zabot@pompeo.dec.com (Adv.Tech.Mgr-ACT Torino) (01/12/87)
Randy (Spencer) writes: | PPS, what does an NTSC Amiga program look like on the PAL monitor? Does it | only display in the bottom 200 lines of the monitor when opening a screen? | Do they have the spaces between the lines when not in interlace mode, Do they | have an interlace mode? No, they wouldn't. So they just duplicate every | line twice when in (fake non interlace mode) But boy they must have flicker | *all* the time! First: relax ! We do NOT have flickering all the time, so if you plan to relocate to europe you can still enjoy an AMIGA !! NTSC-PAL problem. Professional. Most professional terminals and PC (DEC-IBM-..) are using some sort of NTSC standard also in Europe. Home computer (ALL of them) are using PAL standard. So even a C64 has the same problem. The result is very simple. The apparence is that we have a smaller usable area on the video screen and a different ratio ( vert size vs oriz. size). This means that a CIRCLE in NTSC is an oval in PAL.This is due to the higher number of lines (625) on the same phisical space ( screen size) compared to the NTSC (525 ??). The differnt ratio creates a lot of problem with many traditional computer and programs ( think of a CAD program :-) drawing a circle !!). This is not the case with many programs on the Amiga 'cause they use the intuition interface, so you can resize the window and the ratio as well. One think that is difficult to understand is the relation of the 200/400 lines with the 525 in NTSC. I never counted the border lines, are they 125 ? Let's now consider Amiga. 1.1 is the same old story. ( smaller screen area). With 1.2 PAL has an extra area usable, for a total of 256 lines ( or 512 in interlace mode). That's a figure I like more ( a power of two has always the right to appear in a computer ! :-). And we can really use that area which is visible via Intuition. This means ,most of the time, that you can drag any window in this area, but very seldom we can enlarge your window to include this bottom area. This depend only on the way your program was written. To make a long story short. A good sighted guy can have as many as 51 lines on his terminal emulator. Or better , anyone can have a regular 25 lines terminal emulator PLUS an extra window ( 6-7 lines long ). Flickering. In Europe the monitors are totally different from the US ones. I think C= is using Philips monitors. The final result is that, even if these monitors seam to be a better quality that the NTSC ones, we have the same level of flickering under the same conditions. marco
hadeishi@husc4.harvard.edu (mitsuharu hadeishi) (01/13/87)
I have a question. Will a Sony KV-1311CR RGB monitor work in Europe? I realize the TV will not work, of course, but what about the RGB? I realize the 50-60Hz difference, but I was under the impression that the monitor generated its own almost-60Hz signal. If "professional" monitors in Europe use the NTSC standard, do RGB monitors as well? There must be PAL RGB monitors, how much are they? And for C-A, how much does a PAL custom chip cost? (I am thinking of spending a year in England and I definitely want to have use of my 'miga there.) -Mitsu
wagner@utcs.UUCP (01/14/87)
Mitsu asks about using his amiga in Europe. I'm planning to do the same thing. So far, I'm just planning to take my NTSC RGB monitor with me. Can anyone think of a reason not to? I'm going to have to come up with a step-down transformer, but according to someone I asked at C-A, everything should work fine on 50Hz (including the real-time clock, as of 1.2). Now, what I am less sure about is...will my printers (IBM-PC-Graphics and OKIMATE 20 ) work? Michael
stever@videovax.Tek.COM (Steven E. Rice, P.E.) (01/14/87)
In article <986@husc6.UUCP>, Mitsuharu Hadeishi (hadeishi@husc4.UUCP) writes: > I have a question. Will a Sony KV-1311CR RGB monitor work in Europe? > I realize the TV will not work, of course, but what about the RGB? I realize > the 50-60Hz difference, but I was under the impression that the monitor > generated its own almost-60Hz signal. > > If "professional" monitors in Europe use the NTSC standard, > do RGB monitors as well? There must be PAL RGB monitors, how much are they? > And for C-A, how much does a PAL custom chip cost? (I am thinking of > spending a year in England and I definitely want to have use of my > 'miga there.) In isolation (assuming all power supplies could handle the 220 volt, 50 Hz input), your Amiga would work fine. That's a big assumption, though! Be sure to check the specs. Essentially all of Europe is 220 volts. Certainly (unless you have "international" versions of the equipment), you will need a stepdown transformer. (That's the easy part.) The real question is, "Will the various pieces work on 50 Hz?" For the answer, you will have to check the nameplates on each piece. If they all say, "50/60 Hz" or some such, you're in luck! On the other hand, if one or more nameplates read "110 V / 60 Hz", you have a problem. . . The reason equipment sold in North America may not work on 50 Hz power is that larger, heavier, and more expensive transformers and capacitors are required in the power supply section. It can be dangerous to run 60 Hz equipment on 50 Hz, as transformers may overheat and catch fire. If the power supplies will cope with 50 Hz, then your Amiga will work well in isolation. The Amiga generates video that conforms to NTSC timing, regardless of powerline frequency (after all, internal power is DC!). The KV-1311CR will continue to accept video that conforms to NTSC timing, regardless of the powerline frequency (again assuming that it won't catch fire on 50 Hz!). Of course, you can't tape the output on a PAL VCR (take your NTSC VCR with you, _if_ it will run on 50 Hz. . .). Enjoy your year in Europe. I hope your Amiga can make the trip with you! Steve Rice ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- {decvax | hplabs | ihnp4 | uw-beaver}!tektronix!videovax!stever