Subject: Mostly-new vidcaudio(4) driver
To: None <port-acorn32@NetBSD.org>
From: Ben Harris <bjh21@NetBSD.org>
List: port-acorn32
Date: 12/31/2003 15:33:15
After a couple of solid days' hacking, I seem to have got the vidcaudio(4)
driver to work, both on a VIDC20 (8-bit, mu-law) and an ARM7500FE (16-bit,
linear).  I don't know whether it's ever worked before, but there's
certainly precious little of the old driver left.  The new version is in
NetBSD-current, and people should test it.  Risc PCs with 16-bit sound
aren't supported, largely because I haven't got one, so I don't know how
to reliably detect the 16-bit sound hardware.  Donations of appropriate
kit will be gratefully accepted.

Here's the (also new) manual page:

NAME
     vidcaudio - VIDC audio device driver

SYNOPSIS
     vidcaudio0 at vidc0
     audio*     at vidcaudio0

DESCRIPTION
     The vidcaudio driver provides support for the audio system of the ARM
     VIDC20 and of the video and sound macrocell of the ARM7500 and ARM7500FE.
     The driver can work in two modes, either using the internal 8-bit DACs of
     the VIDC20 and its internal reference clock, or using the serial sound
     output of the ARM7500 or ARM7500FE feeding external 16-bit DACs and an
     external sound clock.

SEE ALSO
     audio(4)

HISTORY
     The vidcaudio driver was introduced in NetBSD 1.2.  The driver was large-
     ly rewritten for NetBSD 2.0 because it had bit-rotted so far as to be
     useless.

AUTHORS
     The first version was written by Melvin Tang-Richardson.  The rewrite was
     by Ben Harris.

BUGS
     The driver always uses 8-bit mode on the VIDC20, whereas it should use
     16-bit mode if external DACs are fitted.

     The driver doesn't support the sysbeep() interface for emulating a con-
     sole bell.


-- 
Ben Harris                                                   <bjh21@NetBSD.org>
Portmaster, NetBSD/acorn26           <URL:http://www.NetBSD.org/Ports/acorn26/>