https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/ncot-technology--7419152enLeisureCopyright juytrehttps://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/d267174fec15b61df3a07853c72a19b9.jpghttps://www.spreaker.com/podcast/ncot-technology--7419152Tue, 29 Sep 2026 18:35:43 +0000juytrejuytrefeeds@spreaker.comEver wondered what\'s actually happening beneath your code? Welcome to NCOT Technology, where we strip away the abstractions to explore the \"how\" and \"why\" of computing. From building 3D engines without a GPU to wiring up binary adders and...false289aeee5-b16e-5dcb-8775-ed072a8c67f5episodichttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/your-cpu-can-t-tell-code-from-data-inside-the-von-neumann-architecture--75436911https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035431Mon, 31 Aug 2026 17:00:19 +0000juytreThis video explains the Von Neumann architecture and demonstrates, with real BBC BASIC and C code, how computers fundamentally cannot tell the difference between data and executable instructions. Join Patreon : https://patreon.com/ncot_tech One time...541falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-let-chatgpt-teach-me-embedded-programming-it-went-badly-uperfect-be156mf-monitor--75436927https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035439Thu, 25 Jun 2026 17:00:08 +0000juytreGet your own UPERFECT monitor using the following link https://shop.uperfect.com/4dNpTOl Use the following offer codes for a discount ncotech50, $50off for order amount above $300 ncotech60, $60off for order amount above $400 I picked up a Cheap...1401falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/everything-in-doom-is-a-lie-the-genius-behind-the-legend--75436924https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035440Thu, 11 Jun 2026 17:00:02 +0000juytreSummer Living Starts with FlexiSpot – [https://go.flexispot.co.uk/ncot_tech-deals] Get £170 off the E7 Pro Standing Desk Now – [https://go.flexispot.co.uk/ncot_tech-e7pro] DOOM ran on a 386 with 4MB of RAM and convinced an entire generation they were...1544falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-floating-point-lie-every-programmer-discovers-too-late--75436913https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035435Sun, 31 May 2026 17:30:28 +0000juytreWhy does Python tell you that 0.1 + 0.2 = 0.30000000000000004? The answer is IEEE 754 - the floating-point standard baked into every CPU on the planet. In this video we go under the hood: from the limits of fixed-point arithmetic, through scientific...1017falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-computer-has-no-idea-what-addition-is-here-s-how-it-fakes-it--75436916https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035426Sun, 24 May 2026 16:54:58 +0000juytreHow does a computer add two numbers — not with code, but with actual electronics? In this video we build the circuits that make addition happen at the hardware level, starting from the simplest possible adding circuit and working up to something that...1008falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/your-cpu-has-never-seen-a-minus-sign-here-s-the-trick-it-uses-instead--75436919https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035406Sun, 17 May 2026 17:00:08 +0000juytreWhat happens when a computer encounters -1? The answer is weirder — and more elegant — than you\'d expect. In this video we dig into how computers actually represent negative numbers in binary. We start with the obvious-but-broken approach...885falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/your-cpu-has-no-concept-of-3d-here-s-how-it-fakes-it--75436943https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035418Tue, 31 Mar 2026 16:00:44 +0000juytreSupport the channel, visit patreon.com/ncot_tech Every frame of a 3D game you\'ve ever seen ultimately reduces to pixels written into memory. No matter how fast the GPU or how impressive the graphics, it all comes down to plotting pixels on the...1436falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/can-i-make-a-neon-world-using-only-opengl--75436971https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035395Sun, 15 Mar 2026 16:59:28 +0000juytreSupport the channel, visit patreon.com/ncot_tech In this video I build a classic vapourwave scene from scratch using C++ and raw OpenGL. No game engines, no shortcuts—just direct graphics programming. The scene features the iconic retro grid floor,...2171falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/3d-graphics-without-opengl-or-directx--75436960https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035415Mon, 26 Jan 2026 18:23:41 +0000juytreThis video is my journey through learning how early games drew 3D graphics before 3D APIs and modern GPUs existed. In fact, before old 3D APIs like OpenGL and old GPUs existed, too. Just me, the computer and some code and maths. No 3D hardware or 3D...1891falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/how-retro-games-built-their-worlds-tile-maps-in-c-from-scratch--75436939https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035419Sun, 04 Jan 2026 17:20:23 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I create a tilemap system. The