basicode-interpreter
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robhagemans
BASICODE interpreter in Javascript
BASICODE interpreter
This is a BASICODE interpreter in Javascript, compatible with BASICODE versions 2, 3 and 3C.
It's free & open source, released under the Expat MIT licence.
There is a live demo <http://robhagemans.github.io/basicode/>_
and a collection of programs <https://github.com/robhagemans/basicode>_.
BASICODE <https://github.com/robhagemans/basicode>_ was a 1980s-era cross-platform BASIC standard designed to allow software transmission by radio.
.. image:: https://robhagemans.github.io/basicode/basicode-arabesque.png
Screenshot taken from Arabesque <https://github.com/robhagemans/basicode/blob/master/Verzamelcassette_2/B01_Arabesque.bc3>_,
a 1987 BASICODE-3 program by Ch. W. Brederode.
Quick start
::
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<script src="basicode.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
<script type="text/basicode">
1010 PRINT "Hello, world!"
</script>
</body>
</html>
Deployment
The package consists of a single Javascript file. To embed one or more interpreters in an HTML5 document, link the script in the header.
It will scan the HTML for any <script type="text/basicode"> elements , replace them with newly created canvases and execute the BASICODE
in the script content or src= text file. Enjoy!
Settings
A number of options can be set through the dataset attribute of the script element:
===================== =======================================================================
Attribute Setting
===================== =======================================================================
data-columns Number of text columns
data-rows Number of text rows
data-speed Number of cycles per second in FOR loops (roughly)
data-font Font to use for text (see below)
data-color-0 Set the colour value for black (background)
data-color-1 Set the colour value for blue
data-color-2 Set the colour value for red
data-color-3 Set the colour value for magenta
data-color-4 Set the colour value for green
data-color-5 Set the colour value for cyan
data-color-6 Set the colour value for yellow
data-color-7 Set the colour value for white (foreground)
===================== =======================================================================
Fonts
The following fonts are available:
============== ===== ======================================
Font Size Description
============== ===== ======================================
smooth Browser's native monospace font
tiny 6x4 A very small bitmap font
apple 7x8 Apple-II font
msx 7x8 MSX font
atari 8x8 Atari 8-bit font
bbc 8x8 Acorn BBC Micro font
c64 8x8 Commodore 64 font
cpc 8x8 Amstrad/Schneider CPC font
exidy 8x8 Exidy Sorcerer font
genie1 8x8 EACA Colour Genie 1st font
genie2 8x8 EACA Colour Genie 2nd font
kc85 8x8 Robotron KC85/1 font
pcw 8x8 Amstrad PCW/Schneider JOYCE font
spectrum 8x8 Sinclair ZX Spectrum font
vic 8x8 Commodore PET and VIC-20 font
cga 8x8 IBM CGA font
thin 8x8 IBM CGA thin stroke font
pcjr 8x8 IBM PCjr font
tandy 8x8 Tandy 1000 font
tandy2 8x8 Tandy 1000 font, later version
p2000 8x10 Philips P2000T font
coco 8x12 Tandy TRS-80 CoCo v1&2 font
coco3 8x12 Tandy TRS-80 CoCo v3 font
mpf 8x12 Multitech Micro-Professor MPF-I font
ega 8x14 IBM EGA font
mda 9x14 Hercules and IBM MDPA font
olivetti 8x16 Olivetti M24 and AT&T 6300 font
vga 9x16 IBM VGA font
wyse-serif 16x16 Wyse WY-700 serif font
wyse-sans 16x16 Wyse WY-700 sans serif font
============== ===== ======================================
Compatibility
The interpreter should work on reasonably recent, standards-compliant browsers. You need a keyboard, so it will be difficult to use on mobile. I've superficially tested it on Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Opera. It probably works fine on Edge, but I haven't tried. It mostly works on Internet Explorer 11 (except sound) but not at all on older versions.
Acknowledgements
There's a similar, earlier implementation of BASICODE in JavaScript by Steven Goodwin <https://github.com/MarquisdeGeek/basicode>_.
His implementation and mine are completely independent; however, he got there first.
The bitmap fonts were drawn based on various sources:
- Damien Guard's
overview of system fonts in 8- and 16-bit systems <https://damieng.com/blog/2011/02/20/typography-in-8-bits-system-fonts>_ - John Elliott's
Vintage PC Pages <http://www.seasip.info/VintagePC/>_ - Exidy Sorcerer page on
The Trailing Edge <http://www.trailingedge.com/exidy/>_ - Z9001 page on
Homecomputer DDR <http://hc-ddr.hucki.net/wiki/doku.php/z9001:versionen>_ - Ulrich Zander's
character sets for the KC85 <http://www.sax.de/~zander/z9001/ex/zsatz.html>_
BASICODE support for original and retro platforms
Originally, BASICODE tape reader and conversion programs were sold by broadcasters and publishers. Many of these are still available on retrogaming archives. A few can also be found on BASICODE-Software für alle <https://www.joyce.de/basicode/>_.
A few authors have published their own source code for conversion programs. I'm aware of:
-
BASICODE-3 for ZX Spectrum, by Jan Bredenbeek <https://github.com/janbredenbeek/ZXSpectrum-Basicode>_ -
BASICODE-3 v2 for Sinclair QL, by Jan Bredenbeek <https://github.com/janbredenbeek/QL-Basicode>_ -
BASICODE-2 for C64 and Commander x16, by Iljitsch van Beijnum <https://www.iljitsch.com/2020/beeldkrant250/basicode2.c64.txt>_ -
BASICODE-3 for MS-DOS, by Jac Goudsmit <https://github.com/jacgoudsmit/Basicode>_ -
BASICODE-3 for KC85/3-5, by M. Leubner <https://github.com/maleuma/BASICODE>_
Other BASICODE interpreters for modern platforms
-
BASICODE in JavaScript, by Steven Goodwin <https://github.com/MarquisdeGeek/basicode>_ -
BASICODE in Java, by Michael Haupt <https://github.com/mhaupt/basicode>_
robhagemans