MiniRoboMind Board Support Package Release

I’m pleased to announce the release of my board support package for the MiniRoboMind (MRM).  The MRM is a single-board computer based on the 68332 micro-controller and is the heart of BlueBot.  I found software support for the MRM to be scattered and incomplete, so I wrote my own with inspiration from existing software. I’ve …

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HackFest 2012

HackFest is both a tradition at KansasFest and for me personally.  I find that as I attend more KansasFests, my HackFest projects get smaller simply because I’ve discovered all the fantastic off-schedule activities.  At my first KansasFest, I’d retire to my room between sessions and after meals.  But, some of the best discussions and discoveries …

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ScreenType Data Transfer Process

Transferring data to and from your favorite Apple II is easy, thanks to technologies like ADTPro, the Uthernet adapter, FTP, and the CFFA3000.  In fact, these technologies make data transfer too easy, hopelessly ruining the retro experience where 1200 baud is fast and data is supposed to spin in tiny circles at 300 RPM. I’m …

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68000 Book Review (Part 2)

Continuing from Part 1 of my book review, here’s Part 2. 68000 Assembly Language: Techniques for Building Programs (Donald Krantz & James Stanley) This is a software book with about half of the book dedicated to describing the 68000 instruction set architecture and the other half describing a text editor project.  If you already have …

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68000 Book Review (Part 1)

The Motorola 68000 family of processors entered the market in 1979.  With a 32-bit CISC instruction set and 24-bit address bus, the 68000 was a powerful processor that spawned a long, successful line of microprocessors and microcontrollers.  The Freescale Coldfire line is the modern descendent. My interest in the 68000 family started in college, and …

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Macrosoft at KansasFest 2010

I presented a tutorial introduction at KansasFest 2010 on the Mindcraft Macrosoft programming language, a macro assembler package that allows the programmer to achieve machine language speed with a high-level Applesoft BASIC-like syntax.  Macrosoft and its companion Assembler run on you favorite 8-bit Apple II.  The presentation was well received, and several people left motivated …

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KansasFest 2010 HackFest

My KansasFest 2010 HackFest entry with source code is now available for your enjoyment.  This entry took second place behind Martin’s Wizardy crack.  I used Complete Pascal 2.0 with Pegasoft Draw Tools 3.1, both of which are freely available, to create my first 16-bit Apple II program.  The program displays pictures from KansasFest and asks related …

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