Viewfinder won't work with Mitsubishi 74SB

[Philip Pemberton]

Hi,
After many months of seeing the Viewfinder advertised on CJE's website,
I've finally bought one for the sum of GBP175. Unfortunately, my six-month
old Mitsubishi Diamond Plus 74SB monitor doesn't seem to like the VF's video
output.
If I set the RiscPC to use the VIDC (i.e. disconnect the Viewfinder and
*conf. ViewfinderEnable 0), everything works fine - the monitor can lock onto
the signal and produce a stable display, with all the OSD controls fully
operative.
If I connect the Viewfinder and enable it, however, the picture is far too
wide for the screen. If I use the OSD to tweak the width and position, the
monitor refuses to move the picture all the way to the right - there's a
constant black border of about 1cm in size on the right-hand side of the
screen. If I use the OSD controls to adjust the screen, the image locks at
that border and produces an incredibly bright vertical white line.
If I shrink the image down as much as possible, the monitor still has
trouble displaying the VF's picture - the border remains in place and the "X
POS" adjustment has no effect on the image's position, unless you count the
fact that it scrolls inside the "box".
Another interesting (to me) fact is that the monitor usually displays
either a Preset number or a resolution in the OSD when it recognises a mode.
In the case of the VIDC, the OSD displays the following:
Resolution Fv Fh
640x480 37.5kHz Negative 75Hz Negative
800x600 46.9kHz Positive 75Hz Positive
1024x768 56.5kHz Negative 70Hz Negative

.... All of which are recognised by the monitor. When I switch to the VF, I
get:
Resolution Fv Fh
640x480 40.7kHz Positive 77.4Hz Positive
800x600 49.5kHz Positive 76.6Hz Positive
1024x768 62.1kHz Positive 76.3Hz Positive

These are all Viewfinder modes - the monitor won't assign Preset numbers to
any of them and appears to be unable to get a good enough lock to allow the
OSD to work properly. Is there any way to "tweak" the Viewfinder settings as
closely as MakeModes and CustomRPC allow with the VIDC?

Anyone got any suggestions?

Thanks.
--
Phil. | Acorn RiscPC600 Mk3, SA202, 64MB,
philpem@despammed.com (valid address)| 6GB, video mods, 8xCD, framegrabber,
http://www.philpem.dsl.pipex.com/ | Ethernet (i3 Etherlan600), Teletext
Error 8472. Borg dumped.

[News]

In a previous message, Philip Pemberton <philpem@despammed.com> wrote:
After many months of seeing the Viewfinder advertised on CJE's website, I've finally bought one for the sum of GBP175. Unfortunately, my six-month old Mitsubishi Diamond Plus 74SB monitor doesn't seem to like the VF's video output.

Best place to ask for help with this is the Viewfinder mailing list, which
lives at windfall @ yahoogroups.com.

Other than that, all I could suggest is carefully reading the Help file that
comes with the VF card and making sure you've followed the instructions
precisely, and to try other screenmodes to see whether they work better.

John
--
John Pettigrew Headstrong Games
john at headstrong-games.co.uk Fun : Strategy : Price
http://www.headstrong-games.co.uk/ Board games that won't break the bank
Valley of the Kings: ransack an ancient Egyptian tomb but beware of mummies!

[Philip Pemberton]

In message <gemini.3f1ede540057e400%news@headstrong-games.co.uk>
News <news@headstrong-games.co.uk> wrote:
Best place to ask for help with this is the Viewfinder mailing list, which lives at windfall @ yahoogroups.com.
I've done that and the problem has been solved. Unfortunately !Paint and
!Draw are crashing whenever the colour selector dialogs are opened. This
fault has been traced to my Etherlan600 - when the EtherLAN is removed, the
Viewfinder works fine. Reinstall the EtherLAN and the VF starts acting up
again.
The following modules are installed on the EtherLAN:
1 Podule 8 MbufManager 0.13 Unplugged
2 Podule 8 EtherH 4.08 Unplugged
3 Podule 8 AUNMsgs 0.06 Unplugged
4 Podule 8 Internet 4.03 Unplugged
5 Podule 8 Net 6.12 Unplugged
6 Podule 8 BootNet 0.88 Unplugged
7 Podule 8 AppFS 3.00 Unplugged
8 Podule 8 AppFS_Econet 3.00 Unplugged
9 Podule 8 AppFS_Filer 3.00 Dormant
10 Podule 8 AppFS_Resources 2.00 Dormant
11 Podule 8 AppFS_Configure 2.00 Active

The version of EtherH installed on my RPC's hard drive is v4.33 (27 Nov
1997). Does anyone know if a flash-upgrade would solve this problem? If so,
has anyone got an EtherH flash-upgrader and the relevant password?

Thanks.
--
Phil. | Acorn RiscPC600 Mk3, SA202, 64MB,
philpem@despammed.com (valid address)| 6GB, video mods, 8xCD, framegrabber,
http://www.philpem.dsl.pipex.com/ | Ethernet (i3 Etherlan600), Teletext
.... High voltage can give a dangerously uncomfortable discharge.

