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Krill
Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2822 |
Release id #197710 : Transwarp v0.64
General Q&A thread, also report problems and error logs here. |
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Jammer
Registered: Nov 2002
Posts: 1289 |
In general, is data preconverted that it doesn't have to be performed in runtime in 1541's ram? I'm total layman here, so my apologies :D |
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Copyfault
Registered: Dec 2001
Posts: 466 |
Quoting KrillQuoting CopyfaultThe screenshots suggest that the effective loading speed depends on the video format, with standard PAL being the fastest. No, not at all. The "challenge" bit on NTSC in the GIF loads at 50x. The Dawnfall/NTSC bit merely illustrates that 50x is max speed, but not average. (And Dawnfall is one of the few one-filed demos to run flawlessly on NTSC, so...)
Loading speed is mostly depending on track zone. 1-17 is fastest, then it gets progressively slower on the upper track zones, as data on them is less dense. Makes sense! Thanks for the hints, got a bit confused after seeing the sceendumps ;)
Quoting KrillQuoting CopyfaultAnd what iAN said: a brief summary of the "ingredients" you mixed in this uber-tasteful code-cocktail would be absolutely nice :) I thought iAN was mostly focusing on the challenge, but i can cook up a semblance of a white paper explaining things. =) Oops, maybe I misinterpreted what iAN wrote... but somthing white paperish would be extremly awesome. |
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iAN CooG
Registered: May 2002
Posts: 3132 |
I was just wondering how to load a usr file, usually you need to add ,U after the filename, I wasn't aware you had to load the standalone loader for these, as there was no instructions whatsoever. Some docs should be added to the release.
All I could determine is that ALL files just link to the same loader on track 18,16 and the bytes after the file name in the directory entries have "TW" plus the actual parameters to load the encoded files. Don't validate the d64s as it's just garbage for normal DOS. |
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Krill
Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2822 |
Quoting JammerIn general, is data preconverted that it doesn't have to be performed in runtime in 1541's ram? I'm total layman here, so my apologies :D Data is encoded differently. Plain Commodore GCR encodes 4 bytes raw to 5 bytes on disk, Transwarp encodes 3.5 bytes raw to 5 bytes on disk. (Thus only 223 = $df instead of 256 bytes per block, the 224th byte is the checksum.)
One trick is to encode those 3.5 bytes using a subset of plain Commodore GCR, such that it works just fine with d64 and regular transfer/copy solutions. Part of that trick is that decoding a GCR byte drive-side just takes a table lookup (4 cycles). =) |
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Krill
Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2822 |
Quoting iAN CooGSome docs should be added to the release. Yes, should. Didn't bother with those for the first experimental version, hoped the screenshot GIF would give enough information. =)
Quoting iAN CooGAll I could determine is that ALL files just link to the same loader on track 18,16 and the bytes after the file name in the directory entries have "TW" plus the actual parameters to load the encoded files. Don't validate the d64s as it's just garbage for normal DOS. Yes, that's part of the autoload feature Burglar mentioned. Regular (unencrypted) Transwarp files can be loaded simply with LOAD"HI!",8,1 from plain BASIC. =) |
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Krill
Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2822 |
Submitted by JackAsser [PM] on 22 November 2020
Really impressive stuff! Any cons other than you can't validate a disk (who cares?!)? Well, GPLv3, depending on your stance. =D
But seriously, maybe the slight format loss, 223 instead of 254 payload bytes per block. And that it has the usual fastload drawbacks, of course. Except it can play dirty beats (with screen off) on oldsid. More cons may occur to me. |
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JackAsser
Registered: Jun 2002
Posts: 1987 |
Quote: Submitted by JackAsser [PM] on 22 November 2020
Really impressive stuff! Any cons other than you can't validate a disk (who cares?!)? Well, GPLv3, depending on your stance. =D
But seriously, maybe the slight format loss, 223 instead of 254 payload bytes per block. And that it has the usual fastload drawbacks, of course. Except it can play dirty beats (with screen off) on oldsid. More cons may occur to me.
Ahh yes. Speaking of GPLv3... had idéas to maybe include Transwarp in EotB for really fast loading of saves from disk, however I plan to release it as MIT och other freer licenses. Is GPLv3 compatible with more free licenses or will it taint the whole project?
Anyway, what about a fast saver. I could REALLY use that for EotB. :D Preferably with drum'n'base while saving. Would fit neatly in an RPG setting. ;) |
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Krill
Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2822 |
Quoting JackAsserIs GPLv3 compatible with more free licenses or will it taint the whole project? Transwarp is intended to be integrated with cartridges at some point (need to add 2-rev fallback loader for standard format, though). It hooks into the LOAD vector at $0330.
So my stance is that no tainting occurs if your binary uses the KERNAL's LOAD API on Transwarp files while Transwarp happens to be installed.
I.e., if Transwarp is not an integral part of a production and interchangeable with other loaders, a-okay. :)
Quoting JackAsserAnyway, what about a fast saver. I could REALLY use that for EotB. :D Preferably with drum'n'base while saving. Would fit neatly in an RPG setting. ;) Native saver is planned, but i have no idea when it will be done. Submitting the encoder patch to cc1541 repository will happen soonish, though.
Saving will probably be nowhere near as fast as loading, so i guess having the saver be of the arbitrarily interruptible IRQ kind allowing for sprites, music and whatnot would not be a problem. =) |
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JackAsser
Registered: Jun 2002
Posts: 1987 |
Quote: Quoting JackAsserIs GPLv3 compatible with more free licenses or will it taint the whole project? Transwarp is intended to be integrated with cartridges at some point (need to add 2-rev fallback loader for standard format, though). It hooks into the LOAD vector at $0330.
So my stance is that no tainting occurs if your binary uses the KERNAL's LOAD API on Transwarp files while Transwarp happens to be installed.
I.e., if Transwarp is not an integral part of a production and interchangeable with other loaders, a-okay. :)
Quoting JackAsserAnyway, what about a fast saver. I could REALLY use that for EotB. :D Preferably with drum'n'base while saving. Would fit neatly in an RPG setting. ;) Native saver is planned, but i have no idea when it will be done. Submitting the encoder patch to cc1541 repository will happen soonish, though.
Saving will probably be nowhere near as fast as loading, so i guess having the saver be of the arbitrarily interruptible IRQ kind allowing for sprites, music and whatnot would not be a problem. =)
Ahh ok! Good to know! EotB uses $ffd5 (load RAM) but by the looks of it, it's just setting the $c3/$c4 destination pointer and then calls ($0330), so easy to fix regardless. |
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Krill
Registered: Apr 2002
Posts: 2822 |
Quoting JackAsserAhh ok! Good to know! EotB uses $ffd5 (load RAM) but by the looks of it, it's just setting the $c3/$c4 destination pointer and then calls ($0330), so easy to fix regardless. I think doing JSR $FFD5 is just what the KERNAL inventors intended. =)
It's in the jump table sitting at the end of the address space. |
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