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ANU) : i), ¢-64/c128 | Basic Genie es & Suppor, Serv a Deer
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Voice Assistance 1-800-638-9636
How to log on: Terminal Program Configuration: ~ Dial 1-800-638-8369 300/1200/2400 baud % Upon connect, type |/iHHIHT Terminal Emulation: ASCII or VT100 ~ At prompt U#=, type s7GNU 2ETURN Half Duplex/Local Echo ON 8N1 (8 data bits, 1 stop bit, NO Parity)
Answer questions and follow the on-line instructions to complete initial sign-on TULA VUTURVNTTOTTTRVTTURVTTT Ue Pst Perea gure ccena oper vtay ene te
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ISSUE 18
N 7
DECEMBER 1996/JANUARY 1997
COMMODORE | Fe4stTurRes
WORLD
‘THE NEWS MAGAZINE FOR COMMODORE 64 8 120 USERS
Generat Manacer Charles R, Christianson a4 Eoiror Doug Cotton
Assistant Eprtor Kimberly A. McCoubrey ° ApverrisinG Sates Charles A, Christianson (413) 525-0023 ° Graptic Arts Doug Cotton Kimberly A. MeCoubrey ° Etectronic Pre-Press & PrinTING Mansir/Holden ° Cover Design by Doug Cotton & Kimberly A. McCoubrey
‘Commodore™ and the respective Gommodore product names are trademarks of registered trademarks of Escom GmbH. Commodore World is in no way affiliated with Escom GmbH.
‘owner of the Commodare logo and technology. Commodore Worldis published 8 times annually by Creative Micro Designs, Inc., 15 Benton Drive, East Longmeadow MA 01028-0646. ‘Second-Class Postage Paid at East Longmeadow MA. Annual ‘subscription rate is USS29.95 for U.S. addresses, USS35.95 for Canada or Mexico, USS45.95 for all EC Countries, and US$57.95 to all other addresses worldwide. All subscription payments must bo provided in U.S. Dollars. Mail subscriptions. to CW Subscriptions, c/o Creative Micto Designs, Inc., P.O,
Box 646, East Longmeadow MA 01028-0646
tive Micro jo part of this may be printed or otherwise reproduced by any moans without prior written consent from the publisher. All programs published in this publication are for the personal use of the reader, and may not be copied or in any way distributed. Allrights reserved, Programming examples and routines in this ‘issue which are presented for educational purposes may be used In the creation of programs by the purchaser of this magazine, provided credit for the routines is clearly presented in either the program documentation, or the program itself Creative Micro Designs, Inc., assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in editorial, program listings or advertising content. Creative Micro Designs, Inc. assumes no liability for advertisers claims or reliability.
contents copyright © 1997 by C1
POSTMASTER: Send address changos to: CW Address: Changos, c/o Creative Micro Designs, Inc., P.O, Box 646, East Longmeadow MA 01028-0646.
10 18 14
Do Chickens Eat AppLes? py Anthony Cote
An interesting perspective on the success of Commodore. Sreciat Report: SuperCPU Uppate by Doug Conon What's the status of the SuperCPU 128?
Commopore Drives Are History: Part Il by Jim Brain Reach back in time with this historical follow-up.
Reviews
26 28
GAMES by Jason Compton and Sherry Freedline McRat, The
LoapStar’s Compueat Crossword by Jason Compton If you enjoy being pu:
Coctumns
22 30 32 36 38 42 44 48
Just For STARTERS by Jason Compton
A SuperCPU primer for beginners.
GRAPHIC INTERPRETATION by Paul Sullivan
DualTop: An Alternative DeskTop
Carrier DETECT hy Gaelyne R. Gasson
Find out how to make effective Internet searches. GEOPROGRAMMIST by Maurice Randall
Learn to avoid some common GEOS programming pitfalls. Assempty LINE by Jim Butterfield
Simple numerical input in machine language
PERIPHERAL VISION by Jim Butterfield
An in-depth look at how the Commodore ke Basic INSTINCTS by David Pankhurst Programming tips and more!
816 BEAT by Doug Cotton
Speedy division iy breeze on the 65816.
DeEraRnTMeENTS 2 From tHe Eoitor 8 Conmopore Trivia 4 BackTauk 48 Cuassiried Aos 6 On Tie Horizon 48 Aoverriser’s INDEX
board operates.
nj Complex, Jordan vs. Bird: One on One, and Karnov.
ed, this LoadStar offering may be just for you.
See Our NEW CHECKSUM
Utility On Page 41
COMMODORE WORLD
Once again we've crossed that boudry that divides the old year from the new, And to the amazement of many of our contemporaries, we're still using our trusty Commodore computers. Some are writing letters, some are tracking stocks, others are just playing games. But all have one thing incommon... that familiar old electronicfriend that has kept us company all these years. And that friend continues to help us with our work, and entertaines us when work is the last thing on our minds.
Fifteen years after the introduction of the Commodore 64, and there's still a large following—despite the availability of systems running at clock speeds 200 times greater, and with RAM and hard disk storage that once would have made any reasonable hardware designer dizzy. The fact that we are still using our ‘dinosaurs’ says a lot about the endurance and effectiveness of a simple design.
Yet, we haven't all survived this long without some level of upgrading to our systems. Long ago, this meant replacing a tape drive with a disk drive, or getting a monitor so that we could stop tying up the television. Later it meant getting a cartridge or other hardware to help speed up disk access, buying a 3.5-inch disk drive, adding a RAM expander, and eventually, perhaps even a hard drive,
The pastyear has brought us a new enhancement: the SuperCPU, now pushing processing speed on our Commodore computers to previously impossible new highs, And the year just beginning promises to bring us more innovations, like the Turbo232 modem interface, the SuperCPU RAMexpander, and the SuperCPU 128—all discussed elsewhere in this issue of Commodore World, Major new software releases are also planned, aswell as updated versions of programs like Novaterm, geoFAX, and even Desterm 128.
As we have done in the past two and a halfyears, Commodore World will continue to bring you news and details of these new releases, and strive to make your Commodore experience as fulfilling as possible.
Happy New Year!
Doug Cotton -Editor
Issue 18
CANE] Games Disk! The Compleat Jon: 1: Games! the whole gamut of gaming is covered hore: artificial intelligence, role-playing, mazes, fantasy, selance fiction, aducation and jeven non-violence (which was a radical concept in its time). These eleven peries are among the best ever published on
Listed on the manu in chronologeeal order, 80 you can see how Jon's style changed as the: 1581 disk 002103 $20, 1541 dis}
WA y207 Puzzle dist The Compleat Crossword: evory
crossword puzzle published in, Puzzlo Page in ong huge [collection! 220 puzzles! It usos Barbara Schulak’s CRUCIVERBALIST program to prosont the puzzles and allows you to "mark" a puzzle when it’s solved so that you know which you've solved and which you haven't yot. Each 1541 disk contains 110 puzzles, 1581 Disk #002003 $20. Disk 1 (1541) #003605 $10.Disk 2 (1541) #003705 $10
W Evy 6-128 Productivity! The Compleat Lee O: si! Lee O. Clinton's best serious programs for the C-128 80- column mode. Finance, auto]
lexpense, kitchen helper, genealogy, resume writing, mutual funds! One 1541 disk #003205. (One 1581 disk #001703 $10.00
ars rolled by. #003805 $20
VW New Word Search! Super Star Search 1: 200 original word) Isearch puzzles by Stevon Thomas and Art Dudley, presented jand click program. One 1541 disk #0011D5 One 1581 disk
VW new Story disk! The Compleat Prosequest '95: contest on i. inctuding 01903 ‘$5.00
‘se
John Serafino's modern point 103 $20.00
NEW!!! A 1541 disk with all of the entries in the 1995 short story the three grand winners. One 1541 disk #0035D5 One 1581 disk
Soft Wear! LOADSTAR T-Shirts: cimites
ledition Fruit Of The Loom T-shirts, LOADSTAR’s nemesis, Knees
[Calhoon, stands up to regular washing and drying. Where else can|
you find Commodore agparel? 50» Cotton!/Polyester. $15.00 each
Iwith ievs shipping! Small #960025, Medium #960125, Large XLarge 125, XX-L #960425,
Tools! Tutorials! The Compleat
TAMMET: Bost soller! Over Two megabytes of ( crammed and stutted onto eight 5.25-inch disks or two
\ Plus tools, extensions, languages, assemblers, {uorials and utlties! 6.25 set 14000505. 3.5-inch disk #000503. For $5 more, get C- Hacking MAG #000603 (on 3.5-inch disks only and NOT available separately) to complete lyour programming set. $20.00
5! Compleat PS Vol. 1
(The Print Shop by Broderbund or Printmaster required). fer 1900 artistic and never before published PRINT SHOP
jimages. Scan through the many PRINT SHOP images
!soquontially, by name, or by group number. Pross a key and
Isave tho graphic you want in 2-block, 3-block and even
IPRINTMASTER graphic files! All at plus a printed guide!
Each volume is $20,00. Vol. 1: C-64/128 3.5-inch disk Item
#000143. 5.25-inch disks item #000905. Vol. 2 (graphics trom past LS Issues): C-64/128
3.5-inch disk item #000243. 5.25-inch disks item #001005.
1581 disi
_QTY_ Description _ Item # Price ea. Total_
ewan GEOS Clipart TOADSTAR presonts te biggest Goo OROSTAR ae sales earn nara on ae cr dks or ogi Ss noha Meat ote appropriate gerne = every time! Prices are $20)
1-800-594-3970 or 1-318-221-8718 to order by| redit card. Or send check or monoy ordor and ty (by LG number) which disks you want,
| 5.25-INCH DISKS |
Disk 01 - RAILS: Railroad art trom Europe! jand the USA #001205,
Disk 02 - VEHICLES/TAROT: Anwork of of ind now autos; oxcollent geoPaint drawings of tho} Tarot card sot #0013D5
Disk 03 - CLIP ART: includes converted jacPaint tiles that have never before deen| wallable in Commodore format #001405
(Disk 04 - OTTOWA/PRIME CLIPS: Artwork of the main landmarks of Ottawa; plus high quali public domain clip art #00155
(Disk 05 - FONTS: Moro than 30 fonts from past issues of LOADSTAR, plus articles (in geoWrite format) on creating fonts. Also two ready-mado} yoaders for use with your own documents, one a
picture of a mail truck; the other reading FROM} HE DESK OF #0016D5
Disk 06, Disk 07. and Disk 08 - gooPaint and}
Photo Album files with the great clip artwork featured on past LOADSTARS - Includes! eoCurmudgoon, Anamalia | and Il, Australia nimals, Valentine art and many more #00175, 001805, #001905
Disk 09 - GOODYKOONTZ FILES - Jasper ;oodykoontz, born in Indiana in 1855, produced] joodykoontz's Perpetual Calendar and General jeterence Manual (A Book for the Millions). This
pf subjects - Gestures and Attitudes, Poultry, raniology, and more. #002005,
ick Estel's FAD Software - mostly woodcut style ft of the old wost, gold rush days and pioneer ones, #0021D5
Disiiulla Card Garnes!
ith a wide variety of subject matter and atorials. Disk contains
{canned into gooPaint format [Sido 2 is a collection of scannod
rtwork of animals trom FRO Software #0022D5,
Years, Valentino's, St. Patrick’s Day, fallowoen, Thanksgiving and Christmas 002305
Disk 13 - PEOPLE/FACES: Sconos of pooplo| jand faces trom FRO Software #0024D5,
Disk 14 - FRD CLASSICS: Dick's choice of he best of the FD collection #0025D5
Disk 15 - DINOS/CLASSICS: Dinosaurs and] other prohistoric beasts, as wall as more tirst noice artwork from FRO, #0O26D5
Disk 16 - SPORTS/MISC: Dozens of sports. elated clips #002705,
(Disk 17 - OFFICE AND SCHOOL: Ciips to} bbe used at work and around the house #0028D5
Disk 18 -MUSIC & MORE SCHOO!
Disk 19 - SEASONAL AND HOLIDAYS: A ip for any cecasion #0030D5
Disk 20 - SEASONAL AND HOLIDAYS:
quals disks 1, 2, 4B #0009D3 Disk 2: Equals disks 3, 6, 7A #0010D3 disks 5, 8, 7B #0011D3 quals 9, 10, 11A #001203 Disk 5: Equals 12, 13, 11B #001303 Disk 6: Equivalent of Disks 14, 15and 0 bonus files not on 5.25" disks #0014D3, Disk 7: Sports, Office and school, Musi
Disk 8: Music, Holiday and Seasonal 01603
For your convenience, GeoViewer is|
included on each volume, GEOS 2.0 is} suggested,
The Compleat Maurice: a compilation ot 26
solitaire card games written by Maurice Jones. the acknowledged master of card game simulations for the C-64/128. There's even a brand new, never bolore published game called Boomerang, Two 5.25| inch disks #000705 or one 3.5 inch disk #000703. $20.00 postage paid!
Oodles OF Stunning Art! Tutor
! The Compleat Wal
During LOADSTAR's first ton years we have published 24 of Walt Hamod's slideshows and multimedia| ‘events. Now we've gathered thom into one huge collection; seven 5.25 inch disks or three 3,5 inch.
disks! There are over 250 pictures, inci
fing some that have novor been published. The greatest ono-
‘man collection of art on any computer platform. 5.25-Inch disks order #070425 3.5-inch disks order:
#070423. $20.00 postage paid!
Name Address
a
Total Enclosed:
State
Loadstar Order form = 1-800-594-3370
Postal Code
Q Check/money order made payable to “Loadstar" in US Funds
QO MasterCard 1 Visa
Card #___
CO American Express
Authorized sig Subscribers: I prefer 1 5.25-inch diskettes
O) Discover
ature: _ O) 3.5-inch diskettes
LOADSTAR
P.O. Box 30008, Shreveport, LA 71130-0008 Questions: 1-318-221-8718 Fax 1-318-221-8870
sa a i a elas ata neers
3 COMMODORE WORLD
ge orders
Use extra sheet of paper for
Lasse eR
December 1996/January 1997
GJACKTALK
LETTERS AND QUESTIONS FROM OUR READERS
GEOS Printing Utility
Ina recent Graphic Interpretation column the author talks about GEOS print programs that allow using a printer's internal fonts. I'd like to contact the author to ask ifhe might be willing to Email me one of these. Can you provide his Email address?
Also, it would be helpful if references to programs in articles like this were accompanied by information indicating their location on the web. Also Commodore World might consider adding a files section to the current web page specifically for Public Domain/Shareware files referenced in the magazine article lark Alexander
While some of our writers have internet Email, notall of them do, and not all of them wish to have their Email address published. When authors include an Email address for publication, we're happy to oblige with publishing it. For those authors who do not have an Email address, or do not wish to have it published, please feel free to address your correspondence to them directly to Commodore World's Email address:
emd.cw@the-spa.com
I'd suggest that you also begin your message with a note requesting that Commodore World forward the message to the appropriate author.
Concerning the specific program you asked about,
which I assume was PRINT 1.0, I checked a Jew of the most popular Internet FTP sites for Commodoreand GEOS programs and cameup blank. Lalso did an FTP search using a search engine, but again came up emply.
A quick check of the files on Genie, however, turned up versions 2 and 2.5 of TEXTPRINT, in the GEOS libraries maintained by the Commodore Roundtable, The files are:
TEXTPRNTV2.SDA (Commodore File #14110) iXTPRT25.SEX (Commodore File #14177)
Inaddition, this search also yielded a version of the program which was modified for use with Hewlett-
COMMODORE WORLD
Packard printers, which usea different set of printing codes. That version was split into two archives:
HPTXTPRNTLSDA (Commodore File #14107) HPTXTPRNT2.SDA (Commodore File #14108)
we have
As for starting up an FTP site oursel looked into that, However, because of the time and expense that would be required to create and operate an FTP area, it was decided that this would not be possible at this time. While it is possible we could do soata later date, we would first need to find away for such an added service to pay for the time and the online storage that would be required to create and maintain it,
- Fad.
SwiftLink Programming Info
I would like to suggest that a good future article for CW magazine would be a good basic routine toadd toa basic program which would allow one to communicate to a Swiftlink. If such info is already available.
- Richard C. Kirk
Wedo appreciate the sui needs to be programmed in machine language, not BASIC, and the programming of this devit rather involved subject. For those who are interested, CMD does offer a programming guide for SwiftLink, which can he ordered directly from CMD’ order line (1-800-638-3263). That information will also be made available on CMD's web site at some point in the future, We should also mention that CMD has discontinued SwiftLink, and replaced it with a new modem interface, the new Turbo232.
is a
- Ed.
Searching for Printers?
Several years ago, | visited a store in Santa Ana that was strictly for Commodore Computers. Unfortunately, Idonot remember where thestore was and have not been able to find an advertisement for them in any of my husband's
4
computer magazines, lamin need ofanewprinter that will be compatible with a Commodore 64, and was wondering if you knew of any locations in Southern California that would have any of these printers. Currently I have an Okidata 120 and wouldn't mind another one of the same if they are available anywhere.
- Anonymous
Commodore compatible printers, like your Okidata 120, are no longer being made. Most users now must use standard printers which can be attached via a printer interface. However, you can often find printers such as the one you're using in the used market. In Sact, many of the advertisers in Commodore World sell used and/or refurbished printers, Commodore Country, Creative Micro Designs, and Tech Star are probably the most common sources for these.
You might also try one of a number of online resources, One suggestion would be the eBay Auction Web at http://www.ebay.com/aw/, Another good place to check is http://www.televar.com/~rjlong/ stores.html, which lists a number of sources for Commodore equipment located in your state (and many outside your state, too).
- Ed.
Commodore Tower
I'm searching for an article which according to a source in comp.sys.cbm was published in Commodore World, Issue 10, volume 2, number 6. The article was about creating a Commodore “tower” computer,
- Jack Followay, Jr. Commodore World Issue 10did featurea Commodore ‘tower’ on the cover, and there was also a pictorial of other unusual Commodore creations, all designed and made by Al Anger. However, there was no actual article on creating these items, Also, we ran out of Issue 10 a few weeks ago, although we do make photocopies of it and other out-of-print issues available along with our regular back-issues. - Ed. »
Issue 18
The onlyfeamagazine tor C-64/128
v = For more than two Worldihas emp
Matiomonthewany lof Commodore icomputingalpreugieur statt of leading, experts ikem field, Maurice, Rat
thar acsplors RApe wade the Gommod Subscribe or renew today! i
Please begin my subscription to Commodore World as soon as possible! Subscriber Information Payment Information
Name: __ _ r {one year subscriber only) Addr bs | | order in U.S, Funds City te/Prov. my (c Country: ne: ( N j C) AMEX One Year Subscription (Eight Iss United St 29.95 Canada & Mexico. Europe (E 4 Obher Foreign Back Issues: C/ > esigns, Inc. : Box 646 East Longmeadow, MA 01028
COMMODORE AND COMPUTER INDUSTRY NEws
Announcing the new C-64 CDROM “Audio Vol 1”
While we don’t usually publish info about CD-ROMs with Commodore content, more often than not that is due to the content being made up of blatent copyright violations, Also, most such CD-ROMs are generally pointed toward emulator users, not actual Commodore users. We found the following announcementto be alittle different, so we've decided to pass this one on for the benefit of users who either havea CD-ROM interfaced to their CMD HD, or some other means to transfer from CD-ROM to their Commodore computer:
Unlike other C-64 CDROM disks, which are collections of games, this CDROM has over 6,000 SID files along with utilities and players. This collection of SID Files includes over 2,000 stereo SID files and many Singalong SIDS. Also included is PLAYSID and playsid sid collections. The new C-64 CDROM “Audio Vol 1” is available for only $25, shipped anywhere in North America (add $5 for shipping elsewhere in the world— $30 total in US funds). For immediate shipment send a money order to:
Corey Kelts
5871 Blue Iron Way
Kearns UT 84118
Email: ckelts@media.utah.edu
Go64!?
