[net.micro.amiga] DPaint Tricks

danny@convex.UUCP (03/29/86)

In the process of working with DeluxePaint, I've discovered several really neat tricks.

1: Instead of trying to write your updated Epson print driver to the Dpaint
disk or trying to write to the file on the Dpaint disk (can you say boom?)
just boot the Amiga with your Workbench disk.  Hit ^D right away if your
startup-script eats any memory at all (like with LoadWB).  Pop in your
Dpaint disk.  As soon as it is validated just type dpaint (or dpaint m or h
if you like).  Dpaint gets at it right away.  The second time that the disk
stops running (the screen will be blue or else you screwed it - reboot) put
back in the Workbench (if you don't believe me just hit Amiga-N (or is it M)
and see the Requestor).  It will go for a while then stop.  Put it your
Dpaint disk and it will go and boot up the screen.  Now you can print with
your souped up driver.  Don't worry when the screen is not refreshed when
the requestor for the workbench disappears.  Hit F10 and it will come back.

2: On my FX-85 at least, Dpaint prints SLOW.  I've found that to flip the
Dpaint screen to the back of the Workbench screen does wonders for
printing.  If the Workbench isn't there (in 640X400 mode dpaint gets rid of
it to save memory) just pull the screen down by dragging the Title Bar.
Delays between printing lines drops almost completely.

3: Undocumented key codes:
   ON THE KEYPAD:
   The current selected FOREground color can be changed with:
   7 8 red up and down
   4 5 green up and down
   1 2 blue up and down
   This is a little buggy.  Sometimes with total black, telling blue to go
   down (1) turns the register to white.

   The - and + keys:
   Hitting either of these keys (the + does not need to be shifted) causes
   whichever PRESET brush to grow or shrink a size.  If you have selected
   one of the squares for example.  Instead of selecting it with the right
   button and setting the size, just hit either key until the brush is the
   size that you want.

If anyone else finds something that I missed, post it!

Dan Wallach
convex!danny