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From: mlab2@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games
Subject: Re: Games coprocessor for the Mac (was Re: Risk)
Message-ID: <27327.276221da@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>
Date: 9 Dec 90 17:36:57 GMT
References: <15722@reed.UUCP> <17578@hydra.gatech.EDU> <5963@uqcspe.cs.uq.oz.au> <17743@hydra.gatech.EDU> <10844@ur-cc.UUCP>
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Services
Lines: 31

In article <10844@ur-cc.UUCP>, mek4_ltd@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Mark Kern) writes:
> Why do Mac games use quickdraw commands for their graphics?  It would seem
> that it would be much faster to a) find out where screen memory resides on
> a particular machine. b) reserve that memory for the application. c) Use
> assembly language routines that write directly to the screen.
> 
Well, if you bypass the Toolbox (directly write to the screen memory) you have
a tangle of compatibility problems - different size monitors, b&w with
different color depths etc.  Using the Toolbox gives you a much more reliable
set of routines that will work across different Mac platforms.  You may have
seen the Defender-clone, MacLanding - it was written in assembly back in the
early Mac days.  Alas, it doesn't run on the newer machines.

> I have not seen an arcade game on the Mac that can compare in graphics to
> an IBM, Amiga or even IIGS.  I would be interested to know of arcade style
> games with detailed background scrolling on the Mac.

The IBM and IIGS games tend to write directly to the screen (if I am not
mistaken - in fact, isn't there quite a compatibility problem in the IBM
world?-VGA, CGA, etc?).  The Amiga has additional hardware for dealing with
graphics (in addition to it's 'toolbox' routines).  No, detailed scrolling
with Toolbox commands just crawls on the Mac - you just work within and around
your restrictions.  On that same note, I haven't seen fast 3D games on the
Amiga or IBM - what I mean is full 3D modelling with shading and shadow
casting, etc.  I know, sounds crazy, but I just thought I'd point out that even
the Amiga and IBM programmers must work within some bounds.  But, you're right,
the Mac programmers have even more restrictions in this regard.

> Mark E. Kern

john calhoun