tilemap system is able to load tiles drawn in Aseprite, load a tile map...1467falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-built-a-game-engine-in-c-and-made-something-playable--75436922https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035432Thu, 04 Dec 2025 19:25:30 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I actually make a game! For once I actually finish something. Support the channel...1273falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/how-i-built-a-joystick-interface-and-made-every-mistake--75436931https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035429Thu, 13 Nov 2025 20:17:01 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I make a joystick work by building a joystick interface for the Agon Light. Then I program it to add it...1605falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/collision-detection-doesn-t-need-to-be-complicated--75436928https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035403Thu, 30 Oct 2025 19:17:14 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I get thoroughly distracted and accidentally make a Pong style game idea while figuring out how to add...1540falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-threw-away-my-game-engine-and-rebuilt-it-here-s-why--75436978https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035438Mon, 13 Oct 2025 17:00:58 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I throw away a ton of code and replace it with a shiny new Entity Component System. Blog Post -...2164falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/state-machines-how-to-engineer-better-software--75436935https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035414Mon, 22 Sep 2025 17:40:36 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I attempt to put the \"engineering\" back in \"software engineer\". Instead of blindly hacking away at my...1140falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/parallel-port-to-speaker-ms-dos-audio-trick--75436945https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035396Sat, 30 Aug 2025 16:01:29 +0000juytreTo try everything Brilliant has to offer—free— visit https://brilliant.org/NCOTTechnology/ . You’ll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription. Support me on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ncot_tech Credits ------------ This video was...1380falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-mistake-every-programmer-makes--75436926https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035409Tue, 12 Aug 2025 16:23:10 +0000juytreSupport the channel ------------------------------ https://patreon.com/ncot_tech https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech In this video, I dive headfirst into coding a tilemap engine for my game — no plan, just pure momentum. Everything seems to go great… until I...914falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-pc-speaker-shouldn-t-sound-this-good--75436983https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035408Sat, 26 Jul 2025 16:01:02 +0000juytreTo try everything Brilliant has to offer—free—for a full 30 days, visit https://brilliant.org/NCOTTechnology/ . You’ll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription. Support me on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ncot_tech Source code -...2700falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/c-programming-a-roguelike-the-dungeon-problem--75436975https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035430Sat, 12 Jul 2025 15:29:42 +0000juytreLet\'s try to write a Roguelike game in C for the Agon Light. This is the first video. I explore how the original Rogue and similar games like Nethack generate their own dungeons, then adapt code that draws mazes so my dungeons are a bit more...2021falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/how-programmers-created-hypnotic-visual-effects-on-1990s-pcs--75436964https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035402Sat, 28 Jun 2025 23:00:22 +0000juytreTo try everything Brilliant has to offer—free—for a full 30 days, visit https://brilliant.org/NCOTTechnology/ . You’ll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription. Support me on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ncot_tech Source code -...2413falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/can-you-make-something-good-on-weak-hardware-i-tried--75436981https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035421Tue, 10 Jun 2025 19:47:04 +0000juytreDiscuss the video here! - https://github.com/ncot-tech/community/discussions/2 Source Code here! - https://github.com/ncot-tech/agon-adventure Support the channel ------------------------------ https://patreon.com/ncot_tech...2431falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/game-engine-from-scratch-in-c-when-everything-goes-wrong--75436949https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035397Mon, 21 Apr 2025 07:03:44 +0000juytreWelcome to the next edition of Gamedev The Hard Way, my attempt at writing a game from scratch for the Agon Light, using nothing but C. This time I attempt to program some basic enemy behaviours to test out my game\'s entity