Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!seismo!rochester!pt.cs.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!cb29#
From: cb29#@andrew.cmu.edu.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Help: definitions and terminology
Message-ID: <MS.V3.18.cb29.8002110e.butler.ibm032.1588.0@andrew.cmu.edu>
Date: Sat, 18-Apr-87 21:46:54 EST
Article-I.D.: andrew.MS.V3.18.cb29.8002110e.butler.ibm032.1588.0
Posted: Sat Apr 18 21:46:54 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 19-Apr-87 11:49:23 EST
Organization: Carnegie-Mellon University
Lines: 53
ReSent-Date: Sat, 18 Apr 87 22:47:39 edt
ReSent-From: postman#@andrew.cmu.edu
ReSent-To: nntp-xmit#@andrew.cmu.edu
Return-path: <cb29#@andrew.cmu.edu>
To: outnews#ext.nn.comp.sys.amiga@andrew.cmu.edu
Newsgroup: comp.sys.amiga

[This is a request for information regarding the definition of several terms
related to graphics]

I have been listening to much of the discusion about various graphics
abilities and distinctions of the Amiga vs. the IBM PS/2 (anyone know what
the PS/1 was?)  and I am slighlty confused as to many of the terms that are
used in the articles.  I would be thankful to anyone who can answer any of
the following questions are define any of the following terms.  Getting a
common definition down can be very helpful in avoiding conflicts that are
really failures of communication.

Terms:
Amy vid chip
video gate array
blitter
copper
chipmem
fastmem
graphmem
color look-up table
color registers
X (or X Windows)
SunNews
Agnus, fat agnus, paula, portia, diane, etc.
SUPER_BITMAP
any other useful or commonly used graphic term that could be misinterpreted

Questions:

What are the various ways of representing a monitor image in memory?
bitplanes?
each dot has it's own contigous group of bits for color (chunky memory)?
chunky-planar?
HAM?
Can anyone give a 2 or 3 paragraph explanation of just how HAM works?
How about any other "exotic" memory map scheme?

What is bandwidth (I need a really exact definition of this one, it's all
kind of fuzzy in my head, must not be enough bandwidth, eh?), and how does it
relate to graphics display?


Other related terms of interest:
CLIPPER
AM29000
TurboAmiga
the AT&T blitter beast
other blitters (how about a knowledgeable comparison?)


			-- Chad
"Just remember, where ever you go... there you are"
- Now if I could just remember where I was going...