BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION

MICROCOMPUTER SYSTEM

USER GUIDE
BBC Microcomputer
User Guide
Addendum Slip
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE USING THE
WELCOME CASSETTE
If your machine includes Disc, Econet or Teletext Interface,
your attention is drawn to page 400, describing how to change
between filing systems.
It will be necessary, before loading the Welcome cassette
programs (page 12) to change to the Tape Filing System
(contained within the Machine Operating System Rom.).
This is done by typing:
*TAPE RETURN
before the
CHAIN "WELCOME" RETURN
command, and directly after use of BREAK or CTRL BREAK.
In some cases, very long cassette programs may not run
because of the small amount of extra memory used by the Disc
and Net filing systems. To overcome this, follow the
*TAPE RETURN command by:
PAGE=&E00 RETURN [see entry under keywords
for explanation of PAGE]
If at any time you wish to return to the Disc or Net filing
systems, press BREAK or CTRL BREAK, then type:
*DISC RETURN
or
*NET RETURN

31.5.83 403,000 ADDENDUM 1

The BBC Microcomputer

USER
GUIDE
Written by John Coll
Edited by David Allen

British Broadcasting Corporation

 WARNING: THE COMPUTER MUST BE EARTHED

Important The wires in the mains lead for the computer are coloured in
accordance with the following code:
Green and yellow Earth
Blue Neutral
Brown Live
As the colours of the wires may not correspond with the coloured markings
identifying the terminals in your plug, proceed as follows:
The wire which is coloured green and yellow must be connected to the terminal
in the plug which is marked by the letter E, or by the safety earth symbol or
coloured green, or green and yellow.
The wire which is coloured blue must be connected to the terminal which is
marked with the letter N, or coloured black.
The wire which is coloured brown must be connected to the terminal which is
marked with the letter L, or coloured red.
If the socket outlet available is not suitable for the plug supplied, the plug should
be cut off and the appropriate plug fitted and wired as previously noted. The
moulded plug which was cut off should be disposed of as it would be a potential
shock hazard if it were to be plugged in with the cut off end of the mains cord
exposed. The moulded plug must be used with the fuse and fuse carrier firmly in
place. The fuse carrier is of the same basic colour* as the coloured insert in the
base of the plug. Different manufacturers’ plugs and fuse carriers are not
interchangeable. In the event of loss of the fuse carrier, the moulded plug
must not be used. Either replace the moulded plug with another conventional
plug wired as previously described, or obtain a replacement fuse carrier from an
authorised BBC Microcomputer dealer. In the event of the fuse blowing it should
be replaced, after clearing any faults, with a 3 amp fuse that is asta approved to
BS1362.

*Not necessarily the same shade of that colour.

The author and editor would like to thank Paul Bond, Chris Charlesworth, Computer
Concepts, Fiona Hibberd, Charles Moir, Jim Murray, Richard Russell, Fenella Sturt,
Robin Viet and Roger Wilson for their invaluable help in the preparation and checking
of the manuscript and Norman Brownsword the designer.

This book is part of the BBC Computer Literacy Project

prepared in consultation with the
BBC Continuing Education Advisory Council.
The Editor of the project is David Allen.
© The Author and The British Broadcasting Corporation 1982
First published 1982
Re-mastered by dv8 in 2017
Fourth revision May 2020
For the latest revision of this PDF go to:
https://stardot.org.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=14024
Published by the British Broadcasting Corporation
35 Marylebone High Street, London W1M 4AA
ISBN 0 563 16558 8
Contents
Introduction 5
1 Getting going 7
Giving the computer instructions – Part I
2 Commands 21
3 An introduction to variables 24
4 Writing a simple program 27
5 Recording programs on cassette 34
6 Some sample programs 38
Giving the computer instructions – Part II
7 AUTO, DELETE, REM and RENUMBER 53
8 Introducing Graphics 55
9 More on variables – string, real & integer
ASCII codes, CHR$ and ASC 62
10 PRINT and formatting. Cursor control 67
11 INPUT 78
12 GET and INKEY 81
13 TIME and Random numbers 84
Structure in BASIC
14 REPEAT…UNTIL, TRUE and FALSE 87
15 FOR…NEXT 91
16 IF…THEN…ELSE 98
17 PROCEDURES 102
18 FUNCTIONS 110
19 GOSUB 113
20 GOTO, ON GOTO and ON GOSUB 118
Giving the computer instructions – Part III
21 Yet more on variables – Arrays 120
22 READ, DATA and RESTORE 126
23 Integer handling 130
24 String handling 135
25 Programming the User Defined function keys 141
26 Operator precedence 144
27 Error handling 147
28 Use of teletext mode (MODE 7) 150

3
29 Advanced Graphics: (logical, inverse, actual
colours), PLOT, GCOL, animated graphics,
user definable characters 160
30 Sound 180
31 File handling 188
32 Speeding up programs and saving memory space 194
Reference section
33 BASIC keywords alphabetical summary 197
34 VDU drivers 377
35 Cassette files 390
36 Changing filing systems 400
37 Merging BASIC Programs 402
38 Using printers 404
39 Indirection operators 409
40 HIMEM, LOMEM, TOP and PAGE 414
41 Operating system, statements (*commands) 416
42 *FX calls and OSBYTE calls 418
43 Assembly Language 442
44 Analogue input and user input-output ports 467
45 Expanding the system 471
46 Error messages 474
47 Minimum abbreviations 483
48 Appendix 485
ASCII Teletext codes 486
ASCII Teletext codes and shapes 488
ASCII (MODES 0 to 6) displayed character set 490
ASCII hexadecimal codes 492
Text planning sheet 493
Graphics planning sheets 494
Keyboard codes 497
Board layout 498
External connections 499
Memory maps 500
Memory map assignments 502
Circuit layouts 503
VDU code summary 507
6502 instruction set 508
FX call summary 510
Operating System call summary 512
INDEX 513

4
Introduction
Before you start using your computer check that you have
received the following items in addition to this User Guide
BBC Microcomputer
Guarantee registration card
An aerial lead about 2 metres long which connects the
computer to your television
The Welcome package – containing a cassette and an
introductory booklet.

If you are short of any of these items then write immediately to

your supplier quoting the number given to you when you
placed your order. The number also appears on the despatch
label.
You will also require a lead to connect your computer to an
ordinary cassette tape recorder. If you ordered the appropriate
lead when you placed your order, check that it has arrived. If
you didn’t, take your cassette recorder, the computer and this
book to a dealer and ask if he can supply a lead or make
one up for you. In many cases a standard audio lead will be
suitable. The most common, useful type is a 5-pin din to 5-pin
din (see page 13). Alternatively, order the appropriate lead
from the supplier of your BBC Microcomputer. Unfortunately,
as there are a large number of different kinds of connections, it
has not been possible to supply a lead to fit every machine.

What this book can and can’t do

The BBC Microcomputer is a very versatile machine. On its
own, connected to your television set, it can respond to
programs which you yourself type in, to produce numbers,
words, lines, movement and sound on the screen. Connect a
suitable cassette tape recorder and you can then save your own
programs for future use or run programs which have been
written by other people. The welcome cassette which comes
with the computer contains sixteen programs specially written

5
for the machine. Others will be made available in increasing
numbers as time goes by. These will include programs linked
to hobbies, games and programs for the home and for business
and educational use.
The early sections of this book will show you how to load and
save programs from tape, how to write simple programs and
how to create certain graphics effects on the screen. There are
also some complete programs to type in yourself. However,
this is not a step-by-step course in basic programming (for
details of courses write to the address given below).
Most of what follows in the later sections forms a reference
guide on how to use the various commands and keywords of
the BBC basic language. If you are an absolute beginner then
much of this will not be very easy to understand. However, as
you get more experience of programming, this material will
prove invaluable. To help matters, throughout the book we
have used a second typeface to show what appears on your
screen or what is typed in at the keyboard.
This book is not the last word on the BBC Microcomputer.
Other more specialist books will appear describing the use of
its more sophisticated features and how the machine can be
expanded in various ways to make it increasingly useful. You
will also find other ‘fun’ books appearing providing programs
for you to type in yourself (in the same way that you can with
the programs we include in this Guide). Pages on the BBC’s
Ceefax service will also be broadcast with programs for
copying by hand into the machine. (It will also be possible to
load these directly into the computer via the special Teletext
decoder which will be made available as an extra in 1982. This
facility is known as Telesoftware and is one of the most
exciting possibilities opened up by the BBC Microcomputer.)

For details of courses in programming, books on the BBC

system, software programs in the BBC Software List, including
Telesoftware, write to:
BBC Computer Literacy Project
PO Box 7
London W3 6XJ
David Allen (Project Editor)

6
1 Getting going
To get your computer working you will need a television set
for a screen. Most people at home will use their ordinary colour
or black and white television to show the pictures that the BBC
Microcomputer produces. You will also need a cassette
recorder.
If you have a high quality monitor (for example in a school) then it
can be connected directly to one of the sockets on the back of the
computer. To connect the monitor to the computer you will need a
special monitor lead.
Assuming that you want to use your normal television set,
then you can connect it to the computer using the aerial lead
that is supplied with the computer. One of the plugs on this
lead has a long central prong which fits into the socket on the
back of the computer marked uhf out. The other end of the
lead goes into the back of your television set in place of the
normal aerial lead (figure 1). Don’t worry about the cassette
recorder for the moment.
Next, plug your computer into the mains and switch it on. It
should make a short ‘beep’ and the red light marked caps lock
should come on. The switch on the back of the computer is
marked on/off. Turn the television on too and let it warm up
for a moment.
Probably all you will see on the TV screen at this stage is a
“snow storm”. Sometimes the screen will appear to be just
blank. You will have to “tune” the TV so that it can receive the
transmissions from the BBC Microcomputer. When your
television is tuned correctly words will appear on the screen.
Your television probably has some push-buttons which can be
used to select different channels. Often button number 1 is
tuned to BBC1, button number 2 to BBC2, button number 3 to
ITV and so on. It is best to tune a spare channel for the
computer, for example channel 8. You can then use this for the
computer without interfering with the tuning of the normal
channels.

7
8
Figure 1
Connecting the computer to the domestic television and to a cassette
recorder. The lead shown is for the television connection and is supplied with
the machine.
Different makes of television set tune channels in different
ways. For some of them, you turn the same knob that you use
to select the channel. For others, there are separate controls. In
either case, you should depress a spare channel button and
then adjust it, or the associated control, until you get a good
picture on the screen. A message similar to
BBC Computer 32K
BASIC
>
should be clear and sharp. Many types of tuning control
indicate, approximately, the channel number that you are
tuning to. The BBC Microcomputer transmits on channel 36. It
will not be too difficult to find the right channel but you will
have to tune the TV carefully to get a really clear picture.
After that, do by all means press every button in sight on the
computer – you can’t do it any harm at all. Usually it just keeps
on saying
Mistake
whenever you press the large key marked RETURN That just
means that the computer does not understand your commands.
Its fault – not yours!
You will see that if you hold any key down for more than a
short time the character on the key appears on the screen, then
there is a short pause, then the character repeats until you take
your finger off again. On the whole, when pressing keys on the
keyboard you should aim to press them briefly – unless you
want this repetition.
Experimenting
Now you are ready to experiment. You might like to try some
of the following to see what the computer can do, but first be
sure to press the key marked BREAK This will clear the screen
and get the computer ready for you.
Type in the following exactly as shown:
MODE 5
and then press the RETURN key. As you will see the command
MODE 5 clears the screen and just leaves the > mark on the
screen, > is known as the “prompt” and it means that the
computer is ready for your next command.

9
Pressing the RETURN key tells the computer that you have
finished the line you are typing and that you want it to obey
your command. Before you press the RETURN key you can
correct errors by pressing the key marked DELETE.
If the computer says Mistake then press the BREAK key and try
again, starting with MODE 5.
Then type in each of the following lines – but don’t forget to
press the RETURN key at the end of every line. Don’t worry if
you make a mistake – it really doesn’t matter!
DRAW 1000,100
DRAW 0,1000
GCOL 0,1
PLOT 85,0,0
If the computer says No such variable then you are
probably pressing the letter O instead of the number 0.
PLOT 86,1000,1000
VDU 19,1,4,0,0,0
VDU 19,3,2,0,0,0
VDU 19,0,1,0,0,0
DRAW 200,0
DRAW 0,200
As you will have gathered the DRAW command is used to
draw lines while PLOT 85 and PLOT 86 are used to plot
and fill in triangles on the screen. When using the graphics the
points on the screen are numbered from 0 to 1279 (left to right)
and from 0 to 1023 (bottom to top). They are rather like
positions on a piece of graph paper.
Words can also be plotted in colours, as you will have seen.
Clear the screen by typing MODE 5 and then type the
following:
COLOUR 1 this is selects a red foreground
COLOUR 2 this selects a yellow foreground
COLOUR 3 this selects a white foreground

10
COLOUR 129 this selects a red background
COLOUR 0 this selects a black foreground
COLOUR 130 this selects a yellow background
The computer can create sounds as well. Try typing this in:
SOUND 1,-15,100,200
and then press RETURN
That gives a rather simple, crude sound. It is also possible to
alter the quality of the sound. Try this:
ENVELOPE 2,3,2,-4,4,50,50,50,127,0,0,0,
126,0
(This should be typed in as one line even though it may spill
over to the next line on the screen just as it has on this page.
The computer will treat it as being ‘one line’ when you press
RETURN.) Now carry on with:

SOUND 1,2,1,10
SOUND 2,2,100,1
SOUND 3,2,200,1
You will have to press ESCAPE to stop the effect.

Here’s another one:

ENVELOPE 1,1,-26,-36,-45,255,255,255,
127,0,0,0,126,0
SOUND 1,1,1,1
There is a whole section on sound later on.
Connecting up the cassette recorder
Now get a cassette recorder connected so that you can load the
demonstration programs into the computer from the cassette
tape supplied in the welcome pack. For the moment just follow
the instructions – we can sort out the “whys and wherefores”
later.
You have to do two things before you can load the programs
from the welcome tape: first get the right lead to connect your
cassette recorder to the computer and secondly set the volume
control on the cassette recorder to the correct position.

11
Leads
There are a number of different kinds of leads (figure 2). The
connection to the computer is through a 7-pin din connector; a
lead has not been supplied with the machine because there are
so many connections to the many different cassette recorders in
use. In many cases a standard 5-pin din to 5-pin din lead will
be suitable, provided you do not want to use the motor control.
If you want full motor control, take your cassette recorder to
your nearest BBC Microcomputer dealer who will be able to
supply a lead or make one up for you. Alternatively, take your
cassette recorder and this book to a local hi-fi dealer.
Note: Although you may find the ideal cassette lead difficult to
buy locally, many cassette recorders do have a standard 5-pin
din socket and a standard 5-pin din to 5-pin din hi-fi lead will
work with the BBC Microcomputer in many cases.

Volume
Having got the cassette recorder connected to the computer the
only remaining thing to do is to set the playback volume on the
cassette recorder to the correct level.
With the BBC Microcomputer the cassette volume control
setting is not critical. However, a special procedure for setting
the volume control correctly is incorporated into the first
program on the tape.

Running the WELCOME programs

Press the BREAK key and type in the following, exactly as
shown

CHAIN "WELCOME"

and then press the RETURN key. Next insert the welcome
cassette into your recorder. If your cassette recorder has a tone
control then set it to maximum ‘treble’ and leave it there. Now
start the cassette recorder playing by pressing the play button
on the recorder. Then adjust the cassette recorder volume
control slowly, until you get the message:

Your volume control is now properly

set. Please wait while the first
program is loaded

12
ANG0
7 pin DIN to 5 pin DIN
and 2.5mm jack

ANG0
7 pin DIN to
7 pin DIN

ANG0
7 pin DIN to two 3.5mm
jacks and one 2.5mm jack

Figure 2 A range of possible cassette leads

You will need to select a lead with a 7-pin din or 5-pin din lead at one end.
This plugs into the computer. The other end of the lead must have suitable
plugs for your particular recorder. Note: a standard 5-pin din lead will work
with many recorders but will not enable you to make use of the computer’s
ability to start and stop the cassette recorder automatically.

13
on the screen. This will give the minimum volume level. You
should then increase the setting a little more. If you need to,
you can rewind the tape at any time. If no message appears
rewind the tape and play it again, increasing the volume
control setting in larger steps, or check the cassette leads are
correctly plugged in.
The system is very reliable, so if you have problems it may be
that your tape recorder is at fault or that you have a fault in the
computer. You are advised to contact your dealer.
Note: Each computer program is recorded on the tape as a kind
of screeching noise. It’s not meant to be listened to, but some
cassette recorders have the annoying habit of playing the tape
through the loudspeaker while the tape is loading into the
computer. Everything depends on what plugs and sockets are
being used. It is possible to stop this on most recorders by
inserting a small (3.5mm) jack plug into the socket on the
recorder marked ear. You could insert the ear-piece supplied
with the recorder if that is more convenient. On other recorders
you may have to insert a din loudspeaker plug, with no wire
connections, into the socket marked ls to turn off the noise.
Don’t try turning the volume control down because then the
computer will not be able to “hear” the tape either. The
important thing to do is to try to disable the internal
loudspeaker as described above.
Make a note of the volume setting on your cassette recorder
and always use that setting when playing back the welcome
cassette. You may need to use a different setting with other
tapes that you have purchased or recorded yourself.
On the welcome cassette the volume control setting program is
repeated many times at the beginning of the tape. With practice
it is possible to save time by running the tape forward by about
2 minutes (once the volume control is set) and then begin
playing the tape from this point, having first entered the
command CHAIN"WELCOME".
When the first welcome program has loaded into the computer
it will clear the screen and give you instructions.
The welcome pack includes a booklet which describes not only
how to get the programs running but also what each of the
sixteen programs does.

14
As time goes by, a whole range of ‘application programs’ will
be available on cassette and it will be possible to run these in
exactly the same way as the welcome package.

The keyboard
Anyone who has used a standard typewriter will be reasonably
familiar with the positions of most of the symbols on the
keyboard of the BBC Microcomputer. However, there are a
number of special keys which need to be mastered (see figure 3)
and these are described below.
If you are a keyboard ‘novice’ you may find the layout
daunting. Don’t worry – first of all it is not necessary to be a
touch typist to work the computer; secondly, there is a
program on the welcome cassette which will help you to
practice finding the various keys, and most people find that
with a little practice they become familiar with them fairly
quickly.
Some keys have two symbols engraved on them – we’ll call
those on the top ‘upper case’ and those below ‘lower case’
symbols.

CAPS LOCK
When the machine is switched on, the middle light should be
on, telling you that the CAPS LOCK key is on. This gives capital
letters and lower case symbols and is the most useful state for
programming because the computer only recognises
commands typed in using capital letters. By pressing the
CAPS LOCK key once you can switch the light off. Now you get
lower case letters and lower case symbols. Press it again and it
will be on again.

SHIFT
Whether CAPS LOCK is on or off, if you press either of the
SHIFT keys and hold it down while typing in a character you
will get a capital letter or upper case symbol.
Holding down CTRL and SHIFT together stops the computer
‘writing’ to the screen. This can be useful if it is ‘writing’ faster
than you can read.

15
 10 User defined
function keys Editing keys

fØ f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6 f7 f8 f9 BREAK

! # $ % & ( ) = ~ ¦
ESCAPE " ´ Ø ‘ ’
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 – ^ \
{ £
TAB Q W E R T Y U I O P @ “ ”
[ —
CAPS + Ü }
CTRL RETURN

‘ROM’ cartridges
LOCK

Socket for plug-in

A S D F G H J K L ]

16
; :
SHIFT < > ?
SHIFT SHIFT DELETE COPY
LOCK Z X C V B N M , . /
SPACE
cassette caps shift
motor lock lock
light light light

Figure 3
The keyboard of the BBC Microcomputer.
For details, see text
SHIFT LOCK
Pressing this key once gives capital letters and upper case
symbols until it is pressed again. It has its own on/off light.
Practice in the use of these keys is given in one of the first
programs in the welcome pack – the one called KEYBOARD.

RETURN
This key is the most commonly used key on the keyboard.
When a command or anything else is typed in, it is not usually
acted upon until the RETURN key is pressed. In other words,
this key informs the computer that you have finished entering
a line or a reply. Until you press RETURN , you can add to or
delete what you have typed in.

Cursor control keys

These enable you to move the flashing cursor around the

screen when editing a program. Pressing any of them makes
the computer automatically enter the “editing mode” during
which two ‘cursors’ are shown on the screen (see page 29).

DELETE
Pressing this key will cause the last character typed in to be
erased from the screen. If held down, it will then erase further
characters until released.

COPY
This key, used in conjunction with the cursor control keys,
enables anything on the screen to be copied – a useful feature
when editing a line in program.

ESCAPE
This key is usually used to stop a program which is running,
however, it can be programmed to do other things when
pressed – such as to move you from one part of a program to
another.

BREAK
This key stops the computer no matter what it is doing. The
computer forgets almost everything that it has been set to do.

17
Do not get into the habit of using BREAK. The ESCAPE key
provides a much less violent way of escaping, from a program!
(See page 142 for more details on BREAK).

CTRL
This key behaves similarly to the SHIFT key in that it can be
used to change the character generated by other keys. For
example, pressing CTRL and G (called Control G) makes the
internal speaker make a short noise. CTRL B is used to turn a
printer on and CTRL C turns it off. CTRL N makes the
computer stop at the bottom of each page, etc., etc. More
information on control codes is given on page 378.

TAB
Another key useful in special circumstances – like word
processing.
~ ¦ { } £
^ \ [ ] _
These keys can be somewhat confusing because they seem to
generate the wrong characters sometimes. The problem is that
there are two international standards for displayed characters
(Teletext and ascii) and the BBC Computer can display both.
mode 7 generates the Teletext display characters and
modes 0 to 6 show the ascii characters. But don’t worry, the
computer recognises the key correctly regardless of what it has
to display on the screen. For completeness, here is a table
showing all these characters:

On the key Displayed on the screen in modes

in mode 7 0 to 6

~ ÷ ~
^ h ^
¦ || ¦
\ 12 \
{ 14 {
[ f [
} 34 }
] g ]

Note that in mode 7 a zero is shown as a rather pointed 0

whereas in all other modes, zeros have a slash thus –  – to help

18
to differentiate them from the letter O. The keyboard is also
marked in this way.

Plug in cartridge socket

There may be a slot to the left of the main keyboard where it
will be possible to insert cartridge packs containing games and
other programs. This inexpensive option will enable users to
play games and use other programs with the minimum of
effort.

19
Giving the
computer
instructions – Part I

20
2 Commands
There are two ways of getting the computer to do something:
1 Give it commands which it can act on straight away. This is
what happened when you typed in the lines in section 1.
2 Give it a series of numbered instructions, often called
statements, which it can store in its memory and carry out in
sequence when told to do so. A stored series of instructions is
called a program.
Many of the keywords in basic can be used both as commands
and as statements in a program.
The rest of this section is concerned with ‘command mode’.

PRINT is used to make the computer print something on the

screen. Try these two examples:
PRINT "HELLO"
don’t forget to press RETURN at the end of each line.
PRINT 3+4
In the second example you have given the computer a
command to print the sum of 3 and 4. The computer can very
easily do addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
The addition, subtraction, multiplication and division signs are
all on the right side of the keyboard. If you are interested in
doing mathematical or financial work then you will need to
know the symbols that the computer uses for various
mathematical things. They are:

+ addition
- subtraction
* multiplication
/ division
^ raise to the power
. decimal point

21
If you want to get the + or * then you will have to press the
SHIFT key as well as the key you want. It’s rather like a type-
writer: while holding the SHIFT key down, press the + sign
quickly once.
Try typing in the following and check that they work, in other
words see that they produce the expected answers.
PRINT 4+8
PRINT 18 - 2 * 4
PRINT 131/4
PRINT SQR(2)
The last one will print the square root of 2 which is 1.41421356.
Then try
MODE 5
which will make the computer clear the screen and get it ready
to draw lines as well as text. In this mode
COLOUR 129
will select a red background, and
CLS
will clear the screen to the background colour. In each case you
have given the computer a command and it has obeyed it
immediately. Working like this is called “working in command
mode”.
While in this mode you might like to learn how to use the
bright red User Defined Function Keys. Each of these keys can be
used to store a word or several words. For example they could
be programmed so that each one selects a different colour. Try
this
*KEY 2 COLOUR 2 ¦M
The ¦ shown above is produced by a special key. On the
keyboard this key is the third key from the right on the row
below the red keys. In Mode 7 this key produces || on the
screen.
Once you have typed that in then every time you press the key
marked f2, the computer will change to colour 2 which gives

22
yellow lettering. In a similar way you could program some of
the other keys like this:
*KEY 0 COLOUR 0 ¦M
*KEY 1 COLOUR 1 ¦M
*KEY 3 COLOUR 3 ¦M
Note the exact position of spaces in what you type in.
Of course red letters don’t show up very well on a red
background! You will have noticed the ¦M at the end of each
line above. That is the code used to get a RETURN into the User
Defined Function Keys.
If the picture on your television screen is either too far up or
too far down the screen, you can move the whole display with
the command *TV.
*TV 255 will move down one line
*TV 254 will move down two lines
*TV 1 will move up one line
*TV 2 will move up two lines
The movements come into affect next time you press BREAK or
change mode.

23
3 An introduction
to variables
In the last section we made the computer do a number of
calculations but it was never expected to remember any of the
results after it had printed them out. Suppose that you have to
calculate the wages for everyone in a company. After you have
worked out each person’s wage, it would he useful to be able
to add it to all the other wages that you had worked out so far,
so that in the end you would know the total wage bill. Keeping
track of things that vary during a long calculation is done by
using “variables”.
Try typing this line into the computer
LET Z=5
And now try typing in each of the following lines
PRINT Z+6
PRINT Z * 12
As you will have seen, once we have told the computer that “Z
is 5” it understands that every time we use the letter Z in a sum
it has to go and have a look to find out what the value of Z is (5
in this case) and use that number in the arithmetic that we set it
to do. Now type in
LET Z=7
And then try these two lines
PRINT Z+12
PRINT Z/3
As you will gather the value of Z has changed from 5 to 7. In
computer jargon “Z” is called a “numeric variable”. That
means that Z can be used to store any number, and you can
change the value of Z any time you want to.

24
The computer is able to store hundreds of different variables
and the variables don’t just have to be called something as
simple as Z, you can call a variable by as long a name as you
want. For example you could write
MYAGE=30
Notice that MYAGE was written without any spaces between
the word MY and AGE. There are only four restrictions about
the names that we give to variables.
1 There must be no spaces in the middle of a variable name.
2 All variable names must start with a letter, though you can
stick as many numbers in as you want to later on.
3 You must not use punctuation marks (like exclamation
marks and question marks) in the variable name but you can
use an underline character.
4 Variable names should not begin with basic “keywords” like
PRINT and LET. One that is particularly easy to use by
mistake is the keyword TO. However it is quite permissible to
start a variable name with a lower case “to” because upper and
lower case names are quite different. There is a full list of
keywords starting on page 483.
To get lower case characters on the screen, make sure that the
CAPS LOCK is off by depressing it so that its light goes out. In
this condition you will get small letters and numbers. Hold the
SHIFT key down if you want to get just a few capital letters.
Any of the following variable names would be acceptable to
the computer
LET AGE=38
LET this_year=1982
LET lengthOFrod=18
LET CAR_mileage=13280
LET value5=16.1
LET weight4=0.00135
LET chicken2egg3=51.6
However the following variable names are illegal.
LET Football Result=3 [there’s a space]
LET Who?=6 [there’s a question mark]
LET 4thvalue=16.3 [starts with a number]

25
LET TODAY=23 [starts with TO]
LET PRINT=1234.56 [PRINT is a reserved
word]
You will notice that in all the examples above we have put the
word LET before the variable name. That gives a clear
indication of what is actually happening inside the computer,
namely that the numeric: variable “this_year”, in one of the
examples, is being given a new value “1982”. The word LET is
optional and the computer will understand perfectly well if we
say
this_year=1982
This shortened version is much more common.

26
4 A simple program

In the previous sections we have been giving the computer

commands which it obeys immediately. The problem with this
technique is that you have to wait until the computer has
completed one command before you can give it the next one. If
the computer takes a long time to work out one of the problems
you have set it, then you may have to waste an awful lot of time
just sitting there waiting for it. For example if you want your
computer to work out the number of 5p, 10p and 50p coins that
you will need to pay the wages at the end of the week the
computer will take a fair time to calculate all the wages before it
can sort out the coins required.
The same problem arises when you take a car into a garage to
be serviced. You could for example stand by the mechanic and
say “Right, first of all I want the oil changed” and then you
could wait for him to change the oil. When he had completed
that you could then say “Right, now I want you to replace the
bulb that has blown in one of the front headlights” and then
you could wait for him to do that job. And thirdly you might
say “The exhaust is making a bit of noise, so I want you to put
the car up on the ramp and check the exhaust”.
Inevitably you would spend a great deal of time waiting for the
mechanic to complete the job that you had set him before you
could give him the next job. There is a far more efficient way of
doing things; when you go into the garage you give the
mechanic a whole set of instructions, for example
first of all change the oil,
secondly replace the headlamp bulb,
thirdly stop the exhaust rattling.
Once you have given your set of instructions and checked that
the garage understands what they have to do, you can then
walk off and have a cup of coffee and then go back expecting
the job to be done. Now the same thing applies with a
computer. It is far better to give it a whole set of instructions
27
and set it going on something while you wander off and have a
cup of coffee. “Writing a computer program” is nothing more
than giving a set of instructions.
If you give the computer a command like
PRINT "HOW ARE YOU"
then the computer will do that immediately. On the other
hand, if you give the computer a statement
10 PRINT "HOW ARE YOU"
then the computer will regard that as instruction number 10
and it will not do it straight away, but expect other instructions
to follow. Instruction number 10 is usually referred to as Line
10 etc. Again: if there is a line number then the statement is
part of a program; if there is no line number then it is a
command which the computer must obey immediately.
When you have given the computer a set of instructions and
you then want it to carry them out, you type the word RUN on
the keyboard. The computer will then carry out the instructions
that you asked it to do one at a time and in line-number order.
In other words, it will “execute the program” that you have
typed in. Just to check that you have got the idea of what is
going on, here is a small program that you can type in.
10 REPEAT
20 PRINT "GIVE ME A NUMBER";
30 INPUT B
40 PRINT "12 TIMES ";B;" IS ";12*B
50 UNTIL B=0

When you RUN the program line 20 will print the message
GIVE ME A NUMBER
on the screen.
Line 30 will print a question mark on the screen and wait for
you to type in a number (followed by RETURN – as usual). The
number you type in will become the value of the variable “B”.
Line 40 will first print the words 12 TIMES followed on the
same line by the number you typed in, followed on the same
line by the word IS followed by the result of the calculation.

28
The semi-colons tell the computer to print the next item on the
same line as the previous one and right up against it.
Line 50 sends the computer back to line 10 unless B=0, when
the program will stop.
Another way of stopping the program is to press the “panic
button” which is marked ESCAPE on the keyboard. It is at the
top left of the keyboard. If the computer seems to be ignoring
you because it’s too busy running a program you can nearly
always get its attention by pressing the ESCAPE button.
When you do that it will stop running your program and print
a > prompt to show that it has stopped the program and that
you have command again.
When the computer shows a > it is in Command Mode. You can
change your program, give it commands for immediate
execution, or tell it to RUN the program (in its memory) again.
It doesn’t forget a program when you press ESCAPE.
If the computer is in command mode (in other words the last
thing on the screen is >) then you can command it to print the
program in its memory by typing
LIST
and pressing RETURN .
The computer will then give a list of the program on the screen
for you to check. If you discover that you have made an error,
for example that you have got something wrong in line 20, then
it is easy to correct the error. There are two ways of correcting
major errors:

1 Retype the whole line

2 Use the screen editor

Using the screen editor

There is a group of six keys on the right hand side of the
keyboard which can be used to edit, or alter, program lines that
are displayed on the screen. Four of the keys have arrows on
them and are coloured a lighter brown than most of the other
keys. These keys enable you to move a flashing cursor around
the screen to a line that you wish to edit. As soon as you press
one of these keys the computer enters a special “editing mode”
where it displays two cursors. The large white block is called

29
the write cursor and it shows you where anything that you
enter will appear. The other small, flashing cursor – the read
cursor – is the one that can be moved around by the arrow
keys.

Try moving the read cursor, by using the arrow keys, until it is
under a letter at the start of a word and then press the COPY
key several times. As you will see the COPY key copies
everything that the read cursor passes under into the new
input line. Half way through copying a line you can always use

to move the read cursor to some new place on the screen before
using COPY again to copy some other text to your new input
line. The DELETE key can always been used to delete
characters from the input line.
You can also type new characters in at any time instead of
using the COPY key. When your new input line is complete
just press RETURN in the usual way.
Try the following: clear the screen with the command CLS and
then LIST the program. It should include the line
20 PRINT "GIVE ME A NUMBER";
If not, then type that line in so that you can edit it. Suppose
that you wanted to insert the word BIG so that line 20 reads
20 PRINT "GIVE ME A BIG NUMBER";
then all you have to do is to press the up-arrow cursor key until
the small flashing line is positioned under the 2 of 20. Then
press the COPY key to copy the first part of line 20 to a fresh
line at the bottom. When the cursor reaches the space after the
A where you want to insert the word BIG, just type it in with a
space in front – it will appear on the bottom line. Then COPY
the rest of the line 20, the space after the A becoming the space
after BIG. At the end press RETURN.
Now try changing the program already in the computer once
again by doing the following things:
a List the program by using the LIST command.

30
b Practice using the cursor control and COPY keys to alter
line 20 so that it reads:
20 PRINT "NOW GIVE ME A BIG NUMBER";
c Now add these new lines. Don’t forget to press RETURN
after each one.
5 CLS
25 REPEAT
35 IF B<1000 THEN PRINT "I SAID A
BIG NUMBER"
37 UNTIL B>1000
Note: it doesn’t matter in what order you type in new lines.
The computer will automatically put them into numerical
order. You will see that this is true by typing
LIST RETURN
These extra lines tell the computer to reject any number smaller
than 1000 and to go on going back to line 30 to ask for a new
number until that number is greater than 1000. The symbol <
means ‘is smaller than’, and > means ‘is greater than’. IF and
THEN are self explanatory.
d Now RUN the program.
>RUN
NOW GIVE ME A BIG NUMBER? 16
I SAID A BIG NUMBER
?20
I SAID A BIG NUMBER
?2000
12 TIMES 2000 IS 24000
NOW GIVE ME A BIG NUMBER?
This program will go on running until you press ESCAPE. If
you look you will see that if you give the value 0 for the
number, the program never reaches line 50, so it can never end
unless you press the panic button!
Removing part of a program
Quite often you will want to delete a whole line or group of
lines in your program. This is easy to do but don’t forget that if
you type in a new line 20 (for example), it will automatically
remove the old line 20 and replace it with your new one. If you
just want to delete a line completely then type in just the line
number and press RETURN thus:
20 RETURN

31
To delete a whole set of line numbers, for example, lines 50 to
70 inclusive, you can type
DELETE 50, 70
You cannot get these lines back once they are deleted – unless
you can copy them off the screen, so use this with care.
After you have deleted several lines – or if you have typed in
lots of new lines – you often find that you have a very odd set
of line numbers. The command
RENUMBER
will make the computer go through your whole program
renumbering all the lines so that they are given line numbers in
a tidy sequence. Here is an awful example of programming
style – but it will illustrate the renumber command. Don’t
bother to type it in – just look at it.
>LIST
1 REM ** GOTO GOTO GOTO
2 REM WITH ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS TO
3 REM "COMPUTERS IN SCHOOLS"
4 REM THE JOURNAL OF MUSE
15 GOTO 100
16 GOTO 95
40 N=N+1
44 END
57 IF N=18 THEN PRINT "GOTO OR NOT
TO GOTO"
60 IF N>35 THEN GOTO 110
78 GOTO 40
95 PRINT "**THE GOTO SHOW**": GOTO
40
100 N=0: GOTO 16
105 PRINT "GOT TO GOTO GOTO NOW"
110 GOTO 44
115 PRINT "GOTO OR NOT TO GOTO";:GOTO
60

>RENUMBER
>LIST
10 REM ** GOTO GOTO GOTO
20 REM WITH ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS TO

32
 30 REM "COMPUTERS IN SCHOOLS"
40 REM THE JOURNAL OF MUSE
50 GOTO 130
60 GOTO 120
70 N=N+1
80 END
90 IF N=18 THEN PRINT "GOTO OR NOT
TO GOTO"
100 IF N>35 THEN GOTO 150
110 GOTO 70
120 PRINT "**THE GOTO SHOW**": GOTO
70
130 N=0: GOTO 60
140 PRINT "GOT TO GOTO GOTO NOW"
150 GOTO 80
160 PRINT "GOTO OR NOT TO GOTO";:GOTO
100

>RUN
**THE GOTO SHOW**
As you will see, the RENUMBER command has not only
renumbered all the line numbers but it has accurately
renumbered the references to line numbers which occur within
the program itself – namely after the statements containing the
keyword GOTO. (This gives the computer the instruction to go
to a particular line number and carry out the instruction it finds
there.)

Removing a program
If you want to write a new program you will want to remove
the old program from the computer’s memory. This can be
done by using the command NEW, or by pressing the BREAK
key. In either case, if you regret having lost your program, type
OLD and press RETURN and, providing you haven’t begun to
type in a new program, the old one should reappear.
You can always check what’s in the memory by typing LIST.
Try experimenting with these various commands on the
program you have typed in.

33
5 Recording
programs on
cassette

The welcome cassette supplied with your BBC Microcomputer

has a number of programs stored on it. You can store a copy of
any program on cassette and then load it back into the machine
at some time in the future. It really is just like recording music
onto a cassette – you can then play the cassette back a few days
later and the music will still be there.
If you decide that you don’t want to keep the computer
program that you have saved on cassette then you can just
record a new program over the old one in the same way that
you can re-use a cassette when recording music. And in the
same way that it is very easy to forget where a particular piece
of music is recorded on a cassette, so it’s very easy to forget
where on the cassette you have stored a particular program. It
is very strongly suggested that you use the tape counter to
keep an index of where programs are on the cassette. Also you
must leave gaps between programs. It is very easy to let one
program run over the start of the next one if they are all
squashed close together. If programs do overlap then you will
definitely lose one of them. Be warned!
Most short programs will only move the cassette tape counter
on 30 or 40 positions but play safe and spread the programs out
over the length of the cassette. If you record the first program
at 0000, the second at 0100, the next at 0200 and so on then they
will be easy to find and they are unlikely to run over each
other.
Note: don’t make the mistake of trying to record on the clear
plastic tape ‘leader’ – wind the tape on by hand until the brown
tape itself is exposed.
34
Saving a program on cassette
If you have typed a program into your microcomputer then all
you have to do to save it is to
1 Insert the cassette into the recorder.
2 Set the tape counter to 0000 when the tape is fully re-wound.
3 Type
SAVE "MYPROG"
on the computer and then press the RETURN key.
4 The message RECORD then RETURN will appear.
5 Fast forward the cassette to the place where you want to
record the program – this will be 100 or 200 or 300 etc. on the
tape counter.
6 Press the record button on the cassette and then press the
RETURN key.
If you want to give up at any time then press the ESCAPE key.
Notice that MYPROG is the name that we happened to give to the
program. You can call your program by any name you like so long as
it has no more than 10 characters. For example you could have typed
SAVE "FRED" or
SAVE "GAME3" or
SAVE "picture"
While the program is being saved on the cassette the name of
the program and some numbers will appear to tell you that
things are happening. When the computer has finished, the >
prompt will re-appear and the tape will stop automatically. If
you don’t have cassette motor control then you will have to
stop the recorder manually after the > prompt re-appears.
That’s it.
Checking a recording
If you want to check that you have successfully recorded your
program on the tape then you can use the *CAT command
(see page 36). If your recording failed for any reason you can
always re-record it. See page 390 if you have problems.
Loading a program from cassette
Loading a program back into the computer is just like playing a

35
particular piece of music which has been recorded on the
cassette.
1 Type
LOAD "MYPROG"
and then press the RETURN key. The message Searching
will appear. Of course if your program is called something else
then use the right name, for example
LOAD "GAME3"
2 Rewind the cassette to just before the start of your program
(which will be at 100 or 200 etc.)
3 Check that the volume and tone control settings are correct –
see page 12 if you are not sure how to find the correct settings.
4 Start playing the cassette by pressing the play button on the
recorder.
When the computer finds any program on the cassette it will
show the name of the program on the screen. When it finds the
program it is looking for it will print “Loading” to let you
know that it is now loading the right program.
When the computer has finished loading the program it will
print the > prompt. It will also automatically stop the tape if
you have automatic motor control, if not then you will have to
stop the tape manually.
The program is now in the computer. You can type RUN to
make it work, as usual.
There is one more useful feature to do with loading and saving
programs. Instead of typing LOAD "MYPROG" you can type
CHAIN "MYPROG". This not only loads in the program
MYPROG but also starts it working as soon as it has loaded.
It saves you having to type RUN after the program has loaded.
It is normally more convenient to use CHAIN than LOAD.
Cataloguing a tape
If you forget what programs you have on the tape then you can
get a catalogue by typing
*CAT
and then playing the tape. But you’ll have to wait until the tape
has run through the programs.

36
What the numbers mean
A typical catalogue looks like this
WELCOME 00 0084
INTRO 08 088E
INDEX 0A 0ABA
KEYBOARD 25 2545
The file-name is followed by two ‘hexadecimal’ numbers which
give the “block number”. Each program is recorded as a series
of “blocks”. See page 71 for an explanation of hexadecimal
numbers.
The last number on the line gives the ‘length’ of the file.
The action of cataloguing a tape also lets the computer verify
the information recorded. If there are errors in any of the data
on the tape it will print a message and continue.
The ESCAPE key allows you to leave cassette operations
whenever you like. If you leave from the middle of a LOAD
operation you will probably get a Bad Program error. Type
NEW to remove this.
More information about cassette formats, loading errors and
files is given on page 390.

37
6 Sample programs

Most of the rest of this book is concerned with introducing the

various parts of the BBC basic language which the computer
understands and other features of the machine. But first, here
are a few complete programs which you can try to type in
yourself. They must be typed in as accurately as possible and
can then be run. If a program fails to run properly, then almost
certainly you have typed a line in incorrectly – for instance, you
may have typed ; when you should have typed : or typed O
instead of 0.
Most of the sample programs are too big to fit on the screen in
one go. If you LIST a program you have typed in, for example
to check that you have made no mistakes, you may find that
the lines you want to look at disappear off the top of the screen.
To prevent this you can specify the range of lines you want to
be listed. For example
LIST 100,200
will only list those lines numbered between 100 and 200.
Alternatively you can enter “paged mode” by pressing, CTRL N
(hold down CTRL and press N). In this mode the listing will
stop after every “page” and will continue only when you press
the SHIFT key. “Paged mode” is switched off by pressing
CTRL O and you should always remember to do this after you
have listed the program.
Typing in programs will help you to get a feel for the keyboard
and, if you save them on cassette after you have satisfied
yourself that they do run properly, will enable you to start to
build up a library of them.
Learning to use the computer is a little like learning to drive a
car – when you first start you find that there are an enormous
number of things to think about at once. Many of the things
you come across from now on will be bewildering at first, but
as you get further into the book and as you gain experience in
38
using basic, the various parts of the jig-saw puzzle should
begin to fall into place. So don’t worry if, for instance, some of
the comments about the following programs are difficult to
understand at first.
Note: In the program listings which follow, extra spaces have
been inserted between the line numbers (10,20, etc) and
what follows on each line. This is to improve the readability of
the programs. However, although it will do no harm, there is
no reason to type in any spaces after the line number. For
example in the first program, called polygon, when entering
line 250, all you need type is
250MOVE 0,0

POLYGON
This program draws polygons (many sided shapes) in random
colours.
Lines 120 to 180 move to a random place on the screen which
will be the centre (origin) of the next shape. Lines 210 to 290
calculate the X and Y co-ordinates of each “corner” of the
polygon and store the values in two ‘arrays’ for future use. In
addition the shape is filled with black triangles (lines 260 and
290) thus making it appear that the new polygon is in front of
older ones. Lines 310 to 370 draw all the lines that make up the
polygon.
Lines 50 to 70 set the actual colours of logical colours 1, 2 and 3
to red, blue and yellow. You can change these if you wish to
use other colours.
10 REM POLYGON
20 REM JOHN A COLL
30 REM VERSION 1 / 16 NOV 81
40 MODE 5
50 VDU 19,1,1,0,0,0
60 VDU 19,2,4,0,0 0
70 VDU 19,3,3,0,0,0
80 DIM X(10)
90 DIM Y(10)
100
110 FOR C=1 TO 2500
120 xorigin=RND(1200)
130 yorigin=RND(1000)

39
 140 VDU 29,xorigin;yorigin;
150 radius=RND(300)+50
160 sides=RND(8)+2
170 MOVE radius,0
180 MOVE 10,10
190
200 GCOL 0,0
210 FOR SIDE=1 TO sides
220 angle=(SIDE-1)*2*PI/sides
230 X(SIDE)=radius*COS(angle)
240 Y(SIDE)=radius*SIN(angle)
250 MOVE 0,0
260 PLOT 85,X(SIDE),Y(SIDE)
270 NEXT SIDE
280 MOVE 0,0
290 PLOT 85,radius,0
300
310 GCOL 0,RND(3)
320 FOR SIDE=1 TO sides
330 FOR line=SIDE TO sides
340 MOVE X(SIDE),Y(SIDE)
350 DRAW X(line),Y(line)
360 NEXT line
370 NEXT SIDE
380 NEXT C
You may like to try this alternative for line 200
200 GCOL 0, RND(4)
MONTHLY
This program plots a set of “blocks” on the screen which might
represent prices over a twelve month period. In its present
form it will only work on a Model B Computer. With minor
modifications (eg changing line 100 to MODE 5) it can be made
to run on Model A. In this example the height of the bars is
randomly selected at line 170. Lines 180 to 270 then draw a
“solid” bar and the edges are marked in black by lines 290 to
330. Lines 340 and 350 print out one letter representing the
month of the year at the bottom of each bar.
Notice that lines 60 and 70 set up two of the function keys.
Key 0 resets the computer to mode 7 and then lists the
program. Key 9 can be used to run the program.

40
 10 REM MONTHLY
20 REM JOHN A COLL
30 REM VERSION 1 / 16 NOV 81
40 REM MODEL B
50
60 *KEY 0 "MODE7 |M LIST|M"
70 *KEY 9 "RUN |M"
80 M$="JFMAMJJASOND"
90 C=0
100 MODE 2
110 VDU 5
120 VDU 29,0;100;
130
140 FOR X=0 TO 1100 STEP 100
150 GCOL 0,C MOD 7+1
160 C=C+1
170 H=RND(400)+300
180 MOVE X,0
190 MOVE X,H
200 PLOT 85,X+100,0
210 PLOT 85,X+100,H
220 MOVE X+70,H+50
230 MOVE X,H
240 PLOT 85,X+170,H+50
250 PLOT 85,X+100,H
260 PLOT 85,X+170,50
270 PLOT 85,X+100,0
280 GCOL 0,0
290 MOVE X,H
300 DRAW X+100,H
310 DRAW X+170,H+50
320 MOVE X+100,H
330 DRAW X+100,0
340 MOVE X+10,50
350 PRINT MID$(M$,C,1)
360 NEXT
370
380 GCOL 4,1
390 PRINT TAB(0,16)"----------------"
400 VDU 4
410 PRINT TAB(3,0)"critical level"

41
The height of each bar is set randomly by the variable H. If you
want to put in your own values (data), then type the following
extra lines. Line 170 must also be deleted by typing 170
followed by RETURN.
50 DIM data(12)
82 FOR J=1 TO 12
84 PRINT "Input data for month "
MID$(M$,J,1);
86 INPUT data(J)
88 NEXT J
89 INPUT "CRITICAL LEVEL", level
155 H=data(C+1)
390 MOVE 0,level:PRINT"--------------
-----"
QUADRAT
This program can be used to solve equations of the form
Y=Ax²+Bx+C
The “roots of the equation” are printed to two decimal places.
The number of decimal places is set by line 90.
The main program between lines 110 and 170 uses three
procedures – one for each of the three types of result. The main
program is surrounded by
REPEAT
'
'
'
UNTIL FALSE
which has the effect of keeping the program going for ever – or
until the ESCAPE key is pressed.
Line 170 PRINT''' prints three blank lines to separate one
set of results from the next.
10 REM QUADRAT
20 REM JOHN A COLL BASED ON A
PROGRAM
30 REM BY MAX BRAMER, OPEN
UNIVERSITY
40 REM VERSION 1.0 / 16 NOV 81
50 REM SOLVES AN EQUATION OF THE FORM

42
 60 REM A*X^2 + B*X + C
70 ON ERROR GOTO 350
80 MODE 7
90 @%=&2020A
100 REPEAT
110 PRINT "What are the three
coefficients ";
120 INPUT A,B,C
130 DISCRIM=B^2-4*A*C
140 IF DISCRIM<0 THEN PROCcomplex
150 IF DISCRIM=0 THEN PROCcoincident
160 IF DISCRIM>0 THEN PROCreal
170 PRINT'''
180 UNTIL FALSE
190 END
200
210 DEF PROCcomplex
220 PRINT "Complex roots X=";-B/(2*A);
230 PRINT " +/- "; SQR(-DISCRIM)
/(2*A) "i"
240 ENDPROC
250
260 DEF PROCcoincident
270 PRINT"Co-incident roots
X=";B/(2*A)
280 ENDPROC
290
300 DEF PROCreal
310 X1=(-B+SQR(DISCRIM))/(2*A)
320 X2=(-B-SQR(DISCRIM))/(2*A)
330 PRINT "Real distinct roots
X=";X1;" and X=";X2
340 ENDPROC
350 @%=10:REPORT:PRINT
>RUN
What are the three coefficients ?1,-1,
-2
Real distinct roots X=2.00 and X=-1.00

What are the three coefficients ?3,3,3

Complex roots X=-0.50 +/- 0.87i

43
What are the three coefficients ?1,2,1
Co-incident roots X=1.00
What are the three coefficients ?
Escape
>

FOURPNT
This program draws a pattern (lines 80 to 140) and then
changes foreground and background colours with a half
second pause between each change.
10 REM FOURPNT / DRAWS A PATTERN
WITH 4 POINTS
20 REM JOHN A COLL
30 REM VERSION 1 / 16 NOV 81
40 REM MODEL A
50 MODE 4
60 VDU 29,640;512;
70
80 FOR A=0 TO 500 STEP 15
90 MOVE A-500,0
100 DRAW 0,A
110 DRAW 500-A,0
120 DRAW 0,-A
130 DRAW A-500,0
140 NEXT A
150
160 FOR B=0 TO 7 :REM CHANGE THE
COLOUR
170 FOR C=1 TO 3
180 T=TIME :REM WAIT A WHILE
190 REPEAT UNTIL TIME-T>50
200 VDU 19,3,C,0,0,0
210 VDU 19,0,6,0,0,0
220 NEXT C
230 NEXT B

TARTAN
This program builds up a changing pattern by overdrawing
lines on the screen.

44
The main program between lines 90 and 140 loops for ever and
calls various subroutines as necessary. The use of subroutines
with implied GOTO (e.g. line 170) results in a structure which
is not easy to follow! It would be better to use “structures” such
as procedures (see page 86).
10 REM TARTAN
20 REM BASED ON RESEARCH MACHINES
DEMO
30 REM VERSION 1.0 / 16 NOV 81
40 MODE 2: REM ALSO WORKS IN MODE 5
50 R=1: D=1: X=0
60 Y=RND(1280)
70 MOVE X,Y
80
90 REPEAT
100 ON D GOSUB 160,260,350,430
110 IF RND(1000)<10 THEN R=D-1
120 GCOL R,(D*1.7)
130 DRAW X,Y
140 UNTIL FALSE
150
160 X=X+1024-Y
170 IF X>1280 THEN 220
180 Y=1024
190 D=2
200 RETURN
210
220 Y=1024/1280-X
230 X=1280: D=4
240 RETURN
250
260 Y=Y-1280+X
270 IF Y<0 THEN 310
280 X=1280: D=3
290 RETURN
300
310 X=1280+Y
320 Y=0: D=1
330 RETURN
340
350 X=X-Y
360 IF X<0 THEN 400

45
 370 Y=0: D=4
380 RETURN
390
400 Y=-X: X=0: D=2
410 RETURN
420
430 Y=Y+X
440 IF Y>1024 THEN 480
450 X=0: D=1
460 RETURN
470
480 X=Y-1024
490 Y=1028: D=3
500 RETURN

PERSIAN
This program produces a pattern by drawing hundreds of
lines. Random colours are selected by lines 60 and 70. Line 80
moves the “origin” (middle) of the picture to the middle of the
screen. It runs on Model B only.
10 REM PERSIAN
20 REM ACORN COMPUTERS
30 REM VERSION 2 / 16 NOV 81
40 MODE 1
50 D%=4
60 VDU 19,2,RND(3)+1,0,0,0
70 VDU 19,3,RND(3)+4,0,0,0
80 VDU 29,640;512;
90 J1%=0
100 FOR K%=500 TO 380 STEP -40
110 REPEATJ2%=RND(3):UNTILJ2%<>J1%
120 J1%=J2%
130 GCOL 3, J1%
140 FOR I%=-K% TO K% STEP D%
150 MOVE K%,I%
160 DRAW -K%,-I%
170 MOVE I%,-K%
180 DRAW -I%,K%
190 NEXT
200 NEXT

46
SQR ROOT
This program calculates the square root of a number by
repeating a simple operation (lines 90 and 200) until the
calculated result stays steady. The program also indicates how
long the calculation takes.
This program illustrates an important mathematical technique –
but of course you don’t have to work out square roots this
way, the function SQR is provided in basic (see page 355).
10 REM SQROOT
20 REM VERSION 1.0 / 16 NOV 81
30 REM TRADITIONAL ITERATION METHOD
40 REM TO CALCULATE THE SQUARE ROOT
50 REM OF A NUMBER TO 3 DECIMAL
PLACES
60 MODE 7
70 ON ERROR GOTO 300
80 @%=&2030A
90 REPEAT
100 count=0
110 REPEAT
120 INPUT "What is your number ",N
130 UNTIL N>0
140 DELTA=N
150 ROOT=N/2
160 T=TIME
170 REPEAT
180 count=count+1
190 DELTA=(N/ROOT-ROOT)/2
200 ROOT=ROOT+DELTA
210 UNTIL ABS(DELTA)<0.001
220 T=TIME-T
230 PRINT
240 PRINT "Number",N
250 PRINT "Root",ROOT
260 PRINT "Iterations",count
270 PRINT "Time",T/100;" seconds"
280 PRINT''
290 UNTIL FALSE
300 @%=10:PRINT:REPORT:PRINT

47
>RUN
What is your number ?34
Number 34.000
Root 5.831
Iterations 5.000
Time 0.070 seconds
What is your number ?125
Number 125.000
Root 11.180
Iterations 6.000
Time 0.080 seconds
What is your number?

BRIAN
This program prints a “path in the grass”.
It is a fine example of a “non-structured” use of basic, you
might like to try and “structure” it.
90 REM BRIAN2
100 REM (C) BRIAN R SMITH 1980
110 REM ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART, LONDON
120 REM VERSION 1.0 / 16 NOV 81
130 INPUT "NUMBER OF CYCLES e.g. 1 to
5 ",T
140 INPUT "BACKGROUND SYMBOL e.g. +
",D$
150 INPUT "MOTIF (<20 chrs.)",A$
160 INPUT "TEXT AFTER DESIGN",B$
170 CLS
180 F=1
190 READ A,G,S,C,D,N
200 H=(D-C)/N
210 X=0
220 J=1
230 X=X+S
240 Y=SIN(X)
250 Y1=1+INT((Y-C)/H+0.5)
260 I=0
270 I=I+1

48
 280 IF I=Y1 THEN 310
290 PRINT D$;
300 GOTO 420
310 Z=Z+F
320 IF Z>0 THEN 350
330 F=-F
340 GOTO 450
350 IF Z<=LEN(A$) THEN 390
360 F=-F
370 Z=Z-1
380 GOTO 310
390 S$=LEFT$(A$,Z)
400 PRINT S$;
410 I=I+Z
420 IF I<40 THEN 270
430 PRINT
440 GOTO 230
450 J=J+1
460 IF J>T THEN 490
470 Z=Z+1
480 GOTO 310
490 FOR K=1 TO 39
500 PRINT D$;
510 NEXT K
520 PRINT
530 PRINT B$
540 DATA 0,6.4,0.2,-1,1,20

>RUN
NUMBER OF CYCLES e.g. 1 to 5 ?3
BACKGROUND SYMBOL e.g. + ?.
MOTIF (<20 chrs.)?Hello David !!
TEXT AFTER DESIGN?That’s all foLks

SINE
This program draws a sine wave on the screen. The computer
can draw dotted lines and the feature is used to fill in one part
of the sine wave (line 130).
The computer can also print letters anywhere on the screen not
just on a 40 by 32 grid. Lines 190 to 220 print a message in the
shape of another sine curve.

49
 10 REM SINE
20 REM JOHN A COLL
30 REM VERSION 2 / 16 NOV 81
40 REM MODEL A
50 MODE 4
60 VDU 5
70 GCOL 0,1
80 VDU 19,1,1,0,0,0
90 MOVE 16,400
100
110 FOR X=0 TO 320
120 IF X<150 THEN MOVE 4*X+16,400
130 PLOT 21,4*X+16,300*SIN(X/48)+
400
140 NEXT
160 GCOL 0,1
170 A$="SINE WAVES ARE FAR MORE
INTERESTING . . . . ."
180
190 FOR X=1 TO 39
200 MOVE X*1280/40,300*SIN(X/6)+512
210 PRINT MID$(A$,X,1)
220 NEXT
230
240 VDU 4
250 END

DOUBLE HEIGHT
Here is an example of an ‘assembly’ language program
embedded within a basic program between the two brackets
[ and ] which enables you to type in double height letters on
the screen.
10 REM DOUBLE HEIGHT IN TELETEXT
20 WIDTH 36: MODE 7
30 VDU 28,0,23,39,0
40 write=!&20E AND &FFFF
50 DIM PROG 100
60 FOR PASS = 0 TO 1
70 P% = PROG
80 [
90 OPT PASS*3
100 CMP #&D : BNE noter
50
 110 PHA : JSR write
120 LDA #&8D : JSR write
130 LDA #&0A : JSR write
140 LDA #&08 : JSR write
150 LDA #&8D : JSR write
160 PLA : RTS
170 . noter CMP #&20 : BCS legal
180 JMP write
190 . legal PHA : JSR write
200 LDA #&0B : JSR write
210 LDA #&08 : JSR write
220 PLA : PHA : JSR write
230 LDA #&0A : JSR write
240 PLA : RTS
250 ]
260 NEXT PASS
270 !&20E=!&20E AND &FFFF0000 OR PROG
280 END
Line 270 changes the “write character” routine indirection
vector so that all output is sent to the new routine given above.
This routine tests for a “return” code (line 100) and if it finds
one it issues Teletext double height control codes on to the next
two lines. Otherwise the routine just prints the characters on
two lines one above the other so as to produce a double height
character. This routine has a quite different effect in non-
Teletext modes. Try it. Press BREAK after you have finished
with this program.
Before we leave this section, here are a few points about
entering lines into basic.
a Contol characters, for example CTRL B, will only be
‘reflected’ in basic and not entered into any program lines,
strings etc.
b Spaces entered in lines will be preserved including those at
the end of the line. This allows blank lines to be entered eg
10 space RETURN
to separate program sections. Some of the programs above
have such blank lines. Because of this you should avoid using
COPY past the true end of a line.
c Most keywords can be abbreviated using a full stop, eg L.
for LIST, SA. for SAVE. See page 483 for a list of
abbreviations.
51
Giving the
computer
instructions –
Part II

This section of the User Guide introduces many more of the

‘keywords’ which are used in the writing of programs on the
BBC Microcomputer.
We start with some miscellaneous, useful keywords and then
go on to look at some of the graphics and colour statements. It
is easy to explore the effects which these produce without any
systematic knowledge of basic. You should experiment with
each statement not only by typing in the commands or test
programs which are given but by changing many of the values
of the various variables to see what effects are produced. In this
way you will become familiar with the use of each keyword
and begin to see how it can be used in your own programs. For
further information see the reference chapter on basic
keywords.

52
7 AUTO, DELETE,
REM, RENUMBER
basic provides a number of facilities to help the user to enter
programs into the computer and to modify programs already
there. As you will know by now, it is usual to use line numbers
10, 20, 30, 40 etc., for programs. This leaves gaps where the user
can insert extra lines later on – for example, he or she might
insert lines 11, 12, 13 and 14. When typing in a line of program
the user types in the “line number” first and then the rest of the
line. For example,
10 PRINT "THIS IS A PROGRAM"
The command AUTO instructs the computer to “offer” the line
numbers automatically to the user. As an option you can tell
the computer to start offering lines from any number. Thus
AUTO 300 would make the computer produce line number
300, then 310, then 320, etc. There are other options, too, which
are explained on page 211.
The command DELETE allows the user to delete a group of
lines from his or her program. When you are writing a long
program you quite often need to be able to delete a large chunk
of it. The keyword DELETE is followed by two numbers
which give the first and last lines that you wish to remove.
Thus
DELETE 150,330
would delete all the lines with numbers between 150 and 330.
Single lines can be removed by typing in the line number and
pressing RETURN.
REM is a very useful statement. It enables you to put remarks
in your program to remind you (not the computer) what is
going on. If you are developing a big program – or loading a
simple program that you have not used for some time – it is

53
very easy to forget how it works or what it does. Normally
people place several REMs at the start of a program to give
general information and then put a REM at major points
further down the program. See pages 232 or 264 for examples.
Once you have entered a program you will very often find that
the line numbers are no longer in a neat sequence. As we have
seen the command RENUMBER makes the computer go
through the whole program changing all the line numbers so
that they start at line 10 and increase by 10 for each successive
line. Certainly, when you have finished a program it is a good
idea to RENUMBER it so that it looks tidy. If you have a
program in the computer try
RENUMBER
and then LIST the program to see the effect. After that try
RENUMBER 900,100
and you will see, when you list the program, that the computer
has renumbered the whole program but the new version has
line numbers starting at 900 and this time increasing by steps of
100.

It is possible to put more than one statement on a line. For

example, the two statements
CLS (clear the screen)
PRINT "HELLO"
can be put on one line, so long as the individual statements are
separated by colons, thus:
CLS : PRINT "HELLO"
You can put as many statements on a line as you like so long as
the line has less than about 230 characters. The argument for
using “multiple statement lines” is that it saves some memory
space and may make the program work a little faster. But
against that you will notice that it becomes much more difficult
to follow the program when you list it (see page 98).

54
8 Introducing
graphics

Modes, Colours, Graphics and Windows

The Model A BBC computer can display text and graphics in
four different modes; the Model B can show eight different
modes. Only one mode can be used at a time. The Teletext
Mode (mode 7) differs from all the other modes in many ways
and a whole chapter has been devoted to that mode (see page
150). In particular it is not easy to draw lines or triangles in
mode 7 and the colour of the text is changed in a special way.
Finally some characters are displayed on the screen differently
in this mode – for example the character [ is displayed as f.
On the Model A there are two modes in which graphics can be
used (mode 4 and mode 5). With a Model B five graphics
modes are available. The description which follows will assume
that you are in mode 5. To reach it, simply type MODE 5 and
press RETURN. Note that pressing BREAK will return you to
mode 7 so avoid using BREAK – the “panic button” is
marked ESCAPE. If you press this the computer will stop
what it is doing and return control to you. mode 5 is a four
colour mode which means that up to four different colours can
be shown on the screen at any time. When you enter mode 5
two “colours” are displayed – white letters on a black
background. As you will be aware from earlier chapters the
colour of the text can be changed with the COLOUR statement,
and since this is a four colour mode you can select from
COLOUR 0 black
COLOUR 1 red
COLOUR 2 yellow
COLOUR 3 white
The same four colours (black, red, yellow and white) may be
selected for the background with the commands

55
COLOUR 128 (128+0) black
COLOUR 129 (128+1) red
COLOUR 130 (128+2) yellow
COLOUR 131 (128+3) white
The COLOUR statement can be used to change the colour of
the text foreground and background – but not the colour of any
graphics: for that you need to use another basic keyword –
GCOL, which stands for Graphics COLour.

Graphics
For the graphics: when drawing lines and triangles,
positions on the screen are given with two numbers (the x and
y co-ordinates).

1023

800 C

100
Y B
co-ordinate
800
500

600 A
0 X co-ordinate 1279

The point A has co-ordinates 600 across, 0 up

The point B is at position 100,500 and C is at 800,800
The statement
DRAW 800,800
will draw a line from the last point ‘visited’ to 800,800. If no
point has been visited, the computer will assume that it starts
from the point 0,0.
To move without drawing a line use the command MOVE. So
to draw a line from 1000,0 to 1000,1000 type
MOVE 1000,0
DRAW 1000,1000
DRAW 100,500 will draw another line, and so on. As well as
MOVE and DRAW there are PLOT commands for other effects.

56
These are described in a later chapter. The statement GCOL is
used to change the graphics colour used by the DRAW state-
ment. GCOL is followed by two numbers, the first is normally
zero and the second determines the graphics colours e.g.
GCOL 0,0 black lines
GCOL 0,1 red lines
GCOL 0,2 yellow lines
GCOL 0,3 white lines
We’ll consider what happens when the first number is not zero
later on (page 167).
As with the text colours, one can change both foreground and
background colours. However, before that can be illustrated it
will be easier to set up two ‘windows’ on the screen – one for
text and one for graphics so that you can be quite clear which is
which. We will then return to the GCOL statement.
Windows
At the moment the whole screen can be used for text and the
whole screen can be used for graphics. In some modes (eg
mode 5) we can restrict each to a specific “window” – or section
of the screen. In modes without graphics (modes 3, 6 and 7)
only text windows can be used. Imagine we want to create two
windows as shown below – on the left a graphics window; on
the right a text window. Suppose that the text window
stretches from the top of the screen right to the bottom but the
graphics window stops short of the bottom:

graphics text
window window

100
0
0 300
a Making a graphics window
Imagine a graphics window which has its edges a, b, c and d
‘graphics units’ away from the bottom left hand corner of the
screen (which is always the starting point for graphics).

57
1023

graphics
window
c
a
b

0 1279

The statement VDU 24 is used (with some numbers after it) to

set up a graphics window (VDU stands for Visual Display
Unit). For the window shown above the full statement is
VDU 24, a; b; c; d;
Note: the comma after 24 and the semi colon after all the other
values. The reason for this punctuation is given on page 386. So
for our actual graphics window we would put
VDU 24, 0;100;300;1000;
In all screen modes which can support easily defined graphics
the range of values for a, b, c and d is always the same: 0-1023
vertically, 0-1279 horizontally.

b Making a text window

Unlike graphics, text ‘starts’ at the top left hand corner of the
screen, so text windows are defined using that point as zero.
Imagine the text window has edges a, b, c and d ‘text units’
away from the top left of the screen, as shown:
0 19
d

text
window

c
b
a

31

58
The statement VDU 28 is used to setup the window as
follows
VDU 28,a,b,c,d
Note: the comma after the 28 and between the other values.
There is no comma at the end.

