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TinkersALot
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Joined: 20/11/2012
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Posted: 07:27pm 19 Nov 2012

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Hello everyone. I am a new member to this forum, so if I am asking a question that has already been asked and answered, I will happily read old threads (if I can be lead to them).

Referring to this link:

http://www.thebackshed.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4568&PN =1

It appears that a duinomite was made to work with a gameduino. However, from looking at that code sample, it appears that they could have been using a customized version of MMBasic ( DMBasic?) and that perhaps there were some custom commands being used to pull that off?

In any event, I am interested in using a Gameduino in concert with a CGCOLORMAX1 board. Has anyone any experience in this kind of work? What I hope to accomplish is to utilize the arduino connection on the colormax to create a dual display maximite.

Will the SPI command be sufficient to pull this integration off?
Has anyone else tried anything like this before that I can learn from?

Thanks for taking the time to provide any guidance you may care to offer. And in the interest of full disclosure I have not received this hardware yet (as I have just this week learned about the maximite -- but the orders are placed and I will be watching for the delivery vans to arrive with these fun new toys).

Cheers!

donmck

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Joined: 09/06/2011
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Posted: 08:48am 20 Nov 2012

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Hi Michael, all of the available information is summarized at:
http://www.dontronics-shop.com/mod-vga-32mb.html

Don...

https://www.dontronics.com

TinkersALot
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Posted: 09:10am 20 Nov 2012

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Hi Don,

Thank you for your reply. From the page you [=clickety-jump=] you sent to me, this appears to the operative phrase:

Software Support:
MaxiMite-BASIC currently has no support for Gameduino, to the best of my knowledge.

Well that just pounds nails, doesn't it then?

Perhaps I may have purchased the "wrong" base board for the project I had in mind?

Shucks....

Well, perhaps not....I do see these pages:

https://github.com/OLIMEX/DuinoMite/blob/master/SOFTWARE/DMB asic/src/Source/DuinoMite/GameDuino.h
and the .c file too.

It may be more than I bargained for to dig into the source of MMBasic to do this, but what the heck, perhaps I will learn a thing or two while I am rooting around.

So, this begs the question: does MM-basic compile clean with the CCS compiler or do I need to go and get microchip tools?

Thanks again. Edited by TinkersALot 2012-11-21

CircuitGizmos

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Joined: 08/09/2011
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Posted: 10:02am 20 Nov 2012

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It has no built-in support. Nothing specific in the language.

In other words you can't just set something and have all PRINTs go to the 2nd display.

You have to make your own subroutines to talk to the gameduino.

This might help:
http://excamera.com/sphinx/gameduino/porting.html
Edited by CircuitGizmos 2012-11-21

Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite

donmck

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Posted: 10:15am 20 Nov 2012

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TinkersALot said
It may be more than I bargained for to dig into the source of MMBasic to do this, but what the heck, perhaps I will learn a thing or two while I am rooting around.

So, this begs the question: does MM-basic compile clean with the CCS compiler or do I need to go and get microchip tools?

Thanks again.

http://www.duinomite.com/duinomite-mod-vga-gameduino-based-d esign-is-complete/
Has a little more info, not a lot.

No the CCS compiler won't do. You will need the Microchip tools.

I am not up to date with this, and have never compiled MM-Basic, so I hope one of the many people that Mick and I have spent time with getting C programmers up to speed, will chime in and provide the most recent findings on this subject, as I know it has varied.

(Mick may be up to date.)

Don...

https://www.dontronics.com

CircuitGizmos

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Posted: 10:53am 20 Nov 2012

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Everything on the gameduino is accessed with SPI communication.

I don't have a gameduino, but it would be pretty straight forward to make MMBasic subroutines to access the chip registers and then build more subroutines based on these to do more and more with the board.

You can do this without altering the 'mite firmware.

Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite

TinkersALot
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Posts: 72

Posted: 11:09am 20 Nov 2012

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CircuitGizmos said Everything on the gameduino is accessed with SPI communication.

I don't have a gameduino, but it would be pretty straight forward to make MMBasic subroutines to access the chip registers and then build more subroutines based on these to do more and more with the board.

You can do this without altering the 'mite firmware.

Agreed. I think my first attempts will be to try to use the SPI function to do this work -- and I will study the existing C code I found above for some hints as well. I would rather not muck with MMBasic source if I don't have to, but hey its only code right? We can break it and put it back again

the way it was before we started to play around "under the hood". Oops did I say that outloud?

Disclaimer: If I brick it, I will self void any warranty -- as that is only fair after all, say what?

