RastaConverter Beta 9: Image converter for Atari 8-bit computers gets a makeover
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After almost eleven years, Jakub "Ilmenit" Dębski released a new and improved version of his RastaConverter program, a tool that allows you to transform any image or photo into XEX executable files for Atari 8-bit computers.
The new version, dubbed RastaConverter - Beta 9, features significant improvements over its predecessor. The code has been significantly rewritten, resolving bugs such as sprite repositioning, thanks to the input of renowned programmers Chris "Sheddy" Hutt (UK) and Avery "Phaeron" Lee (USA).
The program, released in 2012, no longer depends on the Allegro 4 library, which has been replaced by the modern SDL2 version, allowing the creation of a 64-bit version to increase the amount of memory. The use of the LLVM compiler has also been implemented to increase the speed and overall performance of the program. In addition, the thread limit for the /threads parameter has been removed, allowing for greater parallel processing. RastaConverter Beta 9 also includes an autosave feature that stores results every 100,000 iterations. Thanks to contributions from Daniel "DMSC" Serpell (Chile) and Stefan "Polluks" (Germany), the compilation processes for Linux have been improved. Additionally, the help file has been updated, courtesy of Steve "Snicklin" Nicklin (Australia).
Dębski thanked the Atari community for their invaluable support, particularly highlighting the help of "Sheddy" Hutt, who convinced him to take up the project again. The result of these collaborations is a tool that takes advantage of the advanced capabilities of the Atari hardware, such as changing colors while drawing lines and sprite multiplication, allowing image conversion at a level that surpasses standard graphics converters.
For those interested in exploring the works done by the RastaConverter user community, you can visit the relevant thread on the AtariAge forumto see shared conversions.
RastaConverter Beta 9
Download | 3.6 MBWith information from AtariOnline.pl.
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