MyBasic 4.05 Docs-Program-Src

[BeeryMiller]

OK, here is the latest source, programs, and source code for MyBasic for the Geneve 9640.  Manual is available in Microsoft Word format as well as PDF format.

 

Geneve ABasic.pdfGeneve ABasic.docxAbasicsrc405.zipABASIC-405.zip

[GDMike]

Are the A- basic executable anywhere to DL

[BeeryMiller]

The executables are in the ABASIC-405.zip file.  Unzip, and transfer.

 

[Nick99]

Many thanks, Beery! 

[BeeryMiller]

Just a note.  There will be an ABASIC update.  Tim identified a bug dropping into ABASIC chasing another issue, and identified an error reporting routine.  After a bit of chasing some code around, I had to shorten some strings reporting errors as the strings dropped into a separate 8K page and was being overwritten during the linking process.  Now, ABASIC will report Insufficient Memory if one's configuration with AUTOEXEC  doesn't have enough free memory.  There were also a couple of other error messages that had the same issue as well.

 

Beery

[hloberg]

BEEP and CALL Speed(x) don't work but are listed in the manual?

 

[BeeryMiller]

1 hour ago, hloberg said:

BEEP and CALL Speed(x) don't work but are listed in the manual?

 

I just tested BEEP, granted it is with 4.06, but BEEP works for me. I tested in both the a program and at the command prompt for ABASIC.

 

Also, CALL SPEED has bene removed and is not part of the  manual documentation anymore.

Beery

 

[hloberg]

1 minute ago, BeeryMiller said:

I just tested BEEP, granted it is with 4.06, but BEEP works for me. I tested in both the a program and at the command prompt for ABASIC.

 

Also, CALL SPEED has bene removed and is not part of the  manual documentation anymore.

Beery

 

OK. thanks.

[+InsaneMultitasker]

1 minute ago, BeeryMiller said:

I just tested BEEP, granted it is with 4.06, but BEEP works for me. I tested in both the a program and at the command prompt for ABASIC.

 

Also, CALL SPEED has bene removed and is not part of the  manual documentation anymore.

Beery

 

CALL SPEED I believe was an artifact from a much older version

 

@hloberg and @BeeryMiller  is there an opportunity now for anyone willing to do some testing to look through the commands and report back any corrections?    I have an old document from the 90s that Jim Uzzell had sent me with some ABASIC bugs that I will try to locate and share today so that they can be evaluated.  I know that I fixed some errors in the OS but never got to work with Jim on the remaining issues.

[hloberg]

40 minutes ago, InsaneMultitasker said:

CALL SPEED I believe was an artifact from a much older version

 

@hloberg and @BeeryMiller  is there an opportunity now for anyone willing to do some testing to look through the commands and report back any corrections?    I have an old document from the 90s that Jim Uzzell had sent me with some ABASIC bugs that I will try to locate and share today so that they can be evaluated.  I know that I fixed some errors in the OS but never got to work with Jim on the remaining issues.

Now that I started reading the current manual 405 (doh), sure, get me a bug list and I'll test away.

[+InsaneMultitasker]

7 minutes ago, hloberg said:

Now that I started reading the current manual 405 (doh), sure, get me a bug list and I'll test away.

Cool, if you find any commands or errors as you read, it will be good to fix those.

 

Here is a short list I found in one of my release notes.  I can't find the electronic copy of Jim's notes so I am going out to the garage soon to look for the paper copy that I hope I still have tucked away in my folders. 

(More bugs reported by Jim Uzzell)

       CALL DISTANCE and CALL COINC _XOP_ routines return incorrent values. 

       CALL FILES() in Advanced BASIC reports an erroneous BYTE size when
       programs larger than 32K are catalogged.  (VERIFIED 7/10/96, the catalog
       routine in Adv.BASIC is displaying a signed 16-bit number, so the largest
       displayable byte size is 32767.  This fix would have to be made to
       Advanced BASIC, not MDOS).

       CALL KEY() in Advanced BASIC.  If Mode 4 is used then a switch is made t
       to 0,1, or 2 some values values below 33 and above 126 are corrupted.
       If you use mode 4 you must switch to 3 or 5 before using 0,1, or 2.
 

