Provided by: nqc_3.1.r6-7build1_amd64 bug

NAME

       nqc - A simple C-like language for Lego's RCX programmable brick

SYNOPSIS

       nqc [ options ] [ actions ] [ - | filename ] [ actions ]

DESCRIPTION

       NQC  stands  for  Not Quite C, and is a simple language for programming the LEGO RCX.  The
       preprocessor and control structures of NQC are very similar to C.  NQC is  not  a  general
       purpose language -- there are many restrictions that stem from limitations of the standard
       RCX firmware.

       This man page does not attempt to describe the NQC programming language or  the  RCX  API,
       merely  the  options  of  the  nqc  command-line  program.   References  to  more complete
       documentation are given at the end of this man page.

       nqc is normally used to process a single source file given as filename.  You can also read
       from  stdin  by  using - instead.  If the filename ends in .rcx, it is assumed to be a RCX
       image file from a previous compile, and will be used as is (for downloading or listing).

OPTIONS

       -1     use NQC 1.x compatibility mode.  The RCX API  changed  significantly  with  version
              2.0.  This flag makes the compiler grok old code.

       -Ttarget
              generate code and use communications methods for "smart bricks" other than the RCX.
              Currently, can be either CM or Scout.

       -d     download program to the RCX.  When this option is given, code is sent directly over
              the serial port to the brick and no output file is generated by default.

       -n     prevent the standard nqc.h file from being automatically included.

       -Dsym[=value]
              define macro sym as value.

       -E[filename]
              write  compiler  errors to filename (or to stdout, if no name specified) instead of
              to stderr.

       -Ipath search path for include files.  Multiple directories should be separated as  normal
              for  the  platform  (under  Linux  / Unix, that'd be "").  Can also be set with the
              NQC_INCLUDE environment variable.

       -L[filename]
              generate a human-readable bytecode listing to filename (or to  stdout)  instead  of
              generating a binary file.

       -Ooutfile
              output  code  to outfile.  This option causes a file to be written even if -d or -L
              is also given.  If no filename is specified, the output file  will  have  the  same
              basename as the input file but an extension of .rcx instead of .nqc.

       -Sportname
              use serial port portname.  Under Linux, /dev/rcx is the default.  (This will differ
              on other platforms.)  The port can also be specified via the  RCX_PORT  environment
              variable, but the command line option takes precedence.

       -Usym  undefine macro sym.

ACTIONS

       Actions  look  similar  to  options,  but  they have some subtle differences.  In general,
       options set up things (such as a serial port) for later use, while actions cause something
       to  happen.   Actions  are executed in the order that they appear on the command line.  In
       addition, actions appearing before  the  source  file  happen  before  compilation,  while
       actions  after  the  source  file  happen  after  compilation.   For  historical  reasons,
       downloading the compiled file (-d) works as an option and not an action.

       -run   run the current program.  This causes the program selected on the RCX to execute.

       -pgm number
              select program number.  This changes the program slot on the RCX.

       -datalog
              get the datalog from the RCX and print it to stdout.

       -datalog-full
              same as -datalog but with more verbose output.

       -near  set the IR port to short-range mode.

       -far   set the IR port to long-range mode.

       -watch time
              set the RCX's clock to the specified time.  If you use now, then the host's current
              time is used.

       -firmware filename
              downloads the firmware to the RCX.  You'll need the official Lego RCX firmware from
              the CD-ROM -- the current (and so far only) file is called firm0309.lgo.  This will
              probably  be  necessary  the  first  time  you use your RCX, and whenever it's been
              without batteries for more than a few minutes.

       -firmfast filename
              same as -firmware, but at quad speed.  Requires the tower to be in near  mode  (see
              -near).    If  you have trouble getting the fast download to work, please revert to
              the older (and slower) method.

       -sleep timeout
              set RCX auto-shutoff timeout, in minutes.

       -msg number
              send IR message to RCX. The  brick  will  respond  to  this  just  as  it  would  a
              communication from another RCX.

