vim-syntax-asm_ca65

Vim syntax highlighting for the ca65 assembler.

Purpose

This repository provides asm_ca65.vim, a Vim syntax-highlighting module for the ca65 assembler.

ca65 is a full-featured assembler for the MOS 6502 family of microprocessors, which powered such historic platforms as the KIM I, Apple II, Commodore 64, and Nintendo Entertainment System. It is a part of the popular cc65 suite of development tools for the 6502, which also includes a C compiler, linker, object dumper, etc. ca65 is designed both for direct use by assembly programmers and as the compilation target of the cc65 C compiler. ca65 is especially used by "homebrew" communities for the NES, SNES, etc.

The stock Vim runtime distribution includes syntax modules for several dialects of assembly, as well as a "generic" module (which is really for the GNU Assembler), none of which works particularly well with 6502 assembly conventions, and especially not with ca65's many added features.

Features

• Highlights 6502 instruction mnemonics as keywords, with special highlighting for "illegal" instructions, and error highlighting for unknown (typo) instructions.
• Highlights all valid ca65 numeric and string literals, label definitions, and comments, with special highlighting for TODOs, FIXMEs, etc.
• Highlights all valid expression operators and control comands, with special treatment for various classes of commands, including .fileopt, segment names, includes, macro definitions, storage types, conditional assembly, linker control commands, structs, unions, procedures, pseudo-functions, some built-in macros, console output commands (.out, .warn, .etc.), and assembler behavior switches.

Examples (screenshots)

Solarized colorscheme

Elflord colorscheme

Limitations

• asm_ca65.vim currently has no awareness of, or support for, assembler options that change the rules of valid labels, identifiers, and literals from their defaults, for example the following .feature options and related command-line switches to ca65.
  • .feature at_in_identifiers
  • .feature dollar_in_identifiers
  • .feature labels_without_colons
  • .feature underline_in_numbers

Installation

Simply place asm_ca65.vim in your ~/.vim/syntax/ directory, or, if you use Pathogen, clone this repository under ~/.vim/bundle/.

Usage

:set syntax=asm_ca65 or create an autocmd, as with any syntax module.