 

 

[+InsaneMultitasker]

Seems that most of the bugs Jim reported were fixed though I don't know that he ever confirmed them independently.  I found the original document right where I thought it would be... it is from 1996.  Egads, time sure flies. Seems I consolidated the remaining bugs into the MDOS 2.21 release notes above.  I thought Jim created a ABASIC/MYBASIC buglist that he was working through, maybe Beery has seen it as I don't seem to have it.

 

[BeeryMiller]

I don't think I have a buglist.  Around 97/98, I was going through a divorce and I was backing away from the Geneve stuff during that time period.

 

Beery

[+InsaneMultitasker]

7 hours ago, BeeryMiller said:

I don't think I have a buglist.  Around 97/98, I was going through a divorce and I was backing away from the Geneve stuff during that time period.

 

Beery

In the letter he sent me, Jim said that "most of the bugs in MYBASIC are gone as of v4.00."   The bug list I am thinking of could have predated his message or I could be remembering the same message he sent me.  The CALL LINK fix was not referenced anywhere by Jim, that was something I uncovered trying to port S&T BBS to Advanced BASIC.  No list is good news.

[+InsaneMultitasker]

I looked through the rest of my files tonight.  I did not find any more ABASIC bug reports in the stack.  @hloberg, the 2-3 bugs in posts 11/12 are probably the last to rule out if you are doing any testing, provided you don't uncover any new bugs! 

 

 

[BeeryMiller]

If he does find any bugs, he or anyone else is always welcome to stomp them before they bite someone!

[hloberg]

9 hours ago, InsaneMultitasker said:

I looked through the rest of my files tonight.  I did not find any more ABASIC bug reports in the stack.  @hloberg, the 2-3 bugs in posts 11/12 are probably the last to rule out if you are doing any testing, provided you don't uncover any new bugs! 

 

 

I check into them soon after I get the bugs out of my mille borne abasic game and add some color and sound.

[BeeryMiller]

For those that have not caught it, ABASIC V4.06 was/is available for download through the GitHub repository or here.  You just need to download ABASIC1, ABASIC2, ABASIC3, and ABASIC4.  I just zipped them up now for here.

 

This fixes an error message if you have insufficient memory, and a couple of other display issues.

 

At this point, I am not aware of any other bugs.

 

And, I should point out, that should any significant bugs be found, I would hope someone might be able to step up and resolve the issue.  There is a lot going on within ABASIC, and really, Jim Uzzell was the only individual that had spent enough time in the code to fully understand it.  Simple things may be one thing, but the more complex issues, that would take a lot of time to understand.

 

ABASIC-V406.zip

Edited Thursday at 02:30 PM by BeeryMiller

[+InsaneMultitasker]

In addition to the 2-3 possible ABASIC and/or MDOS bugs mentioned above, I know of a few quirks to watch out for:

 

1) Standard TI Extended BASIC programs typically load into ABASIC without issue; the reverse is not true if you use CALL subprograms and/or other items not supported by XB.

2) Extended BASIC prescan can mask syntax errors within existing programs. The interpreter sometimes gets lost during prescan and reports an error in a line that is perfectly acceptable.  Common causes are improper use of FOR/NEXT and IF/THEN statements.

3) On occasion, the statement separator "::" doesn't translate properly and PRINT statements with multiple ":" need adjusting.

4) Some PEEK/LOAD values used to speed up operations or trick the ROM and interrupt routine have no effect.  These are tricky to identify as they are not always apparent when trouble-shooting.  I think this may also apply to assembly code embedded with SYSTEX and other quick-load programs.  Fortunately, ABASIC's assembly object code loader is fast

 

 

[+InsaneMultitasker]

On 2/25/2021 at 8:29 AM, BeeryMiller said:

For those that have not caught it, ABASIC V4.06 was/is available for download through the GitHub repository or here.  You just need to download ABASIC1, ABASIC2, ABASIC3, and ABASIC4.  I just zipped them up now for here.

 

t the more complex issues, that would take a lot of time to understand.

 

ABASIC-V406.zip 35.94 kB · 5 downloads

Beery, are you able to replace the 4.05 in post #1 with 4.06?

[BeeryMiller]

I can't edit previous posts if someone has posted after me.

 

Beery