Conference hydra::amiga_v1

    It works with a color camera (V2 Digiview) but you still need to
    use the supplied color wheel. A monochrome camera tends to give
    a higher resolution picture though, but the color camera will do
    almost as well if its a decent camera.

    LIVE! is supposed to do what you are looking for.  It was designed
    to capture frames at a rapid rate from a video source other than
    a still frame.  There have been quite a few ads lately for LIVE!
    but I haven't seen any reviews yet.
    
    Digiview seems to work best in high res B&W mode.  I have yet to
    get the color output to look like the adds for the device!
    
    -john-
    

    Live will capture frames of color video, from a color source.  The
    number of frames depends upon the size of memory.
    
    One other nice Live feature:  You can grab frames directly into
    DeluxePaint, unlike Digi-View, where you have to save the image
    to disk or ram first.
    
    Randy
    

    re: Live!
    
    Since this seems to be the solution to grabbing frames, how about
    a review by someone that has it or is familiar with it.  I would
    like to know price, operating modes, good/bad features, 'other'
    required equipment.
    

    I have only seen one in the store.  It captures images in 320x200
    and 320x400 modes.  You can capture in 32 shades of grey, colorized
    gray (to create a tinted effect) or 4096 HAM mode.  It can capture
    abut 3 frames a second.  I believe it can capture faster, but I
    don't really know the specs.
    
    The unit fits the expansion port of an A1000.  It has no pass thru
    for the bus.  There is an RCA plug on the front of it for video
    input.
    
    There are several pull down menus with the software, allowing you
    to save grabbed images, or to vary the grabbing parameters.  It
    will record a sequence of frames, and play them back.  
    
    It seems to work quite well, BUT it is rather expensive...about
    $395.  AND there are other grabbers coming from other companies
    that will offer more, probably for less.
    
    Personally, I prefer Digi-View because it operates in any resolution.
    This is important if you are grabbing images for use in a desktop
    publishing product.  Most of them work in Med-Res or Hi-Res.  Digi-View
    has so many image manipulation features.  However, it is rather
    slow, and the color wheel makes it even slower.
    
    Here is a Digi-View tip, by the way:  carefully re-focusing for
    each color on the color wheel is supposed to produce sharper images.
    I have not tried it yet, so I don't know it really works.  NewTek
    also sells a little motor that will spin the wheel for you.  But
    it is rather costly.  But I'm sure it is cheaper than Vana White...;^)
                    
    I gutted a DEC printer switch, placing the Digi-View module inside.
    This allows me to have a printer and Digi-View hooked up to the
    A1000 at the same time.  A small video switch allows me to switch
    the signal from my monitor (for focusing and set-up) to the A1000.
    
    I've been very happy, and have digitized a ton of stuff with it.
    
    Randy
    
    

    Digi-View can capture still frames from videotape, but the results
    are very poor.  One of the newer digital freeze frame VCR's may
    help, but I doubt it.  Either way, the frames will only be in Black
    and White.
    

    re: .6
    
    Well, depends on what you are using to freeze the frame. My Sony
    V9 has a perfectly motionless freeze-frame that allows very nice
    black & white captures with DigiView. I imagine that the newer digital
    VCRs provide even better resolution.

    Simple question..
    I've been unsuccessful in getting Dpaint to accept files from Digiview:
    I've reduced the palette to 32 colours and saved, but DPaint just
    says wrong format.
    What have I forgotten to do ? (Or is it more subtle - I'm using
    Digiview V3 in PAL mode.)
    

    Probably you have not reset bit zero useage in Digi View i.e. it
    uses effectively 64 colour mode. I did it no problem.

    I haven't found the page in the manual that describes the process
    you mention.  Is there one ?!
    

    Re: .0
    
    Be sure that your DPAINT ][ is also PAL  !!! 
    marco

    Two good answers: playing with the bit 0 tag on the palette/colour
    (I forget) menu allowed me to create files with the DigiView non-PAL
    version (I'm using 3.0 which has both) and enter them into my Dpaint.
    But changing the bit 0 with the PAL Digiview doesn't fix it. I hadn't
    heard of a PAL Dpaint before : is there such a thing ? Mine came
    bundled with the Amiga 500 bought from a major UK chain and therefore
    unlikely to be a grey import.
    My DPaint does leave me with the typical 1" black strip at the bottom
    of the page, strongly suggesting NTSC.
    The Digiview pictures are similarly cropped, but hte main problem
    is the colour mapping's all wrong.
    ANyone seen an NTSC IFF to PAL IFF convertor ?
    

