andrew@aucis.UUCP (Andrew Gillham) (05/13/89)
I would just like to ask if anybody knows of a *easy* (not expensive) way to get
composite color out of an A500? I realize that I can buy a RGB to composite
convert for $50, but would rather not. I just managed to scrape together
enough money for the A500 and would like to run it in color on my tv..
Any suggestions? Thanks..
Question 2:
Is there a public domain program that can read/write IBM 720k diskettes?
I need to transfer some files, etc..(plus the nifty stuff from the usenet!).
Any and all help will be greatly appreciated!!!
(I just got the beauty so I'm not terribly familiar with it)
((but I'm learning!))
-Andrew
--
Andrew Gillham | andrew%aucis.uucp@mailgw.cc.umich.edu or
Andrews University | sharkey!aucis!andrew or uunet!zds-ux!aucis!andrew
Signature? Who said I could write?cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis) (05/18/89)
In article <413@aucis.UUCP> (Andrew Gillham) writes: > I would just like to ask if anybody knows of a *easy* (not expensive) > way to get composite color out of an A500? I realize that I can buy a > RGB to composite convert for $50, but would rather not. [Cost, Difficulty, Quality] Pick any two. Working with video is straight forward but not "easy" per se. You have two options on the build your own front, one is to get the "Cheap Video Cookbook" which had some innovative ways for making composite color in it, or you can get a Motorola 1377 (or something like that) RGB -> Composite converter. There is one in the Amiga 1000. At one time Mot had a little application board that you could build, check with their sales office. Can you do it for less than $50 ? Maybe, depends on how much you want to hack up your Amiga. > I just managed to scrape together enough money for the A500 and would > like to run it in color on my tv.. Any suggestions? Thanks.. I can appreciate this. Can you stand it in monochrome for a month or two while you figure out a way to come up with $50 ? I'd guess it would be easier to mow 10 lawns for $5 apiece than it would to build this thing on your own, but then again I don't know your situation. >Question 2: >Is there a public domain program that can read/write IBM 720k diskettes? >I need to transfer some files, etc..(plus the nifty stuff from the usenet!). Get the PCCopy stuff off your "Extras" disk, and something called PCPatch off the binaries archives. --Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you. "A most excellent barbarian ... Genghis Kahn!"
jms@doctor.Tymnet.COM (Joe Smith) (05/19/89)
In article <105356@sun.Eng.Sun.COM> cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis) writes: >In article <413@aucis.UUCP> (Andrew Gillham) writes: >> I just managed to scrape together enough money for the A500 and would >> like to run it in color on my tv.. Any suggestions? Thanks.. > >I can appreciate this. Can you stand it in monochrome for a month or >two while you figure out a way to come up with $50 ? I'd guess it would >be easier to mow 10 lawns for $5 apiece than it would to build this >thing on your own, but then again I don't know your situation. I had one friend complain after spending mucho bucks for a high quality genlock, that 80 column text looked lousy on the color composite output. He started flaming about "bad design" and such, and it took a bit of explaining to calm him down. A genlock (or RGB converter) has to conform to NTSC standards, which includes encoding the color (chroma) information on a 3.58 megaHertz subcarrier. When the TV tries to separate the composite signal into chroma and luma (b&w) signals, the portions of the luma signal at 3.58 and 7.16 MHz get filtered out. Since 80-column text has a lot of signal energy at 7.16 MHz, the text gets blurred. And if you have to go through an RF modulator so your TV picks up the signal on Channel 3 or 4, the text gets even blurrier. In summary, don't expect 80 column text to look good on your color TV. You can read it, but with some difficulty. -- Joe Smith (408)922-6220 | SMTP: JMS@F74.TYMNET.COM or jms@tymix.tymnet.com McDonnell Douglas FSCO | UUCP: ...!{ames,pyramid}!oliveb!tymix!tardis!jms PO Box 49019, MS-D21 | PDP-10 support: My car's license plate is "POPJ P," San Jose, CA 95161-9019 | narrator.device: "I didn't say that, my Amiga did!"
phoenix@ms.uky.edu (R'ykandar Korra'ti) (05/19/89)
On the subject of Amiga RF;
The output can sometimes actually be quite surprisingly good. I get
80 columns by 25 lines using an A520 with just a regular TV - an RCA 19
inch. (Two Amigas + only one monitor (1084) = compromises...). Anyway,
you might want to watch out for Zenith televisions. The two that I've
played with won't deal with a video signal from a computer in general,
UNLESS it's an Amiga WITH INTERLACE ON. (Tried a couple of other computers
too - Commodore 64, Sinclair 1000). The screen bounces up and down if your
mode isn't interlaced. SETLACE will handle this for most applications, if
you do have a Zenith, but things like Arkanoid (which won't even THINK
about letting you run real AnigaDOS, much less utilities like SETLACE)
seem to be doomed to bounce.
Good luck...
Oh, almost forgot. 80x25 was readable without too much of a problem,
but 80*50 was not fun at all.
- R'ykandar.
--
| "Signature, hell! I can barely print!" | phoenix@ukma.bitnet | Plink: |
| "Who let him in here?" - Tom Smith | CIS: 72406,370 | Skywise |
| "Yes, that IS my real name. No, I'm NOT joking." | QLink: Bearclaw |carlson@betelgeuse (Richard L. Carlson) (05/20/89)
In article <11712@s.ms.uky.edu> phoenix@ms.uky.edu (R'ykandar Korra'ti) writes: >On the subject of Amiga RF; . . . >you might want to watch out for Zenith televisions. The two that I've >played with won't deal with a video signal from a computer in general, >UNLESS it's an Amiga WITH INTERLACE ON. (Tried a couple of other computers >too - Commodore 64, Sinclair 1000). The screen bounces up and down if your >mode isn't interlaced. It must depend on the particular model. I've used my 1000 on a ~10 year old Heath TV (whose guts are made by Zenith). I've used everything from 60x24 (non-interlaced) text to 80x48 (interlaced) text without problems (except that distinguishing between ')' and '>' becomes real difficult at the highest resolutions). I guess the bottom line is (as always), before you lay down money for something that's not "standard", try to find a way to test it out and see if it meets your personal standards... -- Richard ...!ucbvax!ernie!carlson carlson@ernie.berkeley.edu