Release PandaBAS uploaded to the Repo - v0.732! Code like it's 1982 :)


ZXDunny

Deep avatar
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Messages
2,585
Hahahahaha, the joke's on you lot :)


I updated PandaBAS, my Sinclair BASIC interpreter for modern PCs. There's shedloads of new stuff in this version, and it's quite a bit faster than the last version :)


To test it, start it up and:


CD "demos" [enter]


CAT [enter]


then choose a file and use


LOAD "file"


You may need to RUN if the program doesn't autostart. And yes, the mandelbrot generator is very slow. This is nowhere near as fast as the Windows/Linux version, but there's not a lot I can do about that.


http://repo.openpandora.org/?page=detail&app=pandabas.zxdunny.2994


Enjoy :)


D.
 
I just Googled SpecBAS. Pennies dropped.


A coder I ain't, but I will grab this and play with the demos at the very least. Because it's cool.

A user! Excellent :)


If you've ever coded BASIC on the Sinclair (or Timex) machines, this will be pretty much instantly accessible to you. The documentation contains info about the editor, but as it's unlikely to be available while you're running PandaBAS, I've mirrored it here:


https://sites.google.com/site/pauldunn/home/manual


It's the SpecBAS manual, which PandaBAS is a port of.


There are bugs. I've had it hang the Pandora when exiting, and some of the demos require either a "NEW" command before loading, or need tweaks to fit the 800x480 screen resolution - I'll get to fixing those later.


It's fun for BASIC coding out and about, but some of the functions are very slow on the Pandora (particularly things like file-access within package files - the "rtype_demo" program takes quite a while to get going). If anyone is serious about developing their own stuff in Sinclair BASIC, I'd recommend SpecBAS simply because it's orders of magnitude faster on a Linux or Windows PC.


And now I'm back off to some game coding :)


D.
 
And now I'm back off to some game coding :)


D.

Heck yes!

I dunno... I have spent the best part of three years coding SpecBAS (and PandaBAS wasn't easy), adding polish, adding more and more stuff to get things done that Sinclair BASIC could never have hoped to do... And you lot get more excited by a port. Sheesh, here I am, brain the size of a planet etc...


But yeah, it's time I got FMN finished up, and started on my next port!


D.
 
No disrespect intended Dunny! I can't wait to try the PandaBAS as well. My Pandora is down for repair due to my own lack of due diligence, so I am in no situation to play games or relearn BASIC. I only used basic on a TI in the US, the $100 one with a cassette player for memory. I could code better at 8 years old than today.
 
That's roughly the boat I'm in. My BASIC experience started and ended with GW BASIC on my first computer. Although this is a different beast, that feeling of familiarity is there as I dig through the demos :)
 
Well thanks guys, but there's no need for praise, I was just kidding around! The most important thing is the games, and that's where I'm heading next. To be honest, I'm really looking forward to this next port as it's one of my all-time favourite shooters. Just got to get FMN finalised first :)


D.
 
Back
Top