For the text window we wanted to set up, the statement would
be
VDU 28,5,31,19,0
To prove that we now have two separate windows try
COLOUR 129
CLS
to fill the text window with red and
GCOL 0,130
CLG
to fill the graphics window with yellow.

Note: In the various different screen modes the number of text

characters which can be accommodated along the screen and
down the screen is also different. This affects the range of
values for the horizontal distances a and c as follows:
modes 0 and 3 (which support 80 characters to the line) 0 to 79
modes 1, 4, 6 and 7 (which support 40 characters to the line)
0 to 39
modes 2 and 5 (which support 20 characters to the line) 0 to 19

Similarly the values of b and d depend on the mode.

modes 0,1,2,4 and 5 have 32 lines (0 to 31)
modes 3,6 and 7 have 25 lines (0 to 24)

To recap, to set up the windows press BREAK then type the

following – with RETURN at the end of each line. You are
working in command mode rather than writing a program, so
the computer acts on each instruction as you press RETURN. It
also means that pressing BREAK in the middle of what follows
would destroy the text and graphics windows and send the
computer back to mode 7.

59
MODE 5
VDU 24,0;100;300;1000;
VDU 28,5,31,19,0
CLS
The command CLS clears the text from the screen.
Now try typing the following lines
DRAW 0,1000
DRAW 100,1000
DRAW 0,0
DRAW 1000,1000
You will find that text is now only appearing in the text
window and that graphics are only appearing in the graphics
window. If you want to clear the text only, type CLS. If you
want to clear the graphics only, type CLG. (Normally CLS
clears the whole screen, but where independent text and
graphics areas are defined, CLS only clears the text.) You will
also notice that although some of the commands have told the
computer to draw in areas of the screen outside the graphics
window it has not done so visibly.
Windows may overlap – in fact when you change mode both
the text and graphic windows fill the whole screen, and you
can move windows without destroying what is on the screen,
although changing mode does clear the screen. To reset both
text and graphics windows to the whole screen, e.g, in the
middle of a program, use VDU 26.
VDU 5 enables text to be drawn at any position inside a
graphics window – see pages 49, 74 and 379.

Changing the colours of text and graphics

Now back to text and graphic colours. Let us define the text
background to be red and the graphics background to be
yellow.
COLOUR 129 red text background
GCOL 0,130 yellow graphics background,
and then clear the text and graphics areas to their background
colours.
CLS clear text area
CLG clear graphics area

60
Now to select the foreground colours for the two areas – for
example to obtain yellow letters (text foreground) type
COLOUR 2 and to get black graphics lines type
GCOL 0,0
Test this out by typing
DRAW 150,500
Although you start up (in mode 5) with the four colours set to
black, red, yellow and white, you can select other colours (still
of course only 4 at a time) by using VDU 19, as we saw on
page 10. See page 382 for more details of VDU 19.
So far we have been working in command mode. Next try
typing in this program. You can use mode 7 to type the
program in but nothing will happen until you run the program.
So, press BREAK and then the following
10 MODE 5
20 VDU 24, 0; 0; 500; 1000;
30 VDU 28,10,20,19,5
40 COLOUR 129
50 COLOUR 2
60 GCOL 0,130
70 CLS : CLG
80 FOR N=1 TO 1000
90 PRINT "LINE"; N
100 GCOL 0, RND(4)
110 DRAW RND(500), RND(1000)
120 NEXT N
RUN
You might like to try saving this program on cassette as
described in section 5.

61
9 More on variables

In an earlier section the idea of ‘variables’ was introduced.

Variables are a fundamental concept in computing, and it is not
possible to go far without understanding them.
As we have seen, it is possible to say
LET X = 12
or just
X = 12
and the computer knows that it must label a ‘box’ in its
memory with the name X and that the current value of X is 12.
With a variable it is possible to alter the value of what is in the
‘box’ but not the name of the ‘box’ itself. The statement
X = 14
simply changes the value of X from 12 to 14. Similarly we can
say
X = X+1
which looks rather odd – like an equation which does not
balance. In fact all that this is doing is saying to the computer –
whatever the value inside your box ‘X’, make it increase by 1
from now on.
So far we have considered only ‘numeric’ variables – that is,
variables which contain numbers and on which arithmetic can
be carried out. But the computer has letters and symbols of
various kinds on its keyboard – what about them?

Numbers and characters

Although we can talk of the ‘number’ 22, we can also consider
22 as a pair of characters – in the same way as A, B, C, ?, $ are
characters. In computing it is important to be able to
distinguish between numbers and characters. Arithmetic can
be carried out on numbers but not on characters. To give you
62
an example to show that this is not such an esoteric idea,
consider 22. We can divide 22 by 2 and get 11 if 22 is taken to be
a ‘number’. But if we talked about a train leaving ‘Platform 22’,
the 22 here would be a pair of characters. You cannot, with a
great deal of meaning, divide ‘Platform 22’ by 2 and get
‘Platform 11’.

Next it’s important to have a look at the other major kind of

variable used in computing – one which can hold characters,
not numbers. This is called a ‘string’ variable.

String variables
String variables are used to store “strings of characters” e.g.
words. They can be recognised easily because they always end
with a dollar sign. Here are a few examples of string variables
containing various strings of characters. Note that these strings
must be enclosed by quotation marks.

X$ = "HELLO"
DAY$ = "SUNDAY 3RD JANUARY"
NAME$ = "ALEX"
In the first example X$ is called a string variable and HELLO is
called a string. Once X$ has been set to contain HELLO we can
use statements like
PRINT X$
in just the same way as we said on page 24.
Z = 5
PRINT Z
String variables can be used to hold any number of characters
between zero (empty) and 255 (full)
X$ = "" will empty X$
X$ = "A" will set X$ to contain 1 character
Of course you cannot use ordinary arithmetic on string
variables. For example
NAME$ = "SUSAN"
PRINT NAME$ / 10
does not make sense. You can’t divide Susan’s name into 10
parts. Whilst you can add, subtract, multiply and divide using

63
numeric variables the only similar operation that can be carried
out on a string variables is that of “addition”. Thus
10 A$ = "TODAY IS "
20 B$ = "SUNDAY"
30 C$ = A$ + B$
40 PRINT C$
>RUN
TODAY IS SUNDAY
The importance of understanding string variables cannot be
over-emphasized. Later sections develop the idea.

How numbers and letters are stored in the

computer’s memory
Each memory location in the computer can be used to store any
number between, and including, 0 and 255, and yet some way
has to be found to store letters and also very large numbers. A
number of codes are used in the computer in much the same
way that different groups of people have used different codes
to count. Thus the number 1982 can also he written as
MCMLXXXII in Roman numerals
or 1982 in decimal Arabic numerals
or 7BE in hexadecimal Arabic
or 11110111110 in binary.
The need to transmit and store letters has produced another set
of codes. The letter “J” is coded in various ways thus
.--- in Morse
1001010 in ascii binary
4A in ascii hexadecimal
74 in ascii decimal.
The ascii (American Standard Code for Information
Interchange), is by far the most common code used by
computers to represent characters. A complete code table is
given on page 490.
When you tell the computer
A$ = "HELLO"
it stores the ascii codes for the letters in the word HELLO in
successive memory locations. The fact that they are stored as

64
ascii codes is really irrelevant – as far as the user is concerned,
it just works. However, there are times when the user needs to
know about the ascii codes and two functions are provided to
convert between “characters” and ascii codes.
The function ASC converts a character into its ascii code. Thus
PRINT ASC("J")
would print 74.
The reverse function, of converting an ascii code into a
character, is performed by CHR$.
Thus PRINT CHR$(74) would print the letter J. In fact,
one quite often needs to use PRINT CHR$, so there is a
further shortened version of that statement. It is VDU. So
VDU 74 would also print the letter J.
Those doing more complicated programming will need to
know the exact way that the computer stores strings and
numerics in memory. Full information is given at the end of
section 39.
Real and Integer Variables
The numeric variables you have met so far are technically
known as “real variables”. They can be used to store any
number between
170 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 (1.7´1038)
and 0.000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 0012
(1.2´10-39), and can include a decimal point. Of course a similar
range of negative numbers can be stored too. The problem with
real numbers is that they are only stored to 9 figure accuracy,
nonetheless this is quite accurate enough for most purposes.
Another type of numeric variable is an ‘integer’ variable.
Integer variable names are distinguished by having a percent
sign as the last character of the variable name. They can only
store whole numbers between –2,147,483,648 and 2,147,483,647.
On the other hand integer variables are held with complete
accuracy – so accounting problems can be dealt with to the
nearest penny in £2M. Arithmetic calculations with integer
variables are significantly faster than with real variables. (See
section 32 for other suggestions for speeding up programs).
The two integer operators MOD and DIV are described on page
130.

65
The variables A% to Z% are special in that they are
permanently allocated space in memory. Typing RUN or NEW
does not destroy them. As a result the variables A% to Z% can
be set in one program and then used in another program later
on without losing their values. Of course the values will be lost
if the machine is switched off but otherwise they will remain,
even if BREAK is pressed. The welcome cassette uses the
variable M%, to inform each of the individual programs
whether or not the user’s cassette recorder has got automatic
motor control.
The variables A% to Z% are called the Resident Integer Variables.

Summary
Three main types of variables are supported in this version of
basic: they are integer, real and string.

integer real string

example 346 9.847 “HELLO”

typical variable A% A A$
names SIZE% SIZE SIZE$
maximum size 2,147,483,647 1.7´1038 255 characters
accuracy 1 digit 9 sig figs —
stored in 32 bits 40 bits ASCII values

All variable names can contain as many characters as required

and all characters are used to identify the variable. Variable
names may contain capital letters, lower case letters and
numbers and the underline character. Variable names must
start with a letter and must not start with a basic keyword.

66
10 PRINT formatting
and cursor control

This section describes the PRINT statement which is used to

put text on the screen or to a printer. It assumes that you
understand that a variable (such as X) can be used to hold a
number and that a string variable (such as A$) can be used to
hold a line of text.
The following program will help to illustrate some of the ideas.
Press BREAK and then type in the following program.
10 X=8
20 A$="HELLO"
30 PRINT X, X, X
When this is run it produces this:
>RUN
8 8 8
This shows that commas separating items in the print list (the
print list is the list of things to be printed – X,X,X in this case)
will force items to be printed in columns or ‘fields’ ten
characters wide. Numbers are printed at the right hand side of
each column whereas words are printed on the left hand side.
You can see the difference if we add some lines to the program.
10 X=8
20 A$="HELLO"
30 PRINT X,X/2,X/4
40 PRINT A$,A$,A$
>RUN
8 4 2
HELLO HELLO HELLO
field
width

67
Field widths in different screen modes
As we said above, the width of each ‘field’ is automatically set
to ten characters when the computer is switched on.
Since the computer can operate in different screen modes,
displaying either 20 or 40 or 80 characters to the line, clearly the
number of fields which can be displayed on the screen will
differ depending on the mode. So try typing in a new line and
re-running the program above.
5 MODE 5
or, if you have a model B machine
5 MODE 0

80 character modes 40 character modes 20 character modes

(modes 0 and 3) (modes 1, 4, 6 and 7) (modes 2 and 5)

Note: the widths of the fields can be altered by the use of a

special command @% (see page 70).
So commas between items in the print list always put things in
columns or ‘fields’. On the other hand semi-colons between
items in the print list cause items to be printed next to each
other, without spaces:
10 X=8
20 A$="HELLO"
30 PRINT A$; X; A$; X; X
>RUN
HELLO8HELLO88
Of course if the first item is a number it will be printed to the
right of a ‘field’ unless it is preceded by a semi colon.
10 X=8
20 A$="HELLO"
30 PRINT X; A$; A$

68
>RUN
8HELLOHELLO
or
10 X=8
20 A$="HELLO"
30 PRINT ;X;A$;A$
>RUN
8HELLOHELLO

As well as printing variables and string variables as shown

above the computer can print any characters placed in between
pairs of inverted commas exactly as they have been typed in,
providing they are in a print statement. The next program asks
for your name and remembers it in the string variable N$.
10 PRINT "WHAT IS YOUR NAME ";
20 INPUT N$
30 PRINT "HELLO ";N$;". HOW ARE
YOU?"
>RUN
WHAT IS YOUR NAME ?JOHN
HELLO JOHN. HOW ARE YOU?
Notice the semi-colon at the end of line 10 that makes the
computer stay on the same line while it waits for you to provide
it with a value for N$. Without the semi-colon this happens:
>RUN
WHAT IS YOUR NAME
?JOHN
HELLO JOHN. HOW ARE YOU?
Note also the space after the word HELLO and before the word
HOW in line 30. Without these spaces the words run together to
produce.
HELLOJOHN.HOW ARE YOU?
It is quite legitimate to do calculations in a print list – for
example
10 X=4.5
20 PRINT X,X+2,X/3,X*X
>
>RUN
4.5 6.5 1.5 20.25

69
but look what happens if instead of X = 4.5 we put X = 7
10 X=7
20 PRINT X,X+2,X/3,X*X
>RUN
7 92.33333333 49
because X/3 is 2.33333333 it makes the number move left in the
field until it immediately follows the previous field which
contains a 9 and appears to give a result 92.33333333, which is
misleading. For this reason, amongst others, the next section is
important if you want to print out a lot of numbers.

Altering the width of the field and the way in which

numbers are printed
It is often useful to be able to specify the width of the field
when printing columns of figures or words and also to be able
to specify the number of decimal places to which numbers will
be printed.
On the BBC Microcomputer this can be done by setting a
special ‘variable’ (called @%) in a particular way. For the
moment this must be treated as a bit of ‘magic’ but, for
example, if we write
@%=&20209
then this statement tells the computer to print in a field 9
characters wide, and that numbers will be printed with a fixed
number of decimal places – in this case, to 2 decimal places.
The following program shows this being used:
5 @%=&20209
10 X=7
20 PRINT X,X+2,X/3,X*X
>RUN
7.00 9.00 2.33 49.00

For the more technically minded

@% is made up of a number of parts
& 2 02 09
(Means Format 2 decimal field width
Hexadecimal number 2 i.e. places of 9
numbers fixed number characters
follow) of decimal places

70
@%=&20309 would give Format 2, 3 decimal places and field
width of 9 characters.
5 @%=&20309
10 X=7
20 PRINT X,X+2,X/3,X*X
>RUN
7.000 9.000 2.333 49.000
If you want 4 decimal places and a field width of 12 you would
put the following
5 @%=&2040C
10 X=7
20 PRINT X,X+2,X/3,X*X
>RUN
7.0000 9.0000 2.3333
49.0000
The & tells the computer that the numbers which follow are
‘hexadecimal’ numbers – that is, numbers based not on 10s but
on 16s. For the sake of completeness, here is a list of
hexadecimal numbers (which include the letters A to F)
Decimal number Hex number
0 0
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6
7 7
8 8
9 9
10 A
11 B
12 C
13 D
14 E
15 F
16 10
17 11
18 12
19 13
20 14
71
A few points:
1 The maximum number of significant figures is 9
2 Format 1 gives Figures as exponential values
Format 2 gives figures to a fixed number of decimal places
Format 0 is the ‘normal’ configuration
3 To set the print format back to its normal value (Format 0
and field width 10), set @%=10

TAB(X)
As well as controlling the print layout by using the comma and
semi-colon one can use the TAB statement to start printing at a
particular place on the screen. You will remember that there
can be 20, 40 or 80 characters to the line depending on the
mode. mode 7 has 40 characters. Try this:
10 PRINT "012345678901234567890"
20 F=16
30 REPEAT
40 PRINT TAB(10);F;TAB(15);2*F
50 F=F+1
60 UNTIL F=18
>
>RUN
012345678901234567890
16 32
17 34
TAB(10) prints the value of F ten spaces from the left and
then TAB(15) prints the value of 2*F fifteen spaces from the
left, on the same line. Note the semi-colon after TAB(10) –
this causes the computer to begin printing at that point.
Be sure to place an open bracket immediately after the word
TAB. If you leave a space between them, thus: TAB (10) the
computer will not understand and will report
No such variable
If you are beyond the place that you tell the computer to tab to,
for example in position 15 with a request to TAB(10), then
the computer moves to the next line and then tabs ten spaces.

72
Type in this replacement line
40 PRINT TAB(15);F;TAB(10);2*F
>RUN
012345678901234567890
16
32
17
34

TAB(X,Y)
A useful extension of the TAB statement allows print to be
placed at any specific character location anywhere on the
screen. You will remember that in MODE 7 the text
co-ordinates are
0 X 39
0

24

This program counts to 1000, printing as it goes

5 CLS
10 Q=1
20 REPEAT
30 PRINT TAB(18,5);Q
40 Q=Q+1
50 UNTIL Q=1000
The two numbers in the brackets after TAB represent the X and
Y text co-ordinates where printing should start (see also the
program on page 132).

Advanced print positioning

Using PRINT TAB(X,Y) allows text etc to be printed in
any character ‘cell’ in the appropriate MODE. In mode 5 there
are 20 cells across the screen and 32 cells (lines) down the

73
screen. Sometimes it is useful to be able to position characters
on a much finer grid. The statement VDU 5 enables text to be
printed at the exact position of the graphics cursor. The
statement MOVE can be used to position text. Note that this will
not work in mode 7. You will remember that the graphics screen
is addressed thus
1023

0
0 X 1279
in all modes except mode 7.
A few sums will show that each character cell is 32 graphic
units high and, in a 40 character mode such as mode 4, 32 units
wide. Suppose we want to subscript a letter to produce for
example the chemical formula H2 this can he done as follows
10 MODE 4
20 VDU 5
30 MOVE 500,500
40 PRINT "H";
50 MOVE 532,484
60 PRINT "2"
70 VDU 4
Note that the letter H is positioned with its top left corner at
500,500. The 2 is then printed one character to the right (532)
and half a character down (484). Again the top left of 2 is at
532,484.
A neater way of achieving the same effect is to replace line 50
with
PLOT 0,0,-16
One further feature of the BBC computer which is not normally
available on “personal” computers is the ability to superimpose

74
characters. One obvious use of this facility is to generate special
effects such as accents and true underlining. The short
program below prints the word rôle with the accent
correctly placed.
10 MODE 4
20 VDU 5
30 X=500
40 Y=500
50 MOVE X,Y
60 PRINT "role"
70 MOVE X+32,Y+16
80 PRINT"^"
90 VDU 4
Once in VDU 5 mode the screen will not scroll up if you reach
the bottom of the page, instead the writing will start from the
top of the screen again. In addition characters will be
superimposed on those already on the screen. When in VDU 5
mode you can only print things in the graphics window and
not in the text window, and colour is selected with the GCOL
statement. VDU 5 will not work in text-only modes such as
modes 3, 6 and 7.

Cursor control
The text cursor is the flashing line on the screen which shows
where text will appear if it is typed in on the keyboard. The text
cursor also indicates where text will be printed on the screen by
a PRINT statement. The cursor can be moved around the
screen by a number of special “control codes” amongst which
are
code effect
8 move cursor left
9 move cursor right
10 move cursor down
11 move cursor up
These code numbers can be used either with the VDU
command e.g. to move left four spaces, use either
VDU 8,8,8,8
or
PRINT CHR$(8);CHR$(8);CHR$(8);CHR$(8);

75
clearly the VDU command is simpler to type in in most cases.
In addition to the codes shown above the user can use the
PRINT TAB(X,Y) statement to move the cursor directly to
any character position on the screen. As we’ve seen in mode 7
the screen can contain up to 25 lines (numbered 0 to 24) of up
to 40 characters per line.

0 X 39
0

24

The position marked on the diagram above is 18 positions

across and 6 lines down. The cursor could be moved directly
there with the statement
PRINT TAB(18,6);
Note that the opening bracket must immediately follow the
word TAB thus TAB( and not TAB (.
Exactly the same effect can be obtained with the statement
VDU 31,18,6
The cursor can be moved to the “home” position at the top left
of the screen with the statement
VDU 30
If the user wishes to clear the screen as well as move the cursor
to the home position then he or she can use the statement
VDU 12
The last of the VDU commands directly to do with cursor
control is
VDU 127 which moves the cursor left and deletes the
character there. If you wish to delete the next four characters

76
and then return the cursor to its initial place you could use
VDU 9,9,9,9,127,127,127,127

Cursor ON/OFF
In some applications the flashing cursor can be a distraction.
It can be turned off with the statement
VDU 23,1,0;0;0;0;
and can be turned back on with the statement
VDU 23,1,1;0;0;0;
or by changing screen mode with the MODE statement.

Note: In version 0.1 of the operating system the statement

VDU 23;8202;0;0;0;
must be used to turn the cursor off.

77
11 Input
The previous section showed how to get information out of the
computer and on to the screen. This section deals with getting
things from the keyboard into the computer. When a program
is running there will often be a need for it to request some
information from the person at the keyboard.
10 PRINT "HOW OLD ARE YOU"
20 INPUT AGE
30 IF AGE<18 THEN PRINT "YOU ARE TOO
YOUNG AT ";
40 IF AGE=18 THEN PRINT
"CONGRATULATIONS ON BEING ";
50 IF AGE>18 THEN PRINT "YOU ARE
PAST IT IF YOU ARE ";
70 PRINT ;AGE
>RUN
HOW OLD ARE YOU
?22
YOU ARE PAST IT IF YOU ARE 22
Line 20 of the above program prints a question mark on the
screen and then takes in everything that is typed on the
keyboard until RETURN is pressed. Line 20 says INPUT AGE
so the computer is expecting a number since AGE is a numeric
variable rather than a string variable (see section 9). If words
are supplied instead of numbers then the computer assumes
that the number is zero.
>RUN
HOW OLD ARE YOU
?I DON'T KNOW
YOU ARE TOO YOUNG AT 0
Because line 20 said INPUT AGE a number was expected. If
you want to INPUT a string (word or group of words) then
you must place a string variable (e.g. NAME$) on the input
line.

78
 10 PRINT "WHAT IS YOUR NAME"
20 INPUT NAME$
30 PRINT "HELLO ";NAME$;" HOW ARE
YOU?"
>RUN
WHAT IS YOUR NAME
?JOHN
HELLO JOHN HOW ARE YOU?
You must follow the word INPUT with a numeric variable if
you are expecting a number and with a string variable if you
are expecting a string.
As you will have seen from the examples above you usually
need to print a question on the screen to tell the person at the
keyboard what you are waiting for. In the last example the
question was “What is your name”. Instead of placing this in a
separate PRINT statement you can include the question on the
INPUT statement.

20 INPUT "WHAT IS YOUR NAME ",NAME$

30 PRINT "HELLO ";NAME$;" HOW ARE
YOU?"
>RUN
WHAT IS YOUR NAME ?SUSAN
HELLO SUSAN HOW ARE YOU?
Notice the punctuation between the question “What is your
name” and the string variable NAME$. It is a comma. Notice
also that the computer printed a question mark after the
question when the program was run. It always prints a
question mark on an INPUT statement if a comma is used to
separate the question from the string variable. If you leave the
comma out of the program the computer will leave the
question mark out when the program is RUN.
20 INPUT "WHAT IS YOUR NAME " NAME$
30 PRINT "HELLO ";NAME$;" HOW ARE
YOU?"

>RUN
WHAT IS YOUR NAME STEPHEN ALLEN
HELLO STEPHEN ALLEN HOW ARE YOU?

79
The INPUT statement, which we have explored above,
requires that the user presses the RETURN key after he or she
has entered the reply. Until the RETURN key is pressed the
user can delete errors with the DELETE key or delete the
whole entry so far with CTRL U.
Several inputs can be requested at one time. If you type
10 INPUT A,B
20 PRINT A,B
two numbers will be expected by the computer. They can either
be typed in separated by commas, or both can be followed by
RETURN.
The INPUT statement will ignore leading spaces and anything
after a comma unless the reply is inside quotation marks.
10 INPUT A$
20 PRINT A$

>RUN
?ABC,DEF
ABC
The INPUT LINE statement can be used in the same way as
INPUT, but it will accept everything that is typed, including
leading spaces and commas. Replace line 10 by
10 INPUT LINE A$

>RUN
?ABC,DEF
ABC,DEF
Of course if you make the program
10 INPUT A$,B$
20 PRINT A$,B$
you will get
>RUN
ABC,DEF
ABC DEF
because now two different inputs are needed in line 10

80
12 GET, INKEY

Sometimes it is useful to be able to detect a key as soon as it is

pressed without having to wait for the RETURN key to be
pressed. For example most games react immediately a key is
pressed. There are a group of four functions which respond to
single keystrokes:
GET
GET$
INKEY
INKEY$
The GET and GET$ functions wait until a key is pressed
whereas the INKEY and INKEY$ pair give up after a while if
no key is pressed.
100 A$ = GET$
will wait (for ever) until a key is pressed whereas
100 A$ = INKEY$(200)
will wait for only 2 seconds (200 hundredths of a second). If no
key is pressed within 2 seconds then the computer will move
on to the next line of the program and A$ will be empty. If a
key was pressed after say one second then the computer will
immediately move on to the next line of the program and will
put the “character typed” into A$.

100 PRINT "DO YOU WANT TO GO ON"

110 PRINT "YOU HAVE 2 SECONDS TO
REPLY"
120 A$=INKEY$(200)
130 IF A$="" THEN PRINT "TOO LATE YOU
MISSED IT"
140 IF A$="Y" THEN PRINT "COURAGEOUS
FOOL!"
150 IF A$="N" THEN PRINT "COWARD"

81
One of the most common uses of GET$ is to wait at the bottom
of a page for a person to press any key when they are ready to
go on
100 A$ = GET$
GET and INKEY are very similar to GET$ and INKEY$ but
instead of returning a character which can be put into a string
variable they return a number which is the ascii code of the
character. The ascii code of “Y” is 89 and the ascii code of “N”
is 78, so the last program could be re-written as
100 PRINT "DO YOU WANT TO GO ON"
110 PRINT "YOU HAVE 2 SECONDS TO
REPLY"
120 A=INKEY(200)
130 IF A=-1 THEN PRINT "TOO LATE YOU
MISSED IT"
140 IF A=89 THEN PRINT "COURAGEOUS
FOOL!"
150 IF A=78 THEN PRINT "COWARD"
You will see that “no reply” returns the value –1 when using
INKEY and returns an empty string when using INKEY$.

Advanced features
Another important use of INKEY and GET is with the group
of four direction keys at the top of the keyboard. Normally
these are used for editing but a special statement can make
these keys produce ascii codes like all the other keys on the
keyboard. They can then be used by a program for some special
purpose – for example to move a point around the screen. The
statement *FX 4,1 makes the editing keys produce ascii
codes and the statement *FX 4,0 returns the keys to their
editing function. The keys produce the following codes
COPY 135 or (&87)
f 136 or (&88)
g 137 or (&89)
i 138 or (&8A)
h 139 or (&8B)
For example:
10 *FX 4,1
20 MODE 4

82
 30 X=500
40 Y=500
50 REPEAT
60 PLOT 69,X,Y
70 K=GET
80 IF K=136 THEN X=X-4
90 IF K=137 THEN X=X+4
100 IF K=138 THEN Y=Y-4
110 IF K=139 THEN Y=Y+4
120 UNTIL Y=0
130 *FX 4,0
This program waits at line 70 for a key to be pressed. The
program shown above would often be part of a much larger
program in which case one would not want everything to stop
until a key is pressed. Here it would be better to use
K=INKEY(0) at line 70 which will let the computer have a
quick look to see if a key has been pressed but not wait at all.
10 *FX 4,1
20 MODE 4
30 X=500
40 Y=500
50 REPEAT
60 PLOT 69,X,Y
70 K=INKEY(0)
80 IF K=136 THEN X=X-4
90 IF K=137 THEN X=X+4
100 IF K=138 THEN Y=Y-4
110 IF K=139 THEN Y=Y+4
120 UNTIL Y=0
130 *FX 4,0

83
13 TIME, RND

TIME
The BBC computer contains an ‘elapsed time’ clock. That
means that the clock ticks away at a hundred ticks per second
but it does not know the real time. However, you can set it and
read it. Once set it will stay running until you turn the power
off or you do a ‘hard reset’ (see page 142). It can be set to any
value, for example 0,
TIME = 0
This program will print a running stopwatch in the middle of
the screen:
5 CLS
10 T = TIME
20 PRINT TAB(10,12);(TIME-T)/100;
30 GOTO 20
There is a program to print a 24 hour clock on page 131.

RND
When writing games (and simulations), we very often want the
computer to make a random choice – or to pick a random
number. The most useful function for this is RND(X) which
picks a random number between 1 and X. The program below
prints out a new random number between 1 and 6 every time a
key is pressed: rather like throwing a dice.
10 PRINT RND(6)
20 G=GET
30 GOTO 10
and this program draws random triangles in random colours
10 MODE 5
20 PLOT 85,RND(1200),RND(1000)
30 GCOL 0,RND(3)
40 GOTO 20

84
Sometimes it is useful to be able to re-set the random number
generator to a known value. That may sound a bit strange but
when testing a program it is sometimes convenient to have a
predictable set of “random numbers”! To do this the number in
brackets after the RND must be a negative number. Thus
X=RND(-8) will ensure that the number sequence resulting
from RND(6) is repeatable.

85
Structure within
BASIC
When building a house there are a number of options: one can
chop trees down and tie them together to form a hut, one could
use straw and mud if one had the skill to deal with those
materials or one can use ‘building blocks’ like windows, doors
and bricks. Whichever materials one selects the planning and
construction is made much easier if one has a clear
understanding of the available structures.
The same type of argument applies when writing a computer
program to solve a particular problem. A number of program
structures are available and it is well worth while learning what
each can do. If you are attempting a trivial job (making an
orange box or adding up a set of numbers) then little or no
planning is needed. On the other hand, building an extension to
your house or writing a computer program to play a game does
require planning if it is not going to ‘crash’ without warning.
This planning will involve the use of a number of ‘structures’.
Here are the main structures available on the BBC computer.
REPEAT...UNTIL
FOR...NEXT
IF...THEN...ELSE
PROCEDURES
FUNCTIONS
GOSUB
ON...GOTO
ON...GOSUB

86
14 REPEAT, UNTIL,
TRUE, FALSE

Computers are fundamentally pretty stupid things but their

power comes from their ability to repeat things many times –
sometimes many millions of times in one second. In this
version of basic two types of repeating loops can be used.
They are called REPEAT...UNTIL and FOR...NEXT
loops. This section explains REPEAT...UNTIL loops and
the next chapter deals with FOR...NEXT loops.
Do you remember the story about a man starting with one
grain of rice and doubling it each time he won a bet? How
many times would he have to double his grains of rice to own
more than a million grains? In the following program C is a
counter showing how many times the number of grains has
doubled and X represents the number of grains of rice.
10 X=1
20 C=0
30 REPEAT
40 X=X*2
50 C=C+1
60 UNTIL X>1000000
70 PRINT C,X
>RUN
20 1048576
Lines 30 to 60 are called a REPEAT...UNTIL loop and
everything within the loop is repeated until X is greater than
one million.
The “terminating condition” in this program is that X is greater
than 1000000.
The next program terminates after 15 seconds. Line 40 reads
the starting time and the program repeats until the present

87
time minus the starting time is greater than 1500 hundredths of
a second – the internal clock ticks a hundred times a second.
10 PRINT "SEE HOW MANY SUMS YOU"
20 PRINT "CAN DO IN 15 SECONDS"
30 PRINT
40 STARTTIME=TIME
50 REPEAT
60 F=RND(12)
70 G=RND(12)
80 PRINT "WHAT IS ";F;" TIMES "G;
90 INPUT H
100 IF H=F*G THEN PRINT "CORRECT"
ELSE PRINT "WRONG"
110 PRINT
120 UNTIL TIME-STARTTIME>1500
130 PRINT "TIME UP"
>RUN
SEE HOW MANY SUMS YOU
CAN DO IN 15 SECONDS
WHAT IS 6 TIMES 9?72
WRONG
WHAT IS 1 TIMES 4?4
CORRECT
WHAT IS 9 TIMES 8?72
CORRECT
TIME UP
REPEAT...UNTIL loops are very useful and should be
used frequently. The next program selects random letters (line
20) and times how long it takes you to find and press the
appropriate key. It uses two REPEAT...UNTIL loops.
One of them is used to wait for a particular key to be pressed
on the keyboard.

88
 10 REPEAT
20 Z=RND(26)+64
30 PRINT
40 PRINT "PRESS THE KEY MARKED ";
CHR$(Z)
50 T=TIME
60 REPEAT UNTIL GET=Z
70 PRINT "THAT TOOK YOU"(TIME-T)/100
" SECONDS"
80 UNTIL Z=0
>RUN
PRESS THE KEY MARKED Y
THAT TOOK YOU 1.1 SECONDS
PRESS THE KEY MARKED G
THAT TOOK YOU 1.03 SECONDS
Lines 10 and 80 are the main loop and line 60 is a single line
REPEAT...UNTIL loop.
Look at line 80. This will stop the REPEAT...UNTIL loop if
Z=0. However Z is calculated in line 20 and will have a value
between 65 and 90. It will never equal zero, so the program will
never stop of its own accord – you have to press the ESCAPE
key.
Line 80 says
80 UNTIL Z=0
Z = 0 will never be “true”. Z = 0 will always be “false”, so line
80 can be replaced with
80 UNTIL FALSE
which just means “go on for ever”. This is a far better way of
doing things than using Z=0 because you might decide to
change Z next time you looked at the program. It is also better
to use REPEAT...UNTIL loops in this way than to put at
line 80
80 GOTO 20
Using REPEAT...UNTIL keeps this section of the program
neatly together. See page 117 for a comment on GOTO.

89
If you delete line 10, then the computer will meet an UNTIL
statement at line 80 with no idea of where the loop is meant to
start
>RUN
PRESS THE KEY MARKED A
THAT TOOK YOU 2.09 SECONDS
No REPEAT at line 80
In summary REPEAT...UNTIL should be used for loops
which must terminate on some specific condition.

90
15 FOR…NEXT

This structure makes the computer repeat a number of

statements a fixed number of times. Try the following
10 FOR X = 8 TO 20
20 PRINT X, X+X
30 NEXT X
>RUN
8 16
9 18
10 20
11 22
12 24
13 26
14 28
15 30
16 32
17 34
18 36
19 38
20 40
You can see that the computer looped through line 20 with X
taking on the value 8, then 9, then 10 etc up to 20. Each time
around, the loop X increased by 1. The “step size” can be
changed easily.
10 FOR X = 8 TO 20 STEP 2.5
20 PRINT X, X+X
30 NEXT X

>RUN
8 16
10.5 21
13 26
15.5 31
18 36

91
In the two previous examples the value of X (which is called
the “control variable”) increased each time around the loop.
The “control variable” can be made to decrease by using a
negative step size.
10 FOR S = 100 TO 90 STEP -1
20 PRINT S,S/2,S/5
30 NEXT
>RUN
100 50 20
99 49.5 19.8
98 49 19.6
97 48.5 19.4
96 48 19.2
95 47.5 19
94 47 18.8
93 46.5 18.6
92 46 18.4
91 45.5 18.2
90 45 18
Here is a program which uses several FOR...NEXT loops.
Some are ‘nested’ within each other in the way that one
REPEAT...UNTIL loop was included within another.
10 FOR ROW = 1 TO 6
20 FOR STAR = 1 TO 10
30 PRINT "*";
40 NEXT STAR
50 FOR STRIPE = 1 TO 20
60 PRINT "=";
70 NEXT STRIPE
80 PRINT
90 NEXT ROW
100 FOR ROW = 1 TO 5
110 FOR STRIPE = 1 TO 30
120 PRINT "=";
130 NEXT STRIPE
140 PRINT
150 NEXT ROW

92
>RUN
**********====================
**********====================
**********====================
**********====================
**********====================
**********====================
==============================
==============================
==============================
==============================
==============================
The listing shown above is not very easy to follow – try typing
LISTO 7
and then re-listing the program.
>LISTO 7
>
>LIST
10 FOR ROW = 1 TO 6
20 FOR STAR = 1 TO 10
30 PRINT "*";
40 NEXT STAR
50 FOR STRIPE = 1 TO 20
60 PRINT "=";
70 NEXT STRIPE
80 PRINT
90 NEXT ROW
100 FOR ROW = 1 TO 5
110 FOR STRIPE = 1 TO 30
120 PRINT "=";
130 NEXT STRIPE
140 PRINT
150 NEXT ROW
This causes each of the “nested” FOR...NEXT loops to be
indented which can make it easier to follow.
Lines 20 to 40 print out 10 stars
Lines 50 to 70 print out 20 equal signs
and Lines 10 and 90 ensure that the above are repeated 6 times.
Lines 100 to 150 print out 5 rows of 30 equal signs.
(With apologies to the USA for modifying their flag!)

93
A note on LISTO
LISTO stands for LIST Option and it is followed by a number
in the range 0 to 7. Each number has a special effect and details
are given on page 290. However, the two most useful values
are 0 and 7.
LISTO 0 lists the program exactly as it is stored in memory
LISTO 1 lists the program with one space after each line
number. Many programs in this book have been
listed like this.
LISTO 7 lists the program with one space after the line
number, and two extra spaces every time a
FOR...NEXT loop or a REPEAT...UNTIL
loop is detected.
If you are using the screen editor then make sure that you list
the program with LISTO0 or else you will copy all those
extra spaces into the line!
A few points to watch when using FOR...NEXT loops
1 The loop always executes at least once
10 FOR X = 20 TO 0
20 PRINT X
30 NEXT
>RUN
20
The loop finishes with the “control variable” larger than the
terminating value. In the next two examples the terminating
value is 10.
10 FOR Z = 0 TO 10 STEP 3
20 PRINT Z
30 NEXT
40 PRINT "OUT OF LOOP"
50 PRINT Z
>
>RUN
0
3
6
9
OUT OF LOOP
12

94
 10 FOR Z = 0 TO 10 STEP 5
20 PRINT Z
30 NEXT
40 PRINT "OUT OF LOOP"
50 PRINT Z
>
>RUN
0
5
10
OUT OF LOOP
15
Note that it is not necessary to say NEXT Z in line 30: it is
optional, though it could be argued that it is clearer to put the
Z in.
2 You should never jump out of a FOR...NEXT loop. It is
well accepted that this is poor style. If you do this your
programs will become extremely difficult to follow – there are
always better alternatives usually involving the use of a
procedure, or setting the control variable to a value greater
than the terminating value for example.
10 FOR X = 0 TO 1000
15 PRINT
20 PRINT "TYPE IN A SMALL NUMBER"
30 PRINT "OR ENTER -1 TO STOP THE
PROGRAM"
40 INPUT J
50 IF J=-1 THEN X = 2000
60 PRINT "12 TIMES ";J;" IS "; 12*J
70 NEXT X
>
>RUN

TYPE IN A SMALL NUMBER

OR ENTER -1 TO STOP THE PROGRAM
?32
12 TIMES 32 IS 384

95
TYPE IN A SMALL NUMBER
OR ENTER -1 TO STOP THE PROGRAM
?456
12 TIMES 456 IS 5472
TYPE IN A SMALL NUMBER
OR ENTER -1 TO STOP THE PROGRAM
?-1
12 TIMES -1 IS -12
The REPEAT...UNTIL loop provides a much better way of
dealing with this sort of problem.

3 If you omit the FOR statement an error will be generated.

First a correct program:
10 FOR X=1 TO 5
20 PRINT "HELLO"
30 NEXT
>RUN
HELLO
HELLO
HELLO
HELLO
HELLO
and then the program with line 10 deleted
20 PRINT "HELLO"
30 NEXT
>RUN
HELLO
No FOR at line 30

4 Every FOR statement should have a matching NEXT

statement. This can be easily checked by using LISTO 7 (list
option 7). If the FOR...NEXT loops are correctly nested then
the END in line 50 will line up with the FOR in line 5.
5 FOR H = 1 TO 4
10 FOR X = 1 TO 2
20 PRINT "HELLO",H,X
30 NEXT X
40 NEXT H
50 END

96
>LISTO 7
>LIST
5 FOR H= 1 TO 4
10 FOR X=1 TO 2
20 PRINT "HELLO",H,X
30 NEXT X
40 NEXT H
50 END
>RUN
HELLO 1 1
HELLO 1 2
HELLO 2 1
HELLO 2 2
HELLO 3 1
HELLO 3 2
HELLO 4 1
HELLO 4 2

If the NEXT X in line 30 is deleted the computer does its best to

make sense of the program.
5 FOR H = 1 TO 4
10 FOR X = 1 TO 2
20 PRINT "HELLO",H,X
40 NEXT H
50 END
>RUN
HELLO 1 1
HELLO 2 1
HELLO 3 1
HELLO 4 1
This is not the way to write programs! Mis-nested
FOR...NEXT loops will cause problems.

5 In summary FOR...NEXT loops should be used when

you wish to go around a loop a fixed number of times.

97
16 IF…THEN…ELSE
More on TRUE
and FALSE
The IF...THEN statement has been used in several of the
programs earlier in this book – for example, in the program on
page 88 which checked your multiplication. Line 100 was:
IF H=F*G THEN PRINT "CORRECT" ELSE
PRINT "WRONG"
As you will realise, this type of statement enables the computer
to make a choice as it is working its way through the program.
The actual choice that it makes will depend on the value of H, F
and G at the time. As a result, the same program can behave in
quite different ways in different circumstances.

Multiple statement lines

It was explained earlier (page 54) that you can put more than
one statement on a line and this can be particularly useful with
the IF...THEN statement. Take, for example,
10 X=4 : Y=6 : PRINT "HELLO"
20 PRINT X+Y : X=X+Y : PRINT X+Y
>RUN
HELLO
10
16
which is just the same as
10 X=4
20 Y=6
30 PRINT "HELLO"
40 PRINT X+Y
50 X=X+Y
60 PRINT X+Y

98
This helps to understand how the computer treats multiple
statement lines using the IF...THEN statement. In the first
example which follows, K=6 and therefore the computer obeys
everything after the word THEN until the word ELSE. Note
that a colon only separates statements – the word ELSE must
be found if you want the other course of action to follow.
10 K=6
20 IF K=6 THEN K=9: PRINT "K WAS 6"
ELSE PRINT "K WAS NOT 6": PRINT "END OF
LINE"
>RUN
K WAS 6
(Note that line 20 was so long that it overflowed on the printer
but it is all part of line 20.)
Changing line 10 to K=7 causes the computer to execute
everything after the ELSE and as a result it prints
K WAS NOT 6
END OF LINE
IF...THEN is often used with more complicated conditions
involving the words AND, OR and NOT for example
IF X=5 AND Y=6 THEN PRINT "GOOD"
IF X=5 OR Y=6 THEN PRINT "TOO LARGE"
The word NOT reverses the effect of a condition, thus
IF NOT (X=6) THEN PRINT "X NOT 6"
These are powerful features which are easy to use.

For the slightly more advanced

It was explained above that you can use multiple statement
lines with IF...THEN but this leads to messy programs. It is
far better to use procedures if you want a whole lot of things to
occur. Thus:
100 IF H=F*G THEN PROCGOOD ELSE
PROCBAD
This helps to keep the program readable which is very
important, not just from an aesthetic point of view but from the
very practical point that a readable program is much easier to
get right!

99
More on TRUE and FALSE
On page 89 the concept of true and false was introduced. A
variable can have a numeric value (e.g. 6 or 15) or it can be
TRUE or FALSE. In fact this is just playing with words (or
perhaps we should say numbers) since the computer
understands TRUE to have the value -1 and FALSE to have
the value 0.
10 IF 6=6 THEN PRINT "YES" ELSE
PRINT "NO"
>RUN
YES
This prints YES because 6=6 is true
5 H=-1
10 IF H THEN PRINT "YES" ELSE PRINT
"NO"
>RUN
YES
The above program prints YES because H is true since it has
the value –1.
5 H=0
10 IF H THEN PRINT "YES" ELSE PRINT
"NO"
>RUN
NO
This program sets H = FALSE at line 5 and so the program
prints NO. –1 implies true and 0 implies false. What about
other values of H? In fact all non-zero values (except non-
integers from –1 to +1) are regarded as true as the following
shows.
5 H=-55
10 IF H THEN PRINT "YES" ELSE PRINT
"NO"
>RUN
YES

100
Here are some other peculiar examples
10 G = (6=6)
20 PRINT G
>RUN
-1
because (6=6) is true.
10 IF 5-6 THEN PRINT "TRUE"
>RUN
TRUE
This works because (5-6) is –1 which is true.
These tricks are more than academic. They can be very useful –
not least sometimes in trying to fathom out what on earth the
computer thinks it is doing!

101
17 Procedures

The BBC computer has a very complete version of basic – often

called “Extended basic” and in addition it includes the ability
to define and use procedures and functions. It is probably the
first version of basic in the world to allow full procedure and
function handling. These extremely powerful features enable
the user to structure his or her programs easily and in addition
provide a real introduction to other computer languages like
pascal.
A procedure is a group of basic statements which can be
“called by name” from any part of a program.
10 REM REACT
20 REM JOHN A COLL
30 REM BASED ON AN IDEA BY THEO
BARRY, OUNDLE
40 REM VERSION 1 / 16 NOV 81
50 @%=&2020A
60 ON ERROR GOTO 470
70 MODE 7
80
90 PROCINTRO
100 REPEAT
110 PROCFIRE
120 PROCSCORE
130 UNTIL FNSTOP
140 END
150
160 DEF PROCINTRO
170 PRINT "This program tests your
reactions"
180 PRINT
190 PRINT "Press the space bar to
continue"
200 REPEAT UNTIL GET=32
210 CLS
102
 220 ENDPROC
230
240 DEF PROCFIRE
250 CLS
260 PRINT "Press the space bar"
270 PRINT "as soon as a cross
appears"
280 T=TIME
290 R=RND(200)+100
300 REPEAT UNTIL TIME>T+R
310 PRINT TAB(17,10);"+"
320 *FX 15,1
330 REPEAT UNTIL GET=32
340 DELAY=TIME-T-R
350 ENDPROC
360
370 DEF PROCSCORE
380 PRINT TAB(0,22);
390 PRINT "You took "; DELAY/100;"
seconds"
400 ENDPROC
410
420 DEF FNSTOP
430 PRINT"Do you want another go?"
440 REPLY$=GET$
450 = (REPLY$="N") OR (REPLY$="n")
460
470 @%=10
The program above shows how named procedures and
functions can be used. The main program is between line 90
and line 140
90 PROCINTRO
100 REPEAT
110 PROCFIRE
120 PROCSCORE
130 UNTIL FNSTOP
140 END

The program tests a person’s reactions by measuring how long

it takes him to notice a cross on the screen. As you will see
from the section above, line 90 calls a procedure which gives an

103
introduction. The procedure is called PROCINTRO and it
produces the following on the screen.
This program tests your reactions
Press the space bar to continue
Then the program repeats PROCFIRE and PROCSCORE
until the user indicates that he or she does not wish to
continue. PROCFIRE produces this
Press the space bar
as soon as a cross appears
+
and PROCSCORE produces this
You took 2.03 seconds
It all seems very straightforward and logical – and so it is.
Using procedures enables you to split a problem up into a
number of small manageable sections and to use (or call) those
sections with a sensible name. The main section of most
programs should be just a number of procedure calls as are
lines 90 to 140. The procedures themselves should be in a
separate section – after the END statement.
Let us examine PROCINTRO more closely
160 DEF PROCINTRO
170 PRINT "This program tests your
reactions"
180 PRINT
190 PRINT "Press the space bar to
continue"
200 REPEAT UNTIL GET=32
210 CLS
220 ENDPROC
Notice how it is defined: line 160 is the start of the definition
and the procedure ends at line 220 between those lines are
normal basic statements. Lines 170, 180 and 190 just print
messages on the screen. Line 200 waits until the space-bar is
pressed, after which line 210 clears the screen.
There are a number of more complex things that can be done
with procedures and another program will illustrate the use of
parameters – variables passed to the procedure from the main
program.

104
 10 REM HYPNO
20 REM TIM DOBSON / ACORN COMPUTERS
30 REM VERSION 2 / 16 NOV 81
40 MODE 5
50 VDU 29,640;512;
60
70 FOR X=510 TO 4 STEP -7
80 GCOL 0,X
90 PROCBOX(X)
100 NEXT
110
120 REPEAT
130 GCOL RND(4),RND(4)
140 FOR K=0 TO 500 STEP 8
150 PROCBOX(K)
160 NEXT K
170 GCOL RND(4),RND(4)
180 FOR K=500 TO 0 STEP -9
190 PROCBOX(K)
200 NEXT K
210 UNTIL FALSE
220 END
230
240 DEF PROCBOX(J)
250 MOVE -J,-J
260 DRAW -J,J
270 DRAW J,J
280 DRAW J,-J
290 DRAW -J,-J
300 ENDPROC
The program uses a procedure called PROCBOX which draws
a box. The size of the box is determined by the parameter J in
the procedure. However you will see that in line 90 the
procedure is called with the statement PROCBOX(X). The
initial value of X will be 510 because that is the starting value of
the FOR loop at line 70. This value of X (510) will be passed to
the parameter J in the procedure. As a result the procedure
PROCBOX will draw a box of “size” 510. J is called the “formal
parameter” for the procedure since it is used in the procedure
itself. However the X in line 90 and the K in line 150 are
referred to as actual parameters. Whatever value K has in line
150 will be transferred to the formal parameter J.

105
A procedure may have any number of parameters but there
must be exactly the same number of actual parameters when
the procedure is called as there are formal parameters in the
procedure definition. Thus if a procedure was defined like this
1000 DEF PROCSWITCH(A,B,C$)

1040 ENDPROC
it could not be called with a statement like
150 PROCSWITCH(X,Y)
but this would be acceptable
150 PROCSWITCH(length, height, NAME$)

Local variables in procedures

10 J=25
20 FOR X=1 TO 5
30 PROCNUM(X)
40 PRINT "OUT OF PROCEDURE J= ";J
50 NEXT X
60 END
70 DEF PROCNUM(J)
80 PRINT "IN PROCEDURE J= ";J
90 ENDPROC

>RUN
IN PROCEDURE J= 1
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 2
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 3
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 4
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 5
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25

In the program above the variable J is used in two ways. The

main program starts at line 10 and ends at line 60. The

106
procedure is defined between lines 70 and 90. Line 10 declares
that J has the value 25 and the value of J is not changed in the
main program. However J is used as the formal parameter in
the procedure. All formal parameters are local to the
procedure which means that their value is not known to the
rest of the program. Inside the procedure, J takes on the value
of the actual parameter X, but outside the procedure it has a
different value. The distinction is made between global
variables and local variables. Global variables are known to
the whole program, including procedures, whereas local
variables are only known to those procedures in which they are
defined and to procedures within that procedure.
In the program above, X is a global variable and it looks as if J
is global too, since it is defined in line 10 of the main program.
In fact that J is global but the use of the parameter J in the
procedure creates another variable J which is local to the
procedure. If a different parameter had been used in the
procedure definition then J would have remained global. Thus
in the print-out below the formal parameter has been changed
to K in line 70, which leaves J as a global variable.
10 J=25
20 FOR X=1 TO 5
30 PROCNUM(X)
40 PRINT "OUT OF PROCEDURE J= ";J
50 NEXT X
60 END
70 DEF PROCNUM(K)
80 PRINT "IN PROCEDURE J= ";J
90 ENDPROC

>RUN
IN PROCEDURE J= 25
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 25
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 25
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 25
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25
IN PROCEDURE J= 25
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 25

107
The program is pretty pointless in its present form for several
reasons – not least because it doesn’t actually do anything with
K in the procedure!
Now that J is global its value could be altered anywhere –
including inside the procedure. Line 75 increases J by 10:
10 J=25
20 FOR X=1 TO 5
30 PROCNUM(X)
40 PRINT "OUT OF PROCEDURE J= ";J
50 NEXT X
60 END
70 DEF PROCNUM(K)
75 J=J+10
80 PRINT "IN PROCEDURE J= ";J
90 ENDPROC
>RUN
IN PROCEDURE J= 35
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 35
IN PROCEDURE J= 45
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 45
IN PROCEDURE J= 55
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 55
IN PROCEDURE J= 65
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 65
IN PROCEDURE J= 75
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 75
It has been pointed out that all formal parameters are local to
the procedure in which they are defined (and to inner
procedures) but other variables can be declared as LOCAL if
required. We very often use the variable X as a counter for a
FOR...NEXT loop and as a result you have to be careful not
to use it twice in the same section of a program. Declaring X as
local to a procedure ensures that its use locally will not affect
the value of X outside the procedure.
10 J=25
20 FOR X=1 TO 5
30 PROCNUM(X)
40 PRINT "OUT OF PROCEDURE J= ";J
50 NEXT X
60 END

108
 70 DEF PROCNUM(K)
72 LOCAL X
75 FOR X=1 TO 10
80 J=J + J/X
85 NEXT X
90 ENDPROC
>RUN
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 275
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 3025
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 33275
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 366025
OUT OF PROCEDURE J= 4026275
In the program above, X is used twice – once in the main
program (lines 20 to 50) and secondly, and quite separately, as
a LOCAL variable in the procedure. J remains global.
It is wise to declare variables as LOCAL in procedures and
functions wherever possible (except when the variable is a
formal parameter).

109
18 Functions

Functions are in many ways similar to procedures but there

is one major difference – they always calculate a result which
may be a number or a string. basic already contains a
number of functions. For example the function SQR returns
the square root of a number. The square root of 16 is 4 so the
statements
Y = SQR(16)
and
PRINT SQR(16)
make sense. The first example calculates the square root of 16
and places the result in Y. Compare this to a procedure – for
example the one above, to draw a box. The procedure makes
things happen (a box appears on the screen) but it does not
produce a numeric or a string value. Functions always produce
a numeric or string result.
If you have a reasonable understanding of procedures and
parameters then you can probably cope with this example of a
function:
10 PRINT "GIVE ME THREE NUMBERS ";
20 INPUT A,B,C
30 PRINT "THE SUM OF THE NUMBERS IS
";
40 PRINT FNSUM(A,B,C)
50 END
100 DEF FNSUM(X,Y,Z)
105 LOCAL K
110 K=X+Y+Z
120 =K

GIVE ME THREE NUMBERS ?2,4,4

THE SUM OF THE NUMBERS IS 10
110
Again this program is not of much use – we are using a sledge
hammer to crack a nut – but we had better learn to walk before
we run!
The function is defined in lines 100 to 120 and three parameters
are passed to the function. A, B and C are the actual parameters
and the numbers in A, B and C are passed to formal parameters
X, Y and Z. For the sake of illustration a local variable K has
been used. Line 110 sets K equal to the sum of X, Y and Z. Line
120 shows the way in which a function is ended. It says that the
function FNSUM has the value of K.
The example above was spread out to show how a function can
be constructed – it could have been compressed to
10 PRINT "GIVE ME THREE NUMBERS ";
20 INPUT A,B,C
30 PRINT "THE SUM OF THE NUMBERS IS
";
40 PRINT FNSUM(A,B,C)
50 END
100 DEF FNSUM(X,Y,Z)
120 = X+Y+Z
or even to the single line function shown below
10 PRINT "GIVE ME THREE NUMBERS ";
20 INPUT A,B,C
30 PRINT "THE SUM OF THE NUMBERS IS
";
40 PRINT FNSUM(A,B,C)
50 END
100 DEF FNSUM(X,Y,Z) = X+Y+Z
Of course we could have managed without a function at all…
10 PRINT "GIVE ME THREE NUMBERS ";
20 INPUT A,B,C
30 PRINT "THE SUM OF THE NUMBERS IS
";
40 PRINT A+B+C
50 END
… and clearly that would have been the right thing to do in this
case. However as soon as your programs reach 40 or 50 lines

111
you should be using procedures extensively and functions
occasionally.
As mentioned at the start of this section, functions can be used
to calculate a numeric or a string result. The function which
follows returns the middle letter of a string. The string is
passed as a parameter
100 DEF FNMID(A$)
110 LOCAL L
120 L=LEN(A$)
140 =MID$(A$,L/2,1)
Again, the function is terminated by a statement starting with
an equal sign. To use the above function type in the following
additional lines
10 INPUT Z$
20 PRINT FNMID(Z$)
30 END
Notice that the function is placed beyond the END statement
where it will not be executed except by being called by name.

112
19 GOSUB

This statement allows the program temporarily to divert to

another section. Think about the process of writing a letter. In
essence it is quite straightforward – but in practice while the
main aim is to write the letter there are often quite a few
diversions like the need to get another sheet of paper or answer
the phone. These small “sub-tasks” are essential but if we write
a description of every single thing that occurred while writing a
letter the reader would probably be so confused that he or she
wouldn’t realise what the overall aim was. However if the job
is described as a series of subroutines or procedures then the
main task will emerge more clearly. The “subroutine” and the
GOSUB statement were introduced some years ago to help
those writing basic programs to break their programs up into
recognizable modules. In recent years more flexible and more
easily used tools have become available – namely Procedures
and Functions – and these two should be used in preference to
GOSUB. None the less, BBC basic maintains the GOSUB
statement for compatibility with other versions of basic.
A temperature scale conversion program is shown in two forms
below. Both produce exactly the same output on the computer
screen but one has been written using GOSUB and GOTO and
the other using procedures.
First with GOSUB and GOTO
10 REM TEMPERATURE CONVERSION
20 REM WITHOUT STRUCTURED BASIC
30 REM THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO WRITE
PROGRAMS!
40 REM JOHN A COLL
50 REM VERSION 1.0 /22 NOV 81
60 MODE 7
70 @%=&2020A
80 PRINT "ENTER THE TEMPERATURE
FOLLOWED BY"

113
 90 PRINT "THE FIRST LETTER OF THE
TEMPERATURE"
100 PRINT "SCALE. e.g. 100C or 72F or
320K"
110 PRINT
120 PRINT "Enter the temperature ";
130 INPUT REPLY$
140 TEMP=VAL(REPLY$)
150 SCALE$=RIGHT$(REPLY$,1)
160 GOODSCALE=FALSE
170 IF SCALE$="C" THEN GOSUB 370
180 IF SCALE$="F" THEN GOSUB 390
190 IF SCALE$="K" THEN GOSUB 430
200 IF NOT (GOODSCALE AND
TEMP>=-273.16) GOTO 260
210 PRINT''
220 PRINT TEMP; " Celsius"
230 PRINT TEMP+273.16; " Kelvin"
240 PRINT TEMP*9/5 + 32;
" Fahrenheit"
250 PRINT
260 IF GOODSCALE THEN 310
270 CLS
280 PRINT "You must follow the
temperature with"
290 PRINT "the letter ""C"", ""F"" or
""K"" "
300 PRINT "and nothing else"
310 IF TEMP>=-273.16 THEN 360
320 CLS
330 PRINT "The temperature you have
given is"
340 PRINT "too cold for this
universe! Try again"
350 PRINT
360 GOTO 110
370 GOODSCALE=TRUE
380 GOTO 460
390 REM CONVERT TO CELSIUS
400 TEMP=(TEMP-32)*5/9
410 GOODSCALE=TRUE
420 GOTO 460

114
 430 REM CONVERT TO CELSIUS
440 TEMP=TEMP-273.16
450 GOODSCALE=TRUE
460 RETURN
Lines 430 to 460 are referred to as a “subroutine”, and these
lines of the program can be called from line 190 by the
statement GOSUB 430. Notice that this statement does not
give the reader any idea of the purpose of the subroutine. The
statement RETURN at the end of the subroutine returns it to
the statement after the original GOSUB statement.
Compare the last program with the one that follows
10 REM TEMPERATURE CONVERSION
20 REM JOHN A COLL
30 REM VERSION 1.0 /22 NOV 81
40 MODE 7
50 @%=&2020A
60 PRINT "ENTER THE TEMPERATURE
FOLLOWED BY"
70 PRINT "THE FIRST LETTER OF THE
TEMPERATURE"
80 PRINT "SCALE. e.g. 100C or 72F or
320K"
90 REPEAT
100 PRINT
110 PRINT "Enter the temperature ";
120 INPUT REPLY$
130 TEMP = VAL(REPLY$)
140 SCALE$=RIGHT$(REPLY$,1)
150 GOODSCALE=FALSE
160 IF SCALE$="C" THEN PROCCENT
170 IF SCALE$="F" THEN PROCFAHR
180 IF SCALE$="K" THEN PROCKELVIN
190 PROCEND
200 UNTIL FALSE
210 END
220
230 DEF PROCCENT
240 GOODSCALE=TRUE
250 ENDPROC
260
270 DEF PROCFAHR

115
 280 REM CONVERT TO CELSIUS
290 TEMP=(TEMP-32)*5/9
300 GOODSCALE=TRUE
310 ENDPROC
320
330 DEF PROCKELVIN
340 REM CONVERT TO CELSIUS
350 TEMP=TEMP-273.16
360 GOODSCALE=TRUE
370 ENDPROC
380
390 DEF PROCEND
400 IF GOODSCALE AND TEMP>=-273.16
THEN PROCRESULTS
410 IF NOT GOODSCALE THEN
PROCILLEGAL_SCALE
420 IF TEMP<-273.16 THEN
PROCILLEGAL_TEMP
430 ENDPROC
440
450 DEF PROCRESULTS
460 PRINT''
470 PRINT TEMP; " Celsius"
480 PRINT TEMP+273.16; " Kelvin"
490 PRINT TEMP*9/5 + 32;
" Fahrenheit"
500 PRINT
510 ENDPROC
520
530 DEF PROCILLEGAL_SCALE
540 CLS
550 PRINT "You must follow the
temperature with"
560 PRINT "the letter ""C"", ""F"" or
""K"" "
570 PRINT "and nothing else"
580 ENDPROC
590
600 DEF PROCILLEGAL_TEMP
610 CLS
620 PRINT "The temperature you have
given is"

116
 630 PRINT "too cold for this
universe! Try again"
640 PRINT
650 ENDPROC

Certainly the second version is long (about a third longer) but

it is much more understandable and this is of crucial
importance for medium and large programs.

GOTO
You may have noticed the use of the GOTO statement in many
of the examples above. GOTO is a very useful statement which
tells the computer to skip to a particular line number.
Beginners in programming find it easy to use. However, it
should be used with care because it can lead to what some
people call ‘spaghetti’ programming, a tangle of loops
backwards and forwards which makes it very difficult indeed
to follow what is going on. The example on page 32 shows this
in an extreme form.
If you are writing short programs then by all means use GOTO.
For example, the following program prints out the ascii code
of any key which is pressed – useful if you can’t find an ascii
code sheet:
10 PRINT GET
20 GOTO 10
It would be taking things too far to expect people to write
10 REPEAT
20 PRINT GET
30 UNTIL FALSE
However, when you write programs of more than, say, 50 lines
it is a very good idea to try to use the “structure” provided
instead of GOTO statements. It is generally accepted that it is
still useful to use GOTO statements as a last resort when
handling error conditions. Use whatever techniques make your
program (a) work and (b) easy to follow.

117
20 ON GOTO,
ON GOSUB

There is often a need, in a computer program, to proceed in

one of a number of directions. For example your program
might present a “menu” of 8 options for the user to choose
from. When the user has made the choice your program will
need to branch off in the appropriate direction. There are a
number of ways of doing this. Here is one in part of a
program
100 MODE 7
110 PROCINTRO
120 REPEAT
130 PROCMENU
140 IF M=1 THEN PROCOscar7
150 IF M=2 THEN PROCOscar8
160 IF M=3 THEN PROCUOSAT
170 IF M=4 THEN PROCorbit
180 IF M=5 THEN PROCtransmit
190 IF M=6 THEN PROCshowfigs
200 IF M=7 THEN PROCMercator
210 IF M=8 THEN PROCLocator
220 IF M=9 THEN PROCgetdatetime
230 UNTIL M=-1
240 END
Lines 140 to 220 provide exits to a number of procedures all of
which will automatically return to the main program. Which
procedure is selected depends on the value of M as selected by
the user during the procedure PROCMENU.
The above method is easy to understand and is recommended
but there are other methods which have their place. The
statement ON...GOTO also provides a number of exits.
100 ON M GOTO 1000,1200,1250,1600

118
would provide an exit to line 1000 of the basic program if M =
1. If M = 2 then control will pass to line 1200 and so on.
An alternative format is
100 ON M GOSUB 1000,1200,1350
In this case control is passed to the subroutines indicated and
then returned to the next line.
Both these techniques are widely used but are less clear than
the use of procedures as indicated at the beginning of this
section.

119
21 Yet more on
variables

Arrays
Quite often we use the computer to store and manipulate sets
of data rather than just a single value. For example, we might
want to calculate wages for a group of people or sort a group of
20 numbers into order. The 20 numbers might well be
associated with 20 names. Arrays make it a lot easier to deal
with groups of names and numbers. To get to a more
manageable example let’s consider working with five names
and their associated year of birth. We could store the five
names in five variables like this:
N1$ = "SARDESON"
N2$ = "MATTINSON"
N3$ = "MOIR"
N4$ = "ALLEN"
N5$ = "MOUNT"
That is quite reasonable and it works. If you say
PRINT N2$
the computer will then print out MATTINSON.
However, you cannot tell it to print out the 5th entry or the
fourth entry. The computer doesn’t have any way of knowing
that N5$ is the 5th entry. Using arrays, though, we can pick
out the 5th entry in a long list and that is very useful.
The first thing we have to do is to tell the computer how large
an array we are going to use. This is done with a DIM
statement – e.g.
DIM N$(5)
this creates an array (a table) and we can then say

120
N$(1) = "SARDESON"
N$(2) = "MATTINSON"
N$(3) = "MOIR"
N$(4) = "ALLEN"
N$(5) = "MOUNT"
If we follow that with
X = 1
and then say
PRINT N$(X)
the computer will print SARDESON.
Note that the X was a variable which, in this case, had the
value of 1.
Here is a complete program – as far as we have got.
10 DIM N$(5)
20 N$(1)="SARDESON"
30 N$(2)="MATTINSON"
40 N$(3)="MOIR"
50 N$(4)="ALLEN"
60 N$(5)="MOUNT"
70 PRINT "WHICH ENTRY DO YOU WANT"
80 INPUT X
90 PRINT N$(X)
100 GOTO 70
We could also define an array to contain the five years of birth
200 DIM Y(5)
210 Y(1)=1964
220 Y(2)=1960
230 Y(3)=1950
240 Y(4)=1959
250 Y(5)=1962
It would be easy to add lines to this program to make the
computer search for various things. Of course with only 5
entries it would undoubtedly be quickest to do the whole thing
manually – but with a hundred, a thousand or a million entries
the computer would be faster – and certainly more accurate. A
few examples of extra lines will make the use of these arrays
clearer.

