
       Greetings my most excellent friends. I've always enjoyed computer
     graphics but when I saw what little there was available for the 95, I
     decided to take a more active role. SO......enclosed in this ZIP file are a
     number of programs and pictures that will let you capture and view your own
     images for the HP95LX. You should find:

          SNATCH.EXE - an image grabber that runs on your PC.
          VIEWPCX.EXE - a picture viewer that runs on your 95.
          PORTRAIT.PCX   \
          ALBERT.PCX      \
          TANKWARS.PCX     >-- Sample SNATCH'ed images
          GALAXY.PCX      /
          WALLY.PCX      /
          PICS.BAT - a batch file that puts on a "show"

     SNATCH.EXE
       SNATCH is a Terminate and Stay Resident (TSR) program that allows you to
     draw a picture using your favorite paint program and save it as a file
     viewable on your HP95. SNATCH is designed to be used on your desktop PC and
     NOT on your HP95.
       To use SNATCH, follow these steps:

          1) Go to the directory that SNATCH is in, enter SNATCH and hit
          <RETURN>. Snatch will beep at to know that it's loaded and ready to
          go.

          2) Start up your favorite paint program. Since SNATCH relies on BIOS
          calls to read the pixel values, it doesn't matter what graphics mode
          you use as long as it's a standard one. That means stay away from
          super VGA modes. Since we're only dealing with an image size of 240 by
          128, I've found that the best modes are the 320 by 200 modes of the
          CGA, EGA, and VGA (SNATCH has not been tested on a Hercules. If you
          try it, please let me know how it works.).
                                    ************
          Now, this is real important, use the default palette and draw black
          pixels (color 0) on a white background (color 1).
                                    ************
          The reason for this is that BIOS just returns the color register value
          and not the color stored in that register. So if you mix up the
          palette, you may produce images that are solid black. You can avoid
          this problem if you use a CGA mode for painting. CGA doesn't give you
          a whole lot of options anyway.

          3) Now, draw your picture in the upper left hand corner of your
          screen. I usually have a 240 * 128 rectangle drawn so I can see what
          my boundaries are. When you're happy with your image, hit the <ALT-S>
          key combination to invoke SNATCH. SNATCH will copy your image to a
          file in your current directory called SNATCHnn.PCX and let you know
          when it is done by sounding two beeps. The first image you SNATCH will
          be called SNATCH00.PCX. If that file is still present the next time
          you SNATCH, the following image will be called SNATCH01.PCX. Up to 100
          SNATCH's can take place before we run out of file names.

          4) Rename the file to your liking (but keep the PCX extension) and,
          using the connectivity pack, upload it to your HP95. Now, go to SETUP
          on your 95 and make  your new image your TOPCARD or use VIEWPCX
          (described below) to examine your masterpiece.









     VIEWPCX.EXE
       This program is a small image viewer for your HP95LX. It will display any
     PCX image created for the Jaguar. There are two ways to use VIEWPCX:

          1) Interactively - just enter VIEWPCX without an argument and you will
          be prompted for a filename. Be sure to include the PCX extension or
          the program will barf on you.

          2) With arguments on the command line - VIEWPCX will take filenames on
          the command line and display them one at a time. Basically, this turns
          your 95 into an LCD slide projector. It's great for those insomniac
          friends.

     Examples:
          VIEWPCX <return> will prompt you for an image to view.

          VIEWPCX pic1.pcx pic2.pcx pic3.pcx ... <return> will display all the
          pictures on the command line sequentially.

     PICS.BAT
       This batch file is simply a slide show of all the enclosed images as well
     as one of the pictures stored in the \_SYS directory.
          

     THE IMAGES
       A variety of techniques were used to produce these pictures.

     ALBERT - this was scanned from a photograph then dithered and shrunk using
          the CONVERT utility provided with Deluxe Paint II Enhanced.

     GALAXY - this was a graphics image produced by a Quick BASIC program that
          was SNATCH'ed. It was then touched up using Deluxe Paint and SNATCH'ed
          again.

     PORTRAIT - this was a GIF file that was converted to PCX using VPIC, then
          dithered and shrunk with CONVERT. DP was used to clean up the
          background an bit.

     TANKWARS - this was a scan that was dithered and shrunk with CONVERT. The
          image was edited and the text was added using Deluxe Paint again.

     WALLY - this picture was captured off of a video camera with a frame
          grabber. ANSEL was used for cleaning up the background and CONVERT was
          once again used for dithering and reduction. Finally DPII was used to
          add the text before SNATCHing.


       So, enjoy this stuff. I had a lot of fun doing it. If you have any inputs
     or questions leave me a message at 76067,2302.

                                        Wally














