ALTAIR 8800 micro Users Manual
© Briel Computers 2010 page 34
Break-point stop mode:
Use this feature to stop the Altair 8800 micro at the address that is on the front panel address switches when the
CPU hits that address.
Let’s say you want the CPU to stop when it hits address $2000. To get the CPU to stop at memory location
$2000 you must set the front panel in break-point mode using the PROTECT switch and the 16 address
switches. You simply program the front address switches with your address and put the PROTECT switch up
and the AUX switch down.
To program $2000 on the 16 front panel switches you must flip up switch 13 and all the other ones go down.
When the CPU is running and you hit address $2000 the Front panel will stop the CPU at that address and then
you can pull up the STOP switch to go into front panel programming mode. When you are finished and want to
run again, simply put the PROTECT switch back down and flip the RUN/STOP switch to RUN again.
Firmware updates:
There are 2 types of firmware updates. The first one would be an update to the terminal section firmware. This
is done using keyboard commands and not the front panel. The other firmware that we perform when needed is
the CPU section. As the code for emulating the 8080 improves, firmware updates will be issued that will be
needed to improve the performance of the system as well as remove software bugs as they are discovered.
To update the CPU’s firmware you must follow these steps:
1. Turn off the Altair 8800 micro
2. Load the new firmware version onto your SD card.
3. Place the card into your Altair 8800 micro.
4. Turn on address switches 14, 12, 10, and 8.
5. Turn off address switches 15, 13, 11, and 9.
6. Lift up AUX switch and make sure PROTECT is down.
7. Turn on the Altair 8800 micro and wait for the message and prompt
8. Enter the file name of the new firmware and press ENTER.
At this point the system will perform a firmware update. Do not turn off your system until you get the
completed message. After it is finished, you need to turn off your system, put only switch 11 and AUX up to
load BASIC as normal.
Future front panel modes planned:
As time allows, we will continue to add features to the front panel including a dummy demo mode that blinks
the lights in some strange pattern. We also plan to allow you to load from SD card at any stage of programming.
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