HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: jdickson@jato.jpl.nasa.gov (Jeff Dickson)
Subject: Re: A couple of questions
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 22:23:01 GMT

In article <56246@dime.cs.umass.edu> robinson@elux2.cs.umass.edu (RICHARD ROBINSON) writes:
>
>In article <1992Nov13.063457.22216@ucc.su.OZ.AU> willw@extro.ucc.su.OZ.AU (William Waring) writes:
>>In article <55989@dime.cs.umass.edu> robinson@elux3.cs.umass.edu (RICHARD ROBINSON) writes:
>>>>>
>>>Ok, I have a couple of questions that I'd love to find answers to.
>>>
>>>1. Can a packet sent to DOS be aborted? I send an ACTION_READ to a console,
>>>and need to get rid of it when I exit. I just can't ask the user 'please hit
>>>a key so I can exit.' And since the exit is based on the termination of
>>>another process, there is no way to not send the packet when I'm about to,
>>>'cause I don't know when it is going to exit.
>>>
>>>Failing that, can I trick the console into thinking I typed something?
>>
>>Are you using the console.device or opening a "CON:" window. If you're
>>using CON: and Wb2.0, then you don't have to send a ACTION_READ packet to
>>the device. Just do a straight SetMode(FileHandle,1) to turn the console
>>window into RAW: mode. Then just do a straight DOS
>>Read(FileHandle,DummyChar,1) from the filehandle. You should probably set
>>the mode back to CON: when you do that. Other than that, shouldn't have
>>any problems... If you're doing it using the console.device then look in
>>the RKM: Devices manual for information on how to program the device. It's
>>too lengthy to explain here... But I don't think you're using that meathod?
>
>Well, I am running under 2.0, but with 1.3 includes (poor college student),
>so 2.0 functions that can be called without 2.0 includes are the limit.
>
>Anyway, ACTION_READ, not ACTION_SCREEN_MODE... I am doing asynchronous
>reads by sending a ACTION_READ packet. Read(filehandle,buffer,x) would freeze
>me up. It has nothing to do with the mode of the console.

Oh, yes it does! If the console is not operating under RAW mode, then reads
will block until the number of chacters to read (in this case 'x') has been
read. 

>I send a READ,
>and when it returns, stuff the character into a pipe. When I am ready
>to exit, there is one outstanding read. I need to be able to kill it.

Another way would be to generate the number of characters needed to satisfy
the read request when your program wanted to exit. This could be done by
using the IND_WRITEEVENT command of the Input device. This precludes that
your program's window would be the one currently receiving input when the
program decided to exit. 

>--
>Dread				      (Richard Robinson, Univ of Mass, Amherst)
>dread@titan.ucc.umass.edu	      "There is no right, there is only power!"
>robinson@elux3.cs.umass.edu		     "Kill them, kill them all!" 

Jeff
From: aforrest@cs.strath.ac.uk (Andrew R Forrest CS92)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Any plans for Amiga Unicode?
Date: 20 Nov 92 16:22:25 GMT
Organization: Comp. Sci. Dept., Strathclyde Univ., Glasgow, Scotland.


I noticed that someone stated in their posting that they were developing
an Amiga application which incorporated the 16-bit Unicode character set.

Anyone know if there are any plans on the part of C=, or anyone else for
that matter, to make Unicode standard on the Amiga? (As much as that is
possible, considering that all current applications assume
one-byte-per-character.)

-Andrew Forrest
-- 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|     \=====\  | Andrew Forrest               -  2nd Year Computing Science   |
|    /\\       | University of Strathclyde    -  aforrest@cs.strath.ac.uk     |
|   /==\\==(   |--------------------------------------------------------------|
From: heinz@edohwg.adsp.sub.org (Heinz Wrobel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re:  New hardware reference guide?
Date: 14 Nov 92 13:34:11 GMT
Organization: Edotronik GmbH

In article <Bxnwno.6ns@cck.coventry.ac.uk> csg019@cch.coventry.ac.uk (-~=Zaphod=~-) writes:
>It would work on any amiga with the custom chips at location $DFF000.

With _what_ custom chips. Who tells you that an Amiga 5000 or 6000 has
custom chips at all?

>>d) risks hardware damage with things connected to the serial or parallel port.
>
>How could it *dammage* hardware?
>Your not one of them guys that think that some viruses write to the disk
>label are you?  :)

Just setup pins that are supposed to be inputs as outputs. The drivers
for the line will fight and sooner or later die. You could do that with an
old CBM8032. I'm pretty sure you could create a situation like that with
the Amiga, too. Even by accident.

