A new project

[motorollin]

As some of you will know, I use an LCD TV for my Miggy, which displays both the VGA output from my Voodoo and the RGB output from the 15KHz display.

This is handy, but a little bit annoying when I have to use the remote to change from the VGA input to the RGB input every time I change between Voodoo and AGA screenmodes.

I have bought a learning remote, which I will teach the commands to change to the VGA input and the TV input. I will then rip the remote apart and connect it to a parallel relay board. I can then use software on the Amiga to trigger the pushing of each button.

I already use AmigaDOS scripts to run my WHDLoad games, so I can put a command before WHDLoad starts to send the correct command to the relay board to change to the TV input, then once the game has quit it will send another command to change it back to the Voodoo.

Cool huh :-)

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moto

[motorollin]

The One4All remotes can't create the codes I need, and it's cheaper to get a universal remote than to get a chip programmer to rewrite the One4All's ROM  ;-)

That project you linked to, was it the one CU Amiga gave away on a magazine cover? They had the PCB sellotaped to the front, and you had to send away for the components. I built it once, but never got it working.

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moto

[motorollin]

Oliver wrote:
Sounds like a fun project.  I'm not sure exactly how you will do it, but can't you do this just with logic gates, and leave out the relays?  I think it should be simpler, smaller, and use less power.

If you can tell me how, then I'll do it :-) I know very little about parallel ports so I wouldn't know where to start.

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moto

[motorollin]

You understand correctly :-) The relay board will connect to the parallel port. The Amiga will issue a command to the parallel port which closes relay x. Relay x will close, completing a circuit which will short across the contacts for button y on the remote control, in effect "pushing" that button.

If you think this could be done better with transistors and can let me know how, then I will try. Otherwise, I would rather not experiment and risk damaging my parallel port!

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moto

[motorollin]

I did look at TURD on Aminet, but I want something which can be driven with CLI commands, not a GUI or ARexx. Once the relay board has arrived I will probably be looking for advice on writing a small C programme to control the parallel port.

There is a Unix command to drive parallel relay boards, and if I understand correctly it sends an 8 bit string to the port which turns the 8 data lines on or off, which is then translated by the relay board to turn the 8 relays on or off.

I suppose this would be quite simple to achieve with the Amiga, but I have no idea where to start.

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moto