handling code. This is...1625falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/mode-x-the-graphics-trick-ibm-never-authorized--75436955https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035423Sat, 29 Mar 2025 22:55:38 +0000juytreGithub: https://github.com/ncot-tech/MS-DOS-Mode-X-Animation Blog Post: https://ncot.uk/projects/dosdev/mode-x-madness/ Support the channel! https://www.patreon.com/c/ncot_tech Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio After learning about Mode 13h last...1577falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/drawing-pixels-directly-to-video-ram-what-could-go-wrong--75436987https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035427Mon, 10 Mar 2025 21:17:38 +0000juytreSupport the channel - https://www.patreon.com/c/ncot_tech Visit the website - https://ncot.uk Let\'s move into the 1990s and draw some graphics! I\'ve got a whole 320x200 pixel screen, 256 colours and direct access to the video card. No APIs, no...2786falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/building-games-in-c-design-and-code-from-zero--75436984https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035399Sat, 08 Feb 2025 18:06:13 +0000juytreSupport the channel - https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Let\'s continue trying to design and make a retro computer game from scratch, in C, for the Agon Light. This time I explain my game design and what I want the game to be, and then walk through the...2391falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/retro-ms-dos-coding-recreating-the-iconic-award-bios-screen--75436936https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035436Mon, 06 Jan 2025 20:40:24 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Read the longer blog post: https://ncot.uk/projects/dosdev/lets-recreate-a-90s-pc-bios-boot-screen/ Because why not, it looks simpler than it really is and we’ll get to fall down a rabbit hole trying...1096falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/nostalgic-dos-development-part-1-freedos-djgpp-rhide-and-other-madness--75436992https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035404Mon, 25 Nov 2024 22:06:11 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Modern programming is too abstract, let\'s get down to basics and do some programming in DOS using C. You can join in too! In this video I explain how to set up 86Box with FreeDOS, and then how to...2990falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/agon-light-game-engine-tilemap-system-collision-detection--75436957https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035416Thu, 24 Oct 2024 14:32:06 +0000juytreIn this video, I took the next step in my game development for the Agon Light by building a tilemap system and integrating it with the existing physics engine from the previous video. The tilemap, a classic way to structure game levels, includes solid...2007falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/writing-a-rigid-body-physics-system-without-engines--75436989https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035412Sat, 07 Sep 2024 18:47:53 +0000juytreJoin me on a journey as I attempt to write a game for my Agon Light using nothing but raw C programming. In this second episode I figure out how to make a very basic 2D rigid body physics system work. It doesn\'t matter if you don\'t have an Agon...2397falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/writing-a-game-the-hard-way-from-scratch-using-c-1--75436979https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035425Sat, 17 Aug 2024 17:00:06 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Join me on a journey as I attempt to write a game for my Agon Light using nothing but raw C programming. In this first episode I figure out what kind of game to make, look at some shareware games of...2060falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-built-an-nes-tilemap-system-in-c-here-s-how--75436941https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035417Mon, 27 May 2024 15:08:59 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ncot.uk/support Github: https://github.com/ncot-tech/agon-graphics In this video, I explore how early computers used clever tricks to create moving graphics, focusing on how Nintendo developed tile-based games on the NES....1136falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/displaying-multiple-bitmaps-on-agon-light-with-vdp--75436969https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035405Sun, 12 May 2024 08:22:13 +0000juytreGet the code: https://github.com/ncot-tech/agon-graphics Support the channel: https://ncot.uk/support Visit the website: https://ncot.uk In this video I look at how you can program the Agon Light to display bitmap images using C. I go through how to...1670falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-built-mystify-starfield-on-the-agon-light--75436986https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035433Fri, 26 Apr 2024 22:30:02 +0000juytreSupport the Channel - https://ncot.uk/support Get the code for this episode - https://github.com/ncot-tech/agon-graphics I\'m learning how to program the Agon Light, and as a project thought it\'d be fun