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[News] Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4ANN.lu
Posted on 18-Jul-2004 12:20 GMT by Jens Schönfeld469 comments
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During the first months of this year, we were totally surprised by the overwhelming demand for Catweasel MK3. All stock has been sold, and even our retail partners do not have anything left in stock. The demand was so high that one controller even went for more than 150,- EUR on eBay!
Unfortunately, it turned out that a new production run of the existing MK3-design cannot be done for reasonable prices, so a re-design became necessary. The new controller is now in the first stage before mass production, so we're confident to be able to show the first controllers at the Amiwest show on july 24th and 25th in Sacramento, Califoria.

Many improvements have been made compared to the Catweasel MK3 that can be summarized under the headline "bigger, better, faster". The changes in detail

The most obvious change is the size of the card: With only 2.5 inch (63.5mm) height, it complies with the low-profile PCI standard that not only fits into any normal computer case, but also in flat models that are so famous among so-called "case-modders". The Flipper-interface will not be continued. Those who need a Catweasel for their classic Amiga can use the Catweasel Z-II S-Class, which is still availble.

Improvements on the floppy controller
Kylwalda built in
While the old Catweasel models always had their own floppy drives that were installed in addition to the existing controller and drives, the MK4 has the option of using the existing diskdrives. After the machine has started, th drives can be used just like before, and after the drivers have been loaded, the Catweasel can take control of these drives when necessary. This is especially useful for smaller cases with fewer drive bays.
We already addressed this problem earlier with an additional product called 'Kylwalda'.

Suppot for auto-eject drives
These drives without eject-button are well-known from Macintosh computers, and they're now fully supported by the Catweasel. You can also mix floppy types, one with an eject-button, and another from the Macintosh world on the same cable.

Hard-sectored disks supported
This kind of 5.25 and 8 inch disks were already readable with the previous Catweasel models, but writing was only possible with a high software effort, and it required a realtime operating system. This effort is not necessary any more with the new controller, because new options allow complete support of these disk types in hardware.

dual-ported memory
Contrary to it's predecessors, the new Catweasel MK4 can pass the data that it is currently reading from a disk to the computer while the read access is running. This allows realtime emulation, and errorfree function of copy-protected software on emulators.

more flexible read- and write operations
In addition to working on whole tracks, which made all previous Catweasel models so flexible, tracks can now also be accesed in part very precisely. Should this become necessary for compatibility or speed reasons, the Catweasel MK4 is perfectly prepared.

extensive timer-functions
Although most operating systems already offer timer-functions in software, you cannot always rely on them. The most recent example are the timing-problems that occur with Hyperthreading-processors and Windows operating systems. Since all timers are running independantly in the hardware of the Catweasel MK4, nothing can go wrong in this regard.

all events can trigger an interrupt (IRQ)
Together with the hardware-timer functions, this is the best solution for multitasking operating systems. The driver software does not have to check regularly if the controller needs attention, which reduces the processor load.

Improvements on the keyboard interface

In addition to Amiga-keyboards, PS/2 devices can now also be connected. Not only keyboards, but also PS/2 mice are supported. The keyboard controller can now trigger IRQs, and for those customers who want to continue using their favourite combination of PS/2 mouse and keyboard on USB-only computers, the Catweasel MK4 has two connectors of this kind.

Improvements on the joystick ports

Amiga mice supported in hardware
Amiga mice only have minimal electronics that always pass the movements of the device to the computer in realtime. Classic Amiga computers have hardware-support for interpretation of these signals in the chipset, and this support has now been added to the Catweasel. Theoretically, using Amiga mice was already possible with the Catweasel MK3, but this required a software effort that was not justifiable. With the new hardware, the software effort is reduced to a minimum.

every signal can be programmed as output
The digital joystick ports of the 8-bit computers of the 80s were mostly usable in two directions, they were not only inputs, but also programmable as data outputs. We're following this tradition, and also present this possibility for the Catweasel MK4.

compatible with CD32 pads
The game controllers of the Amiga CD32 can now also be used on the Catweasel. A special capability of the classic Amigas (and therefore also of the CD32) made these pads exclusive for this computer, if connected to other computers, not all buttons of the pad could be used. Technically speaking: Even the potentiometer-pins of the digital joystick ports can be programmed as outputs on the Catweasel MK4.