[alan.calder]

In article <73951f174c.philpem@dsl.pipex.com>,
Philip Pemberton <philpem@despammed.com> wrote: In message <gemini.3f1ede540057e400%news@headstrong-games.co.uk> News <news@headstrong-games.co.uk> wrote:
Best place to ask for help with this is the Viewfinder mailing list, which lives at windfall @ yahoogroups.com. I've done that and the problem has been solved. Unfortunately !Paint and !Draw are crashing whenever the colour selector dialogs are opened. This fault has been traced to my Etherlan600 - when the EtherLAN is removed, the Viewfinder works fine. Reinstall the EtherLAN and the VF starts acting up again.

[Snip]
The version of EtherH installed on my RPC's hard drive is v4.33 (27 Nov 1997). Does anyone know if a flash-upgrade would solve this problem?

Sounds very like my own setup here and I have no problems with Viewfinder.
I'm not sure if there is a later version of EtherH than 4.33 - my card was
supplied a couple of years ago by DesignIT who took over the design from
i-cubed and that was the version they supplied.

Cheers

Alan
[Snip]

--
Alan Calder, Milton Keynes, UK.

[Jess]

In message <00dc28174c.philpem@dsl.pipex.com>
Philip Pemberton <philpem@despammed.com> wrote:
In message <7ec624174c.news@itworkshop.invalid> Jess <phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote: I think there is a newer version available, but have you *unplugged the onboard modules, they might be causing issues. I've tried unplugging all of them, but the last three simply refuse to die!

That is odd. What OS are you using? I have no viewfinder, but this is
the output of unplug

Unplugged modules are:
DMAManager
CDFSSoftATAPI
AppleTalk
DMAManager (Podule 1)
CDFSSoftSCSI2_CT (Podule 1)
MbufManager (Podule 8)
EtherH (Podule 8)
AUNMsgs (Podule 8)
Internet (Podule 8)
Net (Podule 8)
BootNet (Podule 8)
If I remove the EtherLAN, the Viewfinder works. I've also started suspecting the RAMs - my RiscPC is fitted with a matched pair of 32MB SIMMs, for a total of 64MB. There's a label on both of them that reads "ME34", there's sixteen chips on each SIMM and all the ICs are the same - VG261740SCJ. However, switching to an old 8MB SIMM does absolutely nothing in terms of improving reliability - I can load Paint and open a window once, but closing and reopening the Colour Selector dialog locks the machine solid - no response to keyboard or mouse. It does respond to the RESET button though. And the power button...

Does unplug work with a clean boot?
does it work without the viewfinder?

--
Jess icq: 91353267 msn: phantasm_39@hotmail.com http://www.kentwebnet.com
Hotmail is my spam trap - don't use for email
mailto:nospam@itworkshop.uklinux.net
RISC OS 4.36 kinetic 64+128+2M Castle Storm DMA + 17GB 586-133 I-3 ADSL


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[Ian Lowry]

In article <00dc28174c.philpem@dsl.pipex.com>, Philip Pemberton
<philpem@despammed.com> wrote: In message <7ec624174c.news@itworkshop.invalid> Jess <phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote:
I think there is a newer version available, but have you *unplugged the onboard modules, they might be causing issues. I've tried unplugging all of them, but the last three simply refuse to die!
It is not possible to unplug any module, on a podule, with a number
greater than 8 (Something to do with the limits of CMOS memory, I
believe)
[Snip]

Hwyl
Ian

--
Death is the full stop at the end of a life sentence.

[James Scholes]

Theorising that one could timetravel within her own lifetime, Jess
<phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote:
In message <00dc28174c.philpem@dsl.pipex.com> Philip Pemberton <philpem@despammed.com> wrote: In message <7ec624174c.news@itworkshop.invalid> Jess <phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote: I think there is a newer version available, but have you *unplugged the onboard modules, they might be causing issues. I've tried unplugging all of them, but the last three simply refuse to die! That is odd. What OS are you using? I have no viewfinder, but this is the output of unplug

[snip]

It's a fairly well documented 'feature'. Only the first 8 onboard modules in
any podule slot can be unplugged, as there is only 1 address byte assigned.
The only cards I've come across that use more than 8 are NICs and SCSI cards,
although I'm sure I could flash a few more onto my Blitz (o:

As far as I'm aware, this is still the case, no matter what version of RISC
OS. Unless Select deal with it?

Cheers,

James

--
Jymbob: remove . from between names to reply direct, or be spam trapped.
"And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger
those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know
my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee." - Jules Winnfield

[Tim Powys-Lybbe]

In message <73951f174c.philpem@dsl.pipex.com>
Philip Pemberton <philpem@despammed.com> wrote:

<snip>
The version of EtherH installed on my RPC's hard drive is v4.33 (27 Nov 1997). Does anyone know if a flash-upgrade would solve this problem? If so, has anyone got an EtherH flash-upgrader and the relevant password?

4.46 is the version I have and it solved a few problems I had with an
earlier version. You don't have to flash upgrade. Just run it within
Boot:System (somewhere).
Thanks.

