>Funnily enough, that's EXACTLY what I've been wanting to do >lately. I've got so many things I want to do for the SAM, >but developing them on the SAM itself, as I find, is so >bloody time-consuming! > >[cycle begin] > boot up Pro-DOS. > edit assembler/C program in text editer (ZDE) > assemble (ZAS) / compile (Hitech C) program > reset SAM > boot up working development disk > load up CP/M to SAM file converter (prosam) > copy binary file over > run program > debug program (TurboMon) > reset SAM >[cycle end - repeat]
Ouch! I developed Defender on the PC using the following tools: Editor: Borlands' BRIEF. Which is great as it uses the hard-disk as virtual RAM, so your source can be almost any length. Assembler: AS80. A great freeware Z80 macro assembler that can produce linkable code or a simple (ROM-like) runable binary. That's it. Write code on the PC, copy binary to floppy and use the SAM MS-DOS reader to get it into the SAM for testing. It's quite painless. Defender had to be done this way for timing reasons, but I have since written a small PC program that takes the binary produced by AS80 and blits it into a Simcoupe .DSK image. A simple .BAT file runs AS80, blits the binary to the .DSK and runs Simcoupe for testing. Pressing F10 in Simcoupe drops back into the .BAT and it then kicks BRIEF back into action to continue editing where you left off. This is even more painless!! However, because of the few idiosyncrasies within Simcoupe you still need to test certain things on a real SAM. Sound being the obvious one! When Si completes his Windows port (complete with sound and accurate timing!!!) developing for SAM under Simcoupe on the PC will be a breeze... >>...and forget all about our lovealbe little bluer footed soldier. > >Hey.. Mine's black-footed!! You unpolitically-correct person, you! :) So's mine! :-) Chris.