121
To print out everyone born before 1963
300 FOR X=1 TO 5
310 IF Y(X)<1963 THEN PRINT N$(X)
320 NEXT X
or to print out everyone whose name contains more than 5
letters
400 FOR X=1 TO 5
410 J$=N$(X)
420 IF LEN (J$)>5 THEN PRINT J$
430 NEXT
or print out every one whose name begins with M,
500 FOR X=1 TO 5
510 J$=N$(X)
520 IF LEFT$(J$,1)="M" THEN PRINT J$
530 NEXT
All these things can only be done if the computer is able to
select a position in a list and it can only do this with arrays.
Note: for an explanation of how the last examples worked, see
section 22.
You will have noticed that we used the array N$(X) to store
strings (the names of the people), and array Y(X) to store
numbers (the year of birth). Each element of the array N$(X)
can store as long a name as you want (up to 255 characters) and
you can DIMension N$ to have as many entries as you want.
For example, DIM N$(1000) would create a string array
with space for 1000 different names. N$(X) is called a “string
array” since it is used to store strings.
The array Y(X) is called a “numeric array” and again it can
have as many elements (entries) as you need – e.g. DIM
Y(2000). You can also have “integer numeric arrays” like
DIM J%(100).

As usual on the BBC computer the story doesn’t finish there!

There is another whole group of arrays which we haven’t met
yet. The arrays we have met (both string and numeric) are all
“single dimension arrays” and could be illustrated by this
diagram.

122
 Y(1) Y(2) Y(3) Y(4) Y(5)
1964 1960 1950 1959 1962
Now suppose we wanted to store the day and month of the
birthday as well as the year. We need more boxes.
21 12 4 24 19
2 2 2 10 12
1964 1960 1950 1959 1962
A set of data like that is called a “5 by 3 array” and the (empty)
boxes can be set up by the statement
10 DIM Y(5,3)
The array could then be filled with the statements
20 Y(1,1)=21
30 Y(1,2)=2
40 Y(1,3)=1964
50 Y(2,1)=12
60 Y(2,2)=2
70 Y(2,3)=1960 etc.

In practice it would involve a lot less typing, and make the

program shorter, if all the figures were held in DATA
statements. You may well need to skip this section at first and
return to it when you have understood section 22 which deals
with the keywords READ, DATA and RESTORE.
If you use READ and DATA to fill the above 5x3 array the
program could look like this

10 DIM Y(5,3)
20 FOR COLUMN=1 TO 5
30 FOR ROW=1 TO 3
40 READ Y(COLUMN,ROW)
50 NEXT ROW
60 NEXT COLUMN
500 DATA 21,2,1964
510 DATA 12,2,1960
520 DATA 4,2,1950
530 DATA 24,10,1959
540 DATA 19,12,1962

123
The program above takes successive numbers from the DATA
statements and inserts them into the array. Once this program
has been run the array will be set up – full of the figures – and
other sections of the program (not shown above), could search
the array as required. The array above is a “two-dimensional
array” used to store numbers. The phrase “two dimensional”
refers to the fact that there are 5 entries in one dimension and 3
entries in another dimension – a total of 15 entries. A three
dimensional array could be defined with the statement
DIM W(4,5,6)
and for a four dimensional array with
DIM T(2,2,5,3)
This last array would have 2x2x5x3 (60) individual entries.
Actually, array elements can be numbered from zero instead of
1, so an array declared with
DIM V(3)
has, in fact, got 4 elements which are V(0), V(1), V(2),
and V(3). Similarly the array T(2,2,5,3) has 3x3x6x4
(216) elements and will take up over 1000 bytes of memory.
Multi-dimension arrays are voracious memory eaters – only
use them when needed and, if at all possible, use every element
that you set up. There is no limit, other than lack of memory,
on the number of dimensions in an array.
At the start of this section we set up a string array with the
statement DIM N$(5).
This contains 6 elements N$(0) to N$(5). The length of
each string element is limited to the usual 255 characters but
you can have as many elements as you wish and as many
dimensions – just as for numeric arrays. String arrays are even
more ravenous for memory than numeric arrays – use them
sparingly!
Just to make sure that the various possibilities are clear, here is
a program to set up a string array with first names as well as
last names. The program reads names and dates into two
arrays:

124
 10 DIM Y(4,2)
20 DIM N$(4,2)
30 FOR COLUMN=0 TO 4
40 FOR ROW=0 TO 2
50 READ Y(COLUMN, ROW)
60 NEXT ROW
70 FOR ROW=0 TO 2
80 READ N$(COLUMN, ROW)
90 NEXT ROW
100 NEXT COLUMN
500 DATA 21,2,1964, JAMES,C,SARDESON
510 DATA 12,2,1960, A, MICHAEL,
MATTINSON
520 DATA 4,12,1960, CHARLES,C,MOIR
530 DATA 24,10,1959, STEPHEN, R,
ALLEN
540 DATA 19,12,1962, GAVIN,,MOUNT

125
22 READ, DATA,
RESTORE

One very common way of storing a whole set of information

along with the computer program is to use DATA
statements. You will remember that computer programs can
be stored on cassette and sets of data can be stored in the
program as well. For example it might be necessary in a
program to convert the month given as a number into a
name. The program below stores the names of the month as
DATA.
5 REPEAT
10 PRINT "GIVE THE MONTH AS A
NUMBER"
20 INPUT M
30 UNTIL M>0 AND M<13
40 FOR X=1 TO M
50 READ A$
60 NEXT X
70 PRINT "THE MONTH IS ";A$
100 DATA JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH,
APRIL
110 DATA MAY, JUNE, JULY, AUGUST,
SEPTEMBER
120 DATA OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, DECEMBER
>RUN
GIVE THE MONTH AS A NUMBER
?6
THE MONTH IS JUNE
Lines 10 to 30 repeat until a sensible value for M is entered – it
must be between 1 and 12. In the example run a value of 6 was
given to M. In this case the FOR...NEXT loop between lines
40 and 60 will go round 6 times. Each time it goes around it
READs the next piece of DATA into A$ until finally A$ will be

126
left containing JUNE. It might make it clearer if an extra line is
temporarily inserted at line 55 to print out the value of A$ and
X each time around the loop.
>55PRINT A$,X
>
>LIST
5 REPEAT
10 PRINT "GIVE THE MONTH AS A
NUMBER"
20 INPUT M
30 UNTIL M>0 AND M<13
40 FOR X=1 TO M
50 READ A$
55 PRINT A$,X
60 NEXT X
70 PRINT "THE MONTH IS ";A$
100 DATA JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH,
APRIL
110 DATA MAY, JUNE, JULY, AUGUST,
SEPTEMBER
120 DATA OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, DECEMBER
>
>RUN
GIVE THE MONTH AS A NUMBER
?6
JANUARY 1
FEBRUARY 2
MARCH 3
APRIL 4
MAY 5
JUNE 6
THE MONTH IS JUNE
This is quite a neat way of getting to the (say) sixth element of a
list but there is another way using an array.
Sometimes there is more than one set of data and it is useful to
be able to set the ‘data pointer’ to a selected set of data. The
next program has two sets of data each containing a set of
prices and car names. One set of data refers to British Leyland
cars and the other to Lotus cars.

127
 10 REPEAT
20 PRINT "DO YOU PREFER BL OR
LOTUS CARS? ";
30 A$=GET$
40 PRINT A$
50 IF A$="B" THEN RESTORE 170 ELSE
RESTORE 340
60 INPUT "HOW MANY POUNDS CAN YOU
AFFORD ",P
80 PRINT "YOU CAN AFFORD THESE
THEN:"
90 FOR X=1 TO 15
100 READ NAME$
110 READ PRICE
120 IF PRICE<P THEN PRINT
PRICE,TAB(15);NAME$
130 NEXT X
140 PRINT
150 UNTIL FALSE
160
170 REM BRITISH LEYLAND CARS
180 DATA MINI 1000 CITY, 2898
190 DATA METRO HLE, 4198
200 DATA DOLOMITE 1300,4351
210 DATA SPITFIRE 1500, 4696
220 DATA TRIUMPH ACCLAIM HLS, 4988
230 DATA ALLEGRO 31.3 HLS, 5095
240 DATA DOLOMITE 1500HL, 5225
250 DATA PRINCESS 2 HL, 5899
260 DATA DOLOMITE SPRINT, 7118
270 DATA TR7 FIXEDHEAD, 7258
280 DATA ROVER 2300, 7450
290 DATA DAIMLER SOVEREIGN 4.2,
16259
300 DATA JAGUAR XJ6 4.2,16279
310 DATA DAIMLER VANDEN PLAS 4.2,
21419
320 DATA DAIMLER LIMOUSINE, 26998
330
340 REM LOTUS CARS
350 DATA ESPRIT S3, 13513
360 DATA ECLAT SERIES 2.2, 14857

128
 370 DATA TURBO ESPRIT, 16982
380 DATA ELITE SERIES 2.2, 17206
>RUN
DO YOU PREFER BL OR LOTUS CARS? B
HOW MANY POUNDS CAN YOU AFFORD ?10000

YOU CAN AFFORD THESE THEN:

2898 MINI 1000 CITY
4198 METRO HLE
4351 DOLOMITE 1300
4696 SPITFIRE 1500
4988 TRIUMPH ACCLAIM HLS
5095 ALLEGRO 31.5 HLS
5225 DOLOMITE 1500HL
5899 PRINCESS 2 HL
7118 DOLOMITE SPRINT
7258 TR7 FIXEDHEAD
7450 ROVER 2300

DO YOU PREFER BL OR LOTUS CARS? L

HOW MANY POUNDS CAN YOU AFFORD ?1700

YOU CAN AFFORD THESE THEN:

Out of DATA at Line 100

You will notice that line 50 uses the RESTORE statement to set
the data ‘pointer’ to either line 170 where BL data is stored or
to line 340 where Lotus data is stored. This ensures that data is
read from the correct list.
Lines 90 to 130 attempt to read off 15 sets of data from the data
lists but fail when Lotus data is selected as only 4 sets of data
are provided. The message
Out of DATA at Line 100
indicates the failure to find enough entries in the data table.
Methods of overcoming the problem are given in section 27
which deals with error handling.

129
23 Integer handling
Two special arithmetical functions are provided which produce
integer (i.e., whole number) results. These integer functions are
DIV and MOD. (DIVision and MODulus)
The result of a normal division has two parts – the whole
number part and the remainder. Normally the remainder is
quoted as a decimal fraction. Thus
11/4 = 2.75 or 2¾
However the functions DIV and MOD enable the whole
number part and the remainder to be calculated separately.
Thus
11 DIV 4 = 2
(i.e., 4 goes into 11 two times) and
11 MOD 4 = 3
(i.e., the remainder is 3)
A simple division test shows how they can be used.
5 CLS
10 PRINT "Division test!"
20 PRINT "Answer with a whole
number, and a" ' "remainder"
30 REPEAT
40 X=RND(100)
50 Y=RND(10)
60 PRINT ' "What is ";X;" divided
by ";Y
70 INPUT A
80 INPUT "Remainder? "B
90 IF A=X DIV Y AND B=X MOD Y THEN
PRINT "That's correct" ELSE PRINT
"That's wrong"
100 PRINT ' "Press any key to
continue"

130
 110 T=GET
120 UNTIL FALSE
DIV and MOD are used whenever you are trying to convert
units – for example seconds into minutes. Thus 500 seconds is
500 DIV 60 minutes and 500 MOD 60 seconds that is 8
minutes 20 seconds
For example this program prints a 24 hour clock
5 PRINT "Please input the time"
10 INPUT "Hours ",H
20 INPUT "Minutes ",M
30 TIME=H*360000 + M*6000
40 CLS
50 REPEAT
60 SEC=(TIME DIV 100) MOD 60
70 MIN=(TIME DIV 6000) MOD 60
80 HR=(TIME DIV 360000) MOD 24
90 PRINT TAB(7,12)
HR;":";MIN;":";SEC
100 UNTIL FALSE
The clock is improved if you type VDU 23;8202;0;0;0;
which switches off the flashing cursor (see page 77).

The next program would keep time to the end of the century if
you left the computer switched on that long!
10 lastminute=0
20 MODE 7
30 PROCOFF
40 PROCgetdatetime
50 CLS
60 REPEAT
70 PROCshowtime
80 UNTIL FALSE
90 END
100
110 DEF PROCgetdatetime
120 CLS
130 PRINT"Please supply the day,
month and year"

131
 140 PRINT "as numbers e.g. 24 12
1982"
150 PRINT
160
170 REPEAT
180 PRINT TAB(5,10);"Day ";
190 INPUT TAB(12,10) "" day
200 UNTIL day>0 AND day<32
210
220 REPEAT
230 PRINT TAB(5,12);"Month ";
240 INPUT TAB(12,12) "" month
250 UNTIL month>0 AND month<13
260
270 REPEAT
280 PRINT TAB(5,14);"Year";
290 INPUT TAB(12,14) "" year
300 UNTIL year>1799 AND year<2500
OR year>0 AND year<99
310 IF year<99 THEN year=year+1900
320
330 CLS
340 PRINT "and now the time please"
350 PRINT "using a 24 hour clock"
360
370 REPEAT
380 PRINT TAB(5,10);"Hours ";
390 INPUT hour
400 UNTIL hour>-1 AND hour<24
410
420 REPEAT
430 PRINT TAB(5,12);"Minutes ";
440 INPUT minute
450 UNTIL minute>-1 AND minute<60
460
470 TIME=100*60*(minute+60*hour)
480 ENDPROC
490
500
510 DEF PROCshowtime
520 IF TIME>8640000 THEN
TIME=TIME-8640000

132
 530 hour=TIME DIV 360000 MOD 24
540 minute=TIME DIV (100*60) MOD 60
550 second=TIME DIV 100 MOD 60
560 IF (hour=0 AND minute=0 AND
lastminute=59) THEN PROCincdate
570 lastminute=minute
580 PRINT TAB(0,0);"Date = ";day;" ";
590 RESTORE 600
600 DATA Jan,Feb,Mar,Apr,May,June,
July,Aug,Sept,Oct,Nov,Dec
610 FOR X=1 TO month
620 READ month$
630 NEXT X
640 PRINT month$;" ";year;" ";
650 PRINT "GMT = ";
660 IF hour<10 THEN PRINT " ";
670 PRINT;hour;" : ";
680 IF minute<10 THEN PRINT" ";
690 PRINT ;minute;" : ";
700 IF second<10 THEN PRINT " ";
710 PRINT ;second;" "
720 ENDPROC
730
740 DEF PROCOFF
750 VDU 23;8202;0;0;0;
760 ENDPROC
770
780
790 DEF PROCincdate
800 day=day+1
810 IF (month=2) AND (day>29) THEN
day=1 :month=3
820 IF (month=2) AND (day=29) THEN IF
NOT FNLEAP(year) THEN day=1:month=3
830 IF ((month=4 OR month=6 OR
month=9 OR month=11) AND (day=31)) THEN
day=1: month=month+1
840 IF day>31 THEN day=1:month=month+1
850 IF month>12 THEN month=1:year=year+1
860 ENDPROC
870
880

133
 890 DEF FNLEAP(Y)
900 REM RETURNS TRUE IF Y IS LEAP
YEAR
910 IF Y MOD 4=0 AND (Y MOD 100<>0 OR
Y MOD 400=0) THEN =TRUE ELSE=FALSE

134
24 String handling

It has been explained that the BBC computer can store words or
other groups of characters in string variables. There are a
number of functions which can be used with strings. For
example if A$ = "NOTWITHSTANDING" then the string
function LEFT$ can be used to copy, say, the left 3 letters of
A$ into another string – B$.
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$=LEFT$(A$,3)
30 PRINT B$
>RUN
NOT
Similarly MID$ can be used to extract the middle section of a
string. Change line 20 thus
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$=MID$(A$,4,9)
30 PRINT B$
>RUN
WITHSTAND
Line 20 can be read as “B$ is a copy of the middle of A$ starting
at the fourth letter and going on for 9 letters”. As a result of this
other flexible use of the word “middle”, MID$ can in fact be
used to copy any part of a string. Change the program again
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$=MID$(A$,1,7)
30 PRINT B$
>RUN
NOTWITH
As well as LEFT$ and MID$ there is the string function
RIGHT$ which copies the rightmost characters of a string.
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
135
 20 B$=RIGHT$(A$,4)
30 PRINT B$
>RUN
DING
It is easy to join two strings together to make a long string by
using the “string concatenation operator” which is a plus sign.
Its title sounds grand but its purpose is obvious – but quite
different from its arithmetic use.
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$=LEFT$(A$,3)
30 C$=" LIKELY"
40 D$=B$+C$
50 PRINT D$
>RUN
NOT LIKELY
The numeric function LEN can be used to count up the number
of characters in a string – in other words how long it is
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 X=LEN(A$)
30 PRINT X
>RUN
15
LEN is very useful if you don’t know how long a string is going
to be. For example in this palindrome testing program A$ is
copied backwards letter by letter into B$.
5 REPEAT
7 B$=""
10 INPUT "What would you like to
reverse? " ' A$
20 FOR T=LEN(A$) TO 1 STEP -1
30 B$=B$ + MID$(A$,T,1)
40 NEXT T
50 PRINT '"If you reverse"'
A$'"you get" ' B$
60 UNTIL A$=""
The numeric function INSTR can be used to see if there is a
particular letter (or group of letters) in another string.

136
 10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$="T"
30 X=INSTR(A$,B$)
50 PRINT X
>RUN
3

You will notice that it finds that there is a T at position 3 in A$.

Sometimes it is useful to be able to start the search further
along the string. To do this you can add a third parameter
which gives that position to start the search.
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$="T"
30 X=INSTR(A$,B$,4)
50 PRINT X
>RUN
6
If no match is found then INSTR returns zero.
10 A$="NOTWITHSTANDING"
20 B$="Z"
30 X=INSTR(A$,B$,4)
50 PRINT X
>RUN
0
This looks like the elements of the game called Hangman! But
first three more string related functions. It is possible to make a
string containing many copies of another string by using the
string function STRING$. So to make a string containing 20
copies of "ABC" we write:
10 A$="ABC"
20 B$=STRING$(20,A$)
30 PRINT B$
>RUN
ABCABCABCABCABCABCABCABCABCABCABCABC
ABCABCABCABCABCABCABCABC
There is also a function STR$ which converts a number into a
string.

137
 10 A=45:B=30
20 A$=STR$(A)
30 B$=STR$(B)
40 PRINT A+6
50 PRINT A$+B$
>RUN
75
4530
>
i.e. line 40 treats A and B as numbers; and line 50 as string
characters.
Note that STR$ is effected by the special variable @% if this
has been set (see page 70).
The opposite function is VAL. This extracts the number from
the start of the string, which must, start with a plus + or minus
— sign or a number. If it doesn’t a zero is returned. Numbers
which are imbedded in other characters are ignored. So
10 A$="124ABC56"
20 PRINT VAL(A$)
will print 124.
However, back to the outline of a hangman program.

10 MODE 7
20 W=RND(12): REM 12 WORDS TO CHOOSE
FROM
30 FOR X=1 TO W
40 READ A$
50 NEXT X
60 REM WE HAVE SELECTED A RANDOM
WORD
70 REM NOW GIVE THE USER CHANCES TO
80 REM GUESS LETTERS IN THE WORD
90 L=LEN(A$)
100 CORRECT=0
110 TRIES=0
120 PRINT TAB(0,5);"The word has ";
L;" letters"

138
 130 PRINT TAB(0,6);"You have ";2*L;"
tries"
140 REPEAT
150 PRINT TAB(10,7);"GUESS A
LETTER";
160 G$=GET$
170 PRINTTAB(25,7);G$
180 P=0
190 REPEAT
200 P=INSTR(A$,G$,P+1)
210 IF P<>0 THEN PRINT TAB(P+12,
15);G$
220 IF P<>0 THEN
CORRECT=CORRECT+1
225 IF P=L THEN P=0
230 UNTIL P=0
240 TRIES=TRIES+1
250 PRINT TAB(0,0);"TRIES ";TRIES;
TAB(20,0);"CORRECT ";CORRECT
260 UNTIL (CORRECT=L OR TRIES=2*L)
270 IF CORRECT=L THEN PRINT
TAB(10,20); "Congratulations"
280 IF TRIES=2*L THEN PRINT
TAB(0,16);"The word was ";A$
290 DATA NOTWITHSTANDING
300 DATA INQUISITION
310 DATA MONUMENTAL
320 DATA PRESCRIPTION
330 DATA CARNIVEROUS
340 DATA TENTERHOOK
350 DATA DECOMPRESSION
360 DATA FORTHCOMING
370 DATA NEVERTHELESS
380 DATA POLICEWOMAN
390 DATA SOPHISTICATED
400 DATA GUESSTIMATE
There are a number of improvements to be made to this
program. Its screen layout is poor and also it lets you guess the
same letter twice.

139
It is possible to use some mathematical operators on strings.
For example one can check to see if two strings are “equal” or if
one string is “greater” than another. Obviously the words
“equal” and “greater” have slightly unusual meanings when
applied to strings. A few examples may help to clarify things.
As far as the computer is concerned, “XYZ” is greater than
“ABC” because X is further down the alphabet than A.
Similarly, “ABC” is greater than “AB” because “ABC” is a
longer string.
You can use the following comparisons with strings:

= equal to
<> not equal to
< less than
> greater than
<= less than or equal to
>= greater than or equal to
The following are legal statements:
IF A$ ="HELLO" THEN PRINT "HOW ARE YOU"
IF B$ >"FIFTEEN" THEN GOTO 1000
Notice that if B$ contained SIX it would be regarded as
greater than FIFTEEN because it starts with an S whereas
FIFTEEN starts with an F.
10 B$ = "SIX"
20 IF B$ > "EIGHT" THEN STOP
This program would stop because the word SIX begins with
an S which is regarded as “greater than” the letter E.
Strings are compared character by character using ascii codes.
If two strings start with some sequence of letters, for example
PIN and PINT then the longer string is regarded as the larger
one.

140
25 Programming the
red User Defined
Keys

At the top of the keyboard is a group of special red keys which

are called User Defined Keys. Instead of producing a fixed
character the user can ‘define’ these keys to generate any
character or string of characters that is required. For example,
to set up key f1 so that it produces the word PRINT every time
it is pressed you can type
*KEY 1 PRINT RETURN
To set key f2 to produce the word DATA you enter
*KEY 2 DATA RETURN
If you want to enter more than one word into a User Defined
Key then you can enclose the words in inverted commas
*KEY 3 "IF X=" RETURN
though quote marks are not necessary.
When you are developing programs it is very useful to have
one of the keys set up to change to MODE7 and then LIST the
program automatically. If you were typing in the commands
MODE7 and LIST you would normally follow each with a
RETURN, and you have to include something equivalent to
press the RETURN key when you set the key up. In fact you
enter this to set up key f0.
*KEY 0 MODE 7 ¦M LIST ¦M
The two characters ¦ and M together are understood to mean
the same thing as pressing the RETURN key. In fact the ¦ in
front of any letter makes the computer generate a control
character. You may remember that to enter “paging mode”,
141
where the computer stops at the bottom of every page, you can
type CTRL N. That instruction can be added to the key f0
definition as well, if you wish.
*KEY 0 MODE 7 ¦M ¦N LIST ¦M
It is important to remember that any *KEY definition must be
the last statement on a line because since the computer finds a
* at the start of a statement it passes the whole of the rest of the
line to the Machine Operating System and not to basic. The
Machine Operating System does not understand : which basic
would understand as a multiple statement separator. The same
thing applies to *FX statements – only one is allowed per line.
However, it is acceptable to use colons to separate statements
within the key definition. For example
*KEY 6 MOVE 0,0 : DRAW X,Y ¦M
If you want to you can set up the user defined keys in a
program in exactly the same way that they are set up in
command mode.
Thus
10 *KEY 7 "¦B LIST¦M¦C"
would let key 7 turn the printer on, list the program and then
turn the printer off.
If you wish to include an ascii code greater than 128 (&80) then
you can do this by using, the sequence ¦! to add 128 to the
value produced. For example:
*KEY 8 "¦!¦V"
would put a single “character” in key 8 and the ascii value of
the character would be made up from the two parts. The ¦! is
worth 128 and the ascii value of CTRL V is 22, giving a total
value of 150.

The BREAK key

Pressing the BREAK key causes a “soft reset” which does not
reset the clock or clear the definitions of the user defined keys.
However, pressing BREAK while the CTRL key is pressed will
cause a “hard reset” which resets everything. This feature is
implemented from release 1.0 of the operating system.
Pressing BREAK and SHIFT together will be used in future to

142
“auto-boot” the machine so that the computer loads and runs a
program without any further instructions. Note that “auto-
boot” will not work on the cassette filing system.
As you know, when you press the BREAK key the computer is
reset and nothing can change that. Your program will stop and
all variables will be lost; even your program will appear to be
lost. However, there are a number of things that can be done to
alter the course of events.
First, a program can be recovered by typing, OLD RETURN and
then RUN RETURN . Alternatively, the BREAK key can be
‘redefined’ by using the expression
*KEY 10 "OLD ¦M RUN ¦M"
which treats the BREAK as another user-definable key.

Other keys

The and COPY keys can also be redefined –

they can be considered to be user defined keys 11 to 15 (see
also pages 422 and 423).
COPY 11

12

13

14

15

143
26 Operator
precedence
An operator is something like +, /, < etc, which affects one or
more items – for example comparing them, or adding them.
Mathematical operators are familiar. Most act on two numbers
- for example
3+7 addition
2-5 subtraction
4*6 multiplication
1/9 division
7 DIV 4 integer division
7 MOD 4 integer remainder
3^4 raise to a power
These operators are referred to as binary operators since they
require two operands (i.e., two things to operate on)
-5
This shows one of the few ‘unary’ operators that we are used to
– the - just acts on the 5 to make it a negative number.
This version of basic has a large number of operators and it is
very important that the user is aware of their order of
precedence. You will remember that in mathematics
multiplication must be completed before addition – the same
applies to other operators – there is a strict hierarchy and you
must be aware of it if the computer is to do what you expect.
The overall order of precedence for operators is as follows.
Group 1 Unary minus
Unary plus
NOT
functions
brackets ( )
indirection operators (see page 409)

144
Group 2 ^ raise to the power
Group 3 * multiplication
/ division
DIV integer division
MOD integer remainder
Group 4 + addition
- subtraction
Group 5 = equal to
<> not equal to
< less than
> greater than
<= less than or equal to
>= greater than or equal to
Group 6 AND logical and bitwise AND
Group 7 OR logical and bitwise OR
EOR logical and bitwise Exclusive OR

All operators in each group have equal priority and will be

dealt with on a left to right basis – in other words in order in
each line.
Some of the operators should be familiar by now; others may
need explanation.

Group 1
NOT is most often used to reverse the result of a test. e.g. IF
NOT (X=5) THEN... Clearly this example could be written
IF X <> 5 THEN but the operator NOT is often essential
when using functions e.g. IF NOT FNVALID THEN...
Functions include all the predefined functions such as SQR,
SIN, ASC etc and user defined functions like FNVALID.
Brackets can be used to ensure that everything within the
brackets is evaluated before any other calculations take place.
Indirection operators are described in section 39 on page 409.

Group 2
Raise to the power e.g.
3^2=9
3^3=27
145
Group 3 and Group 4
These contain all the usual arithmetic operators. Nothing
unexpected here.

Group 5
This contains the relational operators which mean ‘greater
than’, ‘less than’, etc. They are used in expressions such as
IF X>10 THEN ...

Group 6
Logical AND is used to ensure that two or more conditions
hold true before some action is taken e.g.
IF X>10 AND Y=6 THEN ...
For further details see the entry on page 205.

Group 7
Logical OR is also used with multiple conditions e.g.
IF X>10 OR Y=6 THEN ...
The action is taken if one or more of the conditions is true. EOR
is normally only used as a bitwise operator and the user is
referred to page 250 for details.

146
27 Error handling

If the computer is unable to deal with a situation such as this:

PRINT 3/0
then it will report the fact to you with an “Error message” and
then stop, waiting for your next command
>PRINT 3/0
Division by zero
If you are sitting at the keyboard playing with the machine this
is quite acceptable – in fact one of the main virtues of basic is
that it does try to give you an indication of why it is unable to
proceed. However if you are writing a program for someone
else to use, and you do not want them to be bothered with
error messages then you must take the precautions to deal with
every possible erroneous situation that might arise.
The major tool in error-handling is the statement
ON ERROR GOTO 5000
(the 5000 is for example – it could GOTO any line number you
like).
Once the computer has encountered an ON ERROR GOTO
statement it will no longer report errors and stop – instead it
will go to line 5000 (or wherever you have told it to go to). The
statement ON ERROR OFF makes the computer handle errors
normally again. The computer has an error number for every
error it may encounter and you can use the error number to
enable you to know what has gone wrong. The error number is
stored in the variable ERR. The error number for an attempt to
divide by zero is 18 for example.

10 ON ERROR GOTO 2000

20 PRINT "HELLO"
30 PRINT 3/0
147
 40 PRINT "BYE"
50 END
2000 PRINT ERR
>RUN
HELLO
18

The computer also remembers the line at which it detected the

error and this number is stored in the variable ERL.

10 ON ERROR GOTO 2000

20 PRINT "HELLO"
30 PRINT 3/0
40 PRINT "BYE"
50 END
2000 PRINT ERR
2010 PRINT ERL
>RUN
HELLO
18
30

As you will see from the above the computer detected error
number 18 in line number 30. Instead of just printing an error
number the computer can be made to deal with the problem.
Look at the next program which will generate an error when X
gets to zero.

100 X=-5
110 PRINT X, 3/X
120 X=X+1
130 IF X<5 THEN GOTO 110
140 END
>RUN
-5 -0.6
-4 -0.75
-3 -1
-2 -1.5
-1 -3
0
Division by zero at line 110

148
If we put an error handling routine in we can let the computer
deal with the problem itself.
10 ON ERROR GOTO 1000
100 X=-5
110 PRINT X, 3/X
120 X=X+1
130 IF X<5 THEN GOTO 110
140 END
1000 IF ERR=18 THEN PRINT: GOTO 120
1010 REPORT
>RUN
-5 -0.6
-4 -0.75
-3 -1
-2 -1.5
-1 -3
0
1 3
2 1.5
3 1
4 0.75
In the example program above error 18 was dealt with
successfully but line 1010 causes it to REPORT other errors in
the normal way without trying to deal with them.
It is usually easy, but tedious, to anticipate all the probable
errors but careful planning is needed if the error handling is to
be effective. In particular you should be aware that when an
error occurs you cannot return into a FOR...NEXT or
REPEAT...UNTIL loop or into a procedure or function or
subroutine. So long as you are aware of these limitations you
can program around them.

149
28 Teletext control
codes and
MODE 7
mode 7 is a Teletext compatible display mode which is very
economical in its use of memory. It can provide a full colour
text display with limited, but full colour, graphics. This mode is
strongly recommended for applications which do not require
very fine graphic detail.
mode 7 uses the standard Teletext control codes to change
colours rather than the BBC basic COLOUR and DRAW
statements. It cannot be over emphasized that mode 7 requires
different codes and statements from those available in modes 0
to 6. The mode 7 display consists of 25 lines of 40 characters.
Each line will normally consist of white letters and numbers
(text) on a black background. It the user wishes to change the
colour of the text or the background then a control code must
be sent to the screen with a PRINT or VDU statement. By way
of explanation let us examine one typical line of characters on a
mode 7 screen.
The screen display consists of 25 lines (numbered 0 to 24) each
containing up to 40 characters (0 to 39) columns

0 columns 39
0

lines

24

150
Let us examine a typical line and see what is displayed on the
screen.
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

A B C D E F G H I J K L
white letters red letters green letters blue letters

To get this on the screen you will need to type

>MODE 7
>PRINT "ABC";CHR$(129);"DEF";CHR$(130);
"GHI";CHR$(132);"JKL"
You will see that there is a space on the screen between the
letters ABC and the letters DEF. That space is in fact occupied
by an invisible “control code”. The control code ‘appears’ on
the screen as a space but it affects everything to its right. The
control code at position 3 is code number 129 and that has the
effect of turning all letters, and numbers that follow into red.
The code at position 7 is number 130 which produces green
alpha-numerics (letters and numbers).
Here is a list of a few more control codes
129 Alphanumeric red
130 Alphanumeric green
131 Alphanumeric yellow
132 Alphanumeric blue
133 Alphanumeric magenta
134 Alphanumeric cyan
135 Alphanumeric white
To change the colour of the text
To get these codes on the screen you have to type PRINT
CHR$(X) just before the text you want to alter, and where X
stands for the code you want. Often you will wish to put the
codes in between two words and you do that by placing both
the words and the CHR$(X) in one long PRINT statement
thus
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT "WHITE";CHR$(131);"YELLOW";
CHR$(135);"AND BACK TO WHITE"

151
To make things flash
Another code 136 makes everything that follows on that line
flash. Try
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT "HELLO";CHR$(136);"FLASHER!"
It must be emphasized that every line starts off in white,
non-flashing, normal height, black background and so on. If
you want to print a whole page in red letters then every line
must start with control code 129.
You should by now understand how to put the control codes
into a PRINT statement and so we can see what other effects
are available.
To change the background colour requires 3 control codes.
Suppose that you want blue letters on a yellow background
then you must use the following sequence of control codes
131 yellow alphanumeric
157 new background
132 blue alphanumeric
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT CHR$(131);CHR$(157);CHR$
(132);"BLUE LETTERS ON YELLOW"
As you will gather to change the background colour you must
first select letters of the desired colour, then declare a new
background and then reselect the colour of the letter. Note that
you cannot have a flashing background, so the following
sequence.
136 flash
131 yellow alphanumeric
157 new background
132 blue alphanumeric
will produce flashing blue letters on a steady yellow
background.
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT CHR$(136);CHR$(131);CHR$(
157);CHR$(132);"BLUE LETTERS ON YELLOW"
Flash is turned off with control code 137.

152
To produce double height characters
It is possible to write characters with double their normal
height using control code 141. Obviously this takes up two of
the normal display lines. What is not so obvious is that you
must therefore print exactly the same text on two successive
lines. Try the following:
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT CHR$(141);"THIS IS DOUBLE
HEIGHT"
As you will see it only produces the top half of the letters. Add
line 30 and it works properly.
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT CHR$(141);"THIS IS DOUBLE
HEIGHT"
30 PRINT CHR$(141);"THIS IS DOUBLE
HEIGHT"
Of course you can have (for example) double height, flashing
red letters on a white background
141 double height
157 new background
129 red alphanumeric
136 flashing
10 MODE 7
20 PRINT CHR$(141);CHR$(157);CHR$
(129);CHR$(136); "THE LOT"
30 PRINT CHR$(141);CHR$(157);CHR$
(129);CHR$(136); "THE LOT"
Double height is turned off with control code 140.
As you have came to appreciate it can be quite tedious typing
in CHR$(129) every time you want a Teletext control code.
To make things easier it is possible to use the red User Defined
Function Keys in combination with the SHIFT key to generate
these special codes. While pressing SHIFT the function keys
normally produce the codes shown in the table overleaf.

153
 f0 128 No effect
f1 129 Alphanumeric red
f2 130 ” green
f3 131 ” yellow
f4 132 ” blue
f5 133 ” magenta
f6 134 ” cyan
f7 135 ” white
f8 136 ” flash on
f9 137 ” flash off

As you will see f0 is set to produce code 128 and the other
keys produce higher numbers. 128 is said to be the “base
address” for the keys. The base address can be altered with
*FX 226 if you wish. See page 439 for more details.
Once you have a Teletext control code on the screen you can
use the editing keys (e.g. COPY) to copy it into another string.
This can be very useful.

Graphics
In addition to displaying coloured letters it is possible in
mode 7 to do a certain amount of work with graphics. The
graphics available in Teletext mode are certainly less easy to
use than in other modes but with a little patience some very
good effects can be achieved. Another set of control codes are
used to change lower case letters into small graphic shapes.
The shapes are all based on a two by three grid, the same total
size as a large letter.

If you want to use those graphic shapes instead of lower case

letters then you must precede them with one of the following
control codes:

154
145 red graphics
146 green graphics
147 yellow graphics
148 blue graphics
149 magenta graphics
150 cyan graphics
151 white graphics
Note that upper case letters will still show as letters in the
same colour that you have selected for the graphics. Thus
10 PRINT CHR$(145);"ABCdefGHIjkl"
will show the following on the screen in red

(The full list of graphic shapes are given on pages 488 and 489).

Graphics codes
It is possible to calculate the code for any particular graphics
shape in the following way. Each of the six cells contributes a
certain number to the total code.

1 2

4 8

16 64

and in addition you should add in 32 + 128 (i.e. 160). For example
the ascii code for

is 2 + 8 + 16 + 32 + 128 = 186.

155
Making a large shape
Elsewhere in the guide it shows how to use user-defined
characters to draw a space ship (see page 172). By way of
comparison a similar but cruder space ship can be made in
Teletext Mode. Here is the design and the code number for
each graphic character

250 245

255 255

191 239

To make these display as graphics characters each line must be

preceded by (for example) code 146 (green graphics). So the
following codes must be printed on the screen
146, 250, 245
146, 255, 255
146, 191, 239
These codes can be sent using PRINT CHR$( ) so long as
care is taken to get each in the correct place, e.g.
10 MODE 7
20 X=20
30 Y=10
40 PRINT TAB(X,Y);CHR$(146);CHR$
(154);CHR$(250);CHR$(245)
50 PRINT TAB(X,Y+1);CHR$(146);CHR$
(154);CHR$(255);CHR$(255)
60 PRINT TAB(X,Y+2);CHR$(146);CHR$
(154);CHR$(191);CHR$(239)
Instead of using PRINT TAB(X,Y) it is probably easier in
this case to use ascii codes to move the cursor down one line

156
(code 10) and back four spaces (code 8 four times). It is
probably also easier to use the VDU statement rather than
PRINT CHR$( ). If these two things are done then the
program becomes
5 MODE 7
6 PRINT TAB(20,10);
10 VDU 146,154,250,245
20 VDU 10,8,8,8,8
30 VDU 146,154,255,255
40 VDU 10,8,8,8,8
50 VDU 146,154,191,239
100 PRINT
A complete list of the Teletext control codes is given on pages
486 to 489.

Teletext graphics codes for the more adventurous

As you will have realised, the statements MOVE and DRAW are
not available in the Teletext mode (mode 7). If you wish to draw
lines in this mode you will need to use a suitable procedure – so
here is one. It uses a look-up table, called S%, to remember the
numbers corresponding to each of the 6 pixels (picture
elements), in a Teletext graphics character. The look-up table
must be set up at the beginning of the program:
10 DIM S% 7
20 !S%=&08040201
30 S%!4=&4010
Next a row of teletext control codes must be written down the
left hand side of the screen to turn every line into a graphics
display
40 PROCGR
and the associated procedure is
200 DEF PROCGR
210 LOCAL Y%
220 VDU 12
230 FOR Y%=0 TO 23
240 VDU 10,13,&97
250 NEXT
260 ENDPROC

157
The main program follows – in this case to plot a “sin curve”:
50 FOR X=0 TO 77 STEP 0.25
60 PROCPLOT(X,35+35*SIN(X/10))
70 NEXT
80 END
and lastly here is the procedure to plot the point
300 DEF PROCPLOT(X%,Y%)
310 LOCAL C%,A%
330 VDU 31,X% DIV2+1, 24-Y% DIV3
340 C%=S%?((X% AND 1)+(2-Y%MOD3)*2)
350 A%=135
360 VDU (USR &FFF4 AND &FF00) DIV256
OR C% OR 128
370 ENDPROC
There is no need to know how it works but here is an
explanation in case you are interested.
The X and Y co-ordinates are put into X% and Y% and then line
330 moves the text cursor to the position X%, Y%.
Line 340 uses the look-up table (S%) to calculate the “value”
(in terms of ascii code), of the selected pixel at X%, Y%.
Setting A%=135 and jumping to the subroutine at &FFF4
returns the ascii code of the character which includes the spot
X%, Y%. See the example on page 432 which explains this
OSBYTE call for a similar example. The character read from
the screen is then ORed with the new pixel (C%) and written
with the VDU statement.
The &97 in line 240 produces white graphics dots. Other
values will give other colours. For example &91 would draw a
red graph.
Two improvements could be made; first we could test for
illegal values of X% and Y% with
320 IF X%<0 OR X%>77 OR Y%<0 OR Y%>74
THEN ENDPROC
and secondly we could remember the position of the cursor
before we entered the procedure and restore the cursor to that
position at the end of the procedure. See page 432 for a similar
routine.

158
Notice that no reference need be made to actual memory
co-ordinates and this is vital if your programs are to work via
the ‘Tube’. You may not think it important now but you will
find that it is sensible to write programs using the machine
code calls provided and not to get in the habit of addressing
the memory directly.

159
29 Advanced
Graphics

As we saw earlier, the following keywords can be used in a

variety of statements which produce high resolution graphics
effects on the screen:
MODE which selects a particular graphics mode
GCOL which selects the colour and drawing ‘style’ of any
graphics (except in modes 3, 6 or 7)
DRAW which draws lines (except modes 3, 6 or 7)
MOVE which moves the graphics cursor (except modes 3, 6 or
7)
PLOT which draws lines, dotted lines, points and colours in
triangles (except modes 3, 6 or 7)
VDU a versatile command which produces a wide variety of
effects.
These will only become familiar with use. What follows is a
description of how to use some of the keywords to produce a
selection of results on the screen.

How to change the screen display modes

The screen mode can be changed at any time by typing MODE
X, where X is the value 0 to 7 from the following list:
MODE 0 uses two colours (Model B only) with very high
resolution and requires 20k of memory to “map” the
screen
MODE 1 uses four colours (Model B only) with high
resolution and requires 20K of memory
MODE 2 uses 16 colours (Model B only) with medium
resolution graphics – 20k
MODE 3 text only – 16k (Model B only)
MODE 4 two colours and high resolution graphics – 10k
MODE 5 four colours and medium resolution graphics – 10k
MODE 6 text only – 8k

160
MODE 7 teletext (which is the subject of a separate section of
this book) – 1k
In modes 0, 1, 2, 4 & 5 the screen is divided up into imaginary
rectangles, like a piece of graph paper. In mode 0 there are 640
´ 256 squares; in modes 1 and 4 there are 320 ´ 256 and in
modes 2 and 5 there are 160 ´ 256 (in other words, the higher
the resolution of the graphics the smaller the rectangle). The
higher the resolution, the more memory is used up in the
process of ‘mapping’ the screen.

How to draw lines

On page 495 you will find a graphics planning sheet which
shows the way the screen can be thought of as a piece of graph
paper, with each point having a horizontal (X) and a vertical
(Y) value. The ‘origin’ is point 0,0 and is at the bottom left of
the screen. Top right is 1279, 1023
How to draw a square in the centre of the screen
a Use the MOVE statement to move the graphics ‘cursor’ from
its home position (0,0) to a point where we can start drawing
(say 400 units along and 400 units up). First set up a screen
mode which can support graphics.
100 MODE 5
110 MOVE 400,400

b Draw a line horizontally to a point 800,400. The DRAW

command draws a line from the last point ‘plotted’ to a point
defined in the DRAW statement.
120 DRAW 800,400

c Finish the box with three more DRAW statements

130 DRAW 800,800
140 DRAW 400,800
150 DRAW 400,400
Run the program.

Changing the colour of the box

The normal foreground colour in mode 5 is white. Add the
following line
105 GCOL 0,1

161
This changes the lines to “logical” colour 1, which in mode 5 is
red. mode 5 only has 4 colours. When the machine is switched
on they are black, red, yellow and white. However, logical
colours can be changed by using one of the VDU commands
(see later). So, if you know what you are doing you can select
any four colours in mode 5.
How to fill in with colour
PLOT 85,X,Y (see page 319) draws and then fills in a
triangle drawn from the last two plotted points to the point
defined by X and Y. The colour is the current graphics
foreground colour. Add the following line:
160 PLOT 85,800,800
Run this program.
This will fill in one half of the square
Now add:
170 PLOT 85,800,400
Run the program and the whole square should become red.

How to change colours

At any particular moment the computer can print and draw on
the screen using four colours. This page uses two “colours”: a
white background colour and a black foreground colour – that
is, black writing on a white background. Similarly, the
computer has a text background colour and a text foreground
colour but, in addition, it is aware of a graphics foreground
colour (used to draw lines), and a graphics background colour.
When you change mode the computer resets all these colours
thus
Text foreground colour – white
Text background colour – black
Graphic foreground colour – white
Graphic background colour – black
The number of colours that can appear on the screen together
depends on the mode selected. In modes 0, 3, 4 and 6 you can
only have two colours at any time and they are normally black
and white. In modes 1 and 5 you can have up to four colours at
any time and they are normally black, red, yellow and white. In
mode 2 you can have up to 16 different coloured effects.

162
Let us consider mode 5 for a moment and explore the effects
that are available. mode 5 is a four colour mode and the default
colours are black, red, yellow and white. As you may have
gathered, text and graphics are dealt with separately so to
change the colour that will be used for text output you say
COLOUR 0 to give black text
COLOUR 1 to give red text
COLOUR 2 to give yellow text
COLOUR 3 for white text.
However, to change the colour used for graphics, for example
to produce lines with the DRAW statement, you use these
statements
GCOL 0,0 black graphics
GCOL 0,1 red graphics
GCOL 0,2 yellow
GCOL 0,3 white
The two groups of statements above change the “text
foreground” and “graphics foreground” colours.
You will have noticed that, so far, 1 represents red, 2 is yellow
and so on. To change the background colours we add 128 to
these numbers. Thus COLOUR 129 will give a red text
background, and GCOL 0,129 would set the graphics
background colour to red.
For text, for example, to change from white lettering on black,
to black lettering on red in mode 5, type
MODE 5
COLOUR 129
COLOUR 0
CLS
All text will now be in black on red. Graphics will still appear
in white. To change text colours in the middle of a program
merely insert the appropriate colour statements before the print
statements to which they refer.
For graphics: use the GCOL statement which stands for
“Graphics COLours”. GCOL has two numbers after it (see page
262). The second number refers to the logical colour which is to
be used for graphics from now on. The first number is usually
set at 0.

163
So for example, to get red graphics lines on a yellow
background, type
COLOUR 131
GCOL 0,1
CLS
But suppose that you wanted a blue background in mode 5. So
far the only available colours have been black, red, yellow and
white and there is a limit of four colours in mode 5, but you can
make one of those four colours blue if you want to. You do this
with the statement
VDU 19,0,4,0,0,0
and then the four available colours would be blue, red, yellow
and white.
In mode 5 only four colours are available at a time and they are
referred to as ‘logical’ colours 0 to 3. In mode 5 ‘logical’ colour
0 is normally black, ‘logical’ colour 1 is normally red and so on
but you can change the “actual colour” of any of the “logical
colours” quite easily by using the VDU 19 statement followed
by five numbers, separated by commas.
In a two colour mode such as mode 4 we can do similar things
e.g.
MODE 4
VDU 19,1,2,0,0,0
changes logical foreground colour 1 (which is initially white) to
actual colour 2 which is green and
VDU 19,0,5,0,0,0
changes logical background colour 0 to actual colour 5, which
is magenta. (Note. The zeros at the end are for future expansion
of the system.) The computer will now produce these colours
until either it is switched off, the break button is pressed, or the
mode is changed. These instructions to change the colours can
be embedded in a program thus making it possible to alter the
colours while a program is running.
Here is a list of the numbers for each “actual colour” that the
computer can produce.

164
Actual colour number Displayed colour
0 black
1 red
2 green
3 yellow
4 blue
5 magenta
6 cyan
7 white
8 flashing black-white
9 flashing red-cyan
10 flashing green-magenta
11 flashing yellow-blue
12 flashing blue-yellow
13 flashing magenta-green
14 flashing cyan-red
15 flashing white-black
So “actual colour” numbers are any numbers between 0 and 15.
To make logical 3 a flashing red-cyan effect you write
VDU 19,3,9,0,0,0
and here are a couple of other examples
VDU 19,1,2,0,0,0 logical colour 1 is green
VDU 19,3,5,0,0,0 logical colour 3 is magenta
VDU 19,0,12,0,0,0 logical colour 0 is flashing
blue-yellow

Having set the logical colours up in this way you could then
select logical colour 0 (flashing blue-yellow) as the text
foreground colour with COLOUR 0, or as the graphic
foreground colour with GCOL 0,0. The table opposite shows
how things are set up each time you change mode.

165
 Foreground colour Background colour
Logical Actual colour Logical no Actual colour
Modes 0,3,4,6
0 Black (0) 128 Black (0)
1 White (7) 129 White (7)

Modes 1,5
0 Black (0) 128 Black (0)
1 Red (1) 129 Red (1)
2 Yellow (3) 130 Yellow (3)
3 White (7) 131 White (7)

Mode 2
0 Black (0) 128 Black (0)
1 Red (1) 129 Red (1)
2 Green (2) 130 Green (2)
3 Yellow (3) 131 Yellow (3)
4 Blue (4) 132 Blue (4)
5 Magenta (5) 133 Magenta (5)
6 Cyan (6) 134 Cyan (6)
7 White (7) 135 White (7)
8 Fl. Black/White (8) 136 Fl. Black/White (8)
9 Fl. Red/Cyan (9) 137 Fl. Red/Cyan (9)
10 Fl. Green/Magenta (10) 138 Fl. Green/Magenta (10)
11 Fl. Yellow/Blue (11) 139 Fl. Yellow/Blue (11)
12 Fl. Blue/Yellow (12) 140 Fl. Blue/Yellow (12)
13 Fl. Magenta/Green (13) 141 Fl. Magenta/Green (13)
14 Fl. Cyan/Red (14) 142 Fl. Cyan/Red (14)
15 Fl. White/Black (15) 143 Fl. White/Black (15)

You will have noticed that the GCOL statement is followed by

two numbers.
The first number can be used to control the way that the colour
(which is selected by the second number), is affected by what is
already on the screen. The statement
GCOL 0,3
tells the computer that the graphics colour to be used is to be
logical colour 3 and that this is to appear no matter what was on

166
the screen under the new line or triangle. Values other than 0,
for the first number, have other effects. For example, a value of
4, as in GCOL 4,0 has the effect of drawing a line which is the
“inverse” logical colour to the colour that it is currently
crossing over.
In two colour modes the inverse of logical colour 0 is logical
colour 1. In four colour modes the following applies.

Logical colour Inverse

0 3
1 2
2 1
3 0

With ‘default’ actual colours of black, red, yellow and white the
inverse colours would be white, yellow, red and black.
In mode 2, the 16 colour effect mode, all steady colours
translate to flashing colours and vice versa as the next table
shows for the default colours.

Logical colour Default displayed colour Inverse

0 Black Flashing white/black
1 Red Flashing cyan/red
2 Green Flashing magenta/green
3 Yellow Flashing blue/yellow
4 Blue Flashing yellow/blue
5 Magenta Flashing green/magenta
6 Cyan Flashing red/cyan
7 White Flashing black/white
8 Flashing black/white White
9 Flashing red/cyan Cyan
10 Flashing green/magenta Magenta
11 Flashing yellow/blue Blue
12 Flashing blue/yellow Yellow
13 Flashing magenta/green Green
14 Flashing cyan/red Red
15 Flashing white/black Black

167
Other values of the first number following GCOL enable the
logical colour to be plotted to be ANDed, ORed or
Exclusive-ORed with the logical colour presently on the screen.
The user is referred to pages 205, 316 and 250 for a description
of AND, OR and Exclusive-OR but the following examples
may help.
In mode 5 with the background set to red by the following
statements
MODE 5
GCOL 0,129
CLG
an attempt to draw a yellow line ORed with the background
colour by using the statement
GCOL 1,2
would in fact produce a white line since the background logical
colour is 1 and the new line is to be drawn in logical colour (1
OR 2), i.e. logical colour 3. The same principles apply to GCOL
2, which ANDs the new colour with the previously displayed
logical colour and to GCOL 3, which Exclusive-ORs the
colours together.
Obviously, an understanding of AND, OR and EOR is required
before all the GCOL statements can be used. The effects which
can be produced are very useful when it comes to the
production of sophisticated animation effects.

How to plot a point on the screen

The PLOT command can also be used to plot points.
Type MODE 4 (which is a 2 colour mode) and type
PLOT 69,500,500
This will plot a point in white at coordinates X=500, Y=500.
Type
PLOT 69,600,500
and another point will appear at X=600, Y=500.

How to remove a point selectively

Typing, CLG would clear the whole graphics area. However
instead of CLG, type

168
PLOT 70,500,500
and you will see that one of the two points has gone. This is
because PLOT 70 prints the ‘inverse’ colour at the given
point. This is particularly useful when ‘animating’, say, a point
(see below). In mode 4 the ‘inverse’ of logical colour 1 is logical
colour 0.
Suppose we want, say, a yellow dot on a blue background, we
need to change the foreground colour from white to yellow
and the background colour from black to blue. To do this, use
the VDU 19 command as described earlier
VDU 19,1,3,0,0,0
This alters logical colour 1 (this means the normal foreground
colour) to actual colour 3 (i.e. yellow).
Now type
VDU 19,0,4,0,0,0
This alters logical colour 0 (which is the normal background
colour) to actual colour 4 (i.e. blue).
PLOT 69,500,500
will now produce the desired effect.

Animation
How to make a ball and move it on the screen
This time we’ll write a program in steps to make a yellow ‘ball’
consisting of 4 dots which move on the screen on a red
background.

a Setting up mode and colours

10 MODE 4
20 VDU 19,1,3,0,0,0
30 VDU 19,0,1,0,0,0

b Next a ‘procedure’ for creating a ball. This procedure will

be ‘called up’ whenever we want to create a ball on the screen
at a point (X,Y). It is good practice to tuck a procedure like this
away at the end of a program, so we’ll give it a high line
number. X and Y are called the parameters for this procedure.

169
 1000 DEF PROCBALL(X,Y)
1010 PLOT 70,X,Y
1020 PLOT 70,X,Y+4
1030 PLOT 70,X+4,Y
1040 PLOT 70,X+4,Y+4
1050 ENDPROC
We use PLOT 70 rather than PLOT 69 to help the animation
which follows.

c Making, the ball travel horizontally at height Y = 500

40 REM HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT
50 FOR N = 1 TO 1000
60 PROCBALL(N,500)
70 PROCBALL(N,500)
80 NEXT N
90 END
You will see that this prints the ball at the point (N,500) and
then ‘unprints’ it only to print it again one step further on, and
so on.
To speed the ball up, alter line 50
50 FOR N = 1 TO 1000 STEP 10

How to create your own ‘graphics’ characters

Each character which you type in at the keyboard has an
associated ascii code. When the computer is told to print this
character it looks up the code and prints the appropriate
character as an 8 x 8 matrix of dots. The letter A, for example,
has the code value 65 and ‘a’ has the value 97 (See page 490 for
the other codes). However, certain code values have been left
to be defined by the user. They include values 224 to 255 (See
page 384 for more details). They can be defined by use of the
VDU 23 command.
128

How to make a character (e.g. a man)

64
32
16
8
4
2
1

Create the character by planning it on a

b
an 8 x 8 square grid. c
d
e
f
g
h

170
Note the numbers along the top of the grid which start at the
right and double for every column moved to the left. To store
the character shown above as code number 240, type in
VDU 23,240,28,28,8,127,8,20,34,65
The numbers which follow VDU 23,240 tell the computer
the pattern of dots in each horizontal row. These values are the
‘byte’ patterns corresponding to the eight cells of each row.
They can be calculated in a number of ways and entered as a
decimal or hexadecimal number. The simplest way for the
novice is to add up the values shown in the diagram above.
Thus row a consists of 16 + 8 + 4 = 28, row b is also 28, the third
row is 8, the fourth row is 64 + 32 + 16 + 8 + 4 + 2 + 1 = 127, and
so on. So to create the little man, type the following program
5 MODE 5
10 VDU 23,240,28,28,8,127,8,20,34,65
20 PRINT CHR$(240);
30 GOTO 20
Note the last two lines, which print him over and over again.

How to make him move

We have created a character which can be reproduced in any
mode (except mode 7). By printing him and then erasing him at
successive positions he can be made to move across the screen
in a similar way to the ball. However, since he exists as a
character he is treated as text, not graphics. This means that he
is made to appear by using PRINT – as above – and the
position can be defined by using the TAB statement.
Try this:
5 MODE 4
10 VDU 23,240,28,28,8,127,8,20,34,65
20 PRINT TAB(20,10); CHR$(240)
The character appears at text position 20,10. This is a 40
character wide mode so 20,10 is roughly in the middle of the
screen.
Now try this:
20 FOR X=1 TO 19
30 PRINT TAB(X,10); CHR$(240)
40 NEXT X

171
This will print the man nineteen times across the screen. Now
type these additional lines:
40 FOR T = 1 TO 100: NEXT T
50 PRINT TAB(X,10);" "

128
64
32
16
60 NEXT X

8
4
2
1
8
8
and he appears to run 28
make this
across the screen. character
28
62
240
62
By altering lines 30 and 50 so 62
that the value in brackets is 62
(X,X) he can be made to move 62
62
diagonally on the screen. 62
62
this 241
Note that line 40 acts as a time delay. 62
62
62
62
62
How to make a larger character 62
This time, a space ship. 62
127
Plan this by using several grids. this 242
127
127
So we have 93
93
5 MODE 4
10 VDU 23,240,8,8,28,28,62,62,62,62
20 VDU 23,241,62,62,62,62,62,62,
62,62
30 VDU 23,242,62,62,62,127,127,127,
93,93
40 X = 20: Y = 10
50 PRINT TAB(X,Y);CHR$240;
60 PRINT TAB(X,Y+1);CHR$241;
70 PRINT TAB(X,Y+2);CHR$242;
This produces the space ship in the middle of the screen. To
make it take off, change the program by adding these lines
35 X=20
40 FOR Y = 24 TO 1 STEP -1
80 FOR T = 1 TO 100: NEXT T
90 PRINT TAB(X,Y); " ";
100 PRINT TAB(X,Y+1); " ";
110 PRINT TAB(X,Y+2);" ";
120 NEXT Y

172
Now add an extra character to produce flames at the bottom of
the space ship for the initial take off.
32 VDU 23,243,28,60,30,60,126,
108,162,162
75 IF Y>12 THEN PRINT TAB(X,Y+3);
CHR$243
115 PRINT TAB(X,Y+3); " ";

How to make the movement smoother

The rocket does not appear to move up the screen smoothly but
in a series of jumps. This is because when you use TAB(X,Y)
there are only 32 possible lines you can print on.
The VDU 5 statement (see also page 75, where it is used for
positioning accents, etc.) causes text to be written at the
graphics cursor. This means that you can move to any point on
the screen on the normal 1280 ´ 1024 graphic “grid” and print
text or user defined characters. To do this MOVE X,Y is used.
VDU 4 undoes the effect of a VDU 5 statement.
It causes text to be written where the text cursor is.
Then the first character can be printed using PRINT
CHR$(240); or VDU 240. These two alternatives are
equivalent but VDU 240 means less typing! We now need to
backspace one character from our original position and move
down one character cell so we can print the next character. We
can’t use TAB(X,Y) because it won’t work after a VDU 5
statement, so we use two of the four “cursor movement
commands” (see page 75).
VDU 8 backspace cursor one character
VDU 9 forward space cursor one character
VDU 10 move cursor down one line
VDU 11 move cursor up one line
Later on we’ll also use VDU 127 which has exactly the same
effect as pressing the DELETE key. All the VDU commands are
listed at the back of the book – there’s no need to remember
them all.
We need to use VDU 8 and then VDU 10, or the other way
round. You can string VDU commands together, so we can use
VDU 240,8,10

173
which will print the first character and then move the cursor
into position to print the next one. To print the whole rocket
and flames this is repeated 3 times: here it is done in
PROCROCKET
5 MODE 4
7 VDU 23;8202;0;0;0;:REM turn off
cursor
10 VDU 23,240,8,8,28,28,62,62,62,62
20 VDU 23,241,62,62,62,62,62,62,62,62
30 VDU 23,242,62,62,62,127,127,127,93,93
32 VDU 23,243,28,60,30,60,126,108,162,
162
35 X%=20
37 VDU 5
38 GCOL 4,1
40 FOR Y%=120 TO 1023 STEP 10
50 PROCROCKET: REM draw the rocket
60 FOR F=0 TO 200 : NEXT : REM wait a
while
90 PROCROCKET: REM now delete it
120 NEXT Y%
130 END
1010 DEF PROCROCKET
1020 MOVE X%,Y%
1025 VDU 240
1030 VDU 10,8,241
1040 VDU 10,8,242
1050 IF Y%<500 THEN VDU 10,8,243
1060 ENDPROC
Notice the ‘integer’ variables (followed by a % sign), are used:
these make the program run considerably faster than ‘real’
variables.
The rocket is printed at line 50 by PROCROCKET. Line 60 is a
short delay and line 90 prints the rocket again in its inverse
colour (as specified in line 38 GCOL 4,1), and so deletes it.
As an alternative to this, the rocket could be deleted by
replacing line 90 with PROCdelete, deleting line 38, and
adding the new procedure
2000 DEF PROCdelete
2010 MOVE X%,Y%
174
 2020 VDU 9,127
2030 VDU 10,9,127
2040 VDU 10,9,127
2050 VDU 10,9,127
2060 ENDPROC
This just deletes the rocket with VDU 127.
We can get smoother movement if we just delete the bottom
character every time. This removes most of the flicker and what
remains becomes almost a virtue. The price is that the detail at
the bottom of the rocket is lost, so this method only works if
your character gets wider at the bottom!
Delete lines 60 and 90, and type this new procedure:
38 GCOL 0,1
40 FOR Y%=120 TO 1023 STEP 4
1010 DEF PROCROCKET
1020 MOVE X%,Y%
1025 VDU 240,10,8
1030 VDU 241,10,8
1040 VDU 242
1050 VDU 10,8,243
1055 VDU 127
1060 ENDPROC
If you change one line
1050 IF Y%<500 THEN VDU 10,8,243 ELSE
VDU 10
the flames will cut out after take-off again.

Making a complete lunar lander game

Using the procedures we have developed for creating and
moving the rocket on the screen, we can incorporate these into
a complete game which can test your skill at landing a space
ship on the Moon. This complete program uses a range of
techniques described elsewhere in the book and was written by
Jim Murray. We include a few notes to explain what is going
on.
5 ON ERROR REPORT:GOTO 245
10 MODE5
20 VDU 23,240,8,8,28,28,62,62,62,62

175
 30 VDU 23,241,62,62,62,62,62,62,62,62
40 VDU 23,242,62,62,62,127,127,127,93,93
50 VDU 23,243,28,60,30,60,126,108,162,162
60 VDU 23;8202;0;0;0;
70 VDU 19,2,2,0,0,0
80 VDU 28,0,20,14,0
90 @%=&906
110 *FX 11 1

Notes:
Line 70 enables us to use green
Line 80 sets up a text window
Line 90 sets @% – so numbers are printed as we want them
Line 110 sets the auto repeat delay period to its minimum value
Line 5 disables the effect of line 110 if you press ESCAPE,
otherwise it’s difficult to type anything again!
120 PROClabels
130 PROCmoon
140 PROCinitialise
150 VDU 5
160 X%=960
165 GCOL 0,3
170 REPEAT
180 burn$=INKEY$(0)
185 *FX 15 1
190 IF burn$="" THEN burnrate%=0
ELSE burnrate%=VAL(burn$)*30
200 PROCcalculate
210 PROCdashboard
220 IF Y%>oldY%+4 OR Y%<oldY%-4
THEN PROCrocket
225 PROCburn
230 UNTIL height=0
240 IF speed>0.004 THEN PROCcrash
ELSE PROCfanfare
245 *FX 12, 0
247 *FX 15, 1
250 END

Notes: Although line 250 says END this is not the end of the
program. What follows are the various procedures which have
been called by the program as its exists so far.
176
Before we give the procedures, some notes on the earlier lines.
Line 120 PROClabels – sets up the titles
Line 130 PROCmoon – draws moon’s surface
Line 140 PROCinitialise – sets all the variables to initial
values
Lines 170 – 230 are the main part of program – a REPEAT
UNTIL loop
Line 180 – checks to see if any key has been pressed
Line 185 – flushes the key buffer, otherwise the burn continues
for a long time after the key is released.
Line 190 – we use INKEY$ to check if anything has been
pressed.
But this returns a string. Line 190 converts it to a number.
Line 200 PROCcalculate – does the maths
Line 210 PROCdashboard – prints up the results
Line 220 – prints the rocket if Y% (the variable used in MOVE
X%,Y%) has gone up or down by 4. In this mode the rocket is
printed in the same place unless the change is greater than 4.
Line 225 PROCburn – draws the fuel burning
Line 240 – Crash or good landing? – at less than 15 mph it’s
good.
Line 247 – flushes keyboard buffer again so you don’t get a
whole string of numbers printed when the program stops.
700 DEF PROClabels
710 PRINT TAB(0,7)"secs"
720 PRINT TAB(0,9)"miles"
725 PRINT TAB(0,10)"feet"
730 PRINT TAB(0,12)"speed"
740 PRINT TAB(0,14)"fuel"
750 PRINT TAB(0,16)"burn?"
760 ENDPROC
800 DEF PROCmoon
805 GCOL 0, 2
810 LOCAL X
820 FOR X=100 TO 1280 STEP 200
830 MOVE X,0
840 PLOT 85,X,30
850 PLOT 85,X+100,0
860 NEXT X
870 ENDPROC

177
 900 DEF PROCinitialise
910 TIME=0:now=0
920 speed=1 :REM in miles/second
930 height=46:REM in miles
935 Y%=920
937 oldY%=Y%
940 gravity=0.001
950 fuel=16500
960 totalmass=33000
965 burnrate%=0
970 ENDPROC
1100 DEF PROCcalculate
1105 IF fuel<=0 THEN
fuel=0:burnrate%=0
1110 burntime=(TIME-now)/100
1120 now=TIME
1130 slower=(burnrate%/totalmass)*2*
EXP(burnrate%*burntime/totalmass)
1140 height=height-speed*burntime-
burntime*burntime/2*(gravity-slower)
1150 speed=speed+burntime*(gravity-
slower)
1160 burnt=burnrate%*burntime
1170 totalmass=totalmass-burnt
1180 fuel=fuel-burnt
1190 IF height<0 THEN height=0
1200 Y%=height*20+32
1210 ENDPROC
1300 DEF PROCdashboard
1310 VDU4
1320 PRINT TAB(5,7)INT(TIME/100)
1330 PRINT TAB(5,9)INT(height)
1340 PRINT TAB(5,10)(height*5280)
MOD 5280
1350 PRINT TAB(5,12)INT(speed*3600)
1360 PRINT TAB(5,14)INT(fuel)
1370 PRINT TAB(5,16)burnrate%
1375 VDU5
1380 ENDPROC
5000 DEF PROCcrash
5020 SOUND 4,-15,100,70

178
 5030 FORX=1 TO 100
5040 MOVE 850+RND(200),RND(200)
5045 GCOL0,RND(4)
5050 DRAW RND(1280),RND(1024)
5055 NEXT
5060 ENDPROC
6000 DEF PROCfanfare
6010 FOR X=1 TO 11
6015 READ P,D
6017 IF P=999 THEN L=0 ELSE L=-15
6020 SOUND 1,L,P,D
6025 SOUND 1,0,0,3
6030 NEXT
6035 DATA 97,15,97,5,101,5,999,5,101,
5,97,5,101,10,97,2,89,5,81,5,77,10
6040 ENDPROC
8000 DEFPROCburn
8005 GCOL0,1
8010 MOVEX%,oldY%
8015 IF burnrate%=0 THEN VDU10 9,127
ELSE VDU10,243
8025 GCOL0,3
8030 ENDPROC
10000 DEFPROCrocket
10100 MOVEX%,oldY%
10110 VDU 10,9,127,11,9,127,11,9,127,
11,9,127
10120 MOVE X%,Y%
10140 VDU 242,8,11,241,8,11,240
10150 oldY%=Y%
10160 ENDPROC

Running the program

You start off at a height of 46 miles moving at 1 mile/sec or
3600 mph. You have fuel of 16500 lbs and your weight to start
with, including fuel, is 33000 lbs. You fire the rockets by
pressing one of the keys 1–9 and holding it down until you
want to stop burning. The rate of burning is proportional to the
number.

