Received: from netcom.netcom.com by busop.cit.wayne.edu (Mercury 1.0); Fri, 11 Jun 93 18:00:40 EST Received: by netcom.netcom.com (5.65/SMI-4.1/Netcom) id AA15735; Fri, 11 Jun 93 15:06:13 -0700 Date: Fri, 11 Jun 93 15:06:13 -0700 From: dash@netcom.com (David Ashley) Message-Id: <9306112206.AA15735@netcom.netcom.com> To: carl@busop.cit.wayne.edu Subject: Re: Availability of Genesis Cross development system on Amiga Genesis Development System Frequently Asked Questions Q:What is the Genesis Development System? A:The GDS is a cross development system that lets you develop games and other software to run on the Sega Genesis. The system consists of a 4 inch by 8 inch printed circuit board that plugs in the cartridge slot of the Genesis, and has a cable going to the parallel port of the host computer. A complete software set is included consisting of an integrated editor/assembler, a stand alone assembler, a symbolic debugger, a music and sound effect editor, a utility to break standard 16 color IFF images into tiles to be downloaded to the Sega, and other files. Q:Does it come with any source files? A:You get source to the music editor, source to a Z80 program to run on the genesis to interpret the music files, source to a demo program that plays music and has sprites bouncing around behind the Sega logo, source to the editor, source to the download utilities. Complete source is provided on communicating between the host machine and the Genesis. Q:How much memory does it have on the board? A:It comes with 1.25 megabytes of memory. 1 meg is intended for program development and .25 megs is intended for variable storage for the debugger and scratch memory Q:Can you program CD games with it? A:No, unless you were to write an emulator for the CD rom that could send data over the normal cable from the host machine. Q:Does it include technical specifications for the Genesis? A:Yes, it comes with descriptions of the memory map, graphics registers, the Z80's functions, reading the joysticks, sprites, scrolling, tiles, the DMA copier, the audio chips-in short everything required to program the genesis. Also I provide a working demo with source. Q:Is this proprietary information stolen from Sega? A:No, the information on the Genesis came from reverse engineering it, completely independent of Sega. There are no copyright violations in the purchase or sale of this development system, nor is there anything illegal about any use of it. Q:How does it work? A:The board has ROMs on it that contain the monitor and debugger that runs on the Genesis. When the Genesis is reset, the ROMs take over and wait for commands to come from the host machine-commands like download bytes, send bytes back, set up registers, define a symbol, or enter the interactive debugger. When in the interactive debugger the host machine acts as a terminal, and characters are sent over the cable. Full 68000 debugging is possible, including disassembly, single step, register view and modify, breakpoints, expression evaluation, memory view, modify, search and copy, symbol definition, memory compare. There is also a z80 disassembler built in. Q:How does the editor work? A:From within the editor through single keys you can assemble your file, move the cursor to errors, enter the debugger on the Genesis (editor becomes terminal), download code and data, download code only (for faster development). The editor also has a powerful command language for text manipulation. Q:What about the assembler? A:The assembler is a full macro 68000 assembler, and includes the full 8080 and parts of the Z80 instruction set. It generates symbol table information that can be downloaded to the Genesis to allow for symbolic debugging. It is quite fast-on a standard Amiga about 40,000 lines/minute, on a 68030 at 33 Mhz it runs at about 220,000 lines/minute. Q:Can I program in C? A:If you have a C compiler that can generate a binary, you can download it to the Genesis, but it wouldn't be as convenient. This system is geared towards assembly language development, where it really shines. Q:How do I make artwork? Is there a sprite editor? A:Originally I planned on including a simple graphic editor, but I found that no one used it-instead they used Dpaint. The best way is to use dpaint to create graphics in lo-res 16 color mode, then to use the utility I provide to converte them to raw data to be sent to the Sega. Animation can be done within Dpaint. Unfortunately there is no editor for manipulating giant figures made out of sprites, but in principle it would be possible to do. So probably you will use dpaint or some other painting program to create the artwork. A:Can you backup existing cartridges like the game backup systems? Q:No-this system is intended for game development. However if you were able to obtain ROM images, they can be downloaded