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MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop +------------------------------------------------------------+ | Table of Contents Page | +------------------------------------------------------------+ | Registration Benefits and Ordering Information . . . 2 | | | | MVP Paint Professional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 | | | | Special Offer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 | | | | Order Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 | | | | General Helpful Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 | | | | Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 | | | | File Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 | | | | The Menuing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 | | | | The Palette System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 | | | | The Palette Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 | | | | Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 | | | | Programmer's Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 | | | | Foreign Ordering Information . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 | +------------------------------------------------------------+ MVP Software is a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442-9427 or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536. This is an unregistered copy of MVP Paint. For the benefits of registration, and for a complete description of a special upgrade offer to MVP Paint Professional, and a special CompuServe membership money-saving offer, please see pages 2 and 3 of the following documentation. IMPORTANT IF YOU NEED TECHNICAL SUPPORT INSTALLING OR USING THIS PRODUCT, DO NOT CALL OUR 800 TOLL-FREE ORDER NUMBER. THIS NUMBER IS FOR ORDERS ONLY. THE PEOPLE WHO ANSWER THIS ORDER LINE HAVE NO TECHNICAL INFORMATION AND WILL NOT BE ABLE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS. THEY WILL SIMPLY REFER YOU TO THIS NUMBER: 616-245-8376 SO PLEASE CALL THIS NUMBER THE FIRST TIME AND SAVE YOURSELF THE TIME AND TROUBLE OF MAKING TWO PHONE CALLS. THANKS. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 2 +--------------------------------------------+ MVP Paint is a full-featured graphics workshop. With MVP Paint you can easily create or modify graphics or animation files. It supports a variety of advanced features, and has been used to develop two MVP Software games, Sand Storm and Corncob 3D. Originally created as an in-house game development tool, it has been tested extensively in real-world applications. Game designers and others demanding performance will like its combination of features and ease of use. MVP Paint is available for you to evaluate as shareware. This means you are free to put the software through its paces for a 30 day evaluation period. The small fee you may have paid to download the software from a BBS or online service, or to receive an evaluation disk from a disk vendor, is a distribution fee only. THE DISTRIBUTION FEE DOES NOT GO TO MVP SOFTWARE. After the 30-day evaluation period, you are required to either register the software, or give it to a friend. Under no circumstances are you permitted to use the software beyond the 30-day evaluation period without registering it. MVP Paint is copyrighted software and is protected by US copyright law and international copyright conventions. It is not public domain. IF YOU HAVE PURCHASED MVP PAINT IN A STORE OR FOUND IT ON A CD-ROM ------------------------------------------------------------------ If you have purchased MVP Paint in a store or other retail setting, or if you have found it on a CD-ROM, please contact MVP Software at (616) 245-8376. Please have the address and phone number of the CD-ROM publisher, or of the company that has sold it in the retail store. If we determine that the company or publisher is distributing MVP Paint without written authorization from MVP Software, we will send you a free computer game as a thank-you for helping us eliminate unauthorized distribution of this software. SHAREWARE VENDORS, DISTRIBUTORS, RACK VENDORS, BBS SYSOPS, & CD-ROM PUBLISHERS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The shareware version of MVP Paint may be distributed by catalog shareware vendors and BBS sysops as long as the distribution terms outlined in LICENSE.DOC are adhered to. These terms are very simple, and we encourage BBS and catalog distribution. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES MAY MVP PAINT BE DISTRIBUTED IN A RETAIL STORE OR ENVIRONMENT, OR ON A CD-ROM, WITHOUT WRITTEN AUTHORIZATION FROM MVP SOFTWARE. Please see LICENSE.DOC for details. WHAT IS REGISTRATION -------------------- When you register a shareware product, you purchase it from the author. In the case of MVP Paint you have two options. If you find that MVP Paint meets all your needs, then simply register by calling 800-968-9684 and using your Visa or Master Card. (Outside the US or Canada call (616) 245-8376.) The price is $35 plus $3 shipping. You will receive a copy of the latest version of the software and 90 days free technical support. