ATI CCC development

[Zod]

While playing with my newly built PVR system and tweaking the ATI Catalyst Control Center settings, I got the idea of trying to write a GB-PVR plugin that would automatically set the overscan mode of a Radeon graphics adapter before and after playing a recorded video. I skimmed through the ATI CCC SDK, and at first it looked like it'd be an easy bit of code. Here's the quick test VB.net sample I tried:

(Ignore the spaces being inserted on longer lines, it's something the forum is doing on its own)

Code:

Imports ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2
Imports ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2.Graphics

Module Main

    Sub Main()
        Dim so As New ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2.Graphics.Shared.ScreenOverscan

        If so.GetOverscanSupported() Then
            MsgBox("Overscan supported, currently: " & so.GetOverscanCurrent().ToString())

            Dim aspect As ATI.ACE.CLI.Foundation.
            Dim tv As New ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2.Graphics.Shared.SDeviceTV2(

            Select Case so.GetOverscanCurrent()
                Case [Shared].TV2SCANTYPE.Underscan
                    If Not so.Set(ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2.Graphics.Shared.TV2SCANTYPE.Middlescan) Then
                        MsgBox("Unable to set scan mode")
                    End If
                Case [Shared].TV2SCANTYPE.Middlescan
                    If Not so.Set(ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2.Graphics.Shared.TV2SCANTYPE.Overscan) Then
                        MsgBox("Unable to set scan mode")
                    End If
                Case [Shared].TV2SCANTYPE.Overscan
                    If Not so.Set(ATI.ACE.CLI.Aspect.DeviceTV2.Graphics.Shared.TV2SCANTYPE.Underscan) Then
                        MsgBox("Unable to set scan mode")
                    End If
            End Select
        Else
            MsgBox("Overscan not supported")
        End If
    End Sub

End Module

It does run, but so.GetOverscanSupported() returns false no matter what I try (including running it on a system with TV-Out). I'm guessing that the new instances I create have no actual relationship to the settings in use on the graphics adapter itself. However, looking through the SDK, I can't figure out any other way to obtain an instance of that object...I can't find anything that returns a "ScreenOverscan" object.

Does anyone have any tips for this newbie?

[ChristianW]

Note that I have not (yet) played with either the ATI sdk or the gbpvr sdk so this is just a general programming tip

Are you sure the GetOverscanSupported() returns a boolean?

Christian...

[Zod]

Are you sure the GetOverscanSupported() returns a boolean?

Heh, I won't pretend I'm a 1337 h4x0r, but I usually get my data types right, at least! From the ATI CCC SDK documentation:

public bool GetOverscanSupported();
Returns whether overscan screen adjustment are supported

I'm back-burnering this little project for the time being. Either it's going to be really easy to do (similar to what I have written above), or it'll be a bitch (the ATI CCC SDK outlines a somewhat cumbersome dashboard/runtime virtual client/server programming model that I'm in no hurry to learn for something as simple as this). Of course, it doesn't help that, as usual, the SDK sample code only contains one, partially useful sample. Why can't SDK's ever include *real* practical sample code? Ok, that's not true...MS's Platform SDK contained plenty. But still...

[Zod]

FYI to anyone else interested in the ATI Catalyst Control Center SDK, it is officially not supported by anyone at ATI (I tried). You can't even get support as a registered developer, since it doesn't fall into the classification of a "3D or Multimedia Application".

If I could only figure out how to create a valid instance of any one of the graphics hardware objects listed in the SDK reference...their sample code is useless for that.