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From: rjc@geech.gnu.ai.mit.edu (Ray Cromwell)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.emulations
Subject: Re: SVGA emulation with 24 bit boards
Message-ID: <1991Apr9.182934.10786@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>
Date: 9 Apr 91 18:29:34 GMT
References: <1991Apr8.220628.26119@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu> <1991Apr9.165826.21137@news.iastate.edu>
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In article <1991Apr9.165826.21137@news.iastate.edu> xgr39@CCVAX.IASTATE.EDU writes:
>In article <1991Apr8.220628.26119@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu>, drtiller@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu (Donald Richard Tillery Jr) writes:
>>I figure someone else has already thought of this (great minds think alike ;-),
>>but I'm wondering how feasable it would be to write handlers for all the
>>24 bit and pseudo-24 bit boards so that IBM (and other computer) emulators
OB>>could use them to emulate SVGA (or equivalent on other platforms) cards.  If
>>the emulators used standard library calls and the appropriate library was
>>used for the particular device (ColorBurst, FireCracker, Toaster, DCTV, HAM-E,
>>Harlequin, etc.), wouldn't that give a reasonable emulation (speed not with-
>>standing) of those graphics boards?  Just a thought to bandy about for the
>>bridgeboards, IBeM, AMAX, and other emulators.
>
>   Several months ago, I brought up the idea of enhancing the Janus 
>software to allow the A2410 to emulate an SVGA card whenever the A2410
>is used on an Amiga in conjunction with a BridgeBoard.  This would 
>allow the A2410 to be used for more than just UNIX.  Unfortunately,
>I have know idea whether or not Commodore is working on this because
>they are obviously not talking.

  Do you think Commodore would tell you even if they were? Especially
you Marc, because you'd condemn any of their new projects even before
they hit the market as being inadequate. Even if Commodore made some
super duper 32 bit chipset, you'd fine something missing from it.
'Hey, I thought C= was supposed to include a Silicon Graphics emulator
on the new custom chips. Commodore is doomed, blah...'

>   I do not think any of the other video products would be very 
>satisfactory in emulating an SVGA card.  The reason is that all of the
                                                             ^^^
big generalization wouldn't you say?
>graphics-enhancement boards available for the Amiga -- except for the
>A2410 -- flicker horribly.  SVGA cards are not used for video work,
>so to emulate one requires a flicker-free display, with none of these
>video cards offer.

  If SVGA is not used to video work, than what's the point? What's the
point of having mega amount of colors and resolution for CAD?
Most of the graphic add on boards for the Amiga use standard Amiga
screens and signals. I bet a HAM-E screen could be deinterlaced
somehow. You'd hardly notice flicker when displaying real video
on any of the Amiga's graphic enhancement cards, especially DCTV.
If you want a nice mono display, get an ECS Denise or A2024.
Seriously, I don't see a real use for SVGA unless your displaying
still pictures in a mall. I would say virtual reality, but VR needs
a fast poly rendering machine and good animation abilities like an IRIS.
A True color display is nice because there aren't any palette limitations
but as far as I know, VGA and SVGA are not true-color palette mapped.
  
  Anyone care to enlighten on what SVGA is used for besides a cute
looking screen under windows, or nice gif pics.

>>
>>Rick Tillery (drtiller@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu)
>
>                       
>                              -MB-    
>  ----------------------------------------------------------
> / Marc Barrett       | BITNET:   XGR39@ISUVAX.BITNET      /      
>/  ISU COM S Student  | Internet: XGR39@CCVAX.IASTATE.EDU /       
>----------------------------------------------------------


  I'd like to say, that the Amiga's use of NTSC style graphics are
a great boon for video work. NTSC video modes are what makes
video so cheap and flexible on the Amiga, but I'd like to see
Commodore conform to HDTV in the future making the Amiga the ideal
choice for HDTV work. Perhaps NewTek will even make an HDTV
Toaster. (The toaster already has a horizontal resolution >1200, so
all it really needs to do is produce HDTV signals instead of composite.
Is the HDTV spec finalized now?)

--
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|n|   rjc@albert.ai.mit.edu   Amiga, the computer for the creative mind.  |n|
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