Peter has delivered the latest release version of the PicoMite firmware V6.02.00.

This can be downloaded from https://geoffg.net/picomite.html (scroll to the bottom of the page).   It includes the updated user manual and additional specialised manuals (see the Extra Documentation folder in the firmware zip).

In addition to fixing all reported bugs this version includes many new commands/functions and enhancements including ASTRO for calculating the position of celestial objects, an extended BITSTREAM command for generating precise bitstreams, a driver for HD44780-compatible character LCD displays, a comprehensive system for controlling stepper motors and the command STRUCT which allows for the manipulation of structures.

Geoff

Damn, does that man ever sleep?!      

Release notes:
This release is fundamentally about the implementation of structured types in MMbasic and their use in many commands and functions

New commands:
TYPE
END TYPE
STRUCT
BITSTREAM command with dual pin capability
I2CLCD

New Functions:
STRUCT(

Other changes:
Memory footprint of MODFILE playback reduced
Improved handling of errors during tokenising the code
Removed constraint on number of case statements in SELECT CASE block
Enhancements to SPRITE command and function
COLOUR MAP now available for framebuffers on PicoMite versions
COPY command now allows copying a single file to a directory without specifying the destination filename
Includes the SUN in ASTRO and STAR commands
Major rework of the interaction between foreground and background I2C tasks on the SYSTEM I2C to avoid conflicts
Reduced memory overhead of various systems if not used: Turtle graphics, PLAY MP3, Sprites, Virtual Displays
MM.INFO(LCDPANEL) now returns the current mode for VGA and HDMI versions
XMODEM now always pads with NULL characters and terminates lines with CR/LF



Bug fixes:
Fixed bug where audio could play at the wrong speed after playing a MODFILE
Fied bugs in use of virtual screen drivers
Fixes bugs in editor when default mode is not 1
Fixes lockup when trying to FLASH CHAIN or FLASH RUN an empty flash slot
Fixes bug when copying a file to itself
Fixes bug where GPS data with incorrect checksum was not invalidated
Fixes bug where program could attempt to free unallocated heap memory
Fixes bug in OPTION LIST for some LCD displays

  Geoffg said  

Peter has delivered the latest release version of the PicoMite firmware V6.02.00.
...
Geoff

  matherp said  

Release notes:
This release is fundamentally about the implementation of structured types in MMbasic and their use in many commands and functions

New commands:
TYPE
END TYPE
STRUCT
BITSTREAM command with dual pin capability
I2CLCD

New Functions:
STRUCT(

Other changes:
...

I was wondering why Peter was so quiet on the release candidate thread: I thought, "Either he's still hatching an improvement or new feature, or he's waiting a few days for bugs to be found before he can fire off version 6.02.00?"

Congratulations and many thanks for the work, Peter!

Thanks to you too, Geoff!

  Geoffg said  

a comprehensive system for controlling stepper motors

Geoff

I missed that one in testing. Is it RP2350 only ?  "2350 only" was not listed in the user manual. On 2040 I get "unknown command"

Volhout
Edited 2026-01-25 21:18 by Volhout

Thankyou to Peter, Geoff and everyone involved.

Super upgrade, Peter. I've been using structures a lot for the indices in my PicoDB database (files which are arrays of structures), and they're very helpful--especially for sorting.

A question regarding the warning that drive A: may be erased. That's definitely the case for earlier versions, and I think for at least the first RC. Will that happen with the later RCs?

Yes, for new releases I force a complete flash clear - we have ways...

Thank you for the new release, Peter!

Does anyone else have this problem with MP3 playback from the FM175? It used to work without any problems.
It also works when I start playback from the prompt.



Matthias

  Quote  

a comprehensive system for controlling stepper motors ... I missed that one in testing. Is it RP2350 only ?

That does appear to be the case.
On the RP2040 there is the new 2 pin Bitstream command that could run a stepper motor in bursts. The amount of memory for the arrays would limit continuous running.
If more than one motor I think it would only do one at a time.

Hi phill,

Look in the new user manual, command STEPPER.
Look at the new EXTRA DOCUMENTATION folder in the zip.
This looks a g-code converter for stepper motors.

But this is 2350 only, I think.

Volhout
Edited 2026-01-26 16:06 by Volhout

@Geoff,

What is your own opinion on the single user manual for all different Pico flavours ?

I understand it is a lot less maintenance in case of updates. Update one manual, and it is done.

But for the end-user (i.e. who bought a RP2350 WEB pico) it is quite a search to see what is implemented on his version of MMBasic. Can he interface with an LCD ? Is keyboard support built in ?

It cannot be avoided that different platforms have a different feature set.
End users would benefit from a user manual to shows exactly (and only) what features MMBasic has on their hardware.

Volhout

P.S. this remark is triggered by the fact that I noticed STRUCT is implemented in RP2040 and STEPPER is not implemented.

Geoff has updated the 6.02.00 firmware on his site if you re-download.

The change, by popular request.....

The editor expands the use of the F4 mark function so that when you reach the beginning or end of the screen it will continue to work as the screen scrolls. In addition it will work with page up and page down. It is still subject to a maximum cut or copy of 2048 characters.

Also, as you mark text you will see a new option on the status bar - F10. Pressing F10 will prompt for a filename and when you press return write the contents of the marked area to the file. F10 also works when not in "mark" mode and will write out the contents of the cut/paste buffer, if any.

Finally, F9 can be used to insert the contents of a file at the current cursor position. Press F9 and you will be prompted for the name of a file and when you press return the file will be inserted.

Note on MP3 playback:
MP3 playback uses a LOT of memory. At the command prompt play an mp3 file and then type MEMORY to see how much. Prior to 6.02.00 it took a lot of that memory off the system stack. This caused repeated issues with complete crashes of the PicoMite environment if the stack corrupted other memory. In 6.02.00, the code has been changed so the memory is taken from the MMBasic heap. This allows for a graceful error "Not enough heap memory" rather than a system crash. The overall memory usage is the same. If you see this error in a program you will need to reduce other data structures to free up enough memory for mp3 playback. Previously, your code might have worked but hidden data was probably being corrupted leading to undefined errors.

@Peter,

The change in the editor does not work out well for the Linux Putty combination.
It works well for Windows Teraterm.
See below.

Highlighting with F4 in TeraTerm. Works fine.


Highlighting with F4 in Putty/Linux. At press of F4 the text is shifted up two lines, then highlighting happens as if text was not shifted up.


Regards,

Volhout
Edited 2026-01-26 19:47 by Volhout

You will need to find whatever setting is needed to overcome this. Probably inferring CR from LF or something like that.
Fresh install of putty works perfectly on windows
Edited 2026-01-26 19:52 by matherp

@Peter,

- F4 editor problem, as listed above
- File Manager MMCC (linux) cannot transfer files anymore from GEEK to PC

These issues did not exist in 60200rc8

Volhout

I've no idea what mmcc linux uses to transfer and F4 tests perfectly on windows with both putty and teraterm. I've configured a RP2040 as a geek even though I don't have one and xmodem works perfectly both ways to/from file or memory

  matherp said  

Geoff has updated the 6.02.00 firmware on his site if you re-download.
...

I just downloaded the new zip file for version 6.02.00: I'm a bit confused... The .uf2 files all have the same timestamp as yesterday's version (January 25, 2036) – but the zip file is a different size, and the manual PDF has a timestamp from today (January 26, 2036)??

So it shouldn't be a browser cache issue with the download – I haven't had that problem in ages anyway.

The new features for cut and paste and a clipboard via Files are very welcome!

Regards.

I sent them to Geoff yesterday. If they have the new functionality, then they are correct.