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 3 +--------------------------------------------+ MVP PAINT PROFESSIONAL ---------------------- Many users will want instead to purchase MVP Paint Professional. MVP Paint Professional is not a shareware product. It is the "big brother" of MVP Paint, and is commercial only. MVP Paint Professional includes a printed manual, free technical support for one year, the MVP Toolkit, and the Pod Bay Graphics Library. The toolkit can modify palettes, convert color images to greyscale images (2 to 64 shades), display images, downscale images using a sophisticated anti-aliasing technique, and even turn your image into compilable BASIC, Pascal, or C code! This code can then be compiled, or imported into an existing program. In addition to the toolkit, MVP Paint Professional includes the Pod Bay Graphics Library. This library consists of 30 linkable graphics routines for Pascal and C programmers that provide a quick and easy way to write graphics programs in VGA mode 19 (320x200x256). These routines are fast and provide quick bypass to the .BGI files that you might otherwise have to load. The image routines found in these libraries use images that are created by MVP Paint and have a .VGA file extension. Here is a list of the routines included in the Pod Bay Graphics Library: file detection; set display to VGA mode; set display to text mode; description of returned error code; draw a pixel at location x,y in the desired color; return the value of the color located at x,y; draw a line from point a to b in the desired color; draw a rectangle; draw a circle; draw an ellipse; clear the screen while in 320x200 VGA mode; load a palette from disk; set the VGA card to the desired palette; read VGA card to get current status; save a palette to disk; set the VGA card to an empty palette so that screen drawing can occur invisibly (necessary for screen fade in); fade in screen; fade out screen; set new RGB parameters; determine bitmap variable size of an image; load an image from disk; load specially condensed graphics files; put image on screen; put partial image on screen for animation; grab image and place it in a pointer variable; put an image to the screen without writing color 0 (for animation over backgrounds); put a compressed image to the screen for animation; create a dynamic variable that holds a bitmap. For advanced users, the actual source code used for the graphics libraries is also available. For a $100 one-time license fee (in addition to the purchase price for MVP Paint Professional), you will receive both the Pascal and C source code found in the graphics libraries. Payment of the licensing fee not only gets you the source code, it also gives you a license to use this code in any application or software package you create. You may not, however, sell or distribute the source code files themselves, or source files modified from the Pod Bay source files. For the low purchase price of $49.95 plus $3.00 shipping (in the US), you will receive the latest version of MVP Paint Professional with printed manual and 1 year free technical support, the MVP Toolkit, and the Pod Bay Graphics Library. Order today by calling 800-968-9684 from the US or Canada, or (616) 245-8376 from anywhere, using your Master Card or Visa. Or fill out and mail the order form below, enclosing a check or money order. If you also wish to license the source code to the Pod Bay Graphics Library, enclose an additional $100. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 4 +--------------------------------------------+ SPECIAL OFFER ------------- Through a special arrangement with CompuServe, the world's most comprehensive computer information service, MVP Software is proud to make the following special offer to registered users of MVP Paint Professional. Your ordinary personal computer will suddenly transform into a personal communications center, reference library, shopping mall, investment tool, travel agent and weather man. You can get instant briefings on late-breaking news and sports scores, go shopping for super buys, book a vacation, give your children up-to-date education materials, receive the latest stock quotes, open new communication channels, even relax with a variety of games and quizzes. Anytime you want. As much as you want. All for only $7.95 per month. In addition, you get a world of shareware at your fingertips, which you can download at any time, night and day. Games, desktop publishing, graphics, utilities, business programs -- over 25,000 freeware and shareware software, the best in the world. How do you get all this? By becoming a CompuServe member. MVP Software has been a CompuServe member since 1991. Frankly, we couldn't do without it. Now you can join, as a MVP Software "special friend," with a money-saving offer. Here's what you get on this special offer. * One FREE month of basic CompuServe membership (a $7.95 value) * A FREE start-up credit of $25.00 * A FREE BONUS credit of $5.00 * A FREE subscription to CompuServe Magazine * FREE 260-page Users Guide (a $14.95 value) * FREE CompuServe Information Manager software How do you qualify? All you have to do is order MVP Paint Professional and check the "Special Compuserve Offer" line on the order form. Or order by telephone (800-968-9684) and tell the operator that you want the "Special CompuServe Offer" with your order. It's that simple. With your copy of MVP