--
Heinz Wrobel, Edotronik GmbH (ECG018)
FAX +49 89 850 51 25 / TEL +49 89 850 25 20 (HOME!&VOICE, sometimes...)
From: koren@fc.hp.com (Steve Koren)
Subject: Re: sprites in 3.0?
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 14:43:26 GMT
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Fort Collins Site
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1.3 PL5

Martin Vilcans (marvil@lysator.liu.se) wrote:

> Yes, I know, but the pointer is sprite number 0, it's the higher number
> sprites that disappear when overscanning.

Interesting, but I'm still not convinced.  Also any potential theory
needs to explain:

   - programs which open their own, non-overscan screen, with sprites,
     but the sprites don't work.

   - programs which try to use sprites on the workbench, and now crash
     or generate odd results, instead of simply invisible sprites.

Basically, although I've looked, I haven't found _any_ programs which
use sprites and still work in 3.0.  I have a sort of screen blanker
which opens its own 320x200 screen and displays sprites in it, but it
also fails even though there is no overscan.  Something else may be
going on.

 - steve
From: bjst@sth.frontec.se (Bjorn Stenberg)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: How to visualize control chars? (Was: Re: Fast Text output...)
Keywords: text, output, control
Date: 17 Nov 92 20:59:49 GMT
Organization: IDK/Frontec - System Design Group

htgoebel@cip.informatik.uni-erlangen.de (hartmut Goebel) writes:
> I'm looking for a fast text output routine which will display
> control charakters inversid like in string gadgets.

This reminds me of something...

Opinions Wanted:
----------------
How should my text applications (such as editors or viewers) visualize
control chars (0x00 -> 0x1f) and all chars without an equivalent graphic
block in the font?

Lots of editors use inverse characters for control chars and the (infamous)
'box' for chars not in the font. I don't really like that.

I'm into an 'Emacs' way of displaying it, using '^' as prefix for control
chars and displaying chars not in fonts as '\hh' where hh is the hexadecimal
value of the character.

Opinions, anyone?

		-- Bjorn

       ///  Bjorn Stenberg, Stockholm, Sweden         bjst@sth.frontec.se
      ///  main() { printf(&unix["\021%six\012\0"],(unix)["have"]+"fun"-0x60);}
 \\\ ///  "- Your documentation no longer confuses me, old version!"
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
From: jbickers@templar.actrix.gen.nz (John Bickers)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Serial port TXD
Date: 19 Nov 92 14:14:36 PST
Organization: TAP

    Is it possible to read the state of the TXD pin on the serial
    port? The (very useful) hardware manual shows that RXD can be
    read easily, but only ever shows TXD as an output.

    I am thinking of writing some kind of datascope program that
    monitors the RXD and TXD lines (which are wired up to a serial
    cable running between two other devices), and to see both
    directions at once I need to be able to read TXD somehow. The
    other alternative, which given the cost of such things etc is a
    bit undesirable, is to hook the RXD up to the normal serial port,
    and the TXD to the RXD of a second serial port.

    Currently I've only got one Amiga, but I'd like to write this for
    an A4000/A1200 class machine, mostly because I want to use a HIRES
    display without losing CPU time. So if no hardware manual will be
    published for these machines, will the RKMs cover how one goes
    about writing this sort of application? Using serial.device seems
    out of the question, because (a) it wants to do active things to
    other signal lines, (b) it's slow if I want to be able to monitor
    up to 57000, (c) it doesn't read TXD, and (d) it doesn't have
    timing information for each byte.
--
*** John Bickers, TAP.                   jbickers@templar.actrix.gen.nz ***
***    "Radioactivity - It's in the air, for you and me" - Kraftwerk    ***
From: heinz@edohwg.adsp.sub.org (Heinz Wrobel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re:  New hardware reference guide?
Date: 14 Nov 92 13:44:22 GMT
Organization: Edotronik GmbH

In article <Bxnx67.D6K@cck.coventry.ac.uk> csg019@cch.coventry.ac.uk (-~=Zaphod=~-) writes:
>1. Most good demo writters come from European countries, and don't even know
>what a "registered developer" is. Are we to blame if we don't know about
>something? Perhaps if C= got pulled there finger out in Europe, instead of
>concentrating on the US all the time, then we would better informed.

