Quick Release Sector Transfer - Revision history

Jsummers: /* Sample files */ Re-updated samples link

2025-08-09T15:45:19Z

‎Sample files: Re-updated samples link

Jsummers: Undo revision 46521 by Dexvertbot (talk)

2025-08-09T15:44:53Z

Undo revision 46521 by Dexvertbot (talk)

Jsummers: /* Structure */

2024-10-06T13:33:59Z

‎Structure

Dexvertbot: Change telparia.com samples link to template

2023-12-28T02:54:43Z

Change telparia.com samples link to template

Sembiance: Added software and sample files link

2023-12-11T15:17:04Z

Added software and sample files link

AmigoJack: correct description length as per sample file

2023-10-25T11:16:44Z

correct description length as per sample file

John e at 17:35, 6 September 2023

2023-09-06T17:35:51Z

Octocontrabass at 15:48, 5 September 2017

2017-09-05T15:48:18Z

Octocontrabass: /* Version 5 data */

2017-09-04T15:34:10Z

‎Version 5 data

Octocontrabass: /* Structure */

2017-09-04T02:56:11Z

‎Structure

@@ Line 155: / Line 155: @@
 * [ftp://ftp.oldskool.org/pub/drivers/Compaq/Portable%20III/setup%20and%20diags/ Compaq Portable III setup and diagnostics]
 * [https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp0000-0500/sp0484.zip QRST file containing two concatenated disc images]
-* https://telparia.com/fileFormatSamples/archive/qrst/
+* {{DexvertSamples|archive/qrst}}

@@ Line 141: / Line 141: @@
 === Checksum ===
-In versions below 5, the checksum is the sum of all bytes on the disc, each byte multiplied by (1   its offset on the disc). So for a 360k disc it would be (1 * first byte of first sector)   (2 * second byte of first sector)   ...   (368640 * last byte of last sector).
+In versions below 5, the checksum is the sum of all bytes on the disc, each byte multiplied by (1 + its offset on the disc). So for a 360k disc it would be (1 * first byte of first sector) + (2 * second byte of first sector) + ... + (368640 * last byte of last sector).
 In version 5, the [[CRC-32]] covers the compressed data.
@@ Line 155: / Line 155: @@
 * [ftp://ftp.oldskool.org/pub/drivers/Compaq/Portable%20III/setup%20and%20diags/ Compaq Portable III setup and diagnostics]
 * [https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp0000-0500/sp0484.zip QRST file containing two concatenated disc images]
-* {{DexvertSamples|archive/qrst}}
+* https://telparia.com/fileFormatSamples/archive/qrst/

@@ Line 137: / Line 137: @@
 === Version 5 data ===
-In version 5, the data is an entire disk image compressed with PKWARE Data Compression Library's Implode. (This is not the same as PKZIP's Implode.)
+In version 5, the data is an entire disk image compressed with [[PKWARE DCL Implode|PKWARE Data Compression Library's Implode]].
 === Checksum ===

@@ Line 141: / Line 141: @@
 === Checksum ===
-In versions below 5, the checksum is the sum of all bytes on the disc, each byte multiplied by (1 + its offset on the disc). So for a 360k disc it would be (1 * first byte of first sector) + (2 * second byte of first sector) + ... + (368640 * last byte of last sector).
+In versions below 5, the checksum is the sum of all bytes on the disc, each byte multiplied by (1   its offset on the disc). So for a 360k disc it would be (1 * first byte of first sector)   (2 * second byte of first sector)   ...   (368640 * last byte of last sector).
 In version 5, the [[CRC-32]] covers the compressed data.
@@ Line 155: / Line 155: @@
 * [ftp://ftp.oldskool.org/pub/drivers/Compaq/Portable%20III/setup%20and%20diags/ Compaq Portable III setup and diagnostics]
 * [https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp0000-0500/sp0484.zip QRST file containing two concatenated disc images]
-* https://telparia.com/fileFormatSamples/archive/qrst/
+* {{DexvertSamples|archive/qrst}}

