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Having a real cartridge slot for extra compatibility would be nice too.

Like the OneChip MSX, which had SD storage but two cartridge ports so original cartridges could be used.

Agree the cartridge slot shouldn't be removed and while there might not be that much enhancement that can be done; but what about having an internal cartridge slot for smaller cards which could be hidden inside the case?

Hello,
I think we should add to this list a few extra modules
- The WordPak2+ (by Luis Antoniosi) that offers a V9958 graphic chip as the MSX2+ with some 128k VRAM
this would be a great graphic improvement but not easily backwards compatible
And for people that likes to use more than one cartridge at a time, there are three choices
- A Tandy MPI 26-3124 *not* modified to work with a CoCo3
- mini-MPI by Ed Snider (two slots)
- mega mini-MPI by Ed Snider with four slots
And finally for full virtual DOS floppies support,
- CoCo-SDC should be taken into account because besides that it offers streaming for loading music, images and video ...

cheers
pere

Great idea! I really like the internal cartridge slot idea!
This would allow us to have the MOOH module (512k RAM expansion) inside, leaving the cartridge connector free for other purposes
have a nice weekend
pere

Suppose we take it one step further and create the ultimate next-generation Dragon –- taking the best parts out of every 8-bit platform there is and adding new ideas of our own –- at what point does this machine becomes 'something else' and not a Dragon family member?

What are the basic properties a next-generation Dragon must preserve –- A 6809 processor?

Here is another point of view.
I don't have a real machine anymore but I appreciate all the works of our community that make the Dragon live and evolve with hardware and software developments. I understand this nostalgia and could buy a new dragon machine like the C64 up to 300 euros. Perhaps 100 dragonists of our group could also do it ? Much more of them if the machine looks like a coco !
That new machine should have what I think is the heart of a Dragon : a box that looks like the original, with the keyboard + some extra keys, a 6809 and the ROMs of a D64 (or material equivalent) and the extended cart port. All other specifications should be up to date : hdmi for screen, USB or network for storage, USB(C) power. So not only a clone to play games but a machine that continue to live with the developments of the extension port.

The machine that I describe in the precedent post should be relatively easy to create, except for the extended port. You put a RPI in a box and install Xroar under Linux. But all I have read about this at the moment is that very few people are interested and I think Xroar is no very developed for the RPI. I never found a step by step wiki to do that. For the extended port, it would be necessary to create a hardware extension that could be connected by USB to the systems emulating the Dragon. Like the single board 6809 project I saw on this forum.

For me, the Dragon II already exists !
It is my PC with Xroar installed. I have a nice screen and a correct keyboard, I can emulate all the machines and many options, install joysticks and access easily to all the software.
I can also edit Basic programs out of the machine (with text edition) and load then directly in the Dragon with the .asc file extension.
I can edit the .rom and .bin files with a software like HxD and insert them in the memory map of the emulated machine.
Most of the hardware developments have been emulated
What is lacking in my happiness ?
- an emulation like DragonPlus for 80 columns
- a wiki step by step for the beginners
- and the hardware extension port
and the yellow box for nostalgia ...

Azerpy wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2020 3:34 pm The machine that I describe in the precedent post should be relatively easy to create, except for the extended port. You put a RPI in a box and install Xroar under Linux. But all I have read about this at the moment is that very few people are interested and I think Xroar is no very developed for the RPI. I never found a step by step wiki to do that. For the extended port, it would be necessary to create a hardware extension that could be connected by USB to the systems emulating the Dragon. Like the single board 6809 project I saw on this forum.

What do you mean by 'not very developed for the RPI'?

I just downloaded the source code and compiled it on my Pi model B+.

Of course, a Pi 1 cannot cope with an emulator, but a Pi 3 or 4 should be more than enough.

About Xroar on RPI :
You show me it is possible to emulate completely a Dragon with Xroar on a RPI, it's a good news for me.
But I am not yet able to do that.
On my PC I only use Xroar with Windows and it's fine.
I have got a PI3B+ and the only thing I can do is using Retropie.
For absolute beginners with Linux, it would be easier to have a sort of "wiki step by step" ?