Improvements on the SID audio part

DC-DC converter eliminates noise
On the Catweasel MK3, it was possible that noises from 3D-graphics cards or high-speed harddrives were coupled into the 12V-power supply of the SID audio part. This cannot happen any more on the Catweasel MK4, because a DC-DC converter is an insuperable obstacle for such noises.

cycle-exact control
In addition to the known programming that's compatible with the Catweasel MK3, the MK4 has a sophisticated script-language for SID control. This lets the programmer define the exact time for data that's being written into the SID chips. To make sample playback sound exactly like on a real C64, the data rate to the SID chip must be kept at a constant rate. This is accomplished with Fifo memory that's big enough to maintain the datarate even under high processor load conditions.

Digiboost for new SID versions
As opposed to the 'classic SID' 6581, the newer SID-chips 8580 and 6582 cannot playback samples any more. This option, which is also called 'the fourth voice', is replaced by two sigma-delta converters on the Catweasel MK4, so the fourth channel is also audible with the newer SID versions. Since the filter properties and the sound of mixed waveforms of all SID versions have their supporters, this should make the decision for the right chip a little easier.

Filter capacitors selectable
Commodore has defined three different capacitor values for the filters of the SIDs during the years that this chip has been produced. The result was that the same chip sounded differently if used in different computers. To bring the sound as close as possible to what you are used to, the filter capacitors can be chosen with a few jumpers.

precise clocking
The Catweasel MK3 used the commodore-chip 8701 to recreate the exact same clock. Since our stock of this chip is empty with the Catweasel MK3 being sold out, we have cloned it on the main logic chip of the Catweasel MK4: The exact base frequency is generated with crystals that have been made especially for us. By division and multiplication according to the specifications of the C64 schematics from 1982, we managed to replace the 8701, which is not made any more. Even the slight difference between PAL and NTSC computers is software-selectable!

two SIDs for stereo sound
You'll have twice the SID pleaseure after installing a second SID chip. Every SID has it's own selection of filter capacitors, and SIDs of all versions can be mixed.

Technology improvements

compatible with 3.3V and 5V PCI slots
Even though PC boards with 3.3V PCI slots are not yet widely available, the Catweasel is prepared for it. The roadmap of the PCI special interst group plans to abandon 5V PCI slots within forseeable time, and the Catweasel is perfectly suited for that date. Local generation of the 3.3V power also ensures proper function on early PCI motherboards that do not comply with the ATX standard.

two DMA interfaces
In addition to processor-based data transfer, the Catweasel MK4 can excahnge data with the main system through two low-speed DMA channels: The first goes throught he PCI slot, and it has a capacity of about 8K per second and direction. The second uses the direct connection to the onboard-floppy controller, and the speed is up to 100K per second.

low power consumption
The Catweasel MK4 makes use of the latest FPGA technology with 2.5V core voltage. This reduces the power consumption of the new controller to a fraction of what the Catweasel MK3 used. This also reduces heat generation a lot.

re-configurable logic
The FPGA on the Catweasel MK4 is completely re-configurable by the drivers. This means that a hardware update can be done through the internet! Should we find a disk format that cannot be handled with the current hardware, the core of the Catweasel can be 're-wired' to address the problem. The controller doesn't even have to be taken out of the computer for ths update!

drivers for many operating systems
The Catweasel MK4 is delivered with drivers for Windows 98(se)/ME/XP/2000, Amiga OS4, and for Mac OS X at a later date. MorphOS drivers are available for a surcharge.

The Catweasel MK4 will be available starting october 2004.
The target retail price is 99,- EUR.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 1 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Jens Schönfeld on 18-Jul-2004 10:24 GMT
Forgot to put a link to my page into the text: it's http://ami.ga<;/a>. That might be down for a few hours due to regular maintenance this weekend, please try <a href="http://siliconsonic.de">http://siliconsonic.de in that case.

Jens Schönfeld
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 2 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Anonymous on 18-Jul-2004 10:44 GMT
In reply to Comment 1 (Jens Schönfeld):
why morphos drivers are optionals and cost extra money ?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 3 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Bill Hoggett on 18-Jul-2004 10:52 GMT
In reply to Comment 2 (Anonymous):
Perhaps the programmer wanted to be paid for his work? If so, it's right that the cost be passed to the customer and that only the customers who need those drivers should have to pay.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 4 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Anonymous on 18-Jul-2004 11:25 GMT
No drivers for real amigas with pci(Prometheus)?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 5 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Jens Schönfeld on 18-Jul-2004 11:35 GMT
In reply to Comment 4 (Anonymous):
Real Amigas are supported by the Catweasel Z-II S-Class. If you have a Prometheus, you have Zorro slots. If you have a Mediator, you're under-privileged ;-)

