BIOS calls

[Daniel Sheltraw]

Hello LinuxBIOS list

Does LinuxBIOS have a protected-mode API that can be used in 
kernel-space to config devices similar to the old DOS-based
BIOS calls in real-mode?

Thank you,
Daniel Sheltraw

[ron minnich]

On Tue, 2 Mar 2004, Daniel Sheltraw wrote:
> Does LinuxBIOS have a protected-mode API that can be used in 
> kernel-space to config devices similar to the old DOS-based
> BIOS calls in real-mode?

no, intentionally not. We don't ever want to get back into that nightmare 
unless it becomes hopelessly unavoidable.

ron

[Daniel Sheltraw]

Quoting ron minnich :
> On Tue, 2 Mar 2004, Daniel Sheltraw wrote:
> > Does LinuxBIOS have a protected-mode API that can be used in 
> > kernel-space to config devices similar to the old DOS-based
> > BIOS calls in real-mode?
>
> no, intentionally not. We don't ever want to get back into that
> nightmare 
> unless it becomes hopelessly unavoidable.
>
> ron

Ron

I have been used Linux and RTAI-Linux to develop a hard real-time
application called RTStim which is used in functional neuroimaging
experimentation. RTStim makes use of two video cards. One card is
controlled by normal Linux and provides a GUI to RTStim. The other
card provides visual stimuli to subjects. To configure the second 
video card we have been using Linux's ability to configure video
while still in real mode by modifying the lilo config file. It would
be fantastic if we could eliminate the modification of this config 
file in the installation of RTStim. If we had a BIOS call to do
such a thing that would be ideal.

Do you know how to access such configuration ROM for video while
in protected-mode.?

Thanks again,
daniel

[ron minnich]

yes, we can help you with this. Let me talk to you next week, or Ollie 
and/or David hendricks can fill you in. But we can start up (some, not 
all, yet) cards from user mode.

ron

[Li-Ta Lo]

On Tue, 2004-03-02 at 16:42, Daniel Sheltraw wrote:
> Quoting ron minnich :
> > On Tue, 2 Mar 2004, Daniel Sheltraw wrote:
> > > Does LinuxBIOS have a protected-mode API that can be used in 
> > > kernel-space to config devices similar to the old DOS-based
> > > BIOS calls in real-mode?
> >
> > no, intentionally not. We don't ever want to get back into that
> > nightmare 
> > unless it becomes hopelessly unavoidable.
> >
> > ron
>
> Ron
>
> I have been used Linux and RTAI-Linux to develop a hard real-time
> application called RTStim which is used in functional neuroimaging
> experimentation. RTStim makes use of two video cards. One card is
> controlled by normal Linux and provides a GUI to RTStim. The other
> card provides visual stimuli to subjects. To configure the second 
> video card we have been using Linux's ability to configure video
> while still in real mode by modifying the lilo config file. It would
> be fantastic if we could eliminate the modification of this config 
> file in the installation of RTStim. If we had a BIOS call to do
> such a thing that would be ideal.
>
> Do you know how to access such configuration ROM for video while
> in protected-mode.?

If the only thing you want to deal with is VGA, you don't need any
legacy bios call facility. We have emulators which can init the
VGA card in user mode.

BTW, are you using BOTH card in the same system ? Don't they conflict
each other ?

Ollie