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PRODUCT: Eye-Scan
MANUFACTURER: Digital Engineering
LIST PRICE: $89.95
DESCRIPTION:  Video Digitizer for C-64, SX64 and C-128

Exotic hardware add-ons.  They stand out from the usual lines of modems,
disk drives and printers.  And the Eye-Scan video digitizer is one of THE
most exotic add-ons available!

Video digitizers allow you to input a standard video signal and convert it
to a bit-map image.  How well they perform that conversion, and the utility
of the supporting software is the basis for evaluation.

The DIGITAL ENGINEERING Eye-Scan comes blister-packed for a peg-board store
display.  I'm sure this cuts down on the costs of packaging, but for my
money, I'd like to see a sturdy box.  That gives me a place to safely store
it when not in use and provides a little extra safety in shipping (if need
be).  Opening the blister gives you the digitizer itself, 1 floppy disk
with the digitizing software and a warranty & disclaimer sheet (it's the
ONLY printed paper with it and is the usual "we claim no responsibility..."
90 days on the hardware....disclaimer).

The digitizer is about the size of a standard cartridge, with an edge
connector for use in the "User-Port".  On top is a standard phono jack to
plug your video into.  On ether side is a very tiny control.  The left is
for sync adjustment and the right, for brightness adjustment.  Both
controls only extend their "thumbwheel knob" about 3/8" at its farthest.
On the unit I used, both knobs scraped on the top of the hole cut in the
cartridge, which made them VERY hard to adjust.  While this is no problem
for the sync control, it does cause trouble when the brightness needs to be
adjusted.  More on this later.

Set-up is VERY easy.  With the computer off, insert the digitizer into the
user-port and plug in your video (camera, VCR, video disk, etc.) into the
jack on top.  The only written documentation is a label on the disk jacket
that says, "LOAD "*",8 and type RUN".  When the software comes up, you find
a menu that lets you print out the docs that are stored on the disk, get
technical information on the digitizing software to allow use in your own
program and finally, use the digitizing software.  Selection is done on a
numbered menu.

Selecting USE, presents you with an Amiga or Mac like menu selection across
the top of the screen.  There is a sprite pointer that you move with the
cursor keys to point to the function you wish to perform.  HELP, CAPTURE,
DOS, ADJUSTMENTS and EXIT are the major functions.  Moving the arrow cursor
to the box is awkward at best.  When the arrow is on the selection you
want, hitting return drops down a menu of items to select from .  While
this method of pointing, selecting, and drop down menus has become very
popular on some of the high-powered machines, it is implemented poorly with
the Eye-Scan software.  There is no way to use a trackball, mouse or
joystick as a replacement for the cursor keys.  It is quite time consuming
to position the cursor properly with the cursor keys.  And while selecting
a function drops down a menu, it's VERY slow and there is no reason for the
drop down.  There is nothing on the screen of importance that a menu would
cover-up.  Use of the digitizer would be much faster and more convenient if
all functions appeared on the screen at one time and selection was done
with a number or letter, as is customary with menus.

Initially, the SYNC must be set up properly.  This syncronizes the
digitizer to the video coming into it.  Selecting SYNC from the menu gives
you a message at the bottom that tells you to adjust the control or IN
SYNC.  If the unit is not in sync, the border is red.  When you adjust the
control to bring it in sync, it turns green.  This is generally required
only when you first fire up the digitizer.  It usually remains constant
unless you change video sources.

Another function that is heavily used is BRIGHTNESS ADJUST.  This allows
you to set the "threshold" of white in the picture.  When selected it
continuously digitizes and displays to the screen.  You adjust the
brightness control until the white areas in the picture are white on the
screen.  With a color or black and white continuous tone picture (something
that has greys in it) you adjust for just the highlights to be white.  This
is where the small size of the control and its position present a problem.
Many people put their monitor on a little stand directly above and behind
their computer.  The cables stream out and under the monitor.  It's usually
a little hard to constantly reach behind the system to adjust a control.
Add this to the small size and tight fit of the brightness control,
and it can be quite difficult to adjust this control properly.  Since
every picture must be "set-up" with the brightness control, it's difficult
to use the digitizer easily.

