Fast as flange screen updates

Hello

We produce a product called a TGS (picuture included) basically it has some debug screen a circit display. The circuit display is a grid of numbers and states , like IDLE WANS OUT/G etc. The current method we use is a Flexi grid. this in my option is slow and takes up far too much processor time.

Anyway I am thinking of rewriting it using bitmaps and the BitBLt fuction, is this a good Idea or is there something better? Some control maybe?

It will need to be able to flick the states on say 60 circuits 6000 times a minute, so you it needs to be quick.

Any Ideaz??

CMD

G

Well you could always use an array of textboxes or something.
Or you could maybe use the DrawText API

Code:

---

Declare Function DrawText Lib "user32" Alias "DrawTextA" (ByVal hdc As Long, ByVal lpStr As String, ByVal nCount As Long, lpRect As RECT, ByVal wFormat As Long) As Long

' DrawText() Format Flags
Const DT_TOP = &H0
Const DT_LEFT = &H0
Const DT_CENTER = &H1
Const DT_RIGHT = &H2
Const DT_VCENTER = &H4
Const DT_BOTTOM = &H8
Const DT_WORDBREAK = &H10
Const DT_SINGLELINE = &H20
Const DT_EXPANDTABS = &H40
Const DT_TABSTOP = &H80
Const DT_NOCLIP = &H100
Const DT_EXTERNALLEADING = &H200
Const DT_CALCRECT = &H400
Const DT_NOPREFIX = &H800
Const DT_INTERNAL = &H1000

---

That kind of Speed is impossible, unless you plan on Running the thing on an Extremely Fast Machine.

If your FlexiGrid was a PictureBox, with a Scroll Bar Drawn Below it.

You could do it like this:

1 Picture would Contain The Circits in N/A State, the max Circits, you need.

Then another picture for each State, the right size to fit in exactly.

Code:

---

dim Stop as Boolean 'Set this when you wish it to stop updating
dim hDCs(4) as long

Const Background = 1
Const Idle = 2
Const WANS =3
Const OUT/G = 4
Const WidthCircit = 100 (50 for the number, 50 for state)
Const HeightCircit
Const CircitsPerColumn = 12
Const CircitsPerRow = 4

'ScrollBar.Value should have two values - 0 and 1 for 60 circits

Form_Load()
LoadPicture
Stop = False

Do Until Stop = True
      Do Events
      'Blt Background
      BitBlt picture1.hdc , 0,0,picture1.width,picture1.height, hdcs(Background), ScrollBar.Value * WidthCircit,0 SRCCOPY
      for i = CircitsPerColumn * scrollbar.value to CircitsPerColumn * scrollbar.value * CircitsPerRow
          X = ((i \ CircitsPerColumn) - ScrollBar.value) * WidthCircit + (widthcircit /2)
          Y = ((i -1 )mod circitsPerColumn ) * heightColumn

          Select case Circits(i).state
                Case "IDLE" then
                      BitBlt picture1.hdc, x, y,widthcircit /2,heightcircit,hDCs(IDLE),0,0,SRCCOPY
                Case 'etc
            End Select
Loop

UnloadPictures

EndSub

Sub LoadPictures
 ' See the Thread vy Fox concerning Releasing DC's, all the code in there, i need to go work now, just but the DC's into the hDCs Array
End Sub

sub UnLoadPictures
'Ditto
End sub

---

Cheers for the info, sorry the reply was a bit late I blame my Email server, its about as fast as an asmatic hamster. ;)

plenderj: I haven't tried that I'll give it a whril.

Nirces: Well I wrote a test app, based around your code, it was changing 1500 circuits simutanously without any bother.

May be I got my maths wrong, what it is, is a tool for generating calls into a BT switch. You could have 30 active calls for instance each call only lasting .1 of a second having to go through 4 different states.

4 * 30 * 10 * 60 = 72,000 updates to the entire screen per minute.

The test app flicked all 1500 circuits between 2 states with a 200 ms delay in the loop. In one minute it went through the loop 200 times

1500 * 2 * 200 = 600,000 updates per minute.

So it looks as if the API BitBlt is plenty quick enough.

Thanks again

G