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Re: AppleColor 100 RGB monitor Questions



Bryan

...
I start up the IIe and press ctrl-reset to get basic prompt
and write
POKE24587,1
then insert the Manic Mansion boot disk and write
PR#6
to boot the disk
...
You did a good effort, but I don't think that it looks correct. I would like you to try another one please.

Please consider that it works!

And I got it out of the basic program made by Apple. I also played around with the basic program where I found it, FLASHCARDS, to test this feature. I have previously sent you disk images with this program, it is on the disk named: Apple Extended 80-Column Text - AppleColor Card Demo, The (19xx)(Apple)(Disk 2 of 2).dsk

Do you mean to say it doesn't work for you? Are you using the same card as me now? Might it be that the other non Apple card (you mentioned to me that you used) is not compatible in this way? My card is Apple's A//E EXT. 80COL/RGB it also says (c) 1984 VIDEO-7.

You claim that $600B (24578) is to enable and disable color/monochrome. I don't think that it is correct.

You accusing me of lying? It works!

And, this poke doesn't turn on or off anything directly. It doesn't affect the display. It is only a flag for subsequent graphic output. Obviously the RGB card hardware will consult this flag and store its state with the data written to the graphics, this extra information will have to be stored somewhere else in memory and it has to be an area because monochrome and color can be mixed, like you see in the FLASHCARDS and the DHR.COLORS demos.

Here is again a link to DHR.COLORS picture as it is seen on RGB (note CGA colors)
http://home.online.no/~kr-lund/AppleColor-CGA.png
Here you can see mixed monochrome (the white text) and graphics. This is also evident with the FLASHCARDS program. (DHR.COLORS is also a basic program but here it is done with commands to the HIRES software rather than with the POKE.)

It is also so that monochrome is always black and white, and it is not affected by the text color switches on the RGB card.

All Apple II family only have one flag in one register inside $C05E. $C05E is to turn on DHGR. $C05F is to turn off DHGR. RGB card has three flags in one register inside $C05E. Please try to use three procedures for yourself and also please tell Tempest about it.

To follow three procedures below. First, turn on Apple //e's power. Second, type, "PR#3" in Applesoft BASIC prompt. Third, choose one of three procedures you want to follow.

1. Turn on in $C05E It will show funny colors like 4 colors in four vertical line in DHGR.

2. Turn on in $C05E for first time. Turn off in $C05F. Then, turn on in $C05E second time. It would give monochrome in DHGR.

3. Turn on in $C05E for first time. Turn off in $C05F for first time. Turn on $C05E for second time. Turn off in $C05F for second time. Turn on in $C05E for third time. It would give you color in DHGR.

OK

I think general mode selection registers is not what we are after unless we want to patch the program using the graphics, or make our own graphic programs in assembly.

What we want is to change the flag so that programs that are unaware of this feature can be run in colors. And this is exactly what the poke I described does.

It is of course interesting to understand the RGB card further.

Knut