A Transam Triton emulator
Emulates the 8080-based home-build computer designed by Mike Hughes and released in the UK by Transam Microsystems Ltd. in partnership with Electronics Today International in 1978.
This code is developed for Linux and displays to screen using the SFML library.
Also required are a set of L7.2 ROM images, which are currently available at https://sites.google.com/site/patrickbwarren/electronics/transam-triton
These need to be renamed as below and placed in working directory:
mon1 > MONA72.ROM
mon2 > MONB72.ROM
basic > BASIC72.ROM
Compile with the following command:
g++ -o triton ./triton.cpp 8080.cpp -lsfml-graphics -lsfml-window -lsfml-audio -lsfml-system
Keyboard Input:
Keyboard input currently assumes host has a UK keyboard.
Keyboard input is mapped to UK PC keys, so you get ampusand (&) with shift+7 rather than shift+6 on original keyboard. The exception to the rule is hash (#) which can be found at shift+3. Most, but not all, keys are currently supported. Control keys work as expected, but shift lock is not available.
Other keyboard funcions provided are:
- F1 - Hard reset (Reset signal sent directly to CPU)
- F2 - Clear screen (Interrupt 1)
- F3 - Initialise (Interrupt 2)
- F4 - Pause/Unpause
- F9 - Exit emulator
More information about the history of this machine available from Happy Little Diodes at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cSRgJ68_tM
This emulator is sufficient to run Triton programs on a PC with reasonable accuracy but there is much which could be improved. The project is not in active development, although I am happy to discuss improvements or additions if desired or merge code from a fork - contact me by email (see below).
Things which work:
- Emulation of 8080
- Output to screen using port 5 and correct fonts
- Output to LEDs using port 3
- Push buttons PB1-PB4 mapped to F1-F4
- Tape I/O to static file "TAPE"
- Writing/Running/Saving/Loading BASIC programs
- Audio 'Beep' on error
Things which kind of work:
- Keyboard emulation has only been tested with UK keyboard
- Accuracy is based on documentation rather than physical machine
- Fixed memory map based on L7.1 ROM documentation
Things which don't work:
- No printer emulation
- There is no Makefile or support for other OS
- No option to change tapes from within emulator
Also included are the following tapes:
MANUAL_MC_TAPE - All of the machine code program samples from the manual MANUAL_BASIC_TAPE - All of the BASIC program samples from the manual
TRAIN_TAPE - Train graphics demonstration program
"Although it is quite easy to use the VDU function
within TRITON'S BASIC to produce moving graphics
on the display screen you are limited to the speed with
which movements can be made. This is due to the
inefficiency of an interpreter program. Much better
use of TRITON'S memory mapped VDU can be made
with programs written in machine code."
"This one gives a picture of a simple railway engine
followed by a couple of trucks which move across the
screen from right to left. As they leave the screen on
the left they re-enter again from the right but one line
up the screen. The process continues until the train
reaches the left-hand side of the fifth line from the top
of the screen and then the program repeats itself."
Hughes, M. (1979) From 'Softspot', Computing Today, Vol 1 No 4 (February 1979) pp. 38-41
CROSSHATCH_TAPE - Crosshatch Generator
"This produces four of the most common crosshatch patterns
on a TV set and allows easy selection of each type. The
actual adjustment of a TV is fairly easy once the concergence
controls have been found and a full explanation of the methods
was given in ETI September 1978. The program runs
in 1K on TRITON."
ETCH_A_SKETCH - Etch-A-Sketch
"This program emulates the children's toy of the same name.
The first character or graphic key pressed will cause the selected
symbol to appear near the centre of the VDU screen.
On pressing one of the keys U,D,L or R the symbol will
move in the selected direction leaving a trail behind it. It
should be noted that if the drawing moves off the screen
you run the risk of corrupting the monitor. This program is
for TRITON and runs in 1K."
CONFUSE_A_CAT - Confuse-A-Cat
"This program is a modified version of the one in the TRITON
manual. It alternates between filling and emptying the screen
with characters. It is written in tiny BASIC and will run in
the standard kit memory."
Davidson, I. (1979) From 'Softspot Special', Computing Today, Vol 1 No 3 (May 1979) pp. 33-35
Program versions on these "tapes" have been adapted to operate with L7.2
Any feedback welcome - just email me:
rstuart114-at-gmail.com