This is an archive of CompuServe forum messages from 1985 to 1995, as saved in transcripts by John Foust.
Search Results (998 messages)
I received the newsletter today. Although for us regulars it may seem like old news, I can just imagine the intense excitement felt by a HAM-E owner who doesn't use an online service! Ip 4.2! SpectraColor! ClickFax! That newsletter is just bursting with developments! I gotta hand it to you…
Allan, please keep us up to date on your experiences. Like many here, I hope to do some light freelance work in the future, and am always eager to learn from others. Blaq! – via Whap!
John, re: the Imagine module for InterFont/Change — you got me excited now! Blaq! – via Whap!
Margaret, since upload time is free on CompuServe… would you mind sharing some of your best work with us? It's always exciting to see what a talented artist can create — much nicer than Yet Another Mirrored Ball And Checkered Plane. Blaq! – via Whap!
Betty, have you tried some of the sound cards available for PC's these days? They can sound quite remarkable. I suggest you investigate further before considering switching to another computer. It would save you quite a bit of money to simply buy a $200 card. Did you ask around in…
#Combo mapping
Message #24836
I tried to stick a b/w logo onto a pane of glass using filter mapping for a "frosted glass" effect. Unfortunately, I can't get it to work. The logo is black letters on a white background, in order to have the background totally transparent. This works well, maintaining the glass'…
Don, you're right: that's the reason why we need 18 to 24 bits. Mention 16 million colors to most people and they'll take you for a megalomaniac, and an ambitious one at that. B^D But, once you consider that it boils down to 256 shades of red/green/blue, you realize that…
#24785-
#HamE Software Upgrades
Message #24833
Newsletter? What newsletter? Is this another case of newsletters never getting past the Canadian border? Blaq! – via Whap!
#24784-
Imagemaster F/c
Message #24832
Count me in as another HAM-E user who'll be dumping his images/anims onto video. (But is also very happy to be able to view them in glorious RGB, too) Blaq! – via Whap!
#9720-
ANIMATION/GRAPHICS
Message #9814
John, Guess that means not one, but two modules for me in the near future. (CAD-3D and Imagine) Blaq! – via Whap!
#9717-
Best Modeler??
Message #9813
Ah but John, won't I be missing out on some Imagine-specific features that will be included in the Imagine module? Or will I be able to upgrade from the Turbo Silver module to the Imagine one? Actually, I think I'll sit tight for a few weeks and get the real…
#9688-
Best Modeler??
Message #9812
Bill, TurboSIG originated as a (guess what) Turbo Silver group, but they've since expanded to include all sorts of 3-D products for the Amiga. From what I can read in their newsletter, their meetings are quite fun! Of course I'm 3,000 miles away so that means diddly-squat to me. B^)…
John, please tell me what results you get from remapping the anim. Blaq! – via Whap!
Rick, the folks at tech support think my Imagine.pic file got corrupted. I sent them the disk back. Last time I ever install a program without making a backup first — "I don't need backups, my original disk will be sitting on the bookshelf" — ha! Not if the install…
Rick, Imagine.pic is in the same directory. And yes, I did carve my name onto the pic. Blaq! – via Whap!
Ben, is the SuperGen on the list of genlocks that perform reliably with Ham-E? Blaq! – via Whap!
Have I _really_ typed #-D instead of 3-D? Woe is me. And the last sentence of a paragraph was mangled: it said that the Toaster comes bundled with 24-bit painting and 3-D modeling (so-so) and rendering (wonderful) software.
John, he should use a utility that allows him to remap the whole anim to a new color palette. His goal should be to minimize the number of bits being modified from one frame to the next. For example, if most of the movement is due to large white letters…
Rick, do you have some literature describing the various Imagine object disks? I can hardly phone up the hotline and decide on the spot. 'Haps you could upload a text file? Blaq! – via Whap!
#Imagine won't run
Message #22134
I was dismayed when, after installing Imagine, I found out it would not run on my system. I have an A3000 25 MHz with 2M Chip RAM and 2.5M Fast RAM, running AmigaDOS 2.0 with Version reporting Kickstart = 36.207 and Workbench = 36.69. Here's a listing of the directory…
JD, if you want to do professional stuff, stick with an A3000 or an accelerated A2000-series machine. Anything less would have you climbing up the walls, especially when doing #-D animation. Buy as much RAM as you can afford — anything less than 5 Meg and you'll hit a wall…
Kieran, My experience in multimedia is quite lmited, but here goes. I have AmigaVision (AV) and find it intriguing. Its friendly, icon-filled world practically begs me to explore it. It seems to have enough capabilities to satisfy many multimedia needs. Everything you need is clearly laid out, the various panels…
#8948-
#New Fractal HAM Anims
Message #9176
I was just trying to boost 24-bit support, all in the interest of better aesthetics. (And a healthier Amiga in today's rapidly-evolving graphics marketplace) And thanks for the compliment. I've been reading Amiga magazines for years. Blaq!
I can't send in my registration card because I don't have Fractal Pro. Hell, I don't even have an Amiga yet! B^D As far as 24-bit goes, a HAM picture converted to 24-bit most definitely doesn't compare to a real 24-bit picture, though Art Department's dithering routines make that difference…
Daniel, when I suggested 24-bit support, it wasn't for straight Mandels but for some of the derived forms, like the "potential mountains" where the 24-bit data format would do wonders on the slopes' shading. Things like that. Blaq!
Andrew, from what I understand, you could create and save each frame in 24-bit format, then convert them into HAM-E format, and string them into a normal ANIM file; the file could be played back in real-time without the need for an expensive single-frame VCR and controller. Blaq!
