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From: markus@rsvl.unisys.com (Mark K Vallevand)
Subject: Re: DOOM for X
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Date: Fri, 11 Mar 1994 17:42:36 GMT
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References: <1994Mar3.131137.27311@infodev.cam.ac.uk> <CM44Lq.78x@seagoon.newcastle.edu.au> <2lkpg5$8hn@Tut.MsState.Edu> <hastyCMEw58.FMr@netcom.com> <2lm9ih$6s5@godot.cc.duq.edu> <glen.763349922@paladine>
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In article <glen.763349922@paladine> glen@paladine.ece.jcu.edu.au (Glen Harris) writes:

>In <2lm9ih$6s5@godot.cc.duq.edu> mcquill@next.duq.edu (Tod McQuillin) writes:
>>Amancio, what effect, if any, do you think the shared memory extentions of X
>>have on graphics performance?

>  What it means is that a bitmap in memory is mapped directly over the
>screen, so an access to the array is an access to the screen.  After the
>mapping is set up, there's no calls to X for the graphics.  In effect,
>it's exactly as if you were in dos, but there's no 64Kb segment switching
>as the system does this transparently.  *I* don't know how page flipping 
>is done, maybe there's a X call to do this, or a fast memcpy during the
>refresh?  Inquiring minds.......

No, no, no.  The X shared memory extension simply gives the X app and X server 
shared access to a piece of memory so that they can exchange data quickly.  
Instead of sending a huge message through, a tiny message is sent with a 
reference to the shared memory that has the huge chunk of data.  It's not 
exactly as it is in DOS.  Its not that close to what it is in DOS.  

Get a book about X programming.  Read about images and pixmaps.  If you can 
understand that, the shared memory extension is just a way to excelerate image 
and pixmap operations.


Regards.
Mark K Vallevand    Unisys Corp  Roseville, Minnesota    markus@rsvl.unisys.com
Mail Station 4313, POBox 65942, St Paul, MN 55164   612-635-7880

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