We recently reported that the German publication 64’er was no longer being produced. In its wake, however, the following announcement appeared on the Internet:
After the demise of the last German C64/C128 magazine 64’er, my friends and I decided to make our own German Commodore magazine. It will be called GO64), and will b lable via subscription only. Here are a few facts about our magazine.
There are five editors, two in Germany, and three in Austria. The Germans are CSW/Plush and Vectrocon/Fairlight, the Austrians are Spockie/T’Pau, 2Hip/T’Pau, and Rudi/GIG (GEOS Interests Group). The magazine will be layed out in Austria and printedand shipped in Germany twelve times annually.
The magazine will cover as many C64/C128 topics as possible, e.g. GEOS, hardware and software reviews, scene related topics, internet stuff, games, hardware projects, reports, news, etc.
COMMODORE WORLD
We cooperate with PPE, CMD, and all GEOS groups.The word of our arrival is currently being spread via IRC, new: and diskmags.
Some general info: A trial subscription of cost DM 24, a full subscription costs DM 94. These prices are for German subscribers, for shipping to foreign countries, there will bean additional charge, butat this time I am unsure of the exact amount. Ifinterested, please contact me at: spockie@giga.or.at.
Ifyou don’t have access to Email, please contact our publisher:
CSW Ver
Goethe 22 D-71364 Winnenden Germany
Telephone/FAX: ++49/(0)7195 61120
Inner Space Anthology Available
Another tidbit we recently found online is that Karl Hildon, author of The Complete Commodore Inner Space Anthology, has recently begun making this resource available once again. Here's what Karl had to say:
The Complete Commodore Inner Space Anthology is a collection of reference material for Commodore computers. It contains no reading— just page after page of charts and tables, including:
Command summaries for BASIC, COMAL, ML;
Jim Butterfield’s memory maps for the PET, VIC20, C64, C128, and the 4040, 8050 and 1541 disk drives
Machine language monitor commands
PAL and CBM assembler commands and .opt directives Addresses of user callable ROM suboutines
Jim Butterfield’s “SuperCharts”
Disk drive file header and sector format information SID chip note values
. video chip data and video memory maps Character and sprite design templates
Hardware port pinouts and transfer sequences
IC chip pinouts
Color codes,
It also contains several indirectly related charts and tables:
Issue 18
* Sheet music symbols
+ Note frequencies and chord derivatives
* Checking semiconductors with an ohmmeter * Trigonometry rules
* Unit to unit conversions (approx. 800)
* Geometric area and volume formulae
* Periodic table of the elements
. ++ plus much more!
Prices include shipping and handling: From the U.S.A, - US $20.00, From Canada - Cdn $20.00 Outside North America - contact me ¢
Karlh@inforamp.net”
Send check or money order to:
Karl Hildon 4 Pollard Drive
Scarborough, Ontario, Canada MIRAG4
For Visa card orders, simply E-Mail your card number (sorry, Visa only) and expiry date to:
karlh@inforamp.net
The billing company on your invoice will appear as “Attic Typesetting, Inc.”
Many who have already ordered have asked for an autographed copy. T'manot sure why anyone would want my scribbly signature on their brand new book, but requests will be humbly honored.
Faster Modem Interface from CMD
Creative Micro Designs has recently discontinued manufacturing their SwiftLink-232 cartridge, and have replaced it with a new product called Turbo232. Thenew product, whichis program-compatiblewith SwiftLink, adds three new high-speed selections to support 57.6K, 115.2K and 230K bit per second communication rates, Turbo also been redesigned for better hardware compatibility and easier configuration for users with special requirements, Announced price is $39.95, and shippingisslated for mid-January.
ErRoR cOrRRECTION
Anumber of the program lines in the FSPLIT.CREATE program (CW17, ppg. 44-46) had incorrect line numbers, which if entered would cause the program data to be out of order. Specifically, lines 3328-3578 (on page 46) should have been 2560-2810 (with an increment of 10 for each line number).
Looking fora Commodore user group in your area? User groups can help you solve problems, keep you informed of new products and events that might be of interest, and give you a chance to share your computing experiences with others who enjoy Commodore computing. The listings below include; Name, Address, Meeting dates, Number of members, Contact person, and Phone.
Suncoast Commodore Club Basic Bits Commodore Group
1555 Orange Street Clearwater, FL 34616
PO Box 81886
Jackson Michigan CCC 33 Indian Trail Munith, MI 49259
PO Box 1899
Cincinnati Commodore Computer Club c/o 31 Potowatomie Trail Milford, Ohio 45150
December 1996/January 1997
Cleveland, OH 44181-088 South Bay Computer Groups
Chula Vista, CA 91912-189
Commom Computer Club 6500 Center Ridge Road Newburgh, IN 47630
Tri-City Commodore Computer 320 NE C Street, Apt. A College, WA 99324-212
Hamilton Commodore Users Group 35-1400 Limeridge Rd. East Hamilton, Ontario L8W-1L7, Canada
COMMODORE WORLD
by fim Brain
Welcome to another edition of Commodore Trivia. As many of you may know, these trivia questions and answers have been donated by me to the Commodore community at large. Unlike other articles in Commodore World, these trivia questions have been placed in the public domain. I ask only that the trivia questions remain intact and unchanged, and
that my name and address appear somewhere so users can contact me. The trivia is also used fora contest I run on the Internet; contact meat the included address for more information. Because curiosity has the best of me, | always welcome a note or postcard detailing where the ia goes. I also welcome new questions— provided they come with the answers. Enjoy!
triv
‘OMMODORE TRIVIA
Jim Brain Brain Innovations, Inc.
10710 Bruhn Ave Bennington, NE 68007 j.brain@ieee.org
COMMODORE TRIVIA 7 QUESTIONS
$100) On the MOS Technology's KIM-1, how many
ys were on the keypad?
$110) Whi
Commodore assets?
is the name of the company that recently pure!
ed the liquidated
$101) The KIM-1 keypad had the common 0-9A-F keys on the keypad, but also had some special keys. Name them.
$102) The KIM-1 wasa set of modules that could be plugged together to expand the ayiemn h module had a model number. What was the model number of the KIM-1 motherboard?
$103) On the 1525 line of printers, if you wanted to create the following graphic, what bytes would you send to the printer after turning on graphics mode?
$104) What is the horizontal resolution of the 1525 line of printers?
$105) On Commodore drives, explain the difference between the B-R command and the UL command,
$106) On the Commodore 1541 drive, what does the U: command do? $107) What does the first routine in the 1541 drive ROM actually do?
$108) How many files will a 1581 disk drive hold?
$109) Commodore 1581 drives have a special “autoboot” feature that enables the drive to load and run a program off a disk upon drive bootup. What is the required name of the file?
$10A) What filetype must the file mentioned in $109 be? $10B) To power up a 1351 mouse in “joystick mode”, what must the user do?
$10C) Describe the contents of the POTX or POTY registers when using a 1351 mouse.
$10D) Commodore computers typically use most of zero page for temporary iables and other items, However, both the VIC-20 and the 64 reserve 4 bytes for user programs that need zero page memory. Where are these locations?
‘$10E) Name the 16 colors available on the 64.
$10F) Both the VIC-20 and the C64 emulate the operation of the 6551 UART. How many “mock 6551” registers are mapped into the memory map?
COMMODORE WORLD
$111) Atone time, Commodore attempted to manufacture a dual drive version of the 1571 called the 1572, For what technical reason did it utimately fail?
$112) Over what computer system did a User Group sue Commodore and win?
$113)In$103, the question asked how tocreateagraphicofasmall boxonthe 1525, In this quesrtion, we have made a different design. Ifyou wanted tocreate the following graphicusing individual dotson the printer, what bytes would you send to the printer after turning on graphics mode?
$114) (Some C65 questions) How many SID chips does the the development Commodore 65 machine contain?
$115) What CPU does the Commodore 65 use? $116) What is the alternate name for the Commodore 65?
$117) How many processors does the internal 1581-compatible drive on the C65 contain?
$118)Inthe tradition of na the ICs in the C Which one?
ming certain ICs after famous cartoon characters, one of is named after a Warner Brothers cartoon character.
$119) What version of BASIC is included on the Commodore 65 in C65 mode?
SLA) How
any I/O ports does a Commodore 65 contain? $11B) What common Commodore 64 I/O port does the C65 NOT have? $11C) How many function keys are on a Commodore 65?
$11D) What CBM disk drive DOS was used as the template for the internal C65 drive DOS?
$11E) What resolution of text screen does the C65 power up in? (Pleasegiveanswers in characters).
SLIF) What distinguishing non-textual characteristic in the C65 is not present in othe Commodore 8-bit computers?
Issue 18
COMMODORE TRIVIA #16 ANSWERS
$0F0) The matrix was 8 by 8. S$0F1) 15359 bytes free. $0F2) “standard mode”.
ternate mode”
SOF3)
SOFA) chr$(142) SOP5) chr$(14)
SOF6) Yes. The above translates a
S$0F7) col. “0” command is a
‘SHIF
SOF8) 11 elements. Almost everyone who has ever programmed in Commodore BASIC has seen the “BAD SUBSCRIPT” error when they try to use the 12th
For those who are interested, the COLL! alogous to the VALIDATE operation,
LIST 60 through to and including 100,
element ina un-DIMensioned array.
SOF9) 10 bytes. Since this area could be POKEd to, many boot programs would rs into this buffer to simulate ke
poke char
SOFA) A physi “logical” sectors ir Commodore drives.
| sector is 512 bytes in length. Interna physical sector, to maintain compatibility
presses,
lly, the 1581 ere:
2256 ith older
SOFB) The X64 series. That includes the Commodore 16, the Commodore 116, and the Commodore Plus/4.
SOFC) Even though you are looking for digital information (how far the mouse has traveled since the last movementina particular axis), theinformation isread from the “paddle” or potentiometer (POT) registers. On the C64, the POT registers are part of the SID chip, and are at 54297 ($D419) for POTX, and 54298 ($D41A) for POTY,
S$0FD) 802640 bytes.
SOFE) When the 1670 modem was first introduced, it powered up in auto-answer mode, which means it would answer incoming calls after the phone rang, You could turn this feature off through software control, butifthe powerwas reset, the modem would answer the phone. So many people complained to Commodore that CBM revised the 1670 to include an extra DIP switch that turned this feature off,
SOFF)T is 101 meanal dil/Suannal answer 0 300 bps modem. The author owns one, and used it for many To operate, you must use a phone with a detachable handset cord. You d railed the number on the phone, waited for the answer, unplugged the handset, and plugged the cord into the 1600, A switch toggled between using originate oranswer frequencies, The 1600 was manufactured by Anchor Automation for Commodore, (As a aside, this unit claimed 300 bps, but I never could get 300 to work well, Most of my telecommunications happened at 150 bps.)
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December 1996/January 1997 9 COMMODORE WORLD
It’s not surprising to most Commodore owners that in the early 1980's (1982 to be exact), the C-64 was the fastest selling and most popular personal computer ofall time. CBM had almost 50% of the entire computer market, while companies like Apple, Atari, and Radio shack had “The high-end of the market”. CBM went for the low-end, the under $500 market. Jack Tramiel was once quoted as saying, “We sell to the masses, not the c!
What does all this have to do with the Apple II? During the C-64's hay day, the Apple II was in the “Hi-end” $1000+ category. It’s true that both computers used the 6502 as their processor, but there was much more the ndits popularity. It was noted asa ed, powerful, super personal computer. Was the architecture so much more advanced compared to the C-64, warranting it’s high price? The Apple Il is not merely a close cousin to the C-64, but quite possibly it’s “big baby brother”,
History of the Apple II In the early 70 academia designing both hardware and software for vertical market applications.
I came from an area of
Working with the National Science Foundation, | began with the Mark 8, the IMSIA 8080 (an $100 buss), MOS Technologies Kim-1, and the RCA Cosmac VIP. After NSF, I went to work for Milton Bradley's newly built Advanced research center in 1979. Iwas working on the MB-1—a 16-bit personal computer, later acquired by Texas Instruments and renamed the TI-99 Home computer. (The history books do not recognize that Milton Bradley was the first to create the 16-bit home computer.)
While working on the MB-1, we had a department called “The Orchard”. Asthe name suggests, this a room full of dozens of Apple II's.Developers were busy redesigning Milton Bradley “Board” games into Apple II computer games. A good friend of mine, David Winzler (the chief software developer for the “Orchard”), introduced me to the Apple II. I had to have one, but the price was a bit steep
for my wallet. So, having the schematics at hand, and the chips being fairly cheap, I built my own Apple II from scratch for about $200!
In the 1981-83 time frame, Milton Bradley, trying to redesign a new home computer, was pushed out of the market. The entire
department was laid off in 1983; advanced research was closed down. TI's 99/4A's home computer division collapsed as well as Mattel’s “Intellivision”, the Timex Sinclair, and a host of other newcomers. We were all pushed out of the market by the latest lowest cost system in town. The Commodore C-64. I went on to continue developing on the Apple Il platform, and then in 1985, converted over to Apple's Macintosh.
Presently, lamamember ofthe CMD family and have learned a great deal about the class 6502 based machines, the C-64, 128’s ete, which I had missed or overlooked years earlier, As I started to really enjoy these “new” machines, | saw similarities between the C-64 and A2.
The Apple |
Going back in time again, the subject this time, the Apple 1 and II. In 1975, the Home- brew Computer club in Palo Alto, C founded by Steve Wozniak (a 25 year electronics hacker and an employee of Hewlett Packard), wanted to build their own personal computer. The 8080 chip, which was popular at that time, was the preferred microprocessor
Comparison of Apple Il+, Apple // e, and C-64
Apple I+ Apple //e
Processor
Speed
Memory
Expansion eight 50 pin slots seven-50 pin slots, one 44 pin direct port, one60 pin slot* one 24 pin user port
Serial Port no no yes
Disk Drive 5,.25"/130K 5.25"/160K §.25°/160K
Video Out NTSC NTSC NTSC & Chroma
Sound Out yes
RF Out yes
Text Res 40x25 Text Color 3 Modes w/multi-color
Planes Back/Foreground
Lo-Res 40x25
Colors 16 Hi-Res 1 280x192 280x192 320x200
Colors Black & White Black & White Black & White Hi-Res 2 140x192 140x192 160x200
Colors 6 6 4 w/2 modes Sprites none none 8 w/multi-color
2 Levels 2 Levels 16 Levels 3 Sound FX Complete Synthesizer
System Disk Drive
* This option allowed Apple's 80 column card with 64K of RAM to expand the Apple//e up to 128K, for an additional charge.
December 1996/January 1997 W COMMODORE WORLD
by the club. Steve (often called “the Woz”), had experience with the 6800, but both processors where almost $200. He happened upon a new microcomputer chip put out by a new company called MOS technologies, for a little over $20, It took some doing, most club members wanted to stay with the 8080, but Steve convinced them to go with the MOS 6502, Along with 21 year old Steve Job's financial help, the Apple I was born in 1976 with 8K of RAM, one slot, and a pricetag of almost $700 without keyboard, power supply, monitor, orexternal mass storage (i.e. cassette interface), Wozniac, used inexpensive TTL chips for the entire design. These were all basic gate chips, shift registers, etc. and could be obtained anywhere for less than a dollar each. Even the screen display mapping was designed using these components. The only real expense (besides the PC board) for complex devices were the RAM chips and the 6502.
The Apple Il
Enter The Apple IT. With great successes with the Apple], it was obvious that improvements had to be made to really direct this machine into the current infancy of the personal computer market.
The Apple I was redesign into the infamous Apple II, shown at the First West Coast Computer Fair in April of 1977 (the 2 or ILis sometimes printed as the Apple II). The Woz and Jobs released it with 4K of RAM, expandable to 48K, with included empty sockets, NTSC Video out, an internal 3.5 amp 5 volt power supply, cassette I/O, and a keyboard were also added. Sound came from an internal speaker which could make tones only with special software routines that toggled the speaker with on and off selecting from a transistor. 8 slots were added to the new design to accommodate peripherals like ards, more memory etc. and dual paddle port were also added, but were somewhat difficult to get to. The cover had to be removed and the Joystick cable was plugged into a 16 pin socket on the motherboard after snaking it through a hole in the back of the computer. It was not like the 9-pin external Atari or C-64 style. Believe it or not, it wasn’t used very much and most games used the keyboard, go figure!?
The to cost of this 4K machine? A whopping $1,300 with game paddles, no monitor, just the video out. With no RF modulator available, a company began producing a UHF model that only cost $75. It also came with a cassette tape of programs,
COMMODORE WORLD
but no player, compared to the $600 Commodore PET or TRS-80 with cassette mechanism, this was a bit costly, but did have expandability—this was the clincher, the getter, the cross to the “High End” category. It Wi time did show, the main selling point. Lift the hood and drop in what was to become thousands of third party fifty pin “plug and play” extensions to the machine. There was even an 80 column card for $300. It cost $600 more for 8-50 pin slots, which may have been a little high for many families. I believe the Apple I could have sold for $600 and Apple Corp., now a giant company in Cuperetino, would still have made outstanding profits, In all fairness, however, even with the price, the Apple II did have excellent graphics for it’s time, remember we are talking about 1977. Some Apple II features included:
* 40 character by 24 line text display with Inverse and flashing characters (no lower case) Lo-Res Graphics, 16 color 40 by 48 block resolution Hi-Res Graphic dots resolution Mixed Mode—with either Hi or Lo-res modes, this mode has4 lines of text ONLY at the bottom with 40 by 40 Lo-Res Graphicsor 280 dots by 160 dots above
4 color 140 dots by 192
The 5 and 1/4 floppy disk drive was finally available in early 1978 including the controller card carrying a $600 price tag.
Even with C-64 capabilities which existed 4 years after the Apple II was being sold, the Apple Il in 1978 was ahead ofit’s time, but the next 4 years showed no real improvements except for the Apple II plus in June of 1979 at $1,200 (Only $100 cheaper than the original). The improvements were minor at best. Applesoft BASIC (written by a fairly new companyat the time called Microsoft) replaced the Woz’s Integer BASIC, an upgrade to DOS 3.3, 2 more colors added to the Hi-res mode and small hardware modifications and enclosure improvements.
Not until the entry of the Apple //e in May of 1983, were real improvements seen with newadvanced desi have been! We all also know, that this was the time when our beloved C-64 was about a year oldand known as “The fastest selling computer in the world”.