Daniel, one missing feature stands out: 24-bit support. When computing fractals, the actual color plotting is, after making millions of calculations, a trivial effort. With all those 24-bit, 18-bit ad pseudo-24-bit 🙂 boards gaining popularity, shouldn't you add an option to save in standard 24-bit IFF? Some users would be…
Mark, I've been wanting to see Amiga Video Magazine ever since I read the (incorrect) report that it was broadcast on Arts & Entertainment. Unfortunately, I don't have access to a satellite dish, and I find the subscription a bit too expensive. I know that you have a very small…
I think your point about full blitter operation is a major argument in favor of HAM-E. Since the unit gets its data straight from normal Amiga screen memory, you can run any animation, using any normal program like Dpaint III or ShowAnim, and get full-speed animation with much better quality…
Julius, well hiya stranger! I haven't seen your messages since the days of Atari! Just for the record (and to let me spread a little gossip 🙂 what are you doing these days? Blaq!
Steve, Unh-unh. Not so, according to a reputable C= dealer here in Toronto. The 100 Mb A3000 doesn't have any more memory than the 50 Mb. Darn shame, too. Blaq!
#3000 & Syquest OK?
Message #7470
Is the Syquest 44M removable drive compatible with the A3000? Some nagging but vague recollection is floating around in my memory… Blaq!
#A3000 100Mb vs. 50Mb?
Message #7469
I'll be buying an A3000 and am wondering if I should go for the 50M drive or the 100M. I know that generally, large drives are quite fast; is this the case here? What's the average seek time for both drives? Blaq!
#A3000 RAM upgrade easy?
Message #7468
What's involved in installing an extra 4M of RAM in an A3000? I know what chips to buy (1M x 4, 80 ns, static-column, ZIP-format RAM) and I know that when I install them I'll have to transfer the existing 1M of Fast RAM over to the Chip side. However,…
Leslie, I haven't bought an Amiga yet; next month is when I'll take the plunge. And what a plunge it will be! I broke down and decided to get an A3000. Some giant leap from the ole 8-bit, huh? 🙂 Blaq!
the answer was easier a year or two ago: Amiga all the way. These days, however, all the cheap PC's have VGA capabilities which make HAM mode almost look like our beloved 130XE. They all have speedy 386 chips and cheap hard disks, and enough software to cover half the…
A3000 RAM prices
Message #5813
I've been looking for A3000 memory upgrades, and all I can say is *oof* ! Typical prices in Toronto for a set of 8 static-column, 1M x 4, 80ns chips is a hefty thousand bucks! What's the general price down in the States? Also, how easy is it to move…
Steven, the DeskJet drivers you refer to will basically give me screen-resolution graphic dumps, no? What I meant was more along the lines of a program which knows about the DeskJet's internal fonts and uses them to their full extent. For example, WprdPerfect 5.0 on the PC knows about the…
Leslie, yeppers! I chose the 8-bit Atari in the early 80's because they had the most interesting graphics hardware, and I'm now moving on to the Amiga for the exact same reason. Blaq! (sound familiar?)
Hmmmm. I'm having a real hard time figuring out which word processor to buy. Especially since, although I haven't mentioned it, WordPerfect is also in the picture; I know it well from the PC side and love the way it lets me edit files with ease. The biggest problem is,…
Greg, I'm not sure if it can freeze a TV picture on the fly. By the way, my prices were wrong: the SLV-676 is $800 CDN, the SLV- 757 is $1000 CDN. The only difference between the two is, the 757 has PiP (picture-in-picture) and the handy edit monitor screen…
Warning: I have neither an Amiga nor a VCR at this point, but I've been looking carefully since I'll be buying both in December. The VCR I've chosen is the Sony SLV-767. Its main drawback is, it's not S-VHS. Apa rt from that, it's a gorgeous creature! On-screen menus for…
#ProWrite vs. excellence!
Message #5003
I'll be buying an A3000 and DeskJet 500 next month, and would like some advice on which word processor will give me the most flexibility and quality on the DJ500. So far ProWrite and excellence! seem the best programs, but the reviews don't go into much depth. Any thoughts? Blaq!
#AmigaDOS 2.0 questions
Message #1091
AmigaDOS lets you select proportional fonts for icons, menus and the like. However, can you use colorfonts? (I'm thinking of taking advantage of the default shades of grey in the ADOS 2.0 Workbench to use an anti-aliased font) Also, how much support is there for the Really High Resolution modes?…
Penn & Teller video?
Message #18673
I guess the Penn & Teller video is read, since I read everywhere that you guys are showing it (to mega-oohs and ahhs) at various trade shows. So, here's my question again: can I order it directly from you, and how much will it cost to ship it to Canada?…
#Penn & Teller video
Message #17575
Moosey, is the Toaster demo video out yet? If so, how much would it cost to have it shipped to Canada? And do you accept online orders w/credit card number, or do I have to phone in? (I'm assuming the 800 number doesn't apply to Canada) Blaq!
Whither Graf/x
Message #31193
This week I saw an exciting new magazine in a computer store: Graf/x. It's an Amiga-only publication entirely devoted to graphics! Makes sense to me. Wonder why nobody thought of it before. I jotted down their address and phone number, but when I tried to call in my subscription, I…
#Page-flipp. frame rate?
Message #28643
Even when using the 1Meg chip set, an Amiga can only hold about 8 full frames when doing page-flipping. Obviously, if you have lots of Fast RAM the CPU can transfer additional frames into Chip RAM as the old ones are used up, extending your animation. My question is: what…
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