SSSSSS EEEEEEEEE TTTTTTTTT MM MM OOOOOOO DDDDDDDD EEEEEEEEE SSSSSSSS EEEEEEEEE TTTTTTTTT MMM MMM OOOOOOOOO DDDDDDDDD EEEEEEEEE SS EE TT T TT MM M M MM OO OO DD DD EE SS EE T T T MM M MM OO OO DD DD EE SSSSSS EEEEEE T MM M MM OO OO DD DD EEEEEE SSSSSS EEEEEE T MM MM OO OO DD DD EEEEEE SS EE T MM MM OO OO DD DD EE SS EE T MM MM OO OO DD DD EE SSSSSSSS EEEEEEEEE TTT MM MM OOOOOOOOO DDDDDDDDD EEEEEEEEE SSSSSS EEEEEEEEE TTTTT MM MM OOOOOOO DDDDDDDD EEEEEEEEE Screen Adjustment Utility for the Diamond Viper VLB Version 1.0 Program and Documentation Copyright (c) 1993, Himalaya Software, All Rights Reserved. VPRVESA is a trademark of Himalaya Software. Other product and company names are trademarks of their respective owners. Table of Contents __________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents Introduction ................................................... 1 Installation ................................................... 1 Choosing A Video Mode To Change ................................ 2 Setting The Timing Parameters .................................. 2 Pixel Frequency ............................................. 2 Horizontal and Vertical Monitor Settings .................... 3 Horizontal Frequency ........................................ 3 Horizontal Display Width .................................... 3 Horizontal Sync Width ....................................... 3 Horizontal Back Porch ....................................... 3 Vertical Frequency .......................................... 3 Vertical Display Height ..................................... 4 Vertical Sync Height ........................................ 4 Vertical Back Porch ......................................... 4 Centering Your Screen .......................................... 4 How To Contact Us? ............................................. 5 __________________________________________________________________ ii (c) 1993 Himalaya Software Introduction __________________________________________________________________ Introduction Thanks for using SETMODE, our utility to adjust and center video modes on your monitor. SETMODE comes as a companion program to VPRVESA, our VESA VBE driver for the Diamond Viper. What are the best features of SETMODE? * You only define the video resolution for one color depth (8-bit); the video modes that use more colors (HiColor and TrueColor) are automatically calculated. * You can change just one video resolution, or multiple. It is all menu driven and user friendly. * You are left total freedom in specifying refresh rates. SETMODE supports vertical refresh rates up to 120Hz and horizontal refresh rates up to 99kHz. * The video mode parameters are automatically updated in the resident VPRVESA program, so you don't have to restart your machine whenever you change a video mode. * You can create customized video modes. If you want a multimedia resolution of 512x486, just define it and start using it after you have told VPRVESA that you want to use this resolution (see the VPRVESA User's Manual). This manual is still in its raw form. The next SETMODE version will include a more thorough manual, describing in detail how each parameter affects your monitor screen. ------------------------------------------------------------ Note: You must insure that the frequencies you define are compatible with your monitor. Himalaya Software is not responsible for any damage caused to your monitor or other hardware if you select incompatible frequencies from within SETMODE. ------------------------------------------------------------ Installation If you have purchased both VPRVESA and SETMODE, you must run the INSTALL program to copy and register both VPRVESA and SETMODE programs. If you are using the ShareWare copy, you may want to copy SETMODE.EXE on your fixed disk. It does not matter where you put it, but it is a good practice to keep related programs together, so you might want to copy the program to the __________________________________________________________________ SETMODE User's Manual 1 Choosing A Video Mode To Change __________________________________________________________________ directory where the other Viper products are located, usually C:\VIPER. Just type the following command at the DOS prompt: C> COPY A:SETMODE.* C:\VIPER in which you replace C:\VIPER with the directory of your choice. It is very important that SETMODE knows where to find the VIPER.INI file, in which all monitor and video mode settings are stored. By default, SETMODE (and other Viper utilities) looks in the C:\VIPER directory. If there is no VIPER.INI file there, it scans the environment for a variable named VIPERPATH. If this variable is not found, SETMODE returns with an error message. So, if your Viper utilities are not located in the C:\VIPER directory, be sure to set the VIPERPATH variable in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file: SET VIPERPATH=C:\VIPER Choosing A Video Mode To Change You start SETMODE by typing C> SETMODE at the command prompt. After the initial registration box, it will show the "Selection Menu". This menu lists all available video modes in the VIPER.INI file and a "Custom Size" option. Use the arrow keys to move the cursor to the desired video mode and press the Enter key. If you have selected the "Custom Size" option, you will be asked to enter the desired screen resolution. When you have entered the screen resolution, press the F10 key to continue. Pressing the Esc key will exit the program. Setting The Timing Parameters Once you have selected the video mode to change, the timing parameter screen will be shown. In this screen you can define various monitor and video mode settings. Just use the arrow and Tab keys to move from field to field. __________________________________________________________________ 2 (c) 1993 Himalaya Software Setting the Timing Parameters __________________________________________________________________ To preview the graphics screen with the current parameters, press the Space Bar. The video mode will be programmed into the P9000 and the "Center Screen" will be displayed (see below). To abandon changes made to this video mode, just press the Esc key. You will be returned to the "Selection Menu". If you want to keep the parameters, press the Enter key. The video parameters will be updated in the VIPER.INI file and you will be returned to the "Selection Menu". Pressing Alt-X