to try and program two of the classic Windows...2269falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-strangest-things-developers-buried-in-languages--75436921https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035437Sun, 31 Mar 2024 12:05:16 +0000juytreEaster eggs are usually hidden inside our games and software, but did you know there are some hidden inside the tools and languages used to make that software? Come with me on a fun Easter diversion while we eat our bodyweight in chocolate, and look...510falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/generating-infinite-pi-digits-without-overflow--75436915https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035411Wed, 13 Mar 2024 19:39:43 +0000juytreLet\'s celebrate #piday in this appropriately short video by writing some #python programs to calculate Pi. The first method uses something called the Gauss-Legendre method. It works by iteratively refining an approximation of Pi, generating the...195falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/agon-light-2-c-programming-better-keyboard-routines-joystick-ports--75436985https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035422Sat, 24 Feb 2024 15:13:25 +0000juytreDive into the exciting world of DIY hardware hacking. Join in as I explore joystick integration, keyboard inputs, and serial debugging using the versatile Agon Light platform. Delve into the technical intricacies of GPIO pins, assembly language...2136falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/chaos-to-order-inside-cellular-automata--75436918https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035428Sun, 28 Jan 2024 16:59:53 +0000juytreToday, we\'re diving into the world of cellular automata. A digital playground of sorts where simple rules lead to astonishing complexity. where order can arise from chaos and collapse back into chaos just as quickly. First we have a look at One...795falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/agon-light-c-programming-an-introduction--75436914https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035441Sun, 14 Jan 2024 21:15:42 +0000juytreInstead of bashing away in BASIC, it\'s possible to do some coding in C on the Agon Light. Let\'s find out how in this introduction to an ongoing series where I figure out the Agon hardware and work on a game. I have no idea what game I want to make,...512falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-obfuscated-c-contest-is-insane--75436932https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035424Tue, 31 Oct 2023 18:03:58 +0000juytreIt\'s Halloween, programming is an art form and there\'s a darker side to it. Come with me in this fun video as I explore several languages that hate you and are trying to make your life difficult, before we go off down the rabbit hole and find some...792falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/forth-better-than-basic--75436929https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035394Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:33:40 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Let\'s look at FORTH, the obscure stack based programming language that nobody seems to use. Or do they? After getting an Agon Light Z80 computer and discovering it can do things other than run BBC...870falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/sinclair-basic-vs-bbc-basic-how-to-fit-an-entire-devkit-inside-64k--75436958https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035442Sun, 01 Oct 2023 19:19:12 +0000juytreJust how did 8 bit computers like the ZX Spectrum or BBC Micro manage to cram an entire programming language into their tiny systems, and still have space for the user\'s programs? Let\'s compare two systems of the time - the low end ZX Spectrum that...1321falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-internet-mid-90-s-web-culture--75436963https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035407Fri, 08 Sep 2023 16:00:57 +0000juytreLet\'s jack into the \'net, surf the Information Superhighway and go visit the global village in this video taking a look at mid 90\'s Internet culture. Come and see what all the fuss was about before the dot-com bubble even began and people were...1402falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/zilog-z80-deep-dive-how-does-it-work--75436920https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035420Fri, 25 Aug 2023 14:53:42 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Let\'s go right inside a CPU and watch it execute code at the transistor level! As a programmer I have often wondered exactly what the CPU is doing when I give it some code. Being a computer science...905falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/calculators-reverse-polish-notation-and-the-birth-of-computing--75436997https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035434Fri, 11 Aug 2023 18:52:18 +0000juytreWhat happens when you set out to build a pocket calculator? Well in this case it turns out you also accidentally invent desktop computers, and spawn a bunch of CPUs that are still being used today. Follow along as we go through the thoroughly