Anyone working on graphics console for GRUB 2?

Anyone working on graphics console for GRUB 2?

[James Buchanan]

If someone has started on this, how will the graphics be done?  Will 
it use a standalone SVGAlib, maybe a "generic" SVGA framebuffer, 
working to the VESA BIOS Extensions v3 or somesuch?  The RedHat Grub 
screen is very nice.  Not sure how they did it.  Has a nice clean set 
of widgets.  How would Unicode characters be drawn on the screen, 
would there be a lookup table of bitmap font outlines or something?

--
James

Re: Anyone working on graphics console for GRUB 2?

[M. Gerards]

Quoting James Buchanan <buchanan@iinet.net.au>:

> If someone has started on this, how will the graphics be done?  Will 
> it use a standalone SVGAlib, maybe a "generic" SVGA framebuffer, 

Using SVGAlib would be evil and a lot of work.

I think the best way to do this is by using VESA.  At the moment there
is a VGA framebuffer, but it needs to be fixed.  If you want to work
on this, can you fix the VGA framebuffer?

> working to the VESA BIOS Extensions v3 or somesuch?  The RedHat Grub 
> screen is very nice.  Not sure how they did it.  Has a nice clean set 
> of widgets.  How would Unicode characters be drawn on the screen, 
> would there be a lookup table of bitmap font outlines or something?

AFAIK a bitmap font is used for GRUB 2.  Just have a look at the sourcecode.

--
Marco

Re: Anyone working on graphics console for GRUB 2?

[James Buchanan]

M. Gerards wrote:

> Using SVGAlib would be evil and a lot of work.
> 
> I think the best way to do this is by using VESA.  At the moment there
> is a VGA framebuffer, but it needs to be fixed.  If you want to work
> on this, can you fix the VGA framebuffer?

I'll have a go.  I'll post to the list again if I get some results.

Cheers,
James

Re: Anyone working on graphics console for GRUB 2?

[Shivram Khandeparker]

On Monday 10 May 2004 15:45, M. Gerards wrote:

> I think the best way to do this is by using VESA.  At the moment there
> is a VGA framebuffer, but it needs to be fixed.  If you want to work
> on this, can you fix the VGA framebuffer?
>

I had written a VESA splashimage patch for grub legacy.
It was working fine, but i wasnt really able to add more features to it.
Since the new grub is supposed to have a graphics console i could
integrate my old patch into it.

I was wondering if i could start right away or should i wait for the
new source to mature a bit. Please point me in the right direction.

regards
Shivram

Re: Anyone working on graphics console for GRUB 2?

[Marco Gerards]

Shivram Khandeparker <shivramk@sancharnet.in> writes:

> I had written a VESA splashimage patch for grub legacy.
> It was working fine, but i wasnt really able to add more features to it.
> Since the new grub is supposed to have a graphics console i could
> integrate my old patch into it.

Please do so.

> I was wondering if i could start right away or should i wait for the
> new source to mature a bit. Please point me in the right direction.

If everyone waits the code will never get much better.

I really hope you will start hacking now, instead of waiting.  If you
have any questions about either contributing or about the code, just
ask them.

Thanks,
Marco