Jens Schönfeld
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 6 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Anonymous on 18-Jul-2004 11:40 GMT
In reply to Comment 3 (Bill Hoggett):
m$ and apple paid him ? ainc too ?
how much he is asking to release the driver ? the work seems to be
already done its not like if he still had to write everything :(

if i buy a catweasel , i pay for drivers i dont care at all (included
into the hardware price). please make a version with only morphos
drivers then
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 7 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 11:43 GMT
In reply to Comment 3 (Bill Hoggett):
One could argue that, then, since a MOS user doesn't need AOS4 drivers, he shouldn't pay for them.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 8 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kolbjørn Barmen on 18-Jul-2004 11:45 GMT
In reply to Comment 6 (Anonymous):
There are alos no linux driver shipped with it, so perhaps I should start jump up and down and whine too? And what about support from within UAE or Frodo? :)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 9 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 11:49 GMT
In reply to Comment 8 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
I don't see linux drivers mentioned at all there, for what concerns Jens, it appears such drivers not only are not shipped with the product, they're not even available separately.

Perhaps the only one entitled to give an answer to the original question is only Jens, what do you think?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 10 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kolbjørn Barmen on 18-Jul-2004 11:51 GMT
In reply to Comment 7 (Fabio Alemagna):
Do we even know who wrote those drivers? For all we know, the OS4 drivers as well as the MorphOS drivers are third party. If the authors of the OS4 drivers allowed them to be included for free, but the authors of the MorphOS drivers did not, then perhaps you're barking up the wrong tree? Anyways, what prevents someone from creating their own drivers, be it MOS, linux or whatever?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 11 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kolbjørn Barmen on 18-Jul-2004 11:51 GMT
In reply to Comment 9 (Fabio Alemagna):
Oddly enough, I have working linux drivers for my CatWeasel MK3 :)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 12 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 11:53 GMT
In reply to Comment 11 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
> Oddly enough, I have working linux drivers for my CatWeasel MK3 :)

And that means what, exactly? Did I say such drivers don't exist?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 13 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Mookie on 18-Jul-2004 11:54 GMT
That's just how it is when you're a second class citizen. You pay more.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 14 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Emeric SH on 18-Jul-2004 11:55 GMT
This sounds as something I have to have for my Pegasos. When will be the final pricing made available?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 15 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 11:56 GMT
In reply to Comment 10 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
> Do we even know who wrote those drivers?

No, we don't.

> For all we know, the OS4 drivers as well as the MorphOS drivers are third party.

Perhaps, that's why a question has been asked, and no claim has been made.

> If the authors of the OS4 drivers allowed them to be included for free, but
> the authors of the MorphOS drivers did not, then perhaps you're barking up the
> wrong tree?

Am I barking at all? I only see a guy asking a question, ad you and Bill Hogget giving answers without being in the position to do so.

> Anyways, what prevents someone from creating their own drivers,
> be it MOS, linux or whatever?

Whoever said anything/anyone preevents someone from making their own drivers?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 16 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Jens Schönfeld on 18-Jul-2004 11:57 GMT
In reply to Comment 9 (Fabio Alemagna):
Thanks for the hint - Linux drivers got lost in the translation from German to English. Of course there are Linux drivers included.

The additional cost for MorphOS drivers still needs to be set. We'll need two PegII mainboards, one for the developer, and another for me. Depending on the delivery time of these, and of course the cost of them, the price and release date will be set.

Jens Schönfeld
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 17 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Emeric SH on 18-Jul-2004 12:00 GMT
In reply to Comment 16 (Jens Schönfeld):
That means 2 more Pegasos for the community - the cost goes for a fair purpose :)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 18 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kolbjørn Barmen on 18-Jul-2004 12:01 GMT
In reply to Comment 15 (Fabio Alemagna):
I'm sorry, that "you" wasnt actually meant to you personally at the time I wrote it, more to the others who complained about morphos drivers. My mistake.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 19 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Don Cox on 18-Jul-2004 12:17 GMT
This card will make a PPC-based Amiga practical as a replacement for most A4000s and A3000s.

The ingenuity and originality of Jens' designs is most impressive. I wish he would design a motherboard with all this built in.

