Re: IIGS composite video->VCR

[a_specto@alcor.concordia.ca (Mitchell Spector)]

DoNOT@feed.the.trolls (SlickRBCD) wrote:

>In article <ake4so$d40$1@server05.icaen.uiowa.edu>,
>apple2pd@ground.ecn.uiowa.edu (ground.ecn AppleII Librarian) wrote:
>>  
>> Do you have a vcr and TV?  Use the composite NTSC video output of the GS.
>> The video won't be great but at least you won't be shooting blind.  Set
>> the GS to b/w and 40 col if necessary.  Lack of a RGB monitor is a pain,
>> but not a roadblock.
>> 
>>   --Steve
>I tried it, and low and behold it worked, though the dispaly seemed a tad
>fuzzy, even when setting the sharpness to maximum. 

    That's an understatement. :) 

    Lack of sharpness/resolution and poor color purity (which includes 
bleeding) are always an issue with composite fed from  _any_ device. 
I'm reminded of this each time I watch movie coming from my PC
(downloaded DivX or a rented DVD), since my TV only supports 
composite-input.

    The IIgs has an even larger issue, its composite port in the back 
doesn't support a true/standard NTSC signal. It's fine for displaying
old Apple II+/e/c video modes (Lo, Hi and Double-Hi Res) but its
native video modes come out as, well, bluntly put: a BIG MESS. 
Colors often don't even match what they are on screen.

    An Apple II Video Overlay Card thankfully solves this problem.
I bought one awhile back to so I could properly display video from
my IIgs to a VCR or TV.

>However, I'm confused by one thing. I can get color using lo-res graphics,
>hi-res graphics, double-hi-res graphics, and super high res graphics, but
>I get Apple IIe style text screens. The familiar black background, black
>border, and white text, in contrast to what's in the control panel. Is
>there any explination to why this is the case? It doesn't make sense why
>everything would be in color except for my dark blue background and yellow
>text.

    That's normal. The IIgs disables color on a composite display *if* you
display either 40 or 80 columns text mode. Instead the foreground,
background and border display as 16 shades of grey. The exception 
is the border color--when displaying graphics, it remains in color on
a composite screen.

>Also, my 3200 color graphic viewers wouldn't work. That I could
>understand, since it's basically designed for display on the AppleColor
>RGB monitor, timing the scan lines just right, 

    3200 color mode *does* work outputting to composite. The mode
has little to do with the AppleColor RGB. Many, many years ago, I
remember making a slide show of 3200 color images and capturing
it to VHS tape (I remember some come out looking very respectable,
despite the IIgs's unique problem with composite output).

    It's the Video Overlay Card which wasn't compatible with the 3200 
color mode,though I vaguely remember a way around it using specially 
written software/drivers along with a feed from the built-in composite port
to properly synchronize timings. Todd Whitesel's name pops to mind on
this subject, I think he wrote the drivers I'm thinking of.

>but why wouldn't the text screen work in color?

    It's a feature, which unfortunately cannot be changed using the
Control Panel settings.

    I can understand why it was disabled for 80 columns text, but
40 columns in color should have displayed acceptably through
composite (the Commodore 64 does it; then again, it doesn't have 
the problem the IIgs has with built-in composite output so perhaps 
that is why).

Mitchell Spector
a_specto@alcor.concordia.ca