Spectrum Next on NCoT Tech

Reading Mice and Joysticks on the Spectrum Next using C

Sat, 18 Apr 2020 21:22:32 +0000

Today’s lesson in curing headaches by banging your head on the wall until they stop involves joysticks and mice. This is a bit technical, so ensure your seat back and tray table are in the upright and locked position. Please keep all arms inside the ride at all times.

Hardware Sprites on the ZX Spectrum Next in C

Fri, 17 Apr 2020 09:10:29 +0000

Drawing sprites on the Spectrum Next, using C. Or – how to learn the dark art of figuring out things you don’t understand. <!-more–>

Learning to program is an endurance game full of random side quests, dead ends and frustration. Rather than learning “how to do X”, which is specific, it’s much more useful learning “how to figure out how to do anything at all”.

Go look on StackOverflow at all the questions that come down to “I don’t understand what I’m trying to do in the first place, can you write my code for me?”. Here’s how to not be one of those people.

Writing C Code on a Spectrum Next

Wed, 15 Apr 2020 09:09:01 +0000

What better way to wait out the apocalypse than trying to learn a new system. Read how I dug out my ZX Spectrum Next and set about writing C code on it…