Path: chuka.playstation.co.uk!scea!greg_labrec@interactive.sony.com
From: "Michael C. Lee, Jr." <mclee@hubcap.clemson.edu>
Newsgroups: scea.yaroze.beginners
Subject: Re: Ira's sprite stuff
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 1997 01:45:43 -0700
Organization: SCEA News Server
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Ira Rainey wrote:
> 
> Mike said:
> 
> >I cant get anything to come up.
> >I run it under CodeWarrior.
> >I run the ny.psx file under the PSComutil and
> >nothing shows up.
> >I ran the download.sio and it did the same thing.
> >Just a black screen that has nothing on it.
> >this is frustrating.
> >Where does it load the *.tim files?
> >If i create a drawing, I do i get my file to recognize it.
> >What is this address stuff at the beginning?
> 
> Ira says:
> 
> First off, the "download.sio" file is actually a batch file for downloading
> all the relevant files to the correct addresses. I use the ".sio" extension
> because that's just how CW documented it when they first implemented it and
> I haven't got round to changing it, and seeing as has I write all my code on
> my Mac the extension is irrelevant. Try opening it using CW and you will see
> the files and the addresses that it loads.
> 
> Secondly, if you are compiling code using the GNU stuff make sure your
> makefile sets your object code in at 0x8009000. If you're using CW still,
> then go to your project settings and check the same thing (0x8009000 is the
> default address space used by CW).
> 
> Eli said:
> 
> >I haven't looked at Ira's code, but there are basically three ways it
> >could be loading the .TIM:
> >
> >1) Static data in the program - ugly and probably not how he's doing it.
> 
> Urghh, what a horrid thought! If that method was a woman, she'd be a moose!
> 
> >2) Using the Metrowerks BLoad (or whatever it is) to simulate the CD and
> >   load it automatically from within the program.
> 
> A nice tool, but I didn't use these tools so that people without CW could
> still benefit.
> 
> >3) Pre-loading the .TIM to memory using a batch file.
> 
> Spot on!
> 
> >A) Check for a Windoze batch file (.BAT) if its there you should be able
> >to use it in the new version of PSComUtil or read the addresses out and
> >use the load data function in PSComUtil to put them in the right places.
> 
> "download.sio" is the one you want.
> 
> >You may also be compiling your code to the wrong address - make sure that
> >the address in your project preferences matches the one in the Makefile
> >(it there is one)
> 
> Wayne said:
> 
> >Looking at Ira's code, (Ira being a member of the Euro group, this is no
> >suprise) I see the following line:
> >
> >       SetVideoMode(MODE_PAL);
> >
> >Since the default is NTSC, you could just remove this line.  Just as well,
> >you could substitute it with:
> >
> >       SetVideoMode(MODE_NTSC);
> >
> >Further, you must replace the vertical height with 240 (not the PAL value
> >of 256).
> >
> >#define                SCREEN_HEIGHT   240
> 
> Ira says:
> 
> I noticed I did put this line in some of my very early code, but I changed
> the whole web site thing about a month ago and changed all the code. None of
> the demos include this line now, purely for reasons of international
> compatability.
> 
> Also I always use 320x240, in all of the demos and stuff that I have done so
> far. No real reason but because I do there should be no PAL/NTSC clashes.
> 
> Mike said:
> 
> >The documentation SUCKS and im starting to get pissed.
> >Im very intelligent and this is making no sense.
> 
> Wayne said:
> >And try not to get too POed.  The learning curve here is STEEP!
> 
> Ira says:
> 
> Cool out Mike. Just step back take a deep breath and count to ten. You're
> probably trying too hard and failing to see the wood for the trees. It took
> me about five or six weeks to get my head round the basics of this thing,
> and boy did I want to beat the crap out of the little bastard thing
> sometimes, but I just turned it off, went to bed and tried again the next
> day. Until one day everything hit me like a ton of bricks.
> 
> We're all on a huge learning curve here and it doesn't make it any easier
> that Sony haven't provided us with any kinda decent documentation, or real
> starter stuff. I've never said that any of my docs are the best or that I'm
> the best coder, far from it, but the very fact that you've been able to
> download some docs and source code that someone - namely me - has taken
> their own time and effort to write for no reason other than to help people
> like yourself, and to ensure we can all get some value for money out of this
> thing, is something you should be grateful for. When I got my yaroze back in
> March we had diddly squat to work with.
> 
> Don't knock it, just keep working at it.
> 
> Ira
> --
> "The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in
> determination"
>  -- Tommy Lasorda
Im not knocking you. Im very happy you wrote the sprite stuff. Its all I
have to go on. I just wish Sony had provided something better.
check out spells of fury if you want to see a good work of
documentation.
I think once i start to get some of this stuff, ill write something.
later,
mike