About
Tatung Einstein Development is a VS Code extension for a fast build/run loop when writing Z80 assembly for the Tatung Einstein. Open a .asm file, assemble it with z80asm, and inject the resulting .COM straight into a running MAME "einstein" instance. There are no manual assemble/quickload steps, and MAME stays open between builds.
Installing
You'll need Visual Studio Code, plus z80asm and MAME. The fastest way to get both is Homebrew: brew install z80asm mame. Full setup, including the Einstein ROM, is in the course's own Setting Up module.
Download the ZIP below and unzip it to get TC01-vscode-extension-0.5.0.vsix. In VS Code, open the Extensions view (View > Extensions), click the ... menu at the top of that panel, choose Install from VSIX..., and select the .vsix file you just unzipped. You'll know it worked when the status bar at the bottom of the window shows Einstein: Stopped.
Using It
Open a .asm file. Two buttons appear in the editor's title bar:
- Run assembles the file with z80asm, starts MAME if it isn't already running, and injects the resulting .COM into the emulator via its quickload device. MAME stays open, so repeated Runs reuse the same instance instead of restarting the machine every time.
- Restart closes and relaunches MAME for a completely clean Einstein, useful when you want to boot from scratch rather than quickload into a running session.
Assembler errors are surfaced directly in VS Code's Problems panel. Run "Einstein: Check Setup" from the Command Palette any time to confirm z80asm and MAME are both found, with guided help if either is missing.
Other Features
- Einstein: Run with Debugger, new in 0.5.0, builds and quickloads the current file into a fresh MAME instance started with its debugger attached
- Z80 syntax highlighting for .asm files, covering Tatung Einstein assembly instructions, registers, labels and directives
- Optional "Run on Save", so saving an .asm file automatically builds and runs it
- Automatic detection of z80asm and MAME from Homebrew, a standalone MAME.app install, or your configured paths
Built to pair with the site's Z80 Assembly for the Tatung Einstein course. Install it to build and run the course's exercises directly in MAME.
Screenshots