The only disappointment is that there is no mention of drivers for Amithlon. I have an ISA Catweasel to support Amiga floppies (but it will not read PC floppies). It would be good to replace this with a MK 4 and be able to use an Amiga keyboard and trackball.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 20 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by itix on 18-Jul-2004 12:27 GMT
SID enhancements look interesting. Must update Frodo again it seems :)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 21 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Tryo on 18-Jul-2004 12:33 GMT
In reply to Comment 16 (Jens Schönfeld):
Pity you sold your peg...
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 22 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Joe "Floid" Kanowitz on 18-Jul-2004 12:40 GMT
In reply to Comment 16 (Jens Schönfeld):
Sounds like a nice revision to what's already "the" product to have.

I was going to use this spot to ask if anyone'd ever figured out jwz's issue, but turns out he solved it. (Figures he didn't tell me; I must've had him reeling from all the did_you_check_the_blatantly_obvious? mails I sent.)

No offense intended, but since I was party to that without ever hearing about the solution... just curious how bad his infamous luck proved. (Know if you or Michael got back to your inbox[es] in time to help, or did he have to stumble on that by trial and error?)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 23 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kronos on 18-Jul-2004 12:42 GMT
In reply to Comment 13 (Mookie):
Yeap, 800$ for a 300$-mobo that is actually worth 5ct when you look at it's performance.

Now that should keep the fire going *g*
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 24 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Bill Hoggett on 18-Jul-2004 12:54 GMT
In reply to Comment 7 (Fabio Alemagna):
There's nothing to say that you ARE paying for them. As far as I can tell, they're just bundled with the card and there's nothing to say they cost anything extra.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 25 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Jupp3 on 18-Jul-2004 13:02 GMT
In reply to Comment 8 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
>And what about support from within UAE or Frodo? :)

At least MorphOS version of Frodo already supports SID on Catweasel MK 3.

And I really really wonder, why anyone would need SID under UAE? :-)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 26 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by corpse on 18-Jul-2004 13:54 GMT
In reply to Comment 23 (Kronos):
"worth 5ct"

I could ebay an i86 Baby-ATX system for under ¡ò50 that'd whoop all "the motherboards" in performance and realworld usability, but that isn't the point is it?

Move along..
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 27 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Johan Rönnblom on 18-Jul-2004 15:39 GMT
Of course Jens is perfectly free to charge MOS users more than others,
if he wants. I doubt many will be interested however, until those
drivers actually *are* available (clearly the first post is in error,
here). I could guess that Jens will now blame the low number of MOS
sales (with the driverless, useless version) as a reason for never
writing any MOS drivers, but I'd be happy to be surprised.

Anyway, I say the same as I always do, regardless if it's Pegasos
motherboards, OS4 or Catweasels - don't pay for something that is not
available for shipment, if you care about your money.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 28 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Ronald St-Maurice on 18-Jul-2004 16:16 GMT
Hehehe

I was wondering if the drivers for BeOS could be done when I saw that the MorphOS version isn't free. lol
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 29 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Anonymous on 18-Jul-2004 16:25 GMT
its tempting to write drivers for this - for the Mediator range of PCI BUSBoards.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 30 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by hooligan/dcs on 18-Jul-2004 16:58 GMT
In reply to Comment 2 (Anonymous):
>why morphos drivers are optionals and cost extra money ?

Simply because Jens hates BBRV, and *you* are paying the fine.
Or so at least he told at Breakpoint anyway.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 31 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Amon_Re on 18-Jul-2004 17:21 GMT
In reply to Comment 30 (hooligan/dcs):
Did he say why?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 32 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by hooligan/dcs on 18-Jul-2004 17:39 GMT
In reply to Comment 31 (Amon_Re):
Yes. I quote myself: "Simply because Jens hates BBRV"

=)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 33 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Anonymous on 18-Jul-2004 18:20 GMT
>drivers for many operating systems
>The Catweasel MK4 is delivered with drivers for Windows 98(se)/ME/XP/2000, Amiga >OS4, and for Mac OS X at a later date.
> ** MorphOS drivers are available for a surcharge. **

Only Amiga makes it possible...
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 34 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Jens Schönfeld on 18-Jul-2004 18:26 GMT
In reply to Comment 32 (hooligan/dcs):
If it would be plain "he hates them", I would work against them, which is not what I'm doing (believe me, I have better things to do than to accelerate their bankrupcy). After the discussion that I had with a few users in Sweden, I tried to find a way to satisfy those customers as well. This is what I found - take it or leave it.

