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Bootstrap Loaders
The BASIC Version 3.2 and 4.0 bootstrap loaders are straight from the Altair BASIC manuals. Refer to the
appropriate BASIC manual for how to load these versions of BASIC.
The Version 1.0 bootstrap loader runs at 1800h (014000 octal). Once BASIC is loaded, STOP/RESET the
machine and then depress RUN to get the startup dialog.
ACR Leader Detector
This is the code from the 88-ACR manual that looks for a valid leader byte before jumping to the boot-
strap loader. To use the leader detector, first inject the required bootstrap loader, then inject and run
the appropriate leader detector. As you’ll notice, the leader detector loads and runs at 100h (400 octal).
Kill the Bit
Kill the Bit game by Dean McDaniel, May 15, 1975. Object: Kill the rotating bit. If you miss the lit bit, an-
other bit turns on leaving two bits to destroy. Quickly toggle the switch, don't leave the switch in the up
position. Before starting, make sure all the switches are in the down position.
See http://deramp.com/downloads/altair/software/miscellaneous/
Pong
PONG for Altair front panel. Left player quickly toggles A15 to hit the "ball." Right player toggles A8.
Score is kept in memory locations 80h and 81h (left and right). Score is missed balls, so the lower num-
ber wins.
See http://deramp.com/downloads/altair/software/miscellaneous/
Intel Hex Loader
Loads an Intel hex file through the chosen 2SIO serial port. The program is relocatable: Set switches A15-
A8 to the MSB of the desired load address before depressing AUX-Left. The program prompts the opera-
tor to send the hex file. Once the complete hex file is received, the program pauses in an endless loop.
At this point, STOP/RESET to regain front panel control.
Memory Test
At the "*" prompt, key in four hex characters for the starting address followed by four hex characters for
the ending address. Press ESC to restart entry if a mistake is made. The test begins immediately when
the last digit of the ending address is typed (RETURN not required).
The starting address is typically 0100h (the program is on page zero). If RAM ends at DFFF (for example),
specify an end address of E000. This will cause the program to print an "error" for E000 at the comple-
tion of each test cycle as an indicator of activity.
The test runs continuously until reset. The program generates a pseudo-random number sequence,
writes a portion of it into RAM, and then regenerates the sequence from the same point to compare
with what is read from memory. If the pass is correct, a new portion of the sequence is written to a new
section of memory and the process repeats. Errors are printed out with the address, what was written
followed by what was read.
