Game Basic - FAQ - V0.2 Written By: Romar Armas (rarmas@seganet.com or gamebasic@seganet.com) Thanks to the subscribers of the Game Basic Mailing List for contributions. Contents Introduction -What is it? -Where is it available? -What do I need to start? The Kit -Description -What is included in the Windows CD? -What is included in the Saturn CD? -Some images Getting Started -Standalone - Saturn w/Keyboard. -Saturn Linked to a PC. Troubleshooting -Can I directly connect the Link Cable from the Saturn to the PC? -Why is my keyboard all messed up? -Where's that #$#*% underscore? -I have the game loaded, now what? -What are the Devices? -How can I add line numbers to source codes? Additional Information Introduction What is it? The Game Basic or Saturn Basic is a programming language for the Sega Saturn by ASCII/Bits Laboratory/ESP Inc. and is based on BASIC. The closest version of BASIC that resembles the Game Basic is N88 Basic (a predominantly Japanese programming language). The second closest would be MSX Basic. Where is it available? The Game Basic Kit is available at http://www.ncsx.com/ (NCSX) and http://www.therage.com/ "The Rage" for $109.99 US, and also at http://www.buyrite1.com/ "Buyrite" for $99.99 US. Just a word of warning, several people in the Sega news group have said not to deal with Buyrite because they have been "ripped off". However, one of the members of the Mailing List ordered from Buyrite and receive his kit the next day without any problems. The GB kit may not be listed on their home page. I suggest calling them to find out if they have it. What do I need to start? The minimum requirement is a Saturn with a controller. There is a virtual keyboard available so you can use your controller to type in everything. However, this takes a lot of time and can get very annoying. The next thing would be to get a netlink keyboard adapter and any PS/2 keyboard. This way, it's much creating new programs would be much faster and you can perform several commands quickly through keyboard shortcuts. The third option is to make use of the Link Cable provided. Assuming you have a computer of course. You can connect your PC to the Saturn and can do a lot more than just using the Saturn alone. What's the best thing you ask? Well, use the link cable and get a netlink adapter and another keyboard! It takes some time to load long programs from the PC to the Saturn (and vice versa), so it's much easier to do minor changes using the Saturn. The Kit The Game Basic Kit is packaged in a box that contains a double CD case which contains a Saturn and Windows 95/NT CD. There are two manuals, a smaller one that tells you how to set up and start up, and a larger one that contains all the commands and explanations on their syntax, there are also several sample programs. Both manuals are in Japanese with the exception of the source codes. Lastly, there is a link cable that connects the Saturn to the PC. See below for more details. What is included in the Windows CD? The Windows CD contains a program called BasterM and a DXF Converter. BasterM is the PC interface to your Sega Saturn. You can write programs using your PC with BasterM and you can upload your program to the Saturn via link cable. You can also download programs from the Saturn (such as the demo programs) to your PC. There is also a command to run and stop the programs once it has been loaded. DXF converter takes any DXF file format created by any 3D programs and it converts it to DATA format that SB uses. However, the DXF converter is limited to smaller files and will generate errors on larger ones. Check out the programs section for another converter that can handle larger files. What is included in the Saturn CD? The Saturn CD contains the Basic program itself and several demos. The demos included show the graphics, sound and other capabilities of the language. Getting Started Standalone - Saturn w/Keyboard When you power on the Saturn with the Game Basic inside, you will see the standard SEGA logo then a couple of lines and the word "Ready.". At this point, you can start programming. To help you get started faster, press "SHIFT+F1" on the keyboard. This will load and run the program "CD:LAUNCH.B". If you don't have a keyboard, press both shoulder buttons (L and R) then press start. You will get a virtual keyboard. Type in 'LOAD "CD:LAUNCH.B" ' then press the Z button to load then choose "F5" on the virtual keyboard to run the program. This is the easiest way to get started because the LAUNCH.B program lists all of the program files on the disk. You can then run whichever demo you want to see. After you create a program, you can save it in the internal (BRAM) or external (CRAM) memory so that you can edit it or run it later on. To save, type 'SAVE "BRAM:PROGRAM.B" ' to save in the internal memory. If you want to create a new program, just type "NEW". To load a previously saved program, just type 'LOAD "BRAM:PROGRAM.B" '. To list files in a certain device, type 'FILES "BRAM:*.B" ' which lists all of the files in the internal memory ending with ".B". The disadvantage of using the standalone setting is the limitations. You will not be able to load images and 3D objects unless you are able to get a Saturn Floppy drive. Saturn Linked to a PC NOTE: I think the only minimum requirements for a PC to work with the Saturn Basic is Windows 95 and a modem cable. I am programming on a 486 DX2/50 running Windows NT and it works flawlessly. Getting Started If you would like to transfer data from the PC to Saturn (and vice-versa) at a higher baud rate than 9600, you must change both the Saturn and PC settings. To change the Saturn setting, press and hold both shoulder buttons (L+R) then press the Z-button. This will open up the setting screen. Go to baud rate and change that to 19200, then exit. Next, (assuming you have installed and running BasterM) go to the settings in BasterM (Alt-S) then go to the second option. Here you will see the COM port settings and Baud Rate settings. Change the Baud Rate to 19200 to correspond to the Saturn. You will now be transferring data at a much higher rate than previous. Troubleshooting Can I directly connect the Link Cable from my Saturn to the PC? No, on page 11 of the smaller manual, it states that you should purchase a DB25 Male to a DB9 (or DB25) Female serial cable. Why is my keyboard all messed up? Since the Game Basic was created only for Japan, the keyboard mapping will also be Japanese. Therefore, the symbols will be in different places. A documentation of the new mapping will be available shortly. Where's that #$#*% underscore? When using a keyboard with the Netlink adapter, there isn't one! Therefore, to type in an underscore, use the pad on player 1. Press and hold L & R then press START to get the virtual keyboard. Move via dir-pad to the underscore and press C. Or, just use the PC! I have the game loaded, now what? The quickest way to start is to press SHIFT-F1 on the keyboard. This will launch the LAUNCH.B program. It will list all the .B files. Just highlight the program you want then press ENTER to run. You can also use the pad to move around and use C to select. Pressing ESC exits the program. Another method is to type in LOAD ":.B". For example, to run the G_JUMP.B program, type LOAD "CD:G_JUMP.B". To run the program, type RUN or press F5. What are the Devices? The Devices available are CD:, BRAM:, CRAM:, COM:, FDO:, and FD1. They are the CD, Internal Ram, Cartridge Ram, Computer, and the last two are for the disk drives only available in Japan. How can I add line numbers to source codes? When downloading source codes from Japanese web sites, they often do not contain any line lumbers. However, this is because the BasterM program can automatically generate line numbers when loading a program to the saturn. To do this, choose the settings option then choose the 4th option in the submenu. A window pops up with several check boxes. If you click on the fourth box, this enables the autonumbering option. Therefore, all you need to do is program without adding line numbers and have BasterM generate the numbers for you. Additional Information Website: http://www.seganet.com/basic.html Questions: E-mail questions to gamebasic@seganet.com Alternate address is romar@seganet.com Mailing List: To view the archives, go to: http://www.findmail.com/list/saturn-basic/ To join, go to the website and enter the mailing list section or, email saturn-basic-subscribe@makelist.com To unsubscribe, email saturn-basic-unsubscribe@makelist.com