Jens Schönfeld
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 35 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Don Cox on 18-Jul-2004 19:02 GMT
In reply to Comment 34 (Jens Schönfeld):
"If it would be plain "he hates them", I would work against them, which is not what I'm doing (believe me, I have better things to do than to accelerate their bankrupcy). After the discussion that I had with a few users in Sweden, I tried to find a way to satisfy those customers as well. This is what I found - take it or leave it."

It seems fair to me. They want drivers for their hardware. You don't own (or want) that hardware, so the cost includes the cost of buying it.

Realistically, how many Pegasos owners will buy a MK 4 Catweasel? I guess 40.


The same will apply if somebody wants something ported to the AmigaOne and the coder doesn't own (or want) one.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 36 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Emeric SH on 18-Jul-2004 19:14 GMT
"After the discussion that I had with a few users in Sweden, I tried to find a way to satisfy those customers as well."

Weren't there a thread over amiga.org about Sweden... Yes, I remember.

"Here in Sweden almost everyone I now use A1 or Classic Amiga. If you use a Pegasos you are not welcome in most amiga clubs."

http://www.amiga.org/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=17437&forum=4#forumpost233163

This racism will kill the community, like it or not.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 37 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by itix on 18-Jul-2004 19:24 GMT
In reply to Comment 35 (Don Cox):
"Realistically, how many Pegasos owners will buy a MK 4 Catweasel? I guess 40." Probably no one if there are no drivers. But I'm going to add a support for Mk4 in my Frodo port. In fact, in my opinion SID is the only interesting part in CW. Can't imagine any reason to use Amiga floppies or mice or joysticks in 2004.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 38 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kolbjørn Barmen on 18-Jul-2004 19:35 GMT
In reply to Comment 36 (Emeric SH):
Since when was "racism" a one-to-one synonym with "discrimination"?
Or are you suggesting that the blue and red camps have evolved into different races already? If so, I would be interested in their racial characteristics, so that I know what to look out for :)
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 39 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 19:41 GMT
In reply to Comment 38 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
> Since when was "racism" a one-to-one synonym with "discrimination"?
> Or are you suggesting that the blue and red camps have evolved into different
> races already? If so, I would be interested in their racial characteristics, so
> that I know what to look out for :)

Given that there's no thing as "races" when talking about humans (yes, that's right, there are no races), I'd say that racism has always meant discrimination based on "different beliefs/characteristics" when talking about humans.

That applies perfectly here.

Either way, even if it were "mere" discrimination, are you suggesting that's something good, or even just bearable?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 40 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Stevo on 18-Jul-2004 19:46 GMT
In reply to Comment 34 (Jens Schönfeld):
..makes me wonder about the financial status of Hyperion/Eyetech/KMOS. At least Genesi is making some money by selling Peg2's to Freescale + "possible other companys" + individuals. I wonder how Hyperion/Eyetech/KMOS keep their balance out of the red figures.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 41 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Amon_Re on 18-Jul-2004 19:47 GMT
In reply to Comment 34 (Jens Schönfeld):
Agreed.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 42 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Amon_Re on 18-Jul-2004 19:48 GMT
In reply to Comment 40 (Stevo):
Hyperion does contract work i suppose, Eyetech has a whole business, the A1 is but a part of that business, as for KMOS, who knows?

Also, why bring this up in the first place, it's completely unrelated to this thread
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 43 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Stevo on 18-Jul-2004 19:58 GMT
In reply to Comment 42 (Amon_Re):
You are right, it is a bit misplaced (given the original thread). It was something wich crossed my mind some time ago and after reading Jens's reply, I pressed the "reply to this comment" forgetting the original tread; I got carried away by the (seemingly unavoidable) blue vs. red war. Sorry for that.

To comment on the original post: Impressive design, great features and allthough I understand Jens's decision, it's a shame that I can't use it in my pegasos because of the lack of MOS drivers. I hope they will be written some day -> than I will most definatly buy a CW.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 44 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Anonymous on 18-Jul-2004 20:20 GMT
Well it's kind of cool that hardware like this exists, from a technological perspective perhaps, but come on, *floppies*? In **2004**?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 45 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Kolbjørn Barmen on 18-Jul-2004 20:22 GMT
In reply to Comment 39 (Fabio Alemagna):
If there are no races, there also can not be racism.

When Ghandi, Mandela and others have talked about "peace and understanding between people of different races and colours" are you saying they were all talking out of their asses?