Thisis were the breaking point of this article (and the breaking of this authors heart), occurs. Apple decided to improve the
12
technology of the Apple Il+, by redesigning the system using custom LSI chips. This would result in fewer internal components, upgrading the design to be more powerful and most of all, reduce manufacturing costs. Internally it's code name was Diana, but was later changed to “LCA”, which stood for “Low Cost Apple”. When the press got wind of the new low cost Apple II, they were expecting a competitive low cost Apple Il price of about $400 retail. Inside the Apple camp low cost referred to manufacturing costs, not retail! Due to this leak and misunderstanding, the computer was immediately renamed the “Super II”. Whew, the consumer almost found out! Sales were still outstanding at the same $1000 plus price tag, with over 50 thousand units a month sold (twice that over the II+), and there was no end in site.
What improvements made the Apple //eso special? Lets compare it to the older Apple II plus as well as the Commodore 64.
It doesn’t take too much to realize that the redesign of the Apple //e was mostly for Manufacturing cost and little on advancing a four year old design. In 1978, the Apple II+, was a powerful little computer, preferred by many people. Compared to anything else on the market for an expandable personal computer, regardless of price, there was nothing that could touch it, Although by 1983, so much software was written for it, Apple just made improvements for themselves. Compatibility would have suffered. For an affordable computer with just as much capability (ifnot more) I believe that the above comparison shows the C-64 to have much more than the aging Apple Il+ as well as Apple //e, especially in the area which matters most— SSSS.
As | currently do profess to be a C- 64 “convert”, the more I use it, one question comes to mind, If | had it to do all over again, which machine would I pick? In 1979, [would have still home brewed the Apple II (because I could), but when 1983 came along, I wouldn't have missed shelling out $300 to buy a lot of fun with great graphics and sound. As a software and hardware designer, itwould have enhanced my career. Apple could have advanced their machine in 83 to 256 colors, builtin 80 column, etc,, and kept compatibility also, to stay in the “High-end market”, It just boiled down to timing, installed software, marketing, and the willingness to pay $1200 for a $300 machine.
1)
Issue 18
Commodore World Speci Report
Now that the SuperCPU 64 has been shipping for a while, the initial clamor has died down and users are beginning to ask, “When does the 128 version start shipping?” Add to this those who are asking about the various developer tools and memory expansion, then top it all off with the fact that Creative Micro Designs (CMD) has been fairly quiet about all of these things lately, and it begins to appear as if there might be something seriously wrong,
‘The reality of the situation, though, is that CMD has been quiet mostly because they've been very busy, Admittedly, though, things are taking longer than originally anticipated, and other necessary projects have added to the delays. But before we get too far s, let's go back to the announcement of the 128 version, and then work our way forward,
Theannouncementofthe 128 SuperCPU came after the 128 community madea strong showing, convincing CMD that a 128 version would be viable from a sales standpoint. At the time of the announcement, CMD realized that there would be some extra work involved to make a common main board, which was necessary to make the 128 version cost-effective, The release date of the
64 version was then pushed back from January of
1996 to March, andestimated that the 128 version would take an additional 60 days beyond that.
However, CMD encountered many more interfacing problems than they had originally anticipated. Dealing with these problems required extensive modification of the custom logic chip, or CPLD, in the SuperCPU. To further complicate matters, changing the CPLD became more and more difficult as the resources within the chip were dimi design phase, the CPLD had to be completely redone a number of times to make additional logic functions possible.
Finally, in July—four months beyond the new target date—the SuperCPU 64 was ready, and shipping began. Knowing that the CPLD design phase had taken much longer than expected, and
hed, Near the end of the
December 1996/January 1997
SuPpERCPU
UPDATE
by Doug Cotton
assuming that this would also be the case with creating a CPLD to emulate the 128's MMU, it would be impossible to get the 128 version to market in only 60 days, And there was newly discovered factor that hadn't figured into the i time estimate—a daughter card would be required for the 128 version, because Commodore hadn't allowed some 128 hardware features to be controlled from the cartridge port. It was starting to look like it would be the end of the year before the 128 version could begin shipping.
And then reports of problems with the 64 version on a few Commodore 64¢ computers starting coming in. Two more months ofanalysi and redesign to resolve timing inconsi: with this specific Commodore model. Changes in staffing also came around this time, and with the loss of Wayne Wrubel—CMD's production and repair technici called on to fill in on production and repairs while training new engineering assistant and technician Tony Cote.
Once Tony began getting up to speed, Mark was finally able to get back to engineering. But so much time had passed with all the delays that another scheduled project needed immediate attention—a replacement for SwiftLink. Initial work on this project had begun overa year earlier, but was put offuntil the current supply of circuit boards could beexhausted, That time was coming quickly. SwiftLink had proven to be more expensive to produce than it really should be for various reasons, and worse, modem speeds were escalating quickly to the point of obsoleting the interface. Mark put ina couple of weeks on anew design, and passed the results on to Tony for a out so that he could get back to work on the SuperCPU project.
After some ii work on the SuperCPU 128 MMU logie, the focus of development moved to researching the expansion RAM circuitry, which initially looked relatively simple. However, as Mark gotalittlefurtherinto the design, it became
an—engineer Mark Fellows was
new board |:
13
apparent that using DRAM (Dynamic RAM) and astandard approach tothe RAM controller would not provide adequate performance.
Most of November, and the first part of December, was spent researching every type of
RAM that might provide a performance boost. While some types did offer better performance, these came with added cost and were less commonly available in the marketplace. In early interleaved memory scheme w: investigated, but the method required additional
December
logic that would raise the cost and space
(quirements ofthe controller—but there wasn't that much room available on the board,
The solution came in using 72-pin SIMMs— an idea that was earlier rejected because these SIMMs are 32 bits wide, making their use prohibitive. Upon closer inspection, however, only Error Correcting (ECC) SIMMs presented a problem—standard Fast Page and EDO types
offer access to 8-bit segments of the 32-bit data. By combining standard Fast Page 72-pin SIMMs with interleaved access, adequate performance at optimal pricing was attained.
This brings us nearly up to date, as CMD is currently prototyping the RAM controller. CMD has also decided to release a separate SuperCPU 64 RAM expansion card as soon as possible, because this helps prove out the design for the 128 model, and is instrumental in getting developers going on new SuperCPU-based applications. The card will offer a single 72-pin SIMM socket, capable of holding from 1 to 16 Megabytes of RAM. Much of the work required to move from the prototype to the production model will be handled by Tony Cote, allowing Mark Fellows to continue work on the rest of the SuperCPU 128 circuitry and firmware. en the delays, and considering the amount of work remaining in the project, CMD estimates. release of the SuperCPU 128 will be in April. CMD also wishes to express thanks to all the SuperCPU 128 customers who have waited patiently for this product. It's coming! §)
COMMODORE WORLD
Commodore Drives
Every sooften, IreceivealetterfromaCommodore enthusiast or collector that asks about an odd Commodore drive. The person mentions that the drive contains the familiar Commodore logo and name, but it doesn’t look like any drive they've ever seen. This doesn’t surprise me, as most current Commodore owners grew up with the Commodore VIC and 64 line of computers, and have never seen a drive older than a 1541. They assume that the 1541, 1571, and 1581 drives encompass the entire spectrum of CBM units. These drives spark questions like “Did Commodore provide computers forthe military?” or “Are these 1541 compatible drives made by another company and marketed by CBM?". Have you ever seen such a drive and wondered what it was?
Contrary to popular belief, neither the 1541, nor its predecessor the VIC-1540, begin the Commodore line of drives. I suppose some really don’t care to know differently, but I find that knowing the history behind Commodore products helps me appreciate them and what they do. Ifyou share that thought, continue on.
For those who may not know, this article is the second part of a series on CBM drives started in Commodore World Issue 11. The previous article described the serial drive lineage (1540 on). If you haven't read it, | encourage you to do so.
In The Beginning...
Depending on which reference you consult, the “beginning” concerning Commodore computers and peripherals starts in either late 1976 or late 1978. (See sidebar “When Did It Start”). In any
COMMODORE WORLD
PART II
by Jim Brain
case, Commodoreintroduced their first computer system, the “Personal Electronic Transactor 2001” or “PET”, at this time. The machine includeda system unit, akeyboard, a9 inch black and white monitor, and a tape cassette deck ina single enclosure made from heavy 18 gauge steel. Although some claim the steel case was used to comply with FCC RF egulations, the FCC had not yet iss such regulations. Truthfully, Commodore simply used in-house services. Since Commodore was in the office furniture business, the cases were made from sheet metal of the same type used to make metal desks and file cabinets. Anyone who has ever lifted a PET machine or its peripheral knows of the strength of these cases. Internally, the system contained BASIC 1.0 and a 40 column video display IC. Those who preordered the machines inJune ofthat year received 4kB units, while units after introduction sported 8 kB or RAM. As for I/ O, the unit featured a second tape drive port, a user port, and an IEEE-488 compatible port. The IEEE port wasalready in useon Osbornel portable computers, and this port was used by many scientific instruments to communicate with one another.
Given the impressive list of features that accompanied the PET, it is interesting to note that the ability to interface with a floppy diskette drive was not one of them. This is somewhat ironic, given the business background of Commodore and the fact that other systems sported disk drive interfacing abilities. Whileitis true that drives were priced a bit too high for most hobbyists, businesses could afford suitable
14
diskette drives and needed to the advantages of diskette storage. In addition, the BASIC included with the PET (BASIC 1.0, also called “Original ROM" BASIC) did not support disk drives in any way. Thus, we begin ourjourneyintoCommodore drive history.
The “First” Commodore Drive
In December 1978, the first disk drive for the Commodore PET line of computers was introduced. The dual drivesystem utilized 2 single sided, single density 5.25" mini-floppy drive mechanisms and provided 100 kilobytes of information per disk side or 200 kB of online storage per unit. This drive holds at least one other distinction in addition to arriving first, it was not manufactured by Commodore.
Commodore owners know about “clone” or “Commodore compatible” drives. These drives, manufactured by companies other than Commodore, promise compatibility with a particular model or models of Commodore manufactured drives. typical examplesin the VIC/ CBM 1541 line include the Enhancer 2000 and FSD-1. Since compatibility is the primary objective, clone drives are measured by how well theyemulatethe Commodore counterpart. Given the nature of this series, we've refrained from discussing the many clone drives, but we'll make this one exception given the background of this drive unit.
It is somewhat misleading to call the first PET drivea “clone” drive, sinceit really didn'temulate any Commodore drive (since there weren't any out yet). Nonetheless, Commodore didn’t
Issue 18
produce it. The drive, model DKH641, was developedand manufactured by (lam not making thisup) “Convenience Living” andinterfacedwith the PET via a special disk controller board that was installed inside the computer, Some may ask why the unit required a special interface given that the PET came standard with an IEEE-488 port. Well, while Commodore did include the port on the PET system, the Operating System, complete with BASIC 1.0, it did not provide for disk usage. The OS, usually referred toas “Original ROMs", allowed only tape storage. The DKH641 drive contained its own Disk Operating System called DiskMon which added 14 commands to BASIC for disk access. The entire package, including the interface, retailed for $1295.00
Many people remember an early disk drive unit forthe PET manufactured by“Computhink”. The two drives are one in the same. The name change from Convenience Living to Computhink occurred by February 1979. In reality, research suggests the company was closely tied with or owned by a distributor of PET products called New England Electronic Company, or NEECO. Also at this time, Computhink increased the capability ofthe DKH641 by using doubledensity mechanisms. This gave 200 kB of storage per drive or 400 kB online storage. The new model, listed as DKH642-1, retailed for the same price. In addition, a double sided version of the unit offering 400 kB perdiskand 800 kB onlinestorage was also offered.
The 10XX “internal” Drives
Even as the Computhink drives hit the market, Commodore was at work creating its first disk drive. Sources indicate these internal prototype drives were given model numbers, The first internal unit was numbered 1010, with a model 1020 and 1030 following. Research indicates Commodore showed the final unit, model 1030, to PET enthusiasts before finalizing a design. Some users reported knowledge of the unit and noted that the unit was “very buggy”. Whatever their function, information suggests that Commodore did not market the LOXX drive line,
The PET/CBM 2040
‘The Commodore model 2040 disk drive holds the distinction of being the first Commodore produced PET floppy drive unit. Initially offered le in April 1979 for $1295.00 (the same the Computhink DKH641/6420X), the 2040 utilizes 2 Shugart Associates 5.25" full height single sided double density drive mechanisms with pushdown door latches and a computer board enclosed in the same 18 gauge sheet metal as the PET computer system. The unit measures
price
December 1996/January 1997
6'5" high by 15" wide by 14.35" deep and contains the drives side by side in the enclosure. The unit features off-white paint on top and black painting on bottom to match the PET case color. A black decal runs across tothe top front of the unit with the traditional Commodore “chicken feet” log and the Commodore name printed on the left side. A large “CBM” with the text “model 2040” appears in the middle of the decal, while the words “dual drive floppy disk” appear on the right.
As for usage, the drive interfaces to the means of the IEEE-488 1/0 port. However the original OS in the PET could not handle disk drives, buyers had to upgrade the ROMs in their PET system to utilize the new drive. The new ROMs were nicknamed “Upgrade ROMs”. The two drives are addressed within programsas the same device number (factory set to device 8) with separate unit ids (0 and 1), Strangely, the units are positioned in the case in reverse order. Unit 0 is on the right, while unit 1 resides to the left ofthe drive enclosure. 3 LED's signal activity, power, and error conditions. Each drive contai its own red activity LED, while a middle red LE indicates an error.
Data is written to 5.25" SS-DD floppy disks using the Group Code Recording (GCR) method (See What is GCR?). Each drive initially held 176,440 bytes of information, of which the user could utilize 170,850 bytes for program and data files. A query of the disk operating system version on original units returns 1,0. The DOS is similar to and accepts most of the commands found in the familiar version 2.6 DOS in CBM 1541 drives. One notable exception from the Ddrive DOS is relative files. While the 2040 could handle
i
| } | |
15
Random files (basically a fancy name for raw data storage), the drive did not understand the concept of relative files.
Internally, the 2040 packeda lot of power. The 2040 unit contains not 1 but 2 central processing, units. In an era when most drives either did not contain an onboard CPU or contained at most a single CPU, Commodore's parallel processing drive units rose above the ordinary. The unit contained a MOS 6502 CPU as well as a MOS 6502 CPU (a 6502 derivative). Each accessed its own I/O and timers, while the two processors shared access to 4 kilobytes of RAM.
The CBM 3040 Commodore marketed the PET 2001 in Europe with a full size keyboard and the CBM 3000 series. The 2040 was sold as a peripheral for thismachine, but itwas relabeled asthe model 3040 in order to give the impression the drive was made specifically for the European machine. Ironically, the drive did belong with the computer, but both model numbers had to match for buyers to believe it. The2040(andits twin, the 3040) wentthrough two major DOS revisions. The first, version 1.2, merely fixed some timing bugs in the original DOS. The second, version 2.0, first appeared in early 1980 and added the familiar relative file support to Commodore's drive. Other things changed with the introduction of DOS 2.0, but we'lldiscuss them in more detail when we describe the CBM 4040,
The CBM 8050
AsCommodore'ssecond drive offering, the 8050 departed from 2040 compatibility in favor of allowing more storage per disk. Although the 8050 appears identical to the 2040/3040 in
COMMODORE WORLD
appearance, the drive is drastically different internally. In order to provide more storage capacity per diskette, the 8050 uses single sided quad density Micropolis drives to allow storage of 533,248 bytes per disk. Of that, 521,208 bytes are available for user storage. Interfacing is provided through the IEEE-488 port, with the familiar CBM DOS command set. A query of the DOS version can return 2.1, 2.5, or 2.7, depending on date of manufacture and upgrade status. All DOS versions implement the now familiar relative file type. ‘The 8050 continued the tradition of utilizing two CPUs to handle drive activities, but switched to using two identical 6502 CPU instead of the 6502/6504 combination utilized in the 2040/3040. The 8050 also introduced the bicolor drive status LED. Earlier 2040 units contained a single red LED in the center of the drive front that turned on to indicate an error. The 8050, in contrast, featured a bicolor LED,
COMMODORE WORLD
On power-up, the LED flashed from red to green and back a few times, finally turning green to indicate power. If an error occurred, the LED would turn to red. Introduced in June 1980, the 8050 accompanied the introduction ofthe new 80 column PET computer, the PET/ CBM 8000 series.
The CBM 8061 and 8062
The 8061 and 8062 differ with respect to the most of the other drives mentioned in this article, as they are dual 8" floppy diskette drives. Able to read and write disks formatted in either CBM GCR format or IBM 3740 format, the 8061 utilized single sided mechanisms to store 1.6 megabytes of data per disk, while the 8062 featured double sided mechanisms allowing storage of 3.2 megabytes of data. Other than the fact they were introduced in mid 1980, not much else is known about these units,
The CBM 4040
In late 1980, Commodore created the PET/CBM 4000. series computer system by merging the full keyboard version of the PET 2001 with the BASIC 4.0 found in the 8000 line. Along with the computer introduction, Commodore upgraded the 2040 drive once again to feature relative file support and enhancements found in the 8050 DOS, Dubbed DOS 2.0, The ROM formed the heart of the 2040 drive unit. Commodore renumbered the resulting package the CBM 4040 drive. Externally, only the decal changed to denote the new drive. Internally, the new DOS added fixes and enhancements found in the 8050 DOS, it reduced the capacity of the drive somewhat. While the 2040/3040 drives featured 176,640 bytes of raw storage per disk, the 4040 could store only 174,848 bytes of raw data. Astute readers will note that this is the same storage capacity as the 1540 and 1541 drives and their direct descendants. Users quickly dubbed this the “4040 format”, although the 2.0 ROMs had been made available to 2040/3040 drive owners a few months earlier. The 4040 utilized the same dual processor arrangement and CPU
16
types as the earlier 2040/3040 units. Later models of the 4040 came with a slightly upgraded 2.1 DOS version.
The CBM 2031 and 4031
since the introduction of the 2040, PET enthu: jamented the lack ofa cost effective single drive for the PET line. Finally, in late 1981, Commodore finally produced such a single drive for the PET/CBM line. The 2031 drive resembles one-half of a 2040 drive unit externally. Basically, the system functions just like the 2040, albeit with only unit 0 functioning. A query of the DOS version returns 2.6. Research suggests the 2031 was produced to accompany the PET/CBM 2000 series computers, while the 4031 accompanied the 4000 series PET/CBMs. The two units are identical in all other respects.
The CBM 2031Ip and 4031Ip Following the introduction of the 2031 and 4031 drives, Commodore introduced the first serial drive, the VIC 1540. The 2031/4031 and the 1540 share many similarities, and Commodore was well known for cutting costs wherever possible. Research suggests Commodore reworked the 2031/4031 drives to fit in the 1540 case and utilize the Alps half height mechanism used in the 1540, Thus, the 2031LP “low profile” was born. Residing ina durable plastic case measuring 97mm high by 200 mm wide by 374 mm deep, the 2031LP functioned identically in all respects to its predecessor. Initially, the front decal work shared similarities with early plain VIC-1540 decal work, sporting brown decals with white lettering labeled “Commodore” on the left, “single fdrive floppy disk drive” in the middle, and “2031" on the right. Note that no “Ip” moniker was shown, Later decal work shares artwork from “rainbow” 1541 decal work, with silver raised “Commodore” on left and “2031LP” on right. To distinguish these models from the earlier ones, the full height 2031/4031 is stated as the HP “high profile” model.
