3.1.3 update for Windows

Version 3.1.3 for Windows is out with the following changes:

• Exit and re-enter full screen mode on Alt-Tab.
• Return cartridge name in "get medium info" trap for microdrive images (*.mdv).
• Fixed crash when QCF file was passed on the command line.

SMSQ/E gets a new BSD-style license

Last week the license for the SMSQ/E operating system was changed to a BSD-style free license.

SMSQ/E can be considered the evolution of QDOS and while it cannot run the older Sinclair QL games, it offers many additional features like file system support for sub-directories, high resolution graphics and improved windowing system.

Q-emuLator has been able to run the Gold Card version of SMSQ/E for about ten years, although typically only users that already had purchased that version of SMSQ/E took advantage of this feature.

In 2010 I did a small experiment, modifying SMSQ/E to allow a 1024 x 768 display resolution when running on Q-emuLator. It was not possible, however, to publish the results. The SMSQ/E license at the time allowed free access to the sources, but distribution of binaries was restricted.

The new license finally allows distribution of that modified version of SMSQ/E, although it should still be considered experimental. On the software page of the Q-emuLator web site you can now download:

• A demo QLPAK with a short SuperBASIC program that draws colored circles under SMSQ/E, using a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels and 16 bit color.
• A variant of SMSQ/E 3.13 modified to allow the 1024 x 768 resolution when running on Q-emuLator.
• The Gold Card version of SMSQ/E.

 

Screenshots from the circles demo QLPAK.

QL Games Collection

The Sinclair QL Games Collection is a re-release of ten Sinclair QL games.

Available for Windows, it allows playing these games directly without having to purchase the individual games and without having to install and configure a QL emulator to run each game.

The Games Collection is sold by Rich Mellor, who contacted the game publishers and negotiated the special low price. Follow this link to see more screenshots and to purchase this product. Jiri Dolezal wrote the main application and an installer, while a special runtime version of Q-emuLator allows the games to run on Windows.

The Sinclair QL Games Collection includes the following games:

• Cuthbert in Space
• Deathstrike
• Hoverzone
• Jungle Eddi
• QL Hopper
• QL Pengi
• QL Vroom
• Stone Raider II
• The King
• The Lost Pharaoh

Peter Scott has uploaded a gameplay video on YouTube:

Q-emuLator 1.1 for OS X

Version 1.1 of Q-emuLator for Max OS X is available for download!

This update adds emulation of three of the Aurora video card graphics modes (512 x 256 and 1024 x 764 with 4 colours, and 512 x 480 with 256 colours) and two graphics modes of the Q40 and Q60 computers (512 x 256 and 1024 x 512 with 65536 colours), plus an extra high resolution mode (1024 x 768 with 65536 colours).

The CON_ and SCR_ drivers in the QL’s operating system cannot take advantage of these graphics modes, but applications can access the video display memory directly, and the Gold Card version of SMSQ/e that includes the “GD2” colour drivers can use the Aurora video modes.

Another new feature in version 1.1 is the addition of a TCP/IP driver (SCK_ and TCP_ devices).
The following screenshot shows the Google web page accessed through the QDOS TCP/IP device:

The software page on the Q-emuLator web site has two demos of the Q60 video modes and a .QLPAK with the Lynx browser for browsing the Internet from QDOS.

For a detailed list of all changes included in the version 1.1 update, read the version history.

Q-emuLator 3.1 for Windows

An update for the Windows version of Q-emuLator is available, adding support for compressed floppy disk images and improving ‘QL Speed’ accuracy.

The emulator now patches Minerva ROMs to avoid a Minerva bug that was causing EDIT/AUTO to delete lines from SuperBASIC programs when external ROMs like the Toolkit II were installed.

For a detailed list of changes, read the program’s version history.

To install the update, first uninstall the current version (from Control Panel), then install version 3.1 from the download page.

The blog for Q-emuLator news

This is the official Q-emuLator (Sinclair QL emulator) blog.

Subscribe to the RSS feed to automatically receive posts, including articles and news about Q-emuLator releases (updates).

You can download Q-emuLator for Windows and OS X from the Q-emuLator web site.