Support for new TV card models: MM CD Update 1.26

[DJS]

Elbox Computer is pleased to have completed development of drivers for a series of new TV card models, these drivers being released today.

See the Mediator Driver Guide for the current list of PCI TV cards supported in MEDIATOR busboards.

The MM CD 1.26 update is free for all registered Mediator Multimedia CD users.

Additionally, the new tv.library ver. 4.0 has added Stereo-NICAM TV sound processing for TV cards fitted with a single-chip Digital TV Sound Demodulator-Decoder TDA9874A by Philips.

The new library has added processing of the new Front End by YMEC: TVision 5V TVF-8533B/DF. These Front Ends are installed in the latest Prolink TV cards, e.g. in the now-supported PixelView PlayTV Pro MPEG (model M4800). New Front Ends are much more sensitive than those fitted in older TV card models. Quality of the broadcast is now excellent, even when the antenna signal is relatively weak.

The new library has added processing of the new radio sets installed in the latest TV cards. These are single-chip, digitally tuned FM stereo radio sets TEA5767 by Philips. To ensure handling new radio sets, the API of tv.library was expanded. The current developer's documentation (ver. 4.0) is available from the Mediator Multimedia CD 1.26. The new tv.library is compatible backwards with all the previous tv.library functions maintained. As a result, the current versions of TV card control GUI--like TvR and SuperTV--work with the new tv.library without any modifications.

The MM CD 1.26 update includes also the new driver for Fast Ethernet 10/100Mbps cards. The FastEthernet.device ver. 1.15 driver has been reworked for AmigaOS4 compatibility.


Take advantage of MEDIATOR!

Info on the current versions is available in the DOWNLOADS | Mediator section.
The current list of supported PCI cards is available in the Mediator Driver Guide.
The info about Mediator-related sources you will find in the COMMUNITY section.

[Acill]

So when will the Shark show up that so many people got a mediator for? OS4 has been working on the A1 for some time now.

[Lando]

Good work on the new drivers.

I'm also interested in hearing about the status of Shark - any news?

[x56h34]

Shark would be sweet. We'll see if it ever comes out. :-?

[Jose]

Yeah, were's the shark ? 8-)

[Trev]

Yay. More TV cards. Where's 3Com network card support? Adaptec and Symbios/LSI Logic SCSI card support? Matrox and ATI video card support? Oh wait. They'd probably have to use open source drivers as a resource which would force them to open source portions of their drivers as well. God forbid.

[Acill]

Yeah it seems Elbox doesnt care much for new hardware support. If they would just allow OpenPCI to work on the Mediator we would have so many great drivers. The Pegasos can use many ATI cards, SCSI cards, TV cards, SB Live! cards, and so many more. It uses OpenPCI and I'm sure the drivers wouldnt be to hard to port over for use on the Amiga with a Mediator.

[Trev]

A little Amiga-esque irony: The Mediator 3dfx drivers are almost certainly based on stolen intellectual property. 3dfx was long gone before the Mediator was released, and I don't recall Nvidia starting a 3dfx licensing program. (OK, this is pure speculation, but it seems likely. Did Elbox ever announce an agreement with Nvidia? My guess is that Elbox used the leaked 3dfx source code as a starting point.)

Speaking of 3dfx being long gone, what genius decided to launch Mediator with support for a dead product line? I'd understand if Mediator was an open solution. But it isn't. It would have made more sense (to me anyway) to provide support for video cards that are still being manufactured. Then again, it's an Amiga product. . . . And I'm beating a dead horse. Mediator is what it is--a closed, pay-per-use solution for a captive market.

[tjaoz]

@Acill

Yeah it seems Elbox doesnt care much for new hardware support.

They do not care for the new hardware support?  
What is this news about then?

If they would just allow OpenPCI to work on the Mediator we would have so many great drivers.

Really?
According to some people (redrumloa) even the simple RTL8139 100Mbps OpenPCI driver does not work stable in Pegasos. Or is redrumloa lying us?
http://www.amiga.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11488

The Pegasos can use many ATI cards, SCSI cards, TV cards, SB Live! cards, and so many more.

What does Pegasos have to do with this news?

BTW. What ATI models have 3D support under current Morphos? Are there any? Where can I find the list of TV cards supported in Pegasos under Morphos?