179
30 Sound

The BBC computer contains integrated circuits specifically

designed to generate musical sounds and noises on four
‘channels’. Two statements control the generation of musical
sounds; they are SOUND and ENVELOPE. For simple effects
the statement SOUND can be used by itself but if the user
wishes to have greater control over the quality of the sounds
generated then ENVELOPE can be explored. At its simplest
the sound statement is followed by four numbers e.g.
SOUND C, A, P, D
C is the channel number 0 to 3
A is the amplitude or loudness 0 to –15
P is the pitch 0 to 255
D is the duration 1 to 255
The Channel Number, C, determines which of the four
“voices” is to be used. Channel 0 produces ‘noise’ (this channel
will be explained in detail later) whereas channels 1, 2 and 3
produce purer notes.
The amplitude, A can be varied between 0 (off) and –15 (loud).
The pitch, P selects notes in quarter semi-tone intervals.
Middle C is produced when P is set at 53 and other notes are
generated with the values of P given opposite.
As you can see the computer can produce notes spanning five
full octaves. The values of P are also shown opposite for a stave
in the key of C but one octave up.
The duration, D determines the length of the note and is given
in twentieths of a second. Those used to reading music will
find that music marked “Moderato h = 60” will sound about
right with the following settings for D.

180
e5 q 10 h 20 w 40
Octave number
Note 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
B 1 49 97 145 193 241
A# 45 93 141 189 237
A 41 89 137 185 233
G# 37 85 133 181 229
G 33 81 129 177 225
F# 29 77 125 173 221
F 25 73 121 169 217
E 21 69 117 165 213
D# 17 65 113 161 209
D 13 61 109 157 205 253
C# 9 57 105 153 201 249
C 5 53 101 149 197 245

G 177
F 169
E 165
D 157
C 149
B 145
A 137
G 129
F 121
E 117
D 109
C 101
B 97
A 89
G 81
F 73
E 69
D 61
C 53
B 49
A 41
G 33
F 25

That completes the simple description of the SOUND

command.
There are two main areas where the SOUND command can be
extended. First instead of working with a fixed sound quality
one can select an “envelope” to vary both the amplitude and
the pitch of the note while it is playing; secondly it is possible
to ensure that notes are synchronised so that chords start
together. In addition to these major extensions there are a
number of other things that can be controlled, and these will be
described later.

181
If you wish to use an envelope to vary either the amplitude or
the pitch of a note (or both) then you must first define the
envelope and secondly, instead of using a fixed amplitude in
the SOUND statement, you must quote the envelope number
for A. Four envelopes are normally permitted and they are
numbered 1 to 4.
Thus
SOUND 1,2,53,20
would produce on channel 1 a note of middle C with a duration
of one second and the amplitude and pitch would be controlled
by the envelope number 2.
The statement ENVELOPE is followed by 14 numbers and the
following labels will be used for the 14 parameters.
ENVELOPE N, T, PI1, PI2, PI3, PN1, PN2,
PN3, AA, AD, AS, AR, ALA, ALD
A brief description of each parameter follows
Parameter Range Function
N 1 to 4 Envelope number
T bits 0-6 1 to 127 length of each step in hundredth of a
second
bit 7 0 or 1 0 = auto repeat pitch envelope,
1 = don’t repeat pitch envelope
PI1 –128 to 127 change of pitch per step in section 1
PI2 –128 to 127 change of pitch per step in section 2
PI3 –128 to 127 change of pitch per step in section 3
PN1 0 to 255 Number of steps in section l
PN2 0 to 255 Number of steps in section 2
PN3 0 to 255 Number of steps in section 3

AA –127 to 127 Change of amplitude per step during

attack phase
AD –127 to 127 Change of amplitude per step during
decay phase
AS –127 to 0 Change of amplitude per step during
sustain phase
AR –127 to 0 Change of amplitude per step during
release phase
ALA 0 to 126 Target level at end of attack phase
ALD 0 to 126 Target level at end of decay phase

182
Note that the pitch can take on a value between 0 and 255. If
the pitch is greater than 255 (e.g, 257) then 256 will be
repeatedly subtracted from it until it is in range.
The amplitude has a range of 0 to 127 in the ENVELOPE
statement whereas it had a range of 0 to –15 in the SOUND
statement. The amplitude cannot be set outside the range 0 to
127.
Note also that the total duration of the attack, decay and
sustain periods (but not the release period) is determined by
the SOUND statement and not the ENVELOPE statement.
The ENVELOPE is divided up into a number of steps – usually
of a hundredth of a second each and both the pitch and
amplitude can be changed at the end of each step.

The pitch envelope

The pitch of the note can be changed in three sections. For each
section you can specify the change in pitch at each tick of the
clock (step) in the section. Suppose we wish to generate a
wailing sound like a police siren. The pitch has to rise and fall
like this
pitch
225
section 2

100

section section
1 3
0
0 10 20 30 40 time in steps

During section 1 the pitch changes +2 units per step and

section 1 contains 10 steps. In section 2 the pitch changes –2
units per step and there are 20 steps. Section 3 contains 10 steps
of +2 units. So thus far the envelope command looks like
ENVELOPE 2,1,2,-2,2,10,20,10
The next six numbers control the amplitude of the sound and
might well be 1, 0, 0, –1, 100, 100 (these will be explained in a
moment).

183
So the total program to show the pitch envelope working
would be
10 ENVELOPE 2,1,2,-2,2,10,20,
10,1,0,0,-1,100,100
20 SOUND 1,2,100,100
Here is another pitch envelope – it plays 3 notes in succession.
10 ENVELOPE 3,25,16,12,8,1,1,1,
10,-10,0,-10,100,50
It reads:
Envelope number 3.
Each step is 25/100 i.e. 1/4 second long.
The first section of the pitch envelope uses a pitch change of 16
units.
The second section uses a pitch change of 12 units.
The third section has a pitch change of 8 units.
All three sections have only 1 step in each section.
Now to explain the amplitude envelope.

The amplitude envelope

Suppose that we wish to imitate a car driving towards us
getting louder all the time and then driving past before
stopping nearby and then driving away. The amplitude of the
sound against time might well look like this

car going stopped going

approaching away away
amplitude
100

60

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 time in seconds

The first phase of the amplitude envelope, where the sound is

getting louder is called the “Attack phase”.

184
amplitude
ALA
decay
sustain
ALD
attack
release

0 2 4 6 8 10 time in seconds

The amplitude envelope is specified by giving six parameters.

The first (AA) gives the change of amplitude at the end of each
step during the attack phase and it must be a positive number.
Usually the envelope starts with an amplitude of zero.
However it is possible to start with a non-zero amplitude if you
have just interrupted a note on the same channel. The attack
phase continues until the amplitude reaches the level given by
the parameter ALA.
For reference the six parameters are defined again here.
Parameter Range Function
AA -127 to 127 Change of amplitude per step during
attack phase
AD -127 to 127 Change of amplitude per step during
decay phase
AS -127 to 0 Change of amplitude per step during
sustain phase
AR -127 to 0 Change of amplitude per step during
release phase
ALA 0 to 126 Target level at end of attack phase
ALD 0 to 126 Target level at end of decay phase
In our example the attack phase takes 4 seconds and each step
lasts 1/4 second so there will be 16 steps. We want these 16
steps to get us from an amplitude of zero to an amplitude of at
least 100 – if we make each step increase the amplitude by 7 we
will get there in 16 steps. So parameter AA = 7.
During the decay phase the amplitude must drop from 100 to
60 in 2 seconds. During 2 seconds there are 8 steps. So the
amplitude drops 40 units (100-60) in 8 steps – so each step must
reduce the amplitude by 5 units. Thus AD = -5. So far we have
determined the following parameters of the amplitude
envelope.

185
AA = 7
AD = -5
ALA = 100
ALD = 50
In our case the amplitude does not change during the sustain
period so we can set AS = 0. The sound will go on until the
sustain phase is ended. The total time allowed for the attack,
decay and sustain phases is given by the duration part of the
SOUND command. The release phase then starts.
Note that the length of the attack and decay phases is set by the
values chosen for AA, AD, ALA and ALD but that the sustain
phase can be terminated either by the amplitude reaching zero
or the time set by the duration of the SOUND statement
running out. The duration has to be set with care to ensure that
it doesn’t cut the note off at the wrong moment.
At the end of the sustain period the note enters the release
phase where the note changes in amplitude at the rate set by
AR until it reaches zero.
As you may have guessed there are numerous ways of getting
things wrong so that a phase does not complete as expected.
For example with ALA set to 100 and ALD set to 50 and a
decay rate (AD) of zero the amplitude will not decay at all
during the decay phase. However the sound will be moved to
the release phase when the duration is reached.
The envelope statement is very complicated and there is a wide
range of possible effects. You will have to use it quite a lot
before you can accurately predict what effect you will produce.

Some sample ‘envelopes’ to try out

ENVELOPE 1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,2,0,-10,
-5,120,0
ENVELOPE 2,3,0,0,0,0,0,0,121,-10,-5,
-2,120,120
ENVELOPE 3,7,2,1,1,1,1,1,121,-10,-5,
-2,120,120
ENVELOPE 4,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,61,0,-10,
-120,120,0
ENVELOPE 1,8,1,-1,1,1,1,1,121,-10,-5,
-2,120,120

186
Note synchronization and other effects
The first parameter of the SOUND statement has been
considered, up to now, to control only the channel number. It
can in fact control a number of other features. For this purpose
the channel number should be considered as a four digit
hexadecimal number
C=&HSFN
Parameter Range Function
N 0 to 3 Channel number itself
F 0 or 1 Flush control
S 0 to 3 Synchronization control
H 0 or 1 Continuation control
N selects the channel number.
F If F is zero the sound will be placed in the channel queue if a
note is playing on that channel. If F = 1 then the channel queue
will be flushed (emptied) so that the sound can be generated
immediately.
S It is possible to synchronize two or more channels so that
they do not start until all have received a note marked for
synchronous production. The value of S determines how many
other channels are to form the chord. Thus for a three note
chord all three channels should be fed a note with S set to 2.
H This parameter allows the previous event on the channel to
continue if it is set to 1. In this case the amplitude and pitch
parameters of the new sound command have no effect.
Because the “dummy” note thus created is added to the
queue in the normal way it can be used to ensure that the
release phase of a sound is continued. Normally the release
phase is truncated by the next note on the queue. If H = 0 then
the note is treated as a “real” note in the usual way.
Typical values of C are
C=&201 a note on channel 1 to be synchronized with 2
others.
C=&12 a note on channel 2 is to be played immediately
regardless of what was in the channel 2 queue
A more succinct description of SOUND and ENVELOPE are
given in the keyword section on pages 347 and 244.

187
31 File handling

You are probably already aware that as well as storing

computer programs on cassette or disc, you can store “data”.
By “data” we mean sets of numbers or words. We might, for
example, store a set of names and telephone numbers. This set
of data is called a file. A set of basic statements are provided to
enable you to read information from files, to write information
to a new file, to update an existing file, to delete a file, to find
out how big a file is, to move to a certain record in a file, to
check if you have reached the end of a file and to obtain a
catalogue of all the files that exist. There are also several other
statements for performing other actions on the files.
One of the major features of the BBC Computer system is that
exactly the same statements are used no matter which ‘filing
system’ is in use. A number of different filing systems are
available including cassette, disc and network systems.
Programs written to work on a cassette file system will usually
work unmodified on a disc system. See page 400 for details of
other file systems.
Firstly here is a summary of all the file handling statements
available in BBC basic.
*CAT Gives a catalogue of all data files and programs on
the cassette or floppy disc. It takes a very long time
on a cassette.
OPENIN Opens a file so that it can be read.
OPENOUT Opens a new (empty) file for writing.
INPUT# Reads data from a file into the computer.
PRINT# Writes data from the computer into a file.
BGET# Reads a single character (byte) from a file.
BPUT# Writes a single character (byte) to a file.
PTR# Can be used either to find out which record we are
188
 about to read (or write) or to move to a specific
record. (Not cassette)
EXT# Indicates how long a file is. (Not cassette)
EOF# Indicates whether or not the end of a file has been
reached.
CLOSE# Indicates to the computer that you have finished
with a file.
The statement *CAT can be used at any time. However before
you can use any of the other file statements you have to open
the file. After you have opened a file you can read and write to
it as much as you wish. When you have finished with the file
you must close it.
An analogy may help to make one or two points clearer. The
files are all kept in one room and your only method of
communicating with them is via 5 telephone lines to 5 clerks. In
addition there is a supervisor who knows which telephone line
to use to communicate with the right clerk. It is the clerk’s job
to keep all the files tidy and you really have no idea how he
looks after the files – nor does it matter, so long as he is
efficient.
To return to our computer, suppose that we wish to create a file
called "DRINKS" in which we list every drink we ever try.
First of all we have to ask the supervisor to allocate a phone
line and clerk to us. The statement.
X = OPENOUT "DRINKS"
will place the number of the channel (telephone line) allocated
to the file into the variable X. Next we can ask the user for the
names of the drinks using
INPUT "WHAT IS THE DRINK CALLED", D$
and then send the name (held in D$) to the clerk to be entered
in the file. Notice how we have to use the variable X to ensure
that it is entered in the correct file.
PRINT#X,D$
and then we could repeat this process until the user replied
with the word STOP. The program would look like this

189
 10 X=OPENOUT "DRINKS"
20 REPEAT
30 INPUT "What is the drink
called", D$
40 PRINT#X, D$
50 UNTIL D$="STOP"
60 CLOSE#X
When run the program will save the data on cassette (if one is
connected).
>RUN
RECORD then RETURN
What is the drink called?WHISKY
What is the drink called?PORT
What is the drink called?GIN
What is the drink called?BEER
What is the drink called?LAGER
What is the drink called?CIDER
What is the drink called?TOMATO JUICE
What is the drink called?STOP
That has created a file called "DRINKS" which has been
stored on cassette or disc. The program to read the file back in
is also quite straightforward.
10 Y=OPENIN "DRINKS"
20 REPEAT
30 INPUT#Y, R$
40 PRINT R$
50 UNTIL R$="STOP"
60 CLOSE#Y
When this is run, if the tape is now played from a point just
before the position where the data was recorded, the list will
then appear on the screen.
>RUN
WHISKY
PORT
GIN
BEER
LAGER
CIDER
TOMATO JUICE
STOP

190
When using these programs on cassette you must be careful to
position the tape (by “forward” and “rewind”) so that the tape
is in the right place. In the first program, where you record the
data onto the tape you will have to find a piece of blank
tape – preferably with the tape recorder counter set to 100 or
200 or 300 or some other round number. After you have
finished the first program you have to rewind the tape to the
start of the data file which was at, say, 200. It is just like trying
to play a piece of music back that you have recorded on a
cassette; you must rewind the cassette to the start of the piece.
You may well know how difficult it is to find a particular
record on a cassette and that is why it is so important to use the
tape counter every time and to write down where each title is
on the tape. Your index might look like
100 NAMES
200 DRINKS
300 SLIDES
400
For most applications that is all you will need to know about
file handling and you will only use statements like these
*CAT
X=OPENIN "FILENAME"
X=OPENOUT "FILENAME"
PRINT#X,A,B$
INPUT#X,A,B$
CLOSE#X
"FILENAME" is the name of the file which normally consists
of up to ten letters but see page 397 for more details.
A and B$ represent any (and as many) numeric and string
variables as you wish to record.
X is a numeric variable used to remember the channel number
allocated to the file number.
For more specialist applications a number of other functions
and statements are provided. BGET# and BPUT# enable
single characters to be input and output. They would be used
for recording special data, for example from laboratory
experiments.
EXT# and PTR# are mainly used with disc systems where

191
random access files are required. They cannot be used in a
cassette environment.
EOF# enables a program to detect the end of the file when
reading in data. It is normally used in the following way
10 Y=OPENIN "DRINKS"
20 REPEAT
30 INPUT#Y, A$
40 PRINT A$
50 UNTIL EOF#Y
60 CLOSE#Y

Telephone book program

One of the programs on the welcome cassette can be used to
keep a personal telephone directory. Clearly it should be
possible to save a copy of all your entries on to cassette and to
load them back into the computer later. Several modifications
must be made to the program to enable this to happen. These
modifications are shown below. Once you have modified the
program you can then save the corrected version with a new
name, for example
SAVE "TELE2"
First, load the program. Don’t RUN it, but type CTRL N then
LIST to list the program in ‘page mode’. To move down the
program, press SHIFT. When you come to a page requiring
one of the changes set out below, press ESCAPE and edit the
line in the normal way.
Lines 210 to 280 omit final '
Add new lines:
282 PRINT" 9 - Load data from
cassette"
284 PRINT" 0 - Save data to
cassette"
Change line 290 to
290 SEL = -1
In line 300 change TAB(3,22) to TAB(3,23)
Line 330 change to
330 IF A<0 OR A>9 THEN 310

192
Change line 350 to
350 IF SEL> -1 THEN PRINT TAB(2,SEL+3
-10*(SEL=0));CHR$(&89);
Change line 360 to
360 PRINT TAB(2,A+3-10*(A=0));
CHR$(&88);A;CHR$(&89)
Change line 380 to
380 IF SEL=-1 THEN 300
Change line 500 to
500 ON SEL+1 GOTO 505,510,520,530,
540,550,560,570,580,590
New lines:
505 PROCSAVE:GOTO 200
590 PROCLOAD:GOTO 200
10000 DEF PROCLOAD
10005 PRINT TAB(0,16); "Play tape and
press any key"
10007 Q=GET
10008 PRINT "Please wait"
10010 E%=OPENIN "DATA"
10020 INPUT#E%,X
10030 FOR I%=1 TO X
10032 INPUT#E%,NAME$(I%),PHONE$(I%)
10034 PROCPACK(I%)
10036 NEXT
10040 CLOSE#E%
10050 ENDPROC
11000 DEF PROCSAVE
11005 PRINT TAB(0,16); "Please press ";
11010 E%=OPENOUT "DATA"
11015 PRINT '"Please wait"
11020 PRINT#E%,X
11030 FOR I%=1 TO X
11032 PRINT#E%,NAME$(I%),PHONE$(I%)
11036 NEXT
11040 CLOSE#E%
11050 ENDPROC

193
32 Speeding up
programs and
saving memory
space

For some applications it is important that a program runs as

quickly as possible and a few tips are given here which will,
together, substantially increase the execution speed of
programs. In other applications space may be at a premium
and other suggestions are given for saving space. Sometimes
there is a trade off between the size of a program and speed
and the user will have to decide which is more important.
The most dramatic saving that can be made is in the speed of
execution of programs. The use of integer variables (e.g.
WEIGHT%), and especially of the resident integer variables
A% to Z% will result in execution times as little as 50% of those
achieved with “real” variables. Again, integer division (DIV)
is much faster than normal division when working with
integers. Using integer arrays rather than real arrays will save
20% of the memory required.
Execution speed can also be increased in the following ways.
1 Allocate variable names with an even spread throughout
the alphabet – so don’t start all your variables with “F”, for
example.
2 Omit the control variable after the word NEXT. i.e., say
NEXT rather than NEXT X. This saves quite a lot of time.
3 REPEAT...UNTIL loops are much faster than
IF...THEN GOTO loops.

194
4 Procedures are faster than GOSUBs, and it is faster to pass
parameters to a procedure than to use global variables. i.e, do
use PROCBOX(X,Y,Z) rather than PROCBOX.
5 If you have a line which contains a lot of “integer”
arithmetic and a little “real” arithmetic then, if possible, place
the integer work at the start of the line where it will be
executed first.
6 Have as few line numbers as possible – i.e. use long lines
and spread the line numbers out rather than re-numbering
with an interval of 1. An interval of 10 is good.
As far as space saving is concerned the following can be tried –
but all reduce the readability of programs and should not be
used unless it is really necessary.
7 Omit spaces wherever possible – but you must keep a space
or a % or $ sign or some other separator before most keywords
to avoid ambiguity. If a variable FRED is in use then you must
write
Y=FRED OR MARY
and not
Y=FREDORMARY
In the latter case the computer will look for the variable
FREDORMARY rather than the two variables FRED and
MARY. The space after OR is not required.
8 Omit REM statements.

195
Reference section

196
33 BASIC keywords

This chapter contains a detailed description of every word that

basic understands. These words are called “keywords”.
Some parts of the description are intended for the novice user,
and others for the person who is familiar with basic. Each
keyword is described under a number of headings as follows:

KEYWORD
Sometimes followed by a few words explaining the derivation
of the word.

Purpose
A plain-English description of what the keyword does. This is
intended for the person who is learning basic.
The only technical terms used are “string” and “numeric” – if
you don’t understand those two words then read section 9 on
page 62 first. The mathematical functions sin, cos, tan, etc are
not explained for the absolute beginner – there just isn’t
enough room to explain everything!

Examples
This section gives a few one-line examples of the use of the
keyword (not complete programs). Some of the examples have
a number at the start of the line. This number is an “example
line-number”.
The examples are only intended to be illustrative. In some cases
a line of basic program may overflow onto the next line as
elsewhere in this book.

197
Description
In this section the keyword is described using normal
computer jargon.
Known problems
Any known bugs are described here.
Syntax
The syntax of each keyword’s usage is given more by way of
helpful explanation than for its rigorous accuracy. Purists will,
rightly, complain at this travesty of Backus-Naur Form (BNF).
Others may find the entries useful.
The following symbols are used as part of the syntax
explanation:
{} denotes possible repetition of the enclosed symbols zero or
more times
[] enclose optional items
| indicates alternatives from which one should be chosen
<num-const> means a numeric constant such as “4.5” or
“127”

<num-var> means numeric variable such as “X” or “length”

<numeric> means either a <num-const> or a

<num-var>, or a combination of these in an expression for
example “4*X+6”

<string-const> means a string enclosed in quotation

marks, e.g. "GAVIN MOUNT"

<string-var> means a string variable such as A$ or

NAME$

<string> means either a <string-const> or a

<string-var>, or an expression such as A$+"WOMBAT"

<testable condition> means something which is

either true or false. Since true and false have values it is
possible to use a <numeric> at any point where a
<testable condition> is required. The distinction
between these two is, in fact, rather unnecessary.

198
<statement> means any basic statement, for example,
PRINT or GOSUB or PROC

<variable name> means any sequence of letters or

numbers that obeys the rules for variables (see pages 24, 62 and
120).

Associated keywords
This section is intended to draw your attention to other
keywords which either have similar functions or which are
normally used in conjunction with this keyword. You will
probably find it helpful to read the pages which describe the
associated keywords.

Demonstration program
If appropriate a short program is included to illustrate the use
of the keyword.

199
ABS absolute value
Purpose
This function turns negative numbers into equivalent positive
numbers but leaves positive numbers alone. For example the
absolute value of –9.75 is 9.75 while the absolute value of 4.56
is 4.56.
The ABS function is often used when calculating the difference
between two values if you do not know which is the larger of
the two. Thus (K–L) will be positive if K is greater than L, and
will be negative if L is greater than K.
For example if K=9 and L=12 then (K–L) would be equal to –3.
However the value of ABS(K-L) will always be positive. In
the example given ABS(K-L) would equal 3.

Examples
205 error=ABS(DIFFERENCE)
100 DIFF=ABS(X2-X1)
PRINT ABS(temp%-50)

Description
A function giving the absolute value of its argument.

Known problems
There is a known ‘bug’ in release 1.0. If ABS is used with the
unary minus operator (PRINT -ABS(1)) a ‘Type
mismatch’ error message will be reported.

Syntax
<num-var> = ABS(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
SGN

200
ACS arc-cosine
Purpose
To calculate an angle whose cosine is known. The calculated
angle is in radians but may be converted to degrees by using
the function DEG. See DEG for more information.

Examples
10 X=ACS(Y)
1205 angle=DEG(ACS(0.5678))
330 OUT=ACS(.234)
PRINT ACS(0.5)

Description
A function giving the arc-cosine of its argument. The result is
in radian measure.

Syntax
<num-var> = ACS(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
ASN, ATN, SIN, COS, TAN, RAD, DEG

201
 analogue to digital
ADVAL converter value

Purpose
An analogue signal is one which can have almost any value –
including fractional parts. It is contrasted with a digital signal
which is expressed in exact numbers. The height of the water in
a harbour is an analogue quantity whereas the number of boats
it contains is a digital quantity.
Watches always used to have analogue dials – “The time is
about four fifteen”. Electronic things usually much prefer to
work with whole numbers; for example
16h : 15m : 23s
There are four “Analogue to Digital” converters in the Model B
BBC Microcomputer. Each analogue to digital converter in the
computer accepts a voltage and gives out a whole number
indicating how large the voltage is. This voltage might be
controlled by, for example, the position of a “games paddle” or
“joy-stick” control which is connected to the computer.
Alternatively the computer might be connected to a speed
sensor on a piece of machinery or it might measure the
temperature of a room.
The input voltage range is 0 volt to 1.8 volt. When the input is
0V the converter produces the number zero. With 1.8 V input
the converter produces the number 65520. Why 65520? The
circuit in the computer which does the conversion was
designed to give out numbers in the range 0 to 4095. However
it may well be that future converters can give out numbers over
a large range – enabling the computer to measure things more
accurately. In order to ensure that the BBC Microcomputer can
cope with this situation we have specified a large range.
Thus instead of numbers in the range 0 to 4095 it produces a
number in the range 0 to 65520. Therefore instead of numeric
results going up in the sequence 0,1,2,3, etc. they will go
0,16,32,48,64 etc. If you prefer the range 0 to 4095 then just
divide the value by 16.

202
There are four analogue input channels provided in the Model
B microcomputer and the number in brackets after the
keyword ADVAL refers to the channel whose value you wish
to find. The channels are numbered 1,2,3,4.
ADVAL(0) performs a special function in that it can be used
to test which of the “Fire” buttons is pressed on the games
paddles. The value returned also indicates which ADC channel
was the last one to be updated. The following can be used to
extract these two pieces of information from the value returned
by ADVAL(0).
X=ADVAL(0) AND 3
will give a number with the following meaning
X=0 no button pressed
X=1 left side fire button pressed
X=2 right side fire button pressed
X=3 both fire buttons pressed.
X=ADVAL(0) DIV 256
will give the number of the last analogue to digital channel to
complete conversion. If the value returned is zero then no
channel has yet completed conversion.
ADVAL with a negative number in the brackets – e.g.
X=ADVAL(-3), can be used to see how full any of the
internal buffers are. When characters are typed in on the
keyboard they are put into a buffer from which they are
extracted with statements like INPUT and GET. Other buffers
are used internally for other purposes. The exact meaning of
the number returned depends on the buffer being tested.
X=ADVAL(-1) returns the number of characters in the
keyboard buffer
X=ADVAL(-2) returns the number of characters in the
RS423 input buffer
X=ADVAL(-3) returns the number of free spaces in the
RS423 output buffer
X=ADVAL(-4) returns the number of free spaces in the
printer output buffer

203
X=ADVAL(-5) returns the number of free spaces in the
SOUND channel 0 buffer
X=ADVAL(-6) returns the number of free spaces in the
SOUND channel 1 buffer
X=ADVAL(-7) returns the number of free spaces in the
SOUND channel 2 buffer
X=ADVAL(-8) returns the number of free spaces in the
SOUND channel 3 buffer
X=ADVAL(-9) returns the number of free spaces in the
SPEECH buffer
This feature can be used, for example, to ensure that a program
never gets stuck waiting for a SOUND channel to empty.
e.g.
IF ADVAL(-7)<>0 THEN SOUND 2, .....etc

Examples
980 X=ADVAL(3)
125 TEMP=ADVAL(X)
intensity=ADVAL(1)

Syntax
<num-var> = ADVAL(<numeric>)

Description
A function which returns the last known value of the analogue
to digital channel given in its argument. There are 4 channels
each of 12 bit resolution, but the returned value is scaled to 16
bits.
The analogue to digital converter cycles repeatedly through the
selected channels and keeps a table of the results so that the
function ADVAL returns very quickly. New samples are taken
about every 10 milli-seconds. Thus with 4 channels selected
results will be updated every 40 ms. See page 426 “Machine
Operating System” for information on changing the number of
channels selected.

204
AND
Purpose
AND can be used either as a logical operator or as a “bit by bit”
operator. A common jargon word for “bit by bit” is “bitwise”
and it will be used in the description which follows.
As a logical operator AND is used to ensure that two conditions
are met before something is done. For example
IF X=9 AND Y=0 THEN PRINT "HELLO"
Logical AND is most often used as part of the
IF...AND...THEN... construction.
Bitwise AND compares the first bit of one number with the first
bit of another number. If both bits are set to a one (rather than a
zero) then the first bit in the answer is also set to a one. This
process is then repeated for bit 1 in each of the two numbers
being compared and so on for all 32 bits in the numbers. For
example the result of 14 AND 7 is 6, since in binary

14 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 1110

7 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0111
6 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0110

Examples
300 IF length>9 AND wt>9 THEN PRINT
"YES"
100 IF X=2 AND cost>5 AND J=12 THEN
PRINT "NO!!"
The above example will only print NO!! if all three conditions
are met.

Description
The operation of integer bitwise AND between two items. Note
that the logical and bitwise operations are in fact equivalent.
This follows since the value of TRUE is –1 which is represented
on this machine by the binary number
205
1111 1111 1111 1111 1111 1111 1111 1111
Similarly the binary value of FALSE is
0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000
Thus PRINT 6=6
would print “–1” since “6=6” is TRUE.

Syntax
<num-var> = <numeric> AND <numeric>
<testable condition> = <testable
condition> AND <testable condition>

Associated keywords
EOR, OR, FALSE, TRUE, NOT

206
ASC American Standard Code (ASCII)
Purpose
There are two commonly used methods of talking about
characters (things like A, B, 5, ?, and so on). Most obviously
they are single characters! So we can say D$ = "H" – meaning
put the letter H into the box in the computer labelled D$. The
computer understands this but it doesn’t actually put an H into
the box. Instead it stores a number which represents the letter
H (in fact the number is 72). Every character has a unique
corresponding number called its ascii code. (ascii stands for
American Standard Code for Information Interchange. The
abbreviation ascii rhymes with “Laski”).
Sometimes it is convenient to find out what number
corresponds to a particular character – that is its ascii code.
You can look it up at the back of this book or you can say to the
computer
PRINT ASC("H")
The function ASC gives the ascii value of the first letter in the
string. Thus
PRINT ASC("Good")
gives 71, the ascii value of “G”.
The reverse process of generating a 1-character string from a
given ascii value is performed by the function CHR$.

Examples
25 X=ASC("Today")
would put the ascii value of “T” which is 84 into the variable X.
650 value5=ASC(A$)

Description
A function returning the ascii character value of the first
character of the argument string. If the string is null (empty)
then –1 will be returned.

207
Syntax
<num-var> = ASC(<string>)

Associated keywords
CHR$, STR$, VAL

208
ASN arc-sine
Purpose
To calculate an angle whose sine is known. The calculated
angle is in radians but may be converted to degrees by using
the function DEG. 1 radian is equal to about 57 degrees.
Mathematicians often prefer to work in radians.

Examples
340 J=ASN(0.3456)
30 angle=DEG(ASN(.7654))
PRINT ASN(.5)

Description
A function giving the arc-sine of its argument. The result is in
radian measure.

Syntax
<num-var> = ASN(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
ACS, ATN, SIN, COS, TAN, RAD, DEG

209
ATN arc-tangent
Purpose
To calculate an angle whose tangent is known. The calculated
angle is in radians but may be converted to degrees by using
the function DEG.

Examples
1250 X=ATN(Y)
240 value=DEG(ATN(2.31))

Description
A function giving the arc-tangent of its argument. The result is
in radian measure.

Syntax
<num-var> = ATN(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
ACS, ASN, SIN, COS, TAN, RAD, DEG

210
AUTO automatic
Purpose
When typing a basic program into the computer it is common
to make the first line of the program line number 10, the second
line 20 etc. To save having to type in the line number each time,
the command AUTO can be used to make the computer “offer”
each line number automatically. Used on its own the command
AUTO will offer first line 10 and then line 20, 30, 40 etc. The
command AUTO 455 would instead start the process at line
number 455, followed by lines 465, 475, 485 etc.
Another option allows the user to select the step size. Thus the
command AUTO 465,2 would cause the computer to offer
lines 465, 467, 469, 471 etc. The largest step size is 255.
To escape from AUTO mode the user must press the key
marked ESCAPE. AUTO mode will be abandoned if the
computer tries to generate a line number greater than 32767.

Examples
AUTO
AUTO 220
AUTO 105,5

Syntax
AUTO [<num-const>[,<num-const>]]

Description
AUTO is a command allowing the user to enter lines without
first typing in the number of the line. Because AUTO is a
command it cannot form part of a multiple statement line.
AUTO mode can be left by pressing ESCAPE or by generating
a line number exceeding 32767.
AUTO may have up to two arguments. The first optional
argument gives the starting line number and the second
optional argument gives the increment between line numbers.

211
BGET# get a byte from file
Purpose
Numbers and words can be recorded on cassette tape and on
floppy discs. The function BGET# enables a single character or
number to be read back into the computer from the cassette,
disc or network. Before using this statement a file must have
been opened using the OPENIN function or else an error will
occur (see page 188 for more information about “files”). When
a file is opened, using OPENIN, the computer will allocate the
file a channel number. This number must be used in all
subsequent operations on the file, for example when reading
the file or when writing a new file. Again see the chapter on file
handling, page 188, for more information.

Examples
6000 character=BGET#(channel)
340 next_letter%=BGET#C

Description
A function which gets a byte from the file whose channel
number is the argument. The file must have been opened
before this statement is executed.

Syntax
<num-var> = BGET#<num-var>

Associated keywords
OPENIN, OPENOUT, CLOSE#, EXT#, PTR#,
PRINT#, INPUT#, BPUT#, EOF#

212
BPUT# put a byte to file
Purpose
To store a byte on the cassette or disc. See page 188 for a more
detailed description of file handling. The number which is sent
to the file can have any value between 0 and 255. If you attempt
to store a number that is greater then 255 then 256 will be
repeatedly subtracted from the number until it is less than 256.
The final number will then be sent to file. (This statement is
used to store single bytes – not large numbers. Large numbers
can be stored using PRINT#.) As with BGET# the file must
be “open” before this statement can be used.

Examples
30 BPUT# channel,number
700 BPUT#N,32
450 BPUT# STAFF_FILE,A/256

Description
A statement which puts a byte to the file whose channel
number is the first argument. The second argument’s least
significant byte is sent. The file must be open before this
statement is executed.

Syntax
BPUT#<num-var>, <numeric>

Associated keywords
OPENIN, OPENOUT, CLOSE#, EXT#, PTR#,
PRINT#, INPUT#, BGET#, EOF#

213
 transfer control to a
CALL machine code subroutine

Purpose
This statement makes the computer execute a piece of machine
code which the user has previously placed in the computer’s
memory. Before using this powerful statement you should
have a good understanding of machine code and assembly
language as incorrect use can destroy a program completely!
Unfortunately there is not enough room in this book to teach
assembly language programming but brief guidance for those
familiar with 6502 assembly language is given in section 43.

Examples
50 rotate=&0270
60 CALL rotate,J,K,L
200 CALL 1234,A$,M,J$

Description
A statement to call a piece of machine code. The number of
parameters passed is variable and may be zero. The parameters
are variable parameters and may be changed on execution of
the subroutine. The addresses of parameters are passed in a
Parameter Block starting at location 0600 hex.
On entry to the subroutine the processor’s A, X, Y registers are
initialised to the least significant bytes of the integer variables
A%, X% and Y%. The carry flag is set to the least significant bit
of the C% variable.
On entry a Parameter Block is set up by the computer and it
contains the following list:
Number of parameters - 1 byte
parameter address - 2 bytes
parameter type - 1 byte
parameter address - repeated as often
parameter type }{ as necessary.

214
Parameter types:
0 - 8 bit byte (e.g. ?X)
4 - 32 bit integer variable (e.g. !X or X%)
5 - 40 bit floating point number (e.g. V)
128 - A string at a defined address (e.g. $X – terminated by
a &0D)
129 - A string variable such as A$
In the case of a string variable the parameter address is the
address of a String Information Block which gives the start
address, number of bytes allocated and current length of the
string in that order.

Syntax
CALL <numeric>{,<num-var>|<string-var>}

Associated keywords
USR

215
CHAIN
Purpose
CHAIN enables a program to be split up into a number of
small sections.
The CHAIN statement is used to enable one program to LOAD
and RUN another program automatically. For example, one
program might enable the user to enter the number of hours
worked by employees and that program might CHAIN a
second program which would print out the payslips. In turn
that might then CHAIN a third program which would do a
coin analysis on the data held on the file.
CHAIN is also useful in a game with a lot of instructions. The
instructions could all be stored as one file which could then
CHAIN the main game – thus releasing a lot of the computer’s
memory.
CHAIN"" will chain the next program (on a tape). This will
not work with other file systems where you must give the file
name. For that reason it must not be used in programs which
may be used on disc systems.

Examples
900 CHAIN "GAME_1"
1234 CHAIN "NEWPROG"
CHAIN A$

Description
A statement which will load and run the program whose name
is specified in the argument. All variables except @% and A%
to Z% are cleared.

Syntax
CHAIN <string>

Associated keywords
LOAD, SAVE
216
CHR$ character string
Purpose
To generate a character (single letter or number etc.) from the
number given. The character generated will be the ascii
character at the position given in the ascii table. See the
description of ASC and the full ascii table on page 486.
The statement VDU has a similar effect to PRINT CHR$ and
may be more useful in some applications.

Examples
220 RED$=CHR$(129)
1070 PRINT CHR$(8);
makes the cursor move left one position.
PRINT CHR$(7)
causes a short note to be emitted by the loudspeaker.

Description
A string function whose value is a single character string
containing the ascii character specified by the least significant
byte of the numeric argument. Thus CHR$(-1) would give
ascii character number 255.
Note that the statement VDU is probably more useful when
sending characters to the screen, since it involves less typing.
CHR$ is needed when you wish to put a special character into
a string.

Syntax
<string-var> = CHR$(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
ASC, STR$, VAL, VDU

217
CLEAR
Purpose
This tells the computer to forget all variables in use previously,
including string variables and arrays but excluding the
“resident integer variables” @% and A% to Z% which are not
affected in any way. See page 62 for an explanation of integer
and string variables.

Examples
350 CLEAR
CLEAR

Description
A statement which deletes all variables except the resident
integer numeric variables @%…Z%

Syntax
CLEAR

Associated keywords
None

218
CLOSE# close file
Purpose
To inform the computer that you have completely finished
with a particular file (see page 188 for an explanation of
“files”). The computer then transfers any data still in memory
to cassette, disc or Econet as needed. See the chapter on file
handling (page 188) for more information.

Example
90 CLOSE#N

Description
A statement used to CLOSE a specific disc or cassette file.
CLOSE# 0 will close all files.

Syntax
CLOSE# <numeric>

Associated keywords
OPENIN, OPENOUT, EXT#, PTR#, PRINT#,
INPUT#, BGET#, BPUT#, EOF#

219
CLG clear the graphics screen
Purpose
To clear the graphics area of the screen. The graphics area of
the screen is left in the colour selected as the “current graphics
background colour”. See the keyword GCOL, page 262, for
more information. The graphics cursor is then moved to its
home position (0,0) which is at the bottom left of the graphics
area.

Examples
870 CLG
CLG

Description
Clears the current graphics area of the screen and sets this area
to the current graphics background colour in addition. The
statement then moves the graphics cursor to the graphics
origin (0,0).

Syntax
CLG

Associated keywords
CLS, GCOL

220
CLS clear the text screen
Purpose
To clear the text area of the screen. Any graphics in this area
will also be cleared. The text area will be left in the “current
text background colour”. The text cursor will then be moved to
its “home” position at the top left of the text area. See the
keyword COLOUR on page 222 for more information about
text background colours.

Examples
560 CLS
CLS

Description
Clears the current text area and sets this area of the screen to
the current text background colour. The statement then causes
the text cursor to move to the text origin (0,0) at the top left of
the current text area.

Syntax
CLS

Associated keywords
CLG, COLOUR

221
COLOUR
Purpose
This statement selects the colour in which the computer is to
print the text and also its background. The command has a
number of variations which are most easily explained by
example.
Type in the following:
MODE 5
COLOUR 1
COLOUR 2
COLOUR 3
and press RETURN at the end of each line as usual.
As you will have seen, these commands change the colour of
the text. This is often called the “text foreground colour”. Now
try
COLOUR 129
COLOUR 130
COLOUR 128
These numbers change the “text background colour”.
In any two colour mode (mode 0,3,4 or 6) the following
normally apply:
foreground background colour
0 128 black
1 129 white
In any four colour mode (mode 1 or 5) the following normally
apply:
foreground background colour
0 128 black
1 129 red
2 130 yellow
3 131 white

222
In mode 2 the following normally apply:
foreground background colour
0 128 black (normal background)
1 129 red
2 130 green
3 131 yellow
4 132 blue
5 133 magenta (blue-red)
6 134 cyan (blue-green)
7 135 white (normal foreground)
8 136 flashing black-white
9 137 flashing red-cyan
10 138 flashing green-magenta
11 139 flashing yellow-blue
12 140 flashing blue-yellow
13 141 flashing magenta-green
14 142 flashing cyan-red
15 143 flashing white-black
If you are not familiar with basic then you may already have
had too much of this! Nevertheless, it is possible, for example
in a four colour mode to select any four colours from the
available sixteen effects by using another command.
Remember that the colours given above (black, red, yellow,
white) will be available as soon as a four colour mode is
selected – but you can then select others colours later.
Try the following:
MODE 5
COLOUR 1
VDU 19,1,4,0,0,0
VDU 19,1,5,0,0,0
COLOUR 2
VDU 19 2,4 0,0,0
VDU 19,1,3,0,0,0
As you will see the statement VDU 19, can be used to change
the “actual colour” of COLOUR 1 or 2.
The number which follows the VDU 19, is the number that is
referred to by the COLOUR statement. It is referred to as a
“logical colour”.

223
The number which follows the “logical colour” referred to as
the “actual colour” and is as follows:
0 black
1 red
2 green
3 yellow
4 blue
5 magenta (blue-red)
6 cyan (blue-green)
7 white
8 flashing black-white
9 flashing red-cyan
10 flashing green-magenta
11 flashing yellow-blue
12 flashing blue-yellow
13 flashing magenta-green
14 flashing cyan-red
15 flashing white-black
thus the statement VDU 19,3,6,0,0,0 will set logical
colour 3 to be cyan. So if in mode 4, a two colour mode, you
wanted black letters on a yellow background you would issue
the command:
VDU 19,1,0,0,0,0
VDU 19,0,3,0,0,0
Alternatively, you could string the whole lot together as
VDU 19,1,0,0,0,0,19,0,3,0,0,0
This combination of the COLOUR statement and the VDU 19
statement enables a very wide range of effects to be obtained.
There are also calls which enable the flash rates of the colours
to be altered as well. See the chapter on FX calls.

Syntax
COLOUR <numeric>

Associated keywords
VDU, GCOL

224
COS cosine
Purpose
To calculate the cosine of an angle. Note that the number in
brackets (the angle) is expressed in radians and not in degrees.
To convert from degrees to radians use the function RAD.

Examples
PRINT COS(2.45)
780 X=COS(Y)
655 Number=COS(RAD(45))

Description
A function giving the cosine of its argument. The argument
must be given in radians.

Syntax
<num-var> = COS(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
SIN, TAN, ACS, ASN, ATN, DEG, RAD

225
COUNT
Purpose
COUNT counts all the characters printed using PRINT,
whether to screen, printer or RS423 output channel.
On the other hand POS returns the current position of the
actual text cursor on the screen.

Examples
290 A=COUNT
75 fred=COUNT
PRINT COUNT

Description
A function returning the number of characters printed since the
last new line. COUNT is set to zero if the output stream is
changed.

Syntax
<num-var> = COUNT

Associated keywords
POS

Demonstration program
5 REM to print a row of 16 * signs
7 REM this is not the easiest way!
10 X=16
20 REPEAT PRINT "*";
30 UNTIL COUNT=X

226
DATA
Purpose
DATA is used in conjunction with the keyword READ, and
sometimes with RESTORE, to enable you to automatically
make available any data (numbers and words) that will be
needed by a program.
For example, if you were writing a geography quiz, you might
want to use the names of 5 countries and their 5 capital cities
each time you used the program. The names of the cities and
countries can be entered as DATA in the program and will
always be there when the program is run.
Computers using the language basic are really quite clumsy at
handling information like this, as the demonstration program
on the next page shows.
In the example program the DATA consists of lots of words.
DATA statements can just as well contain numbers – or a
mixture of words and numbers. In our example the words were
all read into a string array.
It is essential that the DATA contains numbers where numeric
variables are to be filled. Text information eg hello will just
give 0.
There is no need to put each word in inverted commas unless
leading spaces are important in the DATA words, for example
" four spaces".
If you wish to have leading spaces then these words should be
enclosed in inverted commas. Since a comma is used to
separate items of DATA, if you want a comma in your DATA,
you must enclose the DATA in inverted commas.

Examples
100 DATA "Allen, Stephen",Stamp
dealer, 01-246 8007, 24
130 DATA "TOP OF ROOF", 450, January

227
Description
A program object which must precede all lists of data intended
for use by the READ statement.

Syntax
DATA
<str-const>|<num-const>{,<str-const>|
<num-const>}

Associated keywords
READ, RESTORE

Demonstration Program
10 REM geography quiz
20 DIM city$(5)
30 DIM country$(5)
40 FOR x=1 TO 5
50 READ city$(x)
60 READ country$(x)
70 NEXT x
80 right=0
110 FOR x=1 TO 10
120 r=RND(5)
130 PRINT "What city is the capital"
140 PRINT "of "; country$(r)
150 INPUT answer$
160 IF answer$=city$(r) THEN PROCyes
ELSE PROCno
170 NEXT x
180 PRINT "You got ";right;
190 PRINT " correct out of 10"
200 END
500 DATA Paris, France, Reykjavik
505 DATA Iceland
510 DATA Moscow, Soviet Union
520 DATA Athens, Greece
530 DATA Spitzbergen, Spitzbergen
600 DEF PROCyes
610 PRINT "Well done!"
620 right=right+1
630 ENDPROC
700 DEF PROCno

228
 710 PRINT "No, the capital of ";
720 PRINT country$(r);" is ";city$(r)
730 ENDPROC
Line 10 is just a REMark which the computer ignores.
Lines 20 and 30 tell the computer that we are going to use two
string arrays – one to store the names of the 5 CITYs and the
other to store the names of 5 countries. See page 120 for an
explanation of arrays.
Line 40 sets up a FOR...NEXT loop that will go round 5
times.
Line 50 reads the next word (which will be a city) into the array
city$ and then moves the “data pointer” on to point to the next
word (which will be a country).
Line 60 reads the next piece of DATA into the country$ array.
Line 70 is the end marker of the FOR...NEXT loop.
Lines 110 to 170 loop 10 times through a ‘question and answer’
quiz.
Lines 500 to 530 contain the DATA used above.
Lines 600 to 630 are a procedure to deal with correct replies.
Lines 700 to 730 deal with incorrect replies.

229
DEF define
Purpose
The word DEF is used to inform the computer that a
“procedure” or “function” is about to be defined. Once the
computer has been informed that this procedure or function
exists, then the procedure or function can be called by name
anywhere in the program.
The definition of procedures and functions must not occur in the
body of a program. They should be placed in a separate section
which is not executed – for example after the final END in the
program. This also aids readability.
The language basic has many predefined functions which the
computer already knows about. For example, the function SQR
enables it to calculate the square root of a number.
Often though, it is useful to be able to define your own
functions. For example, you might want to have a function
which calculates the VAT inclusive price of a product from the
basic sale price by multiplying by 1.15.
A function always produces a result so you can write
X=FNVAT. A procedure, on the other hand, is used to perform
a number of actions, but it does not by itself produce a
numerical result. For example, a procedure might be set up to
clear the screen and draw a number of lines on the screen.
You may well feel confused, but do not be put off! The use of
procedures and functions may be difficult to understand at first
but it is well worth the effort. Their use greatly enhances the
readability and reliability of programs.
The section below gives a more detailed explanation of the use of
procedures and functions. It should be read in conjunction with the
examples which follow.
Both procedures and functions may contain Local Variables
which are declared using the word LOCAL. In the third
example given below, K is declared as a local variable. This
means that although K is used in this procedure its value is not

230
defined when the procedure finishes. In fact the variable K
might well be used elsewhere in the program. The variable K,
elsewhere within the program, would not be altered by the use
of the local variable K within the procedure. Any variable
which is not declared as LOCAL will be available outside the
procedure, in other words to the rest of the program.
Also both procedures and functions may have parameters
passed to them. Look at the first example program below: line
1010 says
1010 DEF FNVAT(g)=1.15*g
“g” is called a “formal parameter” for the function FNVAT. It
tells the computer that one number is going to be “passed” to
the function when the function is used – and inside the
function we have decided to use the letter g to represent the
variable.
The procedure is “called” or used like this – for example
230 PRINT "VAT inclusive price ";
235 PRINT FNVAT(P)
and in this case “P” is the “actual parameter” for the function
FNVAT. Whatever value “P” has will be used inside the
procedure wherever reference is made to the “formal
parameter” “g”. This is very convenient since you can use any
variable names that you like for the parameters inside the
procedure. Then you can call the procedure with a quite
different set of parameter names from the outside. Very often a
procedure will be called from many different places in the
program – and the actual parameters may have different names
each time the procedure or function is called.
If a procedure or function is defined with (say) 3 formal
parameters then, when it is called, 3 actual parameters must be
supplied. See the fifth example below where three parameters
are passed to the function.
The end of the procedure is indicated with the statement
ENDPROC. The end of a multi-line function is indicated by a
statement that starts with an = sign. The function is given the
value of the expression to the right of the = sign.

231
Examples
First example – full program
210 REPEAT
220 INPUT "Basic price ",P
230 PRINT "VAT inclusive price ";
235 PRINT FNVAT(P)
240 UNTIL P=0
250 END
1000 REM one Line numeric function
1010 DEF FNVAT(g)=1.15*g

Second example – program section

Multi-line string function with one string parameter
1000 DEF FNREVERSE(A$)
1010 REM reverse the order of the
letters in A$
1015 REM
1020 LOCAL d%,B$
1030 FOR d%=1 TO LEN(A$)
1040 B$=MID$(A$,d%,1)+B$
1050 NEXT d%
1060 =B$

Third example – program section

Multi-line procedure with 1 parameter
200 DEF PROCbye(X)
210 REM print bye X times
220 LOCAL K
230 FOR K=1 TO X
240 PRINT "bye"
250 NEXT K
260 ENDPROC

Fourth example – program section

This sets the background colour to a new value given in the
parameter.
10 DEF PROCINITSCREEN(X)
20 REM clear screen and draw border
25 COLOUR 128+X
30 CLS

232
 40 DRAW 1279,0
50 DRAW 1279,1023
60 DRAW 0,1023
70 DRAW 0,0
80 ENDPROC

Fifth example – full program

110 INPUT X,Y,Z
120 M=FNMEAN(X,Y,Z)
130 PRINT "The mean of ",X,Y,Z
140 PRINT "is ";M
150 END
8990 REM Single Line numeric function
8995 REM with three parameters
9000 DEF FNMEAN(A,B,C)=(A+B+C)/3

Description
A program object which must precede declaration of a user
function or procedure. String and numeric functions and
procedures may be defined. Multi-line functions and
procedures are allowed. Procedures and functions need not be
defined before they are called. All procedures and functions
must be placed in the program where they will not be executed
e.g. after the END statement.

Syntax
DEF FN|PROC<variable name>[(
<string-var>|<num-var>{,<string-var>|
<num-var>})]

Associated keywords
ENDPROC, FN, PROC

233
DEG degrees
Purpose
This function converts angles which are expressed in radians
into degrees. 1 radian is equal to about 57 degrees.

Examples
100 X=DEG(PI/2)
300 angle=DEG(1.36)
PRINT DEG(PI/2)

Syntax
<num-var> = DEG(<numeric>)

Description
A function which converts radians to degrees.

Associated keywords
RAD, SIN, COS, TAN, ACS, ASN, ATN

234
DELETE
Purpose
The DELETE command is used to delete a group of lines from
a program. It cannot be used as part of a program. You can
specify which lines should be deleted with a command of the
form
DELETE 120,340
This would remove everything between line 120 and line 340
inclusive.
To delete everything up to a certain line number (for example
up to line 290) use DELETE 0,290.
To delete from line 500 to the last line, use as the “last line to be
deleted” any number greater than the last line number in the
program. Since the largest line number allowed is 32767,
DELETE 500,32767
will do the trick, but will take a long time.
To delete a single line just type the line number and press
RETURN. There is no need to use the DELETE command.

Examples
DELETE 0,540
DELETE 180,753
DELETE 540,32000

Syntax
DELETE <num-const>,<num-const>

Description
A command enabling a range of lines to be deleted from a
program. Since DELETE is a command it cannot be used in a
program or as part of a multiple statement line.

Associated keywords
LIST, OLD, NEW
235
DIM dimension of an array
Purpose
As well as simple numeric and string variables (such as “X”
and “name$”) it is possible to work with “arrays” of variables.
These are extremely useful when working with groups of
numbers or words. For example if one wanted to work with a
set of information about the rooms in an hotel with 4 floors,
each with 30 rooms, then an array of 4 by 30 entries can be
created thus
DIM hotel(4,30)
Having set up an array, one can enter information into each of
its “elements”. For example the cost of the room per night
might be £23.50
hotel(1,22)=23.50
hotel(4,1)=145.00
In practice the statement DIM hotel(4,30) produces an
array of 5 by 31 entries since the lowest array element is
hotel(0,0).
All the above arrays are called “two dimension numeric
arrays”. Another array could contain the names of guests
DIM name$(4,30)
name$(1,22)="Fred Smith"
name$(4,1)="The Queen"
That sort of array is called a “two dimension string array”.
Arrays may have one or more dimensions. A single dimension
array would be appropriate for all the houses in a road. e.g.
DIM MainSt(150)
That sort of array is called a “single dimension numeric array”.
All arrays are normally dimensioned very early in the
program. It is “illegal” to attempt to change the size of an array
by re-dimensioning it later in the program. An array may have
as many dimensions and as many elements in each dimension
as the computer has space for – but you tend to run out of
236
computer memory pretty fast with large arrays! It is essential
that there is no space between the array name and the first
bracket. Thus DIM A(10) is correct but DIM A (10) will
not define an array.

Examples
100 DIM partnumbers(1000)
3000 DIM employeename$(35)
240 DIM All_hours_in_the_week(24,7)
100 DIM A(X)

Description
A statement which dimensions arrays. Arrays must be
predeclared before use. After dimensioning all elements of
arrays are initialised to zero for numeric arrays or null strings
in the case of string arrays. The lowest element in an array is
element zero. Thus DIM X(4) would create an array of 5
elements (0 to 4 inclusive).
There is a second and quite different use for the DIM
statement. It can be used to reserve bytes in memory for special
applications. To reserve 25 bytes, type
DIM X 24
Notice two things about this statement: firstly the space
between the variable X and the (number of bytes minus 1) and
secondly the absence of brackets around the “24”. The address
of the start of the group of 25 bytes is given in the variable X in
this example.

Syntax
DIM <num-var>|<str-var>
(<numeric>{,<numeric>})
DIM <num-var> <numeric>

Associated keywords
None

237
DIV division of whole numbers
Purpose
See page 299 which describes the word MOD for a full
explanation. DIV is an operator which gives the whole number
part of the result of a division. Thus
PRINT 11 DIV 4
gives 2 (leaving a “remainder” of 3).

Description
A binary operator performing integer division between its
operands. The operands are converted to integers before
division takes place.

Syntax
<num-var> = <numeric> DIV <numeric>

Associated keywords
MOD

238
DRAW
Purpose
This statement draws lines on the screen in MODEs 0,1,2,4 and
5. The DRAW statement is followed by two numbers which are
the X and Y co-ordinates of the end of the line. The line starting
point can either be the end of the last line that was drawn or
else a new point if the MOVE statement has been used before
the statement DRAW.
The screen is addressed as
1280 points wide X-axis, 0–1279
1024 points high Y-axis, 0–1023
regardless of the graphics mode selected. The origin (position
0,0) is normally at the bottom left of the screen.
The line is drawn in the current graphics foreground colour.
This can be changed using the GCOL statement.

Examples
780 DRAW X,Y
DRAW 135,200

Description
DRAW X,Y means draw a line to X, Y in the current
foreground colour.
DRAW X,Y is equivalent to PLOT 5,X,Y.
DRAW is one of a large group of line drawing statements. See
PLOT on page 319 for others.

Syntax
DRAW <numeric>,<numeric>

Associated keywords
MODE, PLOT, MOVE, CLG, VDU, GCOL

239
Demonstration Program
140 MODE 5
160 REM Red background
170 GCOL 0,129
175 CLG
180 REM Yellow foreground
190 GCOL 0,2
200 REM draw a box
210 MOVE 100,100
220 DRAW 400,100
230 DRAW 400,400
240 DRAW 100,400
250 DRAW 100,100

240
ELSE
Purpose
To provide an alternative course of action. ELSE can be used
following an IF...THEN statement. See the pages
describing the associated keywords and section 16 page 98 for
more details.

Examples
560 IF length > 0 THEN PRINT "O.K."
ELSE PRINT "No good"
100 IF A<>B THEN C=D ELSE PRINT
"Values match"

Description
Part of the IF...THEN...ELSE structure.

Syntax
IF <testable condition> THEN
<statement> [ELSE <statement>]

Associated keywords
IF, THEN, ON

241
END
Purpose
This informs the computer that it has reached the end of the
program. END is optional but may be used as many times as
required in a program.

Example
9000 END

Description
Optional end-of-program which may occur anywhere and as
often as is required.
The command END has a special use in that it causes basic to
search the program in memory for a valid end program
marker. basic then updates its internal pointers. This may be
useful after unusual loading procedures. If the user changes the
value of PAGE then internal pointers such as TOP will not be
reset until an END statement or command is met.

Syntax
END

Associated keywords
STOP

242
ENDPROC end procedure
Purpose
This indicates the end of a PROCEDURE definition. See the
keyword DEF on page 230 for more information.

Examples
1000 DEF PROCdash(param)
1010 REM print dashes lots of times
1020 REM in fact "param" dashes in
total
1025 REM
1030 LOCAL counter
1040 FOR counter=1 TO param
1050 PRINT "-";
1060 NEXT counter
1070 ENDPROC
2010 DEF PROCtriangle(A,B,C,D,E,F)
2020 REM fill a triangle with colour
2050 MOVE A,B
2060 MOVE C,D
2070 PLOT 85,E,F
2100 ENDPROC

Description
Part of the DEF PROC...ENDPROC structure.

Syntax
ENDPROC

Associated keywords
DEF, FN, PROC, LOCAL

243
ENVELOPE
Purpose
The envelope statement is used with the SOUND statement to
control the volume and pitch of a sound while it is playing. All
natural sounds change in volume (loudness or amplitude); for
example, the sounds from a piano start off loudly and then fade
away. An aircraft flying overhead starts off softly, gets louder
and then fades away.
The variation of amplitude (loudness) for the aircraft, as it flew
overhead, might well look something like this:
loudness
in phons

130
loudest

soft
0
0 5 10 15 20 time in seconds

This variation of amplitude with time is described as an

“amplitude envelope”.
Some sounds change in pitch. For example, a wailing police
siren

3000
frequency
in Hertz
2000

1000

0
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2
time in seconds

This variation of pitch with time is called a “pitch envelope”.

The BBC computer can use both pitch and amplitude envelopes
and these are set up with the ENVELOPE statement.

244
Example
10 ENVELOPE 1,1,4,-4,4,10,20,10,
127,0,0,-5,126,126
20 SOUND 1,1,100,200

Description
The ENVELOPE statement is followed by 14 parameters.
ENVELOPE N,T,PI1,PI2,PI3,PN1,PN2,
PN3,AA,AD,AS,AR,ALA,ALD

Parameter Range Function

N 1 to 4 Envelope Number
T bits 0-6 0 to 127 Length of each step in
hundredths of a second
bit 7 0 or 1 0=auto-repeat the pitch envelope
1=don’t auto-repeat
PI1 -128 to 127 Change of pitch per step in
section 1
PI2 -128 to 127 Change of pitch per step in
section 2
PI3 -128 to 127 Change of pitch per step in
section 3
PN1 0 to 255 Number of steps in section 1
PN2 0 to 255 Number of steps in section 2
PN3 0 to 255 Number of steps in section 3
AA -127 to 127 Change of amplitude per step
during attack phase
AD -127 to 127 Change of amplitude per step
during decay phase
AS -127 to 0 Change of amplitude per step
during sustain phase
AR -127 to 0 Change of amplitude per step
during release phase
ALA 0 to 126 Target of level at end of attack
phase
ALD 0 to 126 Target of level at end of decay
phase

The N parameter specifies the envelope number that is to be

defined. It normally has a value in the range 1 to 4. If the basic
statement BPUT# is not being used then envelope numbers up
to and including 16 may be used.

245
The T parameter determines the length in centi-seconds of each
step of the pitch and amplitude envelopes. The pitch envelope
normally auto-repeats but this can be suppressed by setting the
top bit of T – i.e. using values of T greater than 127.
The six parameters PI1, PI2, PI3, PN1, PN2 and PN3
determine the pitch envelope. The pitch envelope has 3 sections
and each section is specified with two parameters: the
increment which may be positive or negative, and the number
of times the increment is to be applied during that section, that
is the number of steps. A typical pitch envelope might look like

pitch
160

140

120

100

80 PI 1 PI 2

60

40 PI 3

20 1st sect. PN1

PN2
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42
time in centi-seconds

In the above example

T = 1 centi-second
PI1 = +10 PN1 = 12
PI2 = –5 PN2 = 27
PI3 = +50 PN3 = 3
The pitch envelope is added to the pitch parameter (P) given in
the SOUND statement. In the above example it must have been
40 since the pitch starts at 40. If bit 7 of the T parameter is zero
then at the end of the pitch envelope; at a time given by the
equation.
time = (PN1 + PN2 + PN3) * T centi-seconds
the pitch envelope will be set to zero and will repeat
automatically. Note that the pitch can only take on values in
the range 0 to 255 and values outside this range “fold over”,
that is the value used is MOD 256 of the value calculated.

246
The six parameters AA, AD, AS, AR, ALA and ALD determine
the amplitude envelope. Although the current internal sound
generator has only 16 amplitude levels the software is upward
compatible with a generator having 128 levels.
The shape of the amplitude envelope is defined in terms of
rates (increments) between levels, and is an extended form of
the standard adsr system of envelope control. The envelope
starts at zero and then climbs at a rate set by AA (the attack
rate) until it reaches the level set by ALA. It then climbs or falls
at the rate set by AD (the decay rate) until it reaches the level
set by ALD. However, if AD is zero the amplitude will stay at
the level set by ALA for the duration (D) of the sound.
The envelope then enters the sustain phase which lasts for the
remaining duration (D) of the sound. The duration, D, is set by
the SOUND statement. During the sustain phase the amplitude
will remain the same or fall at a rate set by AS.
At the end of the sustain phase the note will be terminated if
there is another note waiting to be played on the selected
channel. If no note is waiting then the amplitude will decay at a
rate set by AR until the amplitude reaches zero. If AR is zero
then the note will continue indefinitely, with the pitch envelope
auto-repeating if bit 7 of parameter T is zero.
A typical amplitude envelope might look like

amplitude duration
attack decay release
sustain phase
ALA 120
phase
100

ADA 80

60

40

20

0
0 4 10 14 20 30 34 40 50
time in centi-seconds

In the above example

T = 1 centi-second
ALA = 120
ADA = 80

247
AA = 30 (120 in 4 centi-seconds)
AD = –4 (–40 in 10 centi-seconds)
AS =0
AR = –5 (–80 in 16 centi-seconds)
Note that the amplitude cannot be moved outside the range 0
to 126.

Syntax
ENVELOPE <numeric>,<numeric>,<numeric>,
<numeric>,<numeric>,<numeric>,
<numeric>,<numeric>,<numeric>,
<numeric>,<numeric>,<numeric>,
<numeric>,<numeric>

Associated keywords
ADVAL, SOUND

248
EOF# end of file
Purpose
This function is used to tell whether the end of the file has been
reached or not. The function returns the value 0 or –1. It
returns the value –1 if the end of the file has been reached. The
number following EOF# is the channel number of the file.
Refer to page 192 for more information.

Example
100 X=EOF#(channel)
200 REPEAT UNTIL EOF#(y)

Description
The function used to determine whether the end of the file has
been reached or not.

Syntax
<num-var> = EOF#(<num-var>)

Associated Keywords
OPENIN, OPENOUT, EXT#, PTR#, PRINT#,
INPUT#, BGET#, BPUT#, CLOSE#

249
EOR exclusive-or
Purpose
This is a special logical operator often used to complement
certain bits in a byte selectively. Refer to page 205, which
explains the keyword AND, for an introduction to the concepts
involved.
The process of exclusive-or tests whether the corresponding
bits in two numbers are the same or different. If the
corresponding bits in the two numbers are different then the
resultant bit will be a 1, if they are the same it will be set to
zero.
Another way of looking at this process is that it complements
(changes 0 to 1 and 1 to 0) those bits in one number which are
at logic 1 in the other number. Thus if
X 0000 1100 0011 0000 1110 1011
Y 1011 1111 0000 1010 0010 1000
then
X EOR Y 1011 0011 0011 1010 1100 0011

Examples
100 d% = A% EOR &FFFF00
200 R = X EOR Y

Description
An operator performing the operation of logical bitwise
exclusive-or between the two operands.

Syntax
<num-var> = <numeric> EOR <numeric>

Associated keywords
NOT, AND, OR

250
ERL error line number
Purpose
This enables the program to find out the line number where the
last error occurred. See page 147 for more information.

Example
8500 X=ERL
8100 IF ERL=100 THEN PRINT "I didn't
understand"
300 IF ERL=10000 THEN CLOSE#0

Description
A function returning the line number of the line where the last
error occurred.

