Assembly Shells / Discussion

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This is the discussion related to the wiki page Assembly Shells.

Shells?

Wolfgang47 18 Feb 2012 20:12

I'm a bit confused as to exactly what shells are/why they are useful. Do they convert your BASIC code into ASM or something, to make them better/faster? I understand that at some point in the execution of any non-machine programming language, such as basic and higher level languages like object oriented programming languages, the program must be converted either to hex or binary in order to be executed. Obviously, a code that is translated all at once will run much more smoothly/faster after that initial tokenization, while a program that is translated line by line, with each command, will be much slower. I was under the impression that TI-BASIC programs in particular are translated line by line, & that this part of the reason why TI-BASIC is such a slow programming language. Is the purpose of a shell then to convert the entire code, all at once, into the assembly code, or is it something else? Please help.

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—Wolfgang

Re: Shells?

blue_bear_94 18 Feb 2012 23:19

No, it just runs the program, I believe.

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Sunrise 3 Progress: 30%
Size: around 20 KB, not including the save lists and in-game RAM.

Re: Shells?

Wolfgang47 19 Feb 2012 01:58

Then what purpose do they serve? What's the advantage/pay off of using a Shell?

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—Wolfgang

Re: Shells?

burr 23 Feb 2012 03:11

Shells are primarily design for running assembly programs, since they include lots of built-in functionality that the assembly programs can take advantage of to decrease program size and increase speed. They also provide a central location and interface for running assembly programs.

Have you guys tried any of the shells listed on this page?

Re: Shells?

Wolfgang47 23 Feb 2012 18:09

So what is the difference between a shell and a library?
And what do you mean by "provide a central location and interface for running assembly programs"?
That's mainly what I don't get.

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—Wolfgang

Re: Shells?

blue_bear_94 23 Feb 2012 20:46

A shell is an interface for running assembly programs, like a "secondary" OS. Some assembly programs need to be run from a certain shell.
A library is an implementation in assembly to extend the functionality for TI-Basic. For example, xLib has many graphic commands, and Celtic III has the ability to read appvars.

And, "provide a central location and interface for running assembly programs" means that you can run your assembly programs on a shell instead of the TI-OS.

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Sunrise 3 Progress: 30%
Size: around 20 KB, not including the save lists and in-game RAM.

Re: Shells?

Wolfgang47 23 Feb 2012 23:16

I feel kinda stupid right now…I was right about what I thought libraries are. I still dont understand shells. They don't make sense to me.

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—Wolfgang

Re: Shells?

burr 23 Feb 2012 23:24

Wikipedia to the rescue :D

Re: Shells?

Wolfgang47 24 Feb 2012 00:59

Hahaha! I think I actual get it now! When I saw Firebug listed as I shell, I knew I was definitely starting to understand it.
Thanks.

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—Wolfgang

Re: Shells?

Xeda Elnara 25 Feb 2012 01:32

:D I have written shells and libraries before for the calc, but it seems that the question has been resolved XD

Pretty much, calculator shells are typically both shells and assembly libraries. DoorsCS7 as a shell, for example, runs programs from RAM or archive, they can be assembly or BASIC. These are functions not present in the OS. As an assembly library, DCS7 provides code for assembly programmers that would normally be a hassle and bloat the code. Using one of my library/shells as an example, it takes three bytes to call a routine to draw a tilemap and another three to update the LCD to display it. If it was coded into the program itself, that would require a few hundred extra bytes. On the calculators, an assembly program has a cap of 8811 bytes, but an App can be massive. Programming is always a tradeoff for speed and size. With an app, generally codes can be made for speed as memory is not a problem. Assembly coders count their speed in cycles. Making a call is 3 bytes and an extra 17 cycles of overhead, but may save hundreds or thousands of cycles as opposed to hard coding a routine a few dozen bytes large that is slower.

I really want to write a library optimised for speed, now O.O

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47%? Take a look and try to imagine how cool 100% will be. This has won zContest 2011 and made news on TICalc. This compromise between Assembly and BASIC parses like BASIC and is fast like assembly. Grammer 2

One Shot

Wolfgang47 28 Feb 2012 03:07

I have one shot to download some libraries, programs, and shells to my calculator. I don't want excess either. Which shell should I use? I want the fastest, less volatile/buggy, and most useful shell, if there is such a shell…anybody have any suggestions?

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—Wolfgang

Re: One Shot

Mr Dino 28 Feb 2012 13:35

Shells
I would suggest DoorsCS, as most people prefer it. It has the most extra features and has a mouse! However, it does take up a lot of memory. If you don't want that, you could try MirageOS, although it acts buggy with BASIC programs. As a compromise, I chose a combination of Noshell and MirageOS - to be able to run from the homescreen, which I prefer, and to have the extra features.
Libraries
Batlib, Xlib. I've heard these are good, although I have never used them.
And Grammer!

Re: One Shot

Programmingfreak 29 Feb 2012 00:37

There was a huge problem with MirageOS at my school, back before i programed, my math teacher had to clear Everything off of everybody's' calculators

Re: One Shot

Wolfgang47 29 Feb 2012 01:31

Did the teacher install Mirage OS on everyone's calculators?

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—Wolfgang

Mirage OS Programs

Wolfgang47 09 Mar 2012 21:12

How does one write a Mirage OS program?

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—Wolfgang