By Gazette Staff — originally published in July 2026 — Issue #13
Somewhere in an abandoned robotics facility, a brilliant mind reshapes the digital world. He calls himself The Evil Professor—a megalomaniacal genius with a penchant for cryptic puzzles and overcomplicated security systems. His previous programmers have… disappointed him. Now he seeks talent worthy of his grand designs: YOU.
Each month, The Professor assigns two programming tasks to test his prospective recruits. Every mission includes technical objectives, core BASIC concepts, and an extra challenge for those seeking to demonstrate exceptional skill. Ready your keyboard, programmer!
MISSION TWENTY-FIVE
The Professor’s Briefing
“My laboratory requires ATMOSPHERE! Different experiments demand different ambiance—ominous red for death rays, clinical white for dissections, soothing blue for meditation on world domination. Manually POKEing color values is beneath me! I need a mood controller that cycles through carefully curated color schemes at my command!”
Objective
Create a color scheme controller with preset “moods.”
The program should:
• Display a menu of at least four mood options (Sinister, Clinical, Calm, Alert)
• Use subroutines to apply each color scheme (border and background)
• Clear the screen with CHR$(147) when switching moods
• Display the current mood name after switching
• Return to the menu after each selection
• Include a quit option that restores default colors before ending
Core BASIC Concepts
• GOSUB…RETURN for each mood subroutine
• POKE 53280/53281 for border and background colors
• CHR$(147) for screen clearing
• END to stop the program cleanly
• INPUT for menu selection
The Professor’s Extra Challenge
“Static moods are BORING! Add an ‘Alert Mode’ that cycles rapidly through warning colors using a loop, creating a flashing alarm effect. Use a subroutine that runs the flash sequence five times before returning to the menu!”
MISSION TWENTY-SIX
The Professor’s Briefing
“I challenge my henchmen to MENTAL ARITHMETIC for my amusement! But generating problems manually is tedious. I need a math quiz generator—random numbers, random operations, instant scoring. Watch them squirm as they calculate under pressure! Educational AND entertaining!”
Objective
Create a random arithmetic quiz generator.
The program should:
• Generate two random numbers (1-10) using RND(1) and INT()
• Present addition or subtraction problems randomly
• Accept the user’s answer and check correctness
• Use a subroutine to flash green for correct, red for incorrect
• Track and display a running score
• Show a title screen at start and final score at end using subroutines
Core BASIC Concepts
• RND(1) and INT() for random number generation
• GOSUB…RETURN for title, feedback, and ending subroutines
• POKE 53280/53281 for correct/incorrect color feedback
• CHR$(147) for screen clearing between problems
• END for clean program termination
The Professor’s Extra Challenge
“Add DIFFICULTY LEVELS! Easy uses numbers 1-10, Medium uses 1-50, Hard uses 1-100. Create a subroutine that sets the difficulty and adjusts the random range accordingly. Change the background color based on difficulty level!”
Good luck. The world is depending on you.
Ready to Submit? Email your solutions to info@computesgazette.com or mail a disk to PO Box 213, Cedar Park, TX 78613. Programs must be written in BASIC for any retro or neo-retro computer with a built-in interpreter—just tell us what system you’re targeting and note any cross-compatibility. Machine language subroutines are welcome, but keep the core logic in BASIC and include ML routines as DATA statements. We’d love to hear your thought process, so include a short narrative explaining your approach and comment your code with REM statements. By submitting, you grant COMPUTE! Publications, Inc. the rights to publish your solution in print and digital formats. Good luck, agent!