rwallace@vax1.tcd.ie (04/06/90)
In article <PORTUESI.90Apr4111348@tweezers.esd.sgi.com>, portuesi@tweezers.esd.sgi.com (Michael Portuesi) writes: >>>>>> On 4 Apr 90 01:04:14 GMT, chrise@hubcap.clemson.edu (Chris Everhart) said: >> In article <02602.AA02602@sosaria.imp.com>, wizard@sosaria.imp.com (Chris Brand) writes: >>> However, you have to be a programmer to use it, since there's NO software >>> around to support it (and I don't feel like re-writing DPaint III, even if >>> I could :-) > >> But would you REALLY have to rewrite the thing? After all, couldn't you >> just write a new graphics library, and have the thing recompiled? (Granted, >> this is a major undertaking because all software has to be recompiled, but > >> Better yet! Is the graphics library on disk? I don't think it gets compiled >> in...or does it. I forget. If it just resides on disk, no compilation should >> be necessary!! > > > It doesn't get compiled in. If you write a new graphics library, all > applications which use the Graphics Library will happily work without > modification or recompilation. The problem is that many programs > bypass the Graphics Library and twiddle with the system on their own. > They will break on a new video board. So will programs that depend on > copper tricks and other stuff which a foreign graphics board may not > be able to support. All graphics software that needs to do anything FAST (i.e. animation) accesses the video RAM and probably the blitter & copper directly because the graphics library routines are much too inefficient. In fact if you were to rewrite the graphics library routines for a Transputer board and you were to do as bad a job as Commodore/Amiga did for the 68000 versions, applications using them would probably be slower than applications just accessing the video RAM directly using the blitter & 68000 assembly language. "To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem" Russell Wallace, Trinity College, Dublin rwallace@vax1.tcd.ie
troyb@pro-graphics.cts.com (Troy Barlow) (04/07/90)
In-Reply-To: message from wizard@sosaria.imp.com
I user of RGBExchange told me that he had a prototype of this transputer
graphics board. He also asked for some source code that would allow him
to interface the board to RGBExchange so that he could make a module
that would ray trace to/with it. I sent him some code, but have not seen
anything yet?!?
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