IM_Tran is a utility program for copying and converting picture 
files from the IBM version of Imagine to the Amiga version of 
Imagine.  You may wonder why this program is needed.  Well, as 
we are all painfully aware, the Amiga (before the AA chip set) 
is limited to a color pallete of 32 colors.  The Amiga version 
of Imagine assumes this is the way the world is when it loads a 
picture to display it.  On the IBM, however, there is a color 
pallete of 256 colors.  Even though the format of the files on 
the IBM and Amiga version are basically the same, the CMAP 
information in the IBM produced files has 256 colors.  When the 
Amiga version of Imagine tries to load and display one of these 
files, it encounters this 'problem' and decides to just unload 
the picture and not display it.  Thankfully Imagine does not 
'lock up' or anything like that, it just loads the picture and 
then unloads it without displaying it.

One of the wonderful techs at Impulse informed me that all that 
needed to be done was change the bytes in the hunk header for 
the color map so as to make the file think that it only had a 
map of 32 colors instead of 256 and then change the remaining 
part of the 256 color map into a 'JUNK' hunk.  I asked back how 
that would affect the colors in the actual picture and was told 
that because it is a 24 bit image, only the first 16 colors in 
the color map are used anyway (or something like that).  The 
bottom line is that it works!

An additional purpose for this program is the file naming 
differences on the IBM and Amiga version of Imagine.  On the 
Amiga version the files are named pic.xxxx, where xxxx is the 
number of the picture (i.e. 0001, 0002, etc.).  On the IBM 
version (because of the stupid naming limits of MS-DOS blah) 
the names are PICxxxx.ext, where xxxx is the number of the 
picture and ext is the type of file format (i.e. RG8 for RGB 24 
bit or HAM 8).  IM_Tran will take a range of picture numbers 
and an extension for the IBM files and then copy/convert the 
files to the Amiga naming convention and change the hunk 
information.

IM_Tran is a workbench program.  If someone would rather have a 
CLI version, send me mail on Compuserve of call during the day 
at (602) 991-7272 and I will see if there is enough demand for 
it.

To use IM_Tran first create an icon for the program.  Start the 
program (all very basic Amiga stuff).  Once you have the 
program running you will see the following objects in the 
window:

Source Path:
Destination Path:
Pic # From:           To:
IBM Extension:


OK      Cancel  (buttons)

Enter the source path of where the IBM files are located.  I 
use Cross-DOS to copy the files from a 720K IBM formated 
diskette to my Amiga.  The Cross-DOS diskette is DI0:, 
therefore I would enter DI0: as the source path.  If you used a 
serial cabel to 'download' the files from the IBM to the Amiga, 
you would put in the drive and path of the download directory 
for the files (i.e. Work:Imagine/Download/).

The Destination path is where you want the pictures to end up.  
If you were putting them into a sub-project that was called 
First Pics in a project called My Project and your Imagine 
program was located in Work:FP, you would enter
Work:FP/My Project.imp/First Pics.pix/.  Notice that you need 
to have the trailing '/' on the path.  The same is true for the 
source path.

Next you would enter the starting picture number and the ending 
picture number.  IM_Tran will use these numbers to copy each of 
the files one at a time.  If the starting number is greater 
than the ending number IM_Tran will just not do anything.  If 
there is an error openning or reading a file, IM_Tran will go 
on to the next picture number.  If the source file does not 
exist IM_Tran again will simply go on to the next picture 
number.

Last you need to enter the IBM extension.  For the RGB 24-bit 
pictures produced on the IBM this would be RG8.

After entering all this information, you click on the OK 
button.  You will then notice some drive activity.  After the 
drive activity is finished you will find the pic.xxxx files in 
the destination path.  These files will have the hunk 
information changed and should load correctly into and display 
in the Amiga version of Imagine.

I copied the IM_Tran program using Cross-DOS over to a 720k 
diskette and then upload it to Compuserve from and IBM Clone 
computer.  I do not know if this will cause it not to run on an 
Amiga.  If anyone has trouble running it send e-mail to 
71441,741, Tony Pitman (thats me if you were wondering).

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