LisaList2

Quote from: ried on January 18, 2026, 01:39:46 PMYou could also download the .zip file in this Google Drive folder, unzip and copy its contents to the root of your SD card: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SnGo1Won63IntYfYbV4ddHpuPoutTXhc?usp=share_link

No need to rename any of the files. Let us know how it goes.

I just formatted the SD card and placed the contents of your zip filed into the root folder and gave it another shot on the Lisa. Same results as before, three high beeps and error "85" under an icon of a crossed out ProFile drive.

I did manage to get Lisa OS installed via my Floppy Emu. Interestingly, when I go to Preferences > Connect Devices > Expansion Slot 2 > 2 Port Card > Lower Connector, it already has "ProFile" listed for that Parallel port. It's almost as though the Lisa can 'see' the device but can't mount it (if that terminology fits here)...

Quote from: AlexTheCat123 on January 18, 2026, 01:38:27 PMCould you try plugging your ESProFile into the built-in parallel port, the one that the Widget is currently connected to? That way, we can confirm whether it's a problem with ESProFile or something to do with the parallel card.

I'm down to give this a shot. Can you give me any guidance or even some pictures on how to connect the cabling? I'm nervous about frying it since I read the cable is not keyed...

You could also download the .zip file in this Google Drive folder, unzip and copy its contents to the root of your SD card: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SnGo1Won63IntYfYbV4ddHpuPoutTXhc?usp=share_link

No need to rename any of the files. Let us know how it goes.

Could you try plugging your ESProFile into the built-in parallel port, the one that the Widget is currently connected to? That way, we can confirm whether it's a problem with ESProFile or something to do with the parallel card.

Thanks for the reply!

As of right now, the microSD card is empty, save for a single "profile.image" file. I've swapped out that file between various images (LOS boot images, the Selector image, etc.), always renaming it "profile.image," but the results have been the same, including after testing with another card, doing a full low-level format, etc.

This seems to be a configuration issue with the ESProFile. Your Lisa seems to be working fine. I would start with the SD card, making sure the drive images and selector are all in the right place.

What does the root of your SD card look like?

Hi all!

My wife and I visited VCF West a few months ago, and came home with a lovely Apple Lisa 2/10. The machine is in good shape overall, including a functional internal 10MB Widget drive with MacWorks XL installed. The only real issue with the machine that I'm aware of is that the upper Parallel port doesn't work properly (according to the previous owner).

I also bought an ESProfile (external hard drive emulator), which I have attached to the lower Parallel port. However, when I power on the Lisa and get to the boot select menu, pressing Apple-4 to select the lower Parallel port (where the ESProfile is attached) causes the ESProfile to blink twice, and then the Lisa emits three loud beeps and asks if I want to try again or just restart.

I've done the following troubleshooting steps:

•     Made sure the ESProfile is getting good power via a known-good Micro USB cable and known good wall charger
•     Tested the ESProfile on both the upper and lower Parallel ports (same behavior either way)
•     Flashed / updated the firmware on the ESP32 module according to the steps on the GitHub page
•     Tried with a wide variety of bootable Lisa image files, each placed in the root of the microSD card and renamed "profile.image"
•     Downloaded and tried to use the "Selector" bootable image
•     Reformatted the microSD card and reinstalled various bootable images, each renamed "profile.image"
•     Moved the Parallel card from Slot 1 to Slot 2 (no change in behavior, other than the boot device numbers changing appropriately in the boot selection menu)

What am I missing here? Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

Update:

I'd already been tinkering with it for hours by the time I posted and my brain was turning into mush... so I kept going for another 2-3 hours. Here are some more details and updates:

• I get the same response whether I use the keyboard shortcut or manually click the icon for the lower Parallel port
• The screen shows an icon of a ProFile drive with an X through it and the code "85" below
• From what I can tell after poking around in some old Lisa docs, error code 85 seems to indicate that the external drive "can't keep up" - what does that mean in this context?
• I also installed everything onto a different known-good microSD card but got the same results
• I did a complete low-level (aka not "quick") format on both microSD cards and reinstalled the boot images, no change in results
• I'm not actually sure if my external-style ESProfile will work internally or not. The Parallel cable is detachable and it looks like the same type of cable that connects the internal Widget drive to the system, but I've read at least one other thread from someone who destroyed their ESProfile and badly damaged their Lisa by getting the un-keyed internal cable plugged in correctly, so I'm a bit nervous to try that option...
• Early in the evening, when I try to boot from the ESProfile (including the beeps)

Grateful for any further suggestions!