Paint Professional we'll include a form for you to mail to CompuServe to take advantage of this special offer. The cost to join CompuServe by taking advantage of this offer is $25. (This payment is to CompuServe, not MVP Software). But since you receive total online credits of $37.95, plus the guide, magazine, and Information Manager software, this is obviously the most cost-effective way to join CompuServe and take advantage of its many benefits. We are able to make this special offer in conjunction with CompuServe Information Service. CompuServe reserves the right to withdraw the offer at any time. So take advantage of this offer TODAY. MVP Paint Professional Order Form YES! I would like the benefits and increased productivity of MVP Paint Professional, including the ability to view Super VGA images in Super VGA mode, the MVP Toolkit, and the Pod Bay Graphics Library. Please rush me the entire package by first class mail. Name ________________________________________________________________ Address _____________________________________________________________ City _______________________________ State ______ ZIP _______________ Country (if outside USA) ____________________________________________ CIRCLE DISK SIZE: 5-1/4" (HD) -or- 3-1/2" IMPORTANT! Price of MVP Paint Professional $49.95 Shipping and Handling 3.00 Shipping and Handling to Canada add $1.00 Shipping and Handling to other countries add $2.00 Michigan residents sales tax add $2.12 Source code license for the Pod Bay Graphics Library add $100 Make check payable to "MVP Software" Total enclosed: $__________ Check here if you want the CompuServe Special Offer (p. 4) Yes____________ Master Card/Visa information (credit card orders only) Card number __________________________________________ Expiration _________ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- VOLUNTARY QUESTIONS: Please help us determine what features you would like ==================== in upgrades and future products. Circle what type of equipment you have: 8088 286 386 486 Circle the speed of your computer(Mhz): 10 12 16 20 25 33 40 50 ___ Circle any that apply: Joystick Mouse Modem_______ SVGA card____________ (speed) (type) Where did you get the shareware version of MVP Paint? Friend CompuServe GEnie AOL Prodigy Software Creations BBS (name): _______________________ phone # __________________________ address _______________________________________________________________ Shareware Distributer (name): _________________________________________ address _______________________________________________________________ What new features would you like to see added to MVP Paint? --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Send this order form and your check to: MVP Software, 1035 Dallas S.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407 From the US or Canada call 800-968-9684 toll-free 24-hour order line. Call (616) 245-8376 tech support, information, or overseas orders. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 6 +--------------------------------------------+ GENERAL HELPFUL INFORMATION --------------------------- The MVP Paint graphics program is designed to operate stand-alone. This means that you can install it somewhere on the path and then call it up by simply typing MVPPaint at any time. If you are new to DOS, or if you have no hard drive, you may want to run MVP Paint from a floppy disk. The DOS manuals might prove useful for determining what the path is as well as how to change it, but it is not necessary to place MVP Paint in the path. Once the installation program has copied the MVPPAINT.EXE file and all of the auxillary files to the desired location, you are ready to run it. Even though MVP Paint does not need to be in the current directory, be aware that all files (palette and image) are loaded and saved in the current directory. Before running MVP Paint, run CONFIGUR and answer a few questions about your system. This will allow MVP Paint to operate in as efficient manner as possible. To begin the program, type MVPPAINT, and press the ENTER key. MVP Paint may not recognize some really old mouse drivers. If you experience an invisible mouse, try getting hold of a newer mouse driver to correct this problem. FEATURES -------- All of the feaures included with this program -- line draw, interpolation, animation, etc., are described and in some cases illustrated in the online help section. Before working on your first image, we recommend that you go through all of the items in this section to get a good idea about what this program can do. Note: The animation section is somewhat complicated so in addition to moving the help for animation into the help section, a demonstration animation is included with this package. To see this demonstration, go to the animation section and choose LOAD and then choose MVPPAINT. Then choose VIEW. Experienced users will definitely want to print the list of available macros. These macros will greatly speed up the painting process if used effectively. You can also load a palette by specifying the palette name from the DOS command line. Example: MVPPAINT BW will load the palette saved in the file BW.PAL. