Cloud-9 PS/2 Keyboard Interface User Manual - User Manual

Download PDF User Manual

Full Text Searchable PDF User Manual

PS/2 Keyboard Interface

User’s Manual

Cloud-9

Cloud-9
3749 County Road 30 SE
Delano,

55328

www.cloud9tech.com

PS/2 Keyboard Interface

All portions of this hardware are copyright and are the proprietary and trade secret information
of Cloud-9. Use, reproduction or publication of any portion of this material without the prior
written authorization of Cloud-9 is strictly prohibited.

PS/2 Keyboard Interface User Manual

Reproduction or use of any portion of this manual, without express written permission from
Cloud-9, is prohibited. While reasonable efforts have been made in the preparation of this
manual to assure its accuracy, Cloud-9 does not assume liability resulting from any errors in or
omissions from this manual, or from the use of the information contained herein.

Table Of Contents

PS/2 Keyboard Interface ........................................................................................................... 2

User’s Manual ...................................................................................................................... 2

Congratulations! ................................................................................................................... 5

Installation ............................................................................................................................ 6

Required Tools ..................................................................................................................... 6

Kit Inventory List ................................................................................................................... 6

Optional Pass Through Connector ....................................................................................... 9

Operation ........................................................................................................................... 10

Key map .......................................................................................................................... 10

NumLock ......................................................................................................................... 10

CapsLock ........................................................................................................................ 10

Macro Keys Overview ..................................................................................................... 10

Macro Keys - Pre-Canned ............................................................................................... 10

Macro Keys - Custom ...................................................................................................... 11

Keyboard Reset .............................................................................................................. 11

Firmware Version ............................................................................................................ 11

Pre-Canned Macros ........................................................................................................... 12

Congratulations!

Thank  you  for  purchasing  the  PS/2  Keyboard  Interface,  another  one  of  the  fine  products
offered  by  Cloud-9.    This  product  was  designed  to  be  used  with  the  Radio  Shack  TRS-80
Color Computer 1,2 and the Tandy Color Computer 3.

The interface connects to the CoCo via the standard keyboard connector. Because it emulates
a  real  CoCo  keyboard  at  the  hardware  level,  no  special  software  drivers  are  required.  This
also ensures the PC keyboard will work with all software, even those programs which access
the  hardware  directly  (many  do).  Besides  providing  ordinary  keyboard  facilities,  the  interface
also  sports  a  few  extra  features.  The  extra  keyboard  keys  can  be  used  as  programmable
macro  keys.  The  macros  can  be  re-defined  at  any  time  using  the  keyboard,  and  are  stored
indefinitely.  The  ability  to  reset  the  computer  via  the

CTRL ALT DELETE

key sequence is also

provided to perform a CoCo RESET. This interface can connect to the CoCo and any PC
"PS/2" keyboard.

Installation

The following is a step by step instruction guide on how to install your new PS/2 Keyboard
Interface

board into your system. Before you start, make sure that you have the AC power

plug removed from the wall. If a multi-pack is present, make sure that the power is removed
before removing it from the CoCo’s cartridge port. Make sure that you have a static free area
when performing this installation.

Required Tools

1. Phillips screwdriver
2. 1/4” nut driver

Kit Inventory List

1.  Qty 1, PS/2 Keyboard Interface Assembly
2.  Qty 1 each of ¼” bolt, nut and plastic spacer
3.  Qty 1, Ribbon cable
4.  Qty 1, 16 x 1 header pin
5.  Qty 1, Optional Pass Through Connector

The interface will be mounted underneath the keyboard, refer to figure 1.. The case slots will
be used so no drilling is required. If a different method is used it will be the end user’s
responsibility to find an alternate method of securing the adapter to the CoCo’s case. The
ribbon cable will then connect the keyboard adapter to the motherboard via the CoCo's mylar
keyboard connector. If you would like to use both keyboards, then you must procure the ‘Pass
Through Connector’ adapter from Cloud-9.