--
Tim Powys-Lybbe tim@powys.org
For a miscellany of bygones: http://powys.org

[Samuel Kock]

In nuus:4c173856cbian@lowrys.demon.co.uk,
tik Ian Lowry <ian@lowrys.demon.co.uk>: In article <00dc28174c.philpem@dsl.pipex.com>, Philip Pemberton <philpem@despammed.com> wrote: In message <7ec624174c.news@itworkshop.invalid> Jess <phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote: I think there is a newer version available, but have you *unplugged the onboard modules, they might be causing issues. I've tried unplugging all of them, but the last three simply refuse to die! It is not possible to unplug any module, on a podule, with a number greater than 8 (Something to do with the limits of CMOS memory, I believe)

Something to do that only three bits are used for something? (The highest
numbat can be used using three bits is 7, from number 0 to 7, giving eight
numbers).

Samuel
--
Samuel Kock
Pretoria, South Africa
Bio: http://go.to/skock/bio.htm
Success is a journey, not a destination.

[Brian Carroll]

In article <d97238174c.James@ntlworld.com>, James Scholes
<james.scholes@ntlworld.com> wrote:

[Snip]
It's a fairly well documented 'feature'. Only the first 8 onboard modules in any podule slot can be unplugged, as there is only 1 address byte assigned. ...
As far as I'm aware, this is still the case, no matter what version of RISC OS. Unless Select deal with it?

Unfortunately not, up to RO 4.33 at least.


Brian.

--
______________________________________________________________

Brian Carroll, Ripon, North Yorkshire, UK bric@argonet.co.uk
______________________________________________________________

[Stewart Brodie]

Jess <phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote:
In message <d97238174c.James@ntlworld.com> James Scholes <james.scholes@ntlworld.com> wrote: [snip] It's a fairly well documented 'feature'. Only the first 8 onboard modules in any podule slot can be unplugged, as there is only 1 address byte assigned. The only cards I've come across that use more than 8 are NICs and SCSI cards, although I'm sure I could flash a few more onto my Blitz (o: As far as I'm aware, this is still the case, no matter what version of RISC OS. Unless Select deal with it? Isn't this a hardware limitation, not an OS one?

Only in the sense that there isn't enough space available in the NVRAM to
store the unplug bits.

--
Stewart Brodie

[Philip Pemberton]

Hi all,
In a moment of boredom, I decided to try pulling the VRAM out of my RiscPC.
It turns out the VRAM module - an Acorn "72-ACA20-1010290", part number
0197,003 ISS 1 - is not StrongARM compatible. That, or it's giving up under
the strain of the Viewfinder thrashing the bus. The RAMs onboard are Hitachi
HM538253TT-7 chips, datecode 9425 S000 5330. They seem to have been made in
Japan...
If anyone has a StrongARM based RiscPC with one of these VRAM sticks
fitted and working, I'd be very interested to hear from you...
Is anyone here selling a StrongARM-compatible 1MB or 2MB VRAM cheaply? I'd
like to keep a spare around in case (shock horror) the Viewfinder dies.

Chris - you can keep your VRAM and EDORAMs... The problem has been found and
eradicated... :)

Thanks.
--
Phil. | Acorn RiscPC600 Mk3, SA202, 64MB,
philpem@despammed.com (valid address)| 6GB, video mods, 8xCD, framegrabber,
http://www.philpem.dsl.pipex.com/ | Ethernet (i3 Etherlan600), Teletext
.... Reactance: your imaginary friend.

[druck]

On 25 Jul 2003 Jess <phantasm_39@hotmail.com> wrote:
In message <d97238174c.James@ntlworld.com> James Scholes <james.scholes@ntlworld.com> wrote: [snip] It's a fairly well documented 'feature'. Only the first 8 onboard modules in any podule slot can be unplugged, as there is only 1 address byte assigned. The only cards I've come across that use more than 8 are NICs and SCSI cards, although I'm sure I could flash a few more onto my Blitz (o: As far as I'm aware, this is still the case, no matter what version of RISC OS. Unless Select deal with it? Isn't this a hardware limitation, not an OS one?

A bit of both. There are only 240 bytes of CMOS, so there are a limited
number of bits to dedicate to module unplug states.

Quite a few CMOS locations have been freed up from other uses in Select, so
they could be dedicated to extra unplug bits, but its probably not worth it.
Many cards these days come with FlashROMs, and you can decided which modules
to program in to them, eliminating the need to unplug unwanted modules.

---druck

--
The ARM Club Free Software - http://www.armclub.org.uk/free/
The 32bit Conversions Page - http://www.quantumsoft.co.uk/druck/

[Grant Randall- Spam trapped]

In article <ab.eWxoL8T@rpc.fl.yeti.dk>,
Birger Harzenetter <WIMPy@yeti.dk> wrote:4.46 is the version I have and it solved a few problems I had with an

May be chargable. ask at www.dezignit.co.uk
Where's that from? I can't find anythin newer than 4.33.

4.52 is under development.

--
Kind Regards,

Grant Randall
<grant.randallSPAMFREE@ntlworld.com> Yorkshire, GB
Please remove the "SPAMFREE" when replying.
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