Quote from: stepleton on January 16, 2026, 04:28:54 AM(1) It would be nice if it didn't matter which USB port received the mouse and which received the keyboard.

A very good idea! For some reason, I dismissed this as insanely difficult before, but it's really nothing more than muxing a few signals. I'm working on it now.

Quote from: stepleton on January 16, 2026, 04:28:54 AM(2) The bottom edge of the board as depicted feels like the user-facing side of the machine, so it makes sense for that side to have the stuff the user is most often going to mess with. To me, this would argue for putting the floppy and hard drive SD slots on or near that edge if you can. If you need to free up room along the edge, maybe one of those double-stack USB sockets might help?

My only concern there is that, especially once I switch to SDIO, those SD cards could be running at 50+ MHz (I think the ESP can even go up to 100 on SDIO). And I'm worried that the long traces would lead to signal integrity issues. Whereas right now, the slots are just about as close to the ESPs as they can get.

Quote from: sigma7 on January 16, 2026, 01:41:45 PMThen it occurred to me that the iterations of the layout for ports and ancillary hardware might be separated from the iterations of the core functionality, reducing the cost for incremental changes to one or the other.

ie. determine a suitable boundary (eg. low speed and fewest signals) for separating legacy ports from the FPGA and RAM, and implement a main board/daughterboard. The cost of an interconnect is substantial, but when the cost of new boards is so high.... depends on your confidence level as to how many iterations you expect and if early versions are complete write-offs or still useful. Lowering the cost of changing the legacy ports layout could make it more practical/economical to have different final configurations too.

I thought about this way earlier on in the design process, and opted against it just because it was sort of hard to separate what would go on the peripheral board versus the core board. The boundary isn't super clear-cut. Maybe I should have done this, but at this point I think it would require such a substantial redesign that I'll probably opt not to for now.

Quote from: sigma7 on January 16, 2026, 01:41:45 PMFor the floppy, consider making the layout compatible with a 26 pin header that has two pins removed so a 20 pin plug will still fit.

I briefly considered this too, instead of the 20 pin + 4 pin strategy, but it would require making the 26-pin connector incompatible with Twiggies, and I was trying to avoid the situation where someone might get confused and plug a Twiggy straight into the board expecting it to work. Any ideas to prevent this?

Also, even if I were to remove 2 pins to allow a 20-pin connector to plug in, wouldn't the keying slot still be a problem? I don't think the slot on a 26-pin header would line up with the notch on a 20-pin connector that's plugged into one side of the header.

QuoteWith the disclaimer that free suggestions are worth what you pay for them...

Ditto

Quote(2) The bottom edge of the board as depicted feels like the user-facing side of the machine, so it makes sense for that side to have the stuff the user is most often going to mess with.

This seems like great advice, and got me thinking, what would I move where... Lisa mouse port to back perhaps and....

Then it occurred to me that the iterations of the layout for ports and ancillary hardware might be separated from the iterations of the core functionality, reducing the cost for incremental changes to one or the other.

ie. determine a suitable boundary (eg. low speed and fewest signals) for separating legacy ports from the FPGA and RAM, and implement a main board/daughterboard. The cost of an interconnect is substantial, but when the cost of new boards is so high.... depends on your confidence level as to how many iterations you expect and if early versions are complete write-offs or still useful. Lowering the cost of changing the legacy ports layout could make it more practical/economical to have different final configurations too.

Interconnects generate problems as well as increased cost, so quite possibly not a good idea (see top paragraph).

For the floppy, consider making the layout compatible with a 26 pin header that has two pins removed so a 20 pin plug will still fit.

... many decisions

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