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COMPO-System Documentation (English Translation)

Original document: COMPO-System documentation included with Version 2.13
Original language: Japanese
Program: COMPO-System Version 2.13
Copyright holder: TORO / 高橋 良和
Translation status: English translation prepared for reference and accessibility
Translation note: This file is an English translation of the original Japanese documentation.
The original archive contents, copyright status, and redistribution conditions are not changed by this translation.
Personal names are kept in their original Japanese form where no reliable reading or official English spelling is confirmed.

                    COMPO-System        Version 2.13

                               (C)TORO 1994

COMPO-System is a command-driven multifunction debugger designed to make it easier to develop machine-language programs on the E500.

Features

  • Can trace programs in ROM as well (with restrictions)
  • Can refer to the label list output by 活用研究's assembler
  • Can return to BASIC at any time and execute external programs
  • Can redirect screen output to files and similar destinations
  • By using History, it can be used easily and without side effects
  • The main body exists in file form and does not occupy the machine-language area

Operating environment

  • Runs on the E500 series with 32K or more.
    (E650 / U6000 have some restrictions.)

  • Only at the time of installation, a machine-language area of at least 0BC000H (3C00H bytes) is required.

  • If, when made resident, it would cross a 64K boundary (for example, if it were to reside across the boundary between 0AxxxxH and 0BxxxxH), it cannot be installed resident.

  • Normally this has no practical impact, but a work area at [0BFCF6H] is reserved. Programs written by the manufacturer do not use this area, but anyone personally using this location will have a conflict. (History)

  • BFD80H to BFDFFH (system reserved area) is used for COMPO.

  • The COMPO / History main body operates normally even if it resides in a write-protected slot.

Installation method

COMPO cannot operate by itself. It can only be used together with History. Even users already using History must use the COMPO-specific History included in this set (Ver 1.11C).

  1. Confirm that a machine-language area of at least 0BC000H (3C00H bytes) has been secured.

Install History

  1. Load the included HISTORY.BIN.

    >LOAD M "HISTORY.BIN"

  2. There are two possible resident locations, so execute one of them.

    >CALL &HBE000        use on S1:
>CALL &HBE003        use on S2:

  3. If installation succeeds, the title is displayed briefly, then the screen is cleared and control returns to the command line.

Install COMPO

  1. Load the included COMPO.BIN.

    >LOAD M "COMPO.BIN"

  2. There are two possible resident locations, so execute one of them.

    >CALL &HBC000        use on S1:
>CALL &HBC003        use on S2:

  3. If installation succeeds, the title is displayed briefly, then the screen is cleared and control returns to the command line.

  4. At this point, files named History.TSR and COMPO.TSR are created on S1: (or S2:). These are the main body files. Do not move or delete them. For reference, the created file sizes are 587 and 5974 bytes, respectively.

If installation fails, the following messages are displayed:

  • Already staying
    A file with the same name already exists.

  • Out of memory
    The minimum memory required for resident installation cannot be secured.

  • Check sum error
    The program body has somehow been altered. This also happens if it is executed a second time without reloading.

  • Can't install over page
    Resident installation failed because it would cross a 64K boundary.

If History cannot be used, please use the included CC.

Usage

COMPO uses the extended-command execution capability of History. To use COMPO functions, enter a command at the BASIC command line and then, instead of pressing [RETURN], execute it by pressing [+/-].

Example: edit BD000H

>EBD000[+/-]

List of extended keys (History functions)

  • ^[←]
    Go back one entry in the input string history

  • ^[→]
    Move one step forward among the entries returned with ^[←]

  • ^[I]
    Tab key (inserts spaces for 8-tab width)

  • [+/-]
    Execute COMPO command / uninstall resident program

      @    uninstall resident program

Function descriptions

COMPO uses one-letter commands plus parameters. All numeric values are hexadecimal, and all spaces are meaningful.

Press [ON] to cancel command execution.

@ Uninstall resident program

This command ends use of COMPO. After executing it, the file COMPO.TSR may be deleted.

To uninstall History as well, execute @ once more.

D Hex / ASCII dump

This command performs a hexadecimal dump and ASCII dump.

To dump starting from BD000H, execute:

>DBD000

This dumps 8 * 4 bytes per screen. In this state, pressing [↑] or [↓] scrolls one line at a time so that you can view the next portion.

P Print

Even though the E500 screen is large for a pocket computer, it is still narrow. COMPO makes work easier by allowing most screens to be written out to a file. The command for this is P.

First, open an appropriate file beforehand using BASIC's OPEN statement:

>OPEN "xxxxxxx" FOR OUTPUT AS #1

Then, by adding P before the command whose output you want to capture, the displayed contents will also be sent to the file.

To save the previous dump to a file:

>PDBD000[+/-]

When finished, CLOSE the file.

Now, it is inconvenient if file output stops after one screen. To output from BD000H to BE000H without waiting for key input, execute:

>PD/BD000 BE000[+/-]

A ASCII dump

This command extracts only the ASCII-dump portion of the D command and allows more to be displayed. The input format is the same as for the D command.

C Disassemble

Performs disassembly. The input format is the same as for the D command.

Even when disassembling backward, it can still disassemble reasonably well to some extent. Beyond that point, it goes back one byte at a time.

COMPO's disassembler can refer to the label table output by 活用研究's assembler and replace matching values with labels. It also has a function that considers the current BP register in order to determine internal RAM addresses accurately. These can be enabled using the following U command.