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 7 +--------------------------------------------+ FILE FORMATS ------------ File formats be confusing to many users. In this document, the term "file format" refers to the disk file that can hold an image, a palette, or some other entity. You can discern the nature of a file by its extensions. MVP Paint recognizes the following extensions: .GIF - Compuserve format - image file .PCX - ZSoft format - image file .VGA - MVP Paint format - image file (compatible w/Borland .BGI drivers) .PAL - MVP Paint format - palette file .AF - MVP Paint format - animation file THE MENUING SYSTEM ------------------ MVP Paint's menuing system is icon-based. This means that general categories of features are represented by icons, or pictures. For example, all file operations are found under the disk icon, all palette operations under the palette icon, etc. To choose an option, just click the left mouse button on an icon. In some cases a sub-menu will appear from which you can make a further choice. THE PALETTE SYSTEM ------------------ The color palette allows you to choose the color in which you want to perform drawing activities. Simply point to the color you want and click the mouse button. Since only 64 of the 256 colors are visible at a time, use the arrows on the right side of the palette to page through the colors. Also note that in the paint window, hitting the right button will set the current color to be what was under the mouse. If MVP Paint is operating in hidden palette mode, hitting the right button will return you to normal editing and make the palette go away. IMPORTANT NOTE -------------- MVP Paint allows you to work on fullscreen images. If the image is too large to allow the menu on-screen, you can bring the menu up by either hitting the middle button on a three-button mouse, holding down the right button and then pressing the left, or hitting the space bar. Now for the tricky part. If both the menu and the color palette are hidden, this action will invoke either depending on the current location of the mouse. In the left-half of the screen, it will call up the color palette, in the right-half it will invoke the menuing system. If you are working on an odd-shaped image where one of those two is already active, say 160x200, then the hidden palette is invoked regardless of your location at the time of calling. This is difficult to describe with words, so give it a whirl and you will get the hang of it. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 8 +--------------------------------------------+ THE PALETTE EDITOR ------------------ The palette editor, an extremely useful feature not found in many paint programs, allows the user to modify the 256 color palette to contain the 256 colors they want out of a possible 262,144 colors! In addition to choosing RGB values, other options are available. Below is a list of the three main operations to perform in the palette editor: 1. RGB Modification: Click on the desired color you want to modify. Then click on the box of the component (red, green or blue) that you want to modify. Then move the cursor up and down until the component is set where you want it. Finally, click the left button to accept the change, or the right to restore the component to its original value. 2. Quick Set: In the color spectrum area (where all 256 colors are shown), you choose a color by clicking the left button. The currently chosen color is always outlined by a box. If you click on a color with the right button, and that color is not the outlined color, the outlined color will be set to have the RGB components of the color you on which you clicked. This feature gives you the means to move colors around or blank them out. 3. Trending: Trending allows you to choose two colors and have all of the colors in between them become gradual transitions from the first color to the last. You perform a trend by choosing the first color you want and then clicking on "Start Trend." Next, choose the last color in the trend and click on "End Trend." Now you are ready to click on the "Do Trend" button and watch MVP Paint go to work. Naturally, the farther apart in the palette x and y are, the more slight the increments. You can trend between 3 colors or all 256! After finishing with the modify palette screen, click on "Quit" to return to the program where you left off. You must first tell the program whether to keep any palette changes made. Selecting "no" will return with the same palette as when you entered modify palette. Choosing "yes" will make the changes active. IMPORTANT: Changes made in the palette are not saved unless you either (1) choose the palette menu and save the palette in a (.PAL) file or (2) save the palette with the current image. