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Groups > alt.folklore.computers > #161239

Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break

From "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com>
Newsgroups alt.folklore.computers
Subject Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break
Date 2016-03-20 06:46 +1100
Message-ID <dl5olkF5jcnU1@mid.individual.net> (permalink)
References <PM00052E54A86D1850@users-ibook-g4-6.unknown.dom>

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jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> wrote

> Subject says it all.  There is a caveat:  Since all debugging steps are
> dependent on the feedback of the last n steps, I cannot be precise
> and I will try to document the assumption I make based on a fictional
> feedback with each debugging steps.
>
> The first step is to find out how and where ADVENT keeps track of
> points.  There are many, many ways to do this.  Note that the
> maximum number of points is 256 which suggests 256 bits are assigned
> to keep track of which point in the game action has been achieved.
>
> First,
>
> SET WATCH FILES VERSION
> R ADVENT
>
> The versions are interesting and may help.  The FILES will tell me
> how ADVENT writes its data to keep track of points.
>
> If ADVENT writes into a data file, then I'd do a FILCOM
> of a new data file without any points with a file which
> has all the points sans the 256th one.  that will give me
> the address of the words where the bits are set.  Then
> it's easy to set a breakpoint using the SET BREAK command
> with a mask whenever that bit is referenced.
>
> So a MIC file should be created to play the entire game and a
> break will occur whenever that bit is referenced.  thus, one
> would find the room and items required to get the last point.
>
>
> If the data is kept in the EXE (this is a snarly method of
> programming but people do it), then that implies that the
> EXE has to be writtable.

And this method won't work if they don’t.

> I would then play the game until the first point is about
> to be achieved.  Exit the game.  Write-lock the EXE file.
> Then either RUN or CONT the game, depending on how the
> write-lock was done.  Now try to get the point.  An error
> message from the monitor (can't recall the precise format)
> will complain giving data about the locations which couldn't
> be written.
>
> Another possible method of determining where the points are
> written is to FILCOM a virgin ADVENT.EXE with a completed,
> sans one point, ADVENT.EXE.
>
> These last two methods may take some examining of the EXE
> files.  You can do that by running FILDDT and looking at
> the addresses which are interesting.

So you don’t in fact find the last point using SET BREAK, as we said.

> There are many other ways to debug the program.  You can
> put in a patch  with FILDDT which will do stuff
> depending on the code.  One does not need DDT loaded with
> the EXE to do any of the debugging.  I probably would not
> want DDT in my address space because it's extra code
> to ignore and it does strange things with one's adddress space.
>
> If you did think you needed DDT, then you would have to go
> to a TOPS-20 system,  and type:
>
> GET ADVENT
> DDT
> ^C
> SAVE ADVENT
>
> Then you can look using DDT commands but there won't be
> symbols with this program.  After playing around on the -20,
> you can go to a TOPS-10 system, verify that the addresses
> you are interested in are the same or determine the offset
> from the -20 core copy.  Then you can set the appropriate
> address break and run the MIC game playing file to determine
> the objects and rooms you need for the 256th point.
>
> Now, these techniques are just from the top of my head.

Pity that you STILL haven't shown how SET BREAK can be
used to work out the last point.

> There are a lot more, including watching the game
> being played from the POV of the monitor, but this is
> considered "cheating" ;-).  (I guess noone here would
> understand the cheating reference but JMF and TW would.)

That last is even sillier than you usually manage.

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Thread

Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-19 13:23 +0000
  Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-20 06:46 +1100
    Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-20 13:56 +0000
      Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-21 04:51 +1100
        Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-21 12:24 +0000
          Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Morten Reistad <first@last.name.invalid> - 2016-03-21 13:53 +0100
            Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-22 04:23 +1100
              Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-22 13:40 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-23 05:01 +1100
            Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Rob Doyle <radioengr@gmail.com> - 2016-03-22 01:50 -0700
              Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Morten Reistad <first@last.name.invalid> - 2016-03-22 13:22 +0100
              Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-22 13:40 +0000
            Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-22 13:40 +0000
              Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break usenet@only.tnx (Questor) - 2016-03-26 07:32 +0000
          Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-22 04:24 +1100
          Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Charles Richmond" <numerist@aquaporin4.com> - 2016-03-22 10:20 -0500
            Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-23 13:23 +0000
  Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal) - 2016-03-21 13:58 +0000
  Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal) - 2016-03-21 14:00 +0000
    Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-22 13:40 +0000
      Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Charles Richmond" <numerist@aquaporin4.com> - 2016-03-22 10:24 -0500
  Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break usenet@only.tnx (Questor) - 2016-03-22 07:19 +0000
  Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break usenet@only.tnx (Questor) - 2016-03-22 07:19 +0000
    Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Morten Reistad <first@last.name.invalid> - 2016-03-22 13:20 +0100
    Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-22 13:40 +0000
      Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-23 04:55 +1100
      Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break usenet@only.tnx (Questor) - 2016-03-26 07:32 +0000
        Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Morten Reistad <first@last.name.invalid> - 2016-03-26 09:55 +0100
          Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-26 13:24 +0000
            Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-27 04:11 +1100
              Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-27 13:26 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-28 04:25 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Charles Richmond" <numerist@aquaporin4.com> - 2016-03-28 15:58 -0500
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-29 13:55 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Morten Reistad <first@last.name.invalid> - 2016-03-29 17:17 +0200
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-30 13:58 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal) - 2016-03-29 16:17 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Ahem A Rivet's Shot <steveo@eircom.net> - 2016-03-29 17:57 +0100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> - 2016-03-29 17:14 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Huge <Huge@nowhere.much.invalid> - 2016-03-29 17:17 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal) - 2016-03-29 17:48 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Ibmekon <Ibmekon> - 2016-03-29 21:35 +0100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> - 2016-03-29 23:20 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Andrew Swallow <am.swallow@btopenworld.com> - 2016-03-30 05:33 +0100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "764hho" <764hho@nospam.com> - 2016-03-30 17:23 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Ibmekon <Ibmekon> - 2016-03-29 19:28 +0100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Charles Richmond" <numerist@aquaporin4.com> - 2016-03-31 11:10 -0500
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Ibmekon <Ibmekon> - 2016-03-31 19:20 +0100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-30 13:58 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> - 2016-03-30 16:32 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal) - 2016-03-30 16:55 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "764hho" <764hho@nospam.com> - 2016-03-31 04:09 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> - 2016-03-31 06:22 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Charles Richmond" <numerist@aquaporin4.com> - 2016-03-31 11:13 -0500
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break JimP. <blue@cwahi.net> - 2016-03-31 21:00 -0500
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "764hho" <764hho@nospam.com> - 2016-03-31 03:49 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-30 05:29 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-30 13:58 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-03-31 03:41 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break jmfbahciv <See.above@aol.com> - 2016-03-31 12:41 +0000
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@gmail.com> - 2016-04-01 05:03 +1100
                Re: Debugging Adventure using Address Break usenet@only.tnx (Questor) - 2016-04-15 08:34 +0000

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