Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!sdd.hp.com!caen!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!lll-winken!taco!hobbes!kdarling From: kdarling@hobbes.ncsu.edu (Kevin Darling) Newsgroups: comp.graphics Subject: Re: IFF, 24-bit color, displays, Amiga Message-ID: <1991Mar12.082113.16351@ncsu.edu> Date: 12 Mar 91 08:21:13 GMT References: <15@goblin.ntg.uucp> <39983@cup.portal.com> <1991Mar11.223827.21988@ncsu.edu> <1991Mar12.014550.25284@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu> Sender: news@ncsu.edu (USENET News System) Organization: North Carolina State University Lines: 49 rjc@geech.ai.mit.edu (Ray Cromwell) writes: >> kdarling@hobbes.ncsu.edu (Kevin Darling) writes: >> Most of those products have large palettes, yes. But few are true 24-bit > Wrong. Both Firecracker24 and Colorburst are TRUE 24bit display devices., What "wrong"? The original implication I got was that all the devices mentioned were 24-bit. I said a few were. That's still correct. > Colorburst costs $499 and is a 48bit display device that works on ALL > Amigas. It is the only true 24bit card that can do animation. > in 48bit the Colorburst uses another 24bits for overlay information > and special effects. [...] > What is the price of a comparable product on the Mac/IBM. I personally don't care, since I own neither (I do own an A1000). Mac/IBM/Amiga wars don't interest me. As a techie tho, I admit to not being one to ignore hype, missing info, and misuse of terms, no matter what the machine is. Yes, the Colorburst has a dual 24-bit display mode, where two 24-bit images (of res's which can fit within its 1.5M memory) can be switched pixel by pixel. But that's not "48-bit", no matter what you read from their ads. Another thing to consider: I read that its RAM is loaded by sending the R,G,B components as separate images from the Amiga video output lines. In the highest res mode, that would take 6 Amiga display frames to do. > [HAM-E device] In this mode it can do 18bits (with error) > by using the HAM trick of specifying delta's from the base color to > be changed. This time, instead of a base of 16 colors with a single > delta gun, HAM-E has a base of 240 colors, it then (like HAM) specifies Close. It can on-the-fly select one of four base banks of 59 colors each, from which the next pixel can then do its extended HAM delta stuff on. > DCTV is an NTSC composite device which allows 4million colors, with > whatever amount normal Television allows simultaneously to be > displayed. If you like Television, you'll like this. > DCTV also comes with a digitizer. It doesn't currently work with a genlock tho, which might be crucial info to someone working with TV, and shouldn't be left out. > HAM-E works will all normal Amiga software with no patches, A nice way of saying that all the others require custom software :-). I do think that people like being kept up to date, but it'd probably be more interesting if we all waited until someone's actually used all these cards instead of relying on ads. cheers - kev