SmartBASIC - A Coleco Adam Forum

lotonah wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 23, 2019 5:08 am

I wonder what the difference is between the two versions? I'm wondering if the terminal settings in the editor that works are different than the one that doesn't. If the non-working editor can be modified (using TINST, in case you've never done it before) with the same settings as the working one, then you are back in business.

Personally, I don't have the patience. I've gone back to using TP3 under MS-DOS when I need my Pascal fix.

TINST does not work in many of the disk versions available for the ADAM, and when it does only the ZENITH profile sort of works with the ADAM. I even downloaded the TP3 files from online repositories and made my own disk images, with similar results. But I agree, the problem likely lies with the editor itself and how it processes text. It's not too much of an issue for me because I am using ADAMED instead which is easier to work with anyway.
I understand that CP/M on the Adam was buggy, which may be part of the issue and why TP3 works better (but still sort of) in TDOS...

I don't have a floppy drive on mine, so I can't recreate. I don't remember having an issue with the DDP that Milli made me. Maybe if you had a DDP version of TP3, copy the (working) files onto the disk? I don't know...just thinking out loud.

I just used version 1 on a cpm system with no issues - I’ll have to give it a shot on the Adam

I tried the Version 1 disk you posted on the archive and it's a similar issue. Very odd...

lotonah wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 23, 2019 9:01 pm

I don't have a floppy drive on mine, so I can't recreate. I don't remember having an issue with the DDP that Milli made me. Maybe if you had a DDP version of TP3, copy the (working) files onto the disk? I don't know...just thinking out loud.

Did you fully use the TP3 editor for programming by any chance on your DDP version? Also did you run it with CP/M or TDOS?

Fully? No, I tend to not use the block commands, just basic navigation. Honestly its been almost two years since I touched it (about the time I started my business... if I'm not there, I'm here doing paperwork, etc.).

I'm really hoping to ease up on the at-home stuff so I can get back to some recreational programming. The last game I actually finished was almost 12 years ago now (on PC, not ADAM).

But it sounds like the editor worked well for you. I would love to get a copy of your version at some point...
What game did you write for the PC?

Oh, it was unreleased, just more of a refresher exercise for myself. It was called Rock! Paper! Scissors! Fight!, so of course it was a twitch game for two players, basically just rock paper scissors but with an arcade flair. I wrote it in BlitzMax, which is a compiled BASIC language.

I got about 85% done an arcade-type game called "Escape!" in BlitzMax too. It was an isometric version of Escape (or Daleks, if you've heard of that). The original text-based game written back in the 70's was the inspiration to Robotron: 2084 and Berzerk. Mine was turn-based, but still with plenty of animation and fun. But I ran out of time, and then my son was born and we found out his sister is autistic (and we moved twice and I started a business, etc) so I've had no time to get back to it in 5 years. Too bad, that might have made money.

I've attached a screengrab of the main character... apparently I have to track down the project folder though... it's on a backup from when I switched back to Windows from my old iMac. Ugh.

Nice graphics! Never too late to finish it I've had a Scifi wargame in the works for the last 10 years on the TI 99/4A computer that I have yet to finish . Too many distractions...