QL on the Raspberry Pi...?

[TMD2003]

Again, this may appear to be a noobish question, so bear with me.

I have an original-model (2012) Raspberry Pi, the one with two USB ports and... not a lot going for it. And I'm not terribly familiar with these sub-computer systems (as we might call them), other than them being ARM-based bare boards that can run some form of Linux. My Pi is old enough that it could only run Raspbian up to a version released circa mid-2016, any newer than that and it really struggles.

Pis are usually seen as being suitable for retro-computing, and I'd assume that something like uQLx could potentially run through Raspbian. I think, though, if I could ever get that working, it'd be slower than treacle running down a very gentle slope in a Siberian winter*. I haven't tried RetroPie on it yet, even though I'll probably get around to that at some stage...

...and the reason for the delay is because, back in my regular haunt of Spectrum-ville, there exists ZXBaremulator. It emulates a 48K model, 128K and +2A without needing any other operating system - no RetroPie, no Raspian, nowt - and it works very effectively, even on a 2012 Pi. Furthermore, I just found myself looking at a thread that referred to the QL on a Mister system - which is one of those Pi-like sub-computers (isn't it?) - so the thought occurs, might a bare-metal QL emulator for the Pi be possible - or does one exist anyway, that I was unaware of?

It'd be a slightly strange experience as I do have a CRT TV, though the composite output on the Pi only puts out a black and white picture to that TV. To my main LED TV, it's in colour whether it's coming through the composite or HDMI, which tells me it's the TV that's acting odd, not the Pi, and that's good to know.


* Note that I can't take credit for that... but it is derived from a review of my Spectrum meisterwerk from earlier this year!

[janbredenbeek]

I have a Raspberry Pi model 3B which runs the ARM v7 version of uqlx successfully at a speed about 100 times the original QL.
Have no idea though whether it works on the original Pi. I suspect it will be somewhat slower but still faster than a BBQL.

Jan

[NormanDunbar]

I remember Tobias' version of uQLx running happily on my Raspberry Pi, V1B, with 256 RAMs. I bought mine just before they upgraded to 512 RAMs.

Cheers,
Norm.

[tofro]

uqlx actually runs quite well on the original RPI. For the intended application, however, there's a significant flaw: uqlx doesn't really emulate MODE 8 on the emulated QL.

Tobias

[Derek_Stewart]

Hi,

I compiled sQLux on a Raspberry PI Zero v1.2, which was slow, but worked okay.

The emulator runs better on faster RPIs

uqlx actually runs quite well on the original RPI. For the intended application, however, there's a significant flaw: uqlx doesn't really emulate MODE 8 on the emulated QL.

Tobias

Can you write the commands in the UQLX C source to give Mode 8 graphics?

[XorA]

uQlx is currently the goto emulator on pi0/1.

I started a new Linux job and haven’t had time to fix sQLux yet.

[RalfR]

What a nice idea, the PI 400 with a keyboard:

https://www.raspberrypi.org/products/ra ... rType=home

[Pr0f]

I just saw that - resisting urge not to buy one - as I don't have an immediate need for it, but then I am sure I can find one.

Have to Pi4 boards already for 2 projects I have already - CAR PC GPS/Head unit extension, and a platform for HI quality camera and telescope control, so I can leave the scope setup outside, and sit inside on my laptop and stargaze in the warm

[Ruptor]

What a nice idea, the PI 400 with a keyboard:

A QL using a better chip 35 years later I think and It could boot uQlx to be a QL. Will it have membrane problems in 30 years?

[RalfR]

Will it have membrane problems in 30 years?

Of course but just if QDOS, Minerva or SMSQ was run