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<TITLE>SuperConvert 4, A Review - by Rudy A. Guy </TITLE>
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<H3>SuperConvert 4, A Review</H3>
<BR>
<B><I>By: Rudy A. Guy</I></B><BR>
<BR>
It was the late 1980's when I was first introduced to SuperConvert. I<BR>
believe that the first version was shareware and had a version number<BR>
of 2.1. It was a program that was ahead of its time. The conversion<BR>
of graphics from other computer systems to an Apple IIGS was unheard<BR>
of; heck unthinkable. Well, not to Jason Harper. Jason's SuperConvert<BR>
3.0 was perhaps the hottest software product of its day. Today, many<BR>
years after the last IIGS rolled off the assembly line, SuperConvert<BR>
is back. This time it's version 4. Gone is Jason Harper; in his place<BR>
is Ian Brumby. Back is one of the best graphic conversion programs<BR>
available for Apple IIGS users.<BR>
<BR>
Ian Brumby and Seven Hills Software have put together a great graphics<BR>
conversion program for the remaining base of Apple IIGS users. How<BR>
big is this base? Who knows?! But, if you are one of the remaining<BR>
faithful, get out your VISA or MasterCard and place your order. This<BR>
latest incarnation of SuperConvert is at the head of its class in<BR>
conversions. While it's not perfect, it's darn close.<BR>
<BR>
Ian has added many new format conversions including: <BR>
<BR>
New Print Shop graphics<BR>
ThunderScan raw scan files<BR>
Springboard Publisher Works of Art format ComputerEyes GS raw data files<BR>
DreamGrafix SHR screens and 3200 color screens Windows BMP files<BR>
Venture Publisher IMG and GEM files<BR>
Sun Rasterfiles<BR>
Portable Pixelmap files (PBM, PGM & PPM) Portable Network Graphics (PNG)<BR>
SGI Iris formats (SGI, BW, RGB & RGBA)<BR>
Improved PCX and MacPaint graphic files<BR>
<BR>
Add to that a claimed 20% increase in the conversion speed of formats<BR>
that appeared in SuperConvert 3.0. Actually, that figure appears a<BR>
bit low. I tried converting 640 x 480 GIF files on both versions and<BR>
the conversion time on version 3.0 was 80 seconds. Version 4 did the<BR>
same conversion in 50 seconds. That's a 37.5% increase in speed.<BR>
(Note: I am using a 10 MHz ZipGS accelerator in my GS. Your times may<BR>
be different based upon your system configuration.)<BR>
<BR>
Beside the new conversion formats available in SuperConvert 4, there<BR>
are also a few new save options available to the user. They include:<BR>
<BR>
Improved save format for Finder icons<BR>
<BR>
A hex data save format Icon resource save option for HyperCard GS PNG<BR>
format save<BR>
<BR>
Most Mac and PC graphic programs include filters for manipulating<BR>
graphic files. This is one feature that was either absent on Apple<BR>
graphics programs or next-to-impossible to use without the aid of a<BR>
computer guru. In SuperConvert 4, the filters are referred to as<BR>
special effects.î Whatever they are called, they work extremely<BR>
well.<BR>
<BR>
Emboss - Helps to create a 3-D effect in a near greyscale<BR>
environment.<BR>
<BR>
Blur - Da! Would you believe that this option allows you to make an<BR>
image less sharp? In other words, it blurs the image.<BR>
<BR>
Sharpen - Makes an image less blurry.<BR>
<BR>
Solarize - According to Ian, this filter tries to achieve an effect<BR>
similar to that seen when exposing photographic film to light during<BR>
the development process. I always wondered what that was all about.<BR>
I expected the screen to turn bright yellow like the sun!<BR>
<BR>
Find Edges - Detects edges of an image and highlights them. While<BR>
doing this SuperConvert turns the rest of the image black. Even on a<BR>
10MHz ZipGS, this takes a long time to complete. Start the process<BR>
and then go read War and Peace.<BR>
<BR>
Increase Contrast - A no-brainer again! This option increases<BR>
contrast between colors in an image.<BR>
<BR>
Decrease Contrast - Just the opposite of Increase Contrast.<BR>