The CBM 8250
In early 1982, Commodore unveiled an enhancement to the 8050 drive. Commodore replaced the single sided drives in the 8050 with double sided mechanisms. Thisincreased user storage capacity to 1,049,782 bytes. To handle the 1 MB* of data storage capability, Commodore upgraded the DOS to version 2.7. This new DOS enhanced the notion of relative files include the concept of “super side
Issue 18
sectors”, While prior relative file support in Commodore drives contained a maximum number of records per relative file, the addition of super side sectors removed the limit. Externally, only the decal denotes the 8250 unit.
The CBM 8280
As with the 8061 and 8062, the 8280 uses 8" floppy diskettes to store data. Utilizing dual mechanisms stacked atop one another, the 8280 applied an upgrade of DOS 2.7 found in the 8250 numbered DOS 3.0. Each drive allowed storage of 1 megabyte of user data and could read and write IBM 8" disk: 8280 sported half height or “slimline” drive mechanisms, while the dual 5.25" drives utilized full height mechanisms. Thus, the 8280 resembled an 8250 with the drives positioned top and bottom rather than left and right in the enclosure. Like the 8061 and 8062, not much else is known about this unit. Inference suggests it resembled the 8061 and 8062 and that all three were produced to position Commodore in traditional IBM business markets,
The
The D9060 and D9090
Long before the Lt Kernel and CMD series of Commodore hard drives entered the market, Commodore itself developed and produced a line of hard drives for the PET/CBM line of computers. Including the new DOS 3.0 found in the 8280, the D9060 and D9090 drives appeared in late 1982 and_ possibly accompanied the introduction of the SuperPET 9000. The drives are enclosed in 2031/4031 style cases, and contain a mini- * style hard drive. Nicknamed the by Commodore users, the 9060
“mi provided 5 MB of user storage while the 9090 provided 7.5 MB of user storage. Once again, interfacing was provided via IEEE-488, and the 2.7 DOS concept of “super-side-sectors” enabled relative files to span the entire hard drive surface.
The CBM 8250Ip
As in the case of the 2031p, Commodore createda variation ofthe 8250using halfheight drive mechanisms. However, Commodore created the 8250p fora different reason. Even as the Commodore VIC and 64 home computers started taking a foothold in the market, Commodore created the B series of business computers. These new models, also referred to as the 500, 600, and 700 series, sported molded plastic cases and sleek styling.
December 1996/January 1997
Clearly, as with the earlier computer introductions, Commodore needed a drive to accompany these new machines in the marketplace. Since no existing drive shared the sleek styling, Commodore revamped the 8250 by designing a new plastic case and utilizing half height drive mechanisms. The new drive, as in the case of the 2031, did not differ functionally from the older 8250. Commodore introduced this drive in 1983.
The SFD 1001 This is the IEEE-488 drive most Commodore users have seen. Commonly mistaken for a VIC/CBM 1541, the SFD 1001 is actually one half of an 8250Ip unit packaged in a brown 1541 case. Introduced in June 1985, the decal work resembled the CBM 1541 brown decal work with the silver 1541 and the rainbow in the center. The right side of the decal states the driveisan SED 1001. FD stands for “Super Fast Drive", which is misleading, since the drive doesn’t run any faster than other I 488 unit. However, to user of the crippled 1541, thedrive seems to access data at blinding speeds. To create the 1001, Commodore simply populated a 1541 case with a single 8250lp mechanism and altered the electronics to fit. A query of the DOS version returns 2.7, identical to the DOS in the 8250|p. Instead of rewriting the DOS to eliminate the missing drive 1, Commodore instead shipped the drive with a daughtercard installed
held the — infamous CEPTION ROM”, which handled all attempted access to drive 1 and returned appropriate errors. Another notable difference between the 8250Ip and SFD 1001 is the style of drive mechanism. The SFD uses a turn down door latch, while the 82501p uses a push down latch.
Conclusion
Thopeyouhave enjoyed thistripdown Commodore History Lane. If you've gotten this far, then you must share my interest in researching old Commodore history. Hopefully, this article and the entire series has answereda few questionsconcerning theCBM drivesand how they evolved. However, if you're like me, it also sparked new questions that require answering. Iwish Icouldanswerthem
17
all, orstate with complete cei heard or read. Alas, documenting its history a less than easy task. Along other things, CBM frequently pre- announced products and then delayed introduction, varied ROM or case versions with changing model numbers, renumbered existing products without upgrading the product, announced productsand then failed to introduce them, numbered products differently for differing markets, marketed certain modelsin only certain markets, and generally confused the readers and users. I suppose each computer manufacturer engagesin similaractivities, butnotingtha the job no less difficult. | won't s digging for kernels of truth buried in back issues or periodicals and conversations with veteran users, but I'd contemplate trading it all for a reliable source of Commodore historical information. Alas, | haven't found one yet. Ifyou find one, let me know.
Following the article area sprinkling of notes | have accrued on the various drives mentioned in this articles and some updates to information in the previous article.
ainty all that Ihave Commodore made
COMMODORE
WORLD
When D3 WT Stor? Conall Ayers, who ampies The Grasse Resource, reporTs she uae) is 4 KB PET in
Vile 1976, and Ron Spyder, who operated US Comat
Thal a Texas \abbysT
upper Sor many ye 105 9 Davamtoee | A726 Will mune Magazin, in is Apr | ASS issue, pose 4, sTales Thal The Ses SWS PET was wlroheed (96, Pased oy This Vs anced in late | A9G/
fer wy Te dale of
owdlons Twat his was peked up at
en) Canine
nSoemilon are wold suen way 1177, wenn, Ther Wim. Gil Parvsh wiles Thal Wis research esTablshes a Taeline, sTuaTiag in tale, 17D, wile nny own personal neseardy hy Sure 1977 BYTE maguzing, ConTemporury Mackéting a lunge murketiag San, “Alo ced The PET Te Tre arporate and bebbysT market willy aT wo pase sprwd on ppp AD and 4%, Te al, Woweves T Teal reveals Thal The PET is meAlared in Tre October | 477 “POPULAR SCRREE 1
Sarry | 478 ROMY ove
in od To te 1477. Al, The Mardy | 978 BYTE The PET is revewed by a use Who inieiles be purchased his OFT 9 Due | 477 ad eeceived Toy Odttoer | 477. The water
& p meATons Thal his PET is seval number | 7. While This
cals “The Glan
nario by 1977,\ & beleve Roy Dy and Connors Magazine To be crediole oF There, Tre posible AimieTan dates Late | 6 alan w/Dewmtoer | 1G delery and Sore V1) ATo Toy w/OeTeboer | 77 delery—> dS be used, \have only one problem wilh The | 46 date. MOS Tedwalosy Traued The 6502 in September | F757 AT The Te, OS. \wes AT owned by Commnie, The spur bél\ween Then and Vite | 6 When The FET wus anvianved by Commatine sears yeny THAT ansidering Cammmniine pur WPS beGre Te PET was WTroeed, As well The MOS Trainer amputen, culled “The AML , only arrived 9 te | 1957 early | AG, The Timeline is Tigal boT nat wpessible | leave ST Up To The reader To decide Which 6 The awredt date. My past research Unearthed eat only enGaon sunning The wlmakiTy dil. OT ako The. ¥ wookil For years, PET eAThusesls bum, onqued allesilely Thal The, FET QO -4K and he SK op wer. ATinLad Gast,
IT ks, one mystery seems solved, All of oy research auped with Dy
dered PET slams were equipped with 4 KS, while ¢ an of SK WiTs Sr wie bbiTh mnlels cay shore
GMB ils Gr
To nevada 0%
Te Ti, Conmpine awitted Te ahave oker, While mo
Related nation suppels a reason
Tramiel sites That buyers were pursing FETs guile readly
COMMODORE WORLD
ngermillon supports The andor Wal pre- 7
les
Fhe SHOT preoiker pres Tak 6 qyiled 0 oe eeGerene os
Secdn5 To respond by dbs Ne il, “Seve sem yy do dohans The sume woul) prtiadsly be oil RAM YT) squalls sun ooliny,
ATW Tw, 4 WS of QA 38 eat HOC,
Weal 's GORE
Group Cok Rearing Wann mire simply as GOR, sped
Sisk enndng malo Tal is used boy all Comodo Jaks deives To Sate exept 1 S81 an) vs derivatives, The preveus ofTele, | wate) GER as a Commnbre pryidtay eaniag This aT Apple dei and others used “The GOR enndiag Commie (and others) osed GORATH ensure dala wTegAilly wy The dskeTTe, Basically, CLR Tus ear 4 iT mybbole of data WATo a spectc TST sequene Thal <illows Two cules? |. Mb data sequence avTins all “|” wits. ond 2D. Thee are never wore Than
CTs tn a sequen
Nese Two 0
ti The kalo of sezTors an Trex)
eer bel
Sead The eesirélon 1 curs © STs alows The Seve
Ala willy as WaTTen Bek
are The aydole Te GOR noble Transtar,
afoble GCS nybble voce = C1 eC (cel veel ice Were (ell eu ice cule el Veber bbe VV
Vit reel
wee, QO byles To dish Sor early ble of ng the GOR yells SAS byfes of data tar Ated GOR is ver Tuer,
o€ Apple Wl Game) as
are aeTuully wriTTen Te Some cred Mn the ‘Woe and CBM,
seAT Standard wy Their dnves, gaiey
envanced val Upstuded
The
18
Issue 18
December 1996/January 1997
ed 35k suppor
ISMWISMASNCR
All of The dual deve unis <edTved The poral) CPU areangemeal. Only The \U's Themselves changed. The 2040/ BOYUC/YCUC drives <eaTured a CSTI/ESTY ambinaton Whi The BOST/S2ST/SISTLP drives each used 2 6STA CPUs, Ailhoush sTaTed wy The ofT'cke Tal each dive. avi
Two CPUs, Techwically each avstuins 3 CPUs, One CPU, The
6532, specializes iw Transtiling The 8 bit data wile | C&T GCQ
cokes (See ‘Wal is GORD. Each drive exept The SASTLP uses Gull heigl Jrwe mechanisms Will push down dor laTches, and ead, elas a bYIT in power supply.
The Fro min preesons in The stem one hunted The WlerSane Process’ OP YTask, wri CPU banted The Praeswrs any :
KEE-USS periphersls ore aTlixhed To The PET/CE
visy drain Cashion orndh tke The Comwnkve
The remaining general Task, The Two
ampulers in a serial peripherals. Trwever, unlike The seral peripherals, aiT al wreclors one deATeal The EEE-4 82 port
EThe FET/CB™ arputer 4 a |
9 The Tonal FEEE-4 S324 pin able end Thal resewided a seul version The EEE-
fb a FET/CAM mutiny o spec and ode
and (29).
of a CeAlionas pull USS anes 4uge boy parT mumtaer S21 Cl, To dun oe per phend® oles FEE-439 bus a able alle ay EEE Ts BEE abe 's equned, 9/ NACSOSO, AI BEEN per pheris clin ory ow aver on “The ew The UAT, Extn EEIE-Y $9 able ovutlon wos arsine as 0 poms Trg, bers simply screwed ech new able Te The cea oS The preva able anyezton, Mire Than one FET/CS camper cay bbe aywvdled OP ove the FEE-4 $8 bus, as bag as only one ses The bus aT any To. As well o Trea dTal marin of | devers an be aad To The bus, down The nuvter 's bwer 9 vedtly ond depenkeal on colt dever aapdotles
The CRM FEE-“SS viler&
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rywilr
dlows TransSers
433 speeSedTen or Commnbve's TransSer ang 2040/3040/4040
The 65T4 CPU bonded The IP Tsk 4 The Tree uals Raaonponying
“The 38k dwe was a pend User's }
19
poe
CBM £1 4a Dual Payppy Disk Drives’ P/N 32044 TACED SskaTTe, PY CH OCI. | suse The
ask Pi vation ine sve
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ns special abe"Ta vw coats 0f J read HOUL disks Sane, LT WaT ng unkss The YCUC BAM worked The 3, Even Then, a validate would
See Them ond reer w writes dey al” best, WheaTuming a9 a ACUC/SCYC/4CHC ask The user To opty bill drive dios beGone applying all Tree eed LIETDs Wald Sash Siva The Usual head solenoid bus
ve, inal Trors power, Upen power up,
bretly and Then gp oct
owrers, The pagan
COMMODORE WORLD
xsers, The 2031 Test damp dskeTTe aTuins a working apy The prsrum ailed RAUDOMEXAMPLE To kill oo wiTalizaTion on YCYC, send Sillowing Te ammand chanel? “oe Wee (OY Sew RU Glew RC Deb “R(L . BOYC/BOYC/YCUC use a A GOR bile beaker spp, while 1541 Gaming YCUS Srmal), wes F GOR by
5X64 drive ROM, crunges This back To 4 GLA by BHC with O05 1.0 T 5
fe WSS nit (SOC Vn The direzTory Truck, o SO (meaning DOS | Te nay $OD The while The YOU wr a OS (AN meaning YCt On the YCUC, laiTons | CS-| G6 arifuin Tre Gamitar DA Which means O05 2, 4CUC Somat. All Twee drives bate The direZTory on Trucs |S, as expezted.
8050 Whe de tbh, an SOST wetes a G7 (CC mauming SCST Seen) To wail HOD wy The SST beck, 1) On te BCS, \xdiPors W7-2B adlin “AC! which mums 05 2, BOSD Gemih, Rammponjing Tis Jee. was a manned User's Marval Sor CBM 571 4 inch Deal Pappy Disk Drees’ °/ N B20844 ond a TEST/ADEMD Jskette, P/N) SOSTCOST. Vatully 0€Zend with Menyils mudunans, Cammnbre
semTabed Te Tondo enedranins erwre eelabilly. Tower,
Grom evrensed € Tantn es ansed cam To reves xk “To Merpals mechanisms. Madronions con be deAT Ged by The alo and cor oo The dine. Ry LED, Mere 5 While Torin mechanisms a7
LED bbw The disk sof, Convabre Tred
orechonisms. Later Tantons alin a drive dor sw
is mechanisms Use a <
rain upon dk ener, Merl meanion
atwate
The deve, dor a auple of Teves bore Sully coving This proness ° and helped To we The Je Wh wile ceeity, tke The Meropais and Ter Tandon mechanisms, Wad BT seal properly se The disk \was “Teased’, The SOST was Tully ofS Sor $1 TAS On We 8080, u Gamal Takes 2 mente
o€ The spevie. O
To drange The devas number va stiwore Gaewund craved): Twit DX We HO AKAD ARAYA mew deve number, ROMs: Uke Ut
QL and UAL meat likely coTuny The ile The Feppy Disk CaAfeuller
ns To ULL and Ul ROMs:
Promane
COMMODORE WORLD
msellreas bis foes
9) Ensure ere eelabllTy 4 apyng Jsks 9 eTher
and oe wilngy dala ew
SINC 36s Goal, Te s baw dod Te ids ore 's Wow don T AT wel rented oy PET urers or Commie dyenpned Ther exstee, as They reaned op Silver meson afler vilmiaTon
s EydaAly Trey alee were
2031 pgs The 2C4O with 205 1.0 does o5T weile a duwwyy diiTa bloc, Howlin dueing Greil. Later on) drives wel, 256 oul (HCO) oyfes, “Strangely, a bug 9 DOS 26 anses | SUX drnes Te wale | Ub ond 2657 OL offes wsTead. TT is wn Whither Te 105 26 4 Tre 2031 axhbils This same bebuver, The 2031 and YOSI use ShugeAT SASSO Mechanisms. Early units muy nanplitely nat a disk, res. Fix wvthies hanhwure aldiTag 0€ a Trunsé
IT bed, Comwndve fered The 203i
boy repens Tre send Tunster oT lok That Comwnine wold rp oT EEE ak ani Then repue T bles, | ase Thal Te 2031
Olher sanes £E6fer.\ End T rod T
0 SUC were devebped slant or Wilkin a smal Te Some,
05 enrorvenwals
2031 LE/4031 LE AT is belesed Tre LP wel Ged Ales odaners The an ale Mate | SUC of | STL wilh Th: evestion o€ a ERIE
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8250
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priv. a wr eas on SCS
ews
rwker va ofTwore, sxe T
20
Issue 18
December 1996/January 1997
drama") Dirt Ye DNAS DAH NA = new devee amber.
B2s0LP
AT oe Te, Connie sidked ame are sTiing desens Gov ihe Poste oTTamtble Tying departvwar rp ame of The Besigrs OT runt dol a new pensTed and wry dunes Trey des Comme, Commie denied The annilion Mingirekss The ane STK As a read, may refer Toe S2STLE, which amped The & sores, as a The Poste PET dene.
polars Som
8280 This drive canna be Sound in any peraieals, bOI This mde) does exST. Research suggests T was ary prokued in Europe, DNL ond DOO
The DAES originally sd Sor RIAA, while Tree ACAD weld Sap BBYUIE. The minioweresTer deve The DAES aorTuined Two platters with 25° MB of sTouge per platter, wi DAHOA aided a’
DOS 30 ond used The new super-sde-sezlo-Tedique Te
3 plaTier. Seve The D seres shipped Wilh cesT eZTons on veliTve Sle sizes, ear drive. ship “To dow The drverTo em JaTe The cles sTHe of relative Sle suppor, Vifernuly, bath aan Transfer data aT S MB per sem Bret Tubke STaTes Thal boty drives were onde by Tanin Sr C3 Tim BoTTerZeld niles Thal The drives were usuble, boT \wonned dbodT aTrempting To issue a validate an The disk Bretr Taoke sTales That he wos dole To crash The drive one. 43s reseatdn rarrowed down The bus Te orore Than DYY Zles on dk, and ore Thon | splat < When The bus dass appear The BAM is weTTen To The Track of The JSveztoy ond is i Bret estes Tad dsks WTO celiTve sxSe Sp WidsTO ond The bong STonk. wane splat Sles 02 To The en} of The
he Slowing ondTons
making reanery or splat les were
STi was To
FD 1001
PvatT Tabke estes Thal This UST bras many shales wi SISTLP. AT ses on: SIBTLE dente medrorim and bye oad, GrstT Silber Slates Thal Covwnkre rem ped The deve \ ATs WIT mudh ome deadly Than 9 prevous sepke
by alles a ROM To The UAT. This ROM prevosly veer
Tre EXCEPTION COM, Tupped ot anes
Unitete | S41, whide rtuns a DORVE NOT PRESET The. FO 1 CCl es ORME NOT REND Bret a5 Thal wer
aan"Turn a SPO CCL ack vib a dud Seve wilh os BT
ine Thre same
The Mptery Drives:
QO4OR/204 |
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\was shelved, Ay a by ‘Communications Eledivoves wn Thal Tome
21
frame dsTails The 2C41 wy some dest | quate: This s a sage Zoppy ask Seve Whida TTTaches To The memmyy bus eThe PET -32 © DOOM -1G, Wis oT as Las as
AAT have Ts own micropraessx
The mun PED reTaning,
s prided wm (22) 6332 ROM: ~The PET
Ing 6332 is
BEC
splenyTe bv A de Which ore wnsetTed AT “16. ASiTonully, oe ex, repbeed by aniTher ROM provided wi
Ten
» already existing
Dek Drive Asexale The dates privided Sarthe FET O01 aieses The 204 | byThe ame. spon Ws reSerered as dover #4, Oskar With Tre D040 os is di wéT wore ad arnwink The 2041 geAT mwi-Seppy bus o il 5 170K byes The ny pre wos Sf aT ASHES We tal aFe of This eres Vivpled Tal Tre 2041 miglar Vane beds The sup baT\weey Te O31 ani the | SUC. With, aT wikely, Pedras The 204 CAV LUI AT owe design eos The 203i /\ SHO, bo am nw anes War Wal Li and | SUC were dvehped anperatively 0€2 The HCHO dud deve Ui
“leo!
his te;w nGrmillon Thiet
2081
Ore art reporTed The existence of u single SAS deve
\sTed as emtel number 20S. Nb aTher inSonmalion og This
drive bas been Sound, This ou be another number Loe The
OBL Sisk Sene While T was under developmeaw.
