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2) Ensure that the SD card is FAT formatted (FAT32 is best, but FAT16 or FAT12 will
work). SD cards are normally supplied FAT formatted, but some new SD cards contain
unnecessary files that may interfere with normal operation of Harmony, so it is best to start
with a blank, freshly-formatted card. If you purchased a Deluxe Harmony cartridge, there is
no need to format the included SD card as it is FAT32 formatted and ready to use.
3) Locate the files that you want to copy onto the SD card. These files should be raw
Atari 2600 binary (.bin) files. Other file types (e.g. Supercharger .wav files) will need to be
converted before they can be used. Binary files larger than 32KB, Supercharger multi-load
files larger than 33KB, and Atari 5200 and 7800 files, will not work with the Harmony
cartridge.
4) Copy the Atari 2600 files that you want onto the SD card. The Harmony cartridge
supports file directories, so it is usually best to copy these files to your SD card in newly-
created directories. The order the files are copied onto the SD card will be the order that
they are displayed in the Harmony menu. On the Mac, it is necessary to copy and paste the
files onto the SD card (rather than drag and drop) to preserve the file ordering. The Harmony
menu will only display the first 24 characters of the filename (including the file extension). If
the filename is longer, the full filename can still be displayed (see step 7) but will normally
be truncated to 23 characters.
5) The SD card can now be ejected from the computer
system and placed into the Harmony cartridge. This
should be done before the Harmony cartridge is inserted into
the console, or before the power is switched on. Note that the
SD card slot on the Harmony is a push-push design - simply
push gently and release to eject. Never pull the SD card out of
the Harmony cartridge without first pushing it in to eject it.
6) The Harmony cartridge with SD card inserted can now be inserted into the console,
and the console powered on. If everything is working, then you will see the menu system
displayed on the screen after a few seconds. If weird patterns (garbage) appears on the
screen, switch the console off, and then
on again after a few seconds. If it fails to
work after several attempts, try cleaning the
cartridge edge connection.
7) Navigate the menu system using a joystick
in the left controller port. Holding up or
down on the joystick will move between
menu entries, and holding left or right on
the joystick will move between menu pages.
2
Q) Why does my TV screen roll after loading certain games, or the picture appear in
black and white?
A) You are probably trying to play an NTSC game on a PAL console, or a PAL game on an NTSC
console. Try to find a version of the game that matches your console type.
Q) Will my Harmony cartridge be "bricked" (permanently damaged) if I switch it off
during loading, or if a firmware update fails?
A) The Harmony cartridge cannot be "bricked" as the firmware loader for the Harmony is
permanently stored in ROM. If the Harmony firmware gets corrupted then it can simply be
reprogrammed using the Mini-B USB port.
Q) How do I check which version of the firmware is on my Harmony cartridge?
A) The firmware version is displayed at the top of the "credits" screen on the Harmony
cartridge. Simply start the Harmony cartridge with an SD card inserted and select the [.]
entry on the first page.
Q) Why can the Harmony Programming Tool not find my Harmony cartridge?
A) You probably need to install the Virtual COM port drivers for the FT232R device available
from: http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm You should reboot your computer after these
drivers have been installed.
Also make sure you are using a proper Mini-B USB cable. Some cables are designed for
power-only, such as those for USB speakers, lights, chargers, or other passive devices.
Other cables might have a poor connection or sensitivity to RF interference, so it is best to
use a quality cable with a ferrite bead attached.
Q) How do I use the Harmony Programming Tool with Linux?
A) The USB FTDI Single Port Serial Driver module (ftdi_sio) needs to be loaded into your kernel.
This module has been included with the Linux kernel since 2.4.30 (and all 2.6.x kernels).
You should also make sure that the qt4 library (libqt4) has been installed from your Linux
distribution.
Q) Should I use the NTSC, PAL50, or PAL60 version of the firmware?
A) The choice depends on the kind of Atari console that you have, and your TV set. If you are in
an NTSC region (USA, Canada, Mexico, Japan, etc.) you should use the NTSC version. If you
are in a PAL region (Europe, Africa, Russia, Australia, etc.) then you should use the PAL50
version. If you are in a PAL-M region such as Brazil, or in a PAL region but have a TV that
can display a 60Hz picture, then you can try the PAL60 version. You can always update the
firmware to a different version if necessary. If you select the wrong version, the colors in the
Harmony menu will be wrong, and the TV picture may "roll" on the screen.
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