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From: bryce@hoser.berkeley.edu (Bryce Nesbitt)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Intuition's "dont mess with these" fields...
Message-ID: <21734@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Thu, 12-Nov-87 02:54:42 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.21734
Posted: Thu Nov 12 02:54:42 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 14-Nov-87 16:02:45 EST
References: <1961@amiga.amiga.UUCP> <1825@cadovax.UUCP>
Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Reply-To: bryce@hoser.berkeley.edu.UUCP (Bryce Nesbitt)
Organization: University of California at Berkeley
Lines: 70
Keywords: Intuition verboten nopokenzefields
Summary: What some people have been missing about overscan, and a suggestion


In article <1860@cadovax.UUCP> keithd@cadovax.UUCP (Keith Doyle) writes:
>
>I'm sorry if you took it that way.  What I was trying to do (and obviously
>failed) was to impart a sense of urgency to the problem...

Urgency we all got.  It came with some other stuff, however :-).

Some people have made comments about overscan, usually to the effect
of "how big the workbench is".  There is something very wrong with
at least two of those postings... 

There are *two* types of overscan.

------------------------------------
Type 1, "The Size of the Workbench":

This is the available space for computer type stuff.  It will have
a border (presumably).  Since the user has set this size him/her
self it is safe to assume that all this space is available.  The
minimum this will ever be is 640*200.  The vertical size will be
much larger for PAL machines (256 or more).  The numbers may be
doubled for lace.  My workbench runs morerows to 704*464 pixels.

This is the size you should open screens and windows to!  Note
that there is no (reasonable) upper bound to this, so if you
can only handle displays of, say, 32768 pixels wide clip the
number above to that maximum.

------------------------
Type 2, "Real Overscan":

Watch some TV.  Notice there is no "border" imposed on the picture.
It disapears into the set.  Anyone doing animations or pictures
intended for brodcast or video tape will want to draw into the
overscan area.  Just like TV produceers must do, the action is 



>At this point, what I have decided to do is this:
>
>1. Await any further input...
>
>2. In the meantime, I am going to add an "opt" parameter that disables
>   my "feature", along with a README note on the disk...
>   ...  I feel that checking Intuition rev level to
>   be undesirable, as that approach *assumes* that things will break which
>   at this point is unknown, and even if known there's no telling at exactly 
>   which rev.

Make that opt parameter the rev level at which to disable the "feature" and
I, for one, will be happy with you.  Set this to "35" for now and make
the readme say "try bumping this higher if you get a new version of
the operating system and the mouse ends up restricted".

This has a *good* chance of never needing adjustmemt, or action on
the user's part when 1.3 comes out.


As Jim Mackraz pointed out, why all the concern about breaking under
1.3?  That would seem the perfect opourtinity to show your users
what a great company you are by providing a timely upgrade at a reasonable
price.  It would also blow away any pirates.  Add 1/2 :-) to this and
think about it.

|\ /|  . Ack! (NAK, SOH, EOT)
{o O} . bryce@hoser.berkeley.EDU -or- ucbvax!hoser!bryce
 (")
  U	"We want to fashon puppets that pull their own strings."
	-Ann Marion