4O4OLP
Research suggests Tis was To be a YOUO Uni The sume as The SISTLP. thywever, naTon implies Thal This
Sine never make T pasT The proteType Store.
B0GO George Page oedTons This 3)
Tre BCCI
sa IST \ildogle predecessor
Boal 2 drive. \E This drive does exist, T woud 58k Sormal as The SCGl
Wely read The same IBY 3740
Ts Tw,
SCCX tre Nb rove Sermon is avuillible ai
One.
This UAT, a preTeType Tak eaves make TT wweksT, con be
Bescrloed simply as a al DAES,
Des
oy
Tre O S'sa 1.5 MB ve we T as
The prolelype STge, See | dail understand why Conrni 349D ofTer The DACAC appeared, Vaan only quess This deve ecTher SeaTured some new ID05 version
WOU retrace a 7.5
of is vedly a pvoetype of The awwercal DACA,
COMMODORE WORLD
Just For Starters
by fason Compan
CY,
GETTING TO KNOW THE SUPERCPU
It's a common adage that power corrupts, and that absolute power corrupts absolutely. In the right hands, however, power can be a wonderful tool. CMDs SuperCPU is a valuable source of power, but you may want a few pointers before you commit yourselfto buying one—or, ifyou've made up your mind, you might wanta little help to make the most your new power,
What IS the SuperCPU? ‘The SuperCPU isa metal enclosure that attaches to your C-64 or 128's cartridge expansion port. It is somewhat taller than your computer, about two inches deep, and is as long as possible without ny additional expansion ports on your na Insidetheboxisa Western Design 65816 CPU and JiffyROMs specifically designed for the SuperCPU, The 65816 chip replaces the function of the computer's original CPU brain chip. The JilyROMS give your SuperCPU machine its own JiflyDOS, which replac you may or may not have installed in your machine at present. The SuperCPU requires no configu ie plugandplay" peripheral, eon the 64, However, therearea few user- configurable switches on the unit itself. The “unit enable/disable” switch, is exactly that—when you
‘ation
place the switch in the “enable” position, upon powering up or resetting, the SuperCPU will be active, replacing your 64's CPU with its own 65816, Note that thisswitch only takeseflect when you power up or reset your computer—you cannot disable or enable the SuperCPU's operation entirely on the fly, The second switch controls the JiffyDOS functions and can be toggled on the fly, With the
switchin the “enable” position, youwillhaveac to the JiffyDOS wedge and shortcuts while using your computer, and disk access will be greatly improved for any JiflyDOS devices, If you find this is problematic for certain applications, you can simply shut off JifyDOS' operation. Switching off
COMMODORE WORLD
fly DOSreturnsyoutothestandard64 DOS, which is relatively slow, but sometimes necessary to use,
The third switch controls the speed of the SuperCPU. In the “Turbo” position, the switch makes the SuperCPU operate in 20MHz (MegaHertz) mode (your computer typically operatesat 1MI1z). Itsounds pretty good, but before you get too excited, it should be pointed out that in alr
stnoevent will youactually getaspeedincrease of a factor of 20, The reasons are technical, but it sufficestosay thatitisa consequence ofdiminishing returns—the more you speed up the machine, the less you s added unit ofspeed. Although, the performance at 20MiIzis nothing to sneeze at. Some programs do notfanction properlyat 20M, so youcan usethe speed switch in the “normal” position to make the SuperCPU function at IMHz.
The last two details on the SuperCPU are the urbo light and the reset button. The Turbo light will beilluminated when the SuperCPU operates at 20MHz, and will go out when you switch to 1MHz, disable the unit, or are accessing the disk (all disk ess has to run at IMHz). The reset button will reset the computer, but youneed to holdit formore than halfa second or so. Any less than that, and the
button acts like the key.
a continued improvement for each
restore”
22
At present, the SuperCPU is only available for 5 8/128D users, this means t when the SuperCPU is enabled, you will automatically boot in C-64 mode, You can get to 128 mode only by disabling the unit. CMD plans tomakea 128 version of the SuperCPUavailable— it will be an add-on board for SuperCPUs, containing an extra MegaByte of memory and the logic necessary to make the SuperCPU function in 128 mode as well as 64 mode,
Getting Ready To Rumble
Ifyou'reready toinstall yourSuperCPU, youshould first read through the manual to be sure you fully understand what you're about to do for your machine. Themanualdiscussessofiwareandhardware compatibility in detail, Foryourtrialrun, [recommend that you disconnect and set aside all of your special peripherals—anything in the user port, anything inthe cassette port, ete. Even though theSuperCPU hasacartridgeportpassthrough, Irecommendleaving itempty whileyoutest your SuperCPU. Youmay leave as many disk drives attached as you like as their presence shouldn't affect your tests.
When you remove the SuperCPU from the antistatic wrapping, check to make sure that all of thetoggleswitchesarein the optimal configuration: unit enabled, JiflyDOS enabled, Turbo enabled. Carefully plug theunitintoyour cartridge port, and switch your system on. Warm up the monitor fora few seconds first because you'll see a special SuperCPU boot animation come on-screen. This will happen whenever you switch your machine on with the SuperCPU enabled, or whenever you perform a reset which enables the SuperCPU after ithasbeen disabled. Aftertheanimation, youshould beat a BASIC prompt much like those you've seen manytimesbefore, slightly tered fortheSuperCPU DOS witha 1996 copyright. Ifyou've gotten this far, congratulations—you own one of the fastest Commodore 64's in history.
Issue 18
Testing Your Wings
Now that you're ready to fly, you need to find something that will make your computer soar. It's awell-establishedfactthattheSuperCPUwillgreatly enhanceGEOS, soifyouwantasure-fireexampleof the new power at your disposal, you can get your GEOS 2.0upandrunning undertheSuperCPU, It's notassimpleasjust booting GEOS in Turbo mode, however. ( needs support software to take advantage ofthe SuperCPU. TheSuperCPU manual spells out the process in detail, which basically involves booting GEOS with turbo off, installing a special patch on your GEOS boot disk (the patch is included on a 1541-format disk), and installing special patches if you are using a 1351 mouse or CMDSmartMouse/SmartTrack. Afterthis process, you can reset your system and, if all went well, reboot GEOS in Turbo mode, with a great speed increase. The patched mouse/trackball drivers allow you to disable turbo mode on the fly, Quick plug for lightpens: there's no special driver needed and the Inkwell light pen continues to operate like a champ at 20MH7z, This process may take a few minutes, but when you're done, you'll havea GEOS setup that snaps up windows and menus instantly and operates a whole lot faster than you've ever n before. The SuperCPU is highly compatible 3EOS software, and you'll probably get a much better feel for the operating system if you were previously not a big fan.
There are other ways to take advantage of the SuperCPU as well. If you have non-GEOS productivity software, it’s very likely to work properly at accelera The most likely hiccups will come in the form of failures to loz lockups on disk access. Generally, these problems can be alleviated by disabling turbo mode for disk accesson booting, loading, and saving, andin more extremecasesmightrequireyoutodisableiflyDOS as well. These latter cases are very rare.
Ifyou enjoy music on the 64, you'll be pleased to know that in almost all it will still play loud and clear on the SuperCPU. Generally, the only musicthatwillsoundincorrectat accelerated speeds will be that which includes digitized samples, as some sample players are CPU speed sensitive, At 20MHz, the most brilliant sample from your 1MHz setup will sound like a squeak if the player is not properly written.
Games are an entirely different story. Depending on the way a game is written, the SuperCPU might make it a joy to play, because the gameplay is enhanced by being significantly faster. On the downside, the SuperCPU may render the games impossible to play, because either it is entirely too fast, or the game runs improperlyat the high speed. In the mostextreme cases, the game may fail to work at all. It’s up to
ed speeds
or
December 1996/January 1997
you to decide how much time and effort it is worth to try to find the perfect mix of SuperCPU, use to get games working optimally—knowing that some will simply never work right.
The easiest games to test on the SuperCPU are cartridge based games because loading is effortless and instantancous, Game cartridges themselves cannot be addressed at 20MHz, but often the cartridge data is loaded in the 64's RAM and run from there. This means the SuperCPU canoperateat 20MHzafterthe cartridgeisloaded, ‘Twocase studies worth considering: Omega Race on cartridge gained a small amount of speed, enough to make the game smoother to play (although it’s almost perfectly faithful to the ready), butit didnot becomeridiculous; entirely too fast at 20MHz: beer gla fly down the bar with dizzying speed.
Once you leave the cartridge games behind and start loading them from disk, a whole new worldofpotential difficulty opens up. Disk-based copy protection often employs a great deal of tricks, which can include using undocumented (or“illegal”)CPUinstructions. Theseinstructions work properly on your computer's original CPU but the 65816 was not designed to work the way the undocumented instructions expect. These schemes will almost always lock up your computer. Other schemes will not work properly at 20MHz, but you can get around that problem by booting in non-Turbo mode, then enabling ‘Turbo after the game begins. Still others might havea problem with JilyDOS, which will require you to temporarily disable it as well.
The good news is that once you clear copy protection, games tend to be much more cooperative. It is fairly rare for actual in-game code to use undocumented instructions, so
switching to Turbo modeis safe. However, many games use theirown custom dis| which can cause problems with Turbo mode. If you find that games lock up whenever dis| normally occurs, you may want to try re-running the game but disabling turbo mode before the disk a access is easy to predict, this can be fairly simply. In others, where it’s not at all clear when disk access might occur (games with random events that load from disk, or programs like Flight Simulator, where it might load from disk at any time), you may simply have to roll the dice and hope you get lucky. ‘Thereisasavinggraceforsomegames, however, Certain custom loadingroutinesare“smart” in that they will not lock up the machine if they fail to load the first time. Instead, they think there has been a disk error and prompt you to try again. Games like Access’ Echelon, a space flight simulator, or
ading routines
s happens. In games where the disk
23
Electronic Arts’ Project Firestart fit thisdescription, You can use'Turbo mode with impunity, but when you're prompted to replace the disk, just switch of Turbo, let thedataload, thenre-enableTurbomode.
There is another way around disk based copy protection failures with the SuperCPU. If you have a freezer cartridge, the freezing capability will be incompatible with the SuperCPU while the SuperCPU is enabled, but if you disable the unitentirely the freezer will work normally. Once you clear the copy protection, freeze the game and save it off to another disk, This frozen image can be re-loaded under the SuperCPL
Setting Up Peripherals
Once you're comfortably up and running with the SuperCPU, youcan thinkaboutaddingany external peripherals to your system. Most of them will be compatible with the SuperCPU, but just to be sure, try each one with the SuperCPU without any of the others plugged in, just to isolate any problems, There is a list of known incompatible hardware in the SuperCPU manual. The most notable of these are the RAMDrive and the Action Replay. These will still work if the SuperCPU is disabled, but fail once theunitisenabled. Othersupercartridges will generally work, but you may run into conflicts over JiffyDOS and the supercartridge disk access, and freezing will not function,
Final Notes Herearea few pointers abouta SuperCPU system: Putting the SuperCPU in “Normal” as opposed to “Turbo” mode is NOT the same thing as disabling the SuperCPU. Normal mode runs the 65816 CPU at IMHz, while disabling the SuperCPU means that the 65816 is not active at all
your computer's CPUisoperatinginstead.
Ifyou have JiffyDOS installed in your computer already, theSuperCPUJiflyDOS supercedes itwhen theSuperCPUisactive. IfyouswitchofftheJiflyDOS ‘on the SuperCPU, you will be using the original DOS, not the JiffyDOS installed in your computer. ‘Those JiflyROMs only become again if you disable or remove the SuperCPU itself.
You can make the SuperCPU work for you and others. CMD hassomeprogrammingtipsthat range from simple to in-depth to show you how to make programs take better advantage of the unit.
Ifyou own Echelon or Total Eclipse, you're in fora real treat, as these games look stunning on the SuperCPU.fyouown Elite, you'reinforareal challenge asthe game plays entirely too fast for comfort.
Th of implications for your 64. It's worth a serious look, and ifyou own one, it’s worth some time and effort to discover the software that works best on it. %)
twhich hasalot
SuperCPUisa complex
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RAMLink PowerBacked HAM Disk
RAMLink Baso Model (OMB, No RAMCard) .... $149.00 RAMLink w/ MB RAMCard (Special!) $189.00 RAMLink w/t MB RAMCard (Special!) RAMCard RTC Option Kit RAMLink Battery Back-up (Optional) Paral! Cable (RAMLnk to HD) MIDEseSound Digmastor SID Symphony Stereo Cartridge Sonus 64 Sequencer, MIDI Intertaco, Cabies ..... $99.00 Sonus 128 Sequencer. MIDI Intertaco, Cables ~. $99.00 Languages & Compilers BASIC 64 Compiler (Abacus) BASIC 128 Compilor (Abacus) Bitz! 64 Compiler (Skyles) Bitz! 128 Compilor (Skyles) Buddy 64/128 Assomblor ‘Cobol 64 (Abacus) Fortran 64 (Abacus) Pascal 6$ (Abacus)
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Cadpak 64 (Abacus)
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Data Manager 64 (Timoworks)
| Paint v1.5 (128, 80-col, 64K VDC) (Living Proo!)
[Port v1.54 (128, 80-col,, 68K VOC) (Living Proo!)
Personal Portfolio Manager (Abacus)
Pocket Whiter 1 (64) Digtal Sol.)
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Pocket Writer 3 (64 or 128) (Digital Sol)...
Pocket Planner 2 or Pocket Filer 2 (Digital Sol)
RUN Productivity Pak I 1, or It (Specity)
RUN Super Starter Pak 1541 or 1581
RUN Works
‘SEC Check Rogister 128
‘SuperScript 64 (Precision)
‘SuperScript 128 (Precision)
‘Suberbase 64 Version 3.01 (Precision)
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TWS 128 w/Spellor (Busy Bee)
TWS Modules (HO/RLIlustrator) communcations!
Aprotek MiniModom C-24 (C= ready, 2400 baud) $69.00
Aprotek MiniMogom G (C= ready, 1200 baud)... $50.00
Aprotek Com-Modem Adapter (for ext. modem) .. $19.00
Aprotek Com-Modem Adapter Cable $9.95
BOCA V.34 33.6K bps FaxModem ‘$169.00
BOCA V.34 w/Turbo232 & Cable $193.00
Commodore 1670 Modem (1200 baud) $14.95,
Dialogue 128 on.
Nova Term Version 9.6 ON DiSKit!
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Turbo232 Modem Cable (DB9-DB25)
Atomino’ Ballistix
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Chomp!
Day in the Lite of Prohistoric Man Escape Route
Flummi's World
Heavenbound
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Lazer Duel
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RUN C128 Funpak
RUN C64 Gamopak
Shoot Up Pac (Gangste/Timo Travele) ‘Skate or Dio
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* Supports High Speed Interfaces like ‘SwiftLink for baud rates up to 38,400 baud
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COMmMonDORe woRlLpb
THE NEWS MAGAZINE FOR C-64 & 128 USERS For more than two years, Commodore World has been keeping the C-64/128 market alive with up-to-date information from some of the brightest minds in the Commodore community. From beginner to expert, CW has something for everyone, Columns regularly cover: Programming, what's new, reviews,
games, GEOS.
lecom, projects and much more! Stop listening
to everyone telling you what you can't do with a Commodore and see what the latest innovations can do for you!
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McRat/The Zinj Complex Compilation
Gystal Software
The McRat/The Zinj Complex Compilation features two brandnew games from Crystal Software. Normally, when you purchase compilations of this type you expect onegameto be better than the other, but with Crystal Software’s Compilation, you get two great games for your money.
McRat
McRat was designed by a former demo artisan, apparent from the very first scene. As in a demo, you must press the space bar to advance from the intro screen to the game screen. Theintroscreenalso features ascrollerin which youcan readsome text from the author. Additionally, the entire game isaccompanied bya pleasing musical composition,
McRat is a platform style game. The object of the game is to guide MeRat to the pieces of food located on each of the level’s platforms. Monsters are located on each of the platforms guarding the food. MeRat losesalifeand returns tothe bottom ofthe screen ifhe touches any of the monsters.
A timer adds to the difficulty of the game. I found it extremely difficult to advance through the levels within the allotted time
COMMODORE WORLD
frames, so I reached for my Action Replay cartridge. Using the Poke Finder feature I was able to give McRatanunlimited number oflives. Even with immortality, once I reached the higher levels, the game was still quite a challenge because the food is located in hard to reach places requiring almost impossible jumpingskills. I mustadmit, [found this game pretty frustrating until 1 became immortal. If you're lucky enough to possess an Action Replay cartridge you can really become addicted to this game. This game requires a great deal of practice coupled with an abundance of patience.
The Zinj Complex
Once you've had your fun with McRat, you can turn the disk over and enjoy the thrills of The Zinj Complex. The Zinj Complex isevery bit as enjoyable as McRat. At the moment, I really can’t decide which game I prefer and it’s a good thing 1 don’t have to choose!
In The Zinj Complex you take on the role of the “crack-specialist of the secret’ American anti- madscientist team.” Your mission is to infiltrate the Zinj Complex and riditofhostileenemieswhilelooking for large blue diamonds rumored to exist. Youare equipped witha “supa- nme-stun-o-matic mark 3” and a
safety cloak. Even with these two devices, is of the essence due to thetoxicgases oozing from thewalls.
The layout of the game reminded me of a Nintendo game called “Smash TV", Looking at the game screen it feels as if you are looking down from the ceiling of the room. Each room contains crates and enemies. The enemies will zap away your cloak ifyou run into them. The crates contain lift cards, key cards, booby traps, and energy boosters. 1 think they are also supposed to contain diamonds, although I was unable to find any the first five or so times! played. Once you'vedepleted the room of enemies and searched itscratesyoucan move onto thenext room. Some doors require the use of the key cards.
I love playing Zinj. It features some really fantastic music. However, I quickly found it frustrating due to the time limitations. And, unfortunately, my Action Replay cartridge couldn't help me out. | felt there wasn't enough time allotted to complete the requirements of the game. Perhaps, [just need to brush up a little on my game playing skills.
Inthe McRat scroller the author states that McRat is his first attempt at creating a Commodore Game. He says he decided to
26
attempt programming rather than sitby passively playing the games. I'dlike to thank him for his efforts. McRat is a pretty good first attempt at game programming. If only we could so something about those time constraints! Maybe next time.
