Bitmapped NTSC driver?

Bill Henning

Has anyone written a pure bitmapped NTSC driver?

160x100 or 160x120 would seem quite doable (even without Morpheus <grin>), and be of a reasonable size even with a full byte per pixel.

As I recall, there are 228 color clocks per scan line, and 262.5 lines per field... ignoring overscan areas, front&back porch and sync areas, 160x120 would seem to fit nicely by "double scanning" each line on each field.

Actually, a four color bitmapped driver with a separate palette per scan line (or 8 scan lines) would be even better... much less memory required!

I'd write it, but I am a bit busy right now... and I am sure someone has done it already!

The reason I want something like this is to put one of my 3.5" NTSC displays onto the robot I am building for a "face" and status...

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheus & Mem+dual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, 2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
www.mikronauts.com - my site 6.250MHz custom Crystals for running Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller

Post Edited (Bill Henning) : 10/14/2009 10:18:25 PM GMT

mpark

The standard tv and graphics objects are a bitmapped display. You can set each of the 256 x 192 pixels (adjustable) to one of four colors. How is that not a bitmap?

Bill Henning

Umm... must try them

I've only been using the VGA drivers and TV tiled drivers so far; I thought I remembered that the TV graphics object rendered into tiles, not a contigous bitmap.

Now after you pointed me at it, I checked the source... and what do you know... it uses a real bitmap [noparse]:)[/noparse]

Mea Culpa.

mpark said...
The standard tv and graphics objects are a bitmapped display. You can set each of the 256 x 192 pixels (adjustable) to one of four colors. How is that not a bitmap?

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheus & Mem+dual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, 2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
www.mikronauts.com - my site 6.250MHz custom Crystals for running Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller

Post Edited (Bill Henning) : 10/14/2009 10:49:56 PM GMT

potatohead

I've got one up on the wiki. It's 160xwhatever. Actually, it can be driven up to about 256 pixels. Uses simple NTSC color timing, so it is susceptible to articulating at about that number of pixels.

If a sequential set of tiles addresses are defined, the Parallax driver makes a nice bitmap. It's just not a simple linear addressable one, and that perhaps explains mpark's comment.

It also uses the better color timing, so it's good for 320+ pixels.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Propeller Wiki: Share the coolness!
Chat in real time with other Propellerheads on IRC #propeller @ freenode.net
Safety Tip: Life is as good as YOU think it is!

Bill Henning

Thanks!

I will check it out... either that or graphics.spin will work for me.

potatohead said...
I've got one up on the wiki. It's 160xwhatever. Actually, it can be driven up to about 256 pixels. Uses simple NTSC color timing, so it is susceptible to articulating at about that number of pixels.

If a sequential set of tiles addresses are defined, the Parallax driver makes a nice bitmap. It's just not a simple linear addressable one, and that perhaps explains mpark's comment.

It also uses the better color timing, so it's good for 320+ pixels.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheus & Mem+dual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, 2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
www.mikronauts.com - my site 6.250MHz custom Crystals for running Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller

potatohead

That one is one byte per pixel, so easy to do plot, line, circle, etc...

Be sure and use the color map you will find. There is no color redirection, so 00 = sync.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Propeller Wiki: Share the coolness!
Chat in real time with other Propellerheads on IRC #propeller @ freenode.net
Safety Tip: Life is as good as YOU think it is!

Bill Henning

Thanks, that is exactly what I was looking for!

potatohead said...
That one is one byte per pixel, so easy to do plot, line, circle, etc...

Be sure and use the color map you will find. There is no color redirection, so 00 = sync.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheus & Mem+dual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, 2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
www.mikronauts.com - my site 6.250MHz custom Crystals for running Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller

potatohead

http://forums.parallax.com/forums/?f=33&m=195345&g=195345#m195345

Found it.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Propeller Wiki: Share the coolness!
Chat in real time with other Propellerheads on IRC #propeller @ freenode.net
Safety Tip: Life is as good as YOU think it is!

mpark

potatohead said...
...If a sequential set of tiles addresses are defined, the Parallax driver makes a nice bitmap. It's just not a simple linear addressable one, and that perhaps explains mpark's comment.
...

Actually, the addressing is simple and linear, it's just column-major instead of the more common·row-major.

potatohead

Agreed, though I do find most people, who ask for "a bitmap" want the row major addressing.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Propeller Wiki: Share the coolness!
Chat in real time with other Propellerheads on IRC #propeller @ freenode.net
Safety Tip: Life is as good as YOU think it is!