Uploaded February 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This code is a sub-part of this broader example:
github.com/voidstar78/5110VEMU/blob/main/bin/sample7_mega.asm
There are multiple PALM assembly examples in that folder:
github.com/voidstar78/5110VEMU/tree/main/bin
This is not vector graphics. These were found as a perfectly arranged set of font apparently intended for this purpose (of cycling through binary sequences for diagnostics). There is an "upper" and "lower" portion to this font, so you can extend the count past 16-bits (to 20-bits total).
This is an arrangement of the first 64 font symbols stored in the IBM 5110 character set ROM, representing four style sets of 16-character sequences. This arrangement allows users of the system to quickly convert internal binary values (in memory or in registers) into a corresponding visual symbol that depicts the value of each individual bit within a byte. The sequence here only uses one of the upper styles (group two), then cycles through all 16 of the lower styles within that same group in order across 4-bytes.
For example, if a register contains the binary value of 0101 1010 1111 1100, we would convert this to ASCII as follows: reserve memory for the string (e.g. 4 bytes + 1 null terminator character, so 5 bytes), process each nibble (4-bits) into a lookup table, and gradually build up the string "5AFC\0". Numerals (0-9) would need to be indexed differently than letters (A-F), making the conversion typically be a slow subroutine (since in normal ASCII, A-F and 0-9 are not sequential groups).
But if your system has a font that conveys the digital/binary arranged in the natural order of 0-F (or 0 to 15), then no conversion is necessary: use the natural binary value to just index directly into the character set to get the equivalent representation.
And that is what is being done here: the internal processor of the IBM 5110 has an 8-bit ALU but offers 16-bit registers. A small 16-bit counter program was written and is being executed to cycle through all values 0000 to FFFF (coordinated across two registers). Instead of converting the current count from binary to "hex ASCII" (or "hex EBDIC" in the case of the 5110), each byte of the 16-bit count is indexed directly into the second group of the IBM 5110's character set. The binary pattern of each byte is then visually represented, with a short line for "1" (one) and an empty gap for "0" (zero).
The four white symbols shown here represent the 2-bytes of the 16-bit count (4-bit * 4) in order of MSB (most significant) to LSB (least significant). The LSB (on the right) cycles very quickly relative to the MSB (on the left) that increments much more slowly.
Another perspective here is that this depicts the binary "power of two" sequence (that is, depicting how much work/effort it takes to get to the next power of 2).
For more information about the IBM 5100 and IBM 5110 character sets, see:
https://voidstar.blog/ibm-5100-character-sets/
03:56 Reduced speed to show roll over to 0x8000 (half way point!)
04:08 Alternate version (different filter and tempo)
10:02 Amy's Flashlight
Audio:
Oxygene 9 (1998)
Ayla Megamix
This code is a sub-part of this broader example:
github.com/voidstar78/5110VEMU/blob/main/bin/sample7_mega.asm
There are multiple PALM assembly examples in that folder:
github.com/voidstar78/5110VEMU/tree/main/bin
This is not vector graphics. These were found as a perfectly arranged set of font apparently intended for this purpose (of cycling through binary sequences for diagnostics). There is an "upper" and "lower" portion to this font, so you can extend the count past 16-bits (to 20-bits total).
This is an arrangement of the first 64 font symbols stored in the IBM 5110 character set ROM, representing four style sets of 16-character sequences. This arrangement allows users of the system to quickly convert internal binary values (in memory or in registers) into a corresponding visual symbol that depicts the value of each individual bit within a byte. The sequence here only uses one of the upper styles (group two), then cycles through all 16 of the lower styles within that same group in order across 4-bytes.
For example, if a register contains the binary value of 0101 1010 1111 1100, we would convert this to ASCII as follows: reserve memory for the string (e.g. 4 bytes + 1 null terminator character, so 5 bytes), process each nibble (4-bits) into a lookup table, and gradually build up the string "5AFC\0". Numerals (0-9) would need to be indexed differently than letters (A-F), making the conversion typically be a slow subroutine (since in normal ASCII, A-F and 0-9 are not sequential groups).
But if your system has a font that conveys the digital/binary arranged in the natural order of 0-F (or 0 to 15), then no conversion is necessary: use the natural binary value to just index directly into the character set to get the equivalent representation.
And that is what is being done here: the internal processor of the IBM 5110 has an 8-bit ALU but offers 16-bit registers. A small 16-bit counter program was written and is being executed to cycle through all values 0000 to FFFF (coordinated across two registers). Instead of converting the current count from binary to "hex ASCII" (or "hex EBDIC" in the case of the 5110), each byte of the 16-bit count is indexed directly into the second group of the IBM 5110's character set. The binary pattern of each byte is then visually represented, with a short line for "1" (one) and an empty gap for "0" (zero).
The four white symbols shown here represent the 2-bytes of the 16-bit count (4-bit * 4) in order of MSB (most significant) to LSB (least significant). The LSB (on the right) cycles very quickly relative to the MSB (on the left) that increments much more slowly.
Another perspective here is that this depicts the binary "power of two" sequence (that is, depicting how much work/effort it takes to get to the next power of 2).
For more information about the IBM 5100 and IBM 5110 character sets, see:
https://voidstar.blog/ibm-5100-character-sets/
03:56 Reduced speed to show roll over to 0x8000 (half way point!)
04:08 Alternate version (different filter and tempo)
10:02 Amy's Flashlight
Audio:
Oxygene 9 (1998)
Ayla Megamix