Once everything is set, you move to the CAPTURE menu.  Here you can select
from several modes of capture and toggle the bit-map picture on and off for
viewing.  There are 3 different capture modes...Normal (just black and
white), 4 level, and 8 level.  4 & 8 level captures convert grey areas into
different percentages of black and white dots, creating the illusion of
grey in the picture.  It's much like a picture in a newspaper.  If you hold
the paper normally and look at a photograph printed there, you see what
appears to be a normal photograph.   But on close inspection, you see it is
a collection of different sized black spots.  A large black spot looks
black and a very small one appears white, while dots in between, appear to
be shades of grey.  Eye-Scan operates much the same way when generating a
bit-map of your video.  4 level capture creates 4 levels of "color".
Black, white and 2 apparently grey levels.  8 level capture creates 6 greys
in addition to black and white.

The amount of time it takes to digitize varies with the capture level.  A
normal scan will only take 6 seconds.  While an 8 level scan takes almost 2
minutes to create.  During the digitizing time, the picture coming into the
digitizer must remain perfectly still.  Needless to say, live camera
pictures of yourself or friends are pretty-much ruled out.  There can also
be a little problem with using a VCR as a video source.  Most VCRs have
a little instability while in pause.  Sometimes this is a problem and
sometimes it isn't.  The only way to really tell is to try it out.  If you
intend to capture a lot of pictures from video tape, you really need to
have a top of the line VCR that produces a rock steady picture in pause.

The most outstanding feature of this digitizer is its scan quality.
During a 4 or 8 level capture, the digitizer converts just one level of
brightness at a time.  This requires it to "look" at the picture 4 or 8
times.  This requires that each scan be locked to the rate that the picture
is coming into the digitizer (ah ha...one of the reasons for SYNC!). Each
scan must start and end at the same place in the picture.  If the scan is
not EXACTLY in sync with the picture, each level of the scan could be a
little to the left or right of the previous scan.  This gives a "ghosting"
effect to the bit-map.  Eye-Scan was exactly on target during all scans in
the tests I made.  This is partly controlled in hardware and partly in
software, and is always the toughest problem to overcome in creating a
digitizer and its driving software.  Digital Engineering has done an
outstanding job.

When the digitizer has completed its scans, it pops into VIEW mode to let
you see the picture.  If it is too light or dark, simply adjust the
brightness (not easily done!) and repeat the scan.  Brightness adjustment
is very touchy.  A VERY small adjustment can make a big difference in your
bit-map image.  Each scan overwrites the previous picture in memory.  When
you have a picture you are satisfied with, you use the DISK commands to
save it on floppy.

Eye-Scan allows you to save your bit-map in several graphic formats.
Doodle, Koala and Blazing Paddles formats are supported directly.  You may
convert to other formats with other utilities available elsewhere.  (Many,
by the way, are public domain or freeware, and may be downloaded from GEnie
and Delphi.)  While it is convenient to convert the bit-map into different
formats, all the basic digitizing is done as a straight, hi-res bit-map.
Conversions are made to create multi-color bit-maps.  If you generally use
Doodle or Print Shop or another hi-res bit-map utility, this is no problem.
If you use Koala or another multi-color mode bit-map utility, it is much
better to directly digitize in that particular mode.  It gives much cleaner
and useful digitization.  Computer-Eyes by Digital Vision stands head over
heels in this respect.

Other features include an on-line help utility, but if you print the docs
provided you'll have the same material.  Besides, after the first dozen
bit-maps, you'll know all the functions.  I find I'd much rather not have
these type routines in a simple program and save the initial loading time!
The usual assortment of DOS functions are provided too.  These commands are
something NO program should leave out.

Finally, Eye-Scan provides a "Programmers Utility Package"  or "PUP."  This
is the meat and potatoes of the digitizing software and is in machine
language.  It provides a memory map and a list of SYS calls for each
function provided in the digitizing software.  This along with the example
programs on disk provide a basis for you to create your own application
package for use with the digitizer.  What could this possibly be used for?
Due to the speed (or lack of it) in digitizing, not much that I can think
of.  The best use for me would be to completely re-write the digitizing
control program.  If the pop down menus were done away with and the program
concentrated on a serious, easily used user interface, this would be a
pretty darn good package for the price.

The digitizing ML software and hardware are top-notch, but with both soft
and hardware, any interaction with the user is quite poorly implemented.
Would I recommend this product?  If you are a software tinkerer, and have
the patience required to make the brightness adjustments with the poor
controls, yes.  If you are a hardware person AND a software hack, and want
to get inside and tinker, YES!  But if you want to strictly USE it,
straight from the package to create a few Doodles, I'd wait for a major
revision to this product.  While its actual bit-map generating can't be
beat, the supporting user interface is pretty hard to use.

Mike Hooper
(GRAFIX.M on GEnie)