just like original code, and they would run on the system, keeping in mind the 1.25 megabyte memory limit to the board. When running a ROM under the system, you can tinker with memory, modify gameplay, add lives, etc. You can do all the normal debugging functions, like single step, breakpoints, etc, to see how the program is working. Making a cartridge reader requires some hardware expertise, but is fairly straightforward. I can provide information on how to do it. Q:How fast are downloads? A:Data is transfered a little over 30K/second unless the host machine is old or slow. That rate is valid for an accelerated Amiga or a 486, and probably a 386 as well. Q:What host machines is this available on? A:Currently the complete system is available on the Amiga. With the purchase of a bi-directional parallel port that is PSII compatible the system can work with the IBM, but the software has not been ported completely yet. From the IBM you can enter the interactive debugger, but the editor/assembler has not been ported. Q:Why should I buy your system and not go through Sega? A:If you can get Sega to listen to you and you can afford to pay $5000 for their system, then there isn't much advantage to buying from me. It's been my experience that Sega is very hard to deal with, and unless you're a big company they will ignore you. If you buy this system, you don't need to sign away your future, you don't need to sign any non-disclosures. You immediately have the ability to create software for the Genesis. If you create a game, you can then sell it outright or attempt to publish it yourself-never having to pay Sega a dime, as they provided you with nothing and you have no agreement with them. This system gives you options. Moreover it may be a better system to develop on that the one Sega provides, but I don't know for sure as I've never seen theirs-I've just heard rumors. Q:How long has this system been available? A:It first became available in April 1991. Q:Have any cartridges that are already out there been developed with this? A:To the best of my knowledge, no. Q:Why is that? A:I don't know. I provide everything you need to make games for the Genesis. Q:How many have already been sold? A:I've sold around 10 units so far, although I've done no advertising other than leave a brochure at the 1991 Game Developer's conference. I haven't really been serious about marketing it in the last two years. Q:How much does it cost? A:The cost is $1000, and the full software is available only on the Amiga. Q:Will it be ported to other platforms? A:If there is enough demand it will be ported to the IBM. I have no plans to port it to the Macintosh. The problem there is the Mac has no 8 bit bi- directional parallel port other than the SCSI, and I don't know if the board can connect to a SCSI. What is needed are 8 IO lines, and one line coming from each machine and going to the other, and ground of course. Also the Mac is expensive, but the IBM is cheap cheap cheap... Q:Are there dealer discounts? Or if I want to buy several at once would it be cheaper? A:Yes-if you buy three the price is $700 per unit. If you buy more we can work out a deal. Q:If I buy the system for the Amiga, how much would it cost to upgrade to the IBM when and if it becomes available? Would the system work on the IBM then or would I have to modify it? A:That would be free if you cover postage. Also EPROM support is free if you send back your old EPROMS and cover postage. The board would work with an IBM providing you have a bi-directional parallel port. One is available from Fry's electronics for $59. The board connects to the host machine through a DB25 connector-the host machine must be female. There is no internal connection necessary. Q:What about technical support? How about software upgrades? A:You can send me email and I will answer questions and help solve your problems. If I'm home you can call me. Concerning software support: I want you to be happy with this. If you want some program written, and it seems like a good idea, chances are I'll do it for free and include it with the system. Currently if the software seems sparse it's because no one has complained so I guess I include enough. There's no point in writing software if it isn't going to be used. In any case software upgrades are free unless it's some major upgrade like including a C compiler-I don't believe in selling something for hundreds of dollars then nickel and diming you on upgrades. Q:Do we need to pay you any royalty on games developed with the system? A:No. Once you bought the system you can do anything you want with it-except copy it and sell it yourself... Q:What about those pictures in the National Enquirer? A:I don't know what you're talking about. Q:How can I contact you? A:Send me email or call- my number is 818-584-0357, dash@netcom.com