Figure 1

1. Make sure all power is removed and all cables unplugged from the Color Computer.

2. Remove all screws on the bottom of the computer. Note that the shorter screws are

removed from the front of the computer by the keyboard, longer screws will be placed in
the rear. Damage will occur to the case if you place the long screws in the front of the
case.

3. Remove the keyboard from it’s mounting position and motherboard connection.

4. Plug the PS/2 interface into the CoCo’s mylar keyboard connector. Inspect the pins to

ensure they are aligned with the contacts on the mylar connector.

5. Optional - Plug the CoCo keyboard into the pass-through connector on top of the

interface. Ensure that the conductive strips on the mylar film line up with the pins on the
connector. By using the pass through, both the PS/2 and CoCo keyboards can be used
at the same time.

6. Route the PS/2 keyboard cable to exit out the cartridge port or back by the RESET

switch. To get the case to close without binding. A small notch can be cut into the lower
half of the case. This is undetectable when the upper case is placed back on.

7. The red alligator clip goes to +5V. On a CoCo III this is most readily available on a large

resistor which stands away from the circuit board (R19, far left side of the circuit board;
connect to the pin nearest the front of the CoCo), refer to figure 2.

8. The black alligator goes to ground. Attatch to the metal grounding plate for the

keyboard located on the CoCo3’s circuit board. If you're not sure, ask someone who
knows as a mistake here could damage the interface and/or the CoCo, refer to figure 2.

Figure 2

9. The white wire alligator clip connects to the CoCo's reset button. On the CoCo 3, the

rightmost pin on the top of the reset button is where the clip should go, refer to figure 3.

Figure 3

10. Close the cover and replace the screws that were removed in Step #2. Watch the

screw lengths.

11. Connect all cables , cords and apply power.

Optional Pass Through Connector

The optional pass through connector assembly allows both keyboards to function. Performing
the installation above, the CoCo’s internal keyboard was not connected, thus it will be unable
to be used. This connector assembly ties both the CoCo’s keyboard and the PS/2’s keyboard
matrix chip in parallel. See figures 4 & 5 for the connector installation.

Figure 4

Figure 5

Operation

Key map

If you take a close look at both a CoCo and AT keyboard, you will soon realize that there is a
distinct  difference  in  the  layout  of  non-alphabetic  keys.  This  interface  supports  the  PS/2’s
keyboard  map.  Under  NitrOS-9  almost  all  keys  are  produced  with  one  exception,  `  key  .  If
under  RSDOS  and  a  non  displayable  key  is  pressed,  the  interface  adapter  will  output  the
proper  scan  to  produce  the  key,  but  Extended  Color  Basic  will  not  interpret  it  for  proper
display. To perform a listing scroll lock feature, press the

SCROLL LOCK

this will generate the

@ character.

NumLock

The

NUMLOCK

key toggles the state of the corresponding keyboard LED, and changes the

behavior of the keypad keys. When the

NUMLOCK

LED is on, the keypad keys behave the same

as the keys "0"-"9" and ".". When

NUMLOCK

is off, the keypad keys behave the same as the

arrow keys and macro keys to the keypad's immediate left. The power on state of this key is
programmable. To alter the state of this parameter, it is a toggle function. If the

NUMLOCK

LED

is ON and you would like to have

NUMLOCK

LED OFF at power up, perform the following key

sequence:

1. Press P

AUSE

REAK

now entering programming mode.

2. Press

NUMLOCK

to toggle function.

3. Press P

AUSE

REAK

now exiting programming mode.

CapsLock

Pressing the

CAPSLOCK

key toggles the keyboard's caps lock state. While the keyboard's caps

lock is on, the interface will automatically press

SHIFT W

henever an alphabetic character is

typed. Note that this doesn't affect the computer's caps lock state. If the

CAPSLOCK

LED is OFF

and you would like to have

CAPSLOCK

LED ON at power up, perform the following key

sequence:

1. Press P

AUSE

REAK

now entering programming mode.

