[comp.sys.ibm.pc] NANSI snow

seibert@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (seibert) (02/15/89)

Can anyone out there tell me why NANSI makes my CGA
monitor ``snow'' during screen-writes?  (ANSI doesn't.)
What can I do with NANSI to fix it?   Thanks.   _MS

-- 
seibert@xn.ll.mit.edu
  ...!{ames,mit-eddie,seismo,linus,lll-crg}!ll-xn!seibert

bparekh@bonnie.ics.uci.edu (Behram Parekh) (02/17/89)

In article <1256@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> seibert@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (seibert) writes:
>Can anyone out there tell me why NANSI makes my CGA
>monitor ``snow'' during screen-writes?  (ANSI doesn't.)

NANSI is designed to do fast screen updates for CGA adapters that can
handle it. If your CGA can't handle the non-waiting speed, you get snow.

w8sdz@WSMR-SIMTEL20.ARMY.MIL (Keith Petersen) (02/21/89)

The later versions of NANSI don't have the snow problem.  Get this one
with FTP from SIMTEL20:

Filename			Type	 Bytes	 CRC

Directory PD1:<MSDOS.SCREEN>
NANSI24.ARC			BINARY	 45430  54F0H

I use it and am very pleased with it.  While you're at it, get
FASTBUFF.ARC from directory PD1:<MSDOS.KEYBOARD>.  Here's an overview
of it:


         David Steiner        FASTBUFF v2.0      November 1987

        +------------------------------------------------------+
        |                 Run-time Control Keys                |
        +------------------------------------------------------+
        |   Ctrl + Right Shift : Clear the keyboard buffer     |
        |    [5] + Del key     : Turns FASTBUFF off            |
        |    [5] + Ins key     : Turns FASTBUFF back on        |
        |    [5] + Plus key    : Selects fast repeat rate      |
        |    [5] + Minus key   : Selects slow repeat rate      |
        |                                                      |
--------+------------------------------------------------------+-------
                        Command Line Parameters :  Min    Max   Default
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 /Bn : Sets the buffer size to n characters         25    269     100
 /Dn : Set start delay to n timer clicks             1    255       5
 /Vn : Set video blank delay to n minutes (0=OFF)    1     60      15
 /F  : Startup repeat speed = fast                   -      -      ON
 /S  : Startup repeat speed = slow                   -      -     OFF
----------------------------------------------------------------------

                          FEATURES

Variable Size Keyboard Buffer:
     FASTBUFF takes control of the keystroke interrupt in
     order to allow you to set the size of buffer you like.
     The default is 100 characters, but may range from 25 to
     269 characters.

Increased Key Repeat Rate:
     By using the timer interrupt we are able to modify how
     fast keys are repeated.  When FASTBUFF is activated you
     may select between a repeat rate of 18 or 36 characters
     per second.  Unlike most key quickeners that I've seen,
     FASTBUFF has a fairly smooth repeat rate even in its
     fast mode.  Note that you may also select the normal
     repeat rate by turning FASTBUFF off.

Anti-skid Braking:
     Given a large buffer and fast repeat rate you could get
     way ahead of your application when holding a key down.
     FASTBUFF uses a simple but effective method of
     preventing this: it doesn't put repeated characters
     into the buffer until the application program is ready
     (i.e. the buffer is empty).

Screen Blanking:
     If you leave your computer unattended for over fifteen
     minutes FASTBUFF will automatically blank the video
     screen in order to avoid "burning" characters into the
     display screen.  The screen may be restored by pressing
     any key.

Repeat Characters Entered Through the Alt-Keypad:
     The IBM will allow you to enter characters by holding
     the ALT key down and typing the ASCII character number
     on the numeric keypad.  When you release the ALT key
     the character is inserted at the cursor position.
     FASTBUFF also provides a method of repeating the key
     entered this way.

Enter Graphics Characters With the Alt-Keypad:
     Some of us poor folks with IBM compatibles have a BIOS
     that gets confused when entering graphics characters
     via the keypad (character numbers over 127).  FASTBUFF
     takes control of this function and returns these
     characters correctly.  This fix also pertains to
     compatibles that do not return the normal scan code (0)
     for these characters.

Disable FASTBUFF:
     It is possible that you may need to use a program that
     doesn't seem to like FASTBUFF.  To account for this
     possibility you may turn off the FASTBUFF functions in
     order to use these programs.  After leaving the
     conflicting application, you may re-enable FASTBUFF
     again.

---

--Keith Petersen
Maintainer of the CP/M & MSDOS archives at wsmr-simtel20.army.mil [26.0.0.74]
DDN: w8sdz@wsmr-simtel20.army.mil
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