* Pixel Persuasion *

[dw817]

Hi. I know it's been a long time since I've worked in Basic-4GL. At one point I was very active and even wrote a utility to build custom B4GL fonts from existing Truetype Fonts.

Graphic example xf7.xanga.com/fa5f8b57d2233284584161/w227074714.png

In any case - I also know why I left B4GL, and it's for the same reason as when I left years ago.

Now, I know B4GL has the ability of DLLs, and this is something new. The reason I left B4GL is cause there was no way to actually plot or read or write individual pixels.

I'm working on a project in Blitz-Max currently cause it does everything that B4GL can with the addition of reading and writing individual pixels - I need this so I can import/export tiles that have changes made to them - or to create custom images based on existing images and shaping masks.

Now - if B4GL can, and it doesn't matter if a DLL is required for it. I will up my stats and work directly in B4GL and THANK YOU for this information !

I like B4GL for many reasons, one of which, it is VERY fast execution. Blitz-Max takes about 3-seconds to compile and a few more seconds to load everything.

Blitz-Max also does not have the "NewTileMap()" routine requiring me to write my own, which I did, and obviously it is not as fast as B4GL's since mine is coded.

Perhaps because I never really learned to program the right way, I've always wanted a a language that can compile as quickly as possible - and B4GL blessedly does.

Can you read and write individual pixels in B4GL today with ANY DLL or otherwise ? Without requiring you to load and save .BMP files as one method was offered earlier ?

[matthew]

Hmm well the Toolbox Plugin has a Command called GetPixels but I'm not sure if it does exactly what you want.

[dw817]

Hi Matthew:

* Long time no chat !

No - downloaded, looked at example. Definitely not right. What I need is something pretty simple.

c=getpixel(x,y)

where c is r+g*256+b*65536

and

putpixel(x,y,c)

Bonus if you could write directly read or write to an image instead of just the screen, that would help a LOT:

c=getpixel(sprite,n,x,y)
putpixel(sprite,n,x,y,c)

where sprite is any image like with loadimage() or loadimagestrip()
and "n" is the number of the image frame.

If sprite = 0 then it reads the actual screen instead.
if sprite = -1 then it reads the raw display (pixels seen visually outside program), for use in making a snapshot of windows.

[DJLinux]

Sprites, Images and ImageStrips are 2D Textures not more nor less.
Textures exists in GPU memory on your gfx card.
If you need to read or write individual pixels the whole Texture must be locked and moved from gfx card memory to the CPU memory and vis versa.

If you need fast pixel access you can try the OpenGL memory and image buffer plugin.

A description of all the powerfull commands can be found in "OpenGLPlugin.rtf"

DJ

[dw817]

Wrote you there. Thanks !!