Code to boot into PAL or NTSC modes?

[ChaosLord]

It's generally all that anyone does though.
 
http://thecryptmag.com/Online/49/PaltoNTSCandBack.html
 
You can update execbase too, the source code here does that.
 
http://aminet.net/util/misc/60HzEmulator.lha
 
A lot of the source is useless, it allows switching using key combinations and faking vblank using a cia (if you don't have a fat agnus).
Updating exec base is mostly useless, generally the reason why you are switching is because the software doesn't bother to detect the mode.

All I know is there is more to it than just switching the video mode to PAL.  You do that with a single instruction, no need for reboot.  It also won't make most PAL games actually work.  I assume it is that execbase thing is the secret magic but I never knew.  Now that I think about it, I think it is the execbase thing.  But u can't just do it "in real time".  You would need to change the execbase var and then reset so that the whole OS is "aligned" to the new video mode.  Else all the Amigas blitting routines and so forth would have wrong clip limits, wrong overscan limits, etc.  Nothing will work right.

There are 2 kinds of palboot utilities.
A: The kind that claim to work instantly but do not actually work. They do switch the video to PAL mode but 99% of games do not work right then.  A giant portion of the screen gets chopped off or other weird things.

B: The kind that does some secret magix and then resets your Amiga.  Those kind actually work with all PAL games.

I have tested a gazillion palswitchers that don't actually work + a few others that do really work.  I even coded one myself.  I just set the beamcon bit and BAM I was in PAL mode.  It was awesome.  It was also completely useless.  Anytime I loaded a PAL game it was all screwed up.  Only using a real PALbooter that resets the machine actually works.

@FloppyEmu guys: You have been warned.

p.s. I have not read the article linked above.  I assume it has all the needed infos but I am not sure.

[ChaosLord]

If Degrader multitasks happily, and so does their app, that would work great!!
Heck, just spawn degrader in the background and tell the user to Amiga-M to get to it.  ;-)

The program can do a ScreenToFront() (or whatever its called) on the other screen to pop it up automagixically

[psxphill]

Else all the Amigas blitting routines and so forth would have wrong clip limits, wrong overscan limits, etc. Nothing will work right.

Setting the refresh rate doesn't change how much chip ram has been allocated for the screen, so blitting would never be affected.
 
I'm pretty sure that it just leaves a blank area or clips the screen, depending on whether you're going from NTSC to PAL or PAL to NTSC.
 
Most games never look at execbase, they just open the screen they want (and usually with custom copper lists). Running a PAL game on an NTSC Amiga just crops the bottom off.

[ChaosLord]

Setting the refresh rate doesn't change how much chip ram has been allocated for the screen, so blitting would never be affected.
 
I'm pretty sure that it just leaves a blank area or clips the screen, depending on whether you're going from NTSC to PAL or PAL to NTSC.
 
Most games never look at execbase, they just open the screen they want (and usually with custom copper lists). Running a PAL game on an NTSC Amiga just crops the bottom off.

A game does not have to "look at execbase".  It merely has to look at or use something that once upon a time, when the computer first booted up, got set as a result of execbase.

Are you claiming that all games do not use MrgCop()?  Or any other routine in the kickstart ROM whatsoever?

I have seen disassemblies of games and they DO use OS routines.  Those routines behave differently depending on the mode the computer was in when it first booted.


For the few games that literally do not use any kickstart routines at all, a simple switch to pal mode should work, theoretically.

For all other games one must do a "deep" palboot.

[psxphill]

Are you claiming that all games do not use MrgCop()? Or any other routine in the kickstart ROM whatsoever?

Most games don't, they disable multitasking, use custom copper lists etc.
 
WHDLOAD has to do it's magic to run them from hard disk.

[Mrs Beanbag]

Even a game that runs normally from hard disk can still disable multitasking and use custom copper lists, and be otherwise system friendly.

[ChaosLord]

Most games don't, they disable multitasking,

You can disable multitasking and still easily call OS routines located in kickstart ROM.

 use custom copper lists etc.

I use custom copper lists in my 100% AmigaOS compliant, fully multitasking, play while online, games.

Using custom copper lists does not mean u never use the OS.

And u definitely can't make a reliable palboot just by setting that one bit that flips the video into PAL mode.  There is more to it than that.  I have played at least 1000 different PALboot games and I have seen the problems with my own eyes a zillion times.  A good palbooter works perfectly on all games.  A super simple one might work ok for a few games but all the rest will be braindamaged.

[ChaosLord]

Even a game that runs normally from hard disk can still disable multitasking and use custom copper lists, and be otherwise system friendly.

+1

[psxphill]

A super simple one might work ok for a few games but all the rest will be braindamaged.

A super simple one will work for the majority of 80's/90's PAL games. The later HD installable ones tended to be more system friendly, but then they would generally open the screen mode properly anyway.

[ChaosLord]

A super simple one will work for the majority of 80's/90's PAL games.

There is already a simple one built in to KS 3.0+ and it already does not work on a majority of PAL games.

 The later HD installable ones tended to be more system friendly, but then they would generally open the screen mode properly anyway.

Very very very few PAL games open the screen mode properly.

[blakespot]

The HxC2001 boot menu program would always issue a reboot, making the task simpler (then live-switching a running system to a different mode, without reboot), thankfully.


bp

[ChaosLord]

Can HxC2001 handle games with more than 80 tracks?

[Jeff_HxC]

Can HxC2001 handle games with more than 80 tracks?

Yes up to 255 tracks.

[Jeff_HxC]

Regarding the 50Hz/60Hz i take the lazy way : Add Degrader into the boot script.

http://hxc2001.com/download/floppy_drive_emulator/AUTOBOOT_Amiga_WithDegrader.zip

Waiting for feedback.

[JimDrew]

Either add a toggle switch to Agnus' PAL/NTSC jumper, or if you are using OS3.x (maybe 2.x as well), just hold down the mouse button while booting and select NTSC or PAL.

[ChaosLord]

Yes up to 255 tracks.

:laugh1:
That should pretty well cover it.

I like the sound of your device.  It sounds like it could be a more reliable alternative to WHDLoad, depending on how well its coded, designed and so forth.

I don't really know anything about it yet but I am definitely thinking of getting 1 or 3 of them.