bizarre...833falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/sorting-data-the-problem-that-built-computers--75436956https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035401Fri, 28 Jul 2023 16:00:41 +0000juytreHow did the 1880 US Census and the end of World War 2 lead to the invention of the computer? What was it that kickstarted the Information Age? Come with me as we find out how the need to count everyone in 1800s America directly lead to the modern...1283falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/wang-tiles-the-mathematical-trick-behind-perfect-textures--75436912https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035400Fri, 14 Jul 2023 15:10:32 +0000juytreUnderstand the concept of tiling a plane by arranging regular tiles in a systematic manner, creating visually pleasing patterns. Additionally, get introduced to Wang tiles, a fascinating method that employs specific rules for tile placement, resulting...344falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/diy-solar-pv-installation-can-it-save-me-money--75436933https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297612319035398Tue, 16 May 2023 19:28:06 +0000juytreCan I put a solar panel on the roof of my shed and use it to power my server farm, or will I just waste all my money? Our energy prices are ridiculous and even taking into account recent \"world events\" I find it hard to understand why electricity...767falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/hacking-your-way-to-a-smarter-home-integrating-smart-sockets-with-home-assistant--75436948https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056691Sat, 18 Mar 2023 19:40:35 +0000juytreIn this video, you\'ll learn how to take control of your smart sockets by replacing the firmware with Tasmota, a popular open-source alternative to the stock firmware that many smart home devices come with. By the end of this video, you\'ll be able...1010falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/bbc-basic-in-riscos-on-a-raspberry-pi-is-really-cool--75436947https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056659Sun, 12 Feb 2023 16:26:05 +0000juytreThe Raspberry Pi, Acorn Archimedes, and the BBC Micro have played a significant role in shaping the microcomputer industry. They were designed to be affordable and accessible to the general public and educational institutions, with the goal of...1058falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/samsung-sdp-860-document-presenter-thing-vlog-1--75436930https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056654Thu, 02 Feb 2023 22:45:04 +0000juytreI\'ve been buying odd things off eBay again. I figured that since I needed to test out this document camera thing for some other videos, I may as well record my initial reactions, unboxing and thoughts while trying to work out what it does. I bought...751falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/2022-review-and-beyond--75436917https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056667Sun, 01 Jan 2023 19:00:18 +0000juytreLet’s briefly look back at last year and see what things were like, then look forward to the coming year and what I want to achieve. I did this last year too, and I’ve just been reading that. So previously I was quite pleased at hitting 1000...711falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-3-000-brick-phone-mobile-phones-in-the-1980s--75436982https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056666Sat, 29 Oct 2022 19:27:29 +0000juytreLet\'s look at one of the world\'s first mobile phones - the Motorola 8500x - released in the mid 1980s for £3,000. That\'s over £7,000 today! In this video I\'ll explain what the 1980s was like as far as phones went, and we\'ll look inside this...1923falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/dma-direct-memory-access-on-the-zx-spectrum-next--75436923https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056673Sat, 24 Sep 2022 17:00:08 +0000juytreThis is the third video in a short series looking at some of the more advanced parts of the Spectrum Next. If you\'ve not seen the others, go watch them after this one. In this video we\'re looking at how to program the DMA controller in the Spectrum...679falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-interrupt-trick-that-made-budget-computers-work--75436940https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056652Thu, 11 Aug 2022 14:20:13 +0000juytreHow clever engineers made a cheap computer powerful How do you make an underpowered 8 bit CPU seem a bit more capable than it really is? Interrupts! that mechanism where the CPU can be poked and told to do something completely different, then resume...699falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-clever-trick-that-gave-the-zx-spectrum-128k-of-ram--75436970https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056685Sun, 24 Jul 2022 18:00:09 +0000juytreHow do you get more than 64K of RAM in an 8 bit computer? Let\'s look at how memory banking works! So as explained in the previous video, our little Z80 CPU only has 16 bit address lines, and that means the maximum memory it can address is 