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 9 +--------------------------------------------+ ANIMATION --------- The animation section can be useful to both programmers who want to test images before devoting time for coding and people who just want to toy around and have fun. The basic approach to this animation section can be likened to film animation. With a movie, the scenes are just a long series of still pictures called "frames." Because image files can get quite large and slow, you wouldn't want to save the whole screen over and over just to move a space shuttle across a space scene. For this reason, you choose a background scene and then work with all of the elements that will appear within that scene. So, in addition to the background, you can choose up to 5 different images to appear over the background within any one frame. Any one slot within the frame will be referred to as a cell. Once all of the cells within a given frame are displayed, the animation routine will delay an amount of time you specify, and then move on to the next frame. Just as you load and save image files, you can do the same with animation files. This does not save image information but rather image names, locations, delay times, etc. An extensive help section has been implemented in the animation section of MVP Paint. For this reason, any further comment here would be redundant. However, one other topic does warrant mention in this document. In Frame 1, and only in Frame 1, you can choose for a cell to have continuancy and thus avoid entering an image that is going to have a linear path multiple number of times. Just choose an image as you would normally, choose its location, and then you will return to the regular animation screen. Now click the right button on the cell you want to make continuous. You will return to the location select screen once again. This time, however, you are not entering the location of the cell but rather the x and y offsets to be used in each successive frame. Although this may sound confusing it is really rather simple. For an example load the MVPPAINT.AF animation file. The shuttle has the continuancy feature associated with it. To remove this feature from a cell, click the right button a second time. Also, remember that it continues only as long as other animation or delay times continue. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 10 +--------------------------------------------+ PROGRAMMERS' NOTES ------------------ Here is an example illustrating the VGA file format. This example considers an image that is x pixels wide and y pixels high. Assume that each of the pixels are identified by the name given to them in Table 1. Therefore, the pixel located at x=2, y=3 is called 23. Now look at Table 2 and you can see how each pixels maps to a predictable location in the .VGA file! Table 1: | 1 2 3 . . . X --+--------------------- 1 | 11 21 31 . . . X1 2 | 12 22 32 . . . X2 . | . | . | Y | 1Y 2Y 3Y . . . XY Table 2: +----------------------------- Offset 0 (x dimension) - 1 | +--------------------- Offset 2 (y dimension) - 1 | | +----------------- Offset 4 Pixel 11 | | | +-------------- Offset 5 Pixel 21 | | | | +---- Offset 3+x Pixel X1 | | | | | Offset 3+((y-1)*x)+(x-1) Pixel XY | | | | | | | | | | | | +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+ +--+--+--+--+ +--+--+--+ +--+ +--+--+--> |(x-1)|(y-1)|11|21|31|...|X1|12|22|32|.....|1Y|2Y|3Y|.....|XY|...|Palette-> +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+ +--+--+--+--+ +--+--+--+ +--+ +--+--+--> | | Image Size = ((((x - 1) Div 8) + 1) * 8) * (y-1) + 6 -------------+ VGA File Size = Image Size (if palette is not saved) VGA File Size = Image Size + 768 (if palette is saved) IMPORTANT: MVP Paint does NOT use the Borland VGA256.BGI driver. This driver has difficulty displaying full-screen images. We recommend the SVGA256.BGI driver for better results. If you wish to use the VGA256 driver and use Borland putimage routines, you must first add 1 to each of the dimensions (x and y). The best alternative is to avoid the .BGI drivers altogether and use the Pod Bay Graphics Routines available with the Professional version of this program. These routines are lightning fast and will keep your code size to a minimum. To license source code for the Pod Bay Grapics Library, send $100 to MVP Software and request the Pod Bay Graphics Library source code and license. You will receive the source code in C and Pascal, plus a license permitting you to use the code in any program -- personal, shareware, or retail -- that you develop. However, the license does NOT give you the right to sell or otherwise distribute the source files themselves, either in original or modified form. The Pod Bay Graphics Library source code license is available only to purchasers of MVP Paint Professional. +--------------------------------------------+ | MVP Paint - 256 Color VGA Image Workshop | 11 +--------------------------------------------+ Below is a list of MVP Software overseas agents. You may purchase MVP Paint Professional from any of these authorized representatives. Call for current pricing.If your country is not listed, order from MVP Software at 1035 Dallas SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407. Or call (616) 245-8376. NOTE: The CompuServe special offer is available direct from MVP Software only. Canada ------ Distant Markets Box #1149, 194 - 3803 Calgary Trail South Edmonton, Alberta T6J 5M8 Phone: 800-661-7383 Fax: 800-661-9756 Australia --------- Budgetware 9 Albermarle St. Newtown NSW 2042 Phone: (02) 519-4233 Fax: (02) 516-4236 United Kingdom -------------- Testware Ltd 46 The Avenue Harrogate, N Yorks HG1 4QD Phone: (0423 886 415 Fax: (0423) 889 728 Sweden ------ Svenska PC-Klubben Box 83 511 21 Kinna Phone: 0320-16500 Fax: 0320-16053 Denmark ------- Prof. Shareware Benloese Skell 4 G DK-4100 Ringsted Phone: 53 61 90 42 Fax: 53 61 93 91