[comp.sys.mac] Making color backdrop from pictures?

halam@umnd-cpe-cola.d.umn.edu (haseen alam) (04/08/90)

Hi there,

I am trying to make backdrop pictures from color gif pictures, but they
loose a lot of the color in the process.  I can view all the pictures
with stunning color on my screen with Giffer 1.06 and VisionLab.  I used
both of these separately to save the pictures as pict id =0 files.  Then
I named them DeskPicture and put them in the system folder.  I am using
version 1.0 of DeskPict, this puts the picture on the desktop but only
with part of the color.  I tried viewing these files again in Giffer,
and they apper the same way with less color.  Apparantly neither Giffer
nor visionLab can save files as PictID=0 files without loosing color
information.  Previously I tried the same process with 16 colored
pictures and they worked fine.

Now here are ny questions:

1) Am I doing something wrong?
2) Is there any other PD/SW utility that I can use to do the job?
3) I was informed that there are later versions of DeskPict available,
   if so, where can I get it from?
4) what other PD/SW/Commertial program do the same job as DeskPict?

Any helpful gesture will be highly appreciated.  Thanks in advance.

Haseen.
email: halam@umnd-cpe-cola.d.umn.edu

isr@rodan.acs.syr.edu ( ISR group account) (04/10/90)

In article <3327@umn-d-ub.D.UMN.EDU> halam@umnd-cpe-cola.d.umn.edu (Haseen Alam) writes:
>I am trying to make backdrop pictures from color gif pictures, but they
>loose a lot of the color in the process.  I can view all the pictures
>with stunning color on my screen with Giffer 1.06 and VisionLab.  I used
>both of these separately to save the pictures as pict id =0 files.  Then
>I named them DeskPicture and put them in the system folder.  I am using
>version 1.0 of DeskPict, this puts the picture on the desktop but only
>with part of the color.  I tried viewing these files again in Giffer,
>and they apper the same way with less color.  Apparantly neither Giffer
>nor visionLab can save files as PictID=0 files without loosing color
>information.  Previously I tried the same process with 16 colored
>pictures and they worked fine.

>Now here are ny questions:

>1) Am I doing something wrong?
>2) Is there any other PD/SW utility that I can use to do the job?
>3) I was informed that there are later versions of DeskPict available,
>   if so, where can I get it from?
>4) what other PD/SW/Commertial program do the same job as DeskPict?
>Haseen.

What you want to use, IMHO, is an INIT availible from sumex@stanford.edu
which when loaded before DeskPict, forces the color CLUTs in the card
to be those of your color backdrop. This, is a big nono, but if you want
you color backdrop of Kristy to be sitting there smiling at you, then
proper programming practices and being nice just have to go out the window.
This INIT does have a few problems.Switching from 256-color to 2-color 
after you've started it will cause it to crash. It doesn't work on a IIci.
In addition to using the proper colors, it will also SPEED UP DeskPict
by a factor of about 3 when updating hidden windows. (very importat if
you've ever used DeskPict in 256-color mode) 

It's stored at sumex as part of deskpict-package.hqx in the init 
subdirectory. This also contains the version of DeskPict that it works with.



-- 
Mike Schechter, Computer Engineer,Institute Sensory Research, Syracuse Univ.
InterNet: isr@rodan.acs.syr.edu   Bitnet: SENSORY@SUNRISE