64K. In...1389falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-technology-that-made-1980s-computers-work-banking-interrupts-dma--75436967https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056687Thu, 02 Jun 2022 11:15:44 +0000juytreLet\'s explore how 8bit computers worked, looking at their memory, interrupts and DMA. Computers from the 1980s seemed to be quite limited in their abilities, there was a bit drive to make a machine as cheaply as possible. Competition was fierce...1366falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/programming-vlog-0x04-reinventing-the-wheel--75436946https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056688Sun, 22 May 2022 21:00:58 +0000juytreI\'m making a game for the ZX Spectrum Next using C. This is my ongoing devlog on the process. In this episode I waffle on about the general aim of what I\'m trying to do and some of the code I have written so far. Chapters -------- Intro 00:00 My...854falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/easy-c-programming-on-zx-spectrum-next-how-to-set-up--75436965https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056681Thu, 24 Feb 2022 22:12:38 +0000juytreHow to set up Z88DK to develop C programs for the ZX Spectrum Next in about 20 minutes. This video aims to show how straight forward setting up a modern, easy to use development environment for the ZX Spectrum Next can be. I\'ll show you how to...1215falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/amiga-style-demo-effects-on-a-zx-spectrum-next--75436962https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056669Mon, 31 Jan 2022 20:17:33 +0000juytreLet\'s look at how to make an 8bit computer produce graphics normally seen on an Amiga. The Spectrum Next contains extra hardware that lets us very accurately control when things happen relative to the screen being drawn. This is done using a piece...1120falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/2022-update-or-what-i-did-over-christmas-with-my-spectrum-next--75436944https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056663Tue, 11 Jan 2022 22:57:41 +0000juytreSome vaguely structured waffle about what I did over Christmas with my Spectrum Next, GameMaker and Windows Paint. So I had three weeks off over Christmas to recover from the unending excitement that was 2021 and spent a decent amount of time in...702falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/programming-vlog-0x02-i-want-to-make-a-game--75436938https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056641Sun, 05 Dec 2021 19:37:07 +0000juytreI want, to make a game. Thing is, I have no idea what game I want to make. I\'m not even pretending to be a games designer, I\'m a software engineer. The guy who pokes at the innards of the machine to work out how it functions. I\'m good at making...423falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/joystick-and-keyboard-routines-on-the-spectrum-next-using-z88dk-and-c--75436937https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056670Sun, 28 Nov 2021 19:41:58 +0000juytreA video looking at how to use joysticks and keyboards on the Spectrum Next, using C and z88dk. This is an overview of the main concepts. Written version of this in more detail is available here: https://docs.ncot.uk/spectrum-next/input/index.html...554falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/fixed-point-maths-explained-retro-programming--75436959https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056661Sun, 14 Nov 2021 22:32:33 +0000juytreA video explaining how fixed point maths works and why it is useful on CPUs that have no floating point units. A written version of this is available on my website, linked below Fixed point maths is a way to deal with decimal numbers, on systems...1051falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/programming-vlog-0x01-figuring-out-fixed-point-maths--75436998https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056655Sun, 07 Nov 2021 21:30:01 +0000juytreI\'m on a mission to document programming the ZX Spectrum Next. Between making the instructional videos I need to learn how the machine works. I thought it might be fun to document this process too. In this video I work out how to use fixed point...3318falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/extreme-restoration-bringing-my-atari-back-to-life--75436953https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056677Sun, 31 Oct 2021 16:00:12 +0000juytreCan you clean a computer in a dishwasher? In this video I try some less traditional ways of cleaning my childhood Atari ST. The case has 30 years of ingrained dirt on it so let\'s get scrubbing.... or not. I\'m lazy, I own a dishwasher so I don\'t...891falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/these-cables-shouldn-t-exist-they-make-no-sense--75436961https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056653Sun, 24 Oct 2021 15:00:15 +0000juytreHow can there be a USB to RCA cable, it makes no sense. And what about a VGA to RCA lead? That can\'t be a thing either! Come, explore these bizarre and non-standard cables that I found while shopping in a local discount store. These are PC data...1009falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/25-year-old-coding-project-review-is-it-any-good--75436977https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056682Sun, 