SDK85 vs Shader Playground

An emulator of the SDK-85 System Design Kit issued by Intel in the mid-seventies. The kit featured an 8085 micro processor, some basic IO chips, and a UI comprised of a hexpad and a six-digit seven-segment display. There was also a ROM plugged onto the board which contained a monitor program to enter and execute machine code on the 8085. The app emulates an 8085 and executes the monitor (shippment granted by Intel as long as the app is free and educational). The original kit leveraged the serial IO pins of the 8085 to connect a TTY as a somewhat more comfortable alternative to the hexpad/ display UI used by the monitor on startup. A wipe-left gesture shifts in a simple terminal and the monitor switches to TTY mode. To use the app one needs to get a copy of the original SDK-85 System Design Kit User‘s Manual (ask Google) and work it thru. Some knowledge of the 8085 and its instruction set is helpful as well, and being a boomer nerd who loved to program micro computers when young (and still does) is key. Intel designed the monitor to run in a loop that keeps the CPU constantly busy (on a single thread). To prevent the battery from draining the app suspends executing after 15 seconds indicated by a slightly blurred display. Tapping the centered play-pause button resumes the monitor or any other program in execution. Timeout and a few other options can be changed in the app‘s entry in Settings.

Shader Playground is a powerful real-time shader editor built for iPhone and iPad. Write Metal fragment shaders, see results instantly at 60 FPS, and export your creations as images or videos. REAL-TIME PREVIEW Write code and watch your shader come alive instantly. The live preview renders at 60 FPS with full support for standard uniforms: iTime, iResolution, iMouse, and iFrame. SHADER EDITOR WITH SYNTAX HIGHLIGHTING A dedicated code editor with Metal Shading Language syntax highlighting, monospace font, and smart keyboard tools — designed for comfortable coding on mobile. BUILT-IN SHADER LIBRARY Get started immediately with 10 ready-to-use shaders including plasma, Mandelbrot fractals, raymarched 3D scenes, Voronoi patterns, ocean waves, and more. Learn by exploring and modifying working examples. MULTI-PASS RENDERING Build complex effects with up to four buffer passes. Chain textures between passes to create feedback loops, blur effects, and advanced post-processing pipelines. TOUCH INPUT Map touch and drag gestures directly to shader uniforms. Create interactive visual experiences that respond to your fingertips. SAVE & LOAD PROJECTS Save your shaders locally and pick up where you left off. Build your personal library of custom effects. EXPORT Capture the perfect frame as a PNG image or render smooth MP4 videos at custom resolution, duration, and frame rate. Save directly to your Camera Roll or share anywhere. Whether you're a graphics programmer, creative coder, student learning GPU programming, or a visual artist exploring generative art — Shader Playground gives you a complete Metal shader development environment in your pocket. Thanks for your support and do visit nitrio.com for more apps for your iOS devices.