- Sherry Freedline
Jordan Vs. Bird One On One
When Electronic Arts hit the computer software scene in the early 1980s, one of their most highly touted products was the basketball game One On One. Back in 1983, two of the biggest names in the sport were Julius Erving (Dr. J) and Larry Bird. EA put both of them in a half-court duel and a legend was born. Some 5 years later, when EA decided to do a sequel, the face of the game had changed somewhat. Dr. J was retired, but a phenom named Michael Jordan had been turning some heads for a few years, so he was tapped to replace Dr. J in the new version.
Jordan Vs. Bird puts you at the controls of either player in a half court battle. At your disposal are fakes, spin moves, dunks, jump shots, fadeaways, and long-range three point bombs. In the main one-on-one game, you can control
Issue 18
either player against a computer or human opponent. The computer comes in a variety of difficulty levels, which should keep you challenged for some time—at least, until you figure out the computer's game playing logic. In this game, as in any head- to-head game, nothing beats alive opponent,
Fans of the original One on One game will be happy to know that Instant Replays are still around, although in my opinion Jordan Vs. Bird is less generous with them than it could be, It’s a thrill to see your great moves spelled out for youso you can appreciate them, A newaddition to the game isa stats breakdown, to let you know how well you are shooting and make it easier to determine if you need a new strategy
Ifyou'renewtothegameand to warm up, or are looking for competition that's not quite so confrontational, the game includes three-point shooting and slam dunk contests. In the three-point match, you have a short period of time to shoot long-range shots from five different positions on the court. While it can get tedious, it's one of the best ways to perfect along-range shot for use in pressure game situations. The Slam Dunk competition is a bit different. You choose a dunk to attempt from a selection screen, and then try your best to replicate its style, If you're looking for flash on the court, thisis thewaytobrushup.A team ofjudges rates your performance. In both games, a small group can compete.
December 1996/January 1997
Jordan Vs. Bird, like predecessor, has all the trappings ofreal basketball, witha shot clock and fouls. The court is more realistic and colorful than the original game, and along with the players, feels larger. The players are more detailed than the first Dr. J and Bird were. Technically, the game is quite impressive and represents some good steps forward from the original.
Progress did not come without cost, however, Because there are so many moves you can employ, right down to step fakes, controlling the players can be a bit awkward at times, I find that the players feel sluggish at times, especially compared to the agile performance of Dr. J and Bird. On the other hand, the computer opponent in the original lost its challenge after extended use, working out the differences in Jordan Vs. Bird is worth the time.
If you've never played basketball on the C-64, Jordan Vs. Bird is good introduction to detailed half: court action, If you're a fan of the original, you'd do well to ch this game, but expect to re-learn some of your old tricks, Jordan Vs. Bird shows its age in a very visible (ordan still had a bit of hair at
its
out
We
this point, reflected in the Jordan of
the game), but that shouldn’t dampen your enjoyment. + Jason Compton
Karnov In Karnov, you find yourself taking on the role of a Ru
n circus ircus in
performer. You've left the
27
seek of an ancient treasure, but as
with most ancient treasures of
arcade-action games, the treasure is guarded by a host of unpleasant ures,
A resourcesat your disposal to combat your enemies, Not surprisingly, you'refitand limber enough tojump considerable distances over danger, onto platforms and the like to get around your enemies. Somewhat more surprisingly, you're able to breathe fireballs atyouradversaries. And of course, what arcade game
a circus performer you havea few
would be complete without a set of
powerups at your disposal, which do anything from creating a tall ladder handy for escaping danger as well as attaining difficult heights, or getting to a special area, or capturing more powerups) to increasing your firepower and granting you special temporary abiliti
you're anatypical circus performer, Your quest will take you through a number of levels successive difficulty. Karnov's graphics are highly detailed, acrificing some color for more crispness and detail. The action is side-scrolling(perha as“ Super Mario” style). Enemiescan come at you from all directions and you'll often find yourself blindsided in a nearly impossible situation, unable to shoot fireballs fast enough to take out your opponents. Karnov has a lot of variety to its gameplay, but you can work out precise patterns, as the same enemies tend toshow up ifyou play sections ofthe game identically. In other words—
psbetterknown
if you know the three ostrich-riders are going to come at you as soon as youreach therightedgeofthescreen, be prepared to either turn, run, and fire or leap out of the way. I suspect that you will, just as I did, ha play the first level with this strate; in order to clear it. The frustrating part is that in later levels, you have more progress to lose each time you lose a life,
Karnov is a very faithful implementation of the original arcade version, right down to the map-progress screen at the start of every level. The enemies are just as nasty and just as hard to kill—the original, just like the 64 version, could very easily end your game shortlyafterit be Luckily, you're not losing quarters as I did, and you can learn the behavior of your opponents and work against them. Selecting powerups is basically as it worked in the arcade, with the exception of not having the second joystick button available to you— sinceyoucanaccumulate powerups, a highlight box scrolls over them with the movement of your joystick, Of course, the movement of your joystic
to
Iso moves Karnov, sosome
snea you want to get the exact powerup you were looking for.
Few would accuse Data East of really pushing the envelope of the 64's capabilities, but they did turn out a number of quality arcade conversions in their day. Karnoy definitely stands as one of the better jobs.
ky coordination is required if
Jason Compton
%)
COMMODORE WORLD
The Loadstar disk magazine has been around for some time, so it only makes sense that they've accumulated enough quality material to put together large compilations, Dubbed — the “Compleat” series, they represent some of the best work of the Commodore community overyears.
Loadstar often comes with crossword puzzles, and this disk is a collection of all 220 or so they've offered. Running under the custom crossword software by Barbara Schulak, with a menu interface by Loadstar's Fender Tucker, The Compleat Crossword asy to navigate. The main menu fers an information file about the compilation (as well as details of other Loadstar products you can order), a choice of music to be played while you crossword, and then the master list of puzzles. 1541 users will have to flip the disk to see all of the puzzles able, while 1581/FD users can read all 220 puzzles off of the disk at once.
The crossword puzzles come in two basic varieties, those in a 15x15 grid and those in a 13x13
aval
COMMODORE WORLD
LoadStar’s Compleat Crossword
grid. Many of the crosswords are of the “general interest” variety as you would find in newspapers, buta number have themes ranging from Star Trek to sports to musicals. Difficulty ranges wildly—Fender Tucker's puzzles sit atop the difficulty heap.
The crossword puzzle gaming softwareshowsyouthegridandallows. youtomoveyourcursorthrougheach box of the crossword. At the bottom of the screen are windows for Across and Down clues. Their operation is very intuitive—for example, when you first load a crossword, your cursor is at the upper-left hand square. The clues for the first word across and first word down (those that branch from the square you are highlighting) appear in the clue windows. If you move your cursor right, along the first word across, you'll see a new down clue as you've moved to a new down word.
You are free to work on any section of the puzzle you prefer at any time. Ifyoufind you'restumped, you can ask for a single-letter hint for the box you're on. Just hit F5, and the box you're over will show the letter you've been searching for.
If at any time you want to check your progress, you can ask the game to verify your solutions. If your letters are in the right place, they'll stay there, Any unfilled orincorrect boxes will be turned into checkmarks. You can also clear the puzzle, or give up and ask for the complete solution, at any time.
One of the neatest features of the software is that you can save and load your progress in any puzzle, in case you get stumped or simply have to work on something else or shut off the computer,
The program comes with a handful of SID musics which can be played (or shut off) while you work on the crosswords, You are free to add any SID musics, 11 blocks or smaller, to the pack,
Overall, I'm very impressed by the quality of the crossword puzzles. |, personally, am notan avid crossword puzzle player because despite what I consider to be a strong vocabulary, | get frustrated with the sneaky tricks played by puzzleauthors. Whilethere are certainly some sneaky tricks to be found in these (particularly the aforementioned Tucker puzzles), I have to admit that having clues close
28
at hand is a great help and encouragement to stick with the puzzle, I'malso very pleased that you can “mark” puzzles as you complete them, so you don’t waste your time trying to find a new puzzle only to discover you've solved the puzzle in question already. Given that thereare 75 crosswords distinguished only by the name “Crossword # X”, you'll appreciate it as well.
It's worth noting that the software is highly compatible with expanded hardware. In addition to being available in both 5 1/4" and 3.1/2" disk formats, the Compleat Crossword is compatible with the SuperCPU, would be quite simple to install and run froma hard drive, and is even fully functional on a Commodore 65 in C-64 mode, (You canevenusetheC-65'sfully directional arrow pad).
If you're not a sworn enemy of crossword puzzles, you'd do well to investigate the Compleat Crossword. Barb Schulak and company have put agreat deal of effort into developing a greatsoftware interface anda terrific set of puzzles.
-Jason Compton
Issue 18
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29
December 1996/January 1997 COMMODORE WORLD
Graphic Interpretation
I would like to begin this article by confidently
stating that the Commodore's Graphic Environment Operating System, a. S, will carry C-64 and C-128 users well into the next millennia. This sounds obvious, I know, but it is true, and the criticisms I hear to this kind of assertion I find veryamusingindeed. Forexample, when some IBM user digs the elbow in and says, “a C-64 as in AD?” or “GEOS, yeah, archaeology isfun” then let me assure you, remind them that IBM can mean incredibly big money. IBM and Macintosh are indeed the main players in the computer scene; however CMD and other companies are keeping the 64 not only alive and well, but expanding in its capabilities while maintaining very affordable prices (Windows 95 UPGRADE alone is over $100—GEOS, $35). My best friend Bill and my niece Adrianna are new C- 128 and C-64 owners respectively, (with a little help from old buddy/Unele Paul) love their systems and are already looking to expand because of GEOS' capabilities, Read on for this edition of Graphic Interpretation you'll learn abouta filemanagement tool that will makeusing GEOS even more convenient.
GEOS has many functions and features that are strikingly similar to the latest high-tech operating systems such as the very popular Windows 95 by Microsoft. 1 can state this confidently because my workplace gave me the opportunity to take classes for Windows 95. To my amazement I realized that 1 could have practically taught half of that Introduction to Windows class; knowing GEOS made ita snap. A great comparison can be made of the deskTops that each system has: both have application and file icons, a trash can/recycle bin, command
COMMODORE WORLD
by Psd Sullivase
DUAL TOP 2.6
menus and changeable backgrounds, to name a few. This only carries so far, however, as the desktop lacks the multitasking and speed bit counterpart. As a result, over the years many geoProgrammers put on their thinking caps and produced such gems as Switcher 1.3 (discussed in World#15),CMD also responded to the need with the amazing, “gateWay” which enables the user to resize windows and even task-switch. | would like, in this issue, to take the opportunity to introduce youtoanother programming masterpiece entitled “Dual Top 2.6.”
This amazing shareware gem can supplement your use of both the deskTop and gateWay. As the name implies, it is a deskTop alternative. Dual Top can be activated manually by double- clickingitsicon, or placingit right after Configure forit to auto-execute. It is smaller in size than the deskTop (27K compared to deskTopis 35K) and it derives its name from its most prominent
30
feature, the ability to simultaneously display two disk directories in side-by-side vertical columns. In striking contrast to the deskTop is maximum display capacity of merely eight icons per page y border files on one disk, the Dual Top he first 15 files on either or both of the two disk directory columns. In these unforeseen days of multi-megabyte RAMdrives and high-density disk drives for Commodore user, you are bound to have far more than 15 files on a disk. No problem! Just point-click the appropriate arrow, and you'll be smoothly scrolling down the file listing, no deskTop pages to turn, and no waiting for icons to redraw. It must be pointed out, however, that the Dual Top was designed to work with GEOS 2.0andaRAM expansion unit. Earlier versions of GEOS and/or an unexpanded system will not support Dual Top. In the software documentation for Dual Top, Mr. Murdaugh describes the deskTopis limitations in drive support. The kernel design is such that, although it can support four drives, disk or RAM, it views them as two pairs of drives, A,B and C,D. A barrierexists between the two that Mr. Murdaugh likens to “two sides of a river with no bridge between them,” Berkeley Softworks/GeoWorks, applications (including the deskTop) complicate the matter further by operating only within A,B, the first set. Drive C can be accessed, but only by swapping with Drive A or B. Here is where Dual Top builds the bridge.” The kernel can access the A,B and C,D drive sets in the same manner, thus eliminating the need forswapping drives to access a third drive, Although the file icons are not visible, each of the filenames are just as accessible as the icons on the deskTop. Point-click over a filename and it will highlight. Double-click the
Issue 18
filename and it will open or activate, Also, the command menu bar is at the top of the screen, as with the deskTop. These command options have several noteworthy functions among them.
Is drive-swapping, i.e. changing device numbers an issue for you? It isn’t under Dual ‘Top, “configure” is the third option on the menu bar, and the position of drive A, B or C can be switched in an instant, without needing to enter theactual Configure application! This easy access to all three drives clears the way for the file management features. Between the two drive directory windows are ten buttons, the top three indicating which drives are A, B, and C. The next seven perform various functions on selected files, in the open “Source” window. “All” selects every file in the Source window while “Clear” will ry file. “Info” will open the familiar window seen in deskTop that gives rel and the icon for any file, and “Print,” and “Delete” are obvious, sol will moveon. Ihave saved the best for last: “copy.”
Copying a file, multiple files or an entire disk hasnever been easier. In the Dual Top the tedious chore of flipping through pages is replaced by smooth scrolling through the directory, and you
deselect
ename”
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become
Source,” and the first window you opened will now read “Destination,” Do not let this confuse you, just click on the drive that you want to copy to, and then click again anywhere over the original “Source” window. Your target disk window now should read “Destination.” Choose your files, click “copy,” and away you go! The last two features on the menu bar are “Auto Dir(ectory)” and “Auto Sort.” The first of these will open up the directory ofa selected drive every time you enter Dual Top. I have mine pre- set todrive B, whichis my RAMdrive. “Auto Sort” will put a pre-sel alphabetical order. This is very handy for long ectories, and Imust also point out that it sorts 'y appear on Dual Top, but does not change their actual location on the disk. So, autosort boot disks without worrying about disrupting their booting capability. Other features that make the Dual Top particularly convenient to use include its
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keyboard shortcuts, gadgets, gauges, and accessibility. Disks with dozens of files can be reviewed in a flash using the function keys. F1 goes tothe“Source’ listing’stop, F7 tothe bottom. F3 moves one page up, and F'5 one page down, Does this seem unimpressive? Remember, there are no icons being drawn and redrawn, and 15 files instead of 8 to a page. Yes, we're talking Speedy, “I guarantee it.” Back to the copying function fora moment, youare copyingadisk, on only file 4 of 37 big ones, Need to stop? Press C=, and breathe easily.
There is also the helpful little features of the s” or Kbytes-remaining gauge on the outside of the windows. The inside gauge shows the
amount of files with an adjustable ga ing your location within the directo
Finally, there isthe accessibility issue. L that you just need to get back to the gateW:
displ
the deskop to duplicate a file (canit do that on Dual Top). Just click on the GEOS menu and select either option. What more can be said? Look into your local user group for Dual Top! It will make your GEOS experience even more rewarding.
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31
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COMMODORE WORLD
Carrier Detect
By Gaclyne R. Gasson
THE SEARCH IS ON: FINDING STUFF ON THE INTERNET
I've often heard the comment: “Oh sure, everything you want to know is on the Internet, you just have to know where to find it,” It is the same idea when your visiting a friend or relative and trying to make a cup of coffee, You know everything you need is in the kitchen, but that doesn’t mean you'll find the things you need any faster. Learning how to find information on the Internet is an important skill, and with a few pointers, youcanusethe Internet moreefficiently.
Where The Goods Are Stored
Becoming familiar with the Internet's organization is similar to opening all the cupboards in a kitchen. One advantage to the Internet is that even if an item is stored in one place, it’susuallyaces a quick list of Internet places where your search
bleby other means. Here's
can lead you,
FTP
Binary files and informational text are stored on FTP sites, You will need to know what site carries the information you want, and where to find the file(s). Using FTP directly isoften the most efficient means of locating an item.
Gopher Many colleges and universities have Gopher sites for informational material. The menus are easy
COMMODORE WORLD
to use and navigate, and you can bookmark a document or menu to return to it later. On the downside, Gopher servers can be slow and many places have more current information on the World Wide Web.
Usenet Newsgroups
Usenet newsgroups are divided into several hierarchies which ¢ cover: computers, science, humanit recreation, miscellaneous, and talk. Using this hierarel you can generally find something relating to your chosen topic in one or more of the groups. By reading previous posts, you can often glean currentinformation without the need to post any questions,
news,
Usenet FAQ Files
Usenet Newsgroups have FAQ(Frequently Asked Questions) files, which are usually jam-packed with information, In turn, they can point you to other material on the same topic. Keep in mind that the material is probably biased towards the Newsgroup subject, which can be a blessing or a curse, depending on your point of view.
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web was developed to allow Internet users access to most utilities from one “interface.” Although often used for
32
entertainment, al
vantag to the Internet as a whole.
isit givesyouaccess
Finding Gold
‘The World Wide Web has sever aid in locating material. Thr AltaVista (http://altavista.digital.com), WebCrawler (http://webcrawler.com/Web Crawler/WebQuery.html), and the Lycos Internet Directory (http://www.lycos.com/ index.html). These search engines use an automated processtocollectand sort World Wide Web pages daily, and then uses a database to store the information. Deja News (tm) (hittp:// www.dejanews.com) collects articles from Usenet newsgroups daily and allows you to search for keywords. Deja News keeps both a current and ” searchable database.
| utilities which such utilities are
ny are familiar with Yahoo! (http:// hoo.com), but for searching the entire Web Internet Yahoo! falls short asiit uses its own indexing from those who have submitted Web sites. According to the Yahoo! F, ‘AQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page, Yahoo! does an automatic se “new announcements at However, it doesn’t state where its automatic search looks for these announcements. A search for“C-64” with Yahoo! yielded just 12 World Wide Web links. The same
search gave the following match results: AltaVista-
arch and looks for "
Various place
Issue 18
9,000, Webcrawler: the Yahoo! index is up a specific item. However, the information in the index isn’t as current because it sometimes takes weeks for a submitted URL to be added.
and Lycos-2,187, Since ‘ategorized, it’s easy to look
World Wide Web Search Engine Mostofthe time, [use the AltaVista search engine to find items by searching for a single word. WebCrawler uses the same commands as AltaVista, as does Lycos, but Lycos hasa couple of different notations from the other two (see the sidebar for the differences).
On the search form provided by the search engine, I type in a word for the subject I'm interested in, and then select “Submit” or “Search.” In a short time, a WWW page is displayed, showing a list of Web pages with the
word I want to find. Depending on the search
utility, this may include a few lines of text from each web page to help you decide if the page has the information you are looking for. Near the bottom of the page, you'll find links to the next search pages, plus links to any previous or next pages within the current search page. I look ata Web page in the list, and if it doesn’t meet my liking, I can return to the search list and try another. (It’s the shift and cursor left/right keys to return to a previous page while using Lynx.) After glancing at the titles of about 30 links, if Thaven't found what Iwant, it’s time to takeanew A new keyword, or limit the search by using more specific choices. After alw:
approach. I need to choos
I, no matter what you're looking for ys found by a process of elimination. Even when trying to find a coffee mugin an unfamiliar kitchen, we do so by ruling out areas such as
drawers, or lower cupboards.
