[Coco] Could the CoCo emulate MSDOS?

[James Jones]

Bob wrote:

>I bet we could make an MSDOS compatible ROM for the CoCo3 that could run text
>based apps like EDIT (not actually boot MSDOS)... but still maintain a CoCo
>disk format (DSKINI) to allow MSDOS<->CoCo file transfers among other things.
>(MSDOS apps would require MSDOS disks. Perhaps a modified COPY to transfer to
>CoCo disks?)
>  
>
It's a lot of work to emulate another CPU efficiently; CoCo emulators on 
x86s et al. work as well as they do because there are LOTS of CPU cycles 
to throw at the job.  The really efficient "emulators" are more like 
"compilers," as they do things like notice where they needn't slavishly 
imitate the processor. (The standard example is not bothering to set the 
condition code when another CC-setting instruction can
be shown to lie on all paths from the current instruction to any 
instruction testing the condition code.)

    James Jones (just made my reservation for the Fest...)