U Change disassembly options

Changes disassembly-related options.

  • omitted
    Display current settings and defined labels

  • address
    Set the address of the label table.
    Specify the beginning of the assembler output.

  • K
    Use COMPO's built-in label table

  • I
    Convert addresses / data into corresponding labels

  • O
    Do not perform label conversion

  • R
    Keep internal RAM references as coded

  • S
    Convert internal RAM references to absolute addresses by adding BP and PRE code. However, correct values cannot be obtained when going backward.

G Graphics dump

Performs a dump of graphic image data. The P command cannot be used with this.

The input format is the same as for the D command.

I Internal RAM dump

Performs a dump of internal RAM.

The input format is the same as for the D command.

E Edit

A so-called monitor function. The P command cannot be used with this.

If an address is specified, editing begins from that point.

Operations are as follows:

  • [↓][↑][←][→]
    Move cursor

  • [TITLE]
    Toggle hexadecimal input / character input

    • Hex mode: 0–9, A–F ([/][*][-][+][.][+/-])
    • Character mode: characters can be entered except kana and lowercase letters

  • [INS][DEL]
    Insert / delete

If a full-screen dump is not shown when this is executed, or if the screen looks untidy after exit, that is not a bug. It is done so that previous values remain visible.

F Data search

Searches for specific data in memory. Up to 32 bytes of data can be searched.

For a hexadecimal sequence:

>Fstart-address end-address data data ...

For a string:

>Fstart-address end-address"string

In both cases, the wildcard ? can be used.

J User call

Executes the program starting at the specified address. When it returns with RETF, a register list is displayed. If it returns from a breakpoint, the display is shown in reverse video.

T Trace

Traces one instruction at a time starting from the specified address. A register list and the instruction to be executed are displayed. Press any key to trace one instruction.

When the instruction is CALL or CALLF, pressing the following keys lets you choose whether to trace into the called destination:

  • [P]
    Pass over tracing inside the subroutine
    (in ROM trace mode, passing over a CALL instruction is not possible)

  • [T]
    Trace inside the subroutine

COMPO can also trace programs in ROM. However, the ROM trace feature must first be enabled using the following V command.

V Change trace options

Changes tracing-related options.

  • omitted
    Display current settings

  • I
    If not otherwise specified, trace into the destination of CALL / CALLF

  • O
    If not otherwise specified, do not trace into the destination of CALL / CALLF

  • R
    Enable tracing on ROM
    (however, for a CALL instruction, the called destination must also be traced)

  • W
    Disable tracing on ROM

B Set breakpoint

Specifies the address at which the J / T command will forcibly stop. If execution stops at a breakpoint, the register display is shown in reverse video.

Breakpoints are ineffective if set on ROM.

  • omitted
    Display configured address

  • address
    Set a new breakpoint

  • O
    Clear the breakpoint

Q Display / set registers

Displays or modifies the registers used by the J / T commands.

  • omitted
    Display the current values of all registers

  • register-name value
    Change the specified register
    Any displayed register name may be used:

    F BA I X Y U S U BP PX PY BX CX DX SI DI IMR

L Raw file load

SAVE M can load machine-language files, but it requires specific data at the start of the file. This command simply reads any file, for the time being, starting from the beginning of the machine-language area.

If an address is specified after the file name, loading begins from there.

S Raw file save

The reverse of the L command. This command writes the specified range directly to a file.

Specify it as follows:

>Sfilename start-address end-address[+/-]

N Set / display user machine-language area

If an address is specified, that address and above become the machine-language area.

If nothing is specified, the current start address of the machine-language area is displayed.

X Memory block transfer

Moves (copies) data in a specified range to another location.

Specify it as follows:

>X source-start-address source-end-address destination-start-address[+/-]

Y Memory data fill

Fills the specified range with the specified one-byte data.

Specify it as follows:

>Y start-address end-address hex-value[+/-]

Final notes

  • This is freeware. Copyright belongs to TORO / 高橋 良和, so please do not infringe upon it.

  • We assume no responsibility whatsoever for any profit, loss, or damage arising from use of this program.

  • Modification is freely permitted for personal use.

  • If redistributing this program elsewhere, do not modify it; redistribute it in the same contents as obtained.

  • Please contact the author if you wish to use it for commercial purposes.

History

Version 2.13

  • Fixed a problem where installation would not complete correctly when trying to install with HMF ((C)HiM氏)

Version 2.12

  • Fixed a problem in the T command where the PRE code was not reflected

Version 2.11

  • Fixed J and T commands not operating correctly
  • Corrected the built-in label list

Version 2.10

  • First public release

Contact

TORO / 高橋 良和

  • POCKET通信 Ver.3 … 3054
  • NIFTY-Serve … GHE00667

Source and status

  • Source document: documentation included with COMPO-System Version 2.13
  • Source program version: Version 2.13
  • Translation status: complete draft translation
  • Formatting: adapted for Markdown / GitHub readability
  • Content policy: no functional changes intended; wording has been translated, but original meaning should take precedence if any ambiguity remains

Notes

  • This English translation is intended as a practical reference for users who cannot easily read the original Japanese document.
  • Archive contents, program behavior, and redistribution conditions should be understood according to the original package and original author statement.
  • Where technical nuance is uncertain, the original Japanese wording should be treated as authoritative.