Uncle Bernie's Apple-1 toolchain part 1

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Uncle Bernie's Apple-1 toolchain part 1

 

Hi fans,

 

have you ever wondered which tools I use to build my Apple-1 'exploits' such as the "Codebreaker" game ?

 

Do you want to write your own Apple-1 software in 6502 assembly language ?

 

Or, even better, do you want to   learn   how to code in 6502 assembly language ?

 

If so, this toolchain will help you to accomplish your goals.

 

Read the instructions / manual pdf first, then download the UBTOOLCHAIN_PART1.ZIP file at the top of this post, and use the automated script to build the toolchain on your Linux based computer from the sources !

 

You will find that the Apple-1 is perhaps (IMHO) the most satisfying machine for 6502 assembly language projects, because it is so simple, it only has three trivial, chained subroutines in its firmware (the famous 256 bytes long "Wozmon" in real bipolar (!) PROMS) and exactly this makes the work so satisfying - because you have to build everything all by yourself !

And only then you can proudly claim:

 

"I built that ! Every little bit of it !"

 

The modern programmers using C++ and class libraries comprising tens of millions of lines of code written by others are deprived of this deep satisfaction, even if the software they wrote is great and stunning. Back in the 1970s we - the first microcomputer hobbyists - could enjoy this special feeling of "I built every little bit of this !" . . .  and if you work with the Apple-1, you can enjoy it, too !

 

This is part of the mystique and attraction of the very early microcomputers like the Apple-1, or the KIM-1, etc.

 

I hope that this toolchain makes it easier for you to to explore this realm of "vintage computing".

 

Enjoy !

 

- Uncle Bernie

 

P.S.: you even don't need a real Apple-1, there are good emulators available to run your software, see the pdf manual you can download from the top of this post.

 

P.P.S: A beta tester using Linux Debian reported that he had to install a couple of libraries that were missing from his default Linux installation:

libz-dev, make, gcc, patch, libsdl-dev.

Some of these are mentioned in the toolchain manual, but when I wrote that manual I did not foresee that any real programmer would have a Linux installation without gcc. Sigh. Be aware of this !

 

P.P.P.S.: The link to the "Codebreaker" game is here:

 

https://www.applefritter.com/content/uncle-bernies-codebreaker-game-apple-1

 

It was built with this toolchain (sorry, source code not released yet).