[comp.sys.amiga] Color survey - my sys-config

Harv@cup.portal.com (Harv R Laser) (04/16/89)

Dan Howell wrote:
>I'd like to know what colors people use in their standard workbench
>screen [...] I'm having a hard time finding colors I like to use for text.

I've tried to simulate a "book-like" appearance in my standard colors...
It's black text against a sort of paper-gray background.  I sit in front
of the screen each day for HOURS using all kinds of software and I can
comfortably look at this color combo for long stretches.  I don't use
an interlace Workbench, but when I've tried it these colors flicker a 
LOT.. in non-interlace they look great to me. So here's my devs:system-
configuration file - try these colors, see what you think... and as
an extra bonus, you get my little drop-shadowed pointer tossed in
for free! :-)


begin 644 sys-config
M"````P```````-KH```````&&H`````!``@`Z````````````````!_@'^`?[
MP!!`'X`?@!_`'T`?X'^@&?!_T!#X?^@`<'YP`"!_(```?X```&?```!#P```W
M`8```````````/S^#_````\```$+NP``"(@*0/OZ`($`+`````!%<'-O;EA;$
M0T)-7TU04RTQ,C4P70````````````````$`````!0!?```````"``(`0`!">
M```````````````````````````````````````````````````!```````!"
'`````````````
``
end
size 232

Sullivan@cup.portal.com (sullivan - segall) (04/17/89)

Dan Howell wrote:
>I'd like to know what colors people use in their standard workbench
>screen [...] I'm having a hard time finding colors I like to use for text.

These colors work best for me on an interlaced screen.  You can morerow it
if you like, (it used to be morerowed as far as my monitor would extend, 
but Dpaint III doesn't won't configure correctly with it.)  Turn the brightness
down on your monitor until flickering is adequately reduced.  This is a 
positive writing on negative background configuration.

begin 777 system-configuration
M"`$``P```````8:@```````,-0`````!``>A(``````&``8`!0`'``:`!8`'G
M0`3`!Z`$8`=0!+`&X`5@!Z`'8`%@`:``X`#@````````````````````````U
M`````````````/H`#_`,P`````$```]P"0``=_SP`($`+`````!G96YE<FEC[
M````````````````````````````````````````!0!+```````"``(`,`!"&
M```````!9V5N97)I8P`@("`@("`@("`@("`@("`@````````````````````>
'`````````&5N3
``
end



                           -Sullivan Segall
_____________________________________________________________

/V\  Sully set the example: to fly without moving.  We shall
 '   learn to soar on wings of thought. And the student will
     surpass the teacher.
To Quote the immortal Socrates: "I drank what?" -Sullivan
_____________________________________________________________

Mail to: ...sun!portal!cup.portal.com!Sullivan or
         Sullivan@cup.portal.com

nsw@cord.UUCP (Neil Weinstock) (04/18/89)

In article <17302@cup.portal.com> Sullivan@cup.portal.com.UUCP writes:
>Dan Howell wrote:
>>I'd like to know what colors people use in their standard workbench
>>screen [...] I'm having a hard time finding colors I like to use for text.
>
>These colors work best for me on an interlaced screen.  You can morerow it
>if you like, (it used to be morerowed as far as my monitor would extend, 
>but Dpaint III doesn't won't configure correctly with it.)  Turn the brightness
>down on your monitor until flickering is adequately reduced.  This is a 
>positive writing on negative background configuration.
[ uuencoded file deleted ]

Just giving the numeric values for the colors might be a bit simpler for all 
these various color combinations, though I'm not convinced it's all that 
useful.  A while back, Richard Sexton posted his "colors which don't flicker 
in interlace mode" and I, excited as could be, went to try them out.  Flicker
city.  In fact, it was substantially worse than some other combinations I
had played with.  Moral?  Different monitors flicker differently.  I have a
Taxan Multi Vision 770 Plus (gosh, wish they'd add some more words to the name)
which I'm sure is not the same as Richard was using (wild guess).

