Graphics Plus/Graphics Plus.iso/msdos/viewers/bld2gif/bld2gif.doc

Text File | 1988-05-23 | 14KB | 397 lines

              BLD2GIF (c) 1988 Lawrence Gozum & Marvin Gozum
              ──────────────────────────────────────────────

                                User Manual

    DISCLAIMER

    This  product  is distributed AS IS.  The authors specifically disclaim
    all  warranties  ,expressed  or implied, including ,but not limited to,
    implied  warranties  of  merchantability  and  fitness for a particular
    purpose  with respect to defects in the diskette and documentation, and
    program  license  granted  herein,  in particular, and without limiting
    operation  of  the  program  license  with  respect  to  any particular
    application  use  or  purpose.  In no event shall the authors be liable
    for  any  loss  of  profit or any other commercial damage including but
    not limited to special,incidental, consequential or other damages.


    LICENSING AGREEMENT

    You  may  use  this program on a TRIAL BASIS only;  this means that you
    may  freely  evaluate  the  usefulness of this program for a reasonable
    period.    Should  you  find  this program useful, you must register it
    (see  last  section  of  this manual).   You will then be provided with
    the  latest release of VGACAD (VGA Computer Assisted Design) and latest
    updates of all released utilities.

    You  may  freely  distribute  copies  of this program in its UNMODIFIED
    state  provided  you do not include it in other software packages, with
    the  exception  of distributing it as part of a bundle of Public Domain
    or  shareware  programs  on a single diskette.  In addition you may not
    charge  more that $3.50 for copying and/or distributing this program in
    the absence of any recognized Users Group guidelines.


    WHAT IS BLD2GIF ?

    BLD2GIF  is  a  conversion  utility  for  creating  files  which follow
    CompuServe's  GIF  ("Graphics  Interchange  Format").    GIF  files are
    "universal"  in  that  it  allows  the  transmittal and porting of your
    pictures  to  other machines as well as through communication software.
    Pictures  in  the  GIF format can be viewed in different graphics modes
    and  machines depending on the sophistication of the software.  BLD2GIF
    will  convert  any screen captured with VGACAP or any screen created on
    VGACAD;    in  effect  you  can convert ANY viewable picture into a GIF
    picture.    All  screens captured by VGACAP can be edited, garnished or
    image processed with VGACAD.


    WHAT IS VGACAP ?

    VGACAP  is  a  terminate-stay-resident (TSR) utility that allows you to
    capture  the 256 color palette and screen in the 320x200x256 color mode
    and  save both the palette and screen in "Bloadable" formats.  VGACAP's
    main  purpose  is to capture and "Bsave" the pictures of commercial and
    shareware  viewing  programs  as  well  as  painting/graphics  and  CAD
    programs available now and in the future.









    VGACAD  (one  of  the  first  256  color  paint/CAD  shareware programs
    distributed  in  the  Public domain) will load the captured screens and
    palettes,  as  soon as you rename the files to follow the .plt and .bld
    extensions.


    REQUIREMENTS

    You  MUST have a VGA or MCGA adaptor (at least BIOS compatible) present
    and  an  analog  monitor  to  use VGACAP and BLD2GIF.  VGACAP uses less
    than  2K  of  your  available  memory  !   BLD2GIF needs about 192KB of
    diskspace and free memory to run succesfully.

    Note:    When  in  DOS  or  using  a  picture  viewer (e.g., VGAGIF) or
    application  which  requires a keypress to continue, it is necessary to
    hit  any  key  or  a  specified  key  (e.g.,  spacebar or return) after
    hitting the 'HOTKEY' before VGACAP saves the screen and palette.


    HOW TO USE VGACAP

    Simply  run  VGACAP  before  entering  your  painting/CAD  or digitized
    picture  viewer.    After loading,  press <ALT-F10>, while viewing your
    picture  in  any  drawing/paint/CAD  or  viewing  program. Your current
    screen  and  palette  will be saved in your default drive and directory
    in the standard Bsave format for all BASIC programs.

    The  first  time  you  run  the  program  it  will save your screen and
    palette  to  MCAGSCRN.000  and MCGAPLET.000 respectively.  It will then
    increase  both  extensions  up  to  .999.    If  there  is  an existing
    MCGASCRN.xxx  or  MCGAPLET.xxx file, then it will increment to the next
    higher  number.    This can be confusing if you keep the captured files
    without  renaming  them  since  you  can  have  unmatched  screens  and
    palettes.    You  can  use your favorite memory managers to remove this
    TSR or reboot to release it from memory.


