Photo quality GTIA mode?

[+Philsan]

That is freaking amazing! Are there any practical uses of these techniques, or is it only good for making pretty slide shows? I wonder if you could do a graphical adventure using this?

In Paint 256 program disk there is a Turbo-Basic XL routine to load Paint256 pictures so I think it is possible to make graphical adventures.

[peteym5]

I have been considering using this technique for some simple games where high speed animation is not critical and the game will all be done in assembly anyway. You can use 2 character sets, one for the chromas, the other for the lumas. The only main issue is switching back and forth over x number of scan lines and you cannot release from the VBI/DLI until it's done. Certainly would have to do it all inside a short VBI. Games like Tetris or Columns can be done using such a mode.

[+CharlieChaplin]

Andreas,

1. your friend's "FADE256.COM" or "MULFADE.COM" programs work very well: is it possible to hide the upper menu?

2. what program can I use to convert gif/bmp 80x96 256 colors PC pictures to Atari paint256?

Thanks

 

Well,

1) it is NOT possible to hide the upper menu, but if you are a programmer and are able to do a patch or add-on, maybe then... Therefore Mulfade.Com shows standard 62-sector *.GR8, *.GR9, *.G15 and *.256 picture files...

 

I have also a DOS-menu program in my collection, programmed by Heiko Bornhorst for me and my german diskmagazine, named XLE-Mag (published in 1999, 2000 and 2001). The menu is heavily based on David Castell`s menu program (which can be found on most Bellcom PD-diskettes) but includes some nice enhancements, like the ability to load+display the above mentioned picture formats, load+display ATASCII texts (*.TXT), load+run Basic programs (*.BAS) and load+run DOS-loadable ML files (*.COM). I am gonna attach it here...

 

2) To convert BMP to Paint 256 format one can use the BMPto256.TUR files uploaded by atarixle (Mirko Sobe) some time ago here on atariage (I will upload the image again for you). To convert GIF (Gif87a) to 256 color Apac format one can use Apacview by Jeff Potter. Apac is not compatible to Apac-2 / Paint 256 format, but you can use Bill Kendrick`s Colorizer.TUR program to convert between Apac and Apac-2 formats... think I already wrote this above and also uploaded the mentioned utilities and converter programs above...

 

So, attached you will find:

- Bmpto256.ATR, the BMP to Paint 256 converters by M. Sobe

- XLEmenu, the mentioned menu-program (plus other utilities)

- 9 ATR images with Paint 256 pictures (e.g. conv. Jag-pict., etc.)

- Swat.ATR, which shows some pictures of our old (no longer existing!) Abbuc regional group, "Andreas" shows an old picture of me, made in the early 90s...

 

Greetings, Andreas Koch.

Edited April 26, 2008 by CharlieChaplin

[+CharlieChaplin]

I have been considering using this technique for some simple games where high speed animation is not critical and the game will all be done in assembly anyway. You can use 2 character sets, one for the chromas, the other for the lumas. The only main issue is switching back and forth over x number of scan lines and you cannot release from the VBI/DLI until it's done. Certainly would have to do it all inside a short VBI. Games like Tetris or Columns can be done using such a mode.

 

Well,

afaik the Anco games "Kick off", "Winter Events" and a few other commercial games use Gr. 9+11 (256 color) pictures as backgrounds. In the early 90`s Thimo Graef started also some RPG projects, where he programmed two RPG programs (Dungeonmaster and Castle Blackthorne) and therefore used some 256 color pictures (converted from the Atari ST or the Amiga), alas none of the two projects got ever finished... (and to tell the truth: most pictures were not recognizable on the small Atari due to the low resolution in this A8 gfx mode)...

 

Since there are already dozens (if not hundreds) of tetris versions for the A8 available (even one that uses Gr. 15 RGB mode), I don`t think we would need any further Tetris games, but Columns might be worth a try (still I have my doubts because of the low resolution of gr. 9+11)... -Andreas Koch.

Edited April 26, 2008 by CharlieChaplin

[+Philsan]

So, attached you will find:

- Bmpto256.ATR, the BMP to Paint 256 converters by M. Sobe

- XLEmenu, the mentioned menu-program (plus other utilities)

- 9 ATR images with Paint 256 pictures (e.g. conv. Jag-pict., etc.)

- Swat.ATR, which shows some pictures of our old (no longer existing!) Abbuc regional group, "Andreas" shows an old picture of me, made in the early 90s...

Andreas, beautiful images and nice moustaches!

Thanks, but I already have BMPTO256.TUR (in my post #8 there is the link to the thread where Mirko Sobe post is).

Unfortunately I have problems converting a .bmp image (after loading the .bmp file I get a Paint256 screen but with garbage - then after a minute I get the ready prompt but the program has saved nothing).

I have written to Mirko Sobe.

 

EDIT

After BMPTO24.TUR with 8 bit .bmp images, I have tested B24TO256.TUR with 24 bit .bmp images, and it works!

Edited April 26, 2008 by Philsan

[Mathy]

Hello folks

 

IIRC this is also done in one of the modes mentioned here.

 

 

Greetings

 

Mathy

[MEtalGuy66]

I did this back in 92 with some ST image i downloaded off an atari BBS and ran through a bunch of homade converter programs to get the data in the right format.

 

It uses 3 RGB-interlaced GR.8 screens. The picture here is just an approximation that I mad by video capturing it from atari800win, grabbing 3 frames out of the video, and making them into an animated gif using imageready.

 

So in otherowords, it looks alot better on an atari, interlacing at 60 scans/sec (or 30 scans/sec effectively.. whatever)..

 

anywayze.. here it is..

[Allas]

I did this back in 92 with some ST image i downloaded off an atari BBS and ran through a bunch of homade converter programs to get the data in the right format.

 

It uses 3 RGB-interlaced GR.8 screens. The picture here is just an approximation that I mad by video capturing it from atari800win, grabbing 3 frames out of the video, and making them into an animated gif using imageready.

 

So in otherowords, it looks alot better on an atari, interlacing at 60 scans/sec (or 30 scans/sec effectively.. whatever)..

 

anywayze.. here it is..

 

 

Interesting I'll tried to do last year too, but I think I choice bad the iluminances. However because of the artifacting colors I discarted the idea.

 

[MEtalGuy66]

Interesting I'll tried to do last year too, but I think I choice bad the iluminances. However because of the artifacting colors I discarted the idea.

 

 

I had the mode worked out pretty well, as I recall.. My problem was that I kept running into memory constraints. I was using a 256k (Rambo) 800XL.. I remember wishing I had a 130XE so I could use separate antic & CPU access to free up a chunk of ram to use for an application program to do something useful in 320x192x8colors.. (like an 80 column ansi-color term program)

[oky2000]

Could have done with being told about this awesome GR 9/11 mix mode you can load images from BASIC for my thread for a youtube video pfft

[oky2000]

On 4/21/2008 at 10:34 PM, simonl said:

 

Is this the sort of thing you're after? Changing the PRIOR register on alternate lines using a DLI to toggle between GR9 & GR11 gives a stable 256 colour image in 80x96 resolution with a blank scan line between each line.

gworld.zip 14.74 kB · 180 downloads

That image looks nothing like what Altirra outputs when running the XEX file, it is about 500% more saturated than my 200% increase in saturation on Photoshop 7 LOL

[Rybags]

Emulation almost always shows things much more saturated.   Plus scanline artifacts are either not there or wrongly done.

Additionally, the PAL colour blending actually decreases saturation even further which isn't necessarily replicated well either.