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From: dmb@wam.umd.edu (David M. Baggett)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Crash when switching resolutions
Keywords: crash tos1.4 resolution
Message-ID: <1990Mar25.211253.8909@wam.umd.edu>
Date: 25 Mar 90 21:12:53 GMT
References: <22746@uflorida.cis.ufl.EDU>
Sender: usenet@wam.umd.edu (USENET Posting)
Reply-To: dmb@wam.umd.edu (David M. Baggett)
Organization: University of Maryland at College Park
Lines: 42

In article <22746@uflorida.cis.ufl.EDU> cr1@beach.cis.ufl.edu (Chris Roth) writes:
>Hello,
>
>I am having a problem trying to figure out the cause of a crash I am
>getting on my ST.  I originally noticed the problem when I switched
>resolutions from low to medium and I got 4 bombs.  I have been trying
>to figure out if it is a combination of  programs in the auto folder
>and accessories, but have not been able to determine if there is a
>conflict or if it is just that a certain number of accessories and
>programs causes a 4 bomb error.  Also, I have noticed that a lot of
>the time if I switch res with Oat Bran installed, the system will just
>hang up.  Screen white, cursor in the top left corner.  I have tos
>1.4, a 1040 ST, 2 drives.  Has anyone had a similar problem?  I've
>been spending a long time trying to figure out the cause.
>

Who says Oat Bran's not good for ya?

The problem does not seem to be with Oat Bran itself.  Try booting with no
accessories and no auto-programs except Oat Bran.  Switching resolutions
works fine.  (At least for me, and I have TOS 1.4 too.)  (Actually, I
tried it with Schizo and DC formatter resident as well.)

I noticed that Quick ST (AUTO folder version 1.46) will cause a warm
boot when you change from medium to low res (I didn't try going from
low to medium).  Perhaps this is causing your problem.

Oat Bran doesn't do anything unsafe, undocumented, or unhealthy as far
as I know.  It just installs a little routine at the VBI vector.
(I think it's at $70.)  After the routine exectues, it jumps through
the old vector (i.e., it calls the system VBI routine).

Be wary of programs like Quick ST and formdial that replace certain
parts of the OS.  They sometimes rely on being called first, so if
another program comes before them and steals the vector(s) they steal,
they complain bitterly.  The upshot of this is that the order
things get called in is crucial.  You may have to erase your AUTO
folder and copy the files back in in a different order (with OS
enhancements first) to get resolution changes to work properly.

Dave Baggett
dmb@cscwam.umd.edu