From:	cat AT animal DOT u-net DOT com
Newsgroups:	comp.os.msdos.djgpp,comp.os.msdos.programmer,comp.programming,comp.arch.embedded
Subject:	Re: Printing strings in VGA 13h mode (or other graphical mode)
Message-ID:	<38522051.91561537@news.f9.net.uk>
References:	<82seje$tom$1 AT nnrp1 DOT deja DOT com>
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Date:	Sat, 11 Dec 1999 10:18:35 GMT
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NNTP-Posting-Date:	Sat, 11 Dec 1999 10:40:41 GMT
To:	djgpp AT delorie DOT com
DJ-Gateway:	from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Reply-To:	djgpp AT delorie DOT com

On Sat, 11 Dec 1999 02:57:51 GMT, Nuno DOT Felicio AT bigfoot DOT com wrote:

> Hi
>
> Hi. How can I write a string(or a simple char) to the screen when
> I'm in graphical mode (for example, mode 13h)?
> I can't use any bios or Dos function (no interruptions).
> In other words, I've to access directly the video memory.
> I know how to "write" pixels, but how to send a char?
>
> I know that the card has built in font(??), but how can I use it to
> write a simple string in a certain coordinate in a screen?
> Or do I have to draw each letter I want?
> (I don't need to change the font........)
>
> I'm programming in C (Msc6.0) but I can use some ASM.
>
> Many thanks
> Nuno DOT Felicio AT bigfoot DOT com
> Greetings from Portugal.
>
>                EDUCATIONAL AND LEISURE SOFTWARE

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
    NEW !!!!  DJGPP Compiled version for DOS/WINDOWS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

    D4 is an Array Processing Language based on APL. APL was one of the
first intereactive computer languages. It was invented in the 1950s by
K. Iverson, a Harvard econimics professor. Later on APL was developed
by IBM and marketed to banks and so on.

    APL preceded BASIC, but APL never made the mass market. For a start
it's notation reqired special fonts and symbols in the days of hardcopy
terminals. D4 is an ASCII based system. It has been used to create load
and go scripts for art installations. Everything is in plaintext files.

    D4 is meant to be used in schools, healthcare applications, and can
be used for ascii animations, preparation of World Wide Web content or
passing the time by playing backgammon.

    Organisations which have shown interest include NASA, The Las-Vegas
Wizards, various universities, financial and telecomms companies
worldwide. The package comes with scripts for restarting dead machines,
bundling and compressing files for easy movement of databases and data
trawling the local and networked disks. It runs on DOS, WINDOWS and
LINUX machines. Full documentation and source code is provided and all
fit on a single floppy. The Chinese text facility may require a second
floppy for the Hanzi fonts.

    Databases are easily portable between machines.
    Public domain software (non Copyright) d44r + gzip.
    Data privacy may be maintained by stealth.
    Works over networks.
    Easy conversion of any output to HTML.

    The software works on the SLURP principal. You decide when to feed
the database. Data input routines can take the input from email or
floppy discs, CD-ROMS etc. In the case of floppy discs the user can do
a quick visual scan for viruses. It can work alongside your existing
databases. The archive facility will facilitate the moving of your
existing databases to cheaper machines.

    The software is quite capable of giving animated business plans. It
is based on economic modelling software that has been used for decades.
In addition it has features similar to the AWK utility of UNIX.

    The system is designed to work in languages other than English. The
first version ran on computers in Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi
Arabia. Left to Right, and Right to Left data input are both possible.

    Old machines become the most effective firewall. They can generally
read and write disks that WINDOWS 95 systems refuse to recognise. This
facility is available only on DOS versions.

    The scripting language mimics a UNIX shell, but has many more screen
driven features. The built in text editor can handle tables and reports
with lines up to 4000 (8000 with DJGPP version) characters long. That
is more than enough for many applications.

    D4, the scripting language contains unique functions not found in
many previous database systems. Sophisticated frequency count functions
obviate the need for index files or index fields, thus eliminating the
need for a tedious database design process.

    D4 contains a unique 'tiny curses' (i.e. less than ten functions)
system for full screen I/O. This can either be by direct memory
mapping, or simulated memory mapping with ANSII escape sequences to
work on giant 600x800 virtual DEC/VT100 character terminals. All screen
routines test the size of the screen so many scripts will work
unchanged on small screens in mobile phones. D4 would make an excellent
choice for both client and server software in the up and coming mobile
phone market. The gzipped LINUX interpretor is about 50Kb.

   The 32-bit version with enough ROM would easily hold the wordlists
and look-up functions to allow text entry via a phone style keypad. The
really crude and primitive graphics facility also mean that most
existing graphic functions would look quite good on a mobile phone. The
entire graphics library is in a single C-source file (600 lines). It
was originally designed to produce both English and Arabic windows on
the same screen, but it worked rather too slowly on the 386 machines of
the day.

 lean'n'mean  (C) T.Goddard

 c:/d4/gc/d4x.exe
 (C)   Tony Goddard Belfast & Sheffield 1999
 (0114) 2817156 cat AT animal DOT u-net DOT com
 http://www.webstrand.org/tony/pics.htm
 BAKPAGE SOFTWARE
 ftp://ftp.webstrand.org/d4

     To get a selection of novelty fonts and also info on how to set the
VGA fonts in text mode download d4t.exe (d4x.exe is GCC version)
then dec99.4rz, dec99x.4rz.

          Un zip the .4rz files with gzip.

          run d4t or d4x in a DOS box with

          d4t  dec99.ar

          Say no to the licence screen. Exit the program.

          Run d4t (d4x) again with the command line

         d4x test.afn for the D-shell $ prompt.

          Read some of the doc files.

          try the command line

          vi /djgpp/info/libc.inf  for example,

          or

          file /djgpp/info/gcc*.inf

          grep SIGSEGV /djgpp/info/inf*.*   ... then press ^L to look at
any relevent file.


  DJGPPers with limited hard disk space
could try out the D-shell as a poor man's IDE  The D-shell tries to
be similar to EMACS, but instead of LISP as the processing language
it uses a spartan version of APL (limited array dimensions). 

           I already used D4 to build up a 4 floppy working set of GCC
containing the info files, GCC for C only, and Make. The 'vi', 'awk'
'grep' 'find' imitators are short APL style scripts. The D4 distribution
includes C source work arounds for several problems addressed
in this newsgroup. Documentation is sparse because I cannot yet
afford to pay employees to do it better.

                           






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