Kiedy australijczycy biorą się za coś, wiedz, że może być różnie. Tak jest i w wypadku Octalyzera - dość specyficznego emulatora Apple ][/E. Gdyż oprócz samego udawacza, aplikacja posiada własne środowisko wzorowane na latach osiemdziesiątych - znajdziemy tam i BBS, i interpreter LOGO, a także BASIC, nawet znalazło się miejsce na CHAT (mający pozwolić na grę w multiplayu). Bardzo ciekawy projekt sygnowany przez Amperage (Australian Microcomputer Preservation).
Ciekawy, jednak póki co, emulator nie widzi plików lokalnych, pozostaje więc tylko czekać, żeby coś się zmieniło a może być naprawdę ciekawie.
Settings
- When the Octalyzer is first run, it will create an Octalyzer folder in your home directory.
- To access disk images (.DSK, .PO, .DO, .NIB) from your local file system, place them in this folder.
- Press SPACE when the Octalyzer first opens (when prompted) to run in local mode. The file catalog will open. The files you place in the Octalyzer folder should be available in the ‘local’ folder (the only folder visible when the catalog first appears.) Use cursor keys (or the mouse) to navigate the catalog and press Enter to boot the disk.
- You can use the mouse to control the paddles / joystick, or use a USB gamepad. If a game doesn’t seem to be responding to keyboard control, press the Caps Lock key and try again.
- Disks do not currently save changes, so be aware of that!
Useful keys:
Control-Shift-` – bring up file catalog at any time. Useful for swapping disks, and inserting / booting new ones.
Control-Shift-G – switch between colour HGR / DHGR and Monochrome. This has no effect on low-res modes.
Shift-Backspace – Reset (Break)
Control-Shift-Backspace – Reboot
CAMERA CONTROLS
Option+Cursor Keys – orbit around model up, down, left and right
Control-Option+Cursor Keys – Shift model up, down, left and right
Shift-Option+Cursor Keys – Zoom in and out, rotate left and right
The Octalyzer starts up in full-screen mode by default, if you would like to use it in a window, use the -window flag (start it from the command line / terminal).
→ NOWSZY [Apple] Micro8 (Octalyzer) 12/02/19
Updates:
- The latest microM8 release supports the Applesauce WOZ2 format, has improved DHGR rendering (with NTSC artifacting) and a refactored VM manager for increased speed and better reliability, among a number of other fixes and enhancements.
→ NOWSZY [Apple] Micro8 (Octalyzer) 05/01/19
→ NOWSZY [Apple] Micro8 (Octalyzer) 20/08/18
August 7, 2018
- microM8 now supports large volumes (HDV, 2MG, 800K PO)
→ NOWSZY [Apple] MicroM8 (Octalyzer) 16/01/18
December 24, 2017 Color dot-matrix printing now available…
- The elves have been working hard, and microM8 now has Epson colour printer support just in time for Christmas. Using colour Print Shop (available in /appleii/disk images/applications/print shop) you can print colour cards, posters and more.
- When you print, the output ends up in your /(home directory)/microM8/MyPrints folder in PDF format.
- The printer settings are: 4-colour / 3-colour / Monochrome Epson MX via a Parallel card in slot 1.
- Your existing copy of microM8 should automatically update with the printer support, otherwise you can download it from here.
MicroPAK files December 6, 2017
MicroPAK files encapsulate other files that pertain to “upcycled” legacy software, or a microM8-native application. They can contain disk images, BASIC or binary code, data files, text files, images, music or audio. They have the extension .PAK
You can “boot” them by selecting them (enter) in the Catalog, or modify their contents via the Control-Shift-O key combination.
In addition to bundling relevant files, there are additional configuration files that allow you to customise the virtual machine. You can also specify additional “control” BASIC programs to run in additional virtual machines which can monitor and modify the state of the “root” program (running in the primary virtual machine, see further in this document for more information.)
You can create a .PAK file using two methods, depending on what you wish to do:
If you wish to start out with a default set of configuration files, you can create a PAK by selecting a DSK, NIB, APL, INT or BIN file in the Catalog (accessible through Shift-Control-~) and pressing Shift-Control-P. It will be created in your /Local file directory.
If you want to create a PAK from a running disk or application and save all of that sessions current settings into the PAK file, press Shift-Control-P outside of the catalog, while the session is running. It will similarly be created in your /Local directory.
Configuration files
Configuration files allow you to change many of the “default” settings of the virtual machine, add backdrops, overlays, sound and music, change colours, specify camera location and much more!
You can edit the files by Control-Shift-O(pening) the PAK file in the Catalog. You will notice the following .cfg files:
audio.cfg
boot.cfg
camera.cfg
control.cfg
input.cfg
palette.cfg
video.cfg
Select the configuration file you would like to edit and press Control-Shift-E. Press Control-Shift-O to save the file once you’re done editing it, or Control-Shift-Q to exit the file editor without saving.
To see your changes take effect, back out of the PAK file and re-select it with the Enter key to “reboot” it.
See the micropak-help.txt file in the /micropaks folder for descriptions of all the config file settings.
Control programs
You can use microM8 @functions to extend Applesoft BASIC and manipulate the virtual machine running the disk / binary / program. microM8 has the ability to run up to 8 concurrent sessions. You can manually switch between them using Shift-Control-1 through Shift-Control-8. Using the @vm.* family of functions (specifically @vm.redirect) you can have a BASIC program in one VM affect the memory and settings of another.
In the case of microPAK files, the root disk / binary / program specified in the boot.cfg ALWAYS loads into slot one. Control programs that you specify in control.cfg load into successive slots two, three and so on.
Look inside the microPAKS in the /micropaks folder (using Control-Shift-O) for example control programs.
You can also do funky things like monitor memory addresses for specific values, or set permanent fixed values (for cheating!) More on this soon.
Configuration file settings descriptions
See the micropak-help.txt file in the /micropaks folder for more information.
→ NOWSZY [Apple] MicroM8 (Octalyzer) 07/11/17
→ NOWSZY [Apple] Octalyzer 230717
“Octalyzed” Pinball! 23/17.17
- By changing the aspect ratio to 1:1, switching to voxel rendering, decreasing the depth to 1, tilting the model backwards, and zooming in (see the quick help page for more details on how to do all of these), you can get a 3D experience from classic Apple II pinball games! You can find all of these games in the Octalyzer file library (under /appleII/Disk Images/…) Have fun!
3D LOGO is 3D again! 22/17.17
- A little while ago we added an awesome new feature (aspect ratios!) that unfortunately caused LOGO to not be 3D anymore (and shame on us for not noticing!) This has since been fixed. Those four 3D commands listed in the graphic above are all you need to go 3D in LOGO — then just move the camera with the usual keys, and be amazed!
Latest Update! 21/17.17
- We’ve finally nailed sound, and removed the 4:3 cropping so you can zoom in to your heart’s content and have it use your entire screen. So many bugfixes!