September's Program: S.M.P.
October’s program of the month is S.M.P. or Sinclair Memo Pad. A simple scrolling editor that allows you to take a couple of quick notes that last as long they are on-screen. Since the space key also acts as a break, which will stop the program, S.M.P. uses the newline key instead…
Posted Sep 21, 2013 by Steven
3 min read
August's Program: Parachute
Whoa, it’s August already? Time for another program of the month. Coming your way is Parachute, a deceptively simple reflex game that uses recognizable graphics to give you an enjoyable causal gaming diversion…
Posted Aug 08, 2013 by Steven
2 min read
No Spaces for You
I wasn’t sure in my last post how to remove the extra space from the program listings. Well, I figured it out. It was surprisingly easy and took me about five minutes of searching and updating. Apparently there is a CSS property called line-height. Set it to one and problem solved…
Posted Aug 08, 2013 by Steven
1 min read
Updated Program Listing
Awhile back I went searching for a decent ZX81 font and ran across ZX81 VDU. I played around adding it to my site's footer, but I really wanted to do more with it. It’s pretty good and, unlike some other fonts I found, it has all the ZX81 graphic characters…
Posted Aug 04, 2013 by Steven
2 min read
July's Program: Spiders & Flies
July is almost half over, but we still have time for our program of the month: Spiders & Flies. You play a growing Venus flytrap that is searching for flies and special bugs. Use the ZX81 arrow keys to move around: 5, 6, 7, and 8. But be careful…
Posted Jul 21, 2013 by Steven
3 min read
June's Program: Blast Off
Blast Off, June’s program of the month, is a simple game that tests your typing skills. You may find it a bit easier to play on an emulator than on a real ZX81. Fortunately, you can try now! It isn't a very hard game if you are decent typist…
Posted Jun 18, 2013 by Steven
2 min read
May's Program: Up-Cake
Well it is getting late in the month and I didn’t want to pull another last-minute update. To make things a bit interesting, I used Zed Ex on my Android tablet to enter in this month’s entry. More on that in a bit. Let me first introduce our deliciously short entry for May: Up-Cake…
Posted May 19, 2013 by Steven
4 min read
April's Program: Star Dodge
Late and last-minute, I present April’s program of the month Star Dodge. A decidedly simple game that requires you to dodge stars randomly placed on the screen. Can you get your Tie Fighter shaped ship, an inverse H, past the increasingly more dense stars? Give it a try to see.
Star Dodge doesn’t r…
Posted Apr 30, 2013 by Steven
2 min read
March's Program: Radier V
In 1984, I moved that Summer from Italy back to the US. As I was Flipping through my old printouts, I ran across one that I had marked as the last program I completed In Italy. How cool is that? Seeing this I just had to make Raider V my program of the month for March.
I was a big fan of mechanized…
Posted Mar 15, 2013 by Steven
3 min read
February's Program: Enlarger
The old saying “time flies when you’re having fun” is so true of late. This year started with a bang and I feel like I’ve been running ever since. It isn’t that I haven’t wanted to work on my old ZX81 programs, but they often take a back burner to other past times…
Posted Feb 24, 2013 by Steven
3 min read
January's Program: Hit Man
Another year, another month, and now another program to celebrate 2013. January’s program of the month is an old one: Hit Man. From 1983, Hit Man was my attempt at creating a wall dodging program and it is a tough one to play. Looking back, I probably should have made the walls a bit further apart…
Posted Jan 28, 2013 by Steven
1 min read
December's Program: Thyime
December is upon us and Thyime is the last program of the month for 2012. My how quick the year has passed. Thyime’s elements include moving, shooting, a break through wall, and a moving enemy. It does all this while remaining fast. Thyime provides a decent game to close out the year.
I wrote Thyim…
Posted Dec 16, 2012 by Steven
2 min read
Bonkers! Redux
I couldn’t help it. I updated Bonkers using MCODER II to convert the BASIC code to Machine Language. This improved the speed of the game making improving its playability. If you haven’t played the 1985 version, play it first so you can appreciate the difference…
Posted Nov 23, 2012 by Steven
3 min read
November's Program: Bonkers!