[tjaoz]

@@Trev

A little Amiga-esque irony: The Mediator 3dfx drivers are almost certainly based on stolen intellectual property. 3dfx was long gone before the Mediator was released, and I don't recall Nvidia starting a 3dfx licensing program.

It is incorrect, Trev.
Mediator was released long months before 3dfx was gone.

It takes only a few minutes to check in the Web when Mediator was released and when 3dfx was gone:
http://www.elbox.com/news_00_06_08.html
http://www.nvidia.com/object/IO_20010612_6602.html

I'm sure you should check it for yourself instead of writing untrue things here.

Did Elbox ever announce an agreement with Nvidia? My guess is that Elbox used the leaked 3dfx source code as a starting point.)

You really think that companies announce in public signing every single NDA?
Or you just want to troll here a bit?

BTW. Are you a Mediator user? I guess you are not. You are probably only an anti-Mediator Troll.

[odin]

/me gets some popcorn and soda.

Kids eh, they'll never grow up :roll:.

[x56h34]

:laugh::roflmao::laugh:

[Trev]

Actually, I'm just an Amiga user. I've been called many things, but only 99% of them were true. ;-)

The Mediator PCI 1200 shipped in September 2000, just three months before Nvidia's acquisition of 3dfx was announced. 3dfx had been in decline for quite some time, and Nvidia would have been working with 3dfx on acquisition details well before an official announcement was made.

3dfx stopped licensing its technology after the release of the Voodoo 2. They were especially closelipped about Glide, their 3D API, and quite reticent with regard to their software and hardware interface in general.

Why would 3dfx break with tradition and license their technology to Elbox? I just don't see it happening.

And really, this isn't trolling. It's just an open discussion. It's not like I'm proclaiming the v1r7u3s of one PCI solution over another. I'm just criticizing Elbox's abuse of the market and lack of support for current video cards.

In other news, the SharkPPC will begin production in January 2001: http://www.elbox.com/news_00_10_12.html :-P

EDIT: It just occurred to me that under US law, it would be entirely legal to produce an OpenPCI library for Mediator to support new PCI video cards, as the currently supported cards are no longer "reasonably available in the commercial marketplace." The US Copyright Office did at least one thing right with repsect to reverse engineering, circumvention, and the DMCA. http://www.copyright.gov/1201/

Trev

[KimmoK]

"So when will the Shark show up that so many people got a mediator for? OS4 has been working on the A1 for some time now."

I doubt anything will be done to get AOS4 to run on renamed sonnet cards untill AOS4.0 is released. I think it has been said by both Elbox and Hyperion.


btw. does AOS4 use OpenPCI ?

[tjaoz]

@Trev

The Mediator PCI 1200 shipped in September 2000, just three months before Nvidia's acquisition of 3dfx was announced. 3dfx had been in decline for quite some time, and Nvidia would have been working with 3dfx on acquisition details well before an official announcement was made.

Elbox had also to work on drivers before the Mediator release.

Anyway, first were the Mediator 2D drivers for Voodoo, and only then Nvidia took over 3dfx. Voodoo 3 was one of the best PCI graphic card at that time. Nothing strange that Elbox chose Voodoo 3.

3dfx stopped licensing its technology after the release of the Voodoo 2. They were especially closelipped about Glide, their 3D API, and quite reticent with regard to their software and hardware interface in general.

Why would 3dfx break with tradition and license their technology to Elbox? I just don't see it happening.

As you are reffering to 3dfx Glide and their 3D API, you should know that Voodoo3 3D drivers for Mediator were written by Hyperion, not by Elbox.
 
Are you saying then, that Hyperion Voodoo3 drivers "are almost certainly based on stolen intellectual property?" :-o

And really, this isn't trolling. It's just an open discussion. It's not like I'm proclaiming the v1r7u3s of one PCI solution over another. I'm just criticizing Elbox's abuse of the market and lack of support for current video cards.

If you check the Mediator Driver Guide by Elbox, you will see well over 200 PCI cards supported in Mediator. Why did you choose Elbox to criticise then?

Because they have written many more drivers than other Amiga producers?  

In other news, the SharkPPC will begin production in January 2001

Do you blame Elbox that OS4 is not ready yet? :-o