Ant Skelton

LED headband manufacturers! I don't need 15 brightness levels and flashing SOS patterns. I want to press once for ON, and again for OFF, not play a fkn clarinet concerto.

Two advent calendars this year! The usual Wera, plus a bonus Diamine Inkvent Calendar! wife++ #santa

youtu.beMicroBeast orchestraYouTube video by the anarchic collective

What's better than 1-bit beepage on a MicroBeast or a NanoBeast? That's right! 1-bit beepage on a MicroBeast *and* a NanoBeast. Perfectly in time thanks to SynchroBeast (tm)! youtu.be/0BKwF2iblig #retrocomputing #z80 #microbeast

The music is a MicroBeast/NanoBeast port of of the Ulasyn engine by utz of the Irrlicht Project. Deep dive (and I mean deeeep) on this soon...

What could it be??? #retrocomputing #z80 #microbeast

edu.morningdewmedia.comMorningDAW: produce at the speed of your ideas. Free for macOS, Windows & LinuxNew in 1.4: rock-solid playback, a Pitch Bend tool for every note, EQ in linear phase and a new graphic EQ, and clip export named your way. A modern, lightweight DAW, free for everyone.

Dunno why everyone is raving about edu.morningdewmedia.com/product/morn... I was attracted to the tracker interface, but i've yet to get even a couple of bars out of it in arrange mode without crashing or exhibiting super buggy behaviour. Marketting gimmick for their paid plugins?

blog.ant.orgLine out for NanoBeastRecently I was doing some one-bit beeping on my borrowed NanoBeast and comparing it to my MicroBeast. An unfair comparison because the MicroBeast has been modified to provide a line output, which is c...

I built an audio line out interface for my* Feersum NanoBeast out of scrap, and tested it with some classic one-bit beeping ("PhaseF" by utz of Irrlicht Project). [* @lockfarm.bsky.social 's] blog.ant.org/line-out-for... #retrocomputing #z80

Didn’t expect yesterday’s Sega controller mod to actually work. This was Plan B, another repurposed ebay bargain. This is a bit more like it! #retrocomputer #z80 #nanobeast

Against all the odds I have successfully modified a Sega Genesis controller to be Kempston+3 fire buttons compatible. the kind of fine mod work that *usually* ends in a tantrum. #retrocomputing #z80 #retrobeast

Tada! Bet it doesn't last long ;)

Sometimes I need to annotate my copy of “Programming the z80”, so i use a transparent postit that i wrote on a less precious surface, and then another one on top to protect the facing page. no sacrilege here!

blog.ant.orgMake a PCB for the Kempston joystick interfaceThe joystick interface we played with in Testing the Kempston compatible joystick interface works beautifully, but it is somewhat delicate. Even moving the MicroBeast a couple of feet or so runs the r...

Full JKempston joystick 4 MicroBeast PCB write up: blog.ant.org/make-a-pcb-f... #retrocompuiting #z80 #microbeast

Always get a thrill when a new PCB arrives from the board house! #retrocomputing #z80 #microbeast

blog.ant.orguc80 C compiler for z80 CP/MRecently I covered the Minz retro-compiler which made some grand claims about code size and performance, but wasn't quite able to back them up. Not yet at any rate, but it's exciting technology that I...

Surprisingly passable breakfast at an outdoor laundrette attached to a garage forecourt in the arse end of nowhere innCambridgeshire.

sad times.

I tried out the uc80 C compiler for z80 + cp/m with surprisingly good results: blog.ant.org/uc80-c-compi... #retrocomputing #z80 #microbeast

eBay bargain!

Birthday haul! Hello my pretty…

youtu.beTerrifying Furnace tracker chiptune debutYouTube video by the anarchic collective

Got some noise out of Furnace! youtu.be/HROZ5MXthSM Yes, yes I know, it's quite the racket. Gimme a break, I started with nothing! I had to make the drums! #chiptune #retrocomputing

youtu.beEntity Component System framework in ForthYouTube video by the anarchic collective

I wrote an ECS framework in Forth: youtu.be/GS1zaH-ndlk #retrocomputing #z80 #microbeast

Right, that's it, I'm giving up on Renoise. It is actively user hostile, and gets in your way every chance it can. Gonna give Furnace a go...

Restarting my attempt to master the 1-bit beep in all its forms, studying the work of the incomparable utz, and testing my understanding by porting them to the MicroBeast/NanoBeast! Also experimenting with YouTube shorts - clumsily! Here we have "nanobeep2". #z80 #retrocomputing #microbeast

youtube.com1-bit beeping on microbeast/nanobeastYouTube video by the anarchic collective

URL would probably help: www.youtube.com/shorts/CKfZM...

abagames.github.ioZ80 REPL

z80 REPL! Genius! abagames.github.io/z80-repl/ind... #z80 #retrocomputing

blog.ant.orgMinz retro-compilerRecently I've been on a mission to find relatively modern languages that compile to z80 (and bonus marks for compiling on a z80), my most promising candidate so far being Cowgol. While trawling throug...