Syntax
<num-var> = ERL

Associated keywords
ON ERROR GOTO, ON ERROR OFF, REPORT,
ERR

251
ERR error number
Purpose
If the computer finds an error that it cannot cope with, it may
give up and report the error on the screen. In addition it
remembers an “error number”. For example if you try to
calculate with numbers which are too large for the computer it
will report “Too big” and remember error number 20.
Pressing the ESCAPE key behaves as an error (error number
17) and you can detect this and act on it if you wish.
It is possible to make the computer deal with most of these
errors itself by writing special sections of the program to deal
with the inevitable! These sections of the program need to
know what the error was and where it occurred.
The function ERR enables your program to find the “error
number” of the last error which occurred. This is usually used
to enable the program to respond helpfully to an error caused
by the user.

Examples
1000 wrong=ERR
100 IF ERR=17 THEN PRINT "YOU CAN'T
ESCAPE!"
1230 IF ERR=18 THEN PRINT "You can't
divide by zero!"

Description
Returns the error number of the last error which occurred.

Syntax
<num-var> = ERR

Associated keywords
ON ERROR GOTO, ON ERROR OFF, ERL,
REPORT

252
EVAL evaluate
Purpose
This function is mainly used to enable the user to type an
expression, such as a mathematical equation, into the computer
while a program is running.
For example suppose that a program has to plot a graph; you
need a way of getting your equation into the computer while a
program is running. In most versions of basic. this is very
difficult to do. With the BBC basic the equation is put into a
string and then EVAL is used to tell the computer to “work out
the string”.
This function is not common in other versions of basic so a few
more specific examples are given of legal instructions which
can be evaluated by the statement EVAL A$
A$="M*X+C"
A$="SIN(x/120)+COS(x/30)"
Note that EVAL can only be used to evaluate functions
(SIN, COS, SQR etc.) and cannot be used to execute a
statement like MODE 4.

Examples
100 X=EVAL(A$)
234 value=EVAL(z$)

Description
A statement which applies the interpreter’s expression
evaluation program to the characters held in the argument
string. An easy way to pass a function into a program from a
user input.

Syntax
<num-var> = EVAL(<string>)
<str-var> = EVAL(<string>)

253
Associated keywords
VAL, STR$

Demonstration program
10 INPUT A$
20 FOR X=1 TO 5
30 Y=EVAL(A$)
40 PRINT Y
50 NEXT X
>RUN
?5*X
5
10
15
20
25
The second program makes the computer act as a calculator.
5 REPEAT
10 INPUT B$
20 PRINT EVAL B$
30 UNTIL FALSE
>RUN
?3+4
7
?SIN (RAD (45))
0.707106781
?

254
EXP exponent
Purpose
This mathematical function calculates e (2.7183…) raised to any
specified power.

Examples
120 Y=EXP(X)
3000 pressure=EXP(height)

Description
A function returning e to the power of its argument.

Syntax
<num-var> = EXP(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
LN, LOG

255
EXT# extent
Purpose
This finds out how large a particular file is. It only works with
disc and network file systems – not with cassette files. The
number returned is the number of bytes allocated to the file.
The file to be investigated must have been opened using the
OPENIN or OPENOUT statements. See page 188 for more
information on file handling.

Examples
100 X=EXT#(employee)
PRINT EXT#(N)

Description
A function which returns the length in bytes of the file opened
on the channel given in its argument.

Syntax
<num-var> = EXT#(<num-var>)

Associated keywords
CLOSE#, PTR#, INPUT#, PRINT#, BGET#,
BPUT#, OPENIN, OPENOUT, EOF#

256
FALSE
Purpose
Sometimes the computer has to decide whether or not
something is true. For example:
10 X=12
20 IF X=20 THEN PRINT "X EQUALS 20"
Clearly, in this example, the statement X=20 is false. As a
result the program will never print X EQUALS 20.
100 X=12
110 REPEAT
120 PRINT "HELLO"
130 UNTIL X=20
would repeatedly print HELLO because X will never be
anything else than 12. X=20 is FALSE. The same effect can be
achieved by writing
110 REPEAT
120 PRINT "HELLO"
130 UNTIL FALSE
which means, repeat for ever.
In fact, the computer has a numerical value of FALSE, which
is zero. Thus
PRINT FALSE
will print 0.
Similarly
PRINT 5=4
will also print 0, since 5=4 is false.
It is often useful to say in a program for example
CLOCKSET = FALSE
and then later one can say

257
IF CLOCKSET THEN PRINT "THE CLOCK IS
CORRECT"

Examples
100 oldenough = FALSE
245 UNTIL FALSE

Description
A function returning the value zero.

Syntax
<num-var> = FALSE

Associated keywords
TRUE

258
FN function
Purpose
FN preceding a variable name indicates that it is being used as
the name of a function. Both string and numeric functions may
be defined. See the keyword DEF on page 230 and sections 17
and 18 for a more detailed description of functions and
procedures.
Since a function always returns a value it often appears on the
right of an equals sign or in a print statement. Procedures, on
the other hand do not return results.

Example
1000 DEF FNmean2(x,y)=(x+y)/2

Description
A reserved word used at the start of all user-defined functions.

Syntax
FN<variable-name>[(<num-var>|
<str-var>{,<num-var>|<str-var>})]

Associated keywords
DEF, LOCAL, PROC, ENDPROC

259
FOR
Purpose
The word FOR is one of the words used in a FOR...NEXT
loop. This makes the computer execute a series of statements a
specified number of times; for example:
120 FOR X=1 TO 5
130 PRINT X
140 NEXT X
would print out the numbers 1,2,3,4,5.
The variable X in the above example initially takes on the
value 1 and the program then goes through until it reaches the
word NEXT. The program then returns to the line or statement
FOR X=1 TO 5 and X is increased in value by 1. The
program continues the loop, increasing the value of X in steps
of 1, until X reaches 5. After that, the program no longer loops;
instead it moves onto the next statement after the
FOR...NEXT loop.
As an option the “step size” can be changed. In the example
above X increased by 1 each time around the loop. In the next
example XYZ increases by 0.3 each time around the loop.
230 FOR XYZ=5 TO 6 STEP 0.3
240 PRINT XYZ
250 NEXT XYZ
The above program would print out the numbers
5
5.3
5.6
5.9
The value of XYZ on exit from the above program would be 6.2
The step size may be negative if you wish to make the value of
the “control variable” decrease each time around the loop.

260
 870 FOR r2d2%=99 TO 60 STEP -12
880 PRINT r2d2%; " Hi there"
890 NEXT r2d2%
would print
99 Hi there
87 Hi there
75 Hi there
63 Hi there
The FOR...NEXT loop always executes once so
FOR D=5 TO 3: PRINT D: NEXT D
would print 5 and then stop.

Examples
300 FOR X=1 TO 16 STEP 0.3: PRINT X:
NEXT X
1040 FOR A%=0 TO MAXIMUM%
560 FOR TEMPERATURE=0 TO 9

Description
A statement initialising a FOR...NEXT loop. This structure
always executes at least once. Any assignable numeric item
may be used as the control variable but integer control
variables are about three times faster than real variables.

Syntax
FOR <num-var> = <numeric> TO <numeric>
[STEP <numeric>]

Associated keywords
TO, STEP, NEXT

261
GCOL graphics colour
Purpose
This statement sets the colour to be used by all subsequent
graphics operations. In other words it selects the graphics
foreground colour and the graphics background colour. It also
specifies how the colour is to be placed on the screen. The
colour can be plotted directly, ANDed, ORed or
Exclusive-ORed with the colour already there, or the colour
there can be inverted.
The first number specifies the mode of action as follows:
0 plot the colour specified
1 OR the specified colour with that already there
2 AND the specified colour with that already there
3 Exclusive-OR the specified colour with that already there
4 invert the colour already there
The second number defines the logical colour to be used in
future. If the number is greater than 127 then it defines the
graphics background colour. If the number is less than 128 then
it defines the graphics foreground colour. See the keyword
COLOUR for more information.

Example
100 GCOL 0,2
GCOL 3,129

Description
This statement is used to select the logical colours used by
graphics statements.

Syntax
GCOL <numeric>,<numeric>

Associated keywords
CLS, CLG, MODE, COLOUR, PLOT

262
GET
Purpose
This function waits for a key to be pressed on the keyboard and
then returns with the ascii number of the key pressed. See page
64 for a description of ascii numbers.
The GET function is used whenever the computer needs to
wait for a reply from the user before continuing.
Note that when using GET the character typed on the
keyboard will not appear on the screen. If you wish it to appear
you must then ask the computer to print it.

Examples
1040 keyhit=GET
350 X=GET

Description
A function which waits for the next character from the input
stream. The function then returns the ascii value of the
character.

Syntax
<num-var> = GET

Associated keywords
GET$, INKEY, INKEY$

263
GET$
Purpose
The GET$ function waits for a key to be pressed on the
keyboard and then returns with a string containing the
character pressed. See the previous keyword GET for a similar
function and for further explanation.
For example, at the end of a game program you may wish the
computer to ask the player whether or not he wants another go.
The demonstration program below shows how this can be
done.
Note that when using GET$ the character typed on the
keyboard will not appear on the screen. If you wish it to appear
you must then ask the computer to print it.

Example
1050 A$=GET$

Syntax
<string-var> = GET$

Associated keywords
GET, INKEY, INKEY$

Demonstration Program
2100 PRINT "Do you want to play
another game";
2120 REM if user presses Y then
2130 REM go to line 100
2140 IF GET$="Y" THEN GOTO 100
2160 REM if it gets this far then the
2170 REM reply was not "Y" so give up!
2180 STOP

264
GOSUB go to a subroutine
Purpose
Quite often a group of lines in a program needs to be used in a
number of different places within the main program. Instead of
repeating the same piece of program several times one can
separate out a small sub-section into a subroutine. This
subroutine can then be “called” from a number of different
places in the main program by means of the statement GOSUB.
The end of a subroutine is indicated by the word RETURN.
This causes the program to return to the statement after the
GOSUB statement.
Beware of a subroutine calling itself too many times: “a depth”
of 26 subroutines is the maximum that is allowed.
As with GOTO, it is possible to GOSUB to a calculated line
number. The same cautions that apply to GOTO apply to
GOSUB in this case.

Example
1020 GOSUB 4000

Description
A statement used to call a section of program as a subroutine.
One subroutine may call another subroutine (or itself) up to a
maximum nested depth of 26.

Syntax
GOSUB <numeric>

Associated keywords
RETURN, ON

265
Demonstration Program
First, here is a program to print out random phrases without
using a subroutine
100 REM A$ contains 7 words and each
word
105 REM contains 5 characters -
letters or spaces
110 A$="hand mouthear leg arm
chestelbow"
120 FOR count=1 TO 10
125 REM pick a random number
130 R=RND(7)
140 REM and use it to pick a random
word
150 B$=MID$(A$,5*R-4,5)
160 REM print a message
170 PRINT "My ";B$;" hurts"
180 REM get another random word
190 R=RND(7)
200 B$=MID$(A$,5*R-4,5)
210 REM and print out a second
message
220 PRINT "Is your ";B$;" alright?"
230 NEXT count
Now look at the same program using a subroutine and with the
REMs (remarks) removed.
110 A$="hand mouthear leg arm
chestelbow"
120 FOR count=1 TO 10
150 GOSUB 810
170 PRINT "My ";B$" hurts"
190 GOSUB 810
220 PRINT "Is your ";B$ " alright?"
230 NEXT count
240 END
810 B$=MID$(A$,5*RND(7)-4,5)
820 RETURN

266
The “7” in line 810 is there to select one of the 7 words in A$. In
line 810 both the “5”s are there because each word contains five
letters or spaces. It is essential that all the words contain the
same number of characters.
Finally, here is the same program written with a string
function, with REMs left out and generally tidied up.
110 A$="hand mouthear leg arm
chestelbow"
120 FOR count=1 TO 10
170 PRINT "My ";FNword;" hurts"
220 PRINT "Is your ";FNword;"
alright?"
230 NEXT count
240 END
800 DEF FNword=MID$(A$,5*RND(7)-4,5)

267
GOTO go to a line number
Purpose
This statement makes the computer jump to a specified line
number instead of continuing to the next one in the program. It
changes the order in which the computer executes a program.
Although GOTO is simple to use, do so with caution! It is all
too easy to make a program difficult to follow by using too
many GOTOs. Following a program full of GOTOs is like
trying to disentangle a plateful of spaghetti and arrange it in a
straight line!
Adherents of “structured programming” encourage program
writers to use structures like REPEAT...UNTIL and
FOR...NEXT and to avoid most (but not all) GOTO
statements.
It is possible in this version of basic to GOTO a variable. In the
following example the destination variable is called
“somewhere”:
10 somewhere=1005
20 GOTO somewhere
but this feature must be used with great care since, if the
program is renumbered using the RENUMBER command, the
program will probably then branch to the wrong line.
Note that if the destination line number is to be calculated
using a mathematical expression then that expression must be
in brackets.
GOTO can be used as a command to start a program without
destroying the values assigned to the variables.

Examples
GOTO 330
100 IF X>5 THEN GOTO 2000
100 GOTO (starts*55+14)

268
Description
A statement used to transfer control to a specified or calculated
line number unconditionally.

Syntax
GOTO <numeric>

269
HIMEM highest memory location
Purpose
basic uses the computer’s random access memory (ram) to
store the user’s program, all the variables that the program
uses, and memory for high-resolution graphics displays.
In the absence of other instructions the computer divides the
available memory up in a sensible way. However there are
occasions, particularly when changing display modes and
when writing machine code programs, when you may wish to
tell basic how to divide up the available memory.
One way of changing the allocation is by altering the value of
the variable HIMEM. This variable contains the address of the
highest memory location that basic uses for your program and
variables. It is automatically set to just below the memory used
for the screen when the mode is selected. Addresses above
HIMEM are not used by basic.
If it is manually altered then locations above HIMEM may be
used by the programmer for other things, for example for
machine code subroutines.
If you wish to change the value of HIMEM you should
normally do so very early in your program – preferably right at
the beginning. The beginning of the program is also the place
to select the display mode that you will be using.
Other important boundaries are PAGE, TOP and LOMEM. The
memory map on page 500 gives an indication of their relative
positions.

Examples
100 HIMEM=HIMEM-40
100 PRINT HIMEM
100 HIMEM=&2800

270
Description
HIMEM contains the address of the first byte that basic does
not use. This pseudo-variable must not be altered while
executing a function or a procedure. Alter it with great care!

Syntax
HIMEM = <numeric>
or
<num-var> = HIMEM

Associated keywords
LOMEM, PAGE, TOP

271
IF
Purpose
This sets up a test condition which can be used to control the
subsequent action of the computer.

Examples
100 IF month=12 THEN PRINT "December"
100 IF A=1 THEN PRINT "One" ELSE
PRINT "Not one"
100 IF answer$="BANANA" THEN
PROCfruit
100 IF height<1.94 OR age<18 THEN
GOTO 1030
100 IF length<>5 THEN 2140
100 IF RATE=5 THEN Y=6:Z=8 ELSE PRINT
"Wrong rate"
100 IF month=11 THEN IF day=5 THEN
PRINT "Guy Fawkes"
100 IF month=1 AND day=1 THEN PRINT
"New Year"
100 IF X THEN Y=0
Description
A statement forming part of the IF...THEN...ELSE
structure. The word THEN is optional, as is the ELSE section.
Syntax
IF <testable condition> [THEN]
<statement>
or
IF <testable condition> THEN <line
number>
Associated keywords
THEN, ELSE
272
 input the number of the
INKEY key pressed

Purpose
This function waits for a specified time whilst constantly
testing to see if a key has been pressed on the keyboard.
If a key is pressed before the time runs out then the ascii value
of the key is given. If no key is pressed in the given time then -1
is returned and the program continues. See the keyword ASC
on page 207 for an explanation of ascii values.
Note that a key can be pressed at any time before INKEY is
used. All keys pressed are stored in a buffer in the computer
and a character is removed from the buffer by, for example, the
INPUT statement. You can “flush” the buffer of all characters
by giving the command
*FX 15,1
The number in brackets, after the word INKEY, gives the
amount of time that the computer must wait before giving up.
The time is given in hundredths of a second, and may have any
value between 0 and 32767.
In addition, the function INKEY can be used to see if a key is
actually pressed at the instant the function is called. Normally
pressing a key once enters the code for that key into the
keyboard buffer. If the key is kept down then it will normally
auto-repeat and further characters will be entered into the
buffer. However, when the buffer is read with INPUT or GET
or INKEY, you will have no idea how long the character has
been waiting in the buffer. An alternative statement is
provided which actually tests the keyboard rather than the
buffer.
INKEY with a negative number in the brackets e.g.
INKEY(-27) will enable you to test to see whether a
particular key is pressed at that instant. The number in brackets
determines which key you wish to test. The following table
shows the negative number to be used to test any particular
key. Thus the letter L would be tested with PRINT INKEY
(-87).
273
Examples
100 keynumber=INKEY(5)
220 result=INKEY(Y)
X=INKEY(100)

Description
A function which waits up to a specified time for a key to be
pressed. The function returns -1 if no key is pressed in the
specified time, or the ascii value of the key pressed. The
argument is the maximum time in centi-seconds.

Syntax
<num-var> = INKEY(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
GET, GET$, INKEY$

274
Key Number Key Number

f0 –33 1 –49
f1 –114 2 –50
f2 –115 3 –18
f3 –116 4 –19
f4 –21 5 –20
f5 –117 6 –53
f6 –118 7 –37
f7 –23 8 –22
f8 –119 9 –39
f9 –120 0 –40
A –66 – –24
B –101 ^ –25
C –83 \ –121
D –51 @ –72
E –35 [ –57
F –68 __ –41
G –84 ; –88
H –85 : –73
I –38 ] –89
J –70 , –103
K –71 . –104
L –87 / –105
M –102 ESCAPE –113
N –86 TAB –97
O –55 CAPS LOCK –65
P –56 CTRL –2
Q –17 SHIFT LOCK –81
R –52 SHIFT –1
S –82 SPACE BAR –99
T –36 DELETE –90
U –54 COPY –106
V –100 RETURN –74
W –34 h –58
X –67 i –42
Y –69 f –26
Z –98 g –122

275
 input the character
INKEY$ pressed

Purpose
This function waits for a specified time whilst constantly
testing to see if a key has been pressed on the keyboard. If a
key is pressed before the time runs out then the letter or
number pressed is placed in the string variable. If no key is
pressed in the given time then an empty string is returned and
the program continues.
Note that a key can be pressed at any time before INKEY$ is
used. All keys pressed are stored in a buffer in the computer
and a character is removed from the buffer by, for example, the
INPUT statement. You can flush the buffer of all characters by
giving the command
*FX 15,1
The number in brackets, after the word INKEY$, gives the
amount of time that the computer must wait before giving up.
The time is given in hundredths of a second.

Examples
120 letter$=INKEY$(0)
384 result$=INKEY$(100)
920 X$=INKEY$(Y)

Description
A function which waits for a key to be pressed within a
specified period of time. The function returns a null string, if
no key is pressed in the specified time. If a key is pressed the
string returned consists of the single character pressed. The
argument is the maximum time in centi-seconds.

Syntax
<string-var> = INKEY$(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
GET, GET$, INKEY
276
 to put information into
INPUT the computer

Purpose
When a computer program is running there is often a need to
get numbers or words from the outside world into the
computer so that it can do calculations on these numbers or
words. The statement INPUT is used for this purpose. There
are a number of options:
100 INPUT X
will print a question mark on the screen and wait for the user
to type in a number – for example “7”. This is not very
“friendly” – often it would be helpful to print a message on the
screen before waiting for the user to type his/her reply. This
can be done in two ways
340 PRINT "How old are you";
350 INPUT AGE
or more simply
340 INPUT "How old are you",AGE
If you do not wish the computer automatically to print a
question mark then omit the comma between the message to be
printed out and the variable to be filled in.
340 INPUT "How old are you" AGE
Often you may want to input several values one after the other.
This can be done by placing the variables after each other, but
separated by commas, thus
560 INPUT "Pick three numbers",X,Y,Z
When replying the user separates the values entered either
with commas or by pressing the RETURN key after entering
each value. The numbers that are typed in are placed in the
appropriate variables – X, Y and Z in the example above.
The above examples all required numbers to be supplied by the
user. INPUT can be used to get in words as well.
205 INPUT "What is your name",NAME$
277
You can INPUT more than one string at a time if you wish by
using
200 INPUT "Town",A$,"Country",B$
INPUT LINE A$ will accept everything that is typed in
including leading spaces and commas, and will place the lot
into A$.
Description
A statement to input values from the current input stream. The
question mark prompt may be suppressed by omitting the
comma following the prompt string. INPUT strips leading
spaces off strings.

Syntax
Too complicated for a useful yet simple description.

Associated keywords
INPUT#

278
 put information into
INPUT# the computer from
cassette or disc

Purpose
It is possible to record data (numbers and words) on cassette or
floppy disc where they can be stored for later use. The
statement INPUT# is used to read the data back into the
computer from the cassette or disc. See the section on file
handling on page 188 for more information.

Example
1200 INPUT#channel,date,name$,address$
3400 INPUT#X,U,V,W$

Description
A statement which reads data in internal format from a file and
places the data in the stated variables.

Syntax
INPUT#<num-var>, <num–var>|<string-var>
{,<num-var>|<string-var>}

Associated keywords
OPENIN, OPENOUT, EXT#, PTR#,
PRINT#, BGET#, BPUT#, CLOSE#

279
INSTR in string
Purpose
To search one string for any occurrence of another string, for
example to see if one word contains another specific word.
The search normally starts from the beginning of one string but
as an option the search can start from a specified point along
the string.
The number returned is the string position of the second string
in the first string. The leftmost character position is position
number 1. If no match is found then zero is returned. A search
for a null string
X=INSTR("Sunday","") will always return 1.

Examples
240 X=INSTR(A$,B$)
put the position of B$ in A$ into X
180 Y=INSTR(A$,B$,Z)
start search at position Z.
PRINT INSTR("HELLO","L")
would print “3”

Description
A function which returns the position of a sub-string within a
string. The starting position for the search may be specified.
There must be no space between INSTR and the first bracket.

Syntax
<num-var> = INSTR(<string>,<string>[,
<numeric>])

280
Known problems
There is a known “bug” in release 1.0. If the second string is
longer than the first string, for example,
X=INSTR("A","KNOWN BUG")
then the function will appear to work but will corrupt the
stack. This bug is fatal if INSTR is used in procedures or functions.

Associated keywords
LEFT$, MID$, RIGHT$, LEN

281
INT integer part
Purpose
This converts a number with a decimal part to a whole number.
This function always returns a whole number smaller than the
number supplied. Thus INT(23.789) gives 23 whereas
INT(-13.3) returns -14.

Examples
200 X=INT(Y)
1050 wholenumber=INT(decimalnumber)
330 pence=INT(cost * markup/quantity)

Description
INT is a function converting a real number to the lower
integer.

Syntax
<num-var> = INT(<numeric>)

282
LEFT$ left string
Purpose
To copy part of a string starting at the left-hand end of the
source string. For example if
A$="CATASTROPHE"
then
PRINT LEFT$(A$,3)
would give CAT, namely the left 3 characters of A$.

Examples
100 INDEX$=LEFT$(WHOLEname$,4)
3000 U$=LEFT$(H4$,value)

Description
A string function which returns the left n characters from a
string. If the source string is too short then the function returns
with as many characters as there are in the source string. There
must be no space between LEFT$ and the first bracket.

Syntax
<string-var>=LEFT$(<string>,<numeric>)

Associated keywords
RIGHT$, MID$, LEN, INSTR

Demonstration program
This prints out letters in a pattern
10 PRINT "What is your full name";
20 INPUT name$
30 FOR X=1 TO LEN(name$)
40 PRINT LEFT$(name$,X)
50 NEXT X
>RUN

283
What is your full name?JOHN A COLL
J
JO
JOH
JOHN
JOHN
JOHN A
JOHN A
JOHN A C
JOHN A CO
JOHN A COL
JOHN A COLL

284
LEN length (of a string)
Purpose
This function counts the number of characters in a string. For
example
K=LEN("FRIDAY ")
would give K=7 since there are six letters in "FRIDAY" and
it is followed by a space.
This function is often used with a FOR...NEXT loop to do
something once for each letter in a string. For example, we
might wish to encode a word by replacing each letter by its
successor in the alphabet so that, for example, "FRIDAY"
would becomes "GSJEBZ". See the demonstration program.

Examples
100 X=LEN(A$)
2350 length=LEN(main$)

Description
This function returns the length of the string given as the
argument.

Syntax
<num-var> = LEN(<string>)

Associated keywords
LEFT$, MID$, RIGHT$, INSTR

Demonstration program
300 PRINT "Type in your word";
310 INPUT A$
320 length=LEN(A$)
325 C$=""
330 FOR V=1 TO length
340 B$=MID$(A$,V,1)
350 C$=C$+CHR$(ASC(B$)+1)
285
 360 NEXT V
370 PRINT "The coded version is ";C$
In the above program each letter is copied one at a time into
B$. Then its ascii value is calculated, 1 is added to the ascii
value and the new ascii value is converted back into a
character which is then added onto C$. See the keyword ASC
on page 207 for more information about the ascii code.

286
LET
Purpose
In basic we often write things like
X=6
meaning put 6 into the box labelled X in the computer. The fact
that we are changing the contents of the variable X can be
made clearer by writing
LET X=6
The statement “X=X+6” is impossible in mathematical terms.
How can something be the same as itself plus 6? In basic
though it is quite legal to say LET X=X+6 since the
instruction simply means
“store in the variable X whatever is already there plus 6”; or
“increase the value of X by 6”.
The word LET is optional, but its use makes the program more
readable.

Examples
100 LET length=15
980 LET DAY$="Tuesday"
210 IF A=6 THEN LET A=A+10
1000 IF length<12 THEN LET length=12

Description
LET is an optional assignment statement.
Note: LET may not be used during the assignment of the
psuedo-variables LOMEM, HIMEM, PAGE, PTR#, TIME

Syntax
LET <var> = <expression>

287
LIST
Purpose
This command makes the computer list out whatever program
it has in its memory. It is often used before typing RUN to
ensure that there aren’t any typing errors in the program just
entered.
You can list a single line
LIST 280
or a range of lines
LIST 100,450
or the whole program
LIST
LIST ,400 will list all lines up to and including line 400.
LIST 400, will list all lines beyond line 400.
If you have a very long program you may see the whole listing
whiz past before you have time to read it. To stop that, and to
make the computer stop at the bottom of each page you can
type CTRL N (whilst holding down the key marked CTRL
press the letter N). Then type LIST. This is called “paging
mode” and the computer stops at the bottom of each page. The
next page will be printed when the SHIFT key is pressed.
To return to “scroll mode” type CTRL O (hold CTRL down
while briefly pressing the letter O).
Pressing SHIFT and CTRL together holds the listing until they
are released.
Pressing ESCAPE stops the listing.
If you want a listing on the printer then you can turn the
printer on by typing CTRL B before typing LIST.
To turn the printer off afterwards type CTRL C.

288
LIST is a command and cannot be used as part of a program
or as part of a multiple statement line.
The layout of programs as listed can be controlled by the
command LISTO (see next entry). As an option, the computer
can be instructed to insert spaces for the duration of all
FOR...NEXT and REPEAT...UNTIL loops.
Examples
LIST
LIST 400
LIST 400,500
LIST ,900
LIST 900,

Description
A command which lists the current program.

Syntax
LIST [<num-const>[,]<num-const>]

Associated keywords
NEW, OLD, LISTO

289
LISTO list option
Purpose
When a program is listed on the screen or the printer, it is often
convenient to show all loops within the program indented.
LISTO can be used to control the way that the LIST
command displays a program on the screen. It can cause the
computer to insert spaces in three situations
a after the line number
b during FOR...NEXT loops
c during REPEAT...UNTIL loops
The number following LISTO should be in the range 0 to 7.
0 implies no inserted spaces
1 implies a space after the line number
2 implies spaces during FOR...NEXT loops
4 implies spaces during REPEAT...UNTIL loops
The numbers which select each option (1,2 or 4) can be added
together to select multiple options. If spaces were required
during FOR...NEXT and REPEAT...UNTIL loops then
LISTO 6 would be selected. LISTO 7 puts a space after the
line number and double spaces for FOR...NEXT and
REPEAT...UNTIL loops.
The most common options are LISTO 0 and LISTO 7.
When editing programs using the cursor editing keys it is
strongly advised that you use the LISTO 0 option or else you
will COPY in a lot of extra space.
Description
LISTO affects the print format produced by subsequent
LIST commands. Bit 0 of the argument controls the single
space after the line number; Bit 1 the double space on
FOR...NEXT loops; Bit 2 the double space on
REPEAT...UNTIL loops.
Syntax
LISTO <num–const>
Associated keywords
LIST

290
LN natural logarithm
Purpose
A mathematical function to calculate logarithms to the base e –
usually called “natural logarithms”.

Examples
100 X=LN(temp)
3000 H5=LN(REDOXpotential)

Description
A function returning the natural logarithm of its argument.

Syntax
<num-var> = LN(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
LOG, EXP

291
LOAD
Purpose
To load a program into the computer from cassette tape, floppy
disc or the network, whichever is the current file system.
A welcome cassette containing some games is provided with
the computer and these games can be loaded into the computer
with the keyword LOAD. If you have problems loading a
program then see page 34. The keyword LOAD is followed by
the ‘file name’. This file name may contain up to 10 characters
and must be enclosed in quotation marks, e.g.
LOAD "GAME1"
Once the program has been loaded, type RUN to start it.
When you use the word LOAD, the computer forgets any
previous program that it had in memory and also the values of
all variables.
If you are loading from cassette, then the computer will show
the name of each section of the program as it finds it on the
cassette.
LOAD does not run a program. It just loads it into memory. It
clears all variables except A% to Z% and @%. It cannot be used
in a program.
LOAD"" will load the next program found on a tape. This
form does not work on disc or net or other file systems.
The statement CHAIN can be used in a program (or as a
command) to load another program and to start that program
running automatically.

Examples
LOAD "STARWARS"
LOAD "MYPROG"

292
Description
The command LOAD deletes the current program, clears all
variables except the resident integer variables and then loads a
new program from the current file system. The program to be
loaded must be in internal format.
Since LOAD is a command it cannot form part of a multiple
statement line.

Syntax
LOAD <string>

Associated keywords
SAVE, CHAIN

293
LOCAL
Purpose
This informs the computer that the named variables are “local”
to the procedure or function in which they occur; their use in
this procedure or function in no way affects their value outside
it. See the keyword DEF on page 230 for more information.

Example
560 LOCAL X,Y,A$,B$

Description
A statement which can only be used inside a procedure or
function definition. LOCAL saves the values of the external
variables named and restores these original values when the
function or procedure is completed.

Syntax
LOCAL <string-var>|<num-var>{,
<string-var>|<num-var>}

Demonstration program
780 DEF PROCdrawTRIANGLE(size)
790 LOCAL X1,X2,Y1,Y2
800 X1=320-size
810 X2=320+size
820 Y1=256-size
830 Y2=256+size
840 MOVE X1,Y1
850 DRAW X2,Y1
860 DRAW 320,Y2
870 DRAW X1,Y1
880 ENDPROC

Associated keywords
DEF, ENDPROC, FN, PROC

294
LOG logarithm
Purpose
A mathematical function to calculate the common logarithm of
a number to base 10.

Examples
100 Y=LOG(y)
440 pressure=LOG(speed)

Description
A function giving the common logarithm to base 10 of its
argument. Inverse logarithms (anti-logarithms) can be
calculated by using
Y=10^X

Syntax
<num-var> = LOG(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
LN, EXP

295
LOMEM lowest memory location
Purpose
Different sections of the computer’s memory are used for
different purposes. Normally basic makes an intelligent
decision about where to store the numbers that the user calls X
and Y$ etc. In fact it stores these variables immediately after
the user’s program. You can change the place where it starts to
store these variables by changing the value of LOMEM.
The variable LOMEM gives the address of the place in memory
above which the computer stores all its variables (except for the
resident integer variables @% and A% to Z%.
LOMEM is normally set to be the same as TOP which is the
address of the top of the user program. See the keyword
HIMEM on page 270 and the memory map on page 500 for
more details.
Do not accidentally move LOMEM in the middle of a program –
the interpreter will lose track of all the variables that you are
using.

Examples
100 LOMEM=TOP+&100
PRINT LOMEM
PRINT~LOMEM
NB The ~ tells the computer to print the value in hexadecimal.

Description
A pseudo-variable which sets the place in memory above
which the basic interpreter stores dynamic variables – those
that are created and destroyed as required. Space is always set
aside for the “resident variables” @% to Z%. Normally LOMEM
is set equal to TOP which contains the address of the end of the
user program.
Moving LOMEM in the middle of a program will cause loss of
all variables.
296
Syntax
LOMEM = <numeric>
or
<num-var> = LOMEM

Associated keywords
HIMEM, TOP, PAGE

297
MID$ middle string
Purpose
To copy part of one string into another string. For example if
demo$="DOGMATIC"
then the middle part of demo$, starting at position 4 and
going on for 3 letters i.e.
MID$(demo$,4,3)
would equal MAT. In fact MID$ can be used to copy any part
of a string – not just the middle part. Thus
MID$(demo$,1,3) would equal DOG and
MID$(demo$,5,4) would be ATIC
This string-function is very useful for selecting one word out of
a long line. There is a demonstration program on page 266
under the keyword GOSUB and another under the keyword
LEN on page 285.
If the last number is omitted then the function returns with the
rest of the string.
Example
RESTofLINE$=MID$(main$,10)
Description
A string function which returns a subsection of the first
argument’s string. The second argument gives the starting
position and the third argument gives the number of characters
to be copied. If the source string is too short then the function
returns as many characters as possible forwards from the
starting position.
Syntax
<string var>=MID$(<string>,<numeric>[,
<numeric>])

Associated keywords
LEFT$, RIGHT$, LEN, INSTR
298
MOD modulus
Purpose
The function MOD gives the remainder after division. When
doing division with whole numbers (I emphasise – with whole
numbers) it is sometimes useful to know the remainder. For
example 14 divided by 5 leaves a remainder of 4 (14=2*5+4).
Similarly
PRINT 14 MOD 5
would print 4. The whole number part of the above division is
given by the function DIV. Thus
PRINT 14 DIV 5
would print 2.
Notice that the result of both DIV and MOD is always a whole
number.
In fact all numbers used in the calculation of the function are
first converted to integers (using internal truncation) before the
computer calculates the result. Thus
14 DIV 5=2
14.6 DIV 5.1=2
14 MOD 5=4
14.6 MOD 5.1=4
The second example (14.6 DIV 5.1) is really the same as
the first. However.
14.6 DIV 4.9=3 and
14.6 MOD 4.9=2
are quite different. In effect the computer sees them as
14 DIV 4=3
14 MOD 4=2

299
Examples
100 LET X=A MOD B
PRINT length MOD 12

Description
A binary operation giving the signed remainder of an integer
division. MOD is defined such that
A MOD B = A-((A DIV B)*B)

Syntax
<num-var> = <numeric> MOD <numeric>

Associated keywords
DIV

300
MODE graphics mode
Purpose
This statement is used to select which display mode the
computer is about to use. On the Model A computer display
modes 4, 5, 6 and 7 may be selected. On the Model B all display
modes are available. Changing modes clears the screen.
Mode Graphics Colours Text
0 640´256 2 colour display 80´32 text
1 320´256 4 colour display 40´32 text
2 160´256 16 colour display 20´32 text
3 2 colour text only 80´25 text
4 320´256 2 colour display 40´32 text
5 160´256 4 colour display 20´32 text
6 2 colour text only 40´25 text
7 Teletext display 40´25 text
MODE 7 uses the Teletext standard display characters. These
cannot be changed by the user. Since these characters differ
slightly from the standard ascii set you will find that a number
of characters on the screen do not correspond to those printed
on the keys. For example a left hand square bracket will be
displayed as an arrow.
In modes 0 to 6 the character set can be changed by the user.
See VDU 23 on page 384.
You cannot change mode inside a procedure or function.

Examples
10 MODE 5
MODE 7

Description
A statement used to select the display mode which may not be
used in a procedure or function. MODE resets the value of
HIMEM.

301
Syntax
MODE <numeric>

Associated keywords
CLS, CLG, HIMEM

302
MOVE
Purpose
This statement moves the graphics cursor to a particular
absolute position without drawing a line. For example to move
to a point 100 points across the screen and 300 points up the
screen one would say
MOVE 100,300

Examples
1050 MOVE 100,300
MOVE X,Y

Description
To move the graphics cursor to a new position without
drawing a line. This statement is identical to PLOT 4.

Syntax
MOVE <numeric>,<numeric>

Associated keywords
DRAW, MODE, GCOL, PLOT

303
NEW
Purpose
To “remove” a program from the computer’s memory. In fact
the program is still there but the computer has been told to
forget about it. If you want to, you can usually recover the old
program by typing OLD. This only works if you have not
entered any part of another program.
NEW is normally used as a command before typing in a new
program – to ensure that the computer has forgotten all its
previous instructions.
NEW does not clear any of the resident integer variables A% to
Z% or @%.

Example
NEW

Description
A command which resets internal pointers to “delete” all
program statements. The program may be recovered with OLD
provided no new statements have been entered and no new
variables have been created. Since it is a command it cannot
form part of a multiple statements line.

Syntax
NEW

Associated keywords
OLD

304
NEXT
Purpose
This is used in conjunction with FOR to make the computer
loop around a set of statements a number of times.
If the loop is opened with (for example)
FOR speed=10 TO 100
then the NEXT statement would normally be in the form
NEXT speed
but the word “speed” is optional.

Example
340 length=100
350 FOR X=0 TO 640 STEP 2
360 Y=2*length+250
370 DRAW X,Y
380 NEXT

Description
A statement delimiting FOR...NEXT loops. The control
variable (X in the last example) is optional.
If a variable is given after NEXT then the computer will “pop”
other FOR...NEXT loops off the “stack” until it finds a
matching variable. If none is found, an error will be reported.

Syntax
NEXT [<num-var>]

Associated keywords
FOR, TO, STEP

305
NOT
Purpose
This is normally used with an IF...THEN statement to
reverse the effect of some test.

Example
680 IF NOT (A=6 AND B=5) THEN PRINT
"WRONG"
If A=6 and B=5 then the computer will not print WRONG.

Description
NOT is a high priority unary operator equivalent to unary
minus.

Syntax
<num-var> = NOT <numeric>
or
<testable condition> = NOT (<testable
condition>)

306
OLD
Purpose
To recover a program which has been recently deleted by NEW
or by pressing the BREAK key. Programs can only be recovered
if no program lines have been entered and if no new variables
have been created since the program was deleted. If you get the
message Bad program, then type NEW again.
Typing NEW or pressing BREAK are quite drastic moves. OLD
will do its best to recover your program but will not always
succeed fully. In particular if the first line number in your
program is greater than 255 then it will get that one line
number wrong. The ESCAPE key provides a clean and tidy
method of stopping a program. BREAK is much more violent
and should be avoided.

Example
OLD

Description
A command which undoes the effect of NEW.

Syntax
OLD

Associated keywords
NEW

307
ON
Purpose
To alter the order in which basic executes a program by
jumping to one of a selection of lines depending on the value of
a particular variable. The word ON is used with three other
keywords GOTO, GOSUB and ERROR. For example
ON value GOTO 800,920,100,1170,7300
ON result GOSUB 8000,8300,120,7600
ON ERROR GOTO 9000
ON ERROR GOSUB 2001
First:
ON X GOTO 1100,1210,1450,1600,1950
If the value X is equal to 1 then the program will go to line
1100. If X=2 then the program will go to line 1210. If X=3 then
line 1450 and so on.
What is it used for? Suppose that you are counting coins put
into a machine and you want to offer different things if 1, 2 or 3
coins are put in. The program which follows illustrates, in
outline, how ON GOTO will help.
450 REM the variable COINS gives the
number
460 REM of coins inserted
500 ON COINS GOTO 550,600,650
550 PRINT "One coin buys a biscuit"
560 REM give him a biscuit somehow
590 GOTO 1000
600 PRINT "Two coins can buy tea or
coffee"
610 GOTO 1000
650 PRINT "Three coins can buy a
piece of cake"
660 REM something else in here as
well
690 GOTO 1000
1000 REM all the routines end up here
308
Secondly:
ON X GOSUB 2200,2300,2400,2500
ON can also be used with GOSUB instead of GOTO. See the
page describing GOSUB for an explanation of subroutines.
ON X GOSUB provides a neat way of using different
subroutines in different situations.
Note: An ELSE clause can be included at the end of ON GOTO
and ON GOSUB to trap out-of-range values without causing an
error. Unfortunately this facility upsets returning from
functions and procedures in the first version of basic.
Thirdly:
ON ERROR GOTO
ON ERROR OFF
If the computer detects an error in your program or in the disc
drives or anything else that it can’t cope with, then it “produces
an error”. In other words it complains and stops. The
complaint takes the form of a message on the screen – for
example Too big.
Sometimes it is vital that the computer looks after such
situations without troubling the user. The statement
ON ERROR GOTO 7000 ensures that if an error occurs the
computer does not complain and does not stop. Instead it goes
to a piece of program at line 7000 (in this case) which has been
specially written to get the computer out of the mess it is in.
This section of program may have to give the user instructions
like “Please enter a smaller number” or it may be able to sort
out the problem in some other way.
How well this “error trapping” works depends on the skill of
the programmer in thinking of every possible thing that can go
wrong. You will soon re-discover Murphy’s Law:
“If a thing can go wrong, it will.”
Good error handling is vital in all programs for use by
non-specialists – and that means most people!
The statement ON ERROR OFF lets the computer deal with
errors once again – cancelling the effect of ON ERROR GOTO.

309
Examples
40 ON ERROR GOTO 9000
50 ON ERROR PRINT "The computer is
confused"
10 ON ERROR GOSUB 2000

Description
A statement providing multiple options in changing the order
of execution of a program, and error trapping

Syntax
ON <num-var> GOTO<numeric>{,<numeric>}
or
ON <num-var> GOSUB<numeric>{,<numeric>}
or
ON ERROR <statement>
or
ON ERROR OFF

Associated keywords
GOTO, GOSUB

310
 open file for input to
OPENIN computer (from
cassette or disc)

Purpose
To tell the computer that your program wishes to read data
(words and numbers) from the cassette or disc. Reading data in
from cassette or disc is quite a complicated procedure for the
computer and it needs advance warning when you wish to do
so. The advance warning is given by the OPENIN keyword.
One use of this facility is to store names and addresses on “file”
(i.e. the cassette or disc) and to read the file in each time you
want to update it. After you have corrected it you can then
transfer it back to cassette or disc where it will be saved for
future use. Further information about cassette, disc and
network “files” is provided on page 188.
A typical example of the use of OPENIN is
X=OPENIN("cinemas")
This informs the computer that you will shortly want to read
data in from a file which is recorded on cassette or disc under
the name “cinemas”. The “filename” is “cinemas”.
In accepting this instruction the computer allocates a “channel”
to this operation. It is as if it said “O.K. that information will be
provided on telephone number 6”. It makes X=6 (or whatever
number it decides). In all future operations on that file you
must refer to it as channel X (channel 6 in this example).
You get the actual data into the computer (from the cassette) by
using INPUT#X as the demonstration program on the next
page indicates.
Example
230 file=OPENIN("census")
Description
A function which attempts to open a file for input or random
access. In a disc or network environment then if a file already
exists with the correct name it will be opened for updating
(reading or writing).

311
The function returns the channel number allocated by the
computer’s file system. If the file does not exist then zero is
returned.

Syntax
<num-var> = OPENIN(<string>)

Associated keywords
OPENOUT, EXT#, PTR#, INPUT#, PRINT#,
BGET#, BPUT#, EOF#, CLOSE#

Demonstration program
10 REM to read in the names of 10
cinemas from
20 REM cassette assuming of course
that you put
30 REM them there sometime before!
50 REM dimension a string array of
10 slots
60 DIM cine$(10)
90 REM open the file
100 channel=OPENIN("CINEMA")
110 REM and read in the ten cinema
names
120 FOR X=1 TO 10
130 INPUT# channel,cine$(X)
140 NEXT X
150 REM that’s the information in
160 REM do whatever you want with it!

312
 open file for
OPENOUT output to
cassette or disc

Purpose
This opens a cassette or disc file for output. Before you can
record data (rather than programs) onto a cassette you have to
“open a file”. More information about “files” is given on page
188.
OPENOUT is used to inform the computer that you wish to
record data on cassette or disc. The computer allocates a
channel to the operation.
When working with discs or over the network then if a file
already exists with that name it will be deleted. If no file exists
then a new one will be created.

Example
330 X=OPENOUT("cinemas")

Description
A function which returns the channel number allocated to an
output file.
If a file of the same name exists then that file will first be
deleted. If no file exists then one will be created.

Syntax
<num-var> = OPENOUT(<string>)

Associated keywords
OPENIN, PTR#, EXT#, INPUT#, PRINT#,
BGET#, BPUT#, EOF#, CLOSE#

313
OPT option
Purpose
This statement determines what output is produced on the
screen when assembly language routines are processed by the
basic interpreter. An understanding of the operation of
assemblers is required to understand the following.
During assembly two common errors can occur: “Branch out of
range” and “Unknown label”.
The latter will occur during pass one for all forward references.
It is therefore often desirable to turn off assembler error
messages during pass one.
The statement OPT is followed by a number in the range 0 to 3,
with the following results:
0 assembler errors supressed, no listing
1 assembler errors supressed, listing
2 assembler errors reported, no listing
3 assembler errors reported, listing
The OPT statement can only occur inside the square brackets
which enclose a piece of assembly language. OPT is set to 3
every time the basic interpreter finds a [. Do not confuse it
with *OPT which is described on page 434.

Examples
200 OPT 1
350 OPT (pass*2+list)

Description
An assembler pseudo-operation controlling the output during
assembly. OPT is followed by an expression as detailed above.

Syntax
OPT <numeric>

314
Demonstration program
10 oswrch=&FFEE
20 DIM memory% 100
30 FOR Z=0 TO 3 STEP 3
35 P%=memory%
40 [OPTZ
50 .start LDA#ASC"!"
60 LDX #40
70 .loop JSR oswrch
80 dex:BNE loop
90 rts:] NEXT Z
100 CALL start
110 END

315
OR
Purpose
To enable one condition or another condition to determine
what happens next.
The OR operator can be used either as a “logical or” or as a
“bitwise or”. See the keyword AND on page 205 for details of
logical and bitwise operators.

Example
75 IF X=6 OR date>20 THEN PRINT
"Good"

Description
An operator performing bitwise integer logical OR between
two numerics.

Syntax
<num-var> = <numeric> OR <numeric>

Associated keywords
AND, EOR, NOT

316
PAGE
Purpose
PAGE is a variable which gives the address in memory where
basic has stored (or will store) the user’s program. This is
usually automatically set to be the lowest available address in
the computer’s Random Access Memory but can be changed by
the user.
PAGE can be used to enable the computer to store two
different programs at the same time in different areas of
memory. Use with care.

Examples
PRINT PAGE
10 PAGE=&5000
20 PRINT ~PAGE
235 PAGE=TOP+1000

Description
A pseudo-variable giving the address used by the interpreter
for the start of the user program. The least significant byte of
PAGE is always set to zero by the computer. In other words
user programs always start on a “page” boundary where one
page is 100 bytes hex (256 bytes decimal).

Syntax
PAGE = <numeric>
or
<num-var> = PAGE

Associated keywords
TOP, LOMEM, HIMEM

317
PI
Purpose
PI has the value 3.14159265. It is used in the example to
calculate the area of a circle radius R.

Examples
100 AREA=PI*R^2
PRINT PI

Description
PI=3.14159265

Syntax
<num-var> = PI

318
PLOT
Purpose
PLOT is the multi-purpose point, line and triangle drawing
statement in basic.
The first number which follows the keyword PLOT tells the
computer what kind of point, line or triangle it is going to
draw. The two following numbers give the X and Y
co-ordinates to be used in plotting the point or drawing the line
or triangle.
PLOT K,X,Y plots to the point at X, Y in a manner
determined by the value of K. The effect of each value of K will
be:
0 move relative to last point
1 draw line relative in the current graphics foreground
colour
2 draw line relative in the logical inverse colour
3 draw line relative in current graphics background
colour
4 move to absolute position
5 draw line absolute in the current graphics foreground
colour
6 draw line absolute in logical inverse colour
7 draw line absolute in current graphics background
colour
Higher values of K have other effects which are related to the
effects given by the values 0 to 7
8-15 as 0-7 but with the last point in the line omitted in
inverting actions’ – eg using GCOL 4
16-23 as 0-7 but with a dotted line

319
24-31 as 0-7 but with a dotted line and without the last point
on the line
32-63 are reserved for the Graphics Extension rom
64-71 as 0-7 but only a single point is plotted
72-79 as 0-7 but plot points left and right from the given
coordinates until a non-background colour is reached
80-87 as 0-7 but plot and fill a triangle. When filling solid
triangles with colour the computer fills the triangle
between the coordinates given and the last two points
visited.
88-95 as 0-7 but plot points to the right from the given
coordinates until the background colour is reached
96-255 reserved for future expansions.
See the vdu driver section of the User Guide on page 377 for an
alternative interpretation of the numbers given above.
Suppose that in the above example PLOT K,X,Y the value of
X was 50 and the value of Y was 80 then
“Draw line relative” would mean: draw a line to the point on
the screen 50 places to the right of the origin and 80 places up
from the origin.
“Logical Inverse Colour” is explained next.
In two-colour modes the logical inverse colour of logical colour
0 is logical colour 1.
In four colour modes the following apply
logical inverse
0 3
1 2
2 1
3 0
In the sixteen colour mode logical colour 0 becomes 15, logical
colour 1 becomes 14 and so on.
When drawing lines the computer draws a line from the last
point to the X,Y position given.

320
Normally the origin is set at the bottom left of the screen, but
its position may be moved to any point by using the VDU 29
statement. See page 388 for more information.
The graphics screen is 1280 points (0-1279) wide and 1024
(0-1023) points high.
The most commonly used PLOT statements are PLOT 4, and
PLOT 5, so these two have been given duplicate keywords;
MOVE and DRAW.
To print a string at a specific place on the screen use the
TAB(X,Y) statement. As an alternative one can join the
graphics and text cursors together with the statement VDU 5 so
that the computer prints text at the graphics cursor position.
Once that has been done then the graphics cursor can be
moved with MOVE, DRAW and PLOT statements.

Examples
100 PLOT 3,X,Y
PLOT 6,100,220

Description
A statement controlling the generation of points, lines and
triangles on the screen.

Syntax
PLOT <numeric>,<numeric>,<numeric>

Associated keywords
MODE, CLG, MOVE, DRAW, POINT, VDU, GCOL

321
POINT
Purpose
To find out the colour of a certain position on the screen.
Suppose that you are playing a game involving moving a car
around a race track. On the race track are pools of green oil. To
find out if the place where your car is about to move to has oil
on it (so that the car will skid) you need to be able to find out if
the screen is coloured green at that point.
The number returned is the logical colour of the screen at the
graphic point specified. If the selected point is off the screen
then the number returned will be –1. There must not be a space
between the word POINT and the opening bracket.

Examples
1340 colour=POINT(X,Y)
100 IF POINT(X,Y)=2 THEN PRINT
"SKID!!"

Description
A function returning a number representing the colour on the
screen at the specified co-ordinates. If the point is off the screen
then the function returns –1.

Syntax
<num–var> = POINT(<numeric>,<numeric>)

Associated keywords
PLOT, DRAW, MOVE, GCOL

322
POS position
Purpose
This function finds out how far across the screen the flashing
cursor is. The left hand side of the screen is position 0 and the
right hand side is position 19, 39 or 79 depending on the MODE
that has been selected.

Examples
1005 X=POS
320 distance=POS

Description
A function returning the horizontal position of the cursor in the
current text window.

Syntax
<num-var> = POS

Associated keywords
COUNT, TAB, VPOS

Demonstration program
To print spaces on the screen up to a certain horizontal position
– for example to align columns
100 column=12
110 REPEAT PRINT" ";
120 UNTIL POS=column

323
PRINT
Purpose
This does not print anything on paper. It does, however, print
words and numbers on the screen.
Anything enclosed in inverted commas will be “printed”
exactly as it is.
Things not enclosed in inverted commas will be assumed to be
variable names and the contents of the variable will be printed
out. The exact layout of the numbers and figures on the screen
will depend on the punctuation used in the PRINT statement.
The items following the word PRINT are referred to as the
“print list”.
The screen behaves as if it is divided into vertical strips (or
fields) which are (initially) 10 characters wide.
A comma after an item in the print list will cause enough
spaces to be printed to ensure that the next item will be printed
in the next field.
A semi-colon after an item in the print list will cause the next
item to be printed on the same line and immediately following
the previous item.
If the print list does not end with a semi-colon then the next
PRINT statement will print its output on a new line.
PRINT by itself leaves a blank line. A new line can be forced
at any stage in the print list by inserting an apostrophe.
PRINT ~ followed by a numeric argument prints that
argument in hexadecimal.
The table below gives examples as they would appear, except
that commas have been inserted where spaces would be – to
aid counting.

324
Example
Print position
12345678901234567890
PRINT 1,2 ,,,,,,,,,1,,,,,,,,,2
PRINT 10,200 ,,,,,,,,10,,,,,,,200
PRINT;10;200 10200
PRINT
PRINT "Answer";A Answer42
PRINT "Answer"A Answer,,,,,,,,42
PRINT "Answer",A Answer,,,,,,,,,,,,42
PRINT 1/2 ,,,,,,,0.5
PRINT 1/3 0.333333333
PRINT 3.3'2.25 ,,,,,,,3.3
,,,,,,2.25
The printer can be turned on at any time by typing CTRL B or
by the statement VDU 2 in a program. The output of all PRINT
statements will then appear on the printer as well as the screen.
CTRL C turns the printer output off. See page 404 for more
information about the printer.
Considerable flexibility has been built into the interpreter to
enable it to print numbers in several different layouts. There is
no need to learn to use these options at first but they will be
invaluable when layout is crucial. A more detailed explanation
of the advanced features is given below.
It is possible to control the overall field width, the total number
of figures printed and the number of decimal places printed.
All these features are set with one variable called @%.
In brief, setting
@%=131594 will give 2 decimal places
@%=131850 will give 3 decimal places
@%=10 will return to the normal output format.

325
For a detailed understanding of the format it is best to consider
@% as a four byte number (e.g. @=&01020903) each byte
controlling one aspect of the print format. The most significant
byte will be called B4. It has a value of 01 in the example above.
The least significant byte is called B1 and has the value 03 in
the example above.
B4 is tested by the function STR$ to determine the format of
strings created by that function. If B4=01 then strings will be
formatted paying attention to the setting of @% otherwise @%
will be ignored by STR$. Initially B4=00.
B3 selects the basic format thus
00 General format (G format)
01 Exponent format (E format)
02 Fixed format (F format)
In G format numbers that are integers will be printed as
integers. Numbers in the range 0.1 to 1 will be printed as 0.1
etc. Numbers less than 0.1 will be printed in exponent format.
Exponent format will always print numbers in scientific
notation; 100 becomes 1E2, 1000 becomes 1E3 and 1200
becomes 1.2E3.
Fixed format prints numbers with a fixed number of decimal
places. If the number cannot be fitted into the selected field
width it reverts to G format. The decimal points are aligned
vertically which is ideal for scientific and accounting programs.
B2 controls the total number of digits printed in the selected
format. If B2 is too large or too small for the mode selected then
B2 is taken as 9. The number is rounded to fit in the B2 digit
field.
In G format B2 gives the maximum number of digits that can
be printed before reverting to E format. Range 1-9.
In E format B2 specifies the total number of digits to be printed
before and after the decimal point – but not counting the digits
after the E. Another way of looking at it is to say that (B2-1)
digits will follow the decimal point. In E format 3 characters or
spaces always follow the final E. Range of B2 in E format is 1-9.

326
In F format B2 specifies the number of digits to follow the
decimal point. Range 0-9.
B1 sets the overall print field width and may have any value in
the range 0 to 255 which in hexadecimal is &00 to &FF.
For example accounting purposes would often require fixed
format 2 decimal places and 10 character field width.
The four bytes of @% are built up thus
@% = & 00 00 00 00
B4 – zero 00
B3 – fixed format 02
B2 – 2 decimal places 02
B1 – character field 0A
so @%=&0002020A the “&” indicating that the number is in
hexadecimal. You can, of course, omit the leading zeros.
Here are some other formats:
format (G2) (G9) (F2) (E2)
@%=& 0000020A 0000090A 0002020A 0001020A
100 1E2 100 100.00 1.0E2
10 10 10 10.00 1.0E1
1 1 1 1.00 1.0E0
0.1 0.1 0.1 0.10 1.0E-1
0.01 1E-2 1E-2 0.01 1.0E-2
0.005 5E-3 5E-3 0.01 5.0E-3
0.001 1E-3 1E-3 0.00 1.0E-3
0 0 0 0.00 0.0E0
-10 -10 -10 -10.00 -1.0E1

Description
A statement causing numeric and string values printed on the
screen.

Syntax
PRINT {['][,|;]<string>|<numeric>}['][;]

Associated keywords
PRINT#, TAB, POS, STR$, WIDTH, INPUT,
VDU

327
PRINT#
Purpose
This records numbers and words on cassette or disc. In other
words it stores data on a file. Numbers and strings are stored in
a special internal format. Before this statement is used the file
must have been opened using the OPENIN or OPENOUT
statements. See the section on files on page 188 for more
information.

Example
PRINT# file, X,Y,Z,A$,"Monday",33

Description
A statement which writes data to files. All values are written in
a special internal format:
Integer variables are written as &40 followed by the two’s
complement representation of the integer in four bytes, most
significant byte first.
Real variables are written as &FF followed by four bytes of
mantissa and one byte exponent. The mantissa is sent lowest
significant bit (lsb) first. 31 bits represent the magnitude of the
mantissa and 1 bit the sign. The exponent byte is in two’s
complement excess 128 form.
String variables are written as &00 followed by a 1 byte “byte
count” followed by the characters in the string in reverse order.

Syntax
PRINT#<num-var>{,<numeric>|<string>}

Associated keywords
OPENIN, OPENOUT, EXT#, PTR#,
INPUT#, BGET#, BPUT#, CLOSE#

328
PROC procedure
Purpose
This is used as the first part of a name to indicate that it refers
to a procedure. See the keyword DEF on page 230 for a fuller
description.

Example
10 DEF PROChello(X)
20 LOCAL Z
30 FOR Z=0 TO X
40 PRINT "Hello - how about this for
BASIC!"
50 NEXT Z
60 ENDPROC
Description
A reserved word used at the start of all user declared
procedures. There must not be a space between PROC and the
rest of the procedure name.
Syntax
PROC<variable-name>[(<string-var>|
<num-var>{,<string-var>|<num-var>})]

Associated keywords
DEF, ENDPROC, LOCAL
Demonstration program
10 REM Tower of Hanoi problem
20 INPUT "Number of disks",F
30 PROChanoi(F,1,2,3)
40 END
50 DEF PROChanoi(A,B,C,D) IF A=0
ENDPROC
60 PROChanoi(A-1,B,D,C)
70 PRINT "Move disk " ;A; " from
pile " ;B; " to pile " ;C
80 PROChanoi(A-1,D,C,B)
90 ENDPROC
329
PTR# pointer
Purpose
This statement is not available on cassette based systems. It
selects which item in a long file is to be read or written next.
Strings and numbers are stored in a long line one after the
other. Each integer number occupies 5 bytes, each real number
occupies 6 bytes and each string takes up the number of letters
in the string plus 2. See the entry PRINT# on page 328 for
more details of the file format. The file-pointer can be moved
up and down the file to point to any selected word or number.
Note that you have to keep a careful track of where each word
or number starts to use the function. The number immediately
following the keyword PTR# is the channel number allocated
to the file when it was opened. A file must be open on the
selected channel before this function is used. Files are opened
with the OPENIN and OPENOUT statements. See page 188 for
more information on file handling.

Examples
PRINT PTR#X
560 PTR#file=PTR#file+80
85 PTR#channel=0

Description
A statement and function which allows the programmer to
move a pointer to a serial file and thus enables random access.

Syntax
<num–var> = PTR#<num–var>
or
PTR#<num-var> = <numeric>

Associated keywords
INPUT#, PRINT#, BGET#, BPUT#, OPENIN,
OPENOUT, EXT#, EOF#

330
RAD radian
Purpose
To convert an angle measured in degrees to radians. 1 radian
equals approximately 57 degrees.

Examples
1030 X=RAD(Y)
PRINT RAD(45)

Description
A function converting an angular argument given in degrees to
radian measure.

Syntax
<num-var> = RAD(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
DEG

331
READ
Purpose
To enable numbers or words that are required in a program to
be made available every time the program is run. It does this
by reading numbers or words into numeric or string variables
from DATA statements in the program. Most often the data is
read into an array. See the keyword DIM on page 120 for more
information on arrays.
See the keyword DATA on page 227 for a more detailed
description.

Example
100 READ name$(X),A

Description
A statement which copies the next item from a data-list into the
variable or variables which follow the keyword READ. The
DATA must contain the correct sequence of string and numeric
data for the string and numeric variables to be assigned. In
other words numeric data must be supplied if a numeric
variable is to be filled.

Syntax
READ <num-var>|<string var>{,<num-var>|
<string–var>}

Associated keywords
DATA, RESTORE

332
Demonstration programe
200 INPUT "How many pounds can you
afford" ,AFFORD
210 PRINT "You can afford the
following cars"
220 FOR X=1 TO 10
230 READ NAME$
240 READ PRICE
250 IF PRICE < AFFORD THEN PRINT
NAME$
260 NEXT
270 END
500 REM British Leyland Cars
510 DATA METRO HLE,3695
520 DATA etc etc

333
REM remark
Purpose
To enable the program writer to put remarks and comments
into the program to help him remember what the various parts
of the program do. The computer completely ignores anything
that appears after a REM.
When you first start writing small programs you can get away
with having no REMs, but as your programs grow in
complexity you will find it quite essential to have them liberally
sprinkled over your program. If you come back to a program
six months after you wrote it and find no REMs you will have a
real job trying to remember how it worked and why you used
that variable name etc. etc. Use lots of REMs – it will save you
hours of time in the long run.

Examples
10 REM this revision dated 25-3-82
100 REM
550 REM data for British Leyland cars

Description
This statement allows comments to be inserted in a program.

Syntax
REM <anything>

334
RENUMBER
Purpose
When you type in a program you give each instruction a line
number. As the program develops you quite often have to
insert extra lines between other lines. You might well need to
insert 25 lines between line number 300 and 310 – difficult!
The RENUMBER command will go through your program and
renumber it automatically. It deals successfully with things like
GOTO 220 – which might well become GOTO 180 etc.
However if your program contains the statement GOTO 100
and there is no line 100 then the RENUMBER command will be
unable to deal with the problem, and will say
Failed at line....
If you renumber a program containing an ON GOTO statement
which contains a calculated line number, e.g.
ON X GOTO 120,240,2*R,1000,2000
then RENUMBER will deal successfully with references before
the calculated line number. However it will not deal with the
calculated line number or other line numbers in the same
statement – ie 2*R, 1000 and 2000 in the example given.
The command RENUMBER will renumber your program
giving the first line the number 10, the second 20 and so on.
The command RENUMBER 200 will give the first line of your
program the number 200, the second will become line 210 etc.
etc.
The command RENUMBER 200,4 would renumber starting
with line 200 and then using 204, 208 etc. etc.
RENUMBER is a command: it cannot be used in a program, or
as part of a multiple statement line.

335
Examples
RENUMBER
RENUMBER 100,20
RENUMBER 6000

Description
RENUMBER is a command which renumbers a user’s program
and will correct most of the cross-references within the
program.

Syntax
RENUMBER [<num-const>[,<num-const>]]

336
REPEAT
Purpose
To make the computer repeat a set of instructions a number of
times until some condition is met.
If you jump out of a REPEAT...UNTIL loop with a GOTO
statement (which is bad practice) you must jump back in.
A single REPEAT may have more than one UNTIL.

Example
10 REM print stars for 1 second
20 NOW=TIME
30 REPEAT PRINT "*";
40 UNTIL TIME=NOW+100

Description
A statement which is the start of a REPEAT...UNTIL loop.
These loops always execute once and may be nested up to a
depth of 20.

Syntax
REPEAT

Associated keywords
UNTIL

337
REPORT
Purpose
To get the computer to report in words what the last error was.

Example
100 REPORT

Description
REPORT prints the error message appropriate to the last error
condition.

Syntax
REPORT

Associated keywords
ERR, ERL, ON ERROR

338
RESTORE
Purpose
Sometimes it is useful to have several sets of data in one
program. For example one might want information on British
Leyland cars and on Lotus cars as in the example shown on
page 128. The RESTORE statement enables the data-pointer to
be moved from one set of data to the other.
The word RESTORE by itself resets the data pointer to the first
set of data in the program.

Examples
230 RESTORE
100 RESTORE 6500
RESTORE apointer

Description
This statement can be used at any time to reset the data pointer
to any selected line number.

Syntax
RESTORE [<numeric>]

Associated keywords
READ, DATA

339
RETURN
Purpose
The word RETURN – not the key marked RETURN – is used in
a program at the end of a subroutine to make the computer
return to the place in the program which originally ‘called’ the
subroutine. See GOSUB on page 265 for more details.
There may be more than one RETURN statement in a
subroutine – but preferably there should be one entry point
and one (RETURN) exit point.
You should try very hard to avoid leaving a subroutine with
GOTO, you should always exit with RETURN. Why? Well you
will soon discover in reasonable sized programs that you can
get into an awful tangle and lose track of how a program works
if you make the program jump all over the place.
The importance of dividing your programs into clearly defined
sections wherever possible, with one entry point and one exit
point, cannot be over emphasised.

Examples
200 RETURN
300 IF X>4 THEN RETURN

Description
A statement which causes the program to branch to the
statement after the one which contained the GOSUB which
called the current subroutine.

Syntax
RETURN

Associated keywords
GOSUB, ON GOSUB

340
RIGHT$ right string
Purpose
To copy the right hand part of one string into another string.
For example if
ABCDE$="HOW ARE YOU" then
RIGHT$(ABCDE$,3) would be "YOU" and
RIGHT$(ABCDE$,7) would be "ARE YOU"
Note that RIGHT$(ABCDE$,100) would be "HOW ARE
YOU" since there are only eleven characters in HOW ARE
YOU.

Examples
A$=RIGHT$(B$,5)
last$=RIGHT$(last$,X)

Description
A string function returning a specified number of characters
from the right hand end of another string.

