I've released version 0.4 of Mimas, an on-calculator IDE for writing assembly programs on the TI-83+/84+.

First, this release fixes a number of long-standing bugs and annoyances:

- incorrect definition of fullScrnDraw
- plotLoc flag should be cleared upon exiting
- div/mod operators
- detection of dependency loops
- archive-on-exit when multiple programs were edited
- support for IFDEF/IFNDEF in asmto8xv

Second, I've made a few improvements to the conversion tools:

- use a default output filename for 8xvtoasm (instead of standard output)
- prompt before overwriting output files
- asmto8xv accepts options --case-sensitive, --preserve-case, and --fold-case

And third, I've added some new features in the form of "plugins":

- library symbols menu
- instruction info popup
- scroll bar

The plugin concept is something of an experiment. The idea is that this way I can add new, optional features, while keeping the base application the same size. I'm interested to see what folks think of this - is it too complicated? Is it worth the (not insignificant) extra effort of continuing to add features this way?

As always, I welcome your comments, suggestions, bug reports, flames, etc.

I know that Mimas has been quite popular around here, especially with some of our most recent inductees to the ranks of z80 beginners. I've heard of an assorted handful of gripes, but I think everything I've heard has been either failure to read the readme or feature requests that would only benefit one or two people. I can't say I've used it for real projects myself, just a minute or two of playing to appreciate how well-made it is. I am of course very happy that it now has a Doors CS include file, and I'll do my best to keep you appraised of anything new in Doors CS that needs to be added to that include file. The tweaks and fixes seem like good ideas, and I'll post if I think of anything to suggest.

How does the plugin feature work? Seems like it could be a good idea.

Kerm: Thanks. Please do let me know if you add things to the Doors CS API.

Also, I was wondering - would it be possible to open Mimas source files from DCS? That might be nice in terms of letting users organize their source files into folders.

Elfprince: It's nothing fancy. At startup, the app looks through all of the archived AppVars to find the ones with the correct header ("MimP" plus a 16-bit hash identifying the ABI, followed by the plugin ID.) It stores the address of each valid plugin in a table, according to ID. Then when, say, the Stat key is pressed in the code editor, it looks up the address for the INFO plugin, and if it's nonzero, copies the code into RAM and calls it. Take a look at plugin.asm if you're curious.

Floppus, you absolutely can open source files from Doors CS. Check out the documentation on Associated Programs. The only caveat is that you might need an in-memory stub that launches the Mimas app, which could get messy.

Indeed, it seems like a nice system, but that would also require changing the source file format, right? And possibly also substantial changes to how variables are managed (e.g.: you'd need to "save" a file before compiling it.)

The source files would have to carry an AP header, so that would result in a file-format change, yes. The plugins seem like a cool idea, and not at all like too much work.

I hope this is also availible for the 84C soon after it's release. being that i rarely have access to a computer with which i have permissions for an assembler, i find mimas Extremely life-saving.