   Someone told me that on the bottom of the digi-view gold advertisement
    it says that the carmera is sold seperatly .  Is that true?
    
           Matt
    

    Yep .. a camera can cost $200 and up. Of course, you can use your
    home video camera.

    RE.14
    
         Then what is the 200$ you pay for on the advertisement????
    
             Matt
    

    re: .15
    $200 for the digitizer (hardware to convert analog composite video
    signals into digital codes) and software to run the digitizer and
    convert those codes into Amiga IFF format for storage and display.
    

    RE: .15
    
    I hope you don't plan to pay $200 for DigiView!  It's only $140
    at the Software Shop.  Comes with software, hardware interface (plugs
    into your parallel port), and a color wheel.
    
    Paul

    FYI:  I just got DigiView ($130ish) + the Panasonic Camera ($279.99)
    with a variable iris lens.  [Note: Some mail order places advertise the
    camera for around $230 (I think?) but that only includes a lens with
    one lighting setting (non-variable iris) and getting the lighting right
    is tuff enough as it is... :-)].
    
    With a little work I've been able to get some really nice pictures in
    color and in b&w.
    

    Do you need a regular camera or a VCR camera? (I hope my Magnavox
    will work)
    
             Matt
    

    You can use a color camera. There is a special setting, but you
    still need the color wheel. An alternative tio the color wheel is
    the color splitter.
    
    Paul
    

    What is the color splitter?  [Yes, I know, something that splits up the
    color..:-)]  How much?  How good does it work?  Etc?!?
    
    George
    

    See NOTE 1989 for info on the color splitter.

Re .17

You'll also need the gender changer if you're running with a 500 or 2000. That 
may run you another $20-25.

Dave

    Correct me if I am wrong
    
    Digi-view gold $200
    (camera        $999 (I got a magnavox vcr camera. Will it work?))
    gender thing   $25
                   ----
                   $225
    
    Is that all????
    
             Matt
    
    

I asked a friend of mine about that very setup.
Your video camera outputs NTSC.  A standard black
and white camera outputs RS-170.  NTSC contains
both the rs-170 signals for brightness and the
three color channels. The color info is sent at
a higher frequency than the b&w info.  He said
that it might work as is, but that if it didn't
he would show me how to make a simple filter
which would get rid of the high frequency color
information and leave you looking like you have
a black and white camera.  This means that you
would have to use the color wheel, but atleast
you wouldn't have to buy a color splitter.


		Dean

    re: .24
    
    The DigiView gold is designed for connection to Amiga 500/2000
    normally.  You'll only need the gender changer if you plan on using
    DigiView Gold on an Amiga 1000.  If that is the case, DigiView V3.0
    plugs direct into the A1000 and is usually only $140-$160.  You
    might want to find out if any significant advance is made in the
    gold other than the A500/A2000 direct support.  The software is
    the same between the two versions.
    
    George
    

    I'm having a problem with Digiview.  I suspect I fried it but hopefully
    someone can tell me otherwise.  It used to work fine, but recently
    I plugged it in with the Amiga (2000) on.  Now when it digitizes
    what I get is just white dots and lines.  It goes through the normal
    sequence where it digitizes section by section and the garbage it
    puts on the screen remains the same for the same scene.  If I point
    the camera at something else there are different dots.  I've made
    sure the camera's internal sync switch is set correctly.  I'd
    appreciate any help regarding a diagnosis or suggestions on how
    to do a repair.  Thanks.
    
      Mitch

I have a problem (and a question) about Digi-View.

First of all, with 1 meg of memory I can't get into DigiView in the highest 
resolution non-HAM mode (640 x 400) because I get the message "not enough or 
fragmented memory" or something like that. I can work in 320 x 400 (color) and 
640 x 400 (B&W). Is there something I can do (with fast-mem-first or my 
workbench or something) that will allow me to operate in the highest resolution?

Second, after connecting my printer, Digi-View and Future Sound connectors to an
A-B-C switch box, I found that unless the switch box is set to the Digi-View
position there are many wavy interference patterns running all over the monitor,
even though the video cable is connected directly to the rear of the monitor and
the push-button switch on the monitor's front panel is set for monitoring the
video signal. Can anyone explain why this is happening? 

Dave