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@davewalker5 davewalker5 released this 19 Sep 10:48
· 86 commits to main since this release
1.23.0.0
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RC2014 Emulator Support

This release introduces a local desktop emulation environment for the RC2014, making it possible to develop, run and test programs without having the physical computer connected.

Built on EtchedPixels EmulatorKit, the enhanced emulator includes support for the RC2014 peripherals used throughout this project's growing program catalogue.

The result is a portable development environment that makes it possible to continue working on RC2014 programs wherever a suitable Mac is available — including, rather conveniently, on the train!

What's new

RC2014 emulation

Added an enhanced RC2014 emulator supporting:

  • Microsoft BASIC 4.7c and Small Computer Monitor (SCM), with separate launch profiles
  • Interactive program development through macOS Terminal
  • Reliable pasting of longer BASIC programs through improved serial input handling
  • Configurable peripheral emulation, with separate windows for graphical devices

Digital I/O emulation

Added a graphical representation of the RC2014 Digital I/O card, featuring:

  • Eight interactive input buttons
  • Eight LEDs reflecting the output port state
  • Mouse and keyboard input
  • Optional latched inputs, allowing multiple buttons to be held simultaneously
  • Configurable input and output ports

This allows existing programs using the Digital I/O card, including Logic Gates, Memory, Digital Dice and LED Animations, to be developed and tested without the physical hardware.

LCD emulation

Added support for an HD44780-compatible 16×2 LCD display, including:

  • A separate graphical LCD window
  • Standard character display and custom glyphs
  • Cursor, blinking and display shifting
  • Configurable I/O ports

Programs using the RC2014 LCD module can now display their output directly within the emulation environment.

SID-Ulator sound emulation

Added sound support through the libresidfp SID synthesis library, including:

  • Configurable 6581 and 8580 SID models
  • Audio playback through the host computer
  • Optional WAV recording
  • Configurable sound parameters and I/O ports

This allows programs developed for the RC2014 SID-Ulator sound card to be run and heard without the physical sound hardware.

Build and documentation

Added a new EmulatorSupport directory containing the source patches, peripheral implementations, build scripts, configuration files and documentation needed to build the enhanced emulator locally.

The supplied build workflow has been tested on Apple Silicon macOS Tahoe 26.6.2.

The emulator is not distributed as a prebuilt binary. The README provides instructions for obtaining the required upstream sources and firmware, building the dependencies and preparing the local environment.

The README also documents configuration options, everyday operation, testing, platform considerations and known limitations.

Acknowledgements

The emulation environment builds on several existing open-source projects, particularly:

The RC2014-specific peripheral integration, LCD and Digital I/O implementations, and associated development support have been added for this project.

See the EmulatorSupport documentation for detailed attribution and licensing information.

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