17 Oct 2021 15:00:33 +0000juytre25 years ago I was in college doing my A-Levels. Now I\'m a teacher teaching A-Levels. I recently found my old programming project from my A-Level computer science course. Let\'s review it as if it was done by one of my own students. Is it any good?...1852falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/atari-st-mouse-how-s-it-work-anyway--75436980https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056657Sun, 10 Oct 2021 15:00:12 +0000juytreMeet the world\'s worse mouse design ever. The Atari ST mouse. Amiga owners liked their tank mice, we ST owners didn\'t like ours. It was square, uncomfortable and prone to breaking quite easily. Mine is broken, I try to fix it. I fail. But along the...1539falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/zx-spectrum-next-sprites-explained--75436993https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056676Thu, 19 Aug 2021 12:58:39 +0000juytreToday we\'re going to be looking at the sprite system. We\'ll be covering... - What the sprite system can do (and what it can\'t do) - How get images into the Next in a format it can use - How to put them on the screen - Then we\'ll see different...2142falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/most-coding-courses-miss-this-here-s-what-logo-gets-right--75436996https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056680Wed, 11 Aug 2021 09:16:14 +0000juytreAre you a programmer? Are you learning how to be one? Come to think of it, how do you even learn how to think like a programmer? There\'s more to programming than typing in lines of code after all. Back in the 80s people had ideas on how best to...2788falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/marpet-xtra-ram-deluxe-4mb-upgrade-for-my-atari-stfm-turning-it-into-a-4160stfm--75436968https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056646Wed, 14 Jul 2021 16:22:31 +0000juytreLet\'s try making our own SIMMS and upgrade my ST to 4 megabytes! One of the first upgrades I ever got for my ST was a RAM upgrade to take it from the stock 512KB to 1MB. The one I got was the Marpet XTra RAM Deluxe board as I quite liked the idea of...1096falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/fixing-a-tired-atari-st-power-supply-my-childhood-atari-520stfm--75436954https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056671Fri, 02 Jul 2021 21:26:15 +0000juytreSo just how bad is a nearly 30 year old power supply? Let\'s find out! In this video I go through replacing some aged components with newer modern versions, then I check the PSU works properly using some load resistors. This isn\'t an instructional...1084falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/unopened-for-a-decade-my-childhood-atari-st-what-s-it-like-retro-computer-restoration-1--75436988https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056649Sun, 18 Apr 2021 21:26:00 +0000juytreCome with me for a nostalgic trip around my Atari ST that I had has a child that has been sat unopened for the past 10 years. What will it be like inside? Have all the capacitors leaked? Is the motherboard corroded? What upgrades did I do to it, and...1723falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/zx-spectrum-next-layer-2-graphics-retro-coding-in-c-and-z80-devlog-2--75436934https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056683Sat, 27 Mar 2021 15:00:09 +0000juytreIn this video I work out how to plot pixels onto the ZX Spectrum Next\'s Layer 2 graphics mode. I look at the way the video memory is organised, how to create 8 bit per pixel colours and use the DMA controller to quickly erase the screen. For fun I...816falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/starting-zx-spectrum-next-programming-in-c-and-z80-assembly-devlog-1--75436952https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056642Sat, 20 Feb 2021 17:00:06 +0000juytreI\'m starting an ongoing series where I learn how to write code for the ZX Spectrum Next. In this episode I look at three options for writing code on a Spectrum Next - Basic, C and Z80 Assembly. I\'ll also explain what setup I am using and how it...531falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/quazar-graphic-oled-retro-programming-in-c-and-z80-assembly-on-the-rc2014--75436974https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056662Sat, 06 Feb 2021 17:00:31 +0000juytre#rc2014 #programming #z80 One of the main limits with most Z80 based computers is their lack of any video output. Most video output comes in the form of ASCII text sent to a serial console. This is fine if you like text based software or are running...1112falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/quazar-graphic-oled-rc2014-real-bitmap-display-overview-and-mini-review--75436925https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056672Sat, 30 Jan 2021 16:15:01 +0000juytre#rc2014 #oled #display In this video I will be showing a cool OLED screen that works with the RC2014. It makes a great alternate to using ASCII text via the console. This is a Quazar Graphic OLED for the RC2014 Z80 based computer. Unlike