Syntax
<string-var>=RIGHT$(<string>,<numeric>)

Associated keywords
LEFT$, MID$

341
RND random
Purpose
To generate, or make, a random number.
What exactly this function does is determined by the number
which follows the word RND.
RND by itself generates a random whole number between
–2147483648 and 2147483647
RND(-X) returns the value -X and resets the random number
generator to a number based on X
RND(0) repeats the last random number given by RND(1)
RND(1) generates a random number between 0 and 0.999999
RND(X) generates a random whole number between (and
possibly including) 1 and X
The brackets are compulsory and must immediately follow the
word RND with no intervening space.

Examples
PRINT RND(6)
340 largenumber%=RND
950 PRINT RND(1)

Description
A function generating a random number. The range of the
number generated depends on the argument (if any).

Syntax
<num–var> = RND[(<numeric>)]

Associated keywords
None

342
RUN
Purpose
To make the computer obey the statements in the program in
its memory.
All variables (except the resident integer numeric variables @%
and A% to Z%) are first deleted and then the program is
executed.
RUN is a statement and programs may therefore execute
themselves.
If you want to start a program without clearing all the variables
then you can use the statement
GOTO 100
or GOTO whatever line number you wish to start from, instead
of RUN.

Examples
RUN
9000 RUN

Description
RUN is a statement causing the computer to execute the current
program.

Syntax
RUN

Associated keywords
NEW, OLD, LIST, CHAIN

343
SAVE
Purpose
To save a program that is in the computer’s memory onto
cassette or disc. The program must be given a name – usually
called its filename. The filename can have up to 10 letters and
numbers in a cassette system, must start with a letter, and
cannot contain spaces or punctuation marks.

Examples
SAVE "FRED"
SAVE A$

Description
A command which saves the current program area – that is the
area between the address given in the variables PAGE and
TOP.

Syntax
SAVE <string>

Associated keywords
LOAD, CHAIN

344
SGN sign
Purpose
This determines whether a number is positive, zero or
negative. The function returns
–1 for negative number
0 for zero
+1 for positive number.

Examples
100 X=SGN(Y)
230 result=SGN(difference)

Description
A function returning –1 for an argument which is negative, +1
for a positive argument and zero for an argument equal to zero.

Syntax
<num-var> = SGN(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
ABS

345
SIN sine
Purpose
This calculates the sine of an angle. The angle must be
expressed in radians rather than degrees – but you can convert
from degrees to radians using the function RAD.

Examples
120 Y=SIN(RAD(45))
2340 value=SIN(1.56)

Description
A function giving the sine of its argument. The argument must
be in radians.

Syntax
<num-var> = SIN(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
COS, TAN, ACS, ASN, ATN, DEG, RAD

Demonstration program
To draw a sine wave on the screen
10 MODE 4
20 FOR X=0 TO 1280 STEP 4
30 DRAW X,500+500*SIN(X/50)
40 NEXT X

346
SOUND
Purpose
This statement is used to make the computer generate sounds
using the internal loudspeaker. The sound generator is capable
of making four sounds at once. Each of the four sound channels
can generate one note. The keyword SOUND must be followed
by four numbers which specify
which sound channel is to be used
the loudness of the note (or the envelope number)
the pitch of the note
how long the note is to last
For example:
SOUND 1,-15,53,20
will play a note on sound channel 1, with a loudness of –15
(maximum volume). A pitch value of 53 gives middle C and a
duration of 20 will make the note last for 1 second.
SOUND C,A,P,D
The channel number (C) can be 0, 1, 2, or 3. Channel 0 is a
special channel that can produce various noises, whereas
channels 1, 2 and 3 are used to produce single notes. Other
values of C (the channel number) produce special effects which
are explained further on.
The amplitude or loudness (A) can have any whole number
value between –15 and 4. Values –15 to 0 produce notes of fixed
loudness throughout the whole note. A value of –15 is the
loudest, –7 is half volume and 0 produces silence. Values of 1 to
4 enable the amplitude to be controlled while the note is
playing. When you play a note on the piano the sound
gradually fades away. Effects like this are selected by using one
of the 4 user-defined envelopes which are selected by setting A
to be 1,2,3 or 4. Envelopes are explained on pages 182 and 244.
The pitch (P) is used to set the pitch or frequency of the note.
The pitch can have any value between 0 and 255. The note A
above middle C is selected with a value of 89. The table on
347
page 181 shows the value of P needed to produce a particular
note. You will see that to go up an octave P is increased by 48
and to go up a perfect 5th P must be increased by 28.
Increasing the value of P by one will increase the note
produced by a quarter of a semi-tone.
To play the chord of C major which consists of the notes C, E
and G for 2 seconds you could enter
100 SOUND 1,-15,53,40
110 SOUND 2,-15,69,40
120 SOUND 3,-15,81,40
Whereas to play a number of notes in succession you would
enter
100 SOUND 1,-15,97,10
110 SOUND 1,-15,105,10
120 SOUND 1,-15,89,10
130 SOUND 1,-15,41,10
140 SOUND 1,-15,69,20
which plays a well-known film theme.
The duration (D) can have any value between –1 and 254.
Values in the range 0 to 254 give a note duration of that number
of twentieths of a second. Thus if D=40 the note will last for 2
seconds. Setting D=–1 means that the note will continue to
sound until you actually take steps to stop it. You can either
press the ESCAPE key or stop it by sending another note, to the
same channel, which has “Flush Control” set to 1 – see page 351
later in this section.
As was mentioned earlier in this section, channel number 0
produces “noises” rather than notes and the value of P in the
statement
SOUND 0,A,P,D
has a different effect from that described for channels 1, 2 and
3. Here is a summary of the effects of different values of P on
the noise channel:
P Effect
0 High frequency periodic noise
1 Medium frequency periodic noise
2 Low frequency periodic noise

348
3 Periodic noise of frequency determined by the pitch setting
of channel 1
4 High frequency “white” noise
5 Medium frequency “white” noise
6 Low frequency “white” noise
7 Noise of frequency determined (continuously) by the pitch
setting of channel 1
Values of P between 0 and 3 produce a rather rasping, harsh
note. With P set to 4 the noise is not unlike that produced by a
radio when it is not tuned to a station – sort of “shssh” effect.
P=6 sounds like the interference found on bad telephone call.
When P is set to 3 or 7 then the frequency of the noise is
controlled by the pitch setting of sound channel number 1. If
the pitch of channel 1 is changed while channel 0 is generating
noise then the pitch of the noise will also change. The program
below generates a noise on channel 0 and varies the pitch of the
noise by changing the pitch of channel 1. Notice that the
amplitude of channel one is very low (–1) so you will hardly
hear it – but you will hear the noise on channel 0.
100 SOUND 0,-15,7,150
110 FOR P=100 TO 250
120 SOUND 1,-1,P,1
130 NEXT P
Notice that we have not yet described how sounds can be
affected by a superimposed envelope. An envelope can affect
both the pitch and amplitude of a note as it is playing. Thus the
statement
SOUND 1,-15,255,255
merely plays a continuous loud note, whereas
ENVELOPE 1,1,-26,-36,-45,255,
255,255,127,0,0,-127,126,0
SOUND 1,1,255,255
produces a complex sound controlled largely by the envelope.
See the keyword ENVELOPE for more details.
As mentioned briefly at the start of the description of the
SOUND statement, the channel number, C can be given values
other than 0, 1, 2 and 3. You need not understand exactly why
the following works to use it!
349
For C one can write a four figure hexadecimal number to
achieve certain effects – for example:
SOUND &1213,-15,53,40
The first parameter in the above example has the value
&1213. The ampersand (&) indicates to the computer that the
number is to be treated as a hexadecimal number. The four
figures which follow the ampersand each control one feature.
In this new expanded form the SOUND statement looks like
SOUND &HSFC,A,P,D
and the functions H, S, F and C will be explained in turn. In
essence these numbers enable one to synchronize notes so that
one can play chords effectively.

The first number (H) can have the value 0 or 1. If H=1 then
instead of playing a new note on the selected channel, the
previous note on that channel is allowed to continue. If a note
were gently dying away then it might be abruptly terminated
when its time was up. Setting H=1 allows the note to continue
instead of playing a new note. If H=1 then the amplitude and
pitch defined by the rest of the SOUND statement is ignored.

The second number (S) is used to synchronize the playing of a

number of notes. If S=0 then the notes are played as soon as the
last note on the selected channel has completed. (There is a
slight simplification here; “completed” means “has reached the
start of the release phase”.) The user is referred to the keyword
ENVELOPE for relevant detail.
A non-zero value of S indicates to the computer that this note is
not to be played until you have a corresponding note on
another channel ready to be played. A value of S=1 implies that
there is one other note in the group. S=2 implies two other
notes (i.e. a total of 3). If a note was sent to channel one with S
set to 1 then it would not be played until a note was ready on
another channel which also had S set to 1. For example:
100 SOUND &101,-15,50,200
110 SOUND 2,-15,200,100
120 SOUND &102,-15,100,200

350
When this program is run the note at line 100 will not play until
channel 2 is free. Line 110 sounds a note immediately on
channel 2 – and for 5 seconds (duration 100). When that note
has completed then both the notes from lines 100 and 120 will
sound together.

The third number (F) can have the value 0 or 1. If it is set to 1

then the sound statement in which it occurs flushes (throws
away) any other notes waiting in the queue for a particular
channel. It also stops whatever note is being generated on that
channel at present. The sound statement in which F=1 then
plays its note. Setting F behaves like an “over-ride”. For
example:
20 SOUND 2,-15,200,100
25 FOR X=1 TO 500:NEXT X
30 SOUND &12,-15,100,200
In the above situation line 20 will start a sound on channel 2
but this will be stopped almost immediately by line 30 which
will generate a lower and longer note on channel 2. Line 25 just
gives a short delay.
Setting F=1 provides an easy way of stopping an everlasting
note! Thus SOUND &13,0,0,1 stops the current note on
channel 3 and instead plays one at zero loudness and of
minimum length. This will stop channel 3 immediately.

The last number (C) is the channel number described earlier.

Description
The sound generator has four separately-controlled synthesis
channels. Each can sound at one of 16 amplitudes, including
‘off’. The audio output is the sum of the channel outputs.
Channels 1–3 each generate a squarewave with programmable
frequency. Channel 0 can produce noise (unpitched sound of
psuedo-random structure) or a pulse waveform. The frequency
of the pulsewave or period of the noise can be set to one of the
three fixed options, or to the frequency of channel 1.
The basic program generates each sound by initiating one or
more ‘requests’, each of which may take the form of a musical
note or a single effect and is directed to a specific channel. If the
destination channel is idle when a request requires it, the

351
sound starts playing immediately. If a previous request is still
being handled the new one is placed on a queue, where it waits
until the current event is over (or past a critical stage – see
ENVELOPE). If the queue is full, the program waits. Separate
queues are provided for the four channels, each of which can
hold up to four requests, not counting the one currently being
executed. The program can look at the state of any queue and
flush any queue, but cannot find out or alter the state of the
current event, except for flushing the whole queue.
The SOUND keyword is followed by four parameters, the first
of which consists of 4 hexadecimal digits. Thus
SOUND &HSFC,A,P,D
Range Function
H 0 or 1 Continuation
S 0 to 3 Synchronization
F 0 or 1 Flush
C 0 to 3 Channel number
A -15 to 4 Amplitude or envelope number
P 0 to 255 Pitch
D 1 to 255 Duration
The ‘H’ parameter allows the previous event on that channel to
continue, and if this is 1, the amplitude and pitch parameters of
SOUND have no effect. Because the dummy note is queued in
the normal way, it can be used to ensure that the release
segment of a sound, which occurs after the duration is over and
would otherwise be truncated by the next sounding event on
the same channel, is allowed to complete.
The ‘S’ parameter allows requests to be queued separately and
then executed at the same instant, for chords and multiple
voice effects. The value initially determines the number of
other channels that must receive requests with the same value
of ‘S’, before the group will play. For example, each note of a
three-note chord would be generated by a SOUND with the
value of 2 for ‘S’. The system will read the value of ‘S’ from the
first one and then wait for 2 more requests with 2 as the value
of ‘S’ before playing the complete chord. Single requests use 0
for ‘S’ so they play as soon as they reach the end of the channel
queue.

352
The parameter ‘F’ will normally be zero, causing the request to
be queued. If it is 1, the channel queue will be flushed first, so
the request will sound immediately.
The parameter ‘C’ determines the number of the sound channel
to be used.
The ‘A’ parameter controls the amplitude of the sound and can
be used in two ways. Positive values up to 4 select the envelope
(1 to 4) to be used. If the RS423 and cassette output buffers are
unused then envelope numbers up to 16 may be defined and
used. Zero and negative integers up to –15 directly set the
amplitude of the sound, which is then fixed at this value for the
duration of the note. –15 corresponds to the loudest, and 0 is
‘off’.
The ‘P’ parameter determines the pitch of the note. It can take
values from 0 to 255.
The ‘D’ parameter determines the total duration of sounds
whose amplitude is determined explicitly by a negative or zero
value of ‘A’ parameter. The duration is given in twentieths of a
second. If an envelope has been selected, by a positive value of
‘A’, then the duration ‘D’ determines the total of the attack,
decay and sustain periods – but not of the release phase.

Syntax
SOUND <numeric>,<numeric>,<numeric>,
<numeric>

Associated keywords
ENVELOPE, ADVAL

353
SPC space
Purpose
This statement is used to print multiple spaces on the screen. It
can only be used as part of PRINT or INPUT statements. The
number in brackets gives the number of spaces to be printed.

Examples
120 PRINT "Name";SPC(6);"Age";
SPC(10);"Hours"
4030 INPUT SPC(10),"Value",V

Description
A statement printing a number of spaces on the screen. Up to
255 spaces may be printed.

Syntax
PRINT SPC(<numeric>)
or
INPUT SPC(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
TAB, PRINT, INPUT

354
SQR square root
Purpose
This statement is used to calculate the square root of a number.

Examples
10 X=SQR(Y)
300 X=(-B+SQR(B^2-4*A*C))/(2*A)

Description
A function returning the square root of its argument. An
attempt to calculate the square root of a negative number will
produce the error message ‘-ve root’ which is error number 21.

Syntax
<num-var> = SQR(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
None

355
STEP
Purpose
This is part of the FOR...TO...STEP...NEXT
structure.
In the program shown below, STEP indicates the amount that
the variable cost is to be increased each time around the
loop. In this case the cost is to increase in steps of 5 units.
The step may be positive or negative.
STEP is optional, if omitted a step size of +1 is assumed – see
FOR on page 260.

Example
300 FOR X=100 TO 20 STEP -2.3

Description
Part of the FOR...NEXT construct. STEP is optional.

Syntax
FOR <num-var> = <numeric> TO <numeric>
[STEP <numeric>]

Associated keywords
FOR, TO, NEXT

Demonstration program
230 FOR cost=100 TO 200 STEP 5
250 production=FNtaken(cost)
260 PRINT production,cost
270 NEXT cost

356
STOP
Purpose
This statement interrupts a program which is running and
prints the message
STOP at line XXXX
on the screen; otherwise the effect is identical to END.
STOP may occur as many times as is needed in a program.

Examples
2890 STOP
3080 STOP

Description
Causes execution of the program to cease and a message to be
printed out.

Syntax
STOP

Associated keywords
END

357
STR$ string
Purpose
This string function converts a number into the equivalent
string representation. Thus STR$(4.6) would give "4.6".
STR$ is affected by the field width and format constraints
imposed by the variable @%. The default format is G9 with
B1=0. See page 70.
The opposite function of converting a string into a number is
performed by the function VAL.

Examples
20 A$=STR$(X)
5060 num$=STR$(size)

Description
A string function which returns the string form of the numeric
argument as it would have been printed.

Syntax
<string-var> = STR$(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
VAL, PRINT

358
STRING$
Purpose
This produces a long string consisting of multiple copies of a
shorter string. Thus STRING$(6,"--0") would be
--0--0--0--0--0--0. This function is useful for
decorative features. It should be used whenever the user needs
to generate a long string from lots of identical short strings.
It is very important, to avoid wasting memory space, that
strings are set to their maximum length the first time that they
are allocated. This can easily be done by using STRING$. For
example to set A$ to contain up to 40 characters one could
write
A$=STRING$(40, " ")
A$ can then be set back to empty using A$="" before use.

Examples
400 A$=STRING$(x,pattern$)
560 B4$=STRING$(5,"0+")
PRINT STRING$(10,"hello")

Description
A string function returning multiple concatenations of a string.

Syntax
<string-var> =
STRING$(<numeric>,<string>)

359
TAB tabulation
Purpose
TAB can only be used with the keywords PRINT and
INPUT. There are two versions:
TAB(X) will print spaces up to a certain column position. If
the flashing cursor is beyond the required position then the
cursor will move to the next line down and space across to the
required column.
TAB(X,Y) will move the cursor directly to position X, Y on
the screen. Note that once TAB(X,Y) has been used on a
line, TAB(X) may not move to the correct position on the line.
The origin (for all text commands) is at the top left of the
current text area of the screen.
The left hand column of the screen is column number 0. The
right hand is column 19, 39, or 79 depending on the graphics
mode selected.
The top line is line number 0, the bottom line is line number 31
or 24.
If the text scrolling area of the screen is changed then the TAB
command will still work as outlined above.

Examples
340 PRINT TAB(10);name$TAB(30);job$
440 PRINT TAB(20,31);value
230 INPUT TAB(10,20) "How much" cost
875 INPUT TAB(30), "Doctors name",
DOC$

360
Description
TAB with a single argument prints spaces (and a newline if
necessary) to reach the specified column.
TAB with two arguments moves the cursor directly to the
specified co-ordinates.

Syntax
PRINT TAB(<numeric>[,<numeric>])
or
INPUT TAB(<numeric>[,<numeric>])

Associated keywords
POS, VPOS, PRINT, INPUT

361
TAN tangent
Purpose
This mathematical function calculates the tangent of the angle
given.
The angle must be given in radians but may be converted to
radians from degrees using the function RAD. 1 radian is about
57 degrees.

Examples
PRINT TAN(RAD(45))
10 Y=TAN(X)
1030 droop=TAN(load)

Description
A function returning the tangent of the argument. The
argument must be given in radians.

Syntax
<num-var> = TAN(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
COS, SIN, ACS, ATN, DEG, RAD

362
THEN
Purpose
A keyword used with IF to decide on a course of action as the
result of some test.

Examples
780 IF X=6 THEN PRINT "good" ELSE
PRINT "bad"
200 IF A$=B$ THEN PROCgood ELSE
PROCbad

Description
Optional part of the IF...THEN...ELSE structure.
Note that it is not optional if used when the condition assigns
to a pseudo variable, eg
300 IF X THEN TIME=0

Syntax
IF <testable condition> THEN
<statement> [ELSE <statement>]

Associated keywords
IF, ELSE

363
TIME
Purpose
This can be used to set or read the internal timer.
The timer counts in one hundredth of a second intervals. It is
not a clock providing true time-of-day readout. You can’t use it
to check the Greenwich Time Signal! However, once set, the
internal clock will keep good time. Pressing the BREAK key
does not reset the clock.
To convert TIME to a 24 hour clock use the following routines:
1000 SEC=(TIME DIV 100) MOD 60
1010 MIN=(TIME DIV 6000) MOD 60
1020 HR =(TIME DIV 360000) MOD 24

Examples
205 TIME=((Ho*60+Mi)*60+Se)*100
400 nowtime=TIME

Description
A pseudo-variable which sets or reads the lower four bytes of
the internal elapsed time clock.

Syntax
TIME = <numeric>
or
<num-var> = TIME

Demonstration program
1070 finishtime=TIME+1000
1080 REPEAT
1090 REM wait for 10 seconds
1100 UNTIL TIME>=finishtime

364
TO
Purpose
Part of the FOR...TO...STEP...NEXT statement. The
final terminating value of the loop is given after the word TO.
See page 91 for further information.

Description
Part of the FOR...NEXT construct.

Syntax
FOR <num-var> = <numeric> TO <numeric>
[STEP <numeric>]

Associated keywords
FOR, STEP, NEXT

Demonstration program
10 MODE 5
20 FOR C=1 TO 3
30 GCOL 3,C
40 FOR X=0 TO 1200 STEP 5*C
50 MOVE 600,1000
60 DRAW X,0
70 NEXT X
80 NEXT C

365
TOP
Purpose
The function TOP returns the address of the first free memory
location after the user’s program. The user’s program is
normally stored from the bottom of the available Random
Access Memory upwards.
Thus the length of the user’s program in bytes is given by
TOP-PAGE.

Examples
PRINT~(TOP-PAGE):REM length in hex
2340 PRINT TOP
5460 X=TOP

Description
A function returning the first free location above the user’s
program.

Syntax
<num-var> = TOP

Associated keywords
PAGE, HIMEM, LOMEM

366
TRACE
Purpose
TRACE makes the computer print out the line number of each
line of the program before execution.
There are three forms of TRACE:
TRACE ON causes the computer to print line numbers
TRACE OFF turns off the trace facility
TRACE 6780 would cause the computer to report only line
numbers below 6780.
With well-structured programs which have subroutines at high
line numbers this will enable the user to trace through the
structure of the program without being bothered with line
numbers in procedures, functions and subroutines.
Note that the interpreter does not execute line numbers very
often
10 FOR Z=0 TO 100
20 Q=Q*Z: NEXT Z
30 END
would print [10] [20] [30] but
10 FOR Z=0 TO 100
20 Q=Q*Z
25 NEXT Z
30 END
would print [10] [20] [25]
[25] [25] [25] [25] etc.
(Of course in mode 7 the [ appears as f and ] appears as g.)
TRACE is also turned off after an error, or by pressing
ESCAPE or BREAK .

367
Examples
TRACE ON
TRACE OFF
TRACE X
TRACE 3000

Description
TRACE ON causes the interpreter to print executed line
numbers when it encounters them.
TRACE X sets a limit on the size of line numbers which may
be printed out; only numbers less than X will be printed.
TRACE OFF turns trace mode off.

Syntax
TRACE ON|OFF|<numeric>

368
TRUE
Purpose
TRUE is represented by the value –1 in this computer.

Examples
PRINT TRUE
300 UNTIL result = TRUE

Description
A function returning –1.

Syntax
<num-var> = TRUE

Associated keywords
FALSE

369
UNTIL
Purpose
Part of the REPEAT...UNTIL construct. See the keyword
REPEAT for more details.

Example
450 UNTIL X<10

Description
A program object signifying the end of a
REPEAT...UNTIL loop.

Syntax
UNTIL <testable condition>

Associated keywords
REPEAT

370
USR user
Purpose
The USR function provides the user with a means of calling
sections of machine code program which are designed to return
one value. When the machine code section is called the
computer sets the processor’s A, X and Y registers to the least
significant bytes of A%, X% and Y%. The carry flag (C) is set to
the least significant bit of C%. On return from the machine code
section, an integer number is generated from the four registers
P, Y, X, A (most significant byte to least significant byte).
Again it must be emphasised that USR returns a result whereas
CALL does not. Therefore you must either assign the result to
a variable
X=USR(&3000)
or print the result
PRINT USR(&3000)

Examples
1400 R=USR(&3000)
670 result=USR(plot5)

Description
A function allowing machine code to directly return a value for
problems which do not require the flexibility of CALL.

Syntax
<num-var> = USR(<numeric>)

Associated keywords
CALL

371
VAL value
Purpose
This function takes a string which contains a number and
produces the number. In other words it can convert a number
represented by a string (eg A$="+24") into the number.
The string must start with a plus (+) or minus (–) sign or a
number. If not then the function will return zero.
The opposite function is performed by STR$.

Examples
450 x=VAL(length$)
1560 date=VAL(DATE$)

Description
A function which converts a character string representing a
number into numeric form. If the argument is not a signed
unary constant then zero will be returned.

Syntax
<num-var> = VAL(<string>)

Associated keywords
STR$

372
VDU
Purpose
The statement VDU is followed by one or more numbers and
the ascii characters corresponding to these numbers are sent to
the screen. The function CHR$ can generate a single ascii
character from a given number. This character can be added to
a string or printed. VDU on the other hand is used to generate a
sequence of numbers that are then sent to the vdu drivers.
VDU provides an easy way of sending, for example, control
characters to the vdu drivers. See page 378 for a detailed list of
the VDU control codes.
Two examples will make the purpose of this statement clearer:
when defining the text area of the screen four bytes have to
follow the VDU 28 statement. These four bytes represent the
left X, bottom Y, right X and top Y co-ordinates of the text area.
The range of X is 0-39 and of Y is 0-31 in mode 4. Thus
VDU 28,0,5,39,0
would define a 6 line text window at the top of the screen. If a
different mode is selected then the maximum screen width may
be either 19, 39 or 79.
The graphics area of the screen, on the other hand, uses
co-ordinates up to 1279 points horizontally. Thus when
defining the graphics area double byte numbers must be sent to
the vdu drivers since the largest number that can be sent as a
single byte is 255.
VDU 24,0;0;1279;830; will define a graphics area at
the bottom of the screen and 830 points high. Each of the four
co-ordinates is sent as a double byte pair. Note that the
graphics origin is bottom left whereas the text origin is top left
and that the graphics screen is always 1280 by 1024 regardless
of mode.
VDU is equivalent to PRINT CHR$; except that it does not
change the value of COUNT.

373
Examples
VDU 14 turn “auto-paging mode” on
VDU 15 turn “auto-paging mode” off
VDU 2 turn printer on

Description
A statement which takes a list of numeric arguments and sends
them to the operating system output character routine
(oswrch). If the arguments are separated by commas then
single bytes are sent. If any argument is followed by a
semi-colon then that argument will be sent as two bytes. The
Least Significant Byte will be sent first, followed by the Most
Significant Byte. This is the order required by the vdu drivers.

Syntax
VDU <numeric>{,|;<numeric>)[;]

Associated keywords
CHR$

374
 vertical position of the
VPOS cursor

Purpose
VPOS is used to find the vertical position of the text cursor on
the screen.

Examples
670 V=VPOS
100 PRINT VPOS

Description
A function returning the vertical position of the text cursor.

Syntax
<num-var> = VPOS

Associated keywords
POS

375
WIDTH
Purpose
WIDTH is used to set the overall “page width” that the
computer uses. Initially this is set to zero which the interpreter
interprets as “unlimited width”.
WIDTH n will cause the interpreter to force a new line after n
characters have been printed by the PRINT statement.
WIDTH also affects all output to the printer.

Examples
670 WIDTH 60
WIDTH 35

Description
A statement controlling the overall output field width. It is
initially set to zero which disables auto newlines.

Syntax
WIDTH <numeric>

Associated keywords
COUNT

376
34 VDU drivers
The statement VDU X is equivalent to PRINT CHR$(X);
and the statement VDU X,Y,Z is equivalent to
PRINT CHR$(X); CHR$(Y); CHR$(Z);.
However the VDU statement finds most common use when
generating ascii control codes and a detailed description of the
effect of each control code is given in this chapter. The control
codes are interpreted by part of the Machine Operating System
called the vdu driver.
Those writing basic programs will need to refer to this
summary of the vdu drivers if they wish to use some of the
more advanced facilities such as definition of graphic and text
windows. Those writing other high level languages or machine
code programs will also need to refer to this section.
The vdu drivers are part of the “Machine Operating System”
(mos) software. All high level languages (including basic) use
them to print and draw on the screen. Because they are so
extensive and easily accessible to programmers it will be easy
to ensure that all high level languages and smaller assembly
language programs have access to the same graphics facilities.
There is no need for the user to write special routines to handle
the screen display.
The BBC Microcomputer is designed so that it can be expanded
in many ways. All expansions will be compatible with the
current Machine Operating System and it is very important
that those writing software use the facilities provided. In a
“twin-processor” machine the only access to the screen
memory is via the “Tube” and use of these vdu drivers and
other Machine Operating System features will ensure that code
will work correctly whether executed in the Input/Output
processor or in the Language processor.
The vdu drivers interpret all 32 ascii control character codes.
Many of the ascii control codes are followed by a number of
bytes. The number of bytes which follow depends on the

377
VDU code summary

ASCII abbrev.

Bytes extra
Decimal

CTRL
Hex

Meaning
0 0 @ NUL 0 does nothing
1 1 A SOH 1 send next character to printer only
2 2 B STX 0 enable printer
3 3 C ETX 0 disable printer
4 4 D EOT 0 write text at text cursor
5 5 E ENQ 0 write text at graphics cursor
6 6 F ACK 0 enable vdu drivers
7 7 G BEL 0 make a short beep
8 8 H BS 0 backspace cursor one character
9 9 I HT 0 forwardspace cursor one character
10 A J LF 0 move cursor down one line
11 B K VT 0 move cursor up one line
12 C L FF 0 clear text area
13 D M CR 0 move cursor to start of current line
14 E N SO 0 page mode on
15 F O SI 0 page mode off
16 10 P DLE 0 clear graphics area
17 11 Q DC1 1 define text colour
18 12 R DC2 2 define graphics colour
19 13 S DC3 5 define logical colour
20 14 T DC4 0 restore default logical colours
21 15 U NAK 0 disable vdu drivers or delete current line
22 16 V SYN 1 select screen mode
23 17 W ETB 9 re-program display character
24 18 X CAN 8 define graphics window
25 19 Y EM 5 PLOT K,x,y
26 1A Z SUB 0 restore default windows
27 1B [ ESC 0 does nothing
28 1C \ FS 4 define text window
29 1D ] GS 4 define graphics origin
30 1E ^ RS 0 home text cursor to top left
31 1F __ US 2 move text cursor to x,y
127 7F DEL 0 backspace and delete

378
function to be performed. The table opposite summarises all
the codes and gives the number of bytes which follow the ascii
control code.
Detailed description
0 This code is ignored

1 This code causes the next character to be sent to the printer

only and not to the screen. The printer must already have been
enabled with VDU 2. Many printers use special control
characters to change, for example, the size of the printed
output. For example the Epson MX-80 requires a code 14 to
place it into double width print mode. This could be effected
with the statement
VDU 1,14
or by pressing CTRL A and then CTRL N. This code also
enables the “printer ignore” character selected by *FX 6 to be
sent to the printer.

2 This code “turns the printer on” by which is meant that all
output to the screen will also be sent to the printer. In a
program the statement VDU 2 should be used, but the same
effect can be obtained by typing CTRL B.

3 This code “turns the printer off”. No further output will be

sent to the printer after the statement VDU 3 or after typing
CTRL C.

4 This code causes text to be written at the text cursor ie in the

normal fashion. A mode change selects VDU 4, normal
operation.

5 This code causes text to be written where the graphics

cursor is. The position of the text cursor is unaffected.
Normally the text cursor is controlled with statements such as
PRINT TAB(5,10);
and the graphics cursor is controlled with statements like
MOVE 700,450

379
Once the statement VDU 5 has been given only one cursor is
active (the graphics cursor). This enables text characters to be
placed at any position on the screen. There are a number of
other effects: Text characters overwrite what is already on the
screen so that characters can be superimposed; text and
graphics can only be written in the graphics window and the
colours used for both text and graphics are the graphics
colours. In addition the page no longer scrolls up when at the
bottom of the page. Note however that POS and VPOS still
give you the position of the text cursor. See page 173 for more
information.

6 VDU 6 is a complementary code to VDU 21. VDU 21 stops

any further characters being printed on the screen and VDU 6
re-enables screen output. A typical use for this facility would
be to prevent a pass-word appearing on the screen as it is being
typed in.

7 This code, which can be entered in a program as VDU 7 or

directly from the keyboard as CTRL G, causes the computer to
make a short “beep”. This code is not normally passed to the
printer.

8 This code (VDU 8 or CTRL H) moves the text cursor one

space to the left. If the cursor was at the start of a line then it
will be moved to the end of the previous line. It does not delete
characters – unlike VDU 127.

9 This code (VDU 9 or CTRL I or TAB) moves the cursor

forward one character position.

10 The statement (VDU 10 or CTRL J) will move the cursor

down one line. If the cursor is already on the bottom line then
the whole display will normally be moved up one line.

11 This code (VDU 11 or CTRL K) moves the text cursor up

one line. If the cursor is at the top of the screen then the whole
display will move down a line.

12 This code clears the screen – or at least the text area of the
screen. The screen is cleared to the “Text background colour”

380
which is normally black. The basic statement CLS has exactly
the same effect as VDU 12, or CTRL L. This code also moves
the text cursor to the top left of the text window.

13 This code is produced by the RETURN key. However its

effect on the screen display if issued as a VDU 13 or
PRINT CHR$(13); is to move the text cursor to the left
hand edge of the current text line (but within the current text
window, of course.)

14 This code makes the screen display wait at the bottom of

each page. It is mainly used when listing long programs to
prevent the listing going past so fast that it is impossible to
read. The computer will wait until a SHIFT key is pressed
before continuing. This mode is called “Paged mode”. Paged
mode is turned on with the CTRL N and off with CTRL O.
When the computer is waiting at the bottom of a page both the
Shift lock and Caps lock lights will be illuminated.

15 This code causes the computer to leave paged mode. See

the previous entry (14) for more details.

16 This code (VDU 16 or CTRL P) clears the graphics area of

the screen to the graphics background colour and the basic
statement CLG has exactly the same effect. The graphics
background colour starts off as black but may have been
changed with the GCOL statement. VDU 16 does not move the
graphics cursor – it just clears the graphics area of the screen.

17 VDU 17 is used to change the text foreground and

background colours. In basic the statement COLOUR is used
for an identical purpose. VDU 17 is followed by one number
which determines the new colour. See the basic keyword
COLOUR on page 222 for more details.

18 This code allows the definition of the graphics foreground

and background colours. It also specifies how the colour is to
be placed on the screen. The colour can be plotted directly,
ANDed, ORed or Exclusive-ORed with the colour already
there, or the colour there can be inverted. In basic this is called
GCOL.

381
The first byte specifies the mode of action as follows:

0 Plot the colour specified

1 OR the specified colour with that already there
2 AND the specified colour with that already there
3 Exclusive-OR the specified colour with that already there
4 Invert the colour already there
The second byte defines the logical colour to be used in future.
If the byte is greater than 127 then it defines the graphics
background colour (modulo the number of colours available).
If the byte is less than 128 then it defines the graphics
foreground colour (modulo the number of colours available).

19 This code is used to select the actual colour that is to be

displayed for each logical colour. The statements COLOUR
(and GCOL) are used to select the logical colour that is to be
used for text (and graphics) in the immediate future. However
the actual colour can be re-defined with VDU 19. For example
MODE 5
COLOUR 1
will print all text in colour 1 which is red by default. However
the addition of
VDU 19,1,4,0,0,0 or VDU 19,1,4;0;
will set logical colour 1 to actual colour 4 (blue). The 3 zeros
after the actual colour in the VDU 19 statement are for future
expansion.
In mode 5 there are four colours (0,1,2 and 3). An attempt to set
colour 4 will in fact set colour 0 so the statement
VDU 19,4,4,0,0,0 or VDU 19,4,4;0;
is equivalent to
VDU 19,0,4,0,0,0 or VDU 19,0,4;0;
we say that logical colours are reduced modulo the number of
colours available in any particular mode.
Note: In the television series ‘The Computer Programme’, an
attractive way of listing programs was produced by
using MODE 6 and VDU 19,0,4,0,0,0.

382
20 This code VDU 20 or CTRL T sets default text and graphic
foreground logical colours and also programs default logical to
actual colour relationships. The default values are:
Two colour modes
0=black
1=white
Four colour modes
0=black
1=red
2=yellow
3=white
Sixteen colour modes
0=black
1=red
2=green
3=yellow
4=blue
5=magenta
6=cyan
7=white
8=flashing black-white
9=flashing red-cyan
10=flashing green-magenta
11=flashing yellow-blue
12=flashing blue-yellow
13=flashing magenta-green
14=flashing cyan-red
15=flashing white-black

21 This code behaves in two different ways. If entered at the

keyboard (as CTRL U) it can be used to delete the whole of the
current line. It is used instead of pressing the DELETE key
many times. If the code is generated from within a program by
either VDU 21 or PRINT CHR$(21); it has the effect of
stopping all further graphics or text output to the screen. The
vdu is said to be disabled. It can be ‘enabled’ with VDU 6.

22 This vdu code is used to change mode. It is followed by

one number which is the new mode. Thus VDU 22,7 is
exactly equivalent to MODE 7 (except that it does not change
HIMEM, see pages 270 and 301).

383
23 This code is used to re-program displayed characters. The
ascii code assigns code numbers for each displayed letter and
number. The normal range of displayed characters includes all
upper and lower case letters, numbers and punctuation marks
as well as some special symbols. These characters occupy ascii
codes 32 to 126. If the user wishes to define his or her own
characters or shapes then ascii codes 224 to 255 are left
available for this purpose. In fact you can re-define any
character that is displayed, but extra memory must be set aside
if this is done. See page 427.
ascii codes 0 to 31 are interpreted as vdu control codes – and
this chapter is explaining the exact function of each. Thus the
full ascii set consists of all the vdu control codes, all the normal
printable characters and a user defined set of characters.
For example if the user wishes to define ascii code 240 to be a
small triangle then the following statement would have to be
executed
character to be
re-defined
VDU 23,240,1,3,7,15,31,63,127,255
redefine 8 numbers giving the contents of each
character row of dots that makes up the desired
character

=1
2+1=3
4+2+1=7
8+4+2+1=15
16+8+…=31
=63
=127
=255
128
64
32
16
8
4
2
1

Note that you cannot define your own characters in mode 7.

See page 170 for a more detailed explanation.

384
As explained above the user may define any ascii code in the
range 224 to 255. To display the resultant shape on the screen
the user can type
PRINT CHR$(240) or
VDU 240
In the unlikely event of the user wishing to define more than
the 32 characters mentioned above (ascii 224 to 255) it will be
necessary to allocate more ram for the purpose. This is
described on page 427
A second use of VDU23 is to permit the advanced programmer
to alter the contents of the 6845 CRTC circuit. (See page 77 for
cursor control.) If the user wishes to place value X in register R
this can be done with the command
VDU 23,0,R,X,0,0,0,0,0,0
The user is cautioned not to do this unless he understands how
to program the 6845. Note however that when writing to
register 7 (V Sync. Posn.) or register 8 (Interlace) of the 6845,
any offset that has been set up with the *TV statement (page
435) will be used to adjust the value sent to R7.
24 This code enables the user to define the graphics window –
that is, the area of the screen inside which graphics can be
drawn with the DRAW and PLOT statements. The graphics
screen is addressed with the following co-ordinates.
1023

0
0 X 1279
Thus the co-ordinates of A would be approximately 1000,200.
When defining a graphics window four co-ordinates must be
given; the left, bottom, right and top edges of the graphics area.
Suppose that we wish to confine all graphics to the area shown
below.

385
 700

graphics
area

300

0
0 150 1100

The left hand edge of the graphics area has an X value of

(about) 150. The bottom of the area has a Y value of 300. The
right hand side has X=1100 and the top has Y=700. The full
statement to set this area is
VDU 24,150;300;1100;700;
Notice that the edges must be given in the order left X, bottom
Y, right X, top Y and that when defining graphics windows the
numbers must be followed by a semi-colon.
For those who wish to know why trailing semi-colons are used
the reason is as follows: X and Y graphic co-ordinates have to
be sent to the vdu software as two bytes since the values may
well by greater than 255. The semi-colon punctuation in the
VDU statement sends the number as a two byte pair with low
byte first followed by the high byte.

25 This vdu code is identical to the basic PLOT statement.

Only those writing machine code graphics will need to use it.
VDU 25 is followed by 5 bytes. The first gives the value of K
referred to on page 319 of the explanation of PLOT in the basic
keywords chapter. The next two bytes give the X co-ordinate
and the last two bytes give the Y co-ordinate. Refer to the entry
for VDU 24 for an explanation of the semi-colon syntax used.
Thus
VDU 25,4,100;500;
would move to absolute position 100,500.
The above is completely equivalent to
VDU 25,4,100,0,244,1
X Y

386
26 The code VDU 26 (CTRL Z) returns both the graphics and
text windows to their initial values where they occupy the
whole screen. This code re-positions the text cursor at the top
left of the screen, the graphics cursor at the bottom left and sets
the graphics origin to the bottom left of the screen. In this state
it is possible to write text and to draw graphics anywhere on
the screen.

27 This code does nothing.

28 This code (VDU 28) is used to set a text window. Initially

it is possible to write text anywhere on the screen but
establishing a text window enables the user to restrict all future
text to a specific area of the screen. The format of the statement
is
VDU 28,leftX,bottomY,rightX,topY
where leftX sets the left hand edge of the window
bottomY sets the bottom edge
rightX sets the right hand edge
topY sets the top edge

0 5 30 39
0

Y2
Y1
12
X1 text window
20
X2

31
For the example shown the statement would be
VDU 28,5,20,30,12
Note that the units are character positions and the maximum
values will depend on the mode in use. The example above
refers to MODE 1 and MODE 4. In modes 2 and 5 the
maximum values would be 19 for X and 31 for Y since these
modes have only 20 characters per line.

387
 0 X 19
0

31

29 This code is used to move the graphics origin. The

statement VDU 29 is followed by two numbers giving the X
and Y co-ordinates of the new origin. The graphics screen is
addressed
1023

Y C

0
0 X 1279

Thus to move the origin to the centre of the screen the

statement
VDU 29,640;512;
should be executed. Note that the X and Y values should be
followed by semi-colons. See the entry for VDU 24 if you
require an explanation of the trailing semi-colons. Note also
that the graphics cursor is not affected by VDU 29.

30 This code (VDU 30 or CTRL ^) moves the text cursor to

the top left of the text area.

31 The code VDU 31 enables the text cursor to be moved to

any character position on the screen. The statement VDU 31 is
followed by two numbers which give the X and Y co-ordinates
of the desired position.

388
Thus to move the text cursor to the centre of the screen in mode
7 one would execute the statement
VDU 31,20,12
Note that the maximum values of X and Y depend on the mode
selected and that both X and Y are measured from the edges of
the current text window not the edges of the screen.

32-126 These codes generate the full set of letters and

numbers in the ascii set. See the ascii codes on pages 486 to
492.

127 This code moves the text cursor back one character and
deletes the character at that position. VDU 127 has exactly the
same effect as the DELETE key.

128-223 These characters are normally undefined and will

produce random shapes (see pages 384 and 427).

224-255 These characters may be defined by the user using

the statement VDU 23. It is thus possible to have 32 user
defined shapes such as
§VDU 23,224,8,28,28,107,127,107,8,28
¨VDU 23,225,8,28,62,127,62,28,8,0 0
©VDU 23,226,54,127,127,127,62,28,8,0
ªVDU 23,227,8,28,62,127,127,127,28,62
Note: on machines with operating systems after version 1.0, you can
use a *FX command which will then allow you to define characters
128 to 159 rather than 224 to 255. This has the advantage that
you will then be able to use the new characters easily by
holding down the SHIFT key while pressing one of the user
definable (red) keys (see page 439). To discover which version
of the operating system you have, type
*FX 0 RETURN

389
35 Cassette files

This chapter summarises the facilities available for file handling

using a cassette recorder. Refer to section 5 page 34 for an
introduction to loading and saving basic programs.

A. Cassette motor control

Some cassette recorders have a “remote” or “automatic motor
control” socket. This can be used with a switch on the
microphone to start and stop the tape. If your recorder is of this
type then the computer will be able to start and stop the tape
automatically at the start and end of each basic program or
section of recorded data.
If your cassette recorder does not have motor control then you
will have to start and stop the tape manually. A light is
provided on the keyboard to tell you when the tape should be
running. This light is labelled “cassette motor”. When it is on,
the tape should be running.
The description which follows assumes that you have
“automatic” or “remote” motor control.

B. Recording levels
Many cassette recorders employ “automatic record level”.
Recorders of this type do not have any “record level” controls.
If your recorder does not have “automatic record level” then
you will have to set the record level yourself. Set the control so
that the recording level indicator is slightly below the “0dB”
level or the red mark.

C. Playback volume and tone

It is important that the playback volume is set correctly. A
detailed description of how to do this is given on page 12. The
tone control should normally be set to “Maximum” or “High”.

390
D. Keeping an Index of Programs
You will be able to record a large number of basic programs on
a single cassette. However it is vital that the programs do not
overlap on the tape. If they do then you will lose one of them. It
is strongly suggested that you space the programs out along
the tape. Use the tape counter to start recording at positions
000, 100, 200, 300 and so on. But beware of recording on the
blank leader tape – always wind it on a little first. In this way
you will not only be able to find programs easily but you will
leave good clear gaps between average sized programs.
If you forget what is on a tape then you can always use the
command
*CAT
to obtain a “catalogue” of the tape. When you give the
command *CAT (and press the play button on the recorder)
the tape will play through, and the computer will print a
catalogue of all the programs onto the screen. The catalogue
gives the program name, the number of blocks (rather like
pages in a book) used to record the program and lastly the
length of the program (the number of letters in the book). It
also checks that the recording is readable and reports any
errors. As the catalogue is building up on the screen you will
often see something like this
SKETCH 02
This indicates that the computer has found a file called
SKETCH and that it is currently checking block 2 of that file.
The block number is given in hexadecimal not decimal
numbers. Press ESCAPE at the end of the tape to get back
control of the computer.

E. Saving a BASIC program

A program that you have typed into the computer’s memory
can be saved onto cassette tape in the following way:
1 Insert the cassette into the recorder
2 Type SAVE"PROG"
and press RETURN.
PROG is just an example of a “file-name”; file-names are
explained under P of this section.

391
3 A message RECORD then RETURN will appear. Now
use the fast forward and reverse buttons to position the tape at
the correct place.
4 Press the record and play buttons on the cassette recorder.
5 Press the RETURN key on the computer to let it know that
everything is now ready.
6 The computer will then record your program.
7 The tape will automatically stop when the computer has
finished recording your program.
You can always abandon this process by pressing ESCAPE

F. Saving a section of memory

This will not be needed by most people writing basic
programs. It is most often used to record sections of machine
code programs. The process is very similar to that employed to
record a basic program.
1 Insert the cassette in the recorder.
2 Type *SAVE "PROG" SSSS FFFF EEEE
and press RETURN
3 to 7 as for SAVE shown above.
SSSS represents the start address of the data, in hexadecimal
(hex).
FFFF represents the end address of the data plus one, in hex.
As an option the format +LLLL can be used in this position.
The plus sign is followed by the length of the data, in hex.
EEEE represents the (hex) execution address of the data. If the
program is reloaded into the computer using the command
*RUN "PROG"
then once loaded the computer will jump to the specified
execution address. The execution address is optional and if it is
omitted the execution address will be assumed to be equal to
the start address.
Two examples may make the syntax clearer
*SAVE "patch" 6000 6200
*SAVE "match" 4C00 4CE9
392
G. Loading a BASIC program
A basic program saved on cassette tape can be loaded into the
computer’s memory in the following way:
1 Insert the cassette in the recorder.
2 Type LOAD "PROG" and press RETURN.
3 The message Searching will appear.
4 Now use the fast forward and reverse buttons to position the
tape at the correct place.
5 Press the play button on the cassette recorder.
6 The computer will give you the message Loading when it
finds the correct program. It will then load it into its memory.
7 The tape will automatically stop when the computer has
finished loading.
When loading a program the usual catalogue-type display will
appear. The message Loading will appear when the correct
file is found. If the load should fail for any reason a message
will appear. See under Q of this section for information on
dealing with the problem.

H. Loading a machine code program

This will not be needed by most people using basic programs.
It is used to load special purpose programs. The process is
identical to that used to load a basic program except that the
command is
*LOAD "PROG" AAAA
AAAA represents the absolute load address. It is optional but, if
included, will force the program to load at the specified
address. It therefore over-rides the address given when the
program was saved. The program will load but not run; control
will return to basic.
Two examples may make the syntax clearer:
*LOAD "patch"
100 MODE 7: *LOAD "match" 7E80

393
I. Loading and running a BASIC program
The statement CHAIN allows a basic program to LOAD and
RUN another basic program. It is particularly useful when
there is a sequence of related programs, for example on the
welcome cassette.
The command is used in exactly the same way as LOAD but
with the word CHAIN substituted for the word LOAD.
1 Insert the cassette in the recorder.
2 Type CHAIN "PROG" and press RETURN.
3 The message Searching will appear.
4 Now use the fast forward and reverse buttons to position the
tape at the correct place.
5 Press the play button on the cassette recorder.
6 The computer will give you the message Loading when it
finds the correct program. It will then load it into its memory.
7 The tape will automatically stop when the computer has
finished loading and the computer will automatically run the
program.

J. Loading and running a machine code program

A machine code program (not a basic program) can be loaded
and run by using the statement
*RUN "PROG"

K. Using a cassette file to provide “keyboard” input

It is possible to get the computer to accept input from a cassette
file instead of from the keyboard. In this case the cassette file
would contain a set of commands, or answers to questions
which a basic program would need. The command to force the
computer to accept input from a file called “edit” would be.
*EXEC "edit"
To create a suitable cassette file you will need to use the basic
statement BPUT# and not PRINT#, since the latter stores
things in internal format. The command *SPOOL also creates
suitable files – see page 402 for how to use it to merge
programs.

394
L. Reading cassette data files
Data, as well as programs, may be recorded on cassette tape.
This facility enables the user to keep records of names and
addresses (for example) on tape for later use. Since the cassette
tape can be started and stopped by the computer it also enables
it to record results from experiments over many hours.
If the user wishes to read a data file then he must first “open
the file for input”. In the process of opening a file the computer
will allocate a “channel number” to the operation. If we wished
to read in a list of names recorded on a data file called NAMES
then the following statement would get the channel number
into the variable X.
100 X=OPENIN("NAMES")
Once a file has been “opened for input” data can be read in
from the tape. This can be done in two ways: a chunk at a time
(for example a whole name) or a single letter at a time.
Data is read in a chunk at a time by using the INPUT#X,A$
statement. This will read the first entry into A$.
To read a single character in use the function A=BGET#(X)

M. Testing for end of file

While reading data in it is useful to test to see if the end of the
file has been reached. This is done with the function EOF#. For
example
100 DIM B$(20)
110 Y=1
120 X=OPENIN("NAMES")
130 REPEAT
140 INPUT#X,A$
150 PRINT A$
160 B$(Y)=A$
165 Y=Y+1
170 UNTIL EOF#X
180 CLOSE#X
190 END

395
The program above reads up to 20 names off tape, prints them
on the screen and then stores them in an array in memory. Of
course if there were more than 20 names on file then the
program would fail because the array can only hold 20 entries.
Note that EOF# is not implemented on release 0.10.

N. Storing data on tape

The data in the last example was read into an array in the
computer. It could be then edited and the corrected version
could be re-recorded on cassette.
The process of recording the data, on the cassette, consists of
three steps: open the file for output, write out the data and then
close the file. The example program records 20 entries back to
tape from the array in memory.
200 X=OPENOUT("NEWNAMES")
210 FOR Y=1 TO 20
220 PRINT#X,A$(Y)
230 NEXT Y
240 CLOSE#X
250 END
Note that line 200 will make the computer issue the message
RECORD then RETURN
as it did when saving a basic program.
The CLOSE# statement will record any remaining data and
then stop the recorder automatically.

O. Recording single characters on tape

Single characters (bytes) can be placed on tape using the
command BPUT#. The following program stores the alphabet
on tape. Note that the letter “A” has an ascii value of 65 and
the letter “Z” has an ascii value of 90.
100 X=OPENOUT("ALPHABET")
110 FOR D=65 TO 90
120 BPUT#X,D
130 NEXT D
140 CLOSE#X
150 END

396
P. File-names
File-names on cassettes can be up to 10 characters long and can
include any character except space.

Q. Responses to errors
If an error occurs during any of the following operations
SAVE
LOAD
CHAIN
*SAVE
*LOAD
*RUN
an error message and then the message Rewind tape will
be printed on the screen. The user must then rewind the tape a
short way and play it again. It is not usually necessary to
replay the whole program, but only far enough to load the
blocks causing errors.
If an error is detected during
BGET#
BPUT#
INPUT#
PRINT#
*EXEC
*SPOOL
the tape will stop and an error will be generated. This error can
be trapped by basic in the usual way.
The user can escape at any time by pressing the ESCAPE key.
The error numbers generated by the cassette file system are as
follows:
216 Data Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) error
217 Header CRC error
218 An unexpected block number was encountered
219 An unexpected file name was encountered
220 Syntax error – for example an illegal *OPT statement
222 An attempt was made to use a channel which was not
opened
223 End of file reached

397
R. Changing responses to errors
If the user wishes to change the way the computer behaves
when it detects an error during a cassette file operation (e.g.
LOAD or SAVE) then this can be done with the *OPT
statement.
*OPT by itself resets error handling and the “message switch”
to their default values. Default values are given later.
*OPT 1,X is used to set the “message switch” which controls
the detail of the message.
X=0 implies no messages are issued
X=1 gives short messages
X=2 gives detailed information including load and execution
addresses.
*OPT 2,X is used to control the action that the computer
takes when it detects an error during a cassette file operation.
X=0 lets the computer ignore all errors though messages may
be given.
X=1 the computer prompts the user to re-try by re-winding
the cassette.
X=2 will make the computer abort the operation by
generating an error.
*OPT 3,X is used to set the interblock gap used when
recording data using PRINT#, and BPUT#. The gap on
SAVE is fixed. The value of X determines the gap in 1/10
seconds. If X is set to greater than 127 then the gap is set to the
default value.
The default values for the *OPT command are:
For LOAD, SAVE, CHAIN, *SAVE, *LOAD,
*RUN
*OPT 1,1 (short messages)
*OPT 2,1 (prompt for re-try)
*OPT 3,6 (0.6 second inter block gap)
For BGET#, INPUT#, BPUT#, PRINT#
*OPT 1,0 (No messages)
*OPT 2,2 (Abort on error)
*OPT 3,25 (2.5 second inter block gap)

398
S. Cassette tape format
The format of each block of data stored on cassette is given
here for those who wish to produce tapes on other machines
that may be read into the BBC computer.
5 seconds of 2400Hz tone
1 synchronization byte (&2A)
Filename (1 to 10 characters)
1 end of filename marker byte (&00)
Load address of file, 4 bytes, low byte first
Execution address of file, 4 bytes, low byte first
Block number – 2 bytes, low byte first
Data block length – 2 bytes, low byte first
Block flag – 1 byte
Spare – 4 bytes currently &00
CRC on header – 2 bytes
Data – 0 to 256 bytes
CRC on data – 2 bytes
Notes
1 Each data block has its own header as shown above
2 Load and execution addresses should have the top two
bytes set to &FF in 8 bit machines
3 Bit 7 of the Block flag is set on the last block of a file
4 CRC stands for Cyclic Redundancy Check.
The header CRC acts on all bytes from the filename to the spare
bytes inclusive. The data CRC acts on the data only. CRCs are
stored high byte first and are calculated as follows. In the
following C represents the character and H and L represent the
high and low bytes of the CRC.
H=C EOR H
FOR X=1 TO 8
T=0
IF (bit 7 of H=1) THEN HL=HL EOR &0810:T=1
HL=(HL*2+T) AND &FFFF
NEXT X
The above algorithm is not a basic program!

399
36 Changing filing
systems

The previous section dealt in detail with cassette files because

the standard machines (model A and model B) are fitted with
all the circuitry to enable cassette recorders to be used to store
and to retrieve data.
Other filing systems can, of course, be used with the BBC
Microcomputer. However, each of these will require additional
hardware which will be accompanied by its own detailed
instructions. Consequently, details are not given in this guide,
for example, of the disc filing system. What is given below,
however, is a list of the commands to enable the user to change
from one filing system to another.

*TAPE Selects the cassette filing system running

at the default speed of 120 characters per
second (1200 baud)

*TAPE3 Selects the cassette filing system running

at 30 characters per second (300 baud)

*TAPE12 Selects the cassette file system at 1200

baud

*DISC These two statements select the disc file

*DISK system so that all future file operations
(e.g. LOAD and SAVE), work to the
floppy disc units

400
*NET Selects the network file system for all
future file operations

*ROM selects the ROM cartridge file system

401
37 How to merge two
BASIC programs
There are a number of ways of merging two basic programs
together. Two are given below. In either case the line numbers
should not clash unintentionally.
In order to correctly merge two programs together it is
necessary to save one of them (the shorter one preferably), as
an ascii file rather than in the usual compressed format. This
ascii version of the program is then merged into the longer
program using the command *EXEC. Suppose we wish to
merge the program SHORT into the program LONG. First,
load in the first program
LOAD "SHORT"
and then create an ascii version by typing in the next three
lines
*SPOOL "SHORT2"
LIST
*SPOOL
This produces an ascii version of the program. The ascii
version is called SHORT2.
Now load in the big program by typing
LOAD "LONG"
This loads the long program
and lastly merge in the small program
*EXEC "SHORT2"
This merges the short program
The command
*SPOOL "SHORT2"

402
informs the computer that anything that it outputs to the
screen is also to be sent to a cassette (or disc, etc.) file called
SHORT2. When the computer lists the file it therefore creates
an ascii listing on cassette. The command *SPOOL without a
filename is used to end or close the spooled file.
Having created the ascii version of SHORT called SHORT2,
the user then loads the file LONG. The command *EXEC
"SHORT2" tells the computer to read in the file SHORT2 as
if it were getting characters from the keyboard. If the file
SHORT2 contains line numbers (as it does), then these lines
will just be added to the basic program. Of course, a line
number read in from SHORT2 will replace any line with an
identical line number in LONG, so it is normal to renumber the
two programs SHORT and LONG so that the line-numbers
don’t clash.
A rather quicker (and “dirtier”) method is given below – but if
you use this method you must make sure that the second
program that you loaded in uses larger line numbers than the
first program. You will get predictable but surprising results if
not.
Firstly load the program (with the lower line numbers) in the
normal way. Then get the computer to print, in hex, the
top-of-program address less 2 by entering
PRINT ~TOP-2
Call the resultant number XXXX. Then enter
*LOAD SHORT XXXX
to load the program SHORT (or whatever you have called it) in
above the first program. Finally type END to get the computer
to sort its internal pointers out. A typical dialogue might look
like this – assuming that one program is called ONE and the
other is called TWO.
>LOAD"ONE"
>PRINT~TOP-2
195F
>*LOAD TWO 195F
>END
This method is very easy but you must look after the line
numbers.

403
38 Using printers

The Model B BBC computer can be used with the vast majority
of printers available today. It is not possible, though, to drive
old ‘Teletypes’ which operate at 10 characters per second, or
printers requiring a 20mA current loop connection. To use a
printer with your BBC computer you will need to do three
things.
1 Connect the printer to the computer.
2 Tell the computer whether your printer is plugged into the
parallel or serial printer port.
3 Tell the computer to copy everything sent to the screen to
the printer.

1 Connect the printer to the computer

As the above implies there are two possible sockets (ports) to
which you can connect the printer: The “parallel printer port” is
often called a “Centronics® compatible” port. Printers that need
to be connected to parallel ports usually have a 36-way
“Amphenol” socket. To connect the printer to the computer
you will need a cable made up as follows from a 26-way
Insulation Displacement Connector (RS part number 467-295),
1 metre of 26-way ribbon cable (RS part number 358-062), and 1
36-way Amphenol plug.
The 26-way cable should be inserted into the 36-way plug so
that pins 1 to 14 and 19 to 32 are connected. The cable should
be inserted into the 26-way plug so that pin 1 of the Amphenol
36-way plug is connected to pin 1 of the 26-way Insulation
Displacement plug.
A suitable, ready made lead is available as BBC Microcomputer
system part number ANG 04.

404
 1 18

19 36

36 way
Amphenol plug

26 way
ribbon cable

bump
notch
26 way Insulation
1 Displacement plug
26

A parallel printer cable

Both plugs viewed looking at the pins on the underside of the plug body.

405
Parallel printer connections
Name 36-way plug 26-way plug
pin number pin number
Strobe 1 1
Data 0 2 3
Data 1 3 5
Data 2 4 7
Data 3 5 9
Data 4 6 11
Data 5 7 13
Data 6 8 15
Data 7 9 17
Acknowledge 10 19
Ground 19 to 32 All even numbers

The “serial printer port” is often referred to as an “RS232-C” or

“V24” port. The standard connector plug is a “Cannon 25-way
D type” and there is also a standard for the connections to the
plug. Predictably however, different manufacturers disagree on
the interpretation of the standard! The serial port on the BBC
computer emerges via a 5-pin din plug and it will normally be
possible to drive a serial printer with just 3 wires. The views of
the two plugs are shown below from the outside of the case
and looking into the respective sockets.
receive to send

ground
clear to ready
data se ound
signal etect

chassis data
reques end

transm ata

RTS data in
s

d
gr
d

it
t

t
carrier

GND

CTS data out 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

5-way din plug

for computer 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14
data terminal ready

25-way D type plug for printer

406
Connect a wire between GND and pin 7
Connect another wire between data out and pin 3
The position of the third wire varies from printer to printer.
For Qume printers connect CTS to pin 20.
If that doesn’t work then try CTS to pin 4.
Those who require a more complete RS232 connection should
try the following:
1 Data in to pin 2 (Transmit data)
2 Data out to pin 3 (Receive data)
3 CTS to pin 4 (Request to send)
4 RTS to pin 5 (Clear to send)
5 GND to pin 7 (Signal ground)

2 Tell the computer whether you are using a parallel or

serial printer
*FX 5 is used to inform the computer whether it is to send
printer output to the parallel or serial port. Type in either:
*FX 5,1 if you are using a parallel printer
*FX 5,2 if you are using a serial printer
The computer defaults to (assumes unless you tell it otherwise,
that you are using) a parallel printer.
If you have selected a serial printer then you will have to set
the “baud rate” to match that on the printer. The default setting
is 9600 baud but many printers run at other rates. Select one of
*FX 8,1 75 baud
*FX 8,2 150 baud
*FX 8,3 300 baud
*FX 8,4 1200 baud
*FX 8,5 2400 baud
*FX 8,6 4800 baud
*FX 8,7 9600 baud
*FX 8,8 19200 baud (this rate is not guaranteed)

3 Tell the computer to copy everything to the printer

This is often called “turning the printer on” – but, of course, we
are not referring to switching the printer on at the mains but
rather to enabling and disabling its printing.
To turn it on type CTRL B and to turn it off type CTRL C.

407
In a basic program VDU 2 will turn the printer on and VDU 3
will turn it off.
Note that all output will now appear on the screen and printer.
To send output to the printer only you can use *FX 3. See
page 422.

Characters not sent to the printer

Some printers automatically move the paper up one line when
they receive a carriage return. Since the computer also
moves the paper up one line (by using a linefeed), the paper
may move up two lines instead of one. It is possible to tell the
computer not to send any particular character to the printer.
The most common requirement is to ignore linefeed which
has an ascii code of 10. *FX 6 is used to set the printer ignore
character, so *FX 6,10 will set it to ignore “line feeds”.
*FX 6 should be set after *FX 5 has been used to select the
printer type. The default is to ignore line feeds.
Thus the complete set up sequence for a Serial printer running
at 1200 baud and which does not require “line feeds” would be:
*FX 5,2 – serial printer
*FX 8,4 – 1200 baud
*FX 6,10 – no line feeds (default so it may be omitted)
A few more detailed points:
Data is transmitted using 1 start bit, 8 data bits and 1 stop bit.
Receive baud rates may be the same or differ from transmit
baud rates. Receive baud rates are set by *FX 7.
The user may supply his or her own specialist printer driver
routine. The address of the user routine should be placed at
location &222 and the user defined routine can be selected as
the printer output routine with *FX 5,3.
If the user intercepts the Operating System Write Character
routine (oswrch) then all the vdu control codes must be dealt
with. When a basic program executes DRAW 10,10 a string
of 6 bytes is sent to the vdu driver via oswrch. In this case the
bytes would be 25,5,10,0,10,0, so beware!

408
39 Indirection
operators

Indirection operators are not normally available on personal

computers. They enable the user to read and write to memory
in a far more flexible way than by using PEEK and POKE.
They are intended for those using the computer’s assembler or
those wishing to create their own data structures. There are
three indirection operators:
Name Purpose No. of bytes affected
? query byte indirection operator 1
! pling word indirection operation 4
$ dollar string indirection operator 1 to 256
For the sake of illustration let us play with memory around
location &2000 (that is 2000 hex – an appreciation of hex
numbers is essential. If you don’t understand hex then you will
not need to use indirection operators). Let us set the variable M
to &2000
M=&2000
?M means “the contents of” memory location M, so to set the
contents of &2000 to 40 we write
?M=40
and to print the contents of memory location &2000 we write
PRINT ?M
Those familiar with other dialects of basic will realise that
Y=PEEK(X) becomes Y=?X and
POKE X,Y becomes ?X=Y
The query operator acts on one byte of memory only. The word
indirection operator (pling) acts on four successive bytes. Thus

409
!M=&12345678
would set location
&2000=&78
&2001=&56
&2002=&34
&2003=&12
and PRINT ~!M (print in hex, pling M) would give
12345678
Four bytes are used to store integers so the pling operator can
be used to manipulate integer variables.
The last operator in this group is the string indirection operator
called dollar. Do not confuse $M with M$ as they are quite
different. M$ is the usual string variable. On the other hand $M
can be used to read or write a string to memory starting at
memory location M. Remembering that we have set
M=&2000 then
$M="ABCDEF" will place the string ABCDEF and a carriage
return (&0D) in memory from location &2000 on.
Similarly
PRINT $M will print
ABCDEF
And one last twist to the use of these operators. We have seen
how query, pling and dollar can be used as unary operators –
that is with only one operand. We have used M as the operand
in the example above – for example
M=&2000
?M=&45
Y=?M
PRINT ?M
!M=&8A124603
Y=!M
PRINT!M

410
$M="HELLO ZAPHOD"
B$=$M
PRINT $M
but in addition both query and pling can be used as binary
operators providing that the left hand operand is a variable
(such as M9) and not a constant.
Thus M?3 means “the contents of (memory location M plus 3)”
in other words of location &2003.
There is a simple routine to examine the contents of memory
for 12 bytes beyond &2000.
10 FOR X=0 TO 12
20 PRINT ~M+X, ~M?X
30 NEXT
Line 20 reads “Print in hex (M plus X) and in the next column,
in hex, the contents of (M plus X)”. It is easy to write this into
one of the user defined function keys and keep it for debugging
– like this
*KEY 0 FOR X=0 TO 12: P. ~M+X, ~M?X:
NEXT ¦M
but don’t forget that in MODE 7 it will be displayed as
*KEY 0 FOR X=0 TO 12: P. ¸M+X, ¸M?X:
NEXT ||M
just to complicate matters!
Here are some illustrations of some of the above.
Set up function key 0 and use it to examine memory beyond
&2000.
>*KEY 0 FOR X=0 TO 12:P.~M+X,~M?X:N.¦M
>M=&2000
>FOR X=0 TO 12:P.~M+X,~M?X:N.
2000 FF
2001 FF
2002 FF
2003 FF
2004 FF

411
 2005 FF
2006 FF
2007 FF
2008 FF
2009 FF
200A FF
200B FF
200C FF
Use the byte indirection operator to change one byte
>M?3=&33
>FOR X=0 TO 12:P.~M+X,~M?X:N.
2000 FF
2001 FF
2002 FF
2003 33
2004 FF
2005 FF
2006 FF
2007 FF
2008 FF
2009 FF
200A FF
200B FF
200C FF
Use the word indirection operator to change 4 bytes
>M!2=&12345678
>FOR X=0 TO 12:P.~M+X,~M?X:N.
2000 FF
2001 FF
2002 78
2003 56
2004 34
2005 12
2006 FF
2007 FF
2008 FF
2009 FF
200A FF
200B FF
200C FF

412
Use the string indirection operator to insert a string into a
known place in memory
>$M="ABCDEFG"
>FOR X=0 TO 12:P.~M+X,~M?X:N.
2000 41
2001 42
2002 43
2003 44
2004 45
2005 46
2006 47
2007 D
2008 FF
2009 FF
200A FF
200B FF
200C FF
Note that interesting structures can be generated using ! and
$. For example you may need a structure containing a 10
character string, a number and a reference to a similar
structure. ! and $ together can do this. If M is the address of
the start of the structure then
$M is the string
M!11 is the number
M!15 is the address of the next structure
The tools are therefore provided to enable you to manipulate
general tree structures and lists very easily in basic.