We are commercial developer in munich, germany. We _do_ know about certain
things. Obviously you don't know and you leave the impression that
you haven't even tried to inform you about joining the developer program at
your local C= office. BTW, you can order AmigaMail without being a
developer. Ever looked at the RKM's? Especially at the Style Guide?

>2. If being a Registered Developer means paying large amounts of cash for
>information about your machine, then your average demo code is not going
>to be able to afford it.

Well, tough. Depening on your status it's not _that_ expensive anyway. Are
you saying "I can't afford it, so I want it for free?" or did I
misunderstand you?

>Could someone please Email me exactly what this Registed Developer thing
>is about? Is it just paying for a load of manuals or what?

Depending on your developer status, there is AmigaMail, a bimonthly
newsletter, and CBMNET, a UUCP based "developer net" for no USA
developers which gives you information. There are some more things to it,
but your local C= office should be able to tell you exactly what there is
when you ask about the "Amiga Developer Support Program"

>******************************************************************************
>*	  ///  O O   A member of S.H.I.T. (Super High Intelligence Team) ///  *
>*	 ///	u    Fight, defeat and kill organized laming.		///   *
>****\\\X//****\-/********csg019@uk.ac.cov.cck ok ?**************** \\\X//*****

BTW, don't you have a _name_ or are you afraid of telling it?


--
Heinz Wrobel, Edotronik GmbH (ECG018)
FAX +49 89 850 51 25 / TEL +49 89 850 25 20 (HOME!&VOICE, sometimes...)
From: Todd_Lewis@unc.edu (Todd M. Lewis)
Subject: Re: Subtasks, IEEE library pointers - y.a.Q
Organization: UNC Office of Information Technology
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1992 15:03:45 GMT

In article <jbickers.0iey@templar.actrix.gen.nz> jbickers@templar.actrix.gen.nz  
(John Bickers) writes:
>Quoted from <36848@cbmvax.commodore.com> by dlarson@cbmvax.commodore.com (Dale  
Larson - Product Assurance):
>> 1)  Other libraries exist now, other than the math libraries, which are
>> documented as absolutely not allowing the sharing of library bases beteween
>    Is there a list of these somewhere? This looks like good info to
>    put in a FAQ (ie: what libraries to avoid like the plague :).

Let's keep things in perspective here.  While it is true that some libraries
with side effects cannot be used by subtasks, and these new guidelines
on sharing library bases make some of the amiga.lib task and process
functions TOTALLY USELESS (shouting intentional here), there usually is
a reasonable compromise.  Let me outline how I'm working around the
problem (a problem which I evidently have not been able to effectively
communicate to the otherwise clever network).

Problem: Library base pointer variables must be shared for any but the
most trivial subtasks.  Fortunately, libraries that are commonly used
by subtasks are "clean" (intuition and graphics) in that they have no
untoward side effects on the opening tasks, and OpenLibrary() always
returns the same base address.

Now when I spin off subtasks, I have the subtask do "tmp=OpenLibrary()",
then compare tmp with the library base pointer (IntuitionBase, for
example).  If IntuitionBase is NULL,  I store tmp there and go on.  If it
isn't NULL but is the same as tmp, all is cool and I go on.  However, if it
isn't NULL and it isn't equal to tmp, then I've got different library
bases and there is no reasonable way to write subtasks that handle
that, so I CloseLibrary(tmp) and abort.  

This way in the future when/if these well-behavied libraries grow
side effects I can at least die gracefully, and in the mean time
I can spin off subtasks to my heart's content.

So what good is CreateTask() if the created tasks can't call libraries?
Rare is the case when I spin off a function as a single subtask--I usually
spin off anywhere from several to hundreds of subtasks.  The current
C compilers just won't let you use libraries in these tasks without
using the same base pointers for the libraries.
---
     Todd M. Lewis / Todd_Lewis@unc.edu / utoddl@guitar.oit.unc.edu
 Another Month Ends / All Targets Met / All Systems Working / All customers  
Satisfied / All Staff Eager and Enthusiastic / All Pigs Fed and Ready to Fly
From: jaker@csugrad.cs.vt.edu (Jake Rose)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re: Icons for assigns?
Date: 16 Nov 92 07:08:04 GMT
Organization: Virginia Tech Computer Science Dept, Blacksburg, VA

alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz (Ross Smith) writes:

>... and viola :-) a new disk icon appears on my WB, which I can open and
>find the docs: directory (I don't mind if I have to do a reset before the
>new icon appears). The idea is that an assign should look just like a real
>drive to the GUI, which it already does to the CLI. I tend to have a lot of
>nested directories, and I'd like to be able to reach some of the more remote
>ones without going on a hunting & fishing expedition down through my Work:
>partition...