Limiting The Search Knowing the “rules” when searching for more than one word can really speed up your search time. The following the rules fora simplesearch. Ifyou use capital letters, it looks for matches to the exact word, but if you type lower case letters, it finds any match (capitals included). For example, if you search for “commodore” and the search engine will find both “commodore” and “Commodore.” A search for “Commodore” willfind only pages with theword
“Commodore, isting several words on the search line will result in the engine finding documents with as many keywords and phrases as ible. The listis presented with documents having the most matches first. This isn’t always the best approach, as we will see with other choices below,
po
WWW Search Engine Features
While search engines often share the same function, the way information is presented often differs. Here's a brief look at what AltaVista, WebCrawler, Lycos and DejaNews™ offer users:
Searches Text-Only Add URL Categories WWW Usenet AltaVista We N N Ni Y WebCrawler N Y Ni Y N Lycros N Y v Y N Deja News™ N N N N Y
Results Legend
= Standard Format = Compact Format = Detailed (Shows
(Title and
similar
AltaVista
(Title only) links if
first few lines)
any)
Results #Matches/Page $,C,D 10 S.C 10/25/100 S,C,D 10/20/30/40 N/A 20
Special constraints can be used in search query to match specific WWW page and Usenet attributes in searches, such asimage, anchor, link, URL, text, and title for Web pages and newsgroup, subject, from, summary, and keywords. Usenet archives are only kept for a few weeks.
WebCrawler
Offers “WebRoulette” (random links), “Surf Backwards
on size of the World Wide Web and number of servers linked to it).
Lycos
Search options include Sites by Subject, Sounds and Pictures as well as the Web in general.
Deja News™
froma given URL (to pages that link to the URL), and WebFaets (current “guess-timate”
Offers ability to subscribe to a newsgroup to read and post articles while online just asa user would from a standard Usenet Newsreader.
Searches for keywords from its current or archive (beginning March 1995) database. Shows an “Author profile
with list of other articles
posted by the same person. Has advanced search features in an easy to use “forms” format. WWW URL's in newsgroup articles can be
selected for further Web browsing.
December 1996/January 1997
33
COMMODORE WORLD
WWW Search Engines
AltaVista http://altavista.com
AltaVista Australian Mirror http://www.altavista. yellowpages.com.au
WebCrawler http: //webcrawler.com/ WebCrawler/WebQuery .html
Lycos http://www. lycos.com/ index.html
Lycos Note: Use a “.” after a word for an exact (case sensitive) match. Instead of a “*" wildcard, use a “$".
Searchable Indices
Yahoo! http: //www.yahoo,com
CaBooM! http://www. jbrain. com/caboom/
Usenet Search Engine
Deja News
http: //www.dejanews.com Detailed searches of only the Usenet Newsgroups
Tosearch fora phrase, use quotation marks. A search for “money” (no quotes) results in two million matching Web pages. Yet the phrase “money is the root” (quotes included) returned about 100 WWW pa
Using the plus and minus symbols (+ and -) beforea word finds pages with required matches, or causes a word or phrase to be ignored. This eliminates bringing up associated topics youmay
elyne Moranee” will return a li those Web pages that use my new surname, You can use more than one plus and minus symbol in your search, or use it with single words and phrases. This is useful when a word can have more than one meaning or use. For instance, a search for baggage will result in
COMMODORE WORLD
32,000 matches that include topics like retail sales, airline baggage, baggage carts, baggage tags, etc. If we only want airline baggage, we can use +airline +baggage. This resulted in 20,000 WWW pages found, but included the pages that dealt with other issues. To rule out all pages dealing with other airline and baggage topics, we can try: "airline baggage” -terrorism. This returned a manageable 139 matches of WWW pages dealing specifically withairline baggage but keeps terrorism topics out of the list,
Ifyou're not sure about the correct spelling of aword, youcanusethe"*” wildcard. Thewildcard can be used after the first three characters of a word, Iftoo many matches are found, the word is ignored and no matches are displayed. To find matches for both colour and color, try searching for “colo*r.”
Search Tools
Whenever | visit a library to find specific information for a research project, I take along pen and paper. This may be “old fashioned,” but anote to remind me what I was looking for in the first place saves metimel!'d waste otherwise. This isalso useful when searching the Internet. [don’t trust my memory, so | jot down file na World Wide Web URLs.
nes or
Bookmarks
The Bookmark fileis a great tool to use so you can quickly return toa place with information you're interested in, In Lynx when you want to s WWW link for future use, press the “a” key and answer the prompts. My bookmark file used to be a jumble of unsorted places that didn’t help mefindanything very easily. I edited this file(you can edit it online or offline) and put similar items together making it easier to use. [hada very keen interest in migrating to Australia and had bookmarked several WWW placeswith thistopic. When I organized my bookmark file, I put the links for these items together in one place. Later, when I wanted to use the information, I could easily find the link to the Australian Embassy in my bookmark file. If need to typeaspecific URL, J often import the bookmark file to avoid typing the information directly.
Make Lynx Do The Work Whenaccessing the World Wide Webwith Lynx, the "/” and “n" keys will help you find keywords inaweb page. The “/" key prompts you to “Enter y:", but what it is really asking is “Enter word to look for.” If the word you type is on the page, Lynx adjusts the text so the word appears on the first line of the display
a whereis quei
34
key will take you to the next occurrence of the word. This lets you move directly to the information or link you want. The biggest disadvantage to search engine pages is having azillion links on a page. If use the “/” feature and type the word for a link I want, it saves
time and effort. When I use a search engine h several pages, usually it will have a link for “next.” If I've defined the word “next” within lynx, I can hit “n” to zoom to the link for the next search page. This technique saves many online minutes.
If Lynx is configured as “Numbers act as arrows,” you can navigate a Web page using the number 1 and 7 keys, Pressing the number: “1" will move you to the end of a Web page, and"7” moves you to the top. When using any text entry form, you can jump to the start or end of the line by using CTRL-a or CTRL-e, respectively. Ifyou want to erase the line, press CTRL-u.
wi
Wrap Up
I've used Web search engines for serious rch, and they've provided me with access to the information I needed without a lot of wading through junk to get there, Using the techniques outlined you can surf in the fast search lane too,
resea
»)
AltaVista, WebCrawler, or Lycos Search Strings
+c64 -128 Links with references to the C64 only. C128 can try: +128 -c6d
/pub/cbm* Get a list of several WWW sites that have links to Commodore FTP sites.
/pub/cbm* -emul* The same list, but without links to Commodore emulator pages.
ccnga.uwaterloo.ca/pub/cbm* Links of Commodore related ccnga.uwaterloo.ca links.
newsgroup: comp.sys.cbm +faq
A list comp.sys.cbm newsgroup articles that include the word “faq.”
Issue 18
( GEOCABLE Il Parallel Print Cable
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December 1996/January 1997 35 COMMODORE WORLD
PROGRAMMING PITFALLS
FPROGRAMMIST
By Maurice Randall
Have you ever written a program that trashes disks? I have, but not
intentionally. Fortunately, I've been lucky enough to catch the problems
before releasing the programs. Let's see if | can show you how to avoid a very bad situation,
The Current Drive
With the exception of GEOS, it is easy to find out which drive i by checking the location at 186 (hex Sba). More programmers should adopt this practice because the days of having a single 1541 at device 8 are over. Users like to make use of all the devices they have.
With GEOS, however, it’s a little different. You should make sure you make use of any device that is online or your program will get little use. Don’t limit yourself to drive A and B either, as the original Desktop does. The person using your program might be using A, B, C, and even, D—making it necessary to accomodate the extra dri
How do we know which device is active? We don’t always need to know, but you don't do it by checking location $ba, which in GEOS is known as curDevice. s method gives only the current serial bus device as far as the normal CBM kernal routines are concerned. GEOS knows which drive is current through the variable known as curDrive.
his is the location you should be concerned with. Remember that GEOS does not use the Commodore serial bus routines for accessing the drives, especially when a RAMDisk is being accessed. The only time the Commodore routines are used is when sending the turbo code residing within the drive to the drive. The custom turbo routines can’t berun until that code isin the drive. The Commodore routines are also used when accessing a printer on the serial bus. (Note to user: a good reason to have JiffyDos even if you only use GEOS. The turbo code is transferred faster. This takes place many times while GEOS is running, not just during the bootup period.)
Outside of GEOS, if you use the Listen routine to access a drive, the kernal will set up curDevice for you. In GEOS, you would only use Listen if you need to do something out of the ordinary with one of the drives. For most applications, it is not necessary to access the internal workings ofa drive. Thats left up to the disk drivers themselves as well as applications such as Configure and the Desktop. Prior to using Listen, you may or may not have to remove the turbo code from the drive. It all depends on what you intend to do. In either case, you need to turn the code off before any of the Commodore kernal routines such as Listen can access the drive.
active
COMMODORE WORLD
36
Exit Or Purge?
If your drive access is going to affect the RAM inside the drive where the turbo code resides, you will need to purge the code from the drive first by using the routine PurgeTurbo. Just call the routine and then youare ready to doa direct access of the drive. Ifyou are only going to perform sk such as reading the drive's error channel, then you only need to call ExitTurbo. The code will still be in the drive, but will be turned off. EnterTurbo will turn the code back on. EnterTurbo also serves the purpose of reloading the code into the drive if you had called PurgeTurbo. Reading the drive's error channel or sending certain commands to the drive's command channel do not affect any code that isin the drive's RAM, unless the command actually writes to the RAM, as with a memory write command. It is very unlikely that you will ever need todo any direct access of the drive such as this—GEOS is designed to do this dirty work for you. GEOS has some better routines for your application to use. After all, what's the point in rewriting something that already works fine.
The SetDevice Dilemma
Are you ready to get into trouble? A quick way to find yourself knee deep is tostore a value to curDrive, Let's say your application is currently running with drive A as the active drive. A quick check of curDrive would show a value of 8 there. You would think that you could store a 9 there and then access drive B—not so. There are other things that need to be done in order to make this work. Let GEOS do this for you with the routine SetDevice. SetDevice performsseveral tasks, with theend result being thattheintended drive will be ready to be used by your application. You will then be able to load or save data to the drive. SetDevice will turn off the turbo code in the current drive and then perform the necessary task of bringing the correct disk driver from the REU into memory. It does not, however, turn on the turbo code in the new drive. We will get to that later. You would think that SetDevice would report an error should anything go wrong, right? Wrong. Itwas meant to, but the original designers of GEOS goofed. You're on your own in detecting errors. Using SetDevice is simple:
lda #9
jsr SetDevice
This will prepare drive B for you. According to the GEOS Programmer's Reference Guide, the x register will indicate any disk error that may have
Issue 18
occurred. The problem is x will always return holding a zero value which would indicate no errors.(Note: In GEOS 3.0, SetDevice has been rewritten to return an error in x if the desired drive is not available.) What if drive B does not exist? Seems to melike the above routine showing no errors would indicate that drive b indeed is online and can be accessed. After all, we called SetDevice to prepare that drive for acce:
So how do we know that drive B really does exist? First let's look at what might happen if it’s not there. For a simple scenario, let's say that your application merely copies the boot block from one disk to another, but prior to saving the block to the second drive, you might change something. This is avery logical and useful idea. The following code might accomplish this task:
lda #8
jsr SetDevice LoadW r4, #diskBlkBuf LoadB r1L,#1 LoadB r1H, #0 jsr GetBlock make changes within diskBIkBuf here...
lda #9 jsr SetDevice jsr PutBloc
That seems pretty straightforward. We loaded track 1, sector 0 from drive A into memory at diskBIkBuf, We made whatever changes we wanted and then opened up drive B and wrote the block to the drive at the same location. Since rl and r4 are not altered by GetBlock or SetDevice, those values remained the same and did not need to be set up again. If we were going to save the block of data toa different sector, then r1Landr1H would have needed to be altered prior to the call to PutBlock.
The code above would have failed if drive B did not exist. The call to PutBlock would actually rewrite the block back to drive 8. It would do no good to check for any errors because there would be none. Everything would appear to work correctly to the application . The only problemis that we just altered a sector that we did not want to alter. Imagine what would happen ifwe were changing the directory blocks or some other vital portion of the disk, That could prove to be a very bad situation,
The Cure For SetDevice
You still need to use SetDevice, but it’s just too bad it doesn’t check for errors like it was supposed to do. Instead, you are going to have to actually check some variables in the GEOS kernal yourself to see if a drive exists before attempting to access it. These variables are stored in four locations at driveType. There are 4 bytes here, one for each drive. The following code will determine if there really is a drive B online.
ldy #9 lda drivetype-8,y
With that little bit of code, you can do a branch on equal (beq) for non- existant drive, ora branch not equal (bne)ifadrivee isatthe location you are checking, then there is no drive. Any non-zero will indicate a drive does indeed exist and you can also identify the type of drive there. On the same token, the variable cur Type always indicates the type of drive that is currently active according to curDrive. SetDevice copiesa byte from one of the driveType locations to curType for you.
December 1996/January 1997
37
Is The Turbo Code Running?
Now that you know how to get access to a drive, how do you know if the turbo codeneedstobeturned on orsent tothe drive. The good thingis that we don't really need to know. Routines such as PutBlock or GetBlock will perform the task if needed. You can do it if you'd like, but it’s not necessary. A call to EnterTurbo will do the job, All the higher level routines call this function for you, but the lower level routines do not. The lower level routines expect that it has already been called and will fail ifit hasn't, If you use SetDevice to switch drives and then do a low level disk access, your program will crash. Let's say you are accessing drive A and then switch to B asin the following code:
lda #9 lda
LoadB riL, #1 LoadB r1H, #0
DoneWithIo
This code did not turn on the turbo code, or install it in the drive if itwas not already there. After the call to SetDevice, you should doaJSR to EnterTurbo. This example turns out to be really meaningless because we could have used GetBlock instead and avoided calling InitForlO and DoneWithIO. We only read one block with above code, and GetBlock does all that and reads one block, It also calls EnterTurbo. So why would we want to use ReadBlock when it requires more code to use? If we were going to read a number of blocks at one time, then repeated calls to just ReadBlock within that above routine would be faster than repeated calls to GetBlock. We would only be calling InitForlO and DoneWithI0 one time instead of GetBlock calling them each time a block is read.
One More Time
SetDevice has one more important use. Printer drivers call it to set up the serial bus for printer access. The geoCable drivers also call it even though they do not access the serial bus. This allows GEOS to do any needed housekeeping prior to the printer access. The variable curDevice will also be set to device 4 but curDrive will remain at whatever drive is currently active. For this reason, after your application calls any printer driver routine for printer access, it should call SetDevice before doing any disk
‘This will insure that everything is back in place for you. As long as you load the accumulator with the value from curDrive, you can be pretty much assured that the drive is there or curDrive never would have been given that value in the first place. If curDrive contained a zero, you might get into trouble, but about the only time that curDrive is set to zero is during a drive swap which usually only occurs from the Desktop.
Please make use of the four drive capability that the user wants you todo, but just remember to only try accessing the drives that are actually online. People tend to shy away from using your program is if it has a tendency to trash disks.
4)
COMMODORE WORLD
ASSEMBLY
LING
By Jim Butterfield
Many programmers get a little nervous when it comes time to deal with numbers, Numbers are not all that difficult, and they are useful...how else can you put high scores on your games?
ASCII Numbers
The numbers we read and write are ASCII text. Press the “6” key, and the computer will receive a value of 54, which is the ASCII character for 6. Subtract 48, and you'll get the binary value 6. Input a number such 789, and the computer gets three ASCII characters, one for each digit.
ASCII text is ne y for input from the keyboard and from files, where numbers are often held as text. They are also needed for output to printer or screen, so it would be true to say that numbers always start and end in their ASCII form. Some numbers stay in ASCII form, never changing to anything else. You won't need to do arithmetic on such numeric strings as telephone numbers or zip codes. Keep these numbers in ASCII.
Binary Numbers
‘The most compact way to storenumbersisin binary form. A single byte can hold values from 0 to 255; compare this to the ASCII range of a single character byte, which goes from 0 to 9. Binary numbers are great for arithmetic. The “add and subtract instructions” are ready to go (ADC and SBC), and it’s not hard to work through multiplication and division subroutines if needed, The challenge is that you can’t input or output binary numbers; you have to convert from or to ASCH. This is not really a problem—we'll get to that code fairly soon,
Compromise: BCD Numbers
Halfway between ASCII and binary numbers, there's a compromise called BCD, which stands for Binary Coded Decimal. Each byte will contain two decimal digits from 0 to 9: onein the high four bits (the “high nybble”), and the other in the low four. A BCD byte can hold a value from 00 to 99, which isa heck ofalotbetter than the 0to9 range that ASCII gives you, but it's not as good as the 0 to 255 of binary.
BCD numbers are fairly easy to convert to ASCII for output: just grab the four-bitvalue representinga digit, trim itup to the ASCII numeric character range (for example, by adding 48), and out it goes. Input is just as easy.
BCD numbers are also pretty good for addition and subtractio 6502 processor has a “decimal mode” making it a snap. Multiplication and division and other advanced math isn't as easy, binary numbers do a better job,
Comparison and the C Flag We talked about flags the last time around. It was mentioned that if you wanted to compare the size of two numbers, the C flag is the one
COMMODORE WORLD
38
NUMBERS AND ARITHMETIC
to check. After a comparison (with CMP, CPX, or CPY), the C flag will bes the register value is greater than or equal to whatever you're comparing to. Conversely, the C flag will be CLEAR if the register contains a lower value than that of the operand, Beginners often think that the BPL (Branch Plus) and BMI (Branch Minus) commands will ay with the Cflaganditstests,
ignal greater than or less than. Not so... BCS and BCC.
How do we test an incoming ASCH character to confirm tha valid numeric character? Here's the code, assuming that the character isin the A register:
"gn
CMP #
than
Ifthe program doesn’t take either branch above, the A register contains a valid numeric digit. It could now be reduced to binary with a command such as AND #$0F. You would use the same kind of coding to identify an alphabetic chara
Program Preview
The program given here is something of a change of pace. Instead of being plain vanilla coding, it uses a number of tricks. Try to figure them out, it’s good exercise.
Here's what the program does: it allows or two digits, then press the “+” ke econd number, and finally the “=” key. It will d print it. Thus, ifyou typed: “45+36=" the computer would complete the line by adding "81".
Note that only the keys named can be used, RETURN will be useless: all you can press is the numeric keys, the “+” key, and the "=" key. A good revision to the program would be to allow the STOP key to be recognized (use JSR SFFE1 to test thestop ke} d, BEQuill branch youto the exit code of your choice). In the interest of keeping things brief, the code given here doesn’t even check STOP,
This program will run on almost any Commodore machine ever built. If your tiny VIC-20 doesn’t have memory at address 8192 (hex 2000), you may have to adjust things slightly.
you to type in a number of one
culate a total a
Gimmicks and Gadgets
The code in this program isa little off the beaten path. | will note some of the key points of interest as I move through the code. The first part (hex 2000 to 2009) clears the input area, which ranges from $2100 to $2106:
Issue 18
CLRLOOP $2100,x
DE} BPL CLRLOOP
At$200A, we get a character from the keyboard. We always loop back here to get another character.
GETCHR
JSR $
Trick number one: we are counting the characters received in address $2100. If we have received exactly two characters, we will skip ahead to look for the “+”; ifwe have received exactly five, look for the “=" key.
