Re: Second Sight Card

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

mkelsey@spam.eecs.wsu.edu wrote:

>supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer) writes:
>> mkelsey@spam.eecs.wsu.edu wrote:
>> 
>>>supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer) writes:
>>>> spec@vax2.concordia.ca (Mitchell Spector) wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>>In article ab3189@wayne.edu (Charles A. Plater) writes...
>>>>>
>> 
>> I think as long as the IIe program is not using double-hires, the SS
>> is fast enough to shadow page flipping of 8-bit video modes.  The
>> IIe modes contain less information.
>
>What may I ask are the downfalls of running Double Hires?  I mostly 
>use Apple II Desktop 1.1 for my "bootable" interface.  I know the
>SS offers higher resolutions, but no //e programs (yes, I have a //e)
>would ever recognize higher modes, without serious modifications.

The Second Sight, with the current ROM version, does not know how
to deal with double hires.  When a GS puts up a double hires screen,
the Z180 processor on the Second Sight apparently crashes which
crashes the entire computer in turn.  I don't know if it would do this on
a IIe.  It may be a GS only problem.

>Is there a way a person can switch between emulated composite, 
>RGB color, and monochrome double-hires with the SS?  If so, this
>card would be a great alternative.

You could have two monitors, one composite and one SVGA.  If
the Second Sight does not crash the IIe, the image should still show
up on the composite monitor.  If you are a programmer, you should
be able to write some Z180 code, upload it into the Second Sight,
and have it switch to monochrome to avoid problems when and if
a new ROM version comes out to support DHR.

>> So much for the bad side of the Second Sight, let's talk about some
>> of the great features.  If you are a heavy user of AppleWorks Classic
>> or ProTerm, you will absolutely love this card.  It replaces the thin
>> shadowy Apple II font with a bolder solid font.  The display now has
>
>When I had an ATI 3D Pro Turbo PC2TV I lined in the composite NTSC signal
>into my TV Tuner.  Once I turned on the proper "fields mode" every 
>pixel looked just like when emulated on a Macintosh LC //e.  That was 
>nice, plus I only needed one monitor for my PC and my //e.  That has all
>changed now, and the price of a suitable color NTSC monitor is pretty
>steep, that and I now have 17" SVGA monitor just doing nothing...

In text mode, the Second Sight does not shadow the screen at all.  It
reads the text from memory and uses its own built in font to get it on
the SVGA screen.  This font is very nice and looks just like the one on
a PC at boot time.  The latest ROM version supposedly has MouseText
characters, so ProTerm and AppleWorks should look right.

>It's not an immediate concern for me.  Although my ColorMonitor //e
>kicked the bucket several years ago, I stumbled onto a Janeil Composite
>monitor that works just as well  =)  If I get the SS, I want
>to make certain it emulates just as the IIgs does for all //e software.
>I DON'T want to be stuck with RGB-looking double-hires graphics, not for
>$129!

Sadly, unless Sequential Systems updates the ROM to support DHR,
you can't use that mode at all.  All in all, it is actually a better card for
a IIe than a GS.  While there is currently no software for the IIe to put
up an SVGA graphic, the card has no quirks operating in IIe modes except
for not supporting DHR.  On a GS, the card has problems with several
modes and with animation.