[Coco] Assembly GIME programming...

[Phill Harvey-Smith]

Roger Merchberger wrote:
> Eventually, I'll be starting it from "Blank Slate." The closest I can 
> come to that right now is from the 32-column screen, but eventually, I'm 
> building a CoCo3 with a totally different ROM running an OS called Cubix 
> from Dave Dunfield... which is why I won't have access to any of the ROM 
> routines. This may eventually get backported to a CoCo2 w/64K, but going 
> back to a 32x16 for any serious amount of time just seems... painful. ;-)

There is a 51x24 driver for the VDG screen in NitrOS9, perhaps this 
could be used as a basis for a hi-res test screen in cubix.

> I already have the "hackable" CoCo3, I have enough good tools to replace 
> the ROM and maybe the CPU socket with a ZIF socket [[ Just in case a 
> 6309 just *happens* to drop into my lap... ;-) ]] and now that I'm 
> starting to get used to Portal-9, some good development tools as well. 
> That, and an AT keyboard adapter that I'd like to design & build (I just 
> happen to have a couple spare AVR8515's about...) but that's for a later 
> date... ;-)

Done that, but used a Mega16/32, though to be honest that is probably 
over-kill, Mega8 has prolly got enough I/O and cirtainly enough flash, 
if you code in asm.

Basically I had a 2 chip solution, an AVR and an Zarlink MT8816 
crosspoint switch, worked really well, at some point I plan to convert 
one of my spare Dragon 32s into a machine that can be booted as either a 
CoCo or a Dragon, using a PC keyboard, and an add-on ROM adapter. Must 
finish the Dragon Beta Keyboard interface first tho.....

hill.


-- 
Phill Harvey-Smith, Programmer, Hardware hacker, and general eccentric !

"You can twist perceptions, but reality won't budge" -- Rush.