Actually, I was talking about the console.  The colour depth isn't =
really an issue for most things, other than my laptop makes the =
transition to/frin X easier if it is already running that the desired =
resolutions/colour depth.  (sometimes it does this weird screen melting =
thing) =20
If wsdisplay is running a frame buffer, then I wanted to know if it was =
possible to select a different video mode.
I see that the number of rows/columns available on screen can be changed =
by just using a smaller font and using wsconscfg -t command, but is it =
as powerful as the frame buffer?  Or is the framebuffer option in lilo =
actually some kind of X service working?

Changing the resolution of the console (terminal was a bad word.  It was =
late and I apologize :) is beneficial because you can get more text on =
the screen.  Maybe you're right and I'm going about it in the wrong way, =
but I was trying to emulate something that happens like this:
http://www.slackware.com/book/index.php?source=3Dc1710.html#LILO

Or see these Lilo options that I was mentioning earlier:
vga=3Dmode=20
This specifies the VGA text mode that should be selected when booting. =
The following values are recognized (case is ignored):=20
normal: select normal 80x25 text mode.=20

extended (or ext): select 80x50 text mode.=20

ask: stop and ask for user input (at boot time).=20

<number>: use the corresponding text mode. A list of available modes can =
be obtained by booting with vga=3Dask and pressing [Enter].=20

If this variable is omitted, the VGA mode setting contained in the =
kernel image is used. (And that is set at compile time using the =
SVGA_MODE variable in the kernel Makefile, and can later be changed with =
the rdev(8) program.)=20

from http://www.linuxcentral.com/linux/man-pages/lilo.conf.5.html


wsdisplay states that it is running at 80x25
and in the BUGS section of the wsconscfg man file it states that there =
should be an easier way to get screen types available.  Anyone have a =
list of this nature?


-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Rauch [mailto:rauch@rice.edu]
Sent: Friday, March 29, 2002 3:01 PM
To: Sporleder, Matthew (CCI-Atlanta); netbsd-help@netbsd.org
Subject: Re: resolutions


> Is there a way to configure the terminal to display at a different =3D
> resolution/color depth?
> Lilo carries this option, (video =3D3D 791 or something like that) but =
I =3D
> haven't seen a way to do it in BSD yet.

You mean the console?  Or the X server?

You can have some control over the ``resolution'' of the console by
loading a different font (I don't think that the video characteristics
change).  I don't know why you would care about the color depth on most
consoles.  (Though, e.g., on the Amiga, you might want a shallower =
screen
to improve speed.  I remember running my Amiga native OS with a 2-color =
WB
screen for this reason---as well as to conserve precious memory that =
could
be used for other purposes, such as running programs.  (^&)

On the other hand, on something like a PC, you wouldn't get any benefit
from using less than the normal color depth.

Using *more* than the standard color depth...I don't think that there's
really any standard way (or many/any programs) to exploit this in a text
console.  (And, for that matter, I'm not aware of any way to achieve
it---though the answer to this might be port-specific...)


On the other hand, with X, it's easy to vary color-depth (provided your =
X
server and configuration support it).  E.g., I use ``startx -- -bpp 16''
to get a 16-bit color depth; ``startx -- -bpp 24'' gives me 24-bit =
color,
etc.  (I don't know if the ``-bpp'' is XFRee86-specific; if you are =
using
a NetBSD port that doesn't use XFree86, you may need a different =
option.)

I've never wanted/needed to seledct resolution when starting X, but you
can easily use (with XFree86) <ctrl><alt><keypad +> and =
<ctrl><alt><keypad
-> to get much the same effect.

If you felt like it, you could create a custom front-end script to start
X, which would let you specify things like color-depth and resolution, =
and
then would rewrite your X configuration so that only that mode was
available.  (^&


  ``I probably don't know what I'm talking about.'' =
--rauch@math.rice.edu