Getting 1K Chess for the ZX81 online
Or, how I used $2 Billion of internet infrastructure to run 672 bytes of code, from 1982
- Track: Retrocomputing devroom
- Room: D.retro
- Day: Saturday
- Start: 10:05
- End: 10:30
- Video with Q&A: D.retro
- Video only: D.retro
- Chat: Join the conversation!
In 1982, David Horne wrote a version of chess which managed to fit inside the memory of a 1K ZX81. Although it wasn't a complete implementation, it was impressive enough to be remembered now, almost 40 years later. But running it in 2022 requires at least an emulator, ROM file, and the .P file, which limits the appeal to retro enthusiasts and excludes the intended audience - chess players!
So, I modified the EMF emulator (and the game) to run as an emulator-as-a-service, so that it can be played via the lichess servers with a modern web-friendly interface.
In this talk I'll cover a brief history of the program, how the emulator was modified, how the program was reverse engineered and understood, how this code connects to the lichess server and, most crucially, why someone would do it!
Along the way we'll look at the chess notation, FEN, Z80 assembler, NDJSON, and a few other pieces to show you the complete puzzle fits together.
Speakers
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Steven Goodwin |