Getting started - need toolkit!

Any discussions related to the creation of new hardware or software for the ZX80 or ZX81
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LoadError
Posts: 22
Joined: Thu Apr 29, 2021 12:45 pm

Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by LoadError »

Hello,
I'm new to this forum. I'm an 8 bit enthusiast and I'm historically a Commodorehead, but I always had a love for Sinclair stuff and I dearly cherish my own Zeddie and Speccy (and my Cambridge Scientific).
I'm trying to write some simple stuff in BASIC for the ZX81, and having got used to the tools available for the Commodores (like the amazing CBM PRG Studio) and for the ZX Spectrum (like BaSinc), I'm having trouble building a toolkit to assist me in the task (actually typing the code in an emulator is excruciating and unforgiving).
At the very least I'd need:
- graphics character set translation from ASCII text to compiled binary (.p), by means of some special syntax
- line renumbering, including goto/gosub statements
As it is, I'm resorting to using a regular text editor, then compiling with zxtext2p and manually replacing the graphic characters in the emulator.... hardly ideal...
Are there any tools that I might have missed that can simplify the task?
Thanks!
My Sinclair belongings:
- unexpanded, unmodified, unbackporched ZX81
- expanded (from 16K to 48K) rubber keyed ZX Spectrum
- a Cambridge Scientific pocket calculator
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mrtinb
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Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by mrtinb »

Martin
https://zx.rtin.be
ZX81, Lambda 8300, Commodore 64, Mac G4 Cube
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LoadError
Posts: 22
Joined: Thu Apr 29, 2021 12:45 pm

Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by LoadError »

This is a life saver!!!
And freshly released?
I've already tried the basics and it's even better than I expected anything to be!
Labels instead of line numbers? Heaven!!
Thanks!
My Sinclair belongings:
- unexpanded, unmodified, unbackporched ZX81
- expanded (from 16K to 48K) rubber keyed ZX Spectrum
- a Cambridge Scientific pocket calculator
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mrtinb
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Joined: Fri Nov 06, 2015 5:44 pm
Location: Denmark
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Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by mrtinb »

There also exists ZX-IDE. viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1064

Use whichever you like best.
Martin
https://zx.rtin.be
ZX81, Lambda 8300, Commodore 64, Mac G4 Cube
bola_dor
Posts: 398
Joined: Wed Oct 02, 2019 5:32 am

Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by bola_dor »

If you are using Eighty One emulator it will import any text non tokenized file with the extension as .b81, just drag and drop the file to the main screen an follow the popup menu.. then you can save again from the menu TOOLS / BASIC listing.. or save a .p image file from the Tape manager (that is not as intuitive,, you have to do SAVE "name" before, click the the saved image in the tape manager and search for the save button) ..
Ernesto
ZX80 USA, ZX81UK, ZX Spectrum, ZX Spectrum+, ZX Spectrum 128+ UK, ZX Spectrum +2/A, Sinclair QL, CZ1000, CZ1500, CZ2000, CZ1000Plus, CZ1500Plus, CZ Spectrum, CZ Spectrum Plus, TK83, TK85, TK90X, TK95. TS2068. And more to come :D
sboisvert
Posts: 40
Joined: Mon Nov 02, 2009 3:43 pm

Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by sboisvert »

I've started looking into this recently as well.

For non-platform specific solutions, MS Visual Studio Code might be an option (runs on PC, Mac, Linux), and there's extensions available for Z80 programming. There's also a very capable development extension called DeZog that supports development with ZEsarUX with support for the z88dk dev kit which supports cross compiling on the ZX81.
Spinnetti
Posts: 253
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2020 11:29 pm

Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by Spinnetti »

Wow, great stuff! I never use basic, but saw lots of neat stuff there and linked from there.
Zeddy: ZX80, ZX81/ZXpand, TS1000/ZXpand, TS1500/Zxpand+
Speccy: 48k, +, +2, +3, TS2068, "Bare Metal" Pi, Next KS2, IF1/Microdrives/Vdrive/Light Gun/VGA-Joy
QL: Minerva/QL-VGA/Custom PSU
C5: 24v, LiFE battery, Disc brakes
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LoadError
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Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by LoadError »

I am trying to use the .b81 drag and drop method to import an ASCII file in EightyOne and tokenize it; it works indeed, but when I drag and drop it the emulator automatically resets its mode to ZX81 whereas I want to import the file in ZX80 mode. Any idea how to fix this? And is there perhaps some t2p equivalent that will compile for the ZX80?
My Sinclair belongings:
- unexpanded, unmodified, unbackporched ZX81
- expanded (from 16K to 48K) rubber keyed ZX Spectrum
- a Cambridge Scientific pocket calculator
Fruitcake
Posts: 346
Joined: Wed Sep 01, 2010 10:53 pm

Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by Fruitcake »

LoadError wrote: Fri May 21, 2021 11:00 pm I am trying to use the .b81 drag and drop method to import an ASCII file in EightyOne and tokenize it; it works indeed, but when I drag and drop it the emulator automatically resets its mode to ZX81 whereas I want to import the file in ZX80 mode. Any idea how to fix this? And is there perhaps some t2p equivalent that will compile for the ZX80?
Rename the extension as .b80 and EightyOne then knows it is a ZX80 BASIC file. Or just rename the extension to .txt and then it will load into the current configuration.
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LoadError
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Re: Getting started - need toolkit!

Post by LoadError »

D'oh! It occurred to me when I woke up this morning :lol:
Thx
My Sinclair belongings:
- unexpanded, unmodified, unbackporched ZX81
- expanded (from 16K to 48K) rubber keyed ZX Spectrum
- a Cambridge Scientific pocket calculator
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