413
40 HIMEM, LOMEM,
TOP and PAGE
These four psuedo-variables give the programmer an
indication of the way the computer has allocated the available
memory. PAGE and TOP give the bottom and top of the user’s
program so
PRINT TOP-PAGE
can be used to find out how big a program is.
HIMEM gives the top of memory so
PRINT HIMEM-TOP
will indicate how much space is left.
When you run the program the computer will need some space
to store variables so you cannot use up all the available
memory just with your program.
In a Model B computer Random Access Memory extends from
location 0 to location 32767 (in hexadecimal that is &7FFF). ram
is normally allocated in mode 7 as shown opposite.
As the user enters more program so the program grows,
increasing the value of TOP. Normally the computer stores
program variables immediately above the user program but
this can be changed by re-setting the variable LOMEM.
Again the computer normally expects to be able to use all the
memory up to that set aside for the screen, but the user may
move the position of the highest boundary by changing
HIMEM.
The variable TOP is calculated by the computer on request. It
does this by starting at PAGE and working through the
program. The user cannot reset the value of TOP but can reset
PAGE, HIMEM and LOMEM if needed for some special
purpose.

414
 &7FFF 32767
SCREEN MEMORY
HIMEM &7C00 31744

SPARE

VARIABLES FROM
USER PROGRAM
LOMEM
TOP

USER PROGRAM

PAGE
&0E00 3584
SYSTEM VARIABLES

415
41 Operating system
statements

The computer includes a large and powerful operating system.

This can be accessed from user-written machine code routines
or from basic. If a basic statement starts with an asterisk then
the whole of the rest of the line after the asterisk is passed to the
operating system directly. The operating system (O.S.) commands
include,
*LOAD Loads a section of memory (not a basic program)
(see page 393)
*SAVE Saves a section of memory (see page 392)
*RUN Loads and executes a machine code program (see
page 394)
*CAT Displays a catalogue of files on the
cassette/disc/net (see page 391)
*KEY Programs one of the user-defined keys (see page
141 and 439)
*OPT Determines how the computer reacts to errors
during loading of cassettes and the amount of detail
given during cassette operations (see page 434)
*FX Enables the user to control a large number of the
computer effects such as flash rate (see page 418)
*TAPE Selects the cassette filing system running at 120
characters per second (1200 baud)
*TAPE3 Selects the cassette filing system running at 30
characters per second (300 baud)
*DISC These two statements select the disc file system
*DISK so that all future file operations (e.g. LOAD and
SAVE) work to the floppy disc units

416
*NET Selects the network file system for all future file
operations
*SPOOL Copies all screen output to a named file (see
page 402)
*EXEC Uses a named file to provide input as if it had
been typed in at the keyboard (see pages 394 and
402)
*MOTOR Can be used to turn the cassette motor relay on
and off
*TV This can be used to move the whole of the
displayed picture up or down the screen and
also controls the picture interlace (see page 435)
*TELESOFT (provisional)
*TERMINAL (provisional)
*ROM Selects the rom cartridge file system

417
42 FX Calls and
OSBYTE calls

*FX and OSBYTE Call Summary

Decimal Hex Function
* 0 0 Prints operating system version number
1 1 Reserved for application programs
2 2 Selects input device
3 3 Selects output devices
* 4 4 Enable/disable cursor edit keys
* 5 5 Select printer type
* 6 6 Set Printer ignore character
* 7 7 Set RS423 receive baud rate
* 8 8 Set RS423 transmit baud rate
* 9 9 Set flash period of first colour
* 10 A Set flash period of second colour
* 11 B Set auto-repeat delay
* 12 C Set auto-repeat period
13 D Disable various events
14 E Enable various events
* 15 F Flush all or just input buffer
* 16 10 Select number of ADC channels
17 11 Force start of conversion on ADC channel
18 12 Reset user defined function keys
19 13 Wait for field synchronization
20 14 Explode soft character ram allocation
21 15 Flush selected buffer
* 124 7C Reset ESCAPE flag
* 125 7D Set ESCAPE flag
* 126 7E Acknowledge detection of ESCAPE condition
* 127 7F Check end of file status
* 128 80 Read ADC channel/fire buttons/last
conversion
* 129 81 Read key within time limit
* 130 82 Read machine high order address

418
Decimal Hex Function
* 131 83 Read top of operating system ram Address
* 132 84 Read bottom of display ram address
* 133 85 Read lowest address for particular mode
* 134 86 Read text cursor position
* 135 87 Read character at text cursor position
136 88 Reserved
* 137 89 Turn cassette motor ON/OFF
138 8A Insert character into keyboard buffer
* 139 8B Set file options
* 140 8C Select cassette file system and set speed
141 8D Reserved
142 8E Reserved
143 8F Reserved
* 144 90 Alter TV display position/interlace
145 91 Remove character from buffer
146 92 Read from I/O area FRED
147 93 Write to I/O area FRED
148 94 Read from I/O area JIM
149 95 Write to I/O area JIM
150 96 Read from I/O area SHEILA
151 97 Write to I/O area SHEILA
218 DA Cancel VDU queue
225 E1 Set base number for function-key codes
226 E2 Set base number for SHIFT function-key codes
227 E3 Set base number for CTRL function-key codes
228 E4 Set base number for SHIFT/CTRL function key
codes
229 E5 Escape=&1B
230 E6 Enable/disable normal ESCAPE key action
231 E7 Enable/disable user 6522 IRQ
232 E8 Enable/disable 6850 ACIA IRQ
This sheet gives osbyte calls for issue 1.0.
Calls marked * are identical in issue 0.10. Those calls with no
mark are new to the issue 1.0.
The statement *FX is used to control a large number of the
computer’s “special effects”, for example the rate at which
“flashing colours” flash or to select whether an RS423 or a
parallel printer is to be used. For example, to select a parallel
printer and to copy all output to the printer one would use the
statements
419
10 *FX 5,1 selects parallel printer
20 VDU 2 copies all output to printer

Please note that not all the calls listed are available on
operating systems before “Issue 1.0”.
The FX calls are also easily available to those writing in
assembly language. In this case the same effect of selecting a
parallel printer and turning it on would be achieved by
10 DIM DEMO 20
20 OSBYTE=&FFF4
30 OSWRCH=&FFEE
40 P%=DEMO
50 [
60 LDA #5
70 LDX #1
80 JSR OSBYTE
90 LDA #2
100 JSR OSWRCH
110 RTS
120 ]
300 CALL DEMO
>RUN
0EA4
0EA4 A9 05 LDA #5
0EA6 A2 01 LDX #1
0EA8 20 F4 FF JSR OSBYTE
0EAB A9 02 LDA #2
0EAD 20 EE FF JSR OSWRCH
0EB0 60 RTS
Because this chapter is relevant to both those writing basic
programs and those writing in assembly language, a certain
amount of material has to be included that is only relevant to
those writing in assembler. The next section is a case in point; it
is only relevant to those programming in assembly language.
All FX calls are available in machine code. In general an FX call
in basic takes the form
*FX 137,0,1
In assembly language the general form is
LDA #137
420
LDX #0
LDY #1
JSR &FFF4
The first parameter (137) determines which FX call is to be used
and is placed in the accumulator. The second and third
parameters are optional but if used are placed on the X and Y
registers.
If omitted X and Y will be set to zero. Thus *FXa would set X
and Y to zero and *FXa,X would set Y=0.
Before using an osbyte call (JSR &FFF4) the 6502 must be in
binary mode. In general, after an osbyte call the registers and
flags will be undefined. Some osbyte calls return a value in X.
These are noted further on. osbyte calls with A in the range
&80 to &FF in general need to set both X and Y whereas other
osbyte calls only take one argument – in X.
As you may gather, the *FX statement merely takes the
parameters given, places them in A, X and Y and executes a call
to &FFF4.
Some FX statements return values in the X (and sometimes Y),
register. They can only be used by assembly language
programmers or by using the USR function in basic. For that
reason they are explained as osbyte calls rather than FX calls.
See section 43 (Assembly Language) for more information.
Each FX and osbyte call is now explained in detail.
*FX0 prints a message giving the version number of the
operating system.

*FX1 is reserved for user supplied routines in application

programs.

*FX2 selects the input device from which characters will be

fetched.
*FX2,0 get characters from the keyboard and disables the
RS423 receiver.
*FX2,1 gets characters from the RS423 port and disables the
keyboard.
*FX2,2 gets characters from the keyboard and enables the
RS423 receiver.
This call is not available in operating systems prior to issue 1.0.
421
*FX3 is used to select whether output appears (or not), on
three different output streams. In the table below screen refers
to the normal TV or monitor, RS423 refers to the RS423 socket
and Printer refers to the selected printer output which may be
either parallel or RS423.
The number following *FX3, will produce output on the
following devices
Printer Screen RS423
(bit 2) (bit 1) (bit 0)
*FX3,0 P P x
*FX3,1 P P P
*FX3,2 P x x
*FX3,3 P x P
*FX3,4 x P x
*FX3,5 x P P
*FX3,6 x x x
*FX3,7 x x P
Thus, to send output to the RS423 but not to the screen or
printer one would use *FX3,7
At machine code level bit 0 controls the RS423 stream, bit 1 the
vdu screen and bit 2 the printer. Note that bits 1 and 2 are
negative logic true so that *FX3,0 will select the printer and
screen outputs. This is the default setting.

*FX4,0 resets the system so that the cursor editing keys

and COPY, perform their normal cursor editing
function.
*FX4,1 disables the cursor editing and makes the cursor
editing keys generate normal ascii codes. The codes are shown
below in both decimal and hex. numbers.
COPY 135 &87
136 &88
137 &89
138 &8A
139 &8B

422
*FX4,2 permits the and COPY keys to be
programmed in the same way as the user-defined function
keys. In other words they may contain strings. In this case the
*KEY number are
COPY 11
12
13
14
15

This feature is only available from issue 1.0.

*FX5 is used to select the printer type.

*FX5,1 selects output to the parallel (Centronics® type)
output connector.
*FX5,2 selects the serial RS423 output.
*FX5,3 selects a user-supplied printer driver (see page 408).
Note that neither of these will actually cause output to appear
on the printer. VDU 2 (or CTRL B) must be used to start output
going to the selected printer channel.
*FX5,0 can be used to select a “printer sink” where
characters can be lost without the possibility of the system
“hanging” with a full printer buffer.

*FX6 is used to set the character which will be suppressed by

the printer driver routines. Some printers do an automatic “line
feed” when they receive a “carriage return”. It is therefore
useful to be able to prevent the “linefeed” characters from
reaching the printer. The ascii code for line feed is decimal
code 10 so this can be achieved with the statement
*FX6,10
Having set this mode it is still possible to get a line feed
through to the printer by use of VDU1 (send next character to
printer only) statement. The character following VDU1 is not
checked, thus to send a line feed one would use
VDU1,10

423
*FX6 should always be executed after the printer type has
been set by *FX5.
Note that the default is that line feed characters are filtered out.
*FX6,0 filters no characters.

*FX7 is used to select the baud rate to be used when receiving

data on the RS423 interface, as follows:
*FX7,1 75 baud receive
*FX7,2 150 baud receive
*FX7,3 300 baud receive
*FX7,4 1200 baud receive
*FX7,5 2400 baud receive
*FX7,6 4800 baud receive
*FX7,7 9600 baud receive
*FX7,8 19200 baud receive (This rate is not guaranteed)

*FX8 is used to select the transmit rate to be used on the

RS423 interface:
*FX8,1 75 baud transmit
*FX8,2 150 baud transmit
*FX8,3 300 baud transmit
*FX8,4 1200 baud transmit
*FX8,5 2400 baud transmit
*FX8,6 4800 baud transmit
*FX8,7 9600 baud transmit
*FX8,8 19200 (This rate is not guaranteed)
Note: The standard receive/transmit format adopted for RS423
is a 1 start bit, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit.

*FX9 and *FX10 are used to set the flash rate of “flashing
colours”. Colours always flash between one colour and its
complement. Thus in mode 2, COLOUR 9 selects flashing
red-cyan. (See page 222 for more information on COLOUR.)
*FX9 is followed by a number which gives the duration of the
first named colour. The duration is given in fiftieths of a
second. Thus to select one-fifth of a second one would use the
statement
*FX9,10
The default is *FX9,25

424
*FX10 is used to set the period of the second named colour.
See the entry above for *FX9.
Note that values of 0 for the duration will eventually force the
selected state to occur fulltime. If neither counter is set to zero
then setting the other counter to zero will immediately force
the latter colour to appear.
The default is *FX10,25

*FX11 If a key is held depressed then after a short delay (the

auto-repeat delay), the key will repeat automatically every so
often. The delay is given in centi-seconds.
*FX11 sets the delay before the auto-repeat starts.
*FX11,0 turns off the auto-repeat all together.
*FX11,5 would set the auto-repeat delay to five hundredths
of a second, etc.

*FX12 sets the auto-repeat period, that is the amount of time

between the generation of each character.
*FX12,0 resets both the auto-repeat delay and the auto-
repeat to their normal values.
*FX12,10 would set the auto-repeat period to
ten-hundredths of a second thus producing ten characters per
second.

*FX13 and *FX14 are used to enable and disable certain

“events”. These FX calls will only be used by those writing in
assembly language and more information on “Events” is given
on page 464. The summary which follows should be read in
conjunction with that section.
*FX13,0 disable output buffer empty event.
*FX13,1 disable input buffer full event.
*FX13,2 disable character entering input buffer event.
*FX13,3 disable ADC conversion complete event.
*FX13,4 disable start of vertical sync. event.
*FX13,5 disable interval timer crossing zero event.
*FX13,6 disable ESCAPE pressed event.
These calls are only available from issue 1.0.

425
*FX14,0 enable output buffer empty event.
*FX14,1 enable input buffer full event.
*FX14,2 enable character entering input buffer event.
*FX14,3 enable ADC conversion complete event.
*FX14,4 enable start of vertical sync. event.
*FX14,5 enable interval timer crossing zero event.
*FX14,6 enable ESCAPE pressed event.
These calls are only available from issue 1.0.
The initial condition is that all are disabled.

*FX15 enables various internal buffers to be flushed (or

emptied).
*FX15,0 flushes all internal buffers.
*FX15,1 flushes the currently selected input buffer.
See also *FX21
As an osbyte call this typically executes in 370 micro-seconds
in release 1.0.

*FX16 is used to select the number of Analogue to Digital

Converter (ADC) channels that are to be used. Each ADC
channel takes 10ms to convert an analogue voltage into a
digital value. Thus if all four ADC channels are enabled then
new values for a particular channel will only be available every
40ms. It is, therefore, often wise to only enable the number of
channels actually required.
*FX16,0 will disable all ADC channels.
*FX16,1 will enable ADC channel 1 only.
*FX16,2 will enable channels 1 and 2.
*FX16,3 will enable channels 1, 2 and 3.
*FX16,4 will enable all four ADC channels.

*FX17 forces the ADC converter to start a conversion on the

selected channel. Thus *FX17,1 will start a conversion on
channel 1. Channels are numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4. osbyte call
with A=&80 can be used to determine when the conversion is
complete as can ADVAL(0).
This call is only implemented from issue 1.0.

426
*FX18 Resets the user defined function keys so that they no
longer contain character strings.
This call is only implemented from issue 1.0.
*FX19 Causes the machine to wait until the start of the next
frame of the display for animation. This call is only
implemented from issue 1.0.
*FX20 When the machine starts up, space is allocated at
&C00 for the re-definition of 32 displayed characters using the
VDU 23 statement.
In operating system 0.10 ascii characters 224 to 255 can be
redefined into this space. In operating system 1.0 a new
concept is introduced namely that of “exploding” the memory
allocation for user defined characters. What follows refers only
to version 1.0 but care has been taken to ensure upward
compatibility with operating system 0.10.
In the initial state, or after issuing a *FX20,0 command, the
character definitions are said to be “imploded”. This means
that an attempt to print any character with ascii code greater
than 128 (&80) will be mapped on to the characters stored at
memory &C00. Initially this will produce garbage. Once a user
defined character has been defined it will then appear at four
ascii positions due to this mapping. Thus ascii codes &80,
&A0, &C0 and &E0 will all show the same character.
Re-defining ascii code &E0 (224) will affect all four characters.
Codes between &20 and &7F can be re-defined but will map to
memory at &C00, thus overwriting what is already there.
After a *FX20,1 command the character definitions are said
to be “exploded” and all printing characters (codes &20 to &FF)
can be re-defined. However, until any character in a block is
re-defined, the block will map on to either the pre-set rom (&20
to &7F) or on to memory at &C00 (&80 to &FF). The memory
allocated to each block of ascii codes in the “exploded” state is
ASCII code Memory allocation
&20 to &3F OSHWM + &300 to OSHWM + &3FF
&40 to &5F OSHWM + &400 to OSHWM + &4FF
&60 to &7F OSHWM + &500 to OSHWM + &5FF
&80 to &9F &C00 to &CFF
&A0 to &BF OSHWM to OSHWM + &FF
&C0 to &DF OSHWM + &100 to OSHWM + &1FF
&E0 to &FF OSHWM + &200 to OSHWM + &2FF
427
Thus if the user re-defines characters in the range &20 to &3F
he must leave memory up to oshwm + &3FF clear of his
program. This is done by first finding the value of oshwm (for
the particular configuration in use) by using osbyte call 131
and when setting PAGE to a value &400 above this value. Of
course, if the user only wishes to re-define ascii codes in the
range &80 to &9F (128 to 159) then he need not alter PAGE.
Codes in the range &80 to &9F are of particular importance
since the user can generate them directly from the keyboard by
holding down SHIFT at the same time as pressing one of the
user definable function keys (issue 1.0 only).
See page 431 for more information on Operating System High
Water Mark.
*FX20 is only available from issue 1.0.

*FX21 This call allows any internal buffer to be emptied (or

flushed).
*FX21,0 flushes the keyboard buffer
*FX21,1 flushes the RS423 serial input buffer
*FX21,2 flushes the RS423 serial output buffer
*FX21,3 flushes the printer output buffer
*FX21,4 flushes the sound channel number 0 (noise)
*FX21,5 flushes the sound channel number 1
*FX21,6 flushes the sound channel number 2
*FX21,7 flushes the sound channel number 3
*FX21,8 flushes the speech synthesis buffer
See also *FX15 and osbyte &80
This call is only implemented from issue 1.0.

*FX124 Can be used to reset the ESCAPE pressed flag at

location &FF. It must not be set or reset directly.

*FX125 Sets the ESCAPE pressed flag. It must be set with

this call and not directly. It has a similar effect to pressing the
ESCAPE key. (Conditional on any osbyte 229 call.)

428
*FX126 Must be used to acknowledge the detection of an
“escape condition” if the user is intercepting characters fed into
the computer through the osrdch (Operating System Read
Character) routine.
OSBYTE calls
Most of the calls that follow can only be used in machine
code programs. They are therefore described in terms of an
osbyte call – that is, a JSR to location &FFF4. The call number is
passed in the A accumulator and the X and Y registers are used
to pass other values. Values are returned in X and/or Y. It is
however possible to use these calls from basic by using the
USR function, provided that the result is deposited in an
integer variable.
OSBYTE with A=&7F (127) (EOF#)
This call returns the end-of-file status of a file which has been
previously opened. On entry X should contain the channel
number allocated to the file. On exit X will be zero if the
end-of-file has not been reached and X will be non-zero if the
end-of-file has been reached.
OSBYTE with A=&80 (128) Read ADC channel
(ADVAL)
This call returns the most recent value of a particular Analogue
to Digital Converter channel. It can also be used to detect an
end of conversion and to see if the Games Fire buttons are
pressed.
On entry X contains the channel number to be read. If X is in
the range 1 to 4 then the specified channel will be read and on
exit the 16 bit value will be returned in X and Y. Y will contain
the 8 most significant bits and X the 8 least significant bits.
If on entry X=0 then on exit Y will contain a number in the
range 0 to 4 indicating which channel was the last to complete.
Note that *FX16 and *FX17 reset this value to 0. A value of
zero indicates that no channel has completed. Also on exit the
two least significant bits of X will indicate the status of the two
“fire buttons”. The user should always AND X with 3 to mask
out high order bits.
If on entry X contains a negative number (in 2’s complement
notation) then the call will provide information about various
input buffers. On entry Y must contain &FF.

429
X on entry Buffer checked
255 keyboard buffer
254 RS423 serial input buffer
253 RS423 serial output buffer
252 printer output buffer
251 sound channel 0 (noise)
250 sound channel 1
249 sound channel 2
248 sound channel 3
247 speech buffer
On exit X contains a number giving, for input buffers, the
number of characters in the buffers. For output buffers X
contains the number of spaces still free in the buffer.

OSBYTE with A=&81 (129) Read key with time limit

The call waits for a character from the current input channel
until a time limit expires or it tests a particular key. The basic
function INKEY uses this call. The programmer is reminded
that this call will immediately obtain characters if the user has
“typed ahead”. It is, therefore, often necessary to flush the
input buffer with *FX15,1 before using this call.
The maximum time delay is passed to the subroutine in X and
Y. The delay is measured in centi-seconds and Y contains the
most significant byte and X the least significant byte. The
maximum delay is &7FFF centi-seconds which is about
five-and-a-half minutes.
On exit the Y=0 if a character was detected within the time
limit. In this case X contains the character. Y=&1B indicates that
ESCAPE was pressed. This must be acknowledged with
*FX126. Y=&FF indicates a time-out.
If on entry Y contains a negative number then the routine can
be used to check for a specific key closure. See the basic
keyword INKEY for more information.
As an osbyte call a “check for character waiting with zero
delay” takes typically 130 micro-seconds in release 1.0.

430
OSBYTE with A=&82 (130) Read machine higher
order address
The BBC computer uses a 6502 processor which requires a 16
bit address. However a number of routines require a 32 bit
address – for example most file system addresses are 32 bits
wide to ensure compatibility with future products. A specific
“high order address”, that is the top 16 bits of the total 32 bit
address, is allocated to the present BBC computer. This call
generates the high order address for each machine. The high
order address is returned in X and Y with Y containing the
most significant byte and X the least significant byte.

OSBYTE with A=&83 (131) Read top of O.S. RAM

address (OSHWM)
The Machine Operating System uses memory from page zero
up to store operating system variables. The exact amount of
ram needed depends, for example, on whether or not the disc
operating system is in use.
This call is used to return the address of the first free location in
memory above that required for the operating system. In a
cassette system this is normally &E00. The value is returned in
X and Y with Y containing the most significant byte and X
containing the least significant byte.
10 A%=131
30 PRINT ~USR(&FFF4)
>RUN
B10E0083
&0E00 is the value returned, &83 is the osbyte code.

OSBYTE with A=&84 (132) Read bottom of display

RAM address
This call returns, in X and Y, the lowest memory address used
by the screen display or by special paged roms. It indicates the
top of free ram that basic can safely use. HIMEM is normally
set to this value when using the MODE statement. Its value
depends, among other things, on the selected display mode
and on whether the machine has 16K or 32K of ram. As usual,
Y contains the most significant byte and X the least significant
byte of the result.

431
OSBYTE call with A=&85 (133) Read lowest address for
particular MODE
This call returns, in X and Y, the address of the start of memory
that would be set aside if a particular display mode were to be
selected. Certain paged roms might also affect the value
returned. The display mode to be investigated is passed in X.
This call does not change modes, it merely investigates the
possible consequences of changing mode.

OSBYTE call with A=&86 (134) Read text cursor position

This call returns in X and Y the X and Y co-ordinates of the text
cursor. A similar function is performed in basic by POS and
VPOS. As an osbyte call this takes typically 100 micro-seconds
in release 1.0.

OSBYTE call with A=&87 (135) Read character at text

cursor position
On exit X will contain the character at the text cursor’s position
and Y will contain a value representing the current graphics
display mode. If the character cannot be recognised then X will
contain zero.
The following function could be used to read the character at
position X, Y in a basic program.
2000 DEF FNREADCH(X,Y)
2010 LOCAL A%,LASTX,LASTY,C
2020 LASTX=POS
2030 LASTY=VPOS
2040 VDU 31,X Y
2050 A%=135
2060 C=USR(&FFF4)
2070 C=C AND &FFFF
2080 C=C DIV &100
2090 VDU 31,LASTX,LASTY
2100 = CHR$(C)
The call is only implemented in version 1.0 and takes typically
120 micro-seconds.

432
OSBYTE call with A=&88 (136) Reserved

OSBYTE call with A=&89 (137) Motor control

This call is similar to the *MOTOR statement in basic. If only
one cassette recorder is in use then setting
X=0 will turn the motor off
X=1 will turn the motor on
The cassette filing system (CFS) controls the motor using this
osbyte call and in addition in version 1.0 it sets Y as follows
Y=0 for write operations
Y=1 for read operations.
As a result the user can easily implement a dual cassette system
by trapping any osbyte call with A=&89 and activating (via his
own hardware) the second recorder for, say, all write
operations. The normal internal motor control could then be
activated for all read operations.

OSBYTE call with A=&8A (138) Insert character into

keyboard buffer
This call enables characters to be inserted into the keyboard
buffer. On entry X=0 and Y contains the character to be
inserted. Thus to place the letter “R” (ascii code 82) into the
keyboard input buffer one would use
*FX138,0,82
In machine code the X register must contain the buffer number
and the Y register the character. e.g.
10 DIM GAP 20
20 OSBYTE=&FFF4
30 P%=GAP
40 [
50 LDA #138
60 LDX #0
70 LDY #82
80 JSR OSBYTE
90 RTS
100 ]
110
120 CALL GAP

433
>RUN
0E82
0E82 A9 8A LDA #138
0E84 A2 00 LDX #0
0E86 A0 52 LDY #82
0E88 20 F4 FF JSR OSBYTE
0E88 60 RTS
This is an extremely powerful facility! This call is only
implemented from release 1.0.

OSBYTE call with A=&8B (139) File Options

This call is directly equivalent to *OPT and it controls the
computer’s response to errors during file operations such as
LOAD and SAVE. See page 398 for more details.
For example, with the cassette filing system
*FX139,1,0 would issue no messages during file
operations
*FX139,2,2 would make the computer abort if any error
were detected
*FX139,3,5 would result in 0.5 second inter-block gaps
On entry X contains the option number and Y contains the
particular selected option. Thus
LDA #139
LDX #1
LDY #0
JSR &FFF4
would ensure that no error messages were issued during file
operations.

OSBYTE call with A=&8C (140) TAPE speed

This call is directly equivalent to *TAPE which selects the
cassette file system and the baud rate to be used. On entry X
contains a number to set the baud rate
X=0 default rate (1200 baud)
X=3 300 baud
X=12 1200 baud

434
OSBYTE call with A=&8D (141) Reserved

OSBYTE call with A=&8E (142) Reserved

OSBYTE call with A=&8F (143) Reserved

OSBYTE call with A=&90 (144) TV

This call is functionally equivalent to *TV. The contents of the
X register is used to control the vertical position of the screen
display. For example, setting X=2 would move the display 2
text lines up the screen. Setting X=253 would move the display
3 lines down the screen. The contents of Y should be either 0 or
1 on entry. Y=0 permits an interlaced display Y=1 causes a
non-interlaced display. Note that the offset and interlace mode
selected only come into effect at the next MODE change. The
values set stay in force until a hard reset. Interlace cannot be
turned off in mode 7.
OSBYTE call with A=&91 (145) Get character from
buffer
This call enables characters to be removed from various input
buffers. On entry X indicates the buffer from which the
character is to be extracted. On exit Y contains the character
and C=0 if a character was successfully removed. If the buffer
was empty then C will be 1. The buffer numbers are as follows
X=0 keyboard buffer
X=1 RS423 input buffer
OSBYTE calls with A=&92 to &97 Read or write to
memory mapped input/output
This group of calls is used to read or write data from or to the
various memory mapped input/output devices. It is vital that
users use these routines rather than attempting to address
devices directly. The use of these routines will ensure that
programs will work whether they are executed in the
input/output processor (the BBC computer), or in a second
processor. If the user insists on addressing I/O ports directly
(e.g. STA &FE60) then he or she will have to re-write
programs when the system is expanded. Considerable effort
has been expended to ensure that suitable routines are
provided to enable the assembly language programmer to
expand his system painlessly. Please learn to use the facilities
provided!
435
There are three memory mapped input/output areas and these
are named fred, jim and sheila. sheila contains all the
machine’s internal memory mapped devices, such as the
analogue to digital converter, and should be treated with
considerable respect. fred and jim, on the other hand, address
external units connected to the 1MHz expansion bus.
Name Memory address range OSBYTE call
Read Write
FRED &FC00–&FCFF &92(146) &93(147)
JIM &FD00–&FDFF &94(148) &95(149)
SHEILA &FE00–&FEFF &96(150) &97(151)
On entry to the routines A contains the osbyte call number and
X the offset within the page. If a byte is to be written it should
be in Y. The calls are not available before rom issue 1.0.
An application note entitled “BBC Computer 1MHz bus”
explains suggested memory allocations for fred and jim. It can
be purchased from Acorn Computers. sheila addresses the
devices with the offsets shown in the table on page 437.
The user should be aware that the computer expects to service
interrupts from all except the User port on the B side of the
6522. The A side is used for the parallel printer interface.
Routines are provided (such as osbyte and osword calls, etc.),
to handle these devices. The only circuit that the user should
need to handle directly is the 6522 User port. Information about
other ports is given for information only – not to encourage
you to access the circuits directly. You would be well advised
to use the numerous routines provided wherever possible.
Further details about some ports is given in the section which
deals with Input/Output. See page 467.

436
SHEILA addresses (offset from &FE00)
Hex. Integrated Register Description
offset Circuit Designation Write Read
00 6845 CRTC Address register
01 6845 CRTC Register file
08 6850 ACIA Control register Status register
09 6850 ACIA Transmit data Receive data register
register
10 Serial ULA Control register
20 Video ULA
21 Video ULA
30 LS161 Paged ROM I.D.
40 6522 VIA MOS Input/Output
60 6522 VIA ORB/IRB Output Register “B” Input Register “B”
61 6522 VIA ORA/IRA Output Register “A” Input Register “A”
62 6522 VIA DDRB Data Direction Register “B”
63 6522 VIA DDRA Data Direction Register “A”
64 6522 VIA T1C-L T1 Low-Order T1 Low-Order
Latches Counter
65 6522 VIA T1C-H T1 High-Order Counter
66 6522 VIA T1L-L T1 Low-Order Latches
67 6522 VIA T1L-H T1 High-Order
Latches
68 6522 VIA T2C-L T2 Low-Order T2 Low-Order
Latches Counter
69 6522 VIA T2C-H T2 High-Order Counter
6A 6522 VIA SR Shift Register
6B 6522 VIA ACR Auxiliary Control Register
6C 6522 VIA PCR Peripheral Control Register
6D 6522 VIA IFR Interrupt Flag Register
6E 6522 VIA IER Interrupt Enable Register
6F 6522 VIA ORA/IRA Same as Reg 1 Except No “Handshake”
80 8271 FDC Command register Status register
81 8271 FDC Parameter register Result register
82 8271 FDC Reset register
83 8271 FDC Illegal Illegal
84 8271 FDC Write data Read data
A0 68B54 ADLC CR1/SR1 Control register 1 Status register 1
A1 68B54 ADLC CR2/SR2 Control register 2/3 Status register 2
A2 68B54 ADLC TxFIFO/ Transmit FIFO, Receive FIFO
RxFIFO continue
A3 68B54 ADLC TxFIFO/ Transmit FIFO, Receive FIFO
RxFIFO terminate
C0 µPD7002 Data latch, A/D start Status
C1 ADC High byte of result
C2

437
A few examples will help to clarify the use of these calls.
*FX147,5,6
would write to fred+5 (&FC05) the value 6. Similarly
LDA #&97
LDX #&62
LDY #&FF
JSR &FFF4
would write &FF into location &FE62. An osbyte call with
A=&97 will write to sheila. The base address of sheila is
&FE00 and to this is added the offset in X (&62). The value
written is contained in Y. The net effect is to write to the 6522
Data direction register and to cause all the PB lines to become
outputs.

OSBYTE call with A=&DA (218) Cancel VDU queue

Many vdu codes expect a sequence of bytes. For example,
VDU19 should be followed by 5 bytes. This call signals the
vdu software to throw away the bytes that it has received so
far. On entry X and Y must contain zero.

The next group of OSBYTE calls (&E1 to &E8) can be used to

read or write status information. The calls read the current
value of the status being investigated, AND the value with the
contents of Y, EOR the result with the contents of X and then
write the value back. If V represents the particular status in the
computer then V becomes (V AND Y) EOR X. This sequence
enables V to read or written to and enables any single bit, or
group of bits of V, to be set, cleared or inverted.
If, on entry, X=&00 and Y=&FF the net effect will be to read the
value of V into X without altering V. On the other hand if
Y=&00 then the contents of X will be written into V. To set a
single bit of V without altering other bits set all the bits of Y to
1 except the specified bit. Clear all the bits of X to 0 except the
specified bit. For example, to set bit 0 of V to 1 use Y=&FE and
X=&01.
To clear a single bit in V set all the bits of Y to 1 except the
specified bit and set X=0. For example, to clear bit 0 of V use
Y=&FE and X=&00. Of course, many bits may be set, cleared,
inverted or examined at the same time.

438
OSBYTE call with A=&E1 (225) Set base number for
function-key codes
Normally the red function-keys can be programmed to
produce strings of characters by, for example, the statement
*KEY 0 PRINT
As an alternative the keys can produce a single ascii code. The
statement
*FX225,240
would set the base value for the function keys to 240 thus
causing key “f0” to produce ascii code 240, f1 to produce 241
and so on to f9 which would produce 249. This enables these
keys to produce ascii codes for user defined characters.
*FX225,1 returns the keys to their normal function of
generating strings.
*FX225,0 makes the keys have no effect.
On entry Y must contain zero.
This facility is only available from issue 1.0.

OSBYTE call with A=&E2 (226) Set base number for

SHIFT-function-key codes
Pressing one of the function keys while the SHIFT key is
pressed will normally in release 1.0 produce ascii codes in the
range 128 to 137. These values were chosen with the Teletext
codes in mind.
Shift-function-key ASCII code Teletext effect
f0 128 nothing
f1 129 Red alphanumeric
f2 130 Green alphanumeric
f3 131 Yellow alphanumeric
f4 132 Blue alphanumeric
f5 133 Magenta alphanumeric
f6 134 Cyan alphanumeric
f7 135 White alphanumeric
f8 136 Flash
f9 137 Steady
These codes are said to have a “base value” of 128 since key f0
produces a code 128.

439
If the user wishes, the base value of the ascii codes can be
changed by using this call.
*FX226,144
This would set the SHIFT-function-key codes to produce
equivalent graphics-colour Teletext codes. The default setting
is
*FX226,128
On entry Y must contain zero.
This facility is only available from release 1.0.
OSBYTE call with A=&E3 (227) Set base number for
CTRL-function-key codes
See the entry for OSBYTE &E2. The default base value is 144.
OSBYTE call with A=&E4 (228) Set base number for
SHIFT-CTRL-function-key codes
See entry for OSBYTE &E2. The default is that these key
combinations have no effect. Note: remember that pressing
CTRL and SHIFT together stops output to the screen going
into the next line.

OSBYTE call with A=&E5 (229) ESCAPE key gives

ASCII code
This call can be used to make the ESCAPE key generate an
ascii code (27 or &1B) instead of interrupting a basic program.
If X=0 then the ESCAPE key interrupts the basic program
(*FX229,0). On the other hand, *FX229,1 (X=1) causes
the key to generate its ascii code. On entry Y must contain
zero.
This facility is not available before issue 1.0.

OSBYTE call with A=&E6 (230) Enable/disable normal

ESCAPE Key action
When a basic program is interrupted by pressing the ESCAPE
key, or by *FX125, all internal buffers will be cleared. This
call can be used to stop the flushing of all internal buffers when
a program is stopped. On entry Y must contain zero.
*FX230,0 will permit all buffers to be flushed
*FX230,1 will ensure that no buffers are flushed
This facility is only available from issue 1.0.

440
OSBYTE call with A=&E7 (231) Enable/disable user 6522
IRQ
This call sets a “mask” byte which the operating system uses
when servicing IRQs which may have originated in the 6522
which is used for the parallel printer and user port. The
operating system ANDs the mask byte with the 6522 Interrupt
Flag Register AND the 6522 Interrupt Enable Register. Setting
the mask to zero would prevent the operating system from
handling the 6522 interrupts thus leaving them available to be
handled by user supplied routines. Additionally “Sideways
roms” may handle (via the operating system) interrupts
generated from the B side of the 6522. The mask byte could
hide those interrupts from the sideways roms.
In a Model A the mask byte defaults to &00 and in Model B
machines the default is &FF.
This facility is only available from issue 1.0.

OSBYTE call with A=&E8 (232) Enable/disable 6850

ACIA IRQ
This call sets a “mask” byte which is used by the operating
system when servicing IRQs which may have originated from
the 6850 ACIA used for the RS423 and cassette interfaces. The
operating system ANDs the mask byte with the 6850 status
register. See the entry above (osbyte &E7) for further
comments. The default value is &FF on both Model A and
Model B.
This facility is only available from issue 1.0.

441
43 Assembly
language
Why use an assembly language rather than basic?
basic is a relatively easy language to learn and another of its
great strengths is that when you make a mistake the computer
tries to give you some helpful message explaining what you
have done wrong – or what it is incapable of doing.
But there are prices to be paid for this “friendliness” and
sometimes one has to communicate with the computer in its
own language (machine code) or a low-level language like
assembly language – despite all the problems this can bring.
Assembly language consists of statements like
LDA #3
which means “Load the accumulator with 3” or
JSR &6000
which means “Jump to the subroutine at location 6000 hex”
An Assembler is a computer program which converts these
assembly language “mnemonics” into the machine code
numbers that the computer actually understands.
Assembly language is used where high speed is vital or where
the minimum amount of memory must be used. basic is used
where ease of programming is more important than either
speed or memory requirements. There are many other
computer languages each with their own strengths and
weaknesses.
It is unfortunately not possible, in a book this size, to teach you
to write in assembly language, even though the basic
interpreter contains an assembler. However those familiar with
6502 assembly language will need a good deal of information
to enable them to write effective programs. The rest of this
section explains, for those familiar with 6502 assembly, the
main features of the machine code access routines.
442
As the reader will be aware 16K of rom is set aside for the
Machine Operating System (mos). The mos looks after all
input/output and is accessed via a set of well defined entry
points, many of which are vectored via ram.
Access is provided to all graphics and text features including
mode selection, line drawing, text and graphic windowing,
redefinition of characters, 6845 crtc registers, flash rate
control.
Access is also provided to sound generation, clock set/read,
parallel/serial printer I/O, baud rate selection, adc results and
event completion flags.
The machine code programmer may select a different file
system (tape, disk or net) and may perform a wide range of file
input/output to the selected file system.
Considerable efforts have been made to give the assembly
language programmer access to entry points. Professional
programmers will understand the need to use the entry points
provided. These will remain static and will work in all
configurations. The assembler is part of the basic interpreter
and can be entered at any time by placing a left hand square
bracket [ as a basic statement. The end of the assembly
language section is indicated by a right hand square bracket ].
Note that in mode 7, the Teletext mode, these symbols are
displayed as left and right arrows f and g respectively.
10 PRINT "THIS IS BASIC"
20 [
30 JSR &FFE7
40 ]
(Do not try this program – it is incomplete and could prove
‘fatal’)!
In the example given the assembler has been given no
indication of where to store the assembled machine code. The
“program counter” is set by the variable P% and this can be set
to any desired value e.g.
10 PRINT "THIS IS BASIC"
15 P%=&7000
20 [
30 JSR &FFE7

443
 40 ]
50 PRINT "AND THIS IS BASIC TOO"
>RUN
THIS IS BASIC
7000
7000 20 E7 FF JSR &FFE7
AND THIS IS BASIC TOO
However another, and much more useful, way is provided to
enable the programmer to allocate a few bytes of memory to a
piece of machine code. A special version of the DIM statement
is used.
10 PRINT "THIS IS BASIC"
15 DIM GAP% 20
16 P%=GAP%
20 [
30 JSR &FFE7
40 ]
50 PRINT "AND THIS IS BASIC TOO"
>RUN
THIS IS BASIC
0E74
0E74 20 E7 FF JSR &FFE7
AND THIS IS BASIC TOO
The above program dynamically allocates a gap of 21 bytes and
the address of the start of the block is given in the variable
GAP%. This is the safe way of inserting machine code sections
into basic programs. Of course the actual location of the
routine will change if more basic statements are inserted in the
program before the DIM statement.
10 PRINT "THIS IS BASIC"
12 REM INSERT AN EXTRA LINE
15 DIM GAP% 20
16 P%=GAP%
20 [
30 JSR &FFE7
40 ]
50 PRINT "AND THIS IS BASIC TOO"

444
>RUN
THIS IS BASIC
0E8F
0E8F 20 E7 FF JSR &FFE7
AND THIS IS BASIC TOO
Two basic statements provide access to machine code routines:
CALL and USR. The USR statement provides an easy way of
passing values to and from the microprocessor’s registers
before and after the machine code call. When the statement
R = USR(Z)
is executed the computer first transfers values from the basic
variables X%, Y%, A% and C% into the processor’s X and Y
register, accumulator and carry flag respectively. Of course,
only the least significant byte of X%, Y% and A% can be used
and only the least significant bit of C% can be copied into the
carry flag.
After the various registers have been set up, control is passed
to the machine code subroutine (at address Z). This routine
must end with an RTS if control is to return to basic. On return
the A, X and Y registers and the program status register (P) are
used to produce a number which is placed in the basic
variable R.
This can be neatly illustrated by a short program which uses an
osbyte (Operating System Byte) call to determine the position
of the text cursor on the screen.
30 A%=&86
40 X%=0
50 R=USR(&FFF4)
60 PRINT ~R
Lines 30 and 40 ensure that the accumulator and X register will
be set up correctly. Line 50 obtains the result in R and line 60
prints the result in hexadecimal. A typical result would be
B1120086
B1 has come from the program status register (P)
12 from the Y register which gives the Y co-ordinate of the
cursor
00 from the X register giving the X co-ordinate
86 from accumulator which was set up from A%

445
The CALL statement provides much more flexible access to
machine code routines. CALL does not return a calculated
result into a basic variable. However, the user can, if he or she
wishes, make any basic variable or group of variables available
to the machine code routine. If a list of basic variables follows
the CALL statement then a “parameter block” will be set up
starting at location &600. The sole purpose of this block is to let
a machine code routine know where variables are stored in
memory and what type each variable is.
The demonstration program which follows shows the use of
the CALL statement and also of the error handling features.
10 REM Demonstration of CALL with a
parameter
20 PROCINIT
30 A%=&12345678
40 CALL SWAP,A%
50 PRINT~A%
60 END
70 DEF PROCINIT
80 DIM Q% 100
90 FOR C=0 TO 2 STEP 2
100 PAR=&600: REM Parameter block
110 ZP=&80: REM Usable zero page
120 P%=Q%
130 [OPT C
140 .SWAP LDA PAR
150 CMP#1:BEQ OK
160 .ERRO BRK
161 ]
162 ?P%=45
163 $(P%+1)="Swap Parameters"
164 P%=P%+16
170 [OPT C:BRK
180 .OK LDA PAR+3:CMP #4:BNE ERRO
190 LDA PAR+1:STA ZP
200 LDA PAR+2:STA ZP+1
210 LDY#3:LDX#0
220 LDA(ZP,X):PHA:LDA(ZP),Y:
STA(ZP,X):PLA:STA(ZP),Y
230 RTS
240 ] NEXT
250 ENDPROC
446
Lines 10 to 60 form the main basic program. This uses a
machine code program to swap parts of an integer number
around. Line 20 calls a procedure which assembles a piece of
machine code. Line 30 sets A% to some arbitrary value and
then line 40 calls the machine code subroutine to swap A%
around. Line 50 shows A% after it has been “vandalised”.
The procedure itself (lines 70 to 250) assembles the assembly
language mnemonics into machine code. Line 80 tells the
computer to allocate 101 bytes of memory and to set Q% to the
address of the memory allocated. Lines 90 and 240 form a
FOR...NEXT loop which makes the computer assemble the
code twice – the first pass to work out the addresses of the
labels, and the second pass to put them into code. Line 120 sets
the program counter at the start of each of the two passes.
Lines 140 and 150 check to see that the value in location &600 is
1. Location &600 contains the “number of parameters” and our
machine code routine is only meant to have one parameter. See
page 214 for information about parameter passing from CALL.
If location &600 does not contain 1 then control will pass to the
routine labelled ERRO (line 160).
This routine shows how a user supplied routine can produce
standard basic error messages and error numbers. This is
explained further on page 464. Suffice it to say that here the
code will generate basic error number 45 (a new one) and will
issue the message Swap Parameters before returning
control to basic. Line 164 increments the internal program
counter enough to allow space for the messages etc.
Line 170 re-enters normal assembler operation and re-sets the
OPT. Line 180 checks to see that the parameter is of type 4 (an
integer variable – see page 66) and if not reports an error.
Lines 190 to 220 perform the actual swap and line 230 ensures
an orderly return to basic.

The BASIC assembler

The assembler is entered with a statement starting with [ and
exited with ]. In Teletext mode these characters are displayed
as ‘arrow left’ and ‘arrow right’. In the assembly language
section the pseudo-operation OPT can be used to control
listing and error reporting. See the keyword OPT for more
details, in brief:

447
OPT 0 gives no errors and no listing
OPT 1 gives no errors and a listing
OPT 2 reports errors but gives no listing
OPT 3 reports errors and gives a listing.
Normally the “first pass” should be with OPT 0 and the
“second pass” with OPT 2. If a listing is required then the
“second pass” should be OPT 3.
Labels are defined by preceding them with a full stop. No full
stop is required when they are referenced.
LDA #8
.LOOP BIT VIA+&D
BNE LOOP
Labels are normal basic variable names. Thus they should start
with a letter and not start with a reserved word. During the
“first pass” unknown labels will generate an address of the
current op-code. Thus JMP and branch instructions will jump
or branch to themselves.
To enter byte or string constants the programmer should
leave the assembler temporarily and use indirection operators.
For example
JMP LABEL1
]
$P%="TODAY"
P%=P%+6
[
.LABEL1 LDA&
Remembering that the basic variable P% is used to store the
value of the program counter, the string indirection operator
($) can be used to insert ascii characters directly into memory.
The word TODAY will be copied to memory followed by a
carriage-return (&0D), a total of 6 characters. If you wish to
follow the word by a byte containing zero instead of &0D you
could write
$P%="TODAY"
P%?5=0
P%=P%+6
To insert numeric values directly into memory you can use
byte or word indirection operators:

448
JMP LABEL2
]
?P%=10
P%?1=20
P%?2=66
P%=P%+3
[
The various 6502 addressing modes are indicated in assembly
language in the standard way, but using an ampersand to
represent a hexadecimal number.
Addressing mode Examples
Immediate LDA #4 LDA #VALUE
Absolute JMP &8000 LDA LOCATION
Zero page LDA &FC STY TEMPI
Accumulator ASL A
Implied RTS
Pre-indexed indirect LDA (5,X) CMP (OFFSET,X)
Post-indexed indirect LDA (&84),Y ORA (TABLE),Y
Zero page X LDA 10,X INC CNT,X
Absolute X LDA &1234,X STA STORE,X
Relative BNE &3210 BNE LOOP3
Indirect JMP (&20E) JMP (WRCHV)
Zero page indexed
with Y LDX 24,Y LDX VAR,Y

Comments can be inserted into assembly language by

preceding them with a backslash. On the keyboard and in
modes 0 to 6 this is shown as \ whereas in Teletext mode it is
displayed as one-half (½). In basic everything after a REM
statement is ignored on the current line so it is not possible to
put another statement on the same line. Thus
10 REM HELLO : PRINT "FRIDAY"
would not print the word FRIDAY. However, in assembly
language a comment terminates at the end of the statement. All
the following statements would be assembled
LDA #&10 \MASK :.LOOP BIT VIA+13
\INTERRUPT FLAG :BEQ LOOP

449
Machine code entry points
The BBC computer is unusual in a number of respects, not least
because of the care taken to ensure that everything that can be
done by programs written in the “Input/Output processor”
(the BBC computer) can also be done in the “second processor”
which is on the far side of the Tube®.
If a piece of machine code alters a particular memory location
that controls the screen display directly, then that same piece of
machine code will not work in the second processor because
the screen will not be affected by the memory location in the
second processor.
It is vital that programmers avoid reading and writing to
specific memory locations such as the screen memory, zero
page locations used by basic and memory mapped
input/output devices. System calls are provided to enable you
to access all these important locations and use of these system
calls will ensure that your programs interact successfully with
the machine. Don’t feel that we are trying to hide anything
from you, on the contrary we are offering you access to all the
I/O routines that basic uses! Cultivate the habit of using
system calls and then you will not need to re-write your code
when you move it to the second processor.

The operating system calls

Machine code user programs should communicate with the
operating system by calling routines in the address range
&FF00 to &FFFF. These routines then call a specific internal
routine whose address may change in different operating
systems. The address of the specific routine is held in ram
between locations &200 and &2FF. The user may change the
address held in these ram locations to intercept any operating
system call he wishes.
Thus the “output the character in A” routine is entered at
&FFEE in all environments. The routine indirects through
location &20E in all machines. The contents of locations &20E
and &20F will vary depending on the machine and the version
of the operating system. In one particular machine the address
in &20E and &20F is &E1DC which is the local internal address
of the normal “output character in A” routine.

450
Parameters are passed to the routines in various ways using
either the 6502 A, X and Y registers, zero page locations or a
parameter block. All routines should be called with a JSR and
with the decimal flag clear (i.e. in binary mode).
In the detailed descriptions which follow A refers to the
accumulator, X and Y refer to the registers,
C, D, N, V, and Z refer to the processor flags.
On page 452 is a summary of operating system calls and
indirection vectors.
FILES
Files are treated as a sequence of 8 bit bytes. They can be
accessed in one operation (using osfile) or in blocks (using
osgbpb) or a byte at a time (using osbget and osbput). The
following attributes may be associated with each file.
Load address is the address in memory to which the file should
normally be loaded. This can be over-ridden when the file is
loaded, if necessary.
Execution address is meaningful only if the file contains
executable machine code, in which case it is the address where
execution should start. If the file contains a high level language
program then the execution address in unimportant.
Length is the total number of bytes in the file. It may be zero.
Pointer is an index pointing to the next byte of data that is to be
processed. The value of “Pointer” may be read or written
(using osargs), and it does not indicate whether the
appropriate byte has yet been transferred from file to memory
or vice versa. Pointer is automatically updated by osbget and
osbput.

OSFIND
Opens a file for writing or reading and writing. The routine is
entered at &FFCE and indirects via &21C. The value in A
determines the type of operation.
A=0 causes a file or files to be closed.
A=&40 causes a file to be opened for input (reading).
A=&80 causes a file to be opened for output (writing).
A=&C0 causes a file to be opened for input and output
(random access).

451
 Routine Vector Summary of function
Name Address Name Address

UPTV 222 User print routine

EVNTV 220 Event interrupt
FSCV 21E File system control entry
OSFIND FFCE FINDV 21C Open or close a file
OSGBPB FFD1 GBPBV 21A Load or save a block of
memory to a file
OSBPUT FFD4 BPUTV 218 Save a single byte to file
from A
OSBGET FFD7 BGETV 216 Load a single byte to A
from file
OSARGS FFDA ARGSV 214 Load or save data about
a file
OSFILE FFDD FILEV 212 Load or save a complete
file
OSRDCH FFE0 RDCHV 210 Read character (from
keyboard) to A
OSASCI FFE3 — — Write a character (to
screen) from A plus LF if
(A)=&0D
OSNEWL FFE7 — — Write LF,CR (&0A,&0D)
to screen
OSWRCH FFEE WRCHV 20E Write character (to
screen) from A
OSWORD FFF1 WORDV 20C Perform miscellaneous
OS operation using
control block to pass
parameters
OSBYTE FFF4 BYTEV 20A Perform miscellaneous
OS operation using
registers to pass
parameters
OSCLI FFF7 CLIV 208 Interpret the command
line given
IRQ2V 206 Unrecognised IRQ
vector
IRQ1V 204 All IRQ vector
BRKV 202 Break vector
USERV 200 Reserved

452
If A=&40, &80 or &C0 then Y (high byte) and X (low byte) must
contain the address of a location in memory which contains the
file name terminated with CR (&0D). On exit A will contain the
channel number allocated to the file for all future operations. If
Y=0 then the operating system was unable to open the file.
If A=0 then a file, or all files, will be closed depending on the
value of Y. Y=0 will close all files, otherwise the file whose
channel number is given in Y will be closed.
On exit C, N, V and Z are undefined and D=0. The interrupt
state is preserved, however interrupts may be enabled during
the operation.

OSGBPB
The operating system call to get or put a block of bytes to a file
which has been opened with osfind. The routine is entered at
&FFD1 and vectors via &21A. It is not available on cassette
systems, and is documented with the disc system.

OSBPUT
Writes (puts) a byte in A to the file previously opened using
osfind. The routine is entered at &FFD4 which indirects
through &218. On entry Y contains the channel number
allocated by osfind.
On exit A, X and Y are preserved, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved but interrupts may be
enabled during the operation.

OSBGET
Gets (reads) a byte from a file into A. The file must have been
previously opened using osfind and the channel number
allocated must be in Y. The routine is entered at &FFD7 which
indirects via &216.
On exit C=0 indicates a valid character in A. C=1 indicates an
error and A indicates the type of error, A=&FE indicating an
end-of-file condition. X and Y are preserved, N, V and Z are
undefined and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved but
interrupts may be enabled during the operation.

453
OSARGS
This routine enables a file’s attributes to be read from file or
written to file. The routine is entered at &FFDA and indirects
via &214. On entry X must point to four locations in zero page
and Y contains the channel number.
If Y is non-zero then A will determine the function to be carried
out on the file whose channel number is in Y.
A=0 read sequential pointer
A=1 write sequential pointer
A=2 read length
A=&FF “ensure” that this file is up to date on the media
If Y is zero then the contents of A will determine the function to
be carried out.
A=0 will return, in A, the type of file system in use. The
value of A on exit has the following significance
0 no file system
1 1200 baud cassette file system
2 300 baud cassette file system
3 rom pack file system
4 Disc file system
5 Econet file system
6 Teletext/Prestel Telesoftware file system
A=1 return address of the rest of the command line in the
zero page locations
A=&FF “ensure” that all open files are up to date on the
media.
On exit X and Y are preserved, C, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved but interrupts may be
enabled during the operation.

OSFILE
This routine, by itself, allows a whole file to be loaded or saved.
The routine is entered at &FFDD and indirects via &212.
On entry A indicates the function to be performed. X and Y
point to an 18 byte control block anywhere in memory. X
contains the low byte of the control block address and Y the
high byte. The control block is structured as follows from the
base address given by X and Y.

454
OSFILE control block

00 Address of file name, which must be terminated LSB

01 by &0D MSB
02 Load address of file LSB
03
04
05 MSB
06 Execution address of file. LSB
07
08
09 MSB
0A Start address of data for write operations, LSB
0B or length of file for read operations
0C
0D MSB
0E End address of data, that is byte after LSB
0F last byte to be written or file attributes.
10
11 MSB

The table below indicates the function performed by osfile for

each value of A.
A=0 Save a section of memory as a named file. The file’s
catalogue information is also written
A=1 Write the catalogue information for the named file
A=2 Write the load address (only) for the named file
A=3 Write the execution address (only) for the named file
A=4 Write the attributes (only) for the named file
A=5 Read the named file’s catalogue information. Place
the file type in A
A=6 Delete the named file
A=&FF Load the named file and read the named file’s
catalogue information

455
When loading a file the byte at XY+6 (the LSB of the execution
address), determines where the file will be loaded in memory.
If it is zero then the file will be loaded to the address given in
the control block. If non-zero then the file will be loaded to the
address stored with the file when it was created.
The file attributes are stored in four bytes. The least significant
8 bits have the following meanings
Bit Meaning
0 readable by you (DFS only uses
1 writable by you bit 3: file locked)
2 executable by you
3 not deletable by you
4 readable by others
5 writable by others
6 executable by others
7 not deletable by others
File types are as follows
0 nothing found
1 file found
2 directory found
A BRK will occur in the event of an error and this can be
trapped if required. See page 464 which deals with BRK
handling.
On exit X and Y are preserved, C, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved but interrupts may be
enabled during the operation.

OSRDCH
This routine reads a character from the currently selected input
stream into A. The routine is called at location &FFE0 and
indirects via &210. The input stream can be selected by an
osbyte call with A=2. See page 421.
On exit C=0 indicates a successful read and the character will
be in A. C=1 indicates an error and the error type is returned in
A. If C=1 and A=&1B then an escape condition has been
detected and the user must at least acknowledge this by
performing an osbyte call with A=&7E; basic will normally do
this for you. X and Y are preserved, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved.

456
OSASCI
This routine writes the character in A to the currently selected
output stream by using oswrch. However, if A contains &0D
then osnewl is called instead. The actual code at location
&FFE3 is
FFE3 C9 0D OSASCI CMP #&0D
FFE5 D0 07 BNE OSWRCH
FFE7 A9 0A OSNEWL LDA #&0A
FFE9 20 EEFF JSR OSWRCH
FFEC A9 0D LDA #&0D
FFEE 6C 0E02 OSWRCH JMP (WRCHV)
On exit A, X and Y are preserved, C, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved.

OSNEWL
This call issues a LF CR (line feed, carriage return), to the
currently selected output stream. The routine is entered at
&FFE7.
On exit X and Y are preserved, C, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved.

OSWRCH
This call writes the character in A to the currently selected
output stream. The output stream may be changed using an
osbyte call with A=3. See page 422 for more details. oswrch is
entered at location &FFEE and indirects via &20E.
On exit A, X and Y are preserved, C, N, V and Z are undefined
and D=0. The interrupt state is preserved but interrupts may be
enabled during the operation.
All character output from basic, the operating system and
anything else uses this routine. It is, therefore, easy to pass all
output to a user provided output routine by placing the
address of the user routine at WRCHV (&20E). However, the
user should note that all control characters have special
significance. For example, &1C is followed by 4 bytes which
defines a text window. See the section on vdu codes for a
complete listing of control characters. If the user wishes to
intercept any control characters then his or her routine must
check for all control characters. The routine must arrange to

457
skip however many bytes follow a particular code since these
bytes might, inadvertently, contain a control code. For
example, the basic statement
GCOL 1,3
is passed to the operating system as a string of bytes through
oswrch. In fact, in this case the bytes would be &12,1,3.

OSWORD
The osword routine invokes a number of miscellaneous
operations all of which require more parameters or produce
more results than can be passed in A, X and Y. As a result, all
osword calls use a parameter block somewhere in memory.
The exact location of the parameter block is given in X (low
byte) and Y (high byte). The contents of A determine the exact
nature of the osword call.
All osword calls are entered at location &FFF1 which indirects
through &20C. The table below summarises the osword calls
available in release 1.0 of the operating system.

OSWORD summary

A= Summary of function
0 Read a line from the current input stream to memory
1 Read the elapsed-time clock
2 Write the elapsed-time clock
3 Read internal timer
4 Write internal timer
5 Read a byte in the input/output processor memory
6 Write a byte in the input/output processor memory
7 Generate a sound
8 Define an envelope for use with the sound statement
9 Read pixel colour at screen position X, Y
A Read dot pattern of a specific displayable character
B Read the palette value for a given logical colour

458
OSWORD with A=0
This routine accepts characters from the current input stream
and places them at a specified location in memory. During
input the DELETE code (ascii 127) deletes the last character
entered, and CTRL U (ascii 21) deletes the entire line. The
routine ends if RETURN is entered (ascii 13) or an ESCAPE
condition occurs.

The control block contains 5 bytes

00 Address of buffer for input line LSB

01 MSB
02 Maximum length of line
03 Minimum acceptable ascii value
04 Maximum acceptable ascii value

Characters will only be entered if they are in the range

specified by XY+3 and XY+4.
On exit C=0 indicates that RETURN (CR; ascii code 13 or &D),
ended the line. C not equal to zero indicates that an escape
condition terminated entry. Y is set to the length of the line,
excluding the CR if C=0.

OSWORD call with A=1 Read clock

This call is used to read the internal elapsed-time clock into the
5 bytes pointed to by X and Y. This clock is the one used by
basic for its TIME function. The elapsed-time clock is reset to
zero when the computer is switched on and if a hard-reset is
executed. Otherwise it is incremented every hundredth of a
second. The only thing that will cause it to lose time is pressing
the BREAK key and keeping it pressed.
On entry X and Y should point to the memory locations where
the result is to be stored. Y contains the high byte and X the low
byte of the address.
On exit X and Y are undefined and the time is given in location
XY (lsb) to XY+4 (msb). The time is stored in pure binary.

459
OSWORD call with A=2 Write clock
This call is used to set the internal elapsed-time clock from the
5 bytes pointed to by XY.
On entry X and Y should point to the memory locations where
the new time is stored. Y contains the high byte and X the low
byte of the address. The least significant byte of the time is
stored at the address pointed to by XY and the most significant
byte of the time is stored at address XY+4. A total of 5 bytes are
required.

OSWORD call with A=3 Read interval timer

In addition to the clock there is an interval timer which is
incremented every hundredth of a second. The interval is
stored in 5 bytes pointed to by X and Y. See osword with A=1.

OSWORD call with A=4 Write interval timer

On entry X and Y point to 5 locations which contain the new
value to which the clock is to be set. The interval timer
increments and may cause an event (see page 464) when it
reaches zero. Thus setting the timer to &FFFFFFFFFE would
cause an event after 2 hundredths of a second.

OSWORD call with A=5 Read I/O processor memory

This call enables any program to read a byte in the I/O
processor no matter in which processor the program is
executing.
On entry X and Y point to a block of memory as follows
XY LSB of address to be read
XY+1
XY+2
XY+3 MSB of address to be read
On exit the 8 bit byte will be stored in XY+4.

OSWORD call with A=6 Write to I/O processor memory

As pointed out elsewhere, programs that are to work through
the Tube® must not attempt to access memory locations in the
I/O processor directly. This call provides easy access to
locations in the BBC Microcomputer wherever the user’s
program happens to be.

460
On entry X and Y point to a block of memory initialised as
follows:
XY LSB of address to be changed
XY+1
XY+2
XY+3 MSB of address to be changed
XY+4 byte to be entered at address given

OSWORD call with A=7 Make a sound

This call can be used to generate a sound. The 8 bytes pointed
to by locations XY to XY+7 are treated as four 2-byte values.
These four values determine the sound effect. See the keyword
SOUND for a detailed description.

XY channel LSB 1 01
XY+1 MSB 00
XY+2 amplitude LSB -15 F1
XY+3 MSB FF
XY+4 pitch LSB 200 C8
XY+5 MSB 00
XY+6 duration LSB 20 14
XY+7 MSB 00

The example figures on the right of the table show first the
required decimal value and secondly the 2 hexadecimal values
required. The figures are only illustrative.
On exit X and Y are undefined.

OSWORD call with A=8 Define an envelope

This call is used to define an envelope which can be used by a
SOUND statement or equivalent osword call. On entry X and
Y point to an address in memory where 14 bytes of data are
stored. Y contains the high part of the address and X the low
part. The envelope number is stored at XY and the following 13
locations contain data for that envelope. See the entry for the
ENVELOPE keyword for more details.
On exit X and Y are undefined.

461
OSWORD call with A=9 Read a pixel
This call enables the machine code programmer to read the
status of a graphics point at any specified location. On entry X
and Y point to a block of 5 bytes. Y contains the most significant
byte of the address and X the least significant byte. On entry
the first four bytes are set up thus:
XY LSB of X co-ordinate
XY+1 MSB of X co-ordinate
XY+2 LSB of Y co-ordinate
XY+3 MSB of Y co-ordinate
On exit XY+4 contains the logical colour of the point or &FF if
the point is off the screen. X and Y are undefined.

OSWORD call with A=&0A Read character definition

Characters are displayed on the screen as an 8 by 8 matrix of
dots. The pattern of dots for each character in modes 0 to 6,
including user-defined characters, is stored as 8 bytes (see page
384). This call enables the 8 bytes to be read into a block of
memory starting at an address given in X and Y.
On entry the ascii code of the character is the first entry on the
block.
On exit the block contains data as shown below. X and Y are
undefined.
XY Character required
XY+1 Top row of displayed character
XY+2 Second row
…
XY+8 Bottom row of displayed character

OSWORD call with A=&0B Read palette

The reader will be aware that each logical colour (0 to 15) has a
physical (or displayed) colour associated with it. The physical
to logical association can be changed with VDU 19. This
osword call enables one to determine the physical colour
currently assigned to each logical colour.
On entry the X and Y registers contain the address of the start
of a block of 5 bytes.
The first byte should contain a value representing the logical
colour.
462
On exit the following four bytes will contain the same four
numbers used when VDU 19 assigned a physical colour to the
same logical colour. Suppose that logical colour 2 was in fact
set to blue (4) by the statement
VDU 19,2,4,0,0,0
then this call would produce the following result:
XY 2 logical colour
XY+1 4 physical colour (blue)
XY+2 0
XY+3 0 padding zeroes for future
XY+4 0 expansion

Command Line Interpreter (&FFF7)

The machine operating system CLI is usually accessed from a
high level language by starting a statement with an asterisk.
For example:
*MOTOR 0,1
The command line itself (excluding the asterisk) is then passed,
without any further processing, to the CLI.
Machine code programs can use all operating system
commands by placing the address of a command line in the
X (LSB) and Y (MSB) registers and calling &FFF7. This routine
indirects through location &208.
The command line should not start with an asterisk and must
end with an &0D. In fact any leading asterisk or spaces will be
stripped.
The following basic program illustrates this:
10 DIM C 20
20 $C="MOTOR 1"
30 X%=C MOD 256
40 Y%=C DIV 256
50 CALL &FFF7
When RUN the cassette motor will turn on. The computer will
have allocated a space for C – perhaps at location &E0A in
which case successive bytes would contain:

463
Address Contents
& E0A 4D (M)
& E0B 4F (O)
& E0C 54 (T)
& E0D 4F (O)
& E0E 52 (R)
& E0F 20 (space)
& E10 31 (1)
& E11 0D (return)
Of course, this particular example would have been easier as an
FX call or simply as *MOTOR 1. However, complex
commands may need this call.