will exit the program immediately, without saving the video parameters. ------------------------------------------------------------ Note: All horizontal pixel timing must be specified in 8-pixel increments. ------------------------------------------------------------ Pixel Frequency This field shows the pixel frequency. This value (also known as the Bandwidth) recalculates both the horizontal and vertical frequencies. Making this value larger will increase both frequencies, producing more stable video screens. The maximum value for this field is 135MHz. Be aware that this value may not exceed your monitor's bandwidth. You could damage your monitor if it is fed a too high bandwidth for several minutes. --------------------------------------------------------- Tip: The best way to use this field is by not changing it! Just use it as a reference. Change the horizontal and vertical frequencies instead. --------------------------------------------------------- Horizontal and Vertical Monitor Settings These fields specify your monitor's minimum and maximum horizontal respectively vertical frequencies. Look in your monitor's manual and enter these values. They will be saved in the VIPER.INI file, so you only have to type then in once. Valid values for the horizontal frequencies must lay between 20 and 100kHz, while the vertical frequencies must lay between 20 and 120Hz. __________________________________________________________________ SETMODE User's Manual 3 Setting The Timing Parameters __________________________________________________________________ Whenever you change a timing value, the calculated horizontal and vertical frequencies are checked with these fields. If these new values are either too low or too high, the change will be ignored. Horizontal Frequency This field specifies the horizontal frequency. If you change this field, the pixel frequency will be recalculated. If the pixel frequency would exceed 135MHz, the change is ignored. Pressing the '+' and '-' keys in the polarity field will change the polarity of the horizontal synchronization pulse. Some monitors use the polarity to choose between several vertical screen sizes. Horizontal Display Width This field specifies the total number of pixels displayed on a single video line. This value equals the number of displayed pixels plus the synchronization width and blanking period. If you change this value, the horizontal and vertical frequencies are recalculated. Horizontal Sync Width This field specifies the width of the horizontal synchronization pulse. See your monitor's manual about the valid values for the synchronization width. Horizontal Back Porch This field determines the horizontal position of the screen. Increasing this value will move the screen to the left, decreasing to the right. This value will be updated when centering the screen in the "Center Screen" (see below). It is not necessary to change it by hand. Vertical Frequency This field specifies the vertical frequency, also known as the screen refresh. If you change this field, both the horizontal and pixel frequencies will be recalculated. If the pixel frequency would exceed 135MHz, the change is ignored. Higher values will make your screen more stable. __________________________________________________________________ 4 (c) 1993 Himalaya Software Centering Your Screen __________________________________________________________________ ------------------------------------------------------ Tip: When you encounter interference from other electronics equipment placed nearby your monitor, such as fluorescent lamps, you may play around with this value to see when the interference stops. If your monitor can not handle high refresh rates, try lowering the value. ------------------------------------------------------ Pressing the '+' and '-' keys in the polarity field will change the polarity of the vertical synchronization pulse. Vertical Display Height This field specifies the total number of lines displayed in a single video screen. This value equals the number of displayed lines plus the synchronization height and blanking period. If you change this value, the horizontal and vertical frequencies are recalculated. Vertical Sync Height This field specifies the height of the vertical synchronization pulse. See your monitor's manual about the valid values for the synchronization height. Vertical Back Porch This field determines the vertical position of the screen. Increasing this value will move the screen up, while decreasing this value will move the screen down. This parameter will be updated when centering the screen in the "Center Screen" (see below). It is not necessary to change it by hand. Centering Your Screen When you have chosen to preview the graphics screen by pressing the Space Bar in the "Timing Screen," the screen will be cleared and a box draw around it. A short help message will be printed in the middle of your screen. __________________________________________________________________ SETMODE User's Manual 5 How To Contact Us? __________________________________________________________________ You can use the arrow keys to move the screen in either direction: up, down, left, or right. When the screen won't move, the minimum or maximum value for the Back Porch field (see above) has been reached. Pressing the Insert and Delete keys will increase or decrease the horizontal frequency in small steps, whereas the Home and End keys will change the vertical frequency. You can use these keys to increase or decrease the size of the screen. When your screen is centered and sized the way you want it to, press the Enter key. You will return to the "Timing Screen" and the timing variables will be updated reflecting the new settings. If you have made too many changes in the horizontal or vertical frequency and your monitor loses focus, press the Esc key. You will be returned to the "Timing Screen", leaving the timing variables unchanged. How To Contact Us? You can contact Himalaya Software at any of the following addresses. Our normal business hours are 10:00 to 17:00 weekdays, central European time. By mail: Himalaya Software Nederrijn 2 2641 TT Pijnacker The Netherlands By telephone: Voice: ++31 - 1736 - 98254 FAX: ++31 - 1736 - 98254 Electronically: CompuServe: 100041,1671 Internet: 100041.1671@compuserve.com __________________________________________________________________ 6 (c) 1993 Himalaya Software