Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!uunet!munnari!stcns3!mikb
From: mikb@stcns3.stc.oz (Mike Benson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Overscan overrated?
Keywords: ... sour owl ..
Message-ID: <727@stcns3.stc.oz>
Date: 12 Aug 88 12:01:48 GMT
References: <3118@tekig5.PEN.TEK.COM>
Reply-To: mikb@stcns3.stc.oz (Mike Benson)
Organization: Alcatel-STC Australia, North Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Lines: 41

In article <3118@tekig5.PEN.TEK.COM> wayneck@tekig5.PEN.TEK.COM (Wayne Knapp) writes:
>
>Okay, I'll bite.  Just why do so many Amiga people think that overscan is
>such a big deal for desktop video?  The big guys like PIXAR don't seem
>concerned about overscan.  So why shouldn't desktop video mirror the big guys.
>
I can think of one good reason for having overscan, besides any arguments about
the quality of the picture.  Amigas are not only sold in the USA, but also in
far-off places like Germany and Australia.  These countries use a color coding
method known as PAL (Phase Alternate Line) for televison and video (the Germans
use PAL because they invented it, the Australians and many others use PAL
because it's better).  Amigas sold in Australia are PAL-compatible (rather loses
the point of the A500 if you then have to spend 60% as much again to buy an NTSC
monitor), and by a curious quirk of engineering, have a maximum resolution of
640x512.  Most commercial software for the Amiga is written in the USA.  Without
overscan, what you get is an inch of black at the bottom of the screen.  This
totally unacceptable for DTV.  WE *NEED* OVERSCAN.  Besides, I think the image
looks better if it can be made to fill the whole screen - then it looks like
video not like a computer screen.

>I think the Amiga is becoming a outstanding desktop video machine in the 
>near term.  Long term depends on C=.  It the Amiga doesn't improve there

hear! hear!

>just have trouble believing the "overscan" is a lock out feature in the 
>desktop video market.  So what do you all HONESTLY think?
>
From where I sit, it's a lock out feature, no question.
>
				Mike Benson
				
>                                     Wayne Knapp

	   Any clod can have the facts, but having opinions is an art.
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