Scripts for generating bbcelite.com | Static content for bbcelite.com | Elite source code library
This repository contains a source code library that is used as a single source of truth when building the following repositories:
- BBC Micro (cassette) Elite source code
- BBC Micro (disc) Elite source code
- Acorn Electron Elite source code
- 6502 Second Processor Elite source code
- Commodore 64 Elite source code
- Apple II Elite source code
- BBC Master Elite source code
- NES Elite source code
- Elite-A source code
It is also used when building the elite.bbcelite.com website.
For details of how the site and source code repositories are built, see the bbcelite.com website.
As well as being a source code library, this repository is fully buildable in its own right, and is able to produce all variants of all the different versions of Elite listed above, in exactly the same way as the repositories that it generates. The library is the core resource for managing the commentary across all the documented versions of Elite, and it can be built regularly as updates are made to the commentary, to ensure that the code still compiles correctly as those changes are made.
The build process is as follows:
-
A simple
makewill build the default variants for all seven versions of Elite. This is equivalent tomake all. -
To build a single version, add the version name to the
makecommand, somake masterwill only build the BBC Master version, for example. -
To build a specific variant, add
variant-<version>=xxxto themakecommand, somake master variant-master=compactwill build the Compact variant of the BBC Master version, whilemake variant-master=compact variant-6502sp=executivewill build all seven versions of Elite, with the Master and 6502 Second Processor versions building the Compact and Executive variants respectively. -
To build a specific version and automatically run it in the b2 emulator, add
b2-<version>to themakecommand, somake master b2-masterwill build and load the BBC Master version into b2, for example.
BBC Micro Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © Acornsoft 1984.
The BBC Micro cassette code on this site is identical to the source discs released on Ian Bell's personal website (it's just been reformatted to be more readable).
The BBC Micro disc code on this site has been reconstructed from a disassembly of the version released on Ian Bell's personal website.
Acorn Electron Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © Acornsoft 1984.
The Acorn Electron code on this site has been reconstructed from a disassembly of the version released on Ian Bell's personal website.
6502 Second Processor Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © Acornsoft 1985.
The 6502 Second Processor code on this site is identical to the source discs released on Ian Bell's personal website (it's just been reformatted to be more readable).
Commodore 64 Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © D. Braben and I. Bell 1985.
The Commodore 64 code on this site is identical to the source disks released on Ian Bell's personal website (it's just been reformatted to be more readable).
Apple II Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © D. Braben and I. Bell 1985.
The Apple II code on this site is identical to the source disks released on Ian Bell's personal website (it's just been reformatted to be more readable).
BBC Master Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © Acornsoft 1986.
The BBC Master code on this site has been reconstructed from a disassembly of the version released on Ian Bell's personal website.
NES Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © D. Braben and I. Bell 1991/1992.
The NES code on this site has been reconstructed from a disassembly of the version released on Ian Bell's personal website.
Elite-A was written by Angus Duggan, and is an extended version of the BBC Micro disc version of Elite; the extra code is copyright Angus Duggan. The original Elite was written by Ian Bell and David Braben and is copyright © Acornsoft 1984.
The Elite-A code on this site is identical to Angus Duggan's source discs (it's just been reformatted, and the label names have been changed to be consistent with the sources for the original BBC Micro disc version on which it is based).
The commentary is copyright © Mark Moxon. Any misunderstandings or mistakes in the documentation are entirely my fault.
Huge thanks are due to the original authors for not only creating such an important piece of my childhood, but also for releasing the source code for us to play with; to Paul Brink for his annotated disassembly; and to Kieran Connell for his BeebAsm version, which I forked as the original basis for this project. You can find more information about this project in the accompanying website's project page.
Also, a big thumbs up to Andy McFadden for his excellent disassembly of Elite for the Apple II, which is a really useful reference for anyone exploring the Apple II binaries.
Also, a big thumbs up to Kroc Camen for his epic Elite Harmless project, which is a really useful reference for anyone exploring the Commodore 64 binaries. Finally, thanks to the gurus in this Lemon64 forum thread for their sage advice.
The following archives from Ian Bell's personal website form the basis for this project:
This repository is not provided with a licence, and there is intentionally no LICENSE file provided.
According to GitHub's licensing documentation, this means that "the default copyright laws apply, meaning that you retain all rights to your source code and no one may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work".
The reason for this is that my commentary is intertwined with the original Elite source code, and the original source code is copyright. The whole site is therefore covered by default copyright law, to ensure that this copyright is respected.
Under GitHub's rules, you have the right to read and fork this repository... but that's it. No other use is permitted, I'm afraid.
My hope is that the educational and non-profit intentions of this repository will enable it to stay hosted and available, but the original copyright holders do have the right to ask for it to be taken down, in which case I will comply without hesitation. I do hope, though, that along with the various other disassemblies and commentaries of this source, it will remain viable.
Right on, Commanders!
Mark Moxon