Hello there.
There is an interesting Speccy emulator on the Net.
It can display 256 colours and there exist several games (changed from normal Spectrum games) which are made in 256 colours.
Would it be possible to load the games on Sprinter and display them properly? (Without any errors)? A halfo of work is done as there are games for 256colours mode - and they work.
Here is a www page of the mulator:
http://www.emulatronia.com/emusdaqui/spec256/index.htm

Or maybe this site will work faster;
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Ring/5528/Spectrum.htm

Hey...?
Misters Sprinter-Rulers...?
Are you there?

Ok. These 12 games look well, but is it a cause of making a new mode for the Sprinter?
We wait more opinions.
Also we have a tail of different suggestions already. But we can't do all of them in same time.
For example today we work for Sprinter's VGA convertor.
Next - a new model of Sprinter computer (note: not a new mainboard!).
And it is only a "hardware" part of our work!

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PETERS PLUS LTD

Hey, hey, easy. I'm just asking, nothing more.
I wanted only to know if it's possible to make them work now.
As I understand - it isn't.
That's OK, that's what I wanted to know. :-)

About SPEC256:

"The idea is: in one hand we´ve got the speccy emulator with its memory zone, and in the other we emulate a Z80 which works with 64 bit registers instead of 8 bit, and with a memory map with positions of 64 bit instead of 8."

So, it's impossible in Sprinter...


Alexander Shabarshin (shaos@mail.ru)
NedoPC Project

In my opinion another thing is internet (tcp/ip) support (modem or also (better) lan card) natively supported on sprinter.
I am working to zx-box project and some stuff are yet ready (as lan card and web browser) in speccy mode. I hope in a good work of Sprinter staff for support it on Estex OS or better in Gui implementation by MGV :-)

Yes, Sprinter can not use these 12 games. You could take this info from Sprinter documentation too. Sprinter supports several Spectrum clones only.
BTW two years ago we already discussed idea of 256 color Spectrum games for the Sprinter.
So, it has another way of solution. But it is not impossible at all.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

It's very interesting! And we hope too. But in fact all Sprinter developers moves are independent from us. We can guarantee only progress of Estex and access to the full developers documentation. Certainly, we finance most useful software projects. But absolutely all Sprinter software projects are important for us and all Sprinter users. We are ready to cooperation.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

what about the support multicolor - gigascreen in Sprinter?

Which Spectrum software used it already? Is it really useful (or so popular) software?
Spectrum's demo programms which use multicolor effect works fine. Or something else?

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PETERS PLUS LTD

for emulate it I use realspec (also UnrealSpeccy works very fine!)
I have found some games/demos in trd format that uses this mode. With multicolor effects and without gigascreen mode you can see a fast change color between 2 near pixels (sorry for my English ;)). You can find any documentation. You can find some examples of gigascreen into Power of Sound Web site:
http://pos.izhnet.ru/index.php3?list=download&md=13
Gigascreen was used by Pentagon. In this case you haven't flickering effects

I understand you well. Thank you for the url. We will examine this documentation.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

flydream:
>I am working to zx-box project

May I ask what is zx-box project?

Multicolour is not the same what gigascreen is.
Multicolour - everybody knows what's that.
And gigascreen is very popular format on Spectrum; many demos use it, some games, Leszek Chmielewski's convertor, and the best graphic utils uses it too. Was it BGE...? I can't remember now, but several.
To Sprinter screw: is it possible for you to make the mode to stop blinking? They say there is some piece of hardware which can achieve it on Speccy...

If you wanna take a look, it is made well on "z80 stealth" emulator (on F7 as far as I know).

is the implementation of tcp/ip on ZX Spectrum.
http://zxbox.sourceforge.net/ home page of the zxbox project For developer:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/zxbox/ I hope in a your subscribtion

>To Sprinter screw: is it possible for you to make the mode to stop blinking?

because Sprinter haven't gigascreen support. :(

So it's impossible to stop the blinking of interlace (gigascreen) mode?

I don't know... ask to Alexander :) I suppose that it is possible.

Probably it is possible to create in PLD. The Circuit of the gigascreen is easy. But it not means creation this mode soon certainly. We have a plan of Sprinter progress already.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

>The Circuit of the gigascreen is easy. But it not means
>creation this mode soon certainly.

'Mode' word is more related with software.
Does it mean Sprinter could cancel zx-gigascreen's blinking only using software methods?

It mean Sprinter can has one more Pentagon Mode of Spectrum Configuration. Or a new port of old Pentagon Mode which will be switching blinking (on/off).
Canceling zx-gigascreen's blinking could be created using some changing of internal logic firmware.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

I realize you are busy with other improves, but if it would be possible using some 'software' methods, would be nice to have non_blinking interlace. :-)

What 'software' methods do you suggest?
Sprinter architecture allows to use "software/hardware" methods. It is an original technology.
"Non_blinking interlace" can be created by this technology too.
So, next version of Spectrum Configuration can include this new feature and some others.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

> if it would be possible using some 'software' methods
If software program rewrite Sprinter chip for new features is it 'software' method? :)

Alexander Shabarshin (shaos@mail.ru)
NedoPC Project

>If software program rewrite Sprinter chip for new features
>is it 'software' method? :)

Ha-ha. :) Kind of. :)
Anyway - I think it would be interesting feature. Or maybe should I say: VERY interesting.

By the way, I there any possibility to buy a motherboard with the older bios? (With Speccy config in ROM).
I have heard that the newest version has no Spectrum support in Rom, but user has to execute some EXE file.

You can rewrite FlashROM with BIOS 2.12 using www.petersplus.com/support/updates/bios212.zip file. This is "old" BIOS version.
But usage of Spectrum Configuration in BIOS 3.00 more comfortable.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

>But usage of Spectrum Configuration in BIOS 3.00 more
>comfortable.

Why?

PS: I have heard from one of Sprinter users that he 'downgraded' his Sptinter to earlier Bios' version, because it's better for Speccy config... Strange.

New features of Spectrum Configuration (BIOS 3.00)
1. ZXSpectrum+2 Mode.
2. Possibility to load different Spectrum ROM's. For example, original ROM's of current Spectrum clone. Old BIOS 2.12 include one universal set of Spectrum ROM's for all Spectrum modes.
3. Changing any Spectrum modes. Spectrum modes is described in configuration files, which can be changed. For example you can create special mode for each Spectrum program (for each .trd file).

You can see more info about BIOS 3.00 in the attached text file.

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PETERS PLUS LTD

I think is possible to use up to 256 colors for zx spectrum games working on them using Sprinter ZX mode. I have read in documentation that you can use high resolution inside Spectrum mode. Anyway you must working on games because them are written for 16 colors only..... Perhaphs games written for 256 colors emulator could run on it!

Yes, one of mode in the Spectrum configuration that called 'Sprinter ZX' has additional features like high resolution, extended memory, etc. It's could be used for learning a new Sprinter's features. Also it could help game makers for improving old spectrum games.
We are plan to increase software for Sprinter. And hope that another programmers will cooperate with us for it.

flydream:
>Perhaphs games written for 256 colors emulator could run
>on it!

So I asked about it. :) I was thinking in the same way.

Denis:
>Also it could help game makers for improving old spectrum
>games.
>We are plan to increase software for Sprinter. And hope
>that
>another programmers will cooperate with us for it.

I thought it will be helpful for you if there are some already improved games and editor for improving more of them.
Just a thought of course...