>Any thoughts? ("So don't nest your directories so much" doesn't count :-)

How about "Leave out"? :) I have a documents (manuals, articles, ETexts,
etcetera) directory which I've given a nice icon (I spend too much time
drawing icons and not enough time coding :) ) and which I "Leave out" on
the workbench.  Looks just like another volume, hey! :)

(By the way, I also have nested directories from hell, which is why I use
ToolManager with the dock enabled, and "Leave out" current projects.  I only
wish they would regain their old snapshot locations when they were "Put away".)

>(My Amiga is a 2000 with 2.05)

>...... Ross Smith (Wanganui, NZ) ...... alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz ......
>   "Let us leave this festering hellhole.  Let us think the unthinkable,
>let us do the undoable.  Let us prepare to grapple with the ineffable
>itself, and see if we may not eff it after all." (Dirk Gently)
-- 

Wulf                    |I like work - it fascinates me.
jaker@csugrad.cs.vt.edu |I can sit and look at it for hours!
From: jesup@cbmvax.commodore.com (Randell Jesup)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re: Amiga Application Framework
Date: 22 Nov 92 02:44:56 GMT
Reply-To: jesup@cbmvax.commodore.com (Randell Jesup)
Organization: Commodore, West Chester, PA

dnavas@oracle.uucp (David Navas) writes:
>#define HIT_CMDRE_OVER_THE_HEAD_WITH_A_BRICK_MODE ON
>Wow!
>Usecounts!
>What will we think of next?

>Wow, wouldn't it be nice if the main elements of all the system structures
>was prefaced with a usecount?
>
>Golly.
>
>#end MARC_BARRET_USECOUNT_MODE
>
>Seriously, can we get rastports or layers to have this?  It would help to
>multi-thread my drawing apps on the window surfaces without keeping the
>window-layer locked for the entire operation (can you say, AutoPoint jerky-
>mode, I knew you could).

	Sure.  Just send the time machine to 1200 Wilson Drive, and I'll be
happy to add usecounts to all the system structures, even if I have to break
into the Los Gatos offices.  :-)  It doesn't even have to be all that powerful,
8 years or so would do it.

	Seriously, in many ways our hands are tied by 7+ year old designs and
the innumerable programs that would break if we changed them.  I'd _love_ for
all system structures to be abstract data types, fully opaque, or _at least_
allocated only by system routines.  Tain't so, though.

-- 
To be or not to be = 0xff
-
Randell Jesup, Jack-of-quite-a-few-trades, Commodore Engineering.
{uunet|rutgers}!cbmvax!jesup, jesup@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com  BIX: rjesup  
Disclaimer: Nothing I say is anything other than my personal opinion.
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
From: accs1@bagheera.mumath
Subject: Re: SAS/C 6.0 upgrades in the UK
Reply-To: accs1@bagheera.mumath
Organization: Sun Microsystems
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 92 10:25:35 GMT

I called SAS in Eschborn/Germany once September : "We'll sent you an upgrade notice immediately" was the answer.

I wrote them 3 weeks ago. Nothing heard up to now.

Frank
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
From: walker@twix.unx.sas.com (Doug Walker)
Subject: Re:   SAS/C 6.00 problems
Originator: walker@twix.unx.sas.com
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 14:46:46 GMT
Organization: SAS Institute Inc.


In article <heinz.04mq@edohwg.adsp.sub.org>, heinz@edohwg.adsp.sub.org (Heinz Wrobel) writes:
|> But the compiler can show the line with the error highlighted. Couldn't
|> this line including the ANSI sequence be available to SCMSG?