    HOW TO USE BLD2GIF

    Every  captured  picture  or  picture created with VGACAD will have two
    files:  the  screen  and palette.  The screen should have the extension
    .BLD and .PLT for the palette.

         a)   WITH captured screens and palettes using VGACAP

              If  your  picture was captured with VGACAP, rename both files
              with  the  same  name with the corresponding extensions.  For
              example  rename MCGASCRN.000 to MYPIC.BLD and MCGAPLET.000 to
              MYPIC.PLT.

              e.g. while in DOS type "rename MCGASCRN.000 MYPIC.BLD"

         b)   WITH created/edited screens palettes using VGACAD

              In  VGACAD you have the flexibility of using a single palette
              for  several  pictures.  If your screen was named "MYPIC.BLD"
              and  you  used  "GRAY64.PLT"  for  the screen, then rename or
              copy "GRAY64.PLT" to "MYPIC.PLT" file.

              e.g. while in DOS type "copy GRAY64.PLT MYPIC.PLT"






         c)   WITH BASIC Bsaved pictures using hardware palette

              In  BASIC, when you invoke SCREEN 13 the VGA card defaults to
              a  standard  hardware  palette.    You  can BSAVE you screens
              using the following lines:

              Screen 13:                 'init MCGA 256 color mode
              DEF SEG=&HA000:            'point data segment to
                                         'screen buffer A0000H
              BSAVE"MCPIC.BLD",0,64000:  'bsave the screen
              DEF SEG:                   'restore data segment

              Copy  and  rename the included file "BASIC.plt" to match your
              bsaved picture.

              e.g. while in DOS type "copy BASIC.PLT MYPIC.PLT"

              If  you  are  directly  making pictures from BASIC, I suggest
              using  VGACAP  to  save screen and palette changes instead of
              being  limited  by  the  standard  hardware palette.  BASIC's
              PALETTE  USING  does  not support reading (much more a way to
              bsave) palettes in a BIOS compatible format.

    Now  that you have the screen and palette type "BLD2GIF MYPIC <return>"
    then  after  a  few seconds, you picture and palette will be merged and
    converted  to  MYPIC.GIF.    This  picture  can  now be viewed with GIF
    viewers  (e.g.,  Michael  Vigneau's  VGAGIF)  or used with any software
    that supports GIF pictures.


    BLOADING captured screens in BASIC

    The  following  lines  will  load  one  of  the  captured  screens from
    QuickBASIC 4.0

    If  you  are  using  QuickBASIC  1.0,  2.0  or  3.0,  I  have  included
    VGAMODE.obj   which   you  can  include  in  your  UserLib.exe  through
    BUILDLIB.exe.

    VGAMODE  is  a BIOS compatible assembly routine which can call the more
    exotic  graphic  modes  of  your  compatible  VGA card (e.g. 800x560x16
    color  mode  of  ATI's  VGA VIP and EGA Wonder); check your user manual
    for the correct hex codes.


         USAGE:  Call VGAMODE(&H13) :    'MCGA 256 color mode
         or      Call VGAMODE(mode%):    'where mode is an integer that
                                         'corresponds to the videomode
                                         'after translating it from HEX

















    The following lines will perform just as well as the listing above.


    Call VGAMODE(&H13):                  'init MCGA 256 color mode
    DEF SEG=&HA000:                      'point data segment to
                                         'screen buffer A0000H
    Bload "MCGASCRN.000",0:              'load the screen
    DEF SEG   :                          'restore data segment


    As  a  matter  of  convention,    if  you are using VGACAD,  you should
    rename  your capture screens with the .BLD extension (e.g., MYPICT.BLD)
    for use in VGACAD or conversion in BLD2GIF.


    BLOADING captured palettes in BASIC

    If  you  are  using  QuickBASIC  (any  version from 1.0 to 4.0), I have
    included  WRITEPAL.obj,  which  is, also a VGA BIOS routines written in
    assembly,   that   you   can   include   in  your  UserLib.exe  through
    BUILDLIB.exe (v3.0 and lower) or LINK (v4.0).

