Subj : Re: DIY Laplink cable results
To   : kirkspragg
From : Bob Worm
Date : Sat Aug 23 2025 21:31:45

  Re: Re: DIY Laplink cable results
  By: kirkspragg to Retroswim on Fri Aug 22 2025 22:18:43

 >  Re> What transfer software are you using? Back in the day, we used a
 >  Re> package called "FastLynx", it could get around a megabit of throughport
 >  Re> between 486es, using a standard LapLink parallel cable. I have to
 >  Re> assume using some form of compression?
 >
 > Yea I'm using FastLynx. My past experience with laplink hasn't been so great
 > as it tends to just die on long running transfers. Fastlynx on the other
 > hand seems quite stable.

The intrusive thoughts finally got the better of me so I DOSBox'd two copies of LapLink3 and sniffed the traffic going between them. I don't understand all the messages yet but it doesn't look ridiculously complicated - if I ever get the free time I could probably write an implementation of it for my Acorn, which would make copying files back and forth much easier. I would need to mangle file names (Acorn allows longer filenames, uses . as a directory separator and has file type as a file system attribute) but it would make a fun project.

I've never tried FastLynx, a couple of people have told me it's better, though.

BobW
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