From Zero to READY: Recreating C64 BASIC in Visual Studio Code

An experiment using AI code generation (Codex) to recreate a Microsoft BASIC interpreter compatible with Commodore 64 BASIC. Starting with a single detailed prompt, the AI generated a functional interpreter in C that runs on modern systems (macOS/Linux) and was then iteratively debugged to work on a PDP-11 running 2.11BSD Unix. The process involved handling platform-specific constraints like K&R C compatibility, split I/D space limitations, and different timing mechanisms. The final result successfully executes BASIC programs including graphics and custom sleep commands on both modern and vintage hardware.