Light Pens

[steve30]

Does anyone here have a light pen for the Amiga?

I am interested in getting one to use with my Amigas, but I don't really know much about what models that are avaliable. I also read somewhere that it is possible to make your own. Could anyone provide any information on this?

Thanks
Steve

[Zac67]

A light pen is little more than a photo transistor with a lens plus a button. I think the ones for the C64 work an the Amiga, too.

[jlariv8957]

As far as i can remember you're right the one for the C64 work on the amiga too, i even think that any lightpen with a standard joyport may work.

[steve30]

So it might really just be a case of somehow conntecting a phototransistor to the mouse port?

[bloodline]

Lightpens only work on CRTs... does anyone even have a CRT any more?

[steve30]

Yes. I use a Multisync for 15kHz Amiga pictures, which believe it or not, do not work on my VGA monitors.

I see the mouse port has Penpress, Beamtrigger, and Button 2.

I can assume that Button 2 is the right mouse button.

[X-ray]

"Lightpens only work on CRTs... does anyone even have a CRT any more?"
----------------------------------------------------------

Yep, bought my first flatscreen monitor on Saturday. Was using a 6 year old CRT up until then on my PC. On the Amiga I have a 12 year old M1438s.

Of course I found out the first disadvantage of a flatscreen: this monitor has a red stuck pixel. So it is going back this weekend. Other than that it is a lot better than the CRT it replaced.

[Crom00]

bloodline wrote:
Lightpens only work on CRTs... does anyone even have a CRT any more?

Here in the states we don't have SCART connectors so out options are

Amiga with scandoubler to VGA LCD
Amiga 1084 monitor via RGB
or Composite display to TV or LCD TV

[steve30]

So, is Beamtrigger what I would connect the phototransistor to? Then Penpress is what I would connect a switch to, as this would act as touching the screen aka pressing the left mouse button?

Would I need any special software in order to use a light pen?

[Ral-Clan]

Crom00 wrote:

bloodline wrote:
Lightpens only work on CRTs... does anyone even have a CRT any more?

Here in the states we don't have SCART connectors so out options are

Amiga with scandoubler to VGA LCD
Amiga 1084 monitor via RGB
or Composite display to TV or LCD TV

CRT doesn't mean SCART, it means Cathode Ray Tube.

[Zac67]

bloodline wrote:
Lightpens only work on CRTs...

Good point, forgot about that.
Scandoubled VGA output may also be a bit of a problem, anywhere from reduced accuracy to no reasonable function at all.

Edit: here's an Atari project which would surely work on an Amiga, too: http://www.atariarchives.org/ecp/chapter_6.php

[odin]

bloodline wrote:
Lightpens only work on CRTs... does anyone even have a CRT any more?

Hell yes, my Trinitron can be pried from my cold, dead hands :-).

[tone007]

Were lightpens ever actually good for anything, or just a silly gimmick?

[Zac67]

Were lightpens ever actually good for anything, or just a silly gimmick?

Pretty cool actually, esp. on the Amiga (on the 64 accuracy was rather limited by HF output). The only thing I was missing was a horizontal table monitor since it's very tedious holding up your hand all the time.

[Nostalgiac]

funny the interest.

I literally trashed mine last month.

It's not just a phototransistor - you need a little 8pin chip and some discrete components as well. But it's dead easy to make even with limited solderskills.

I'll check if I still have the schematics and post them if so. I only ever used it on the c64 and resolution was just to crude to be useful.

ta
Tom UK