In need of an Answer

Question about which tools to use, bugs, the best way to implement a function, etc should go here. Don't forget to see if your question is answered in the wiki first! When in doubt post here.
Post Reply
OsDever

In need of an Answer

Post by OsDever »

Hi all, I have been working on a small hobby os for the past couple of weeks, nothing fantastic or special. Written in Asm using Nasm(16bit real mode), just wondering if i can use vesa modes from real mode just by calling the interupts, or do i need todo some fancy memory paging to be able to draw to the entire screen.
Any replys would be great, thanks.
carbonBased

RE:In need of an Answer

Post by carbonBased »

You can use VESA in real mode.  Vesa 1.0 - 1.2 were designed exclusively for real mode - they have no direct support for pmode.

You can set modes with int 10h, and write to the standard buffer at 0xA000:0x0.  However, if the video mode you enter contains more than a 64k framebuffer, you'll have to use banking (also provided by VESA through int 10h).  You can't get access to the LFB from Vesa in real mode, unfortunately.

I wrote a chapter about Vesa programming (1.0 to 2.0) using DJGPP, but it may still be useful for you with Nasm.  You can find it at http://www.neuraldk.org/cgi-bin/documen ... ppGraphics

Cheers,
Jeff
OsDever

RE:In need of an Answer

Post by OsDever »

Cheers Jeff, thats great.
Post Reply