15 Sept

I tried out the Miz retro-compiler! (with mixed results...) blog.ant.org/minz-retro-c... #retrocomputing #z80

blog.ant.orgAdventures with CowgolI've written two languages so far for the MicroBeast: AntForth, which I use heavily every day for experimentation, and another Lua-like language which is part of a super-secret future project that is ...

4 Sept

Trying to get Cowgol running on the Feersum MicroBeast: blog.ant.org/adventures-w... #feersum #microbeast #z80 #retrocomputing #cowgol

vimeo.comForth SnakeThis is "Forth Snake" by Ant Skelton on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

28 Aug

Made a quick Snake game in AntForth to test out my new joystick interface: vimeo.com/1222194736?s... Repo: github.com/blowback/for... #retrocomputing #feersum #microbeast #forth

blog.ant.orgBuild your own joystick interfaceIn this series of posts you'll learn to build a set of joystick interfaces for the MicroBeast/NanoBeast, each more capable than the last.

25 Aug

I made a Kempston-compatible joystick interface for my Feersum MicroBeast: blog.ant.org/beast-user/b...

24 Aug

Woke up early, did a quick 10K.

17 Aug

How do you tell a MicroBeast apart from a NanoBeast in software? Like this! blog.ant.org/sexing-your-...

14 Aug

The AliExpress gods do not smile upon me today 😞

14 Aug

...but then again, 7/10 failed but I only need 1!

11 Aug

Makin' me a 3D thing, but what could it be...?

11 Aug

Enjoying a rare and excellent book @dick-pountain.bsky.social

Love a loading screen...

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #z80 #cpm #retrogaming NVADERS: an original game (well, OK, a knock-off of an old Casio calculator game) for the Feersum Technology MicroBeast! blog.ant.org/nvaders-a-mi...

github.comGitHub - blowback/antforth: A Forth interpreter for the MicroBeast Z80 computerA Forth interpreter for the MicroBeast Z80 computer - blowback/antforth

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #nanobeast #z80 #cpm AntForth: An ANS compliant modern Forth for the Feersu,m Technology MicroBeast and NanoBeast: github.com/blowback/ant...

github.comGitHub - blowback/beast_basic: BBC BASIC for the Feersum Technologies MicroBeast / NanoBeastBBC BASIC for the Feersum Technologies MicroBeast / NanoBeast - blowback/beast_basic

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #nanobeast #z80 #cpm BBC BASIC (Richard T Russell's z80 version) tailored for the Feersum Technology MicroBeast / NanoBeast: github.com/blowback/bea...

blog.ant.orgBuild a traffic lightLet's take advantage of the 'Beast's excellent expansion options to build a simple working traffic light model.

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #nanobeast #z80 #cpm #beastuser Build a model traffic light and control it from your MicroBeast using BBC BASIC, Assember, and Forth! A BeastUser tutorial. blog.ant.org/beast-user/b...

github.comGitHub - blowback/vibe: Vi-like Beast Editor: a text editor for the Feersum MicroBeastVi-like Beast Editor: a text editor for the Feersum MicroBeast - blowback/vibe

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #nanobeast #z80 #cpm VIBE: a vi-style modal text editor for the Feersum MicroBeast (Z80, CP/M 2.2, 80×24 terminal). Single buffer, single-level undo, ~10 KB. github.com/blowback/vibe

github.comGitHub - blowback/beasTTY: A VT52 terminal emulator in the browser for use with {Micro,Nano}Beast retrocomputers or the like.A VT52 terminal emulator in the browser for use with {Micro,Nano}Beast retrocomputers or the like. - blowback/beasTTY

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #nanobeast #z80 #cpm BeasTTY: A VT52 emulator in the browser, for user with Feersum Tech MicroBeast, NanoBeast or equivalent. Includes drag-and-drop file transfer via SLIDE. github.com/blowback/bea...

github.comGitHub - blowback/slide: Need a file on your Z80? Just *slide* it on over!Need a file on your Z80? Just *slide* it on over! Contribute to blowback/slide development by creating an account on GitHub.

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #feersum #microbeast #nanobeast #z80 #cpm SLIDE: a new, modern tool for transferring files between your Feersum Technology MicroBeast/NanoBeast and "proper" computer. github.com/blowback/slide

blog.ant.orgYour name in lightsHaving fun with the MicroBeast's gorgeous LED displays.

#retrocomputing #ukcomputing #z80 #cpm #feersum #microbeast An in-depth Beast User tutorial on how to use the MicroBeast's gorgeous LED displays using BASIC, Assembler, and Forth! blog.ant.org/beast-user/y...