ScuzzBlog: Diaries September 2025 Entry 9th September 2025: Post 2: Amiga 500 - NEWCON and the Shell CLI. Amiga 500 - NEWCON and the Shell CLI. I was convinced I had already discussed the issue of the Shell on the blog in respect of the NEWCON issue but was unable to find it. Please excuse my ignorance on the finer details of this matter but in truth I have always referred to the Shell as the CLI as I spent way more time using a Command Line Interface prior to my Amiga days. Yesterday when attempting to get the keyboard fixed on the A600 I was using my self made 'easybench' disk to check the keyboard keys. This threw up an error message requesting the 'NEWCON' volume. The odd thing about the disk I created is that I don't need the Shell command cus there is one open on the bench all the time. But to explain the error it's interesting that WB 1.3 has both the CLI and Shell icons. The Shell requires the NEWCON-handler in the 'l' drawer and an entry in the Mountlist in Devs. This really only applies to WB 1.3 as by the time we get to WB2.x the NEWCON becomes obsolete. The Shell harps back to the days of Metacomco responsible for ABASIC. I have a file of the Metacomco Shell which shows a very odd icon for the Shell dating from 1986. Note that WB 1.3 has the Shell command on the desktop and CLI in the System drawer. Workbench 1.2 only has the CLI on the desktop and nothing in the System drawer. For me I always call the Shell the CLI, though my AmigaShell on WB3 has been customized for my programming projects. Anyhoo if you want to click the Shell from the desktop of your created disk you need to go find the NEWCON-handler and write a mountlist. If you just cancel the error message the system still fires up the Shell. Amiga 500 - NEWCON and the Shell CLI.

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Last updated 9th September 2025

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