<BR>
Left over from the prior version of SuperConvert is the Histogram<BR>
equalization option. This filter attempts to balance out the<BR>
intensity of color values in the image.<BR>
<BR>
The remap options of SuperConvert were always the hardest to master.<BR>
Graphic Mode selection was fairly easy; there are no changes there.<BR>
Nor are there changes with the palette or rendering options. It's the<BR>
Other Options that excited me. This is the area that aided in the<BR>
rescaling of the image. Trying to keep the height and width aspects<BR>
correct when rescaling a 640 x 480 image often proved cumbersome.<BR>
Now, there is an Auto Aspect Ratio option that makes rescaling images<BR>
a breeze. It's just too bad than Ian didn't add a Reduce to Screen<BR>
option like Prism has incorporated. Oh well, maybe that can be added<BR>
in a later version (if there is a later version).<BR>
<BR>
A Monochrome menu option has been added for working with black and<BR>
white (Mac) images. Now, images remain in black and white unless<BR>
converted.<BR>
<BR>
Finally, additional features have been added to the image window. A<BR>
toolbar appears after an image has been loaded and converted. It<BR>
provides control over the image type (true color, monochrome or<BR>
screen image), the zoom factor (view from 1/8 to 8 times the size of<BR>
the normal image) and the selection method. The latter option permits<BR>
selection of a portion of the existing image for further<BR>
manipulation. This area, according to the author, will be expanded in<BR>
the future. (Version 4.1?)<BR>
<BR>
One confusing aspect of SuperConvert is the mention of Babelfish.<BR>
According to the help file, Babelfish is a tool that applications<BR>
use to import and export (load and save) date without knowing<BR>
anything about a particular data format. Babelfish is a Seven Hills<BR>
product. I give up! Who or what is using this format? If you select<BR>
the Babelfish load option you get an 'Unable to startup Bablefish'<BR>
error message. The same message shows up when using the save options.<BR>
Hmmm.... Why include an option that doesn't function?<BR>
<BR>
<B>Requirements</B><BR>
<BR>
Apple IIGS running GS/OS 5.0.2 and later At least 1MB of memory<BR>
One 3.5" disk drive<BR>
All GS/OS-compatible printers are supported <BR>
<BR>
[Note: I would highly recommend greater than 1 meg or RAM, a hard<BR>
drive and an accelerator. If your system doesn't have these features<BR>
and if you are converting color GIF or JPG files; lay in a few good<BR>
video tapes to watch while the conversions take place.]<BR>
<BR>
Price: $40.00<BR>
<BR>
<B>Here's contact information from Seven Hills from their website:</B> <BR>
<BR>
Fax: 904-575-2015, anytime<BR>
<BR>
Phone: 904-575-0566, 9am-5pm ET, Monday through Friday <BR>
<BR>
Mail: 1254 Ocala Road,<BR>
Tallahassee, FL 32304-1548 <BR>
<BR>
Ordering Information<BR>
<BR>
When ordering any product we need:<BR>
<BR>
Your name<BR>
Your shipping address<BR>
Your area code and phone number (optional) <BR>
Your preferred email address if you have one<BR>
(optional) A list of the items you are ordering<BR>
Payment information<BR>
<BR>
Visa/Mastercard/Discover credit card orders can be placed by email,<BR>
fax, or regular mail. Be sure to include your card number and<BR>
expiration date. You may also call and leave a voice mail message<BR>
with the details of your order if our phone is busy. Just press "7"<BR>
when you hear the greeting to leave your message. However we receive<BR>
your order, we will fill it promptly.<BR>
<BR>
We also accept personal checks and money orders by regular mail.<BR>
<BR>
For all orders add $3.50 shipping and handling per order, not per<BR>
item (foreign shipping is charged at actual airmail cost, minimum of<BR>
$3.50, charged to a credit card unless otherwise arranged). <BR>
<BR>
Florida residents add 7% tax.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
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