Faults, Events and BRK handling

It is necessary to provide some means to enable programs to
deal with faults such as Illegal command or Division
by zero. basic uses the 6502 BRK instruction when dealing
with faults like this and user written programs can also use the
same facility. In basic (for example), a BRK instruction is
followed by a sequence of bytes giving the following
information:
BRK instruction – value &00
Fault number
Fault message – may contain any non-zero character
&00 to terminate message
When the 6502 encounters a BRK instruction the operating
system places the address following the BRK instruction in
locations &FD and &FE. Thus these locations point to the
“Fault number”. The operating system then indirects via
location &202. In other words control is transferred to a routine
whose address is given in locations &202 (low byte) and &203
(high byte). The default routine, whose address is given at the
location, prints the fault message.
The BRK handling outline above enables the user to intercept
normal procedures and to generate his or her own special
messages and error numbers in user written machine code
routines. The program on page 446 shows this in practice. See
also page 466 (IRQ).

464
Whilst faults are, in general, “fatal”, there is another class of
events, called “Events”, which are informative rather than fatal.
This class of events includes, for example, a key being pressed
on the keyboard. The user may wish to detect such an
operation or may be happy to ignore it. When the operating
system detects an “Event” then, if that event is enabled (by
using *FX14) it indirects via &220 with an event code in the
accumulator. The contents of X and Y depend on the event. The
event codes in A indicate the following:
Accumulator description
0 Buffer empty X=buffer identity
1 Buffer full X=buffer identity
Y=character that could not be stored
2 Keyboard interrupt
3 ADC conversion complete
4 Start of TV field pulse (vertical sync)
5 Interval timer crossing zero
6 Escape condition detected
The user supplied event handling routine is entered with
interrupts disabled and it should not enable interrupts. The
routine should return (RTS) after a short period, say one
millisecond maximum, and should preserve the processor’s
P, A, X and Y registers.

Interrupt Handling
The whole machine runs under continuous interrupts but
nonetheless the user can easily add his or her own interrupts
and handling routines. Because the machine runs under
interrupts, software timing loops should not be used. Several
hardware timers are available to the user and these should be
used wherever possible.

NMI Non-Maskable Interrupt

In general these should be avoided. When a disc operating
system rom is fitted NMI’s will be handled by the rom. Again,
it should be emphasised that NMI is reserved for the Operating
System.

465
IRQ Interrupt Request
When an IRQ is detected the operating system immediately
indirects through location &204 (IRQ1V) to an operating
system routine which handles all anticipated internal IRQ’s. If
the operating system is unable to deal with the IRQ (because it
has come from an unexpected device such as the user 6522),
then the system indirects through &206 (IRQ2V). Thus the user
routine for handling IRQ’s should normally be indirected via
IRQ2V but if top priority is required the user routine can be
indirected via IRQ1V.
In either case the user supplied routine must return control to
the operating system routine to ensure clean handling.
The operating system handles BRK and IRQ’s with the
following code

STA &FC \ temporary for A

PLA
PHA \ get processor status
AND #&10
BNE BRK
JMP (&0204) \ IRQ1V
.BRK TXA \ BRK handling
PHA \ save X
TSX
LDA &103,X \ get address low
CLD
SEC
SBC #1
STA &FD
LDA &104,X \ get address high
SBC #0
STA &FE

Note that A is stored in location &FC so that it can be accessed

by user routines. When the computer indirects through &202
(BRKV), &204 (IRQ1V) and &206 (IRQ2V) X and Y will contain
correct values. The user must not enable interrupts during his or
her IRQ service routine.
This facility is only available from release 1.0.

466
44 Analogue input

Model B computers are fitted with a socket at the back marked

“analogue in”. Into this socket you can plug “games paddles”
and “joy-sticks” as well as voltages which the computer can
measure. Games paddles usually consist of a box with a knob
like a record player volume control. The computer can tell the
position of the games paddle and so it can be used in games
and more serious programs, for example, to move things
around the screen. Joy-sticks, on the other hand, can be moved
left and right as well as up and down. As a result you can
move an object anywhere on the screen not just up and down a
particular line. Both games paddles and joy-sticks can be fitted
with push buttons and the computer can detect when these
buttons are pressed. The BBC computer can be connected to 4
games paddles or 2 joy-sticks. The basic function ADVAL can
be used to detect the position of each control and of the fire
buttons.
A second use for the analogue input is to measure voltages.
Each of the four inputs can accept voltages in the range 0 to
1.8V and will produce a corresponding number in the range 0
to 65520. Since it is possible to use a “transducer” to produce a
voltage proportional to temperature, light intensity, smoke
density, water pressure, gas concentration etc. it is possible to
use the computer to monitor all these things. If the unit is to be
used to measure absolute voltages then it should be calibrated
individually. In practice 1.0V input typically produces a
reading of 35168. Although the unit is fitted with a twelve bit
converter the user should not rely on more than 10 bit accuracy
unless great care is taken with screening and analogue ground
connections.

Digital Input/Output using the 8 bit user port

Model B of the BBC computer contains an 8 bit user-port which
can be connected to a wide range of devices such as bit-pads
and general interfacing boxes. The user-port can be read from

467
or written to in basic and in assembly language, but in either
case the user will need to know how to use the 6522 Versatile
Interface Adaptor integrated circuit. A 6522 data sheet will be
essential and the user will discover that this extremely versatile
chip is also quite difficult to master. What follows is essential
information that you will need to work the chip rather than a
course in using it. Once you have learned to use it you will
realise that at least twenty pages would be needed to give a
decent introduction to it!
The 6522 lives in the memory map between locations &FE60
and &FE6F. The A side is used for the parallel printer port and
the B side is used for the user-port. The timers and shift register
are also available for the user. When writing small programs
the user can address the device directly either in basic or in
assembly language. However programs that address the device
directly will not work on the far side of the Tube®. Machine
code calls are provided to address the device whichever side of
the Tube the program is on. Firstly, though, here are some
programs in basic and Assembly Language to read and write
to the port.
10 REM Read data in
20 REM Set Data Direction Register B
30 REM for all inputs
40 ?&FE62=0
50 REM read a value in and PRINT it
60 X=?&FE60
70 PRINT X
80 GOTO 60
The next program sets up the 6522 to output to the user-port
and then transfers the bottom 8 bits of X to the port. Again the
initialisation need only take place once.
10 REM ALL outputs
20 ?&FE62=&FF
30 REM now put X out
40 ?&FE60=X
And here are those two programs in assembly language. First
to read data into the accumulator.
100 LDA #0
110 STA &FE62
120 LDA &FE60
468
And secondly to write data out to the user port. This time the
program is presented as two subroutines. The first, called
INIT, sets up the 6522 and the second subroutine, WRITE,
actually puts the data out from the accumulator onto the
user-port.
200 .INIT LDA #&FF
210 STA &FE62
220 RTS
230 .WRITE STA &FE60
240 RTS
As has been made clear above these programs will not work
from the second processor. The 6522 is one of the memory
mapped input/output devices in the area of memory referred
to as sheila. sheila controls the section of memory map in the
range &FE00 to &FEFF, and the VIA (Versatile Interface
Adaptor) uses addresses between &FE60 and &FE6F which are
therefore sheila+&60 to sheila+&6F. Two osbyte calls (see
page 436) are provided to read and write to sheila. Here are
the same two routines shown above but written so that they
will work over the Tube®.
100 LDA #&97 \ OSBYTE to write to
SHEILA
110 LDX #&62 \ Offset to Data
direction reg.
120 LDY #0 \ Value to be written
130 JSR &FFF4 \ Call OSBYTE
140 LDA #&96 \ OSBYTE to read from
SHEILA
150 LDX #&60 \ Offset to data reg.
160 JSR &FFF4 \ Call OSBYTE to get
value
And next the routine to INIT and WRITE to the user port.
200 .INIT LDA #&97 \ OSBYTE to write
to SHEILA
210 LDX #&62 \ Offset to Data
direction reg.
220 LDY #&FF \ All outputs
230 JSR &FFF4 \ Call OSBYTE
240 RTS
250 .WRITE TAY \ Move value to Y

469
 260 LDA #&97 \ Write-to-SHEILA code
270 LDX #&60 \ Offset to data reg.
280 JSR &FFF4 \ OSBYTE call
290 RTS
In practice the user will often wish to use the handshake lines
with data transfers. For information on this topic you are
referred to other books. Space simply does not permit an
adequate explanation here.

470
45 Expanding the
system

Above all the BBC computer is an expandable system. The

Model A can be expanded to the Model B at any time. A floppy
disc interface and one or more floppy disc drives can be added
later. A floppy disc unit will enable you to load and save
programs in a matter of a second or two. If you would like to
keep a mailing list, or any large data-base (like lists of products
and suppliers) then you will find floppy discs invaluable since
they work so much faster than cassette tapes.
For many applications you will want to add a printer. There
are many types and the Model B can work with all except very
old, slow printers such as the 10 characters per second
Teletypes®.
Choosing a printer can be a difficult decision. A booklet from
the Council for Educational Technology, 3 Devonshire Street,
London, W1N 2BA called “USPEC 32B” provides much
impartial guidance. A Daisy Wheel printer will produce high
quality print at a relatively high price. On the other hand, a
dot-matrix or ink-jet printer is a great deal cheaper and quite
adequate for many jobs. The BBC computer can connect to
RS232 serial printers or Centronics® type parallel printers.
The high quality colour monitor will enable you to see the
finest detail produced by the computer’s high resolution colour
circuits.
The Teletext add-on unit enables the BBC computer to look at
the BBC and ITV ceefax, and oracle pages in the normal way.
In addition, with this unit you can receive and store, on cassette
or disc, computer programs that are transmitted over the air
free of charge (so called Telesoftware).

471
The Prestel add-on unit connects the BBC computer to a British
Telecom telephone line. Once connected, you can use all the
facilities of Prestel and, again, load computer programs
supplied via Prestel. The transmission of computer programs
in this way is known as Telesoftware. The Prestel unit contains
an approved modem with which you can communicate with
large computer systems world wide as well as with anyone else
who has a BBC computer and Prestel unit. In this way you can
send programs, or sales results or whatever, to anyone else in
the world, at very low cost.
The 8 bit user input/output port on the Model B can be
connected to a wide range of external devices. These include:
bit-pads which enable you to trace or sketch pictures on to the
screen. These can be used when entering engineering drawings
into the system. Robot arms for computer controlled
movement, video disc units enable one of a million pictures to
be rapidly retrieved, and fast analogue interfaces enable the
computer to record fleeting events.
There is space inside the computer to add the voice synthesis
unit. This gives the computer a vocabulary of over 100 words
and further words can be built up or loaded in from cassettes
or disc or ROM-pack. It is very easy to use this unit.
The ROM-pack interface can be added to enable the computer
to use programs held in convenient cartridges. This makes it
very easy to play games and to get a particular applications
program working.
The Econet option will allow you to connect over a hundred
BBC computers together. A normal Econet system consists of
several Model A or Model B systems with Econet interfaces
connected to a printer via a printer-server computer and to a
floppy disc via a file-server computer. The only additional costs
are for cable, plugs and sockets and for the file-server software.
This is an extremely cost-effective way of providing printer and
floppy disc facilities for a group of users. Each user on the
Econet can communicate with other users (unless barred by a
supervisor), and there are many other facilities. For example,
one user can request a copy of another user’s screen.

472
The computer can be interfaced to larger and faster networks
such as the Cambridge Ring, thus opening up possibilities for
ultra fast local networks and true distributed processing.
The 1MHz bus connector is provided to enable users and other
manufacturers to connect additional specialist hardware to the
BBC computer. For example, a range of Eurocards and a
racking system are available. The Eurocards include laboratory
interfaces, additional parallel and serial interfaces, eprom
programmers and fast analogue to digital converters. The
Prestel and Teletext units also connect to this “bus”.
The Tube® is a connector and software interface which permits
very high speed communication between the BBC computer
and a second processor. The “second processor” is another
computer system in its own right, but one that uses the BBC
computer for all the time-consuming input/output operations.
The first “second processor” is a fast 6502 with 64K ram. This
should be able to run any program that a Model A/B can run
but with increased speed and with more space available to the
user. Of course only programs that adhere to the Tube®’s
software discipline will run correctly.
Another second processor option is a Z80 with 64K of ram. The
software with this unit allows CP/M® programs to be run with
more memory than a normal CP/M environment. In addition,
the main user program is left free to do calculations, leaving
the BBC computer to deal with graphics, printers, clock, floppy
disc, etc.
A future second processor will be a 16 bit machine with 32 bit
internal architecture. This processor, the National
semiconductors 16032, can be used with up to 16 Megabytes of
ram.
As you will be aware, there is very considerable room for
expansion in the future – an essential feature in view of the
rapid changes in technology.

473
46 Error messages

If the computer is unable to proceed for some reason then it

will report that fact to you by printing an error message on the
screen. The printing of the message can be suppressed by the
statement, for example
ON ERROR GOTO 9000
provided that some special routines had been written in line
9000. As well as the error message the computer sets two
variables each time an error occurs.
ERR gives the “Error number”
ERL gives the number of the line in the program where the
error occurred.
The Error Messages are listed below in alphabetical order
together with their error numbers

Accuracy lost 23
If you try to calculate trigonometric functions with very large
angles you are liable to lose a great deal of accuracy in reducing
the angle to the range of plus or minus PI radians. In this case
the computer will report Accuracy lost. e.g.
PRINT SIN(10000000)

Arguments 31
This error indicates that there are too many or too few
arguments for a given function or procedure.

Array 14
This indicates that the computer thinks that an array is to be
accessed but does not know the array in question.

474
Bad call 30
This indicates that the use of PROC or FN to call a defined
procedure or function is incorrect.

Bad DIM 10
Arrays must be dimensioned with a positive number of
elements. An error will be produced for example by
DIM A(-3)

Bad hex 28
Hex numbers can only include 0 to 9 and A to F. An attempt to
form a hex number with other letters will result in this error
e.g.
PRINT &y

Bad MODE 25
This indicates an attempt to change mode inside a procedure or
function, or to select a mode for which there is insufficient
memory.

Bad Program
There are a number of occasions on which the computer checks
to see where the program that it contains starts and ends in
memory. The untrappable error Bad program indicates that
the computer could not follow a program through successfully
to an end mark in memory. This is caused by a read error or by
only loading part of a program or by overwriting part of the
program in some way. Unless you are prepared to check the
contents of memory a byte at a time there is little that can be
done to recover a bad program.

Block? 218
This is an error generated by the cassette filing system. It
indicates that an unexpected block number was encountered.
Rewind the tape a short way and play it again.

Byte 2
An attempt was made, during an assembly language section, to
load a register with a number requiring more than one byte e.g.
LDA #345

475
Can’t match FOR 33
There is no FOR statement corresponding to the NEXT
statement.

Channel 222
This error is generated by the cassette filing system if an
attempt is made to use a channel that was not opened.

Data? 216
This is an error generated by the cassette filing system and it
means that the computer has found a Cyclic Redundancy
Check (CRC) error. The CRC is stored on the tape along with
other internal information – see page 399 for more information.
Rewind the tape a short way and play it again.

DIM space 11
An attempt was made to dimension an array for which there
was insufficient room.

Division by zero 18
Division by zero cannot be done! e.g.
PRINT 34/0
This error can also be caused by a division within a procedure
or function using a LOCAL variable which has not been set to
a new value. When a variable is declared as LOCAL it is set to
zero.

$ range 8
The user may put strings into any place in memory except zero
page, that is locations less than 100 hex. Thus this is illegal:
$40="hello"

Eof 223
This error is generated by the cassette filing system if the end of
the file is reached.

Escape 17
The ESCAPE key has been pressed.

476
Exp range 24
The function EXP cannot deal with powers greater than 88.
Thus the following is illegal.
X=EXP(90)

Failed at 0
When renumbering a program the computer attempts to look
after all references made by GOTO and GOSUB statements.
Thus the program
133 GOTO 170
170 END
would become
10 GOTO 20
20 END
when renumbered. However, the computer would not be able
to deal with
133 GOTO 140
200 END
If the user attempts to renumber this program he will get the
error message
Failed at 10
and the renumbered program will be
10 GOTO 140
20 END

File? 219
This error generated by the cassette filing system indicates that
an unexpected file name was encountered by the computer.

FOR variable 34
The variable in a FOR...NEXT loop must be a numeric
variable. Thus the following is illegal
FOR 5=3 TO 10

477
Header? 217
This is an error generated by the cassette filing system and it
indicates that a header Cyclic Redundancy Check error has
occurred – see page 399 for further information. Rewind the
tape a short way and play it again.

Index 3
This indicates an error in specifying an index mode when using
the assembler e.g. LDA Z,Z.

LINE space
The computer has no room left to insert the line in the
program.

Log range 22
An attempt was made to calculate the LOG of a negative
number or of zero. e.g. PRINT LOG(-10)

Missing , 5
This error indicates that the computer expected to find a
comma in the line, and didn’t do so, e.g.
D$=MID$(A$)

Missing " 9
The computer expected to find a double quote. e.g.
LOAD "FRED

Missing ) 27
The computer expected a closing bracket. e.g.
PRINT TAB(10,10

Mistake 4
This indicates that the computer could not make any sense of
the input line.

-ve root 21
An attempt was made to calculate the square root of a negative
number. e.g.
PRINT SQR(-10)
This may also occur with ASN and ACS.

478
No GOSUB 38
A RETURN statement was found when no GOSUB statement
had been encountered.

No FN 7
This indicates that the computer detected the end of a function
but had not called a function definition. e.g.
=FNsue

No FOR 32
A NEXT statement was found when no FOR statement had
been encountered.

No PROC 13
This indicates that the word ENDPROC was found without
there being a corresponding DEF PROC statement.

No REPEAT 43
The interpreter found an UNTIL statement when no REPEAT
statement had been encountered.

No room 0
This untrappable error indicates that while the computer was
running a program it used up all available memory.

No such FN/PROC 29
If the interpreter meets a name beginning with FN (e.g.
FNfred) or PROC (e.g. PROCsteve) it expects to be able to
find a corresponding function or procedure definition
somewhere. This error indicates that no matching definition
was found.

No such line 41
The computer was told to GOTO or GOSUB a line number
which does not exist.

No such variable 26
All variables must be assigned to, or made LOCAL, before they
can be accessed in PRINT statements or before their values
can be assigned to other variables. The initial assignment can
simply be for example, X=0.

479
No TO 36
A FOR...NEXT loop has been set up with the TO part
missing. A correctly formed line is shown below
FOR X=10 TO 55

Not LOCAL 12
This indicates the appearance of LOCAL outside a procedure
or function.

ON range 40
The control variable was either less than 1 or greater than the
number of entries in the ON list. For example if X=3 then this
will fail.
ON X GOTO 100,200
since there are only two destinations.

ON syntax 39
The ON...GOTO statement was misformed, for example this
is illegal
ON X PRINT
The word ON must be followed by a numeric variable which
must in turn be followed by the word GOTO or GOSUB.

Out of DATA 42
An attempt was made to read more items of DATA than there
were in the DATA list. The word RESTORE can be used to
reset the data pointer to the start of the DATA if required.

Out of range 1
An attempt was made to branch out of range of the branch
instruction in the assembler.

Silly
This message will be issued if you attempt to renumber a
program or enter AUTO mode with a step size of 0 or more
than 255. e.g.
AUTO 100,0

480
Syntax 220
This error is generated by the cassette filing system. It indicates
that a syntax error, such as an illegal *OPT statement has
occurred.

String too long 19

The maximum length of a string is 255 characters.

Subscript 15
This implies that an attempt was made to access an element of
an array less than zero or greater than the size of the array. For
example these two lines together will produce this error.
100 DIM A(10)
120 A(15)=3

Syntax error 16
A command was terminated wrongly for example
LIST PRINT

Too big 20
A number was entered or calculated which was too large for
the computer to handle.

Too many FORs 35

An attempt was made to “nest” too many FOR...NEXT
loops. The maximum nesting allowed is 10. This can sometimes
be caused by returning to a FOR statement without executing a
NEXT statement. e.g.
10 FOR X=1 TO 6
20 GOTO 10

Too many GOSUBs 37

An attempt was made to “nest” too many
GOSUB...RETURN loops. The maximum nesting allowed is
26. This can sometimes be caused by returning to a GOSUB
statement without executing a RETURN statement. e.g.
10 PRINT "WRONG"
20 GOSUB 10

481
Too many REPEATs 44
An attempt was made to “nest” too many
REPEAT...UNTIL loops. The maximum nesting allowed is
20. This can sometimes be caused by returning to a REPEAT
statement without executing an UNTIL statement. e.g.
10 REPEAT
20 GOTO 10
Type mismatch 6
This error indicates that a number was expected and a string
was offered or vice-versa. e.g.
10 A$=X
Num Error message Num Error message
1 Out of range 30 Bad call
2 Byte 31 Arguments
3 Index 32 No FOR
4 Mistake 33 Can’t match
5 Missing , FOR
6 Type mismatch 34 FOR variable
7 No FN 35 Too many FORs
8 $ range 36 No TO
9 Missing " 37 Too many
10 Bad DIM GOSUBs
11 DIM space 38 No GOSUB
12 Not LOCAL 39 ON syntax
13 No PROC 40 ON range
14 Array 41 No such line
15 Subscript 42 Out of DATA
16 Syntax error 43 No REPEAT
17 Escape 44 Too many
18 Division by zero REPEATs
19 String too long 216 Data?
20 Too big 217 Header?
21 -ve root 218 Block?
22 Log range 219 File?
23 Accuracy lost 220 Syntax
24 Exp range 222 Channel
25 Bad MODE 223 Eof
26 No such variable 251 Bad Key
27 Missing ) 253 Bad String
28 Bad Hex 254 Bad Command
29 No such FN/PROC
482
47 Minimum
abbreviations
This section lists the minimum abbreviations that can be used
for basic keywords. The third column lists the hexadecimal
number that is used to store the keyword in memory. This is
often referred to as the “Token”.
Notice that the abbreviation never needs an opening bracket
because the token includes the bracket.
ABS ABS 94 DRAW DR. DF
ACS ACS 95 ELSE EL. 8B
ADVAL AD. 96 END END E0
AND A. 80 ENDPROC E. E1
ASC ASC 97 ENVELOPE ENV. E2
ASN ASN 98 EOR EOR 82
ATN ATN 99 EOF EOF C5
AUTO AU. C6 ERL ERL 9E
BGET B. 9A ERR ERR 9F
BPUT BP. D5 ERROR ERR. 85
CALL CA. D6 EVAL EV. A0
CHAIN CH. D7 EXP EXP A1
CHR$ CHR. BD EXT EXT A2
CLEAR CL. D8 FALSE FA. A3
CLG CLG DA FN FN A4
CLOSE CLO. D9 FOR F. E3
CLS CLS DB GCOL GC. E6
COLOUR C. FB GET GET A5
COS COS 9B GET$ GE. BE
COUNT COU. 9C GOSUB GOS. E4
DATA D. DC GOTO G. E5
DEF DEF DD HIMEM H. 93
DEG DEG 9D (right)
DELETE DEL. C7 HIMEM H. D3
DIM DIM DE (left)
DIV DIV 81 IF IF E7

483
INKEY INKEY A6 PROC PRO. F2
INKEY$ INK. BF PTR PT. 8F
INPUT I. E8 (right)
INSTR( INS. A7 PTR PT. CF
INT INT A8 (left)
LEFT$( LE. C0 RAD RAD B2
LEN LEN A9 READ REA. F3
LET LET E9 REM REM F4
LINE LIN. 86 RENUMBER REN. CC
LIST L. C9 REPEAT REP. F5
LN LN AA REPORT REPO. F6
LOAD LO. C8 RESTORE RES. F7
LOCAL LOC. EA RETURN R. F8
LOG LOG AB RIGHT$( RI. C2
LOMEM LOM. 92 RND RND B3
(right) RUN RUN F9
LOMEM LOM. D2 SAVE SA. CD
(left) SGN SGN B4
MID$( M. C1 SIN SIN B5
MOD MOD 83 SOUND SO. D4
MODE MO. EB SPC SPC 89
MOVE MOV. EC SQR SQR B6
NEW NEW CA STEP S. 88
NEXT N. ED STOP STO. FA
NOT NOT AC STR$ STR. C3
OFF OFF 87 STRING$( STRI. C4
OLD O. CB TAB( TAB( 8A
ON ON EE TAN T. B7
OPENIN OP. 8E THEN TH. 8C
OPENOUT OPENO. AE TIME TI. 91
OPENUP OPENUP AD (right)
OR OR 84 TIME TI. D1
OSCLI OS. FF (left)
PAGE PA. 90 TO TO B8
(right) TRACE TR. FC
PAGE PA. D0 TRUE TRUE B9
(left) UNTIL U. FD
PI PI AF USR USR BA
PLOT PL. F0 VAL VAL BB
POINT( PO. B0 VDU V. EF
POS POS B1 VPOS VP. BC
PRINT P. F1 WIDTH W. FE

484
48 Appendix

485
 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120
nothing down nothing move
0 cursor
to 0,0

next to up disable move

1 printer VDU cursor

start clear select

2 printer screen mode

stop start of reprogram

3 printer line charac’s

nothing paged nothing

4 mode

nothing scroll nothing

5 mode

enable nothing nothing

6 VDU

beep nothing nothing back

7 space &
delete

back nothing nothing nothing

8

forward nothing nothing alpha

9 red

Teletext (MODE 7) Displayed Alphanumeric Characters

Each code produces a unique character. Thus VDU 78 or PRINT CHR$(78)
would display an N since column 70, row 8 shows an N.

486
 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 210 220 230 240 250
alpha normal * graphic
green height cyan

alpha double graphic

yellow height white

alpha nothing conceal

blue display

alpha nothing contiguous

magenta graphics *

alpha nothing separated

cyan graphics

alpha * graphic nothing

white red

flash graphic black *

green backgr’nd

steady * graphic new

yellow backgr’nd

nothing graphic hold

blue graphics

nothing graphic release *

magenta graphics

* every line starts with these options

487
 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120
nothing down nothing move
0 cursor
to 0,0

next to up disable move

1 printer VDU cursor

start clear select

2 printer screen mode

stop start of reprogram

3 printer line charac’s

nothing paged nothing

4 mode

nothing scroll nothing

5 mode

enable nothing nothing

6 VDU

beep nothing nothing back

7 space &
delete

back nothing nothing nothing

8

forward nothing nothing alpha

9 red

Teletext (MODE 7) Displayed Graphic Characters

Each character has a code. Thus H is code 72 since it is in column 70 row 2.

488
 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 210 220 230 240 250
alpha normal * graphic
green height cyan

alpha double graphic

yellow height white

alpha nothing conceal

blue display

alpha nothing contiguous

magenta graphics *

alpha nothing separated

cyan graphics

alpha * graphic nothing

white red

flash graphic black *

green backgr’nd

steady * graphic new

yellow backgr’nd

nothing graphic hold

blue graphics

nothing graphic release *

magenta graphics

* every line starts with these options

489
 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
nothing down default move text
0 logical cursor
colours to 0,0

next to up disable move

1 printer VDU text
cursor

start clear select

2 printer screen mode

stop start of reprogram

3 printer line charac’s

separate paged define

4 cursors mode graphics
area

join scroll plot

5 cursors mode

enable clear default

6 VDU graphics text/
graphics
areas
beep define nothing
7 text
colour

back define define

8 graphics text
colour area

forward define define

9 logical graphics
colours origin

ASCII (MODES 0 to 6) Displayed Character Set and Control Codes

Each displayed character consists of 8 rows of 8 dots.

490
110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 210 220 230 240 250

ALL CHARACTERS
UNDEFINED INITIALLY

back
space
&
delete

491
 MSB 8 9 A B C D E F
LSB 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0000 0 Nothing Clear graphics
0 @ P £ p
area
0001 1 Next to printer Define text colour ! 1 A Q a q
0010 2 Start Define graphic
“ 2 B R b r
printer colour
0011 3 Stop Define logical
# 3 C S c s
printer colour
0100 4 Separate Default logical
$ 4 D T d t
cursors colours
0101 5 Join Erase line or
% 5 E U e u

Hexadecimal ASCII Codes

cursors Disable VDU
0110 6 Enable VDU Select mode & 6 F V f v
0111 7 beep Reprogram
‘ 7 G W g w

492
characters
1000 8 back Define graphics
( 8 H X h x
area
1001 9 forward Plot ) 9 I Y i y
1010 A down Default screen
* : J Z j z
areas
1011 B up Nothing + ; K [ k {
1100 C Clear text area Define text area , < L \ l ¦
1101 D Carriage Define graphic
– = M ] m }
return origin
1110 E Paged mode Move text
. > N ^ n ~
on cursor to 0,0
1111 F Paged mode Move text Backspace
/ ? O __ o
off cursor to X,Y and delete
 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 79
0

Text Planning Sheet

10

15

493
20

25

30
 1280
1120
960
800
640
480
320
160
0
1024

896

768

640

512

384

256

128

Graphics Planning Sheet 1 (grid related to character positions)

494
 1024
1000

900

800

700

600

Graphics Planning Sheet 2 (decimal)

495
500

400

300

200

100

0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1280
128
64
32
16
8
4
2
1

User Defined Character Planning Sheet

MODES 0 to 6 (see page 172)

496
 1B 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 30 2D 1E 1C
1B 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 3D 7E 7C 88 89
1B 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 30 2D 5E 5C
09 11 17 05 12 14 19 15 09 0F 10 00 1B 1F
09 51 57 45 52 54 59 55 49 4F 50 40 7B 60 8B 8A
09 71 77 65 72 74 79 75 69 6F 70 40 5B 5F
CAPS 01 13 04 06 07 08 0A 0B 0C 3B 3A 1D 0D
LOCK CTRL 41 53 44 46 47 48 4A 4B 4C 2B 2A 7D 0D
61 73 64 66 67 68 6A 6B 6C 3B 3A 5D 0D
SHIFT 1A 18 03 16 02 0E 0D 2C 2E 2F 7F
LOCK SHIFT 5A 58 43 56 42 4E 4D 3C 3E 3F SHIFT 7F 87
7A 78 63 76 62 6E 6D 2C 2E 2F 7F

497
20
20
20

Keyboard Codes
Most keys can produce three codes and these are shown for each key. The top
number is the code produced if the CONTROL key is simultaneously
depressed. The middle number is the upper case code and the lower number
the lower case code. Thus
CTRL Z is &1A
Z is &5A
z is &7A
All numbers are in hexadecimal.
The editing keys only produce codes if enabled with *FX4. See page 422.
 310

DIMENSIONS
35 70 105 175 195 215 245 275 IN M.M.

ECONET RST
SW ANALOGUE
DIN & PADDLE CASS RS423 RGB
VIDEO UHF

RL
CASS
CASS & RS423
ECONET INTERFACE ADC PAL ENCODER

SERIAL
PROCESSOR
CLOCK GENERATOR
& DRAM SUPPORT

6850 CRTC

6854
16 DRAMS

498
230
TELETEXT
SAA 5050

6502
BUFFERS

ADAPTOR
DRAM ADDRESS

PROCESSOR
VOICE SYNTH
VERSATILE INTERFACE

FLOPPY DISC CONTROL

VIDEO PROCESS

MEMORY
VOICE SYNTH
ADDRESS DECODERS

Printed circuit board layout for the BBC Microcomputer

KEYBOARD CONN

DISC INTERFACE 5 x 28 PIN ROMS

ADAPTOR
VERSATILE INTERFACE

DISC PRINTER USER 1 MHz BUS TUBE

INPUT/OUTPUT
 2A FUSE

OFF
ON

UHF OUT RGB RS423 CASSETTE ANALOGUE IN ECONET MAINS

External connections
VIDEO OUT RESET CABLE

+5v 0v 1 +5v 9 LPSTB

0v red data motor 2 0v 10 PB1
RTS control clock data
in 3 0v 11 VREF
input output
green data output 4 CH3 12 CH2 clock data
sync CTS
blue out 5 Analogue Gnd 13 PB0
0v 0v
6 0V 15 VREF
7 CH1 15 CH0

499
6 C
E A 7 6 8 Analogue Gnd
5 1 3 1
3 1 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
4 2 5 4
D B 5 4
3 2 2

15 14 13 12 11 10 9
RGB RS423 CASSETTE ANALOGUE IN ECONET

1 1 1 1 1

34 26 20 34 40
DISC PRINTER USER 1MHz BUS TUBE
INPUT/OUTPUT
 HEX DECIMAL
&FFFF 65535
OPERATING SYSTEM ROM
&FF00 65280
MEMORY MAPPED INPUT/OUTPUT
&FC00 64512

OPERATING SYSTEM ROM

&C000 49152

4 PAGED ROMS e.g. BASIC

&8000 32768

RAM USED FOR

HIGH RESOLUTION GRAPHICS
MOVEABLE BOUNDARY
HIMEM BASIC STACK

32K RAM
IN MODEL B &4000 16384
TO &8000

LOMEM DYNAMIC VARIABLE STORAGE

MOVEABLE BOUNDARY
16K RAM TOP
IN MODEL A &2000 8192
TO &4000 USER’S BASIC PROGRAM AREA

PAGE &0E00 3584

RESERVED FOR OPERATING
SYSTEM USE
&0000 0

Memory map

500
 &0E00 3584
space for operating system resident routines
&0D00 3328
user defined character definitions
&0C00 3072
user defined function key definitions
&0B00 2816
various buffers
&0A00 2560
various buffers
&0900 2304
misc. workspace
&0800 2048

language ROM workspace

&0400 1024
misc. workspace
&0300 768
operating system workspace
&0200 512
6502 stack
&0100 256
zero page
&0000 0

Memory map (detail)

501
Memory Map Assignments

FF00 - FFFF Operating System rom

FE00 - FEFF Internal memory mapped input/output
(sheila)
FD00 - FDFF External memory mapped input/output (jim)
FC00 - FCFF External memory mapped input/output (fred)
C000 - FBFF Operating System rom
8000 - BFFF One or more languages roms (e.g.
basic, pascal)
4000 - 7FFF Optional ram on Model B
0000 - 3FFF always ram
E00 Default setting of PAGE
D80 - DFF allocated to machine operating system
D00 - D7F Used by NMI routines (eg by Disc or Econet
filing systems)
C00 - CFF User defined character definitions
B00 - BFF User defined function key definitions
A00 - AFF RS423 receive, and cassette workspace
900 - 9FF RS423 transmit, cassette, sound and speech
workspace
800 - 8FF Miscellaneous workspace
400 - 7FF Language rom workspace
300 - 3FF Miscellaneous workspace
200 - 2FF Operating system workspace and
indirection vectors
100 - 1FF 6502 stack
000 - 0FF Zero page

Zero Page
FF The top bit is set during an ESCAPE condition
FD - FE Address following detected BRK instruction
FC User IRQ routine save slot for register A
D0 to FB allocated to machine operating system
B0 to CF allocated to current filing system
90 to AF allocated to machine operating system
70 to 8F free for user routines
00 to 6F basic language

502
 0v +5v
R162
26 4K7

BUSY 74LS244
ACK IC70 40
18 CA1 23
D7 2 9 CS0 &
VIAB ( FE60 )
3 PA7 24
D6 17 8 CS1 +5v
16 PA6
D5 4 7
5 PA5 35
PRINTER D4 15 6 A3
4 PA4 36
CONNECTOR D3 6 5 A2
7 PA3 37
PL9 D2 13 4 A1
12 PA2 38
D1 8 3 A0
9 PA1
D0 11 2
PA0 D7 26
STROBE 1 19 6522 27
0v 0v 47
PB7 IC69 28
PB7 16 29
PB6
PB6 15 30
PB5 D3
PB5 14 31
USER PB4 D2
32
INPUT/OUTPUT PB4 13
PB3 D1
33
CONNECTOR PB3 12 D0
PB2 25
PL10 PB2 11 1MHzE
PB1 22
PB1 10 R/W
PB0 21
PB0 19 IRQ
CB2 34
CB2 18 RST
CB1 CA2
CB1 +5v
+5v 39

4K7 IC27
R6 7A38

ADDRESS BUS
6 5
+5v

DATA BUS
4
Q11
BC239

0v

9 11
74LS244
7 IC71 13
AUDIO 5 15
OUTPUT 3 17
PL16 18 2
16 4
0v 14 6
0v 12 8
0v
A7 A7
1 19
A4 A6
A3 0v
A2
A1 6 14
A0
D7 0v 7 74LS245 13
D6 8 IC72 12
D5
D4 9 11
D3
D1 D2 4 A B 16
1MHz D0 3 17
EXTENSION ANALOG IN ANALOG 15
BUS 5
NRST RST 18
PL11 2
NPGFD JIM T/R CE
FRED +5v
NPGFC 1 19
NIRQ IRQ R108
NNMI NMI 3K3
1MHzE 1MHzE
R/NW D D
1 +5v 14 15
+5v 2x
IN414148
R/W
FRED JIM
&FC00 &FD00

Printer, User I/O and 1MHz Bus circuits

503
 BLUE 68 R111 3 4 RGB
GREEN 68 R113 6
2 5 CONNECTOR
RED 68 R112 SK3
1

+5v
+5v +5v
0v
1K 2K
2
3K9 9
8

R110 68
1K R115
0v 10

R116
R117
R118
R129 IC48
68 74LS86
VIDEO
OUT
Q7 (BNC)
470 2N CSYNC SK2
R123 3906 0v

0v R140
1K

R141 3K3
+5v +5v
R127
1K
2134 1K5

UM1233 TV
CS0 -E36 SK 1
47p
R126
3K9

Video outputs 0v

0v

+5v
C43
DS3691N 1 4 47pF DATA OUT
IC75 16 DATA IN
2
15 47pF C46
7 9 RTS E A
8 10 R95 2K2
DS88LS120N IC74 C
+5v 3 5 6
D B
5 16 11 R97 2K2
1 15 0v CTS
7 4 RS423
6 3 –5v R93 R96 CONNECTOR
9 12 3K3 3K3 0v SK4
10 13
OPTIONAL
RECEIVER
C39 C38 8 2 14
TERMINATION 0v
NORMALLY
0v OPEN

RS423 interface

504
 +5v
+5v 1
25 RD
NRDS
24 R71 LPSTB 9
NWDS WR IC73
15 2K5 0v 2
D7
16 I01 10
µPD7002
17 0v 3
PADDLE
8
18 YREF 11 AND LIGHT
C25 C27 IN4148 x 3
19 4
3n3 1µF D9 PEN
20 4 12
CONNECTOR
CI D7 5
21 SK6
6 IO0
22 CI D6 13
D0 10 6
27 CH3 0v
A1 11 14
26 CH2
A0 12 7
28 CH1
EOC EOC CH0 13 15
23 9
ADC CS 8
2 AGND
1MHzE X1

0v

Analogue inputs

1K C15 1nF
+5v R33 +5v
10
74LS123 8
150 7 6
R49 10 12 IC87 R65 9
Q 3K3 RST
5 IC27
CLR Q +5v 0v
9
11 4 11
R22 R23 RST INT 30
+5v +5v
IC79 1K R37
150 150 28 FAULT CNT/
OPI
DL3 2 25
3 PLO/SS
1 1 24
2 x 7438 TRST CS
33 WR PROT
34 IC80 31 TRK 0
11 13 35 WR EN
SIDE SELECT 12 IC80 27
RD DATA
READ DATA 10 29
8 WR DATA
WRITE PROTECT 9 7
IC80 4 DACK
TRACK 0 6 36 SEEK
5 IC80 1 STEP 22
WRITE ENABLE 37 DIR A1
WRITE DATA 3 A0 21
2 IC78
SEEK STEP IC79 10
DIRECTION 8271 19
9 IC79 DB7
LOAD HEAD 8 12 38 DB6 18
IC79 11 LD HEAD 17
13 6 SEL 1 DB5
DRIVE SEL 1 6 5 2 DB4 16
SEL 0 15
DRIVE SEL 0 4 34 DB3
INDEX
INDEX 26 DB2 14
DATA W
3 DB1 13
IC81 5 32 RDY 0 DB0 12
PL8 74LS393 3 6 5 RDY 1
12 CLR 4 RD WR
0v +5v 9 10
19 11 1
13 0C 2
8 10 13
0D 12
9 8 74LS10
IC82

Disc interface

505
 +5v

2
+5v 4 5
5 4 47nF CASSETTE
+ 7 1 3 CONNECTOR
6 – SK5
6 7
R86 0v
R79
220K
R87 – 9
820K 0v
8 10
8K2 +
R82 820pF 820pF
150K
150K C31 C35
0v R78
Cassette interface

506
 ASCII abbrev.

Bytes extra
Decimal

CTRL
Hex

Meaning
0 0 @ NUL 0 does nothing
1 1 A SOH 1 send next character to printer only
2 2 B STX 0 enable printer
3 3 C ETX 0 disable printer
4 4 D EOT 0 write text at text cursor
5 5 E ENQ 0 write text at graphics cursor
6 6 F ACK 0 enable vdu drivers
7 7 G BEL 0 make a short beep
8 8 H BS 0 backspace cursor one character
9 9 I HT 0 forwardspace cursor one character
10 A J LF 0 move cursor down one line
11 B K VT 0 move cursor up one line
12 C L FF 0 clear text area
13 D M CR 0 move cursor to start of current line
14 E N SO 0 page mode on
15 F O SI 0 page mode off
16 10 P DLE 0 clear graphics area
17 11 Q DC1 1 define text colour
18 12 R DC2 2 define graphics colour
19 13 S DC3 5 define logical colour
20 14 T DC4 0 restore default logical colours
21 15 U NAK 0 disable vdu drivers or delete current line
22 16 V SYN 1 select screen mode
23 17 W ETB 9 re-program display character
24 18 X CAN 8 define graphics window
25 19 Y EM 5 PLOT K,x,y
26 1A Z SUB 0 restore default windows
27 1B [ ESC 0 does nothing
28 1C \ FS 4 define text window
29 1D ] GS 4 define graphics origin
30 1E ^ RS 0 home text cursor to top left
31 1F __ US 2 move text cursor to x,y
127 7F DEL 0 backspace and delete

VDU code summary

507
 6502 instruction set

INSTRUCTIONS IMMEDIATE ABSOLUTE ZERO PAGE ACCUM IMPLIED (IND,X) (IND),Y Z PAGE,X ABS,X ABS,Y RELATIVE INDIRECT Z PAGE,Y PROCESSOR STATUS CODES

MNEMONIC OPERATOR OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # OP n # N V • B D I Z C MNEM.

ADC A+M+C®A (4) (1) 69 2 2 6D 4 3 65 3 2 61 6 2 71 5 2 75 4 2 7D 4 3 79 4 3 N V • • • • Z C ADC

AND AÙM®A (1) 29 2 2 2D 4 3 25 3 2 21 6 2 31 5 2 35 4 2 3D 4 3 39 4 3 N • • • • • Z • AND

ASL C¬7 0¬0 0E 6 3 06 5 2 0A 2 1 16 6 2 1E 7 3 N • • • • • Z C ASL

BCC BRANCH ON C=0 (2) 90 2 2 • • • • • • • • BCC

BCS BRANCH ON C=1 (2) B0 2 2 • • • • • • • • BCS

BEQ BRANCH ON Z=1 (2) F0 2 2 • • • • • • • • BEQ

BIT AÙM 2C 4 3 24 3 2 M7 M6 • • • • Z • BIT

BMI BRANCH ON N=1 (2) 30 2 2 • • • • • • • • BMI

BNE BRANCH ON Z=0 (2) D0 2 2 • • • • • • • • BNE

BPL BRANCH ON N=0 (2) 10 2 2 • • • • • • • • BPL

BRK BREAK 00 7 1 • • • 1 • 1 • • BRK

BVC BRANCH ON V=0 (2) 50 2 2 • • • • • • • • BVC

508
BVS BRANCH ON V=1 (2) 70 2 2 • • • • • • • • BVS

CLC 0®C 18 2 1 • • • • • • • 0 CLC

CLD 0®D D8 2 1 • • • • 0 • • • CLD

CLI 0®I 58 2 1 • • • • • 0 • • CLI

CLV 0®V B8 2 1 • 0 • • • • • • CLV

CMP A–M C9 2 2 CD 4 3 C5 3 2 C1 6 2 D1 5 2 D5 4 2 DD 4 3 N • • • • • Z C CMP

CPX X–M E0 2 2 EC 4 3 E4 3 2 N • • • • • Z C CPX

CPY Y–M C0 2 2 CC 4 3 C4 3 2 N • • • • • Z C CPY

DEC M–1®M CE 6 3 C6 5 2 D6 6 2 DE 7 1 N • • • • • Z • DEC

DEX X–1®X CA 2 1 N • • • • • Z • DEX

DEY Y–1®Y 88 2 1 N • • • • • Z • DEY

EOR AÅM®A (1) 49 2 2 4D 4 3 45 3 2 41 6 2 51 5 2 55 4 2 5D 4 3 59 4 3 N • • • • • Z • EOR

INC M+1®M EE 6 3 E6 5 2 F6 6 2 FE 7 3 N • • • • • Z • INC

INX X+1®X E8 2 1 N • • • • • Z • INX

INY Y+1®Y C8 2 1 N • • • • • Z • INY

JMP JUMP TO NEW LOC 4C 3 3 8C 5 3 • • • • • • • • JMP

JSR JUMP SUB 20 6 3 • • • • • • • • JSR

LDA M®A (1) A9 2 2 AD 4 3 A5 3 2 A1 6 2 B1 5 2 B5 4 2 BD 4 3 B9 4 3 N • • • • • Z • LDA

 LDX M®X (1) A2 2 2 AE 4 3 A6 3 2 BE 4 3 B6 4 2 N • • • • • Z • LDX

LDY M®Y (1) A0 2 2 AC 4 3 A4 3 2 B4 4 2 BC 4 3 B6 4 2 N • • • • • Z • LDY

LSR 0®7 0®C 4E 6 3 46 5 2 4A 2 1 56 6 2 5E 7 3 0 • • • • • Z C LSR

NOP NO OPERATION EA 2 1 • • • • • • • • NOP

ORA AÚM®A 09 2 2 0D 4 3 05 3 2 01 6 2 11 5 2 15 4 2 1D 4 3 19 4 3 N • • • • • Z • ORA

PHA A ® Ms S–1®S 48 3 1 • • • • • • • • PHA

PHP P ® Ms S–1®S 08 3 1 • • • • • • • • PHP

PLA S+1®S Ms ® A 68 4 1 N • • • • • Z • PLA

PLP S+1®S Ms ® P 28 4 1 (RESTORED) PLP

ROL C¬7 0¬C 2E 6 3 26 5 2 2A 2 1 36 6 2 3E 7 3 N • • • • • Z C ROL

ROR C®7 0®C 6E 6 3 66 5 2 6A 2 1 76 6 2 7E 7 3 N • • • • • Z C ROR

RTI RETURN INT 40 6 1 (RESTORED) RTI

RTS RETURN SUB 60 6 1 • • • • • • • • RTS

SBC A–M–C®A (1) E9 2 2 ED 4 3 E5 3 2 E1 6 2 F1 5 2 F5 4 2 FD 4 3 F9 4 3 N V • • • • Z (3) SBC

SEC 1®C 36 2 1 • • • • • • • 1 SEC

SED 1®D FB 2 1 • • • • 1 • • • SED

SEI 1®I 78 2 1 • • • • • 1 • • SEI

STA A®M 8D 4 3 85 3 2 81 6 2 91 6 2 95 4 2 9D 5 3 99 5 3 • • • • • • • • STA

STX X®M 8E 4 3 86 3 2 96 4 2 • • • • • • • • STX

STY Y®M 8C 4 3 84 3 2 94 4 2 • • • • • • • • STY

509
TAX A®X AA 2 1 N • • • • • Z • TAX

TAY A®Y AB 2 1 N • • • • • Z • TAY

TSX S®X BA 2 1 N • • • • • Z • TSX

TXA X®A 8A 2 1 N • • • • • Z • TXA

TXS X®S 9A 2 1 N • • • • • Z • TXS

TYA Y®A 98 2 1 N • • • • • Z • TYA

(1) ADD 1 to N” IF PAGE BOUNDARY IS CROSSED X INDEX X + ADD M7 MEMORY BIT 7

(2) ADD 1 TO N” IF BRANCH OCCURS TO SAME PAGE Y INDEX Y – SUBTRACT M6 MEMORY BIT 6
ADD 2 TO N” IF BRANCH OCCURS TO DIFFERENT PAGE
A ACCUMULATOR Ù AND n NO. CYCLES
(3) CARRY NOT = BORROW
M MEMORY PER EFFECTIVE ADDRESS Ú OR # NO. BYTES
(4) IF IN DECIMAL MODE Z FLAG IS INVALID
ACCUMULATOR MUST BE CHECKED FOR ZERO RESULT Ms MEMORY PER STACK POINTER Å EXCLUSIVE OR
*FX and OSBYTE Call Summary
Decimal Hex Function
* 0 0 Prints operating system version number
1 1 Reserved for application programs
2 2 Selects input device
3 3 Selects output devices
* 4 4 Enable/disable cursor edit keys
* 5 5 Select printer type
* 6 6 Set Printer ignore character
* 7 7 Set RS423 receive baud rate
* 8 8 Set RS423 transmit baud rate
* 9 9 Set flash period of first colour
* 10 A Set flash period of second colour
* 11 B Set auto-repeat delay
* 12 C Set auto-repeat period
13 D Disable various events
14 E Enable various events
* 15 F Flush all or just input buffer
* 16 10 Select number of ADC channels
17 11 Force start of conversion on ADC channel
18 12 Reset user defined function keys
19 13 Wait for field synchronization
20 14 Explode soft character ram allocation
21 15 Flush selected buffer
* 124 7C Reset ESCAPE flag
* 125 7D Set ESCAPE flag
* 126 7E Acknowledge detection of ESCAPE condition
* 127 7F Check end of file status
* 128 80 Read ADC channel/fire buttons/last
conversion
* 129 81 Read key within time limit
* 130 82 Read machine high order address
* 131 83 Read top of operating system ram Address
* 132 84 Read bottom of display ram address
* 133 85 Read lowest address for particular mode
* 134 86 Read text cursor position
* 135 87 Read character at text cursor position
136 88 Reserved
* 137 89 Turn cassette motor ON/OFF
138 8A Insert character into keyboard buffer

510
Decimal Hex Function
* 139 8B Set file options
* 140 8C Select cassette file system and set speed
141 8D Reserved
142 8E Reserved
143 8F Reserved
* 144 90 Alter TV display position/interlace
145 91 Remove character from buffer
146 92 Read from I/O area FRED
147 93 Write to I/O area FRED
148 94 Read from I/O area JIM
149 95 Write to I/O area JIM
150 96 Read from I/O area SHEILA
151 97 Write to I/O area SHEILA
218 DA Cancel VDU queue
225 E1 Set base number for function-key codes
226 E2 Set base number for SHIFT function-key codes
227 E3 Set base number for CTRL function-key codes
228 E4 Set base number for SHIFT/CTRL function key
codes
229 E5 Escape=&1B
230 E6 Enable/disable normal ESCAPE key action
231 E7 Enable/disable user 6522 IRQ
232 E8 Enable/disable 6850 ACIA IRQ

511
 Routine Vector Summary of function
Name Address Name Address

UPTV 222 User print routine

EVNTV 220 Event interrupt
FSCV 21E File system control entry
OSFIND FFCE FINDV 21C Open or close a file
OSGBPB FFD1 GBPBV 21A Load or save a block of
memory to a file
OSBPUT FFD4 BPUTV 218 Save a single byte to file
from A
OSBGET FFD7 BGETV 216 Load a single byte to A
from file
OSARGS FFDA ARGSV 214 Load or save data about
a file
OSFILE FFDD FILEV 212 Load or save a complete
file
OSRDCH FFE0 RDCHV 210 Read character (from
keyboard) to A
OSASCI FFE3 — — Write a character (to
screen) from A plus LF if
(A)=&0D
OSNEWL FFE7 — — Write LF,CR (&0A,&0D)
to screen
OSWRCH FFEE WRCHV 20E Write character (to
screen) from A
OSWORD FFF1 WORDV 20C Perform miscellaneous
OS operation using
control block to pass
parameters
OSBYTE FFF4 BYTEV 20A Perform miscellaneous
OS operation using
registers to pass
parameters
OSCLI FFF7 CLIV 208 Interpret the command
line given
IRQ2V 206 Unrecognised IRQ
vector
IRQ1V 204 All IRQ vector
BRKV 202 Break vector
USERV 200 Reserved

512
Index

A Buffer insert character 429, 433

Abbreviations for keywords 483 Buffer status 429, 465
ABS 200
Acknowledge escape conditions 429 C
ACS 201 Calendar program 131
Accuracy of calculations 65 CALL 214, 446
Actual colour numbers 165 Cambridge ring 473
Addressing modes 449 CAPS LOCK key 15
ADSR envelope 185, 244, 463 Cartridge socket 19
ADVAL 202, 426, 429, 467 Cartridge ROM file system 472
Aligning columns when printing 72 Cassette file internal format 328, 399
Amplitude envelope 184, 244 Cassette file system 188, 390
Analogue input connections 467 Cassette leads 12
Analogue to digital converter 202, 426, 429, Cassette loading 292
467 Cassette motor control 390
AND 205 Cassette motor relay on/off 416, 433
Animation 169 Cassette recordings 34, 390
Appending programs 402 Catalogue 391
Application note 436 Catalogue of cassette tape 391
Arc-cosine 201 Centronics printer 404
Arc-sine 209 CHAIN 36, 216, 292
Arc-tangent 210 Channels when using files 191
Arrays 120, 236 Character set 486
ASC 65, 207 Character – user defined 172, 386, 429
ASCII 64, 207, 490 CHR$ 65, 217
ASN 209 Circuit board layout 498
Assembly language CALL 214, 446 Circuit diagrams 503
Assembly language DIM 236, 444 CLEAR 218
Assembly language examples 420 Clear graphics window 60, 220
Assembly language introduction 442 Clearing the screen 220, 381
Assembly language monitor 411 Clearing text window 60, 221
Assembly language OPT 314 CLG 60, 220, 381
Assembly language USR 371, 445 CLI 463
ATN 210 Clock 84, 364, 459
Attack rate 184, 244, 461 Clock program 131
AUTO 53, 211 CLOSE# 219
Automatic line numbers 211 CLS 60, 221, 381
Autopaging 38, 381 COLOUR 55, 60, 222, 262
Auto repeat of keys 9, 425 Commands 21
Command line interpreter 463
B Command mode 29
Background colours 55, 60, 162 Comments in assembly language 449
Bad program 475 Comments in BASIC programs 53, 334
Base value of function keys 439 Common variables 66
Baud rate selection on cassette 400, 434 Concatenation of strings 64, 361
Baud rate selection on RS423 424 Connectors 499
BGET# 212 Contents of memory 411
Bitwise AND 205 Control codes 378, 490
Boolean types 259 CONTROL key 18
BPUT# 213 Co-ordinates on screen 56
Break key 17, 142 COPY key 30, 82, 422
BRIAN 48 Correcting errors 29
BRK 464 COS 225
Buffer flushing Cosine 225
all 426 COUNT 226
input 426, 427 CP/M 473
keyboard 426 CRTC register access 385, 437
sound 427 CTRL U 80
Buffer get character 430, 435 Cursor control codes 75, 77, 382

513
Cursor editing 30 E
Cursor off 77 Econet file system 400, 472
Cursor position 323, 375, 432 Editing a line 29
Editing keys 30, 82, 422
D Editing key produces codes 82, 422
Data 123, 126, 227 Effects 418
Data files on cassette 395, 396 ELSE 241
Data Logging 395 Enable screen output 380
Date 131 END 242, 395, 429
Decimal places 70, 325 End of file 251, 395, 429
Decimal point 21 ENDPROC 245
DEF 230 Entry point in assembler 450
Defining characters 174, 384, 427 ENVELOPE 183, 244, 461
DEG 234 EOF# 249, 397, 429
Degrees from radians 234 EOR 250
Delete current entry 80, 383 Erasing the screen 60, 220, 381
Delete key 17 ERL 148, 251
Delete whole line 31, 53, 235 ERR 147, 252
Demonstration programs Error codes 147, 252, 482
Age 78 Error handling 147, 309, 338, 397, 434
BL and Lotus 128 Error handling in assembler 314, 448
Brian 48 Error line 148, 251
Call 446 Error message 474
Div and Mod 130 Error numbers 397, 482
Double height teletext 50 Errors, correcting 29
Draw 83 Escape acknowledge 429
Drinks 190 Escape detected (assembler) 466
Fourpnt 44 ESCAPE error code 476
FX Demo 420, 433 Escape key 17, 428
Geography quiz 228 Escape reset 428
GOTO 32 Escape set 428
Hand Mouth Ear 266 EVAL 253
Hangman 138 Evaluate a string 253
Hanoi 329 Event enable 425
Hours, Mins, Secs 131 Event disable 426
Hypno 105 Event handling 464
H2 74 Exclusive OR in BASIC 250
Leap years 134 EXP 255
Lunar Landing 176 Expansion bus 435, 473
Man 171 Expansion options 471
Month 126 Exponent 21
Monthly 40 EXT# 256
People and arrays 124
Persian 46 F
Polygon 39 FALSE 89, 100, 257, 369
Quadrat 42 Fault handling 464
React 102 Fields 67
Read screen character 432 Field Sync 427, 465
Reverse string 136 Field width 67, 70
Rocket 173 Filenames 397
Role 75 Files 188, 451
Sine 49 File pointer 330
Sine in teletext 157 File system 400
Sqr root 47 Filling an area with colour 162
Stars and stripes 93 Fire button on games paddle 203, 429, 467
Sums in 15 seconds 87 Flashing colours 165, 424
Tartan 45 Flash rate selection 424
Telephone book 193 Floppy disc interface 400, 471
Temperature 115 Flush keyboard buffer 426, 427
Too late 81 Flush in put buffer 426, 427
Windows 61 Flush VDU queue 438
FN 259

514
FOR…NEXT 91, 94, 260, 305, 356 Keyboard auto repeat 9, 425
Foreground colours 55, 60, 160 Keyboard testing for BASIC 273
FOURPNT 44 Keyword definitions 197
Free space left 414 Keywords – details 197
FRED 436 Keywords – summary 484
Functions 110, 230, 259
f0 function keys 22, 141, 427, 439 L
FX call summary 418 Leads for cassette 12
Leap year calculation 134
G LEFT$ 135, 283
Games paddles 202, 429, 467 Length of a file 256
GCOL 56, 167, 262 Length of a program 414
Geography quiz 228 Length of a string 136, 285
GET 263 LET 25, 287
Get character from buffer 81, 273, 430, 435 Line numbers 28
GET$ 264 LIST 288
Global variables 107 LISTO 94, 290
GOSUB 113, 265 List options 94, 290
GOTO 117, 268 List processing 413
Graphics 55, 160 LN 291
Graphics origin 388 LOAD 292
Graphics planning sheet 494 LOADGO (CHAIN) 36, 216, 394
Graphics windows 57, 385 Loading machine code 393
Loading programs 34, 393, 394
H LOCAL variables 107, 294
Hard reset 142 LOG 295
Hexadecimal 71 Logarithm 295
High order address 431 Logical colours 164
HIMEM 270, 414 LOMEM 296, 414
HYPNO 105 Loops 86, 414
Lunar lander game 177
I
IF…THEN…ELSE 98, 241, 272, 365 M
Indirection operators 409, 450 Machine code 442
INKEY 81, 275, 430, 435 Machine operating system 452
INKEY$ 267 Man shaped character 171
INPUT 78, 277 Mantissa 63, 66
INPUT# 279 Memory expansion 473
INPUT LINE 278 Memory maps 500, 501, 502
INPUT line 461 Memory pointers 270, 290, 317, 366, 414,
Input/Output devices 435, 469 431
Input stream selection 421 Memory – saving 195
INSTR 136, 280 Merging programs 402
Instruction set for 6502 507 MID$ 135, 298
INT 282 Mistake 478
Integer arithmetic 130, 238, 299 MOVE 56, 303
Integer variables 65, 410 MODE 55, 160, 222, 301
Internal file format 328, 399 MODE7 150
Internal format in memory Monitor, colour 471
of BASIC 484 Monitor lead 7
of variables 63, 66 MONTHLY 40
Interrupts 440, 441, 466 Motor on/off 433, 463
Interval timer 460, 466 MOVE 56, 303
Inverse colour 167 Multiple statement lines 54, 98
IRQ handling 440, 441, 466 Music 11
Musical notes 182
J
Jim 436 N
Joysticks 202, 429, 467 NETwork file system 400, 472
NEW 304, 307
K NEXT 91, 94, 260, 305
Keyboard 15 NMI 467
Noise generator 348

515
NOT 306 connections 404
Note synchronisation 187 drivers 408
Number to string conversion 137, 358 on/off 288, 407, 422, 423
Numeric accuracy 65 parallel 404
Numeric range 65 serial 404
Numeric variables 24, 65
Q
O Quadrat 42
OLD 307 Query indirection operator 409
ON ERROR 117, 308 Qume printer 407
ON GOSUB 308
ON GOTO 117, 308 R
OPENIN 311 RAD 331
OPENOUT 313 Radians from degrees 331
Opening file for input 311 RAM 414
Opening file for output 313 Random numbers 84, 342
Operating system call summary 452 Range numeric 65
Operating system statements 416 REACT 102
Operator precedence 144 READ 123, 126, 332
OPT 314, 447 Read key 263, 81, 273, 430
OR 316 Read screen character 432
Origin move 388 Read screen point 322, 462
OSARGS 454 Real variables 464
OSASCI 457 Recording programs 34
OSBGET 453 Red keys 22, 141, 427, 439
OSBPUT 453 Relay on/off 433, 437
OSBYTE calls 418 REM 53, 334
OSCLI 463 Remarks in assembly language 449
OSF1LE 454 Remarks in programs 53, 334
OSFIND 451 Remote control tape recorder 437, 463
OSGBPB 453 RENUMBER 32, 54, 335
OSNEWL 457 REPEAT…UNTIL 87, 337
OSRDCH 456 Report error 338
OSWORD 458 Reserved words 484
OSWRCH 408, 457 RESET 142
Output stream select 422 Resident integer variables 66
RESTORE 129, 339
P Return key 9, 17
PAGE 317, 414 Return statement 340
Page mode 38, 381 RIGHT$ 135, 341
Panic button 29 RND 84, 342
Parameters 105 Rocket graphics shape 174
Parameter block in CALL 214, 446 ROM file system 401, 472
PEEK 409 RS232C printers 406
PERSIAN 46 RS423 as input 421, 435
PI 318 RS423 connections 406
Pitch envelope 183, 244 RUN 343
Pling indirection operator 409
PLOT statement 319 S
PLOT a point 169 SAVE 344
POINT 322 Saving
Pointers to memory 366, 296, 270, 317, 414 a section of memory 392
POKE 409 BASIC programs 34, 344, 391
POLYGON 39 data 330
POS 323 machine code 392
Precedence of operators 144 memory space 194, 359
PRESTEL file system 401, 472 single character 215
PRINT 324 Save format 330, 399
PRINT# 328 Screen editor 29
Printer on/off 288, 407, 422 Screen size 55
Printer Scroll mode 38, 381
choosing 471 Second processor 473

516
Sequential access files 188, 451 Triangles in graphics 162
Serial port 406, 424, 441 TRUE 89, 100, 369
Serial printer connections 406 TUBE® 473
Serial ULA bit meanings 437 Tuning a TV 7
SHEILA 436 Types of variables 65
SHIFT key 15
SHIFT lock 17 U
Sign of a number 345 Unplot a point 169
Significant figures 65 UNTIL 87, 370
SIN 346 User defined characters 171, 386, 427
SINE program 49, 157 User defined function keys 22, 141, 439
SGN 345 User input/output port address 437
Sockets on computer 499 User port 410
Soft reset 142 User supplied printer driver 408
SOUND 180, 347, 461 USR 371, 445
Spaces – printing on screen 360
SPC 354 V
Speeding up programs 195 VAL 372
SQR ROOT 335 Variables 24, 62, 120
SQR 47 VDU 74, 373, 377
Squares in graphics 161 VDU queue flush 440, 373
Statements 21 VDU summary 378
Star commands 400, 416 VDU5 50, 74, 379
Stars and Stripes 93 VDU19 164, 223, 382
STEP 356 Version number of operating system 421
STOP 357 VIA user port address 437
STR$ 135, 358 Voice synthesis unit 472
STRING$ 137, 359 Volume settings 12, 390
String concatenation 63, 359 VPOS 375
String functions 110, 135 V24 port 408
String indirection operator 409
String-length of 136, 285 W
String-multiple copies of 137, 359 Wait for field sync 427
String-searching for one in another 136, 280 Welcome cassette 12
String-to-number conversion 137, 372 Whole number arithmetic 130, 238, 299
String variables 63, 66, 135, 359 WIDTH 376
Structures in BASIC 86, 413 Windows 57, 381, 385, 387
Sub-routines in BASIC 113, 267
Synchronisation of sounds 158 X
Syntax explanation 198 XY cursor addressing 73

T Z
TAB 72, 360 Z80 473
Tabulation 72
TAN 362 1MHz expansion bus 436, 473
Tangent 362 6522 addresses 437
Tape file system 190, 390, 400 16032 473
TARTAN 44
Telesoftware 472 + addition 21
Telephone book program 193 + concatenation of strings 64, 359
Teletext 50, 150, 439, 471 * multiplication 21
Teletext character set 18 * star commands 400, 416
Teletext control codes 50, 150, 439, 486 *TAPE 400, 434
Teletext file system 400 *TV 23, 435
Temperature conversion program 115 *EXEC 394, 402
Text planning sheets 493 *MOTOR 417, 433
Text windows 58 *OPT 397, 434
THEN 363 *FX 418
TIME 84, 86, 364 *RUN 392
Tokens 484 *CAT 391
TOP 366, 416 *KEY 141, 416, 439
TRACE 367 *LOAD 393

517
*SAVE 392 ^ exponentiation 21
*FX3 408, 422 () brackets 144
*FX4 82, 422 [] square brackets 443
*FX5 407, 423 < 144
*FX6 407, 424 <= 144
*FX7 408, 424 = 144
> 144
: multiple statement 54, 98 >= 144
; in PRINT 28 “ quotation marks 324
; in VDU 386 ‘ apostrophe 324
? Indirection operator 409 f 30, 82, 422
! Indirection operator 409 g 30, 82, 422
$ Indirection operator 409 h 30, 82, 422
$ for string 63, 66, 361 i 30, 82, 422
~ PRINT in hex 18, 408 | vertical bar 18, 22, 23
& Hex number 71, 409 ¦ vertical bar 18, 22, 23
@% PRINT format 70 ½ 18
# immediate 442, 449 ¼ 18
/ division 21 ¾ 18
\ comment in assembler 449

518
519