       -raw data
              send  an  arbitrary  packet to the RCX and print the reply (if any) to stdout.  The
              data should be a hexadecimal string, with no spaces, zero-padded so that it  is  an
              even number of characters (although it may be an odd number of bytes). For example,
              to read the contents of variable 1, you could use -raw 120001.  The  bytecodes  for
              raw messages can be found on web sites that document the RCX protocol.

       -remote value repeat
              send a repeating remote command to the RCX.

       -clear erase all programs and datalog from the RCX.

ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES

       RCX_PORT
              sets the default serial port.  See the -S option.

       NQC_OPTIONS
              specifies extra options to be inserted into the command line.  For example, setting
              NQC_OPTIONS to -TScout would cause nqc to target the Scout by default.

       NQC_INCLUDE
              specifies additional paths to search for include files.  See also the -I option.

EXAMPLES

       To compile foo.nqc, download the bytecode to program slot three, and make  the  RCX  start
       executing it immediately:

           nqc -d -pgm 3 foo.nqc -run

       To just compile bar.nqc, resulting in bar.rcx:

           nqc bar.nqc

       To download bar.rcx to the RCX:

           nqc -d bar.rcx

       To set the IR tower to short-range mode and download the firmware at high speed:

           nqc -near -firmfast firm0309.lgo

       To  compile  /usr/share/doc/nqc/examples/test.nqc and print the resulting bytecode listing
       to the screen in human-readable format:

           nqc -L /usr/share/doc/nqc/examples/test.nqc

       (This should result in the following output under nqc 2.1.0:

           *** Task 0 = main
           000 pwr        ABC, 7                13 07 02 07
           004 dir        ABC, Fwd              e1 87
           006 InType     0, Switch             32 00 01
           009 InMode     0, Boolean            42 00 20
           012 out        A, On                 21 81
           014 chkl       1 != Input(0), 14     95 82 09 01 00 00 fa ff
           022 plays      0                     51 00
           024 out        A, Off                21 41

       )

FILES

       Older versions of nqc  required  a  separate  rcx.nqh  or  rcx2.nqh  file.   This  is  now
       integrated  into  the  binary  and  no  longer  necessary,  but for reference, rcx2.nqh is
       included    with    the    package.     (If     you     installed     the     RPM,     try
       /usr/share/doc/nqc-2.1.0/rcx2.nqh).

SEE ALSO

       http://www.enteract.com/~dbaum/nqc/
              The  main  Not  Quite  C  web site.  You'll definitely want to look here.  Notably,
              you'll find the NQC Programmer's Guide, which covers the NQC language itself.

       http://www.crynwr.com/lego-robotics/
              A great site for alternative RCX / Mindstorms development.

       http://graphics.stanford.edu/~kekoa/rcx/
              Details on the internals of the RCX and the RCX protocol.

       http://www.lugnet.com/robotics/rcx/nqc/
              Discussion group for NQC.  Also available via NNTP at lugnet.com.

       http://nqc.mattdm.org/
              Linux binaries and RPM-format packages for NQC, including source RPMs.  Also has an
              RPM  containing  the  NQC  language  documentation  from Dave's site, in case you'd
              prefer to have it installed locally.

BUGS

       None known.  But be  aware  that  Scout  support  is  still  preliminary  and  may  change
       significantly.

COPYRIGHT

       nqc  is  Copyright  (C)  1998-2000  David Baum and released under the terms of the Mozilla
       Public License.  See the documentation included with the program for more details.

AUTHOR

       The Not Quite C programming language and the nqc program were written and  are  maintained
       by  Dave  Baum.   Various  contributions  have been made by other people -- a full list of
       these can be found on Dave's web site.

       This man page was written by Matthew  Miller  (mattdm@mattdm.org),  with  extremely  large
       amounts of borrowing from other NQC documentation.

                                   Version 2.1 r1: 19 Feb 2000                             nqc(1)