Ah, but it doesn't show the ENTIRE line, only the area immediately
around the token(s) that generated the message.  Yes, this much could
be made available.  I'd rather fix it right, though, so I'll just add
the code to keep track of the original column number the next time
we get to add enhancements.

|> With 5.10B I peeked how LSE got the error information from the compiler and
|> wrote a LSE2DME for myself that passed the line to a REXX script. There I
|> could parse the line for the ESC of the highlight sequence. This gave me a
|> useable column. Now I miss that "feature" :-(

You should still be able to do this by redirecting the compiler output
and parsing that...

|> Heinz Wrobel, Edotronik GmbH (ECG018)

-- 
  *****
=*|_o_o|\\=====Doug Walker, Software Distiller====== BBS: (919)460-7430 =
 *|. o.| ||                                          1200/2400/9600 Dual
  | o  |//     For all you do, this bug's for you!
  ====== 
usenet: walker@unx.sas.com                            bix: djwalker 
Any opinions expressed are mine, not those of SAS Institute, Inc.
From: h8eg083@stan.xx.swin.oz.au (Darren Gower)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re: 2.1 includes in SAS C 6.0 ?
Date: 21 Nov 92 13:48:23 GMT
Organization: Comp. Centre, Swinburne University of Tech., Melbourne, Australia

In <BxnvC0.BHL@unx.sas.com> jamie@cdevil.unx.sas.com (James Cooper) writes:


[...]
>...mainly because Commodore has not yet released either the 2.1 or 3.0
>includes to the public, so it *couldn't* come with anything later than
>the 2.04 includes.

What is the policy regarding availabilty once CBM do release them? Are SAS
registered customers entitled to request them of CBM, will SAS be able to
provide them...?

regards,
Darren.

>-- 
>---------------
>Jim Cooper
>(jamie@unx.sas.com)                             bix: jcooper

>Any opinions expressed herein are mine (Mine, all mine!  Ha, ha, ha!),
>and not necessarily those of my employer.
-- 
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+-----------+
|"Hey, just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand!"|    The    |
|  -- Homer tries to understand Lisa, ``Lisa's Substitute''       |Executioner|
+----Internet: h8eg083@stan.xx.swin.oz.au | h8eg083@136.186.1.1---+-----------+
From: paulk@terapin.com (Paul Kienitz)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re: Attn Commodore: You are making a Big Mistake (Hardware
Date: 20 Nov 92 18:30:50 PST
Organization: BBS

> In the UK and Europe, games built the amiga, *not* applications.
 
They have NOT built it into a machine that people don't snicker at
the mention of.
 
> The fact is, if you try to write technically taxing games or demos
> using the OS routines to run on a 68000 amiga they will be
> unplayable.
 
Have you ever even BOTHERED to TRY?
 
Take a look at Offender, for one example.  It doesn't use Intuition
but it's still completely OS-friendly.  Offhand I'd say it qualifies
as playable.
 
If basic low-level graphic routines are more optimized in 3.0 as some
are saying, I see no real reason not to use them.
 
Most people who say that you HAVE to destroy the OS in order to get
decent performance, are simply speaking from ignorance.  Its true
that this can make the difference between good performance and
ultimate performance, but the claims people like you make, such as
that the OS is hopeless in terms of performance, are based on
ignorance, and laziness when it comes to finding out instead of
repeating what somebody else said.

If you really must, you can test for OS < 3.0 and use OwnBlitter and
raw copperlists.  This does NOT equate to throwing away the OS and doing
everything by raw hardware pokes.

Give me just ONE reason not to use LoadView instead of poking the bitplane
pointers by hand.  And don't try any lame answers like "you can't do
interleaved bitplanes through the OS" -- I've done interleaved bitplanes on
draggable intuition screens under 1.3 with no difficulty at all.
From: breese@monet.imada.ou.dk (Bjoern Reese)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re: New hardware reference guide?
Date: 15 Nov 92 15:15:42 GMT
Organization: Dept. of Math. & Computer Science, Odense University, Denmark

In article <mwm.2mpt@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us> mwm@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us  
(Mike Meyer) writes:
> In <Bxnx67.D6K@cck.coventry.ac.uk>, csg019@cch.coventry.ac.uk (-~=Zaphod=~-)  
wrote:
> > 2. If being a Registered Developer means paying large amounts of cash for
> > information about your machine, then your average demo code is not going
> > to be able to afford it.
> 
> I think what it means depends on the country it's in. I suspect that
> in most countries, there is an option available that doesn't involve a
> large amount of cash.

Not in Denmark, and I suspect that this option isn't available in most
countries either. I remember some time ago, when a friend of mine tried
to become a Registered Developer and was rejected because was only doing
demos... or something like that (it has been some time ago, so I don't
remember the exact cause, but it was something along these lines.)

--

Bjoern Reese                   |     Email: breese@imada.ou.dk
Odense University, Denmark     |     Voice: +45 65 932 182 (private)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer