Name of Release:
š Vintage Computing Christmas Challenge 2023 (VCĀ³ 2023) š
Author: Tazman (Scott Cooper)
Category: Christmas Challenge
System: Color Computer 3
Language: BASIC
Len source code: 115 bytes source.txt
Len exe file: 98 bytes XMAS23.BAS
Len code only: 93 bytes
Instructions:
Install VCC Tandy Color Computer 3 Emulator. Download from this website. https://github.com/VCCE/VCC/releases . Latest version as of 12/16/2023 is VCC-2.1.8.2 .Once installed, run VCC (vcc.exe) and select Cartridge tab, Cartridge and Load Cart. A window box will open. Locate the VCC install folder and Select fd502.dll and hit open. You have just hooked up the floopy drive. Copy the included VINTAGE.DSK into the VCC working folder. Select Cartridge, FD-502 Drive 0 and insert. A window will open and select VINTAGE.DSK and hit open. If you don't see VINTAGE.DSK , then make sure you are in the working VCC folder.You just inserted the floppy disk. Ok under Configuration tab, select config.Then select keyboard tab and select Natural under Keyboard Mapping.Then hit Apply and close window.This will insure that your normal keys work on your PC while using emulator. Now in the CoCo 3 emulator type: LOAD"XMAS23" and hit <ENTER> then type RUN and hit <ENTER>. Hit <ESC> to stop.Type LIST <ENTER> to list program.
How the code works:
The Code basically turns the Asterisk into a pong ball. With boundaries of a 19x22 box. Left top corner (0,0) and right bottom corner (18,21). Ball starts at (0,0) and moves diagonally and bounces off the imaginary walls to make the desired shape.The 1st 3 top lines of the box are removed because the box we really want is a 19x19 box for the correct shape. But I needed a 19x22 box in order to fully draw the desired shape. I left a GIF (HowWorks.gif) to show how it works, with comparison of 19x22 box and 19x19 box. (ProgramRunning.gif) Shows program being loaded and ran to show image being made.
Comments:
The Color Computer 3 has a side effect of tagging along a cursor when printing on the screen in WIDTH40 and WIDTH80 text screens.This was never corrected in the BASIC Rom, so you will see a little underline dash following the asterisk around on the screen.
Anything left to say:
I just want to say thanks for setting up this fun event. I had a lot of fun programming and tweaking this BASIC code to be as small as I could possibly make it. I hope I calculated the size of code only correctly. I turned on VCC emulator.Typed in PRINT MEM <enter key> to see how much BASIC memory I had in bytes(22824). I then loaded basic program....LOAD"XMAS23" <ENTER KEY> and then typed PRINT MEM <ENTER key> again to see how much memory I had after loading the program (22731). Then I subtracted the 2 memory readings to get the difference.(22824-22731=93 bytes) That is how I found actual lenght of code.