S36666WB%ETSUACAD.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu (Brian Wright) (09/13/90)
On 12 Sep 90 05:35:05 GMT you said: >(I'm sure I'll be flamed if I'm getting this wrong, but I don't care. =) > >Isn't DCTV the box which gets 256 screen colors by intercepting a 640x400 >16 color screen and combining each pair a pixels (4 bits each) into one >8-bit pixel? I know there is a box like this. In this case, all well and >good, you get 256 out of 16million (I think) colors, but only in 320x400 >(or variations... not 640 mode at any rate). This could be a consideration. No it isn't. That is Ham-E you are thinking of. DCTV is a Full NTSC color palette frame buffer. DCTV is reliant on Amiga's chip ram for it's display. Since DCTV isn't based on a BITPLANE configuration, but rather a proprietory compressesion/decompression display technique using Amiga's Hi Res screen for display and the decoder box for decompression of image. This technique will also allow for REAL-TIME painting in "24 bit" color using almost the FULL NTSC palette. From the ad that I have seen in the October AmigaWhirled it looks to be an up and coming frame buffer. The person I spoke with at Digital Creations tried to convey to me the power of their REAL-TIME FULL NTSC palette paint package. He said that it was really powerful in features. DCTV hooks between your RGB port and your parallel port. The reason for the parallel connection, according to DC, is for the 24 bit digitizer built into this WUNDERBOX. Software will include the paint package as described above as well as conversion programs from all of the popular 3D 24 bit formats to DCTV format. The BOX has an RGB port pass for your RGB monitor and an NTSC connection for your VCR or composite monitor. The composite connection will display the correct DCTV format Image while turning all other screens black. The RGB monitor will show correct windows and icons, but not show the DCTV image other than a green mush. A promised RGB adapter will allow for viewing of 24 bit images on an RGB monitor while keeping the other screen's imagery visible as well. Essentially becoming another native painting mode on the Amiga. As I mentioned above, DCTV also includes a digitizer/framegrabber. Because of the limitations on the parallel port the image will be required to be still for about 6 seconds for a complete still. DCTV also digitizes those images in 24 bit color. Some other software included is conversion utilities for HAM->DCTV and DCTV->HAM. The only problem that I can forsee with this product is the proprietory compression/decompression of imagery and the imbeded codes within the image. DCTV images will have to be manipulated following the conventions of DCTV in order to remain viewable ALL the time. In other words, neither DPAINTIII, Photon Paint, nor Digipaint will do for editing DCTV's image format. If these packages pick up the format it will be possible. That is providing DC will allow for support of their image format. I would expect that they would. I think I have saved the best for last. The price... The Ad price of this product is listed at $495. Creative Computers has it listed for just under $400 in the October issue of AmigaFluff. Now, I just CAN'T wait to SEE one in person. :-) >I saw the box that did this at the World of Amiga and it did quite a good >job. The actual screen in 640x400 16 color looked pretty funny though... (= I'd like to see Ham-E too. But I think it is a bit more limited and I don't think it is a digitizer... >Ceej >aka Chris Hillery >ceej@pawl.rpi.edu ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ======================================================================= ||To steal from one is plagiarism. To steal from many is research. || ||___________________________________ ---UNKNOWN--- || || | / / || ||---Brian Wright | / / || ||---s36666wb@etsuacad.etsu.edu | \ \/ / Only Amiga || ||---Commercial Artist and Amigaphile| \/\/ Makes It Possible!! || =======================================================================
griffith@eecs.cs.pdx.edu (Michael Griffith) (09/14/90)
S36666WB%ETSUACAD.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu (Brian Wright) writes: >The only problem that I can forsee with this product is the proprietory >compression/decompression of imagery and the imbeded codes within the image. >DCTV images will have to be manipulated following the conventions of DCTV >in order to remain viewable ALL the time. In other words, neither DPAINTIII, >Photon Paint, nor Digipaint will do for editing DCTV's image format. If these >packages pick up the format it will be possible. That is providing DC will >allow for support of their image format. I would expect that they would. Actually, I believe I heard that DCTV would support the loading and saving of IFF 24-bit format images. So it should be possible to use any 24-bit program that can save or load in this format, although accessing the actual frame buffer may require some other piece of software. The real question is will you be able to use other 24-bit paint products and the frame buffer at the same time. I think ASDG announced that it would support all the companies that wanted to be supported by ASDGs software, so perhaps that won't be much of a problem either. | Michael Griffith | If I had an opinion it certainly | | griffith@eecs.ee.pdx.edu | wouldn't be the same one as | | ...!tektronix!psueea!eecs!griffith | Portland State University anyways. |
bobl@pro-graphics.cts.com (Bob Lindabury) (09/18/90)
In-Reply-To: message from S36666WB%ETSUACAD.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu > As I mentioned above, DCTV also includes a digitizer/framegrabber. Because > of the limitations on the parallel port the image will be required to be > still for about 6 seconds for a complete still. DCTV also digitizes those > images in 24 bit color. Just a quick note, DCTV may include a digitizer but from the discription above, you can't call it a framegrabber. Framegrabbers work in real-time (1/30th of a second) to grab a single video frame (2 fields). The DCTV video digitizer is called a "Slow-Scan" device as it takes several seconds to capture a single video frame. The DCTV video digitizer will work much as the NewTek DigiView product does. The image must be still for the full time of the scan so any live action is out. Still quite a viable product though. Without a paint package that does at least what Dpaint III does, however, I find that the usefulness of this product is lacking. -- Bob ______ Pro-Graphics BBS `It's better than a sharp stick in the eye!' ________ UUCP: crash!pro-graphics!bobl | Pro-Graphics: 908/469-0049 ARPA/DDN: pro-graphics!bobl@nosc.mil | America Online: Graphics3d Internet: bobl@pro-graphics.cts.com | CompuServe: RIP _________ ___________ Raven Enterprises 25 Raven Avenue Piscataway, NJ 08854
krag@cup.portal.com (Kevin Ray Grotjohn) (09/19/90)
Actually I posted the same info in the there MB goes again, which probably has a high kill ratio. I'm interested in using DCTV to take the place of color polaroids. We have a camera attached to a microscope for taking chip die microphotographs. Replace this with a color video camera, digitize with DCTV, convert to IFF, and print with a desktop publisher. The only drawback I see is the color printing. The color polaroid budget is $10,000/yr., so an Amiga is a very attractive solution. Please email me if you are doing something, whether 24 bit, HAM or B&W, with still color video slow scan or framegrabbed digitizing. Looks like all I need is a printing solution.