Nuclear ZX - Sinclair ZX Spectrum Emulator


Update: If you are running the emulator on Pentium II processor, and it crashes with Runtime error 200, get this file and replace original nuclear.exe with this zx.exe. Or slowing down your computer with slowdos.exe could help, too. (Thanks to Marek Hruby for pointing this out)
To download Nuclear ZX, my ZX Spectrum Emulator click here (approx. 181 KB).
The short documentation is here.
Special thanks go to Shaun Johnston for correcting spelling/grammar mistakes in the documentation.

To load programs from tapes into the emulator, you can use for example Taper.

Here is quick (10min) and dirty port from MsDOS to Unix of a program listing .TAP files. The PASCAL source is here, if you happen not to have f2c installed, linux ELF binary is here (linked against libc.so.5). Works best with following lines in mc.ext:

# Sinclair ZX Spectrum TAP files
regex/\.(tap|TAP)$
       View=%view{ascii} lstap %f

Fortune cookies with Sinclair ZX Spectrum BASIC error messages are here.
A few links:
A poem by Philip Archondous:

She called upon him, but he was away
programming the machine with the rubber keys
poking and peeking the registers all day
hacking old games with pride and with ease.
Alcatraz protection system,speedlock and fastloaders
a challenge for him who has mastered this machine.

A poem by Jyrki Aarnos:

You - my Spectrum - were the first computer I have owned.
You - my Spectrum - gave me endless hours of pleasure.
You - my Spectrum - drove me almost crazy with Z80 assembly.
You - my Spectrum - made me comfortable with the Z80 assembly.
You - my Spectrum - died in electric shock...

... which I caused with one short circuit...

... but now You are back to life again...

... in the form of ZX Spectrum Emulator v3.68

A poem by Ulrich Enslin:

My Life

One day, long before I knew the world is round,
even before I looked at windows and disliked them,
my rainbow was there and gave pleasure to all 
who gazed upon its colours clashing.

My memory is short but I remember that time well,
It was a time for the family-well.
Happiness I brought to those who could wait
for time was then not part of the debate.

Time went by and I was forgotten,
left in the caboard, I thought that was rotten.
Now it seems I've been revived 
New life for me and still as good as that first day.

A poem by Christian Hackbart:

     Ode an meinen ZX Spectrum
     -------------------------
       von Christian Hackbart

Frei nach Friedrich Schillers GRENZENLOS

 Du fuehrst mich meilenweit von dannen
 Und bleibst doch stets an einem Ort,
 Du hast nicht Fluegel auszuspannen
 Und traegst mich wie durch Luefte fort.
 Mit einem Speicher ziemlich klein
 Vollbringst du wahre Wunder
 Du bist ein fein Computer'lein
 Du ZX Spectrum Wunder.

A poem by Samir Ribic:

Historio de mas^ino

Okazis tio antau dek kvin jaroj.
La anglo kun barbo kaj lipharoj,
kiu vivis c^e fama univerzitato
inventis tute novan aparaton.

G^ia nomo estis "ZX Spectrum"
varma kiel kapo post sunum'
ULA kaj Z80 estis g^iaj koroj
apud gumbutonoj estis kvar koloroj

Per g^i lernis multaj programistoj
kaj ludis ec^ pli multaj hobiistoj
G^i havis fortojn nelimigitajn
kostinte nur cent funtojn britajn

Post invento pasis multaj jaroj.
Komputiloj kreskis kiel fungaroj.
C^iuj havis pli kaj pli da forto.
Venis tempo por Spektruma morto.

Sed simile al Hindoj kiuj sen timo
pensas pri morto kiel vojo de animo
el malnova korpo al tute alia
entute ne mortos programaro nia.

La dekoj de homoj el la tuta mondo
faris emulilojn, ec^ la plena ondo!
Spectrum estas en moderna stato
Davido nun log^as en Golijato!
A poem by Stan Rodgers:

My Sinclair Spectrums (I've got three)
Are sleeping in a cupboard
Since I got a PC.
But if you ask me
Where is your heart?
I'd reply "With the PC
I would part,
But my Spectrums (Spectra?)
I swear I tell no lie,
Will be with me
Till the day I die.
A poem by Robert Barron:

O Spectrum! My Spectrum!

O Spectrum! my Spectrum! our fearful trip is done,
The sinclair has weather'd every rack, the game we played is won,
The plug is near, the beeps I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady rainbow, the keyboard grim and daring;
       But O heart! heart! heart!
       . O the bleeding drops of red,
       . . Where in front of the television my Spectrum lies,
       . . . Fallen cold and dead.

O Spectrum! my Spectrum! rise up and hear the beeps;
Rise up -- for you the flag is flung -- for you the speaker trills,
For you microdrives and ribbon'd tapes -- for you the shores a-crowding,
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
       Here Spectrum! dear computer!
       . This arm beneath your head!
       . . It is some dream that in front of the televison,
       . . . You've fallen cold and dead.

My Spectrum does not answer, his display is pale and still,
My computer does not feel my arm, he has no current nor will,
The sinclair is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
From fearful trip the victor comes with object won:
       Exult O shores, and beep O beeps!
       . But I walk with mournful tread,
       . . Where in front of the televison my Spectrum lies,
       . . . Fallen cold and dead.

A prose by Laurens van der Klis:

The Spectrum

The excitement started with the carefull and skilled tuning of the
cassete player using the
volume, tone and the azimuth screw. Then the sound of a file loading:
yes the Spectrum spoke
to you! You could hear a screen being loaded with its peculiar effect of
the colour attributes,
the moan of a stream of likewise aligned bits, the header, the
unexpected headerless and all-out
mayhem of code. Who could forget the unmistakable and unforgettable
touch of the soft rubber
keyboard. Unique in its design with 1,2,3 even 4 functions assigned to
one key alone! When
I bought my Spectrum I had to return three times to my dealer to get a
good working one. This
was the one that sounded like there was something loose inside when
jangled and it works until
this very day. It remains my favorite computer I have ever owned.

A poem by Ali Rachid

Sinclair Zx Spectrum was my first computer ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum was my first friend ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum was my computer teacher ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum was very patient with me ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum never got bored spending hours with me ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum never got angry when I crashed it ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum always rewarded me with satisfaction ...
Sinclair Zx Spectrum remains my best friend ...
I love Sinclair Zx Spectrum forever !!!


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