other...443falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/z80-assembly-optimisation-real-techniques-real-results--75436942https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056664Sun, 22 Nov 2020 14:55:39 +0000juytre#z80 #programming #rc2014 Various tricks and techniques I used to optimise the speed of my RC2014 implementation of Conway\'s Life that was written in Z80 assembly. So join me in a bit of fun retro programming! Conway\'s Life in Z80 Assembler - How...859falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/dos-on-a-bbc-micro-gotek-raspberry-pi-pitubedirect-1779-floppy-controller-upgrades--75436995https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056665Sat, 24 Oct 2020 20:41:44 +0000juytreI upgrade my BBC Micro so that it can run (not quite) MSDOS using a Raspberry Pi, a Gotek floppy emulator and replacement floppy drive controller. Mostly this is a video about me learning how to troubleshoot random problems. DOS on a BBC Micro -...2847falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/6502-assembly-sprite-routines-on-the-bbc-micro-retro-coding--75436972https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056650Fri, 18 Sep 2020 17:45:04 +0000juytreWatch as I try to write some sprite routines for the BBC Micro using nothing but some 1980s books and 6502 Assembly language. While doing this I realised a few useful tips that made me a better computer science teacher and programmer. Twitter:...970falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-bbc-micro-britain-s-forgotten-programming-revolution--75436950https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056674Mon, 10 Aug 2020 13:37:10 +0000juytreIn the 1980s the UK government had this horrible realisation we knew nothing about computers, and that they were slowly taking over our lives. To combat this they came up with the Computer Literacy Project which saw a new computer from Acorn put into...1060falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-coded-conway-s-game-of-life-in-z80-assembly--75436973https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056647Mon, 27 Jul 2020 13:12:10 +0000juytreAfter the fun I had last time creating a game in Z80 assembly language, I thought it\'d be good to have a go at writing Conway\'s Life in z80. While \"fun\" is one of the words I could use to describe the process, there are several more, but writing...992falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/i-wrote-this-game-in-pure-z80-assembly-code--75436991https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056689Fri, 03 Jul 2020 17:15:24 +0000juytre#rc2014 #game #programming I decided to improve my Z80 assembly skills by writing a game entirely from nothing for the RC2014 Z80 computer. I used SJASMPlus to compile the code, and it turned out quite nice. It\'s based on a BASIC type-in game I...1490falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/how-vintage-joysticks-tricked-computers-into-working--75436990https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056675Sat, 20 Jun 2020 18:40:12 +0000juytreGet the code and read more on my website https://ncot.uk/z80-homebrew-computer/the-joy-of-sticks-rc2014-z80-joystick/ Building and testing the RC2014 Joystick Interface. This was a reasonably simple build, but I did have to slightly modify the board...1715falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/clueless-chilled-coding-let-s-learn-z80-assembler-retro-programming-on-my-rc2014--75436994https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056686Wed, 03 Jun 2020 20:41:07 +0000juytreGrab a drink, get comfy and watch as I figure out how to write an incredibly simple program from scratch, using Z80 assembler. I have no idea what I\'m doing, but we get there in the end.2433falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/connecting-a-1980s-z80-cpu-to-an-arduino-making-a-hardware-debugger--75436976https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056684Sun, 24 May 2020 18:21:16 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech I\'m a programmer, the CPU is a mystic black box that gets fed instructions. I\'m trying to learn and work out what the CPU really does. Here I build a system to control and watch the Z80\'s functions....922falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/retro-programming-pascal-and-cp-m-on-an-rc2014-z80-computer--75436951https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056660Thu, 14 May 2020 15:04:36 +0000juytreSupport the channel: https://ko-fi.com/ncot_tech Let\'s investigate CP/M on my RC2014 Z80 based computer. CP/M was an operating system before MS-DOS existed, and it requires surprisingly few resources to run. This computer runs at 7MHz and has 64K of...948falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/can-i-actually-build-a-working-computer-rc2014-z80-challenge--75436966https://app.pigeonpod.cloud/feed/2095297606711250945/episode/2095297691187056692Sun, 10 May 2020 15:58:09 +0000juytreSoldering (so much soldering!), oscilloscopes and logic analysers! My experience building an RC2014 Z80 based computer kit. The kit consists of a backplane, Z80 CPU board, RAM, ROM, Serial I/O and a Compact Flash storage card. Currently it\'s running...606falsefull