When the current South African constitution has an article that says "The state may not unfairly discriminate directly or indirectly against anyone on one or more grounds, including race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language and birth." are you suggesting that it is bogus because it use the term "race" in there?

Personally I hate it when people shove facts and terms under a carpet just because it is political uncorrect. Yes, there are human races, the human spieces doesnt differ from others in that. I dont grasp why that shall be so hard to swallow. Next we'll be told that there are no genders, and that sexism also is just another general term for discrimination.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 46 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 20:52 GMT
In reply to Comment 45 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
> If there are no races, there also can not be racism.

I beg your pardon, but that's a quite a stupid - and superficial - statement.

There are no biological races, which doesn't mean there are no perceived "races". Race doesn't have only a biological meaning, you know? It's got to do with society, cultures, behaviours, all those kind of things. People do have a tendency to classify other people on the basis of a multitude of elements, and each of those classifications gives light to a new "race". That's the only meaning of race that is applicable to humans.

> When Ghandi, Mandela and others have talked about "peace and understanding
> between people of different races and colours" are you saying they were all
> talking out of their asses?

Form a biological standpoint, yes. From a social one, from the point of view of someone who needs to bring a certain kind of message (that is, no more racism), then no.


> When the current South African constitution has an article that says "The
> state may not unfairly discriminate directly or indirectly against anyone on
> one or more grounds, including race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status,
> ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability,
> religion, conscience, belief, culture, language and birth." are you suggesting
> that it is bogus because it use the term "race" in there?

The term "race" is simply redundant there, because all other terms already cover what "race" is intended to cover. From a biological point of view, yes, that specific term is bogus, which doesn't render the whole sentence bogus.

> Personally I hate it when people shove facts and terms under a carpet just
> because it is political uncorrect. Yes, there are human races, the human
> spieces doesnt differ from others in that.

Sorry, but you're simply, blatantly, amazingly, enormously wrong.

There's no biological justification to "races" when applied to humans (and also to some other species), individuales withind the same "race" differ as much from each other, genetically speaking, as people from different "races".

> I dont grasp why that shall be so
> hard to swallow. Next we'll be told that there are no genders, and that sexism
> also is just another general term for discrimination.

It's not "hard to shallow", it's simply incorrect.

Perhaps an historical background will make you reflect a bit. Do you know who was the first to talk about "human races"? It was Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, a German naturalist, 1n 1795, in the third edition of "De Generis Humani Varietate Nativa", his seminal work. Mr. Blumenbach came up with a very interesting name for a group of people counting millions of individuals, a name we still hear today. Said Mr. decided it was a good idea to collect European, North Africans, western Asians, all light skinned, as... caucasians. The reasoning behind this decision was at least as "interesting" and, nowadays, everyone with a grain of salt would judge them hilarious, at the best.

Mr. Blumenbach's argumentation was that

1) people from the Caucasian region were the most beautiful, and
2) probabily humans were first created in that area.

Of course, claim n. 1 is entirely bogus and void of anything remotely scientific. Claim n. 2, is bogus as well, on the basis of modern theories that say that humanity as we know it originated from Central Africa.

Now that you know what the expression "human races" exists at all, don't you feel just a little bit ashamed that you endorse such an old fashioned and useless and meaningless way of cathegorizing humans?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 47 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 20:53 GMT
In reply to Comment 45 (Kolbjørn Barmen):
In any case, you've failed to answer to my last question: do you think such a behaviour, regardless of whether you call it racism or not, is good, or even just bearable?
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 48 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Graham_NLI on 18-Jul-2004 21:05 GMT
In reply to Comment 44 (Anonymous):
A Catweasel is essential for anyone running a data recovery service. There's more than a few of them. One data recovery contract for a business that needs some records stored on old media can make back the cost of the catweasel and whatever drives are attached to it.
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 49 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Fabio Alemagna on 18-Jul-2004 21:11 GMT
In reply to Comment 46 (Fabio Alemagna):
Found this on Blumenbach. If you want to make a good laughter, go read it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Friedrich_Blumenbach
Announcement: Technical data of the new Catweasel MK4 : Comment 50 of 469ANN.lu
Posted by Darth_X2 on 18-Jul-2004 21:47 GMT
In reply to Comment 35 (Don Cox):
> Realistically, how many Pegasos owners will buy a MK 4 Catweasel? I guess 40.

Are you including yourself? :)
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