ADisplayXtra 1.2.1

ADisplayXtra is free both personal and commercial use.
Version 1.2.1 is Director 8.5 compatible.
Version 1.2 do not require adisplay.dll, because whole Xtra was written in C.

Installation:

• For authoring: put ADisplayXtra.x32 into your Director's Xtras folder
  
• For distributing: put ADisplayXtra.x32 into your projector's Xtras folder.

Required DLL-s: (Windows contains both)
GDI32.DLL
USER32.DLL

Function list:

• aGetDisplayMode()
  Return Value: LinearList
  Returns current display mode in linear list. First number specifies the screen width, in pixels. Second number specifies the screen height, in pixels. Third number specifies the color resolution, in bits per pixel (for example: 4 bits for 16 colors, 8 bits for 256 colors, or 16 bits for 65536 colors).Fourth member is the current vertical refresh rate of the display, in cycles per second (Hz). Windows NT/2000 only ! (On windows9x/Me Xtra returns only width, height and bit) Maybe get 0 or 1. A vertical refresh rate value of 0 or 1 represents the display hardware's default refresh rate.
  cmode=value(aGetDisplayMode())
  put cmode -- [1152, 864, 16,75]
  width=cmode[1]
  height= cmode[2]
  depth=cmode[3]
  
  
• aGetDisplayModes()
  Return Value: linearlist
  The aGetDisplayModes() function obtains information about current display device's graphics modes. Xtra returns vertical refresh rate information only if display hardware report "true" information - for example 75, not 0 or 1. Function do not list 0 or 1.
  suppMode = aGetDispalyModes()
  
  put suppMode --["640,480,4", "800,600,4", "640,480,8", "800,600,8", "1024,768,8", "1152,864,8", "1280,1024,8", "640,480,16", "800,600,16", "1024,768,16", "1152,864,16", "1280,1024,16", "640,480,24", "800,600,24", "1024,768,24", "1152,864,24", "1280,1024,24", "640,480,32", "800,600,32", "1024,768,32", "1152,864,32", "1280,1024,32"]
  --Does current display support 1024x768 24 bit?
  put suppMode.getOne("1024,768,24")
  --15
  if suppMode.getOne("1024,768,24") then -- true if not 0, (getOne found position)
  poz=suppMode.getOne("1024,768,24")
  modestring= suppMode[poz]
  oldsep = the itemdelimiter
  the itemdelimiter = ","
  width = value(modestring.item[1])
  height= value(modestring.item[2])
  depth=value(modestring.item[3])
  the itemdelimiter = oldsep
  
  aChangeDisplayMode(width,height,depth,0)
  end if
  
• aChangeDisplayMode(Width, Height, Bit, Flag)
  Parameters:
  Width: Integer --desired screen width
  Height: Integer --desired screen height
  bit: Integer --desired color resolution, in bits per pixel e.g.(4,8,16,24,32)
  Flag: Integer
  0: The graphics mode for the current screen will be changed dynamically.
  1: The graphics mode for the current screen will be changed dynamically and the graphics mode will be updated in the registry. The mode information is stored in the USER profile.
  2: The system tests if the requested graphics mode could be set.
  3: Prevents the system from repositioning other windows to keep them visible.
  4: This device will become the primary device.
  5: The settings should be changed, even if the requested settings are the same as the current settings.
  6: The settings will be saved in the registry, but will not take affect.
  
  Return Value: String
  Returns one of the following values:
  

  DISP_CHANGE_SUCCESSFUL	The settings change was successful.
  DISP_CHANGE_RESTART	The computer must be restarted in order for the graphics mode to work.
  DISP_CHANGE_BADFLAGS	An invalid set of flags was passed in.
  DISP_CHANGE_FAILED	The display driver failed the specified graphics mode.
  DISP_CHANGE_BADMODE	The graphics mode is not supported.
  DISP_CHANGE_NOTUPDATED	Windows NT only: Unable to write settings to the registry.

