#### Back to index | # Info for c16

#### Commodore C16, Plus 4, and C364

Cassette Usage:
Cassette images can have the .wav or .prg extensions, and multiple .prg files
can be contained within a zip file. Zip files must be placed in the current directory, and
the contained prg files are played in sequential order.
The format for WAVs are:
8 bit (16 bit may work, but this hasn't been tested), mono, 12500 Hz minimum. This has the
same problems as an original Datasette tape drive (the tone head must be adjusted to get
working (no load error...) wav-files)
Note that tape volume is DAC1 volume within the MESS UI On Screen Display Options (accessed
with the tilde (~) key in the DOS version.
Within the emulation, use LOAD or LOAD"" or LOAD"",1 for loading normal programs. Use
LOAD"",1,1 for loading programs to a special address.

Diskette Usage:
Disk drives are simulated at the moment, and only file loads from drive 8 and 9
are implemented. You can load a program file from the rom directory (*.prg,*.p00)
(This must NOT be specified on command line, start the c16 emulation with no images specified)
The directory command LOAD"$",8 is supported when using d64 images.
Within the emulation, basic programs can be loaded with:
DLOAD"filename" or LOAD"filename",8
Machine language programs can be loaded to their address with:
DLOAD"filename" or LOAD"filename",8,1
When a program is loaded, type RUN or the appropriate SYS call to start it.
Note that several programs rely on more features not currently emulated (such as
loading other file types, writing...) Some games also rely on starting programs in the
floppy drive's processor (and therefore CPU level emulation of the 1541 is needed).

Cartridge Usage:
Cartridges may have any of the following extensions: .bin .rom .lo .hi .prg
Files with boot-sign in it are recognized as roms. Some cartridges require more than one
image to load (e.g., tutor.lo tutor.hi).
.prg files loaded at address in its first two bytes
.bin, .rom, .lo , .hi roms are loaded to cs1 low, cs1 high, cs2 low, cs2 high addresses
accordingly to their order in the command line.
Note that .prg and .p00 files are assigned to the quickloader (so you have to use
the -cart switch when loading rom images).

Quickloader Usage:
A quickloader is available via the f8 key. It supports program image files
with the .prg extension. This loads the program into memory and sets the program end
pointer. It works with most programs. The program can be started by entering "RUN" in
the emulation.

Miscellaneous Usage Notes:
See "Keys (This Machine)" for key assignments.
Shift-cbm switches between upper-only and normal character set (if wrong characters are on
screen this may help).
Run (shift-stop) loads the first program from device 8 (dload"*) and starts it.
If you run into difficulty, be sure to start the emulation with the -log switch, and look into
the error.log file that is created in your mess directory.

Known Issues:
Memory check by c16 kernel will not recognize more memory without restarting MESS.
CPU clock switching/changing.
Imperfect colors; should be enough for 95% of the games and programs.
Imperfect scrolling support (when 40 columns or 25 lines)
Lightpen support missing.
Some PC-Keyboards do not behave well when special two or more keys are pressed at the same
time (with my keyboard printscreen clears the pressed pause key!)
Expansion modules other than the 1551 floppy drive are not supported.
The rs232/v.24 interface is not supported, nor are printers and other parallel devices.
The Plus 4's userport is not supported.
Note if a game runs too fast with the NTSC version, try the PAL version!

The following features are emulated:

- rasterline based video system
- keyboard, joystick 1 and 2
- simple tape support
- serial bus
- simple disk drives
- expansion modules
- rom cartridges
- simple ieee488 floppy support (c1551 floppy disk drive)
- quickloader

History and Trivia:
When the first Commodore 264 prototype unofficially debuted at the Winter Consumer
Electronics Show (CES) in January (?) 1984, the developers had obviously not yet agreed
about the keyboard layout; some keys are unlabeled, the right shift key was missing,
instead having a key which seems to be meant as a line feed key.
It was planned that when buying a C264, you could have chosen between these programs:

- 3 plus 1 (word processor, data base, spread sheet, windowing)
- Superscript (professional word processor)
- Magic Desk (word processor, data base, spread sheet, calculator)
- Logo
- Pilot
- Easycalc 264 (spread sheet)
- COM 264
- Financial Advisor

The C264 should then be delivered with the selected program built in. The remaining programs
could only be used with cartridges for the expansion port.
The official presentation of the C264 series took place on the Hannover fair in 1984.
Luckily, the developers didn't eliminate the right shift key in the final keyboard layout.
The formerly unlabeled keys bear a label now: the key that used to be the left arrow
key on the C64 and the VC20 says 'Esc', the key between '@' and '*' bears the English pound
sign, and the key that was labelled 'SHIFT LOCK' on all 8-bit computers Commodore ever
produced now says - guess what - 'SHIFT LOCK' :-) (must have been a hard decision between
SHIFT and CAPS lock).
A word about the C364 : This prototype was a C264 with a bigger keyboard (86 keys incl. a
numeric keypad) and with a builtin speech synthesizer with a vocabulary of 250 words (which
could be expanded by either diskettes or modules). Commodore dropped this model and decided
to sell a separate speech module (Magic Voice) for the C64.
Among the Commodore news from the Summer CES 1984 was the renaming of the C264 to Plus/4.
This renaming came along with a slight change in the builtin software: you could not choose
between many different programs anymore, but each Plus/4 was delivered with the 3-plus-1
software.
The built-in software was really limited: a word processing (only with 40 columns and can
manage documents with only 99 lines of 77 columns), a very small spreadsheet (only 17
columns and 50 lines), a poor graphic software (which can display graphically data from
the sheets but only in text mode) and a small database (999 record with 17 fields each
and only 38 characters by field). Most of these programs can only be used with a floppy
disk unit. The Plus 4 can use peripherals of the C64 or the Vic 20, the printer MPS801
and the Disk Unit 1541 run well with it but it can't use C64 software. This machine
wasn't built to be a competitor of the C64 nor to replace it. It has an improved basic
in relation to the C64 one with graphic and sound instructions and a built-in assembler,
but has lost lots of interesting C64 features like great soundchip or hardware sprites.
The Commodore 16/116 belongs to the Commodore 264 series (with the Commodore Plus/4). It was
designed to replace the Commodore VIC-20, but was not compatible with it, nor with
the C64. It had the same characteristics as the Commodore Plus/4 : same graphic resolution,
same sound system, same CPU and speed, just less memory. It has a powerful basic language
(contrary to the VIC-20 or the C64) which makes graphics and sounds easy to program.
The C16, like the Commodore Plus/4 was a commercial failure.
The C116 was an earlier version of the C16 and had a rubber keyboard. It was sold in Austria,
at least, and perhaps in other countries as well.
It seems that the first C16s had the two control ports labelled JOY 0 and JOY 1 instead of
JOY 1 and JOY 2, just as a hint for collectors :-)
Note that like the C116, the C16 lacks a user port.

created on Wed May 15 07:18:19 2002