Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
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Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
1–10 of 36 posts
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#2fond memories -- spent couple years coding away on that :)
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#3Not to denigrate the post, but the TI-99/4A did color out of the box; this post is talking about a modern adapter board to work with a modern display instead of TI's proprietary monitor or a TV. I know because I first programmed on a TI-99/4A and we didn't have the space nor free connection to hook it to the living room TV, so I used a 13" B&W TV in my room for years before ever seeing the color that it was capable of.
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#4Not to denigrate the post, but the TI-99/4A did color out of the box; this post is talking about a modern adapter board to work with a modern display instead of TI's proprietary monitor or a TV. I know because I first programmed on a TI-99/4A and we didn't have the space nor free connection to hook it to the living room TV, so I used a 13" B&W TV in my room for years before ever seeing the color that it was capable o…
I went there with the assumption this was a modern tweak, but nonetheless enjoyed learning a bit about the hardware and the video output situation.
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#5Props to you. The TI-99/4A was my second -- and longest childhood -- computer. Getting one working again so perfectly warms my heart.
Fun fact about the TI-99/4A: It was actually fast, sporting a 16-bit CPU in an 8-bit era. The BASIC interpreter was slow because it, like many TI-99/4A programs, was written in a sort of interpreted bytecode that could live in video RAM/ROM. The CPU itself had access to only 256 bytes of system RAM; all other RAM in the system was video RAM that had to be accessed through the video chip. The slowness of the video RAM access, coupled with the fact that the interpreter for your BASIC ran on interpreted bytecode instead of native CPU instructions, meant that your BASIC programs would crawl, but give that 16-bit chip a chance to open up and it can do some amazing things. The game Parsec has a smooth scrolling playfield, which the TMS9918A wasn't able to achieve on its own. The CPU is shifting the scenery graphics "by hand" as part of the main game loop.
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#6Props to you. The TI-99/4A was my second -- and longest childhood -- computer. Getting one working again so perfectly warms my heart. Fun fact about the TI-99/4A: It was actually fast , sporting a 16-bit CPU in an 8-bit era. The BASIC interpreter was slow because it, like many TI-99/4A programs, was written in a sort of interpreted bytecode that could live in video RAM/ROM. The CPU itself had access to only 256 bytes…
Awesome insight. I didn't know any better at the time, but it's always cool to hear about little things that made one machine or another stand out from the pack.
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#7Props to you. The TI-99/4A was my second -- and longest childhood -- computer. Getting one working again so perfectly warms my heart. Fun fact about the TI-99/4A: It was actually fast , sporting a 16-bit CPU in an 8-bit era. The BASIC interpreter was slow because it, like many TI-99/4A programs, was written in a sort of interpreted bytecode that could live in video RAM/ROM. The CPU itself had access to only 256 bytes…
That brings back memories. Parsec was a great game.
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#8I had a TI-99/4A when I was 6 or 7. I remember playing Parsec, and typing in BASIC programs from the manual.
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#9Not to denigrate the post, but the TI-99/4A did color out of the box; this post is talking about a modern adapter board to work with a modern display instead of TI's proprietary monitor or a TV. I know because I first programmed on a TI-99/4A and we didn't have the space nor free connection to hook it to the living room TV, so I used a 13" B&W TV in my room for years before ever seeing the color that it was capable o…
16 bits with hardware sprites. Used to write games and rudimentory physics-engine (canons shooting, that sort of stuff) for it in highschool. I still have mine!
Re: Getting Color Output out of a TI-99/4A
#10Unfortunately the US variant of the VDP, the 9918, only outputs composite.