@@ Line 149: / Line 149: @@
 At least one QRST file is known to exist which contains two disc images -- it has the structure of two separate QRST files concatenated together, each one describing itself as volume 1 of 1.
-== Sample files ==
+== Software ==
 * [ftp://ftp.oldskool.org/pub/drivers/Compaq/Portable%20III/setup%20and%20diags/ Compaq Portable III setup and diagnostics]
 * [https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp0000-0500/sp0484.zip QRST file containing two concatenated disc images]

@@ Line 53: / Line 53: @@
 |0x00E || 1 byte || Count of volumes in set
 |-
-|0x00F || 96 bytes || Description, ASCIIZ
+|0x00F || 60 bytes || Description, ASCIIZ
 |-
 |0x04B || 720 bytes || Disk label, ASCIIZ

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 }}
-The QRST disc image format was used by Compaq to distribute disk images of diagnostic software. The file QRST.EXE would be supplied with the disc images to write them to a floppy drive.
+The QRST disc image format was used by Compaq to distribute disk images of diagnostic software. The file QRST.EXE or QRST5.EXE would be supplied with the disc images to write them to a floppy drive.
 == Identification ==
-QRST files start with the 4-character ASCII string <code>QRST</code>, followed by a <code>0x00</code> byte. The first character of the file extension is an underscore, followed by a 2-digit hexadecimal (version <5) or decimal (version 5) volume number.
+QRST files start with the 4-character ASCII string <code>QRST</code>. The first character of the file extension is an underscore, followed by a 2-digit hexadecimal (version <5) or decimal (version 5) volume number.
 == Structure ==

@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 === File header ===
 The file begins with a 796-byte header:
@@ Line 20: / Line 21: @@
 ! Description
 |-
-|0x00 || 4 bytes || Magic number, <code>QRST</code>
+|0x000 || 4 bytes || Magic number, <code>QRST</code>
 |-
-|0x04 || 4 bytes || Version number, floating point, little-endian
+|0x004 || 4 bytes || Version number, floating point
 |-
-|0x08 || 4 bytes || Checksum (version <5), unused (version 5)
+|0x008 || 4 bytes || Checksum (version <5), unused (version 5)
 |-
-|0x0C || 1 byte || Disk capacity:
+|0x00C || 1 byte || Disk capacity:
 {| class="wikitable"
 ! Value
@@ Line 48: / Line 49: @@
 |}
 |-
-|0x0D || 1 byte || Current volume number in set
+|0x00D || 1 byte || Current volume number in set
 |-
-|0x0E || 1 byte || Count of volumes in set
+|0x00E || 1 byte || Count of volumes in set
 |-
-|0x0F || 96 bytes || Description, ASCIIZ
+|0x00F || 96 bytes || Description, ASCIIZ
 |-
-|0x4B || 721 bytes || Disk label, ASCIIZ
+|0x04B || 720 bytes || Disk label, ASCIIZ
 |}
-=== Tracks ===
+Version 5 extends the header with an additional 25 bytes:
-The header will be followed by the data tracks. These can be in one of three forms:
 ==== Uncompressed track ====
@@ Line 108: / Line 134: @@
 The compressed data stream consists of alternating literal runs (a byte giving the length of the run, followed by that number of bytes data) and compressed runs (two bytes; first gives number of repeats, second gives byte to repeat).
 === Checksum ===
-The checksum is the sum of all bytes on the disc, each byte multiplied by (1 + its offset on the disc). So for a 360k disc it would be (1 * first byte of first sector) + (2 * second byte of first sector) + ... + (368640 * last byte of last sector).
+In versions below 5, the checksum is the sum of all bytes on the disc, each byte multiplied by (1 + its offset on the disc). So for a 360k disc it would be (1 * first byte of first sector) + (2 * second byte of first sector) + ... + (368640 * last byte of last sector).
 == Sample files ==
 * [ftp://ftp.oldskool.org/pub/drivers/Compaq/Portable%20III/setup%20and%20diags/ Compaq Portable III setup and diagnostics]