November’s program is Bonkers! and it may drive you crazy! Simply use the ZX81 cursor keys to move your X around the field, avoiding the O’s and their trails. Can you survive or will you go Bonkers?
Okay, enough of the commercial, let’s talk about the program. Yes, it will drive you bonkers. Why…
Posted Nov 19, 2012 by Steven
2 min read
October's Program: PAC-MAN
October’s program, PAC-MAN, may leave you a bit confused. Inspired by that iconic arcade game, this version has no graphics. It does have dots, cherries and ghosts. It doesn’t, however, have any pictures of those elements. Give it a try and you’ll see what I mean.
Still confused? Don’t be…
Posted Oct 04, 2012 by Steven
3 min read
September's Program: Runner
September’s program, Runner, is nostalgic for me. When I wrote this program I had moved on to my C64. My ZX81 was starting to gather dust as I was busy learning the ins and outs of my new computer. For some reason, something tugged at me to fix my ZX81 keyboard and get it running again…
Posted Sep 01, 2012 by Steven
3 min read
August's Program: PAC-MAN Video
Wow, August flew by way faster than I expected! Here we are at the end and I finally got around to uploading the monthly program. This month’s program, PAC-MAN Video, is a bit different. Although I call it a game, it doesn’t really play like one. It is totally random with a slight nod to you…
Posted Aug 26, 2012 by Steven
3 min read
July's Program: Can Punch
I’m back to the basics for July’s program. Can Punch is a simply graphic game that will probably infuriate you more than entertain. Don’t believe me? Go try it and decide for yourself. The goal is punch the can thrown at you. Use “Z” to raise your fist high and “.” to lower it…
Posted Jul 22, 2012 by Steven
2 min read
June's Program: Pole Dodge 2
Yes, I know I’m late. June is almost over and I’m sure my adoring fan is up in arms. I do have one fan, right? In any case, I’m breaking tradition for June’s Program of the Month and posting a more modern program. Pole Dodge 2 is my revamped version of April’s program…
Posted Jun 25, 2012 by Steven
4 min read
May's Program: Jet Flyer
Jet Flyer is May's Program of the Month. Although a bit late, I believe it is a bit better than last month's and worth a quick try. The goal is to keep your jet on course by using the “Z” and “.” keys to bank right or left. It isn’t an overly hard game…
Posted May 20, 2012 by Steven
2 min read
April's Program: Pole Dodge
Pole Dodge is April’s Program of the Month and it is an odd one. Partially odd because I typed it in back in February, and partly because the program just doesn't play well. I know that doesn't lend well for one to give it a try, but try it you should. Why? Because the premise isn't bad…
Posted Apr 01, 2012 by Steven
3 min read
March's Program: T.W.M.
T.W.M. is March's program of the month. It is a simple animation that tries to mimic a computer's destruction of its defined target. February was actually pretty prolific for me as I transcribed this and another program, as well as updated a number of older programs using MCODER…
Posted Mar 05, 2012 by Steven
2 min read
E.T. Redux
E.T. may not have been my best game ever, but it was an interesting exercise in 1985. Loosely, and I really mean loosely, based on the Atari 2600 game, E.T. follows the exploits of the title character as he tries to find his way home. Originally written in ZX81 BASIC, I revisited E.T…
Posted Feb 20, 2012 by Steven
5 min read
Road Hog Improved
What's this, another version of Road Hog? Yep. This is January's Program converted to machine code using MCoder II. I was surprised how easy it was. Although MCoder is an integer compiler and limits some BASIC commands, I only needed to change a few lines to get Road Hog to run…
Posted Feb 14, 2012 by Steven
1 min read
February's Program: Light Walls
February is upon us and that means another program of the month. This month it is another one from 1983: Light Walls. In case you hadn't guessed, it has its roots in Tron. The game requires you to steer right (".") or left ("z") to avoid hitting the light walls…
Posted Feb 09, 2012 by Steven
2 min read