    WRITEPAL  is also a BIOS compatible assembly routine that writes to 256
    palette  registers.    Although  its  main purpose is to facilitate the
    overriding  of  the  VGA  or  MCGA  standard  palette,  since  it is an
    all-purpose  BIOS  routine  it will facilitate changing the palettes of
    more  exotic  screen  modes  such  as  the 640x480x256 color screens of
    IBM's  8514/A  adaptor.  This function is similar to "PALETTE USING" in
    QuickBASIC  with  the  major advantage of following the BIOS convention
    which VGACAP captures and bsaves.

         USAGE:  Call WritePal (Dseg%,Offset%)

         WHERE:  Dseg%  =result of VARSEG for array storage
                 Offset%=result of VARPTR for array storage

    The following lines illustrate its use.

         REM: Example Routine
         DIM UserPal%(769)               :' 256 colors x 3 registers=768
                                         :' registers= red grn blu
         Dseg%=VARSEG(UserPal(1))        :' get data segment
         Offset%=VARPTR(UserPal(1))      :' get offset
         DEF SEG=Dseg%                   :' override data segment
         BLOAD "MCGAPLET.000",Offset%    :' bload in correct offset
         DEF SEG                         ;' restore data segment
         Call WritePal (Dseg%,Offset%)


    Palettes  captured by VGACAP follow the BIOS calling convention in that
    they  are  contiguous  RGB  (red green blue) values for all 256 colors.
    Not  only  is this the same way GIF stores the palette in its file, but
    one  BIOS  call  can update an entire palette with RGB values stored in
    this manner.












    USING VGABLD

    The  "bloadable" format has several advantages over GIF.  If you intend
    to  use  your  pictures  primarily  in IBM machines in VGA or MCGA mode
    then   you  will  notice  that  the  pictures  load  INSTANTANEOUSLY  !
    Bloading  a  screen  is  simply  a  memory dump into your display area;
    this is particularly crucial for presentations.

    In  addition, keeping the screen and palette separate allows you to use
    one  palette for several pictures or for creating special effects.  For
    example,  you  can  make a picture shift from a "day scene" to a "night
    scene"  by  simply  changing the palette; you can also create animation
    effects.

    You  need not go through the tedium of writing your own program just to
    view  your  captured pictures.  VGABLD will load a picture for viewing.
    Captured  screen  and  palette  MUST  have the .BLD and .PLT extensions
    respectively  for  the same picture.  The BASIC source code is included
    and is ready for compilation.


    REGISTRATION

    To  register  your  copy,  send  in the registration form and check for
    $14.95 or $19.95 payable to

                             Dr. Marvin Gozum
                      2 Independence Place Apt. 303-2
                            6th & Locust Street
                          Philadelphia, PA 19106

    For  $14.95 you will be entitled to the latest update of VGACAD without
    reminders  which  pop-up  every  20  minutes  AND the latest updates of
    released  utilities:    VGACAP,  BLD2GIF  and  CGA2VGA  (converts  your
    library of CGA pictures to VGA 256 color format).

    For  $19.95  you  will  be  entitled to the next TWO (2) updates of the
    latest  of everything; this means that from the date of receipt of your
    registration  we will send you the latest version of VGACAD and all the
    related  utilities  developed  and  a  premier  copy of any new utility
    developed  as  well  as the next releases of all the aforementioned and
    any new fonts (with the font editor) and Clipart files when available.

    You  can  expect  spectacular  enhancements  in  VGACAD's  updates.  At
    present  it has sophisticated image processing functions, auto/variable
    sizing  and  stretching, image colorization , Cut&Paste, 23 brushes and
    more.   Future updates will include 3D and 2D transformations, gradient
    fills  and  patterns,  and  more;  many of these routines are in "C" or
    assembly and work very fast.

    In  the  pipeline  is  QBVGA an extensive library of QuickBASIC VGA 256
    color  graphics  routines,  VGASHW  (a graphics presentation program to
    showoff  your  captured  pictures  or  your  own  paintings  and screen
    design,  EGA2VGA  (a  TSR  to  convert  EGA  screens  to  VGA 256 color
    format),  VGA3DM  (3D  object/model  editor  for  including  models  in
    VGACAD),  and  VGAPRN  (a  print  utility  for EPSON and IBM dot matrix
    printers).    If  you  continue to support maverick authors like us, we
    will  continue  to  develop  these  products  like nothing ever seen in
    commercial   packages  -  otherwise  it  will,  as  many  (sigh!)  good
    "shareware"  packages  have to go commercial or simply die from lack of
    support.   Support us and we'll keep developing.