nesdev.org

Is it called "6502 For Dummies"?

Are you referring to Programming the 6502 by Rodnay Zaks? Here's what the one I have looks like:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v287/ ... f/6502.jpg

That's the third edition, but I've heard that the fourth has some mistakes corrected in it.

I thought it was yellow and what's the latest edition and is it hard to find?

you've read nothing

Now you may have changed my mind. Is it helpful for someone like me?

i'm sorry man, i thought twice before posting, it's just that he's very boring. very informative tough. i'm probably just too imature and not hungry enough to learn from him.

Coupled with some information on the NES itself this can be a very useful book.

I have this book. Fortunately, I've come to the realization that you really just need to read the first few chapters. If you're a n00b like me, just read them OVER and OVER and OVER again. That will help ya learn yerself teh 6503... uh dur.

Seriously... I'm a bit drunk, but I know what I'm talking about. I had that book recommended to me a few years back and it does help... a lot. The hardware sections are the most useful. Really dig into the registers. The rest is easily learned by sifting through open source code and looking at the Wiki. The Wiki is in poor condition and written mainly for people who wish to emulate the Nintendo, but it's sufficient aside from the confusing terminology which doesn't at all apply to practical coding application.

Otherwise, we could always take some more n00bz at #nesdev EFnet if you have questions that aren't easily answered by Google.

I used to read a lot about the 6502 back when I was learning, the same things over and over, but I only really learned anything when I tried some of it out. Only then the reading started making sense.

For anyone trying to understand what assembly is all about, I'd say you just can't get from reading alone. Do read the basic stuff, over and over, but also experiment a little. Michal Kowalski's 6502 simulator really comes in handy for that.

Honestly, I never got to read a 6502 book until I was already pretty used to it, I simply couldn't find any back then. So I can say it's very much possible to learn it all with the material you find on the web and a place to experiment, but I really can't tell if a book would make things easier. The 6502 isn't really complex, as far as microprocessors go, so the only case where I can the advantage of a book over the internet is if it used very good didactics to introduce the concepts of assembly language.

B00daW wrote:The rest is easily learned by sifting through open source code and looking at the Wiki. The Wiki is in poor condition and written mainly for people who wish to emulate the Nintendo, but it's sufficient aside from the confusing terminology which doesn't at all apply to practical coding application.

If you like, feel free to register, and then once you sober up, you can be bold in fixing the wiki.

A book helps if you travel as a passenger and you don't have a good laptop.

tepples wrote:A book helps if you travel as a passenger and you don't have a good laptop.

What are printers for...? =)

Yeah, the 6502 is a fairly simple language. The only reason it took so long for me to learn was because I didn't know ANYTHING about programming. There are some little things I don't fully understand, but really, once you know lda/y/x/sta/y/x, it gets really easy. If you know about programming concepts like loops and variables, it should be fairly straight forward.

tokumaru wrote:

tepples wrote:A book helps if you travel as a passenger and you don't have a good laptop.

What are printers for...? =)

Eating your money when have to buy more ink as you spray it onto a page. As I understand it, if you want to read on a bus, train, or plane, it's cheaper to buy a professionally printed book than to print one using the inkjet printer that most major personal computer makers bundle with home PCs.

Fair enough... although many people are able to print stuff at work on a laser printer, and that costs them nothing! =) I used to be able to print stuff at work, but I don't work there anymore.

Can I order this from Border Books or do I have to get it online?