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View topic - Rare SegaCom / AutoCom / SegaLink MicroModem software for SC-3000 (12 dumps)

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Rare SegaCom / AutoCom / SegaLink MicroModem software for SC-3000 (12 dumps)
Post Posted: Sat Feb 01, 2025 5:59 pm
Last edited by Bock on Thu Feb 06, 2025 12:34 pm; edited 2 times in total
Hello!

John Sands, Australian distributor of the Sega SC-3000 released in 1985 the SM1200 MicroModem 3 device (based on the AM7910DC modem chipset by AMD) along with a cartridge titled "SegaCom".

We have obtained the modem along with documents, flyers, many version of the software, including prototypes, a further iteration called AutoCom for an unreleased MicroModem4, and another further iteration called SegaLink which was presumably released as a 3" floppy disk on the Sega SF-7000.





All photos, flyers and manual scans have been published to:
https://www.smspower.org/forums/20407

Huge thanks to Fabio (kamillebidan) for helping sort out the software version. He wrote custom tools to compare each builds so we could order and label them, and generally helped sorting through this in many ways.



SegaCom for the Sega SC-3000, using MicroModem 3.
- 1 prototype build from a prototype cartridge.
- 2 builds that shipped on retail cartridges.



AutoCom for the Sega SC-3000, presumably using MicroModem 4, presumably unreleased.
- 6 prototype builds from prototype cartridges.



SegaLink for the Sega SF-7000
- 1 prototype disk.
- 1 master disk creator disk.
- 1 disk created by us by running the disk creator.

The modem hardware are not emulated as of today. But SegaLink on the SF-7000 may be used through the serial cable. Fabio (kamillebidan) posted a video of it running in his SF-7000 floppy disk emulator:



IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT FILE FORMAT: From now on, Sega SF-7000 dumps will be released using the .dsk file format, using the .sf7.dsk extensions. We previously released files using a .sf7 extension with a fixed 163840 bytes size. Those were "raw" dumps of disks assumed to be formatted using a standard 640 sectors disk layout promoted by the Sega Disk Basic, but the floppy disk controller can technically handle other layouts. My friend Thomas Bernard (Nanard) kindly added support for .dsk format in MEKA in January 2022 and we expect other emulators to follow if they haven't already. forum topic about transitioning to use .sf7.dsk format.

Enjoy!
img_9174-thumb.jpg (87.31 KB)
img_9174-thumb.jpg
img_9176-thumb.jpg (87.4 KB)
img_9176-thumb.jpg

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Dumps Attachments
Post Posted: Sat Feb 01, 2025 6:02 pm
All cartridges/floppy dumps!
segalink-sf7.zip (18.33 KB)

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Post Posted: Wed Feb 05, 2025 11:47 pm
Bock wrote
...

We have obtained the modem along with documents, flyers, many version of the software, including prototypes, a further iteration called AutoCom for an unreleased MicroModem4, and another further iteration called SegaLink which was presumably released as a 3" floppy disk on the Sega SF-7000.

...

SegaLink for the Sega SF-7000, unsure if released.
- 1 prototype disk.
- 1 master disk creator disk.
- 1 disk created by us by running the disk creator.



Great stuff, thanks all!

I think the MicroModem 4 was manufactured, but John Sands Electronics closed down before they released it. They then liquidated their stock through 1986 which got bought up by some companies.

"Last Message" were advertising it in their catalogue published in the June 1987 issue of Segamag, and Compulink were advertising it in the July 1988 issue of Megacomp.

SegaLink was mentioned in the May 1987 issue of Segamag as being on sale at their next meeting (1987-05-10), with an advertisement in the June 1987 issue. The November 1987 issue (which I don't have, but I saved some pictures of a listing) mentions people having issues using it to connect to Westpac Bank, so it certainly sounds like it released. I also saved a picture of the manual from another listing.

I'm guessing it's covered in an issue of Segamag from the second half of 1987, but I don't have any of those.
SegaLink Manual.jpg (131.45 KB)
SegaLink Manual.jpg
Segamag 1987-11 05.jpg (468.42 KB)
Segamag 1987-11 05.jpg

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Post Posted: Thu Feb 06, 2025 12:34 pm
Oh wow I completely forgot about that other thread, thanks BKK.
I have a copy of the SegaLink manual pictured above, I'll work on scanning it too (don't hesitate to ping on that).

I've removed the notes suggesting it we are unsure if SegaLink was released. Sorry for that mistake.
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Post Posted: Thu Feb 06, 2025 1:43 pm
You did say you were unsure, so not really a mistake :D
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