Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!uwm.edu!rutgers!mcnc!taco!hobbes.catt.ncsu.edu!kdarling From: kdarling@hobbes.catt.ncsu.edu (Kevin Darling) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy Subject: Re: (Video) Hardware Idiots ? Message-ID: <1991Jun10.040317.25396@ncsu.edu> Date: 10 Jun 91 04:03:17 GMT References: <1991Jun3.202114.4029@newserve.cc.binghamton.edu> <1991Jun3.225024.13052@marlin.jcu.edu.au> <1991Jun4.210724.1246@newserve.cc.binghamton.edu> <1991Jun7.091455.10355@rulway.LeidenUniv.nl> <1991Jun8.085839.3556@news.iastate.edu>,<1991Jun8.191231.18699@lelan Sender: news@ncsu.edu (USENET News System) Organization: North Carolina State University Lines: 20 jbickers@templar.actrix.gen.nz (John Bickers) writes: > A device independent graphics library isn't going to take several years. > It shouldn't take more than several months. Depends on what it supports. Some DIG (lines, circles, even windowing) can be done fairly quickly. But a potentially major problem comes up when you also throw in the need for animation and other such speed-dependent operations, which are almost always currently handled on the Amiga by the non-DIGish advantages of... 1) knowing the exact video layout in advance, and 2) directly diddling the RAM. This also brings up a related comment: those outspoken few who now make fun of DIG (or fairly DIG) systems for "not being fast", might reconsider their position. For if/when the Amiga gets DIG support (leaving aside any combined cpu/video cards), then their tune might sharply change to "Oh but having a choice of cards is much more important than raw speed" :-]. regards - kevin