2. Press

CAPSLOCK

to toggle function.

3. Press P

AUSE

REAK

now exiting programming mode.

Macro Keys Overview

One  of  the  best  features  of  this  interface  is  it's  ability  to  use  the  extra  keys  on  the  PS/2
keyboard  as  macro  keys.    This  interface  has  two  different  macro  modes,  pre-canned  and
custom.

Macro Keys - Pre-Canned

In pre-canned macro mode, the function keys F3-F12 have predefined functions that can’t be
altered. Pressing the

SHIFT MACROKEY

will perform a NitrOS-9 command lookup and the

WINDOWSKEY MACROKEY

will perform a Extended Color Basic command lookup. Please refer to

Table 1 for key command correlation for the different operating systems.

Macro Keys - Custom

A custom sequence of keystrokes can be associated with each macro key, F3-F12. The
sequence is re-played whenever the key is hit. This is especially useful for commonly used
commands, and for defining application specific key combinations.

The macro sequences are

re-definable at any time through the keyboard, and are saved indefinitely. Each of the ten
available macro keys can have up to 50 keystrokes stored. The sequence is stored exactly as
typed.

The timing of keystrokes is not stored, so the keys are replayed at a fixed rate regardless of
the delay between keystrokes when recorded. The macro keys are F3 through F12.

The

following example is programming the F3 function key.

To define a macro key, perform the following steps:

1. Press P

AUSE

REAK

now entering programming mode.

2.   Press F3.
3.  Type the sequence of characters you want to record.
4.  Press P

AUSE

REAK

now exiting programming mode.

The P

AUSE

REAK

key is not required to be pressed upon exiting the macro recording function.

Pressing  ANY  function  key  will  automatically  exit  you  from  the  recording  function.  This  is
feature  will  not  allow  you  to  stack  your  macro  sequences.  So  using  a  macro  key  in  a  macro
sequence  is  NOT  allowed.  If

CAPSLOCK

NUMLOCK

are pressed during a macro recording

session, this is also not allowed and the recording session will auto exit. The recording will also
stop if the sequence exceeds 50 bytes in length. To erase a macro, simply perform steps 1,2,4
in the above example.  To play a macro, press the macrokey. The keys are played back at a
predetermined rate which cannot be adjusted. The playback is not affected by the state of the
keyboard caps lock when invoked; the state of the keyboard caps lock is significant only when
the  macro  is  recorded.  In  contrast,  the  state  of  the  CoCo  caps  lock  does  not  affect  the
recording,  but  it  is  significant  when  the  macro  is  played  back.    Note  that  while  recording  a
macro, if an error is made and the

BACKSPACE KEY

is used, the stored sequence will have the

backspace event in it.

Keyboard Reset

Another desirable feature of the interface is the ability to reset the CoCo via the

CTRL ALT

DELETE

key combination. Pressing

SHIFT CTRL ALT DELETE CA

uses the interface to hold down the

CoCo's

CTRL A

ALT

keys while resetting. This is useful for forcing a cold restart on the CoCo

Firmware Version

Another feature of the interface is the ability to display the firmware revision of the interface’s
uC. This function is performed by pressing the S

HIFT

AUSE

REAK

In the event of a firmware

upgrade, the new version number will be updated on the web site. This product is not field
upgradeable, so the interface will have to be sent in to Cloud-9 to be re-flashed with the
current firmware.

Pre-Canned Macros

Key

Shift

WindowsKey

dir<cr>

DOS<cr>

dir –x<cr>

DIR

shell i=/

LOAD”

mdir -e<cr>

RUN<cr>

mfree<cr>

LIST<cr>

procs -e<cr>

LOADM”

format

EXEC<cr>

F10

date –t<cr>

COPY”

F11

rename

BACKUP

F12

copy

RENAME”

Table 1

Manual Revision 1.2

July 16, 2013

Cloud-9

Cloud-9
3749 County Road 30 SE
Delano,

55328

www.cloud9tech.com

Ask a Question ?