How to convert your photos and images to Atari format
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Learn how to transform any image on your PC - including your photos! - into a file to view on an Atari 8-bit computer, with the RastaConverter program.
Step 0: Search or generate a horizontal image of 320 by 240 pixels. The formats accepted by the program are: JPG, PNG, GIF and BMP.
Step 1: Download the program:
RastaConverter (v. 06.2013) for PC
Download | 1.86 MBStep 2: Unzip the downloaded file.
Step 3: Double-click the RCGUI.exe file.
Step 4: In the window that opens, locate the "File" field. Press the "Choose" button below it; locate and select the image on your PC.
Step 5: At the bottom you should increase the "Number of solutions" figure: this is the number of times the program will try to optimize the resulting image. A number greater than 10000 is recommended.
Later, we will discuss other parameters that can be modified for better results.
Step 6: To test the settings you have made, press the "Preprocess preview" button. A preview of the result is displayed.
Step 7: To start the conversion press the "Convert!" button. A window with three images opens:
- on the left, the original image.
- in the center, the image being converted in real time to the Atari format.
- on the right, the result we hope to achieve at the end of the process.
Below are some statistics of the optimization process. According to RastaConverter's algorithm, the longer you wait, the better results you will get.
Step 8: When you are satisfied with the result, press the "S" key to save the file. Close the window with the three images to return to the initial window of the program.
Step 9: Click on "Create executable file". A window will open where you must enter the name for the Atari executable file (XEX format). By default, every file is saved in the same folder as the program.
Step 10: The result opens immediately if you have an Atari emulator installed that has the XEX extension files associated with it. Here are some examples:
Images converted with RastaConverter for Atari 8-bits
Download | 33 KbAdditional parameters
RastaConverter allows us to make other adjustments, the most important being:- Palette: The quality of the result depends a lot on the similarity between the chosen Atari palette and the image palette. The default palette (laoo) covers a wide range of colors and is close to the real Atari palette. Other recommended palette options are: Altirra and OlivierP.
- Dithering: Possible dithering types are: chess (typical 8-bit dithering technique); floyd (Floyd-Steinberg dithering - more "random" than checkerboard dithering); 2d; simple; jarvis (the most artistic) and knoll (the slowest).
- Color distance: Default is yuv (generally produces better color mapping than euclidean, but for some images RGB distance is also useful). Other options: euclid (fastest option); ciede (uses the better CIEDE2000 visual color distance algorithm, but can be very slow); and cie94.
Other details
If the colors in the image on the right are incorrect (for example, too gray), try a different palette file or readjust the original image to match the palette file using another PC tool.You can also ask the program to privilege certain parts of the image by creating a "detail mask" file, always 320x240 pixels; the white areas of this mask will tell the program which areas of the image to convert should pay more attention to. To load this file, click on the box under "Mask".
Developed by Jakub "Ilmenit" Debski, RastaConverter converts graphics from modern computers to the old Atari 8-bit computers. For more information, you can visit theProgram page on GitHub
Likewise, if you want to see or contribute your own creations, we recommendVisit this thread on the AtariAge forum
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