  
  You can change current display resolution and depth.
  Safe changing:
  result= aChangeDisplayMode(width,height,depth,2) --asking supported width, height etc. read before
  if result = "DISP_CHANGE_SUCCESSFUL " then
  aChangeDisplayMode(width,height,depth,0)
  end if
• aChangeDisplayModePlus(Width, Height, Bit, Freq, Flag)
  Parameters:
  Width: Integer --desired screen width
  Height: Integer --desired screen height
  Bit: Integer --desired color resolution, in bits per pixel e.g.(4,8,16,24,32)
  Freq: Integer --desired display vertical refresh rate (60, 70, 75, 85, 100 etc.)
  flag: Integer
  0: The graphics mode for the current screen will be changed dynamically.
  1: The graphics mode for the current screen will be changed dynamically and the graphics mode will be updated in the registry. The mode information is stored in the USER profile.
  2: The system tests if the requested graphics mode could be set.
  3: Prevents the system from repositioning other windows to keep them visible.
  4: This device will become the primary device.
  5: The settings should be changed, even if the requested settings are the same as the current settings.
  6: The settings will be saved in the registry, but will not take affect.
  Return Value: String
  Returns one of the following values:
  

  DISP_CHANGE_SUCCESSFUL	The settings change was successful.
  DISP_CHANGE_RESTART	The computer must be restarted in order for the graphics mode to work.
  DISP_CHANGE_BADFLAGS	An invalid set of flags was passed in.
  DISP_CHANGE_FAILED	The display driver failed the specified graphics mode.
  DISP_CHANGE_BADMODE	The graphics mode is not supported.
  DISP_CHANGE_NOTUPDATED	Windows NT only: Unable to write settings to the registry.

  
  You can change current display resolution, depth and display vertical refresh rate.
• aGetVersion()
  Return Value: PropertyList
  Returns current version of Xtra.
  put aGetVersion()
  [#XtraVersion: "1.2"]
  
• aCountDisplay()
  Return Value: PropertyList
  Returns the display count and virtual screen size.
  put aCountDisplay()
  [#DisplayCount: 1, #VirtualWidth: 1152, #VirtualHeight: 864]
  
  

   

FAQ

• Director does not recognise that screen depth has changed.
  Unfortunately Director 7 & 8 does not recognize the color depth has changed and if you cahnge depth from 16 bit to 8 bit stage will be black, or if you change depth 8 bit to 16 or 24 bit Director keeps drawing as if the monitor is still set to 8 bit and 16 bit picture will be ugly.
  Director recognize to the color depth has changed only if you make projector "In a window" option.
  
  
  
• If I change the display to smaller resolution (from 1024/768 to 800/600) the bottom part of desktop and stage my be disappear.
  First, make so called fast-start projector or at least stub projector( Movie that plays movies that are external to the projector. Stub projector is very minimal movie only jump first movie.) Put screen changing code to stub projector' s prepereMovie or startMovie handler:
  

global gInit, gOldRes
on prepareMovie
  if gInit <> 1 then
    changeRes()
  end if
end

on changeRes
  --prevent screenchange every movie starting if you have more dir files and screencahnging code in a shared cast
  gInit=1
  gOldres=aGetdisplayMode()
  aChangeDisplayMode(800,600,16,0)
end

And put the first frame script:

on exitFrame
  go to movie "mymovie"
end

  --changing back to original resolution
global gOldRes
on exitMovie
  aChangeDisplayMode(gOldres[1],gOldres[2],gOldres[3],0)
end

Or set the rect property of the stage after the resolution has changed.

on changeRes
  gerr = achangeDisplayMode(800,600,16, 0)
  if gerr = "DISP_CHANGE_SUCCESSFUL" then
    (the stage).rect = [0,0,800,600]
  end if
end

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ADisplay Xtra (c) FreeXtras, András Kenéz 2001.

Trademarks XtraBuilder (c)1999 Magic Modules.