Posting colors is of limited value.  But if you're going to do it, at least 
say what kind of monitor you're using!!

 /.- -- .. --. .- .-. ..- .-.. . ... .- -- .. --. .- .-. ..- .-.. . ...\
/ Neil Weinstock   / att!cord!nsw \ "Actually, it's still 256K, and we  \
| AT&T Bell Labs  /       or       \  fit MultiFinder in there, too."   |
\ Liberty Corner / nsw@cord.att.com \          - jimm, re: Amiga ROMs   /
 \.- -- .. --. .- .-. ..- .-.. . ... .- -- .. --. .- .-. ..- .-.. . .../

richard@gryphon.COM (Richard Sexton) (04/19/89)

In article <756@cord.UUCP> nsw@cord.UUCP (Neil Weinstock) writes:
>
>Just giving the numeric values for the colors might be a bit simpler for all 
>these various color combinations, though I'm not convinced it's all that 
>useful.  A while back, Richard Sexton posted his "colors which don't flicker 
>in interlace mode" and I, excited as could be, went to try them out.  Flicker
>city.  In fact, it was substantially worse than some other combinations I
>had played with.  Moral?  Different monitors flicker differently.  I have a
>Taxan Multi Vision 770 Plus (gosh, wish they'd add some more words to the name)
>which I'm sure is not the same as Richard was using (wild guess).
>
>Posting colors is of limited value.  But if you're going to do it, at least 
>say what kind of monitor you're using!!


Well, there is a sort of elitism here. These colours don't flicker for
*me* - they may flicker for you.

When I say thet dont flicker for me, I mean it. Zero flicker. But, you
have to understand I have nearly ideal conditions. First, here are
the colours I use:

colour 0 - background  (13, 12, 9) Grey/beige
colour 1 - text        (5, 5, 5)   Dark gray/blackish
colour 2 -             (15, 15, 2) Screaming yellow
colour 3 -             (14, 9, 0)  Fire engine red

What causes flicker ? A high contrast between the darkest and brightest
colour, and the shorter the persistence of the phosphor, the worse
the flicker will be.

So, to pick colours which will tend to flicker less, minimize the
contrast, in this case a relativly medium beige, and a dark gray,
very dark, but defiitly not black.

I have a sony monitor. This seems to make a big difference also.

I use my computer in a room with weak incandescent lighting.

I use my computer almost exclusivly at night, or at day with 
the draoes drawn. This enable me to turn the ``picture'' control
(which I think is really _contrast_) down quite a bit.

So under these conditions, no flicker.

The only time ti do get flicker is when I run preferences,
and it draws one pixel ``black'' lines over all that yellow
background. THAT flickers, but normal text in interlace (which
I use exclusivly) doesnt.

I believe the incandescent light may be a greater factor in
this than most people would believe.

At work I have a (pardon the language) IBMPCCLONE386THINGWITHANEGA
and a Sony CPD 1302 multisync monitor. It's taking a noninterlaced
video signal from the EGA card, yet I find that ANY background
colour besides pure black, flickers! I was rather apalled. First
at having to use a PC , and second that the beige I like to use
on my Amiga in interlace mode, when in use on the PC flickers
like all getout. This, of course, is beat interference with
the ghastly flourescent lights in my office.

The notion that non-interlaced video flickers worse than
ionterlaced video is an amusing one, you'll have to admit.

So in conclusion:

1) If you Don't have Sony monitor, you bought the wrong one. Take
it back and get a Sony. 

2) Pick colours with a minimum of contrast.

3) Nix the flourescent light. They are for aquariums.

4) Keep the monitor brightness and contrast controls
as low as you can get away with. The monitor/tube
will last longer this way, too.


-- 
       ``But why are you taking your money out of a solvent bank ?''  - Me
          ``Because you can't get it out of an insolvent one'' - Him
richard@gryphon.COM  decwrl!gryphon!richard   gryphon!richard@elroy.jpl.NASA.GOV