module
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The primer names keys the way the Einstein does: ENTER, DELETE, ESC, CONTROL, CAPS LOCK. Where they are in MAME is exactly as in the Turbo course: see its Appendix IV.
| Key | Does |
|---|---|
| ENTER | Stores a numbered line, or carries out a command (LIST, SAVE, DOS) |
| the ← and → keys | Type [ and ], shown on screen as ← and →. In MAME, the Left and Right arrows |
| the ↑ key | Types ^. In MAME, the Up arrow |
| the two cursor keys | Move the cursor: horizontal right, SHIFT left; vertical down, SHIFT up. Type over a listed line and press ENTER to store it. In MAME, Tab and the Down arrow |
| CAPS LOCK | On when XBAS starts. Off or on, XBAS stores every letter of a Pascal line as a capital - quotes included |
Five characters are changed by XBAS wherever you type them: ? becomes PRINT, { OR, | XOR, } >, ~ /. Use CHR(63) for a question mark and (* *) for comments (S3).
Lines are changed by their numbers: retype a line to replace it, type its number alone to delete it, RENUM to renumber. After AUTO, ENTER on an empty number stops the numbering. A line whose Pascal begins with a digit needs (**) in front (S10).
The Einstein does not have four arrow keys. It has two grey cursor keys, side by side at the right-hand end of the QWERTY row, each marked with a double-headed arrow:
| Key | On its own | With SHIFT |
|---|---|---|
| the horizontal cursor key | cursor right | cursor left |
| the vertical cursor key | cursor down | cursor up |
Three other keys have a single arrow printed on them, but they are ordinary character keys, and the arrow is the character they type: the Einstein draws [ as a left arrow, ] as a right arrow and ^ as an up arrow.
| Key | Where it is | Types | With SHIFT |
|---|---|---|---|
| ← (marked ¼ and ←) | end of the QWERTY row, next to the cursor keys | [ | { |
| → (marked ¾ and →) | end of the ASDF row, next to ENTER | ] | } |
| ↑ (marked ÷ and ↑) | the number row, between = and ½ | ^ | ~ |
In MAME the two cursor keys are on your Tab key and your Down arrow: Tab is right, Shift and Tab is left, Down is down, and Shift and Down is up. Your Left, Right and Up arrows are the three character keys: Left types [, Right types ] and Up types ^. That is why MAME users so often report that the Einstein's arrow keys type brackets and do not move the cursor. The keys under those three arrows are not the cursor keys.
In XBAS the two cursor keys move the cursor over a listed line, and ENTER stores the line as it now reads, as in Xtal BASIC. A program reading the keyboard with INCH (S15) sees the vertical key as CHR(10).
Tatung's own manual describes the two cursor keys and the keyboard this way, and MAME's Einstein agrees with it. What the keys do in XBAS and a running program was checked in MAME, not on a real Einstein. If you have one and it behaves differently, please let us know and this page will be corrected.
Wait for 0: before typing the next command. Keys typed while the disc is being read are lost.
| Key | When | Does |
|---|---|---|
E | At an *ERROR* | Back to 0: at once |
| Any other | At an *ERROR* | Goes on to the next error |
Y | At File exists - Delete? | Compiles over the old .COM |
| Any other | At File exists - Delete? | Back to 0:, the old .COM kept |
| Key | Does |
|---|---|
| CTRL-C | Stops the program with Halt at PC=... - unless it was compiled with (*$C-*), when it does nothing |
| DELETE | Rubs out the last character while you type an answer to READ |
| ENTER | Ends an answer to READ |
| Key | INCH gives |
|---|---|
| the ↑ key (Up arrow in MAME) | ^ (94) |
| the vertical cursor key (Down arrow in MAME) | CHR(10) |
| the ← key (Left arrow in MAME) | [ (91) |
| the → key (Right arrow in MAME) | ] (93) |
| ENTER | CHR(13) |
| ESC | CHR(27) |
| No key | CHR(0) |
Letters come as the keyboard types them - capitals while CAPS LOCK is on.
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