BEQ c
>KPLS vi #505 BEQ CKEQU
sif five,
ch
Now we check to see if our received character is a valid ASCII numeric, as demonstrated this method earlier.
save it ry with
a valid numeric character. We nd convert the value to bin
At this point, we know we h for the moment in the Y register,
CW & RUN BACK ISSUES
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December 1996/January 1997
39
the instruction. The binary value is stored in the area at 2101 and above. Don't forget that X still contains the number of characters received, so this value controls the exact location where the binary
value is stored.
Address 2027, SHOWCH, prints the character to the screen so that the user can see what was typed. We add one to the characters-received counter in X and store the value in memory. Then we read the keyboard again,
sprint
character in A register
CHR, 200A!
Ifthe input key is too small to bea numeric, it might be a “+” character, but we'll only accept that if one or two characters have been received so far. Here's the check for “one character”:
;if not “one, back we go
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COMMODORE WORLD
Then, if one character has already been received, we will drop through to the following code. If two characters have already been received, we will leap to this point from an earlier point in the program. In either case, the task at hand is to check for a “+” character, hexadecimal 2B.
CKPLS CMP
BNE GI
4923 it
HR if not "+", forget Ifwe have received two numeric characters so far, we can printthe plus sign
and keep going.
If we got only one numerical character, we have to move it from the “tens” digit position to the “ones” digit position, placing a zero value in the tens position, We add one to the character countin X to allow for the ghost zero in the tens position. After that, we can print the plus and continue,
INK
LDY $2101 $2102 #500
sTY LDY
brar
‘The coding to check for the “= for “+”. The main differences are that we're looking for this to follow 4 or 5 input characters; and, after we do find that equals character, we finish the program by doing the arithmetic.
TOOBIG CPX BNE
4804 TCHR
mot 4 characters, forget it!
After five input characters, we leap directly to the following code:
QU CMP #930
GETCHR
BNE pnot an '=', go back
We have the equals sign. Print it.
JSR $FFD2 yprint character in A
y one digit was received for the second value, we must reorganize the and “ones” values, as before.
} if the whole five, skip ahead
sTY $2104
The following arithmetic is done as BCD, but the stored values have only one digit to a byte, instead of two! This would normally give
COMMODORE WORLD
ter is very similar to the above stuff
40
problems with the Carry operation as we go from one digit to the next. Ifthe most we can add is 9 plus 9, we'll never go over 99 and trigger the Carry flag for the next column. This problem is resolved in the code below, but I'll leave it as a puzzle for you to look at, How do I make the carry flag do its work, and how do I handle the possible 3-digit total, such as we would get with 99+995...?
SED set BCD mode!
to add!
repare
adjust carry flag
;no more addition #$10 ie
TWODIG
1dy flag
carry
TWODIG
#930
yand again
#S0D
JSR $FFD2 pprint RTS #all done,
Listing: poeta POKE
732 2 110 DATA
46,201,48,144, 16,168, 41,15 120 DATA 157,1,33,152,32,210,255, 232,142 1218, 224, 1,208,214 201,4 208,210,224, 133i, Het 33,160,0 140,1,33,240,221,224, 4,208,188, 201, 61,208,184, 32,210,255 150 DATA 224,5,240,12,232,172,4,33,140,5 ,33,160,0,140,4, 33,248, 24 160 DATA 173,2,33,109,5,33,168,201,16,1 ,109,4,33,170,21 1 44,5,169, 210,255 240,5,9,48, 32,210,255 180 DATA 152,9,48,3 255,169,13,32,2 255,96 200 FOR J=8192 TO 8340 210 READ X x 220
POKE J,X 230 < 0 300
PRINT 310 PRINT R 2 DIGITS, ' 400 SYS 8192
TS, +", LO
Issue 18
CHECKSUM
Commodore World’s Program Entry Checking Program and Tips on Entering Programs from this Magazine
CHECKSUMisa program that proofreads your typing when youenteralistingfrom the magazine. It assignsa numerical value to each character that you type, adds up thevalues ofthe line you typed and displays the sum. (Checksum, therefore, means that it checks your typing by summing the characters.) It also verifies that you have typed the characters in the proper order. (Checksum won't tell you ifyou missa line of code entirely, so verify that yourself.) Checksum runs “in the background” when you type in lines of program code, Whenever you type a line and press RETURN, Checksum will display a value. Compare that value to the value published next to the line of code in the magazine. If the numbers match, you've typed the imple.
ine
Typing in CHECKSUM
First, type in Checksum carefully from the listing on this page. Be sure to press RETURN after every line toenteritinto memory. Once youhave typed the program, save it, In fact, save it a few times while you're typing, just to be safe. (This is good advice whenever you type in a program. I usually change the name each time I save; forexample, Checksuml, Checksum2, and soon.) Double-check your work, sure that you've typedin every line and that you've pressed RETURN after e you've typed, Ifyou make errors when typing in Checksum, a test run of Checksum will tell you which lineis incorrect, (This: feature works only in the Checksum. program itself, and does not apply toany otherlistingsin the magazine.) Whenever you find a typing error (in any program listing), fix it, press RETURN to enter the change, save the program again and try another run. Repeat this processas often as necessary. Important tip: Don’t get discouraged if the program won't run. Be patient. Be thorough. It will work eventually. You'll know your Checksum is ready when you see the line:
TO TOGGLE ON OR OFF, S
Entering Programs Using CHECKSUM
When you're ready to type in your first listing from the magazine, load and run Checksum. Makea note ofthe number thatis displayed on the screen (49152 forthe 28 for the C-128). To activate and dea ‘Checksum, type SYS followed by that number, then press RETURN. You need to have Checksum active whenever you're typing in a listing. Checksum must be deactivated, however, when you run the new program. The next step is typing in a new program listing a the magazine.
As you begin, you'll notice that to the left of the start of each line is a number. Don't type this number in: It’s simply the Checksum value. Stop typing at the end of the program line and press RETURN, If you've typed the line correctly, the number displayed on the screen will match the Checksum value. Ifthe numbers don't match, you've made a mistake. Check the line carefully, make your changes and press RETURN. The computer won't know you've made a change unless you press RETURN on the changed line to enter it. A few type-in hints: The Checksum does not verify blank spaces in the program lines unless they are within quotation marks, because adding or omitting such spaces will not affect the operation of the program. The exception to thisis hexadecimal Data statements. These are the Data statements, such as this one, that don’t have commas:
it appears in
4567890123
100 DATA 12345678901234567890*12 67890*123456789012345 90*
Instatements such as these, you must have one space between the word DATA and the numbers that follow. Checksum will not catch that error.
December 1996/January 1997
a
Special Key Combinations
Asyoutype, you may be confused the first time you see curly braces (). These braces mean “perform the function explained within.” For example, (22 SPACES} means that you need to press the space bar 22 times. Don't type the braces (you can't, of course, because there are no curly bracesin the Commodore character set). Here are some other common examples:
{CLEAR/HOME) hold down the SHIFT key and press the CLR-HOME key. {2 CRSR DN} tap the cursor down key twice. {CTRLi} hold the CONTOL key and press the I key.
{CMDR t) hold down the COMMODO!
and press the T key
Continue typing in your prog often and checking each checksum value with the one in the magazine, until you've finished the listing, Phew! Sonow you're econd, deactivate Checksum by typing SYS followed by 49152,orthe C-64 or 3328 forthe C-128, Now youcanrun. Don'thediscouragedifyoustill getan error. Ithappens. Use Checksum faithfully. Be patient. Be thorough. It will work eventually,
»)
CHECKSUM
COMMODORE WORLD
PGR Gree
Visi
By Jin Butterfield
1. During INPUT, pressing RETURN tells the computer to look at the screen for its data, not at the keyboard, Of course what's on the screen will usually have been delivered from the keyboard, but not always.
2. Pressing SHIFT-RETURN tells the computer nothing; it just gets you off the current screen and out of programmed-cursor mode (that annoying “reverse-character” thing). This is very handy if you've messed up your input.
e
Typing CHRS(14) puts the screen into text mode; typing CHR$(142) puts the screen into graphics mode. This works with all Commodore 8-bit computers, except the very earliest models of the PET.
4, On Commodore computers since the VIC-20, pressing SHIFT-COMMODORE toggles the screen between textand graphics mode. Youknew at, didn't you?
5. On the VIC-20 and Commodore 64, you can disable that screen/text toggle by printing CHRS(8). Restore it by printing CHRS(9). On the 128 (and the Plus-4/C16), use CHRS(11) and CHRS(12),
6, Because of the different characters used to disable the above toggle on various machines, many programmers prefer to pass on this character, and instead print CHRS(14) or CHR§(142), If the user plays with the SHIFT- COMMODORE keys, the above will put things back the way the programmer wants them.
7. 1n terms of keyboard mechanics, it’s possible (in principle) to detect any two keys pressed at the same time. But as a general rule, there's no way to detect all possible 3-key combinations.
8. Commodore 8-bit keyboards are set up as an y of “rows” and “columns”. When a key is
COMMODORE WORLD
pressed, it makesa connection between a specific rowand column. See Figure 1 for thelayout ofthe VIC-20 and Commodore 64 keyboard.
9. When testing the keyboard, the computer puts a voltage down each row in turn, and watches to see which columns passthe voltage back. Youcan write the code to do this yourself, but it’s a little complex, and the interrupt routine usually does the job for you nicely.
10. Two keys are no problem-as each row is selected, signals may come back on two columns simultaneously, or may came back as different rows are selected. The computer can sort out which two keys are involved either way.
11. Three keys are not always resolvable. Refer to Figure 1, and look at what happens if the user presses keys “E”,"Z” and “U" at the same time. When the row marked R2 is tested, response will come back on columns B6 and B4, which is correct (detecting “E” and “Z”). When a voltage is put onto row R4, it will run up column B6 and from there (through the “E”
connection) along row 2 as well; then the voltage will make its way to B4, so that the “B” key will appear to be pressed. This effect is called a “ghost” key.
12. Practical result: the interrupt services of the computer expect only two keys to be pressec time. Iftwoare pressed, one will usually bea shift- type key.
13. Note that the left and right shift keys are separateswitch pointson the keyboard, but you'd have to write your own coding to detect the difference between left-shift and right-shift.
14. The “bottom row” of keys (R8 in Figure 1) is especially easy to check, since a copy of the “columns” it triggers is kept in memory. On the
42
KEYBOARD TIPPING
VIC-20 and Commodore 64, and Commodore . this data is kept at address 145. On many pre-Vic-20 machinesit’sat 155. Thekeysmapped into this row may not be the same between different machines.
15. Values shown at the “keyswitch” address above tend to be inverted. In other words, when the line is energized, the corresponding bit i: turned OFF. With no keys pressed, you'll see a value of 255 here.
gure 1 shows that the keys logged into the itch” address for the Commodore 64 and similar machines, are (high end to low): Stop, “Q", Commodore, Space, “2”, Ctrl, back-arrow, up-arrow, Basicwould havea tough timedetecting the Stop key with such a PEEK, of course, since Basic would stop before it could do the test.
17. A Basic program could, however, ask the user to press a key combination such as Ctrl, Space, and back-arrow. When address 145 showsa value of 233, the computer will know that this combination has been pressed. (We start with 255, no key, and subtract 16 for Space, 4 for Ctrl, and 2 for back-arrow, giving usa result of 233). A handy way to set up an emergency program exit or “backdoor” code.
18. 1t doesn't matter if you tap a key or hold it down, the interrupt routines that check the keyboard won't register a key as being hit twice just because it has detected “key down” several times in a row. Of course, some computers have a “key repeat” feature, but that’s different.
19. To help with this “debouncing” action, every computer hasa location where it ki keyboard looked like last time I checked”. The value is kept at address 203 on the VIC-20 and Commodore 64, at 151 on many pre-VIC-20
Issue 18
ines, andat 212and213ontheCommodore 128. The value is an internal code; it’s not in ASCII/PETSCH.
The location just named is a good way to tell yis being helddown. Games, especially, can benefit from repeating or sustaining an action as Jongas the key is held, Be aware that the “no key” value to be found in this location varies from machine to machine-possibly 64, 88, or 255. You should be able to research which value fits your computer,
21. Because the keyboard is read by interrupt routines, the values can change while your program is reading them. You need to be careful in choosing your sequence of tests.
22. The recommended way to have Basic check if a key is being held down is read the “key code” and store it, For example, ona Commodore 64 or 20 you might code KC=PEEK(203). Now try to read the keyboard with GET KS. Ifyou get a real key, not a null string, use it and ignore the peek value. So: IF KS<>"" GOTO 740, When you get a null string, check the results of that earlier sn’t theno-key value, the last-read key must still be pressed. Thus: IF KC<64 GOTO .. (where you'll repeat the previous key action).
23. Weall know that you can “type ahead” into the keyboard buffer. Keyboard buffers typically hold 9 characters; sometimes they can be adjusted to be larger, but that’s rarely important.
24, Some programs want to be sure that the keyboard buffer is empty before starting a user dialogue. Although POKEcommandsare popular for this, the neatest way to empty it out is with command: GET X$,X$,X$,X$,X$,X$,X$,X$,X$ «and you won't need to worry about whatever value ends up in XS.
25. Theinterrupt (IRQ) program kicksin 60times persecond, and checks the keyboard, puttingany keys it finds into the keyboard buffer. Lots of machine language programmers like to “ : the interrupt when it starts and add their own. code, Be warned that this won't help you meddle with keyboard routines, since the keyboard will be checked AFTER the custom code, and the charactermight well be picked upandused before the next interrupt strikes.
26. If a programmer finds the need to dig in and modify keyboard action at the interrupt level, the job takes a somewhat more subtle
December 1996/January 1997
approach called a “post-interrupt”. | won't go into detail, but it involves catching the interrupt when it starts, and building a “fake” interrupt return. When the main interrupt code is finished, it “returns” the system to your post-code, which does its meddling and then REALLY returns to the interruptend point, requiring careful coding.
27. Alternatively, an ambitious programmer could write a complete set of interrupt code to replace those in ROM. This is not as easy as it mightsound, especially on the Commodore 128, which has a large set of interrupt activities
program accept the characters as delivered to you by the keyboard routines, and modify them
at time, You can usually get away with this and save a lot of tricky coding.
Since keyboard input comes from the keyboard buffer, you can fake input by stufling the buffer. (The computer is “typing on its own keyboard”).
30, Since the main input stream comes from the screen,and youhavelimitedspacein the keyboard buffer, you can fake input by putting it on the screen and just putting RETURN characters into thekeyboard buffer. Besure to position the cursor accurately,
31, Why would a computer want to type its own input? Well, there are a few commands that behave differently, depending on whether they are given within a program or typed on the keyboard. An example would be the LOAD command,
32. A program can stop itself (with the screen set upand the keyboard buffer stuffed), changealine of its code, and then restart itself? Amaze your friends, but use this kind of thing sparingly
33. Yes, you can disassemble and clean your Commodore keyboard. Some use alcohol applied with QTips. Some use detergent and water, followed by a cleansing rinse. Reports vary on the success of various methods. Be very careful with small springs (usually found under keycaps), they are difficult to pick out of a shag carpet!
3)
CRSR-U/D
STOP!Q
Figure 1: Layout of the C-64 keyboard. Each Key is a switch that connects a row to a bit position column. The computer places a signal on each row (Rito R8) and looks at what comes back in the bit positions.
CRSR-R/L
CTRL
43
COMMODORE WORLD
BASIC
PROGRAMMING PEARLS
INSTINCTS
By David Pankbucrsd
This month’s title is taken from the book of the same name by Jon Bentley. Bentley, a researcher at AT&T labs, wrote the book in the mid 1980's as a compilation of some of the columns he did on computer programming, This book is of interest to Commodore programmers as well as others because it deals with thinking about programming, rather than programming itself. In each essay, problems are spelled out, and various solutions are tried. Going through the book is an to “wrap your mind” around a problem, enabling you to ach it from all sides.
Besides various practical examples, he discusses the task of programming, encouraging good habits and techniques. Among them, he emphasizes the need to search outa good algorithm, rather than the first one that comes to mind; to analyze rather than trus d_requirements (which can sometimes be wrong); and to do back of the envelope calculations to get a feel for a practical solution. Along the way, he repeats the need to balance the frequently opposing forces: computer time, memory, and your time— all required to produce a program.
Find The Right Problem to Solve.
As an example of the book's content, the first chapter opens with a conversation between the author and a fellow programmer who needs to do a disk sort. After listing several options which don't seem to fit the requirements, he asks a few questions, digging deeper. The result was that the other programmer didn’t need a disk sort per se, but felt he needed it to sort a large file that couldn't fit in memory (sound familiar?). Eventually, the problem was broken down into the need to sort at most 27,000 integers, ranging from 1-27,000, with each number appearing no more than once, Although that problem consisted of sorting electoral trict numbers, a similar problem could occur with phone numbers, or social security numbers.
The programmer obviously felt sorting the file and printing the sorted list would do the trick. Benteley asks “is there a better way?”, breaks it down further, and then solves it without the disk sort. Before | explain, try to solve it yourself.
di
The Easy Way The key to simplifying the problem is to note that either a number is in the list, oritisn’t (there's guaranteed to be only one ofeach number).
COMMODORE WORLD
44
Sounds like a binary decision, and so it is. The next point is that the range is from 0-27,000. If we use one memory byte per number to represent presence or non-presence, ¥ n comfortably fit 27,000 one-byte flags in the C64’s memory. Describing the problem, we would do the following:
1) set aside an area of memory that can store the 27,000 bytes
2) set them all to zero (indicating a number doesn't exist yet)
3)read in the list: for each number X, set the Xth byte in the array to one, indicating it’s accounted for
4) after all are read in, go through the list in memory; for each position X in the array, print the number Xonly if it is turned on (indicating, the number was read in)
The result isa sorted list without the sorting and energy.
For simplicity, we use one byte to represent one number. With a little extra coding, however, we can use most of the 62K RAM available, and one bit per number, rather than one byte. This would let us sort up to half million numbers (62K x 8 bits = 507,904 bits), Phone numbers? There are at most ten million phone numbers in any area code, Sorting phone numbers (none of them duplicates) would take just over a meg of RAM, such as found in a RAM expander,
It’s this kind of non-linear thinking that fills the book—look for a solution by defining exactly what the problem is.
vinga great deal oftime
Build Safety Factors In
Few of us have heard of John Roebling, but many of us have heard of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge disaster. In the 1940's, a suspension bridge was caught up in a windstorm and was completely destroyed. Other suspension bridges of that era met a similar fate, but not the most famous, the Brooklyn Bridge. The reason? It's designer, Mr Roebling, created the bridge similar to the way the others had been built, accounting for the forces known to engineers of that day. However, rather than building it to that minimum standard, he engineered six times the required strength into the bridge. The result is a bridge standing long after many of its lighter contemporaries have broken up,
Issue 18
When we program, do we put in ‘safety factors’? For instance when we code, do we consider the following safe
IF(xX=45) GOTO 200
IfXisalwaysan integer, this couldwork. Butifit’s floating point, sometimes the roundoff can cause problems. A safer way to write this is:
GOTO 200
Often, adding extra code to reconfirm what youalready know makes sense from a defensive standpoint. Asan example, you know that code passed to a subroutine will range from 30 to 40; you can check this inline with the code;
IF STOP
ROR IN
suB"
While your program runs as expected, these lines are executed normally. Butifachange elsewhere in your program makes X fall out of