From:	"Thomas Harte" <T DOT Harte AT btinternet DOT _c_o_m_>
Newsgroups:	comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject:	Re: Need advice on which graphics library to use
Date:	Wed, 13 Sep 2000 19:56:48 +0100
Organization:	BT Internet
Lines:	32
Message-ID:	<8poiph$hjq$1@uranium.btinternet.com>
References:	<39bde6b4 DOT 886926 AT news DOT soco DOT de> <cgisrs899k0qc0p4bef4aj4msudo8jriei AT 4ax DOT com> <8pm0o8$eq$1 AT plutonium DOT btinternet DOT com> <k4atrsg36ko0maman6ofn4fohec1v2e1tj AT 4ax DOT com>
NNTP-Posting-Host:	host62-7-79-34.btinternet.com
X-Newsreader:	Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.3155.0
X-MimeOLE:	Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.3155.0
To:	djgpp AT delorie DOT com
DJ-Gateway:	from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Reply-To:	djgpp AT delorie DOT com

>>even cards with broken VESA drivers (not mine!) usually support
>>linear 320x240 in DirectX, so they certainly have the potential.
>
>The OP is using a clone of DOS in a ROM, not Windows with DirectX.


Perhaps that could be what I meant by 'so they certainly have the
potential'? Of course, I can't remember now because it was so long ago, but
that a DOS clone is being used rather than DirectX could have been why I did
not write '. . . 320x240 in DirectX, so use that'.

And Allegro even offers you 320x240 in its built in mode select dialogue if
you chose any of the VESA drivers (2.0+ at least).

> Depends on how you define "stable":  Allegro 3.12 is the last release
> on the "stable" branch.  Allegro 3.9.32 is the latest release that is
> stable.  3.9.33 is admittedly beta.

How about one that sticks to the design aims without causing your programs
to crash due to undocumented elements?

One of the design aims of Allegro is to maintain full backward
compatibility, hence things like adding 'set_bitdepth' rather than a bit
depth call variable on the set_gfx_mode function. Well, in Allegro 3.9.33,
calling 'destroy_bitmap' after 'allegro_exit' now causes a crash. On older
versions it did not. And I know this because my program which was previously
fine destroying bitmaps in a C++ destructor suddenly stopped being fine.

-Thomas

- Raw text -