Some toy programs for the NEC PC-9801 series of computer, made in x86 assembly language.
NASM and Python are required to build the various programs, whose list is the following:
- helloworld.asm: prints "Hello, world!" on the second line of the display.
- helloserial.asm: prints "Hello, serial port world!" through the main RS-232C port.
- soundtest.asm: blasts a 440Hz square tone on the PC-98 speaker, or your headphone. A reset is needed to stop it.
- biosdump.asm: dumps the PC-9801 over the serial port, using the XMODEM protocol. Start this program before starting the XMODEM reciever.
Just run make to build everything.
Currently, nothing uses BIOS routines, these are just programs toying with the hardware.
The expected runtime environment is the built-in N88-BASIC(86) environment, found on PC98s built before 1993 or so.
You can download the programs as BASIC programs over the serial line by using the LOAD "COM:N81NN" command. Send the BASIC files as ASCII files with a terminal program on a modern computer, such as Minicom.
One a program is loaded on the PC-9801, just hit F5.
The Direct statement in file error at the end of file loading is expected: it seems there's no
way of properly ending the load.
Well, they do on my PC-9801DA, at least. Your mileage may vary.