CircuitGizmos

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Posted: 11:16am 20 Nov 2012

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I'll de-brick it for you if you send it back with a gameduino I can keep.

Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite

TinkersALot
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Posted: 11:21am 20 Nov 2012

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Well, heck.... since I've piqued your interest a bit (perhaps). I am wondering what do I get if I donate one to your cause?

CircuitGizmos

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Posted: 11:25am 20 Nov 2012

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Hmmm. I dunno. Email me again and we can work something out.

Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite

TinkersALot
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Posted: 11:56am 20 Nov 2012

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No worries.

I can't wait to dive ito this new tech-for-fun-and-learning project!

Zonker

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Joined: 18/08/2012
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Posted: 06:04pm 15 Dec 2012

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Ausome Idea..!!

I think if the Gameduino circuits could handle the video and keyboard tasking, the PIC32 MPU could be freed up to work as a better BASIC engine with more resources leftover for programs. Also the hardware I/O and SPI pins could be reused... I am to much of a nubie to be mucking around with the firmware but would be happy to buy a gameduino board and provide it for anyone doing the firmware work... no prob...

I am sure doing this would be a huge undertaking but might be worth it in the long run. I sure hope it happens..

Edited by Zonker 2012-12-17

TinkersALot
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Posted: 01:50pm 22 Feb 2013

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donmck said
Hi Michael, all of the available information is summarized at:
http://www.dontronics-shop.com/mod-vga-32mb.html

Don...

Hi Don,

I am not very familiar with how to use GITHub -- Is there a way to get the whole-pile-of-files out of this storage?

Thanks.

donmck

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Posted: 03:55pm 22 Feb 2013

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TinkersALot said

donmck said
Hi Michael, all of the available information is summarized at:
http://www.dontronics-shop.com/mod-vga-32mb.html

Don...

Hi Don,

I am not very familiar with how to use GITHub -- Is there a way to get the whole-pile-of-files out of this storage?

Thanks.

Sorry, neither am I Michael, past my capabilities these days. Wish I could.

Hope someone else can direct you through the GITHub maze.

Don...

https://www.dontronics.com

JohnS
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Posted: 11:57pm 22 Feb 2013

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Just click and see what you want. It's unlikely you want it all :)

John

TinkersALot
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Posted: 06:59pm 23 Feb 2013

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JohnS said It's unlikely you want it all :)

John

John is likely right. I don't need it all, but I need to see enough "side by side" to get enough context.

I think that a "dual headed" 'mite would be a fabulous thing because:

1. Offloading "demanding video tasks" to an external board makes a lot of sense given that the 'mite is already pushing its graphics capabilities as it is (or so this is what I've concluding from reading related threads here).

2. Having the "built in video" serve as primarily a system monitor / debug display while I attempt to wrangle the secondary display into being a functional item would be exceedingly useful (at least I think so).

3. A dual-headed system on a system like the 'mite would be a clear differentiator (well that is admittedly a stretch -- because many will likely argue that such a differentiator is not needed). That notwithstanding the "coolness factor" with a dual headed system is pretty neat in my thinking.

So, in looking at this file:

https://github.com/OLIMEX/DuinoMite/blob/master/SOFTWARE/DMB asic/src/Source/DuinoMite/GameDuino.c

I can see that it looks like the gameduino can be driven at "native speeds and with native code" through the addition of new MMBasic functions and commands -- which I think fits just fine into my vision of a two-headed mite (hydra-mite?).

However, I am having trouble seing the surrounding context for these (as in how they really get lashed into MMBasic as a publicly callable function/command. In seeking the surrounding context (such as I have described it above), is exactly why I was wanting to have a way to pull down the whole package from the github so I could use development tools against the file pile (I don't know about you all, but I don't see internet browsers as any kind of development environment [grin]).

Edited by TinkersALot 2013-02-25

JohnS
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Posted: 05:05am 24 Feb 2013

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Why not grab one of the MM/DMBasic source files (tend to be a zip)? To play / read you don't need the current one nor all the tools.

At a guess on Don's & Olimex's sites.

In terms of adding new features, Tsvetan of Olimex did a write-up on his wordpress blog I think.

Usually such things are readily found from the obvious sites or even google :)

John

TinkersALot
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Posted: 05:47am 24 Feb 2013

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JohnS said Why not grab one of the MM/DMBasic source files (tend to be a zip)?
In terms of adding new features, Tsvetan of Olimex did a write-up on his wordpress blog I think.

John

Found this (shared in case it is of interest/helpful to others): Hacking (a related form of) Basic
Edited by TinkersALot 2013-02-25

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