apple Laser Writer Plus -Ektachrome ASA 100 -AGX Slide Service -graphcnv (which even support Dr. Halo format...my 1st paint program on a SANYO 8086) -VEGA BIOS Code, Video Seven BIOS Code, ATI EGA Wonder Bios,TsengEverexVGA EV673 -WIN200.BIN -C:\BACKUP -C:\BACKUP\Control -Evlotution (yes Evlotution) -SEGAS Story -Amusement Parks -the giant serial number list even enlists some customers who recieved a TeraDrive -AMSDOS .... ...what a ride down memory lane !!! As if the whole story of the TeraDrive is stuck inside this HDD. There is so much in it...which is hard to sort...so much...incomplete....anyway, a big thank you ! And another email : st at the end of financial year. SEGA has been involved in litigation in the U.S.A. and currently settled with a plaintiff to pay huge amount of money. Unfortunately, this sudden exposure turned the depreciation, which we expected in the first place, into impossible. As a result, we suffered a loss at the previous transaction and be unable to maintain the price anymore. Therefore we would like to offer you again as follows; Description : TeraDrive Set, which consists of TeraDrive model 3, CRT, Mouse Price : FOB Japan set price @J.Y.85,000. Premium : We provide you 2 piece of software per set on free up to 200 sets. You can choose any software in our list provided lately. Payment : Advanced Payment by T.T. Distribution : Exclusive ©Thailand Area Non©Exclusive ©Hongkong,Singapore,Taiwan,Malaysia We are very sorry for troubles which we have given you and hope the above new offer will be acceptable. _______________________________________________________________ They had Stunts "Stunt Car Racer" on it :'D !! F IDLEWILD.HLP 12338 06-19-91 10:44:32 ----* 9 33 F STARS.IW 2976 06-19-91 10:44:34 ----* 9 33 F FIREWORK.IW 3844 06-19-91 10:44:34 ----* 9 34 F LINES.IW 2311 06-19-91 10:44:36 ----* 9 34 F WIPE.IW 1926 06-19-91 10:44:36 ----* 9 34 F SHUFFLE.IW 2692 06-19-91 10:44:38 ----* 9 34 F DROPOUT.IW 2767 06-19-91 10:44:40 ----* 9 34 F PEGGED.EXE 27648 06-19-91 10:44:46 ----* 9 34 F PEGGED.HLP 35496 06-19-91 10:44:50 ----* 9 35 F TETRIS.INI 684 06-19-91 10:54:44 ----* 9 35 P PATH = \STUNTS F STUNTS.COM 758 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 35 F SETUP.EXE 15353 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 35 F LOAD.EXE 19827 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 36 F DESKTOPD.CFG 55 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 37 F INSTALL.PDM 578 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 37 F EGA.CMN 132867 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 37 F EGA.COD 63469 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 44 F MCGA.COD 42978 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 47 F SETUP.DAT 83 06-19-91 11:01:14 ----* 9 49 F MCGA.DIF 17370 10-11-90 00:00:02 ----* 9 49 F CGA.
So does anyone still want a TeraDrive BIOS dump? I've got a Willems ROM reader/writer, and a Sega TeraDrive that's currently not working (PSU blew up from what I can tell but I haven't had the chance to open it yet).
So which chip is the BIOS? And the hard drive controller card seems to have an IDE port on it, but the cable that converts it to the proprietary IBM edge connector is the only thing that plugs into the hard drive leading me to believe that one of the IDE pins must carry power; would it be possible to mod the card to accept a regular IDE hard drive?
