____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ / ___|_ __ ___ ___ _ __ | | (_) __ _| |__ | |_| | | | __ _ ___| | __ | | _| '__/ _ \/ _ \ '_ \| | | |/ _` | '_ \| __| |_| |/ _` |/ __| |/ / | |_| | | | __/ __/ | | | |___| | (_| | | | | |_| _ | (_| | (__| < \____|_| \___|\___|_| |_|_____|_|\__, |_| |_|\__|_| |_|\__,_|\___|_|\_\ -----------------------------------|___/---------------------------------- README.txt version 1.3, 1/6/02 by Douglas I. Anderson Description =========== GreenLightHack is a HackMaster hack that reverses the polarity of the screen when the backlight is turned on (all white pixels become black and all black pixels become white). This has the effect of making the backlight on the old Palm models (Palm III and below) look like the new ones, and the backlight on the new ones (Palm IIIx and above) look like the old ones. This hack is designed for PalmOS devices that have black and white screens and that use the display controller built-in to the CPU. This includes all black and white Palm and Handspring devices shipped at the time of this hack (1/6/02) and probably some devices from other manufacturers. You should use it on other devices at your own risk. Why? ==== Why does this hack exist? Well, the other day I was looking at LightHack by Neal Bridges (http://www.interlog.com/~nbridges/). Seemed like a cool hack, but it didn't seem worth $5.00. I decided to delete the hack (since I don't like keeping shareware that I don't pay for). However, soon after I was browsing through the DragonBall CPU manual (honestly...I don't usually spend my time doing things like this) and noticed that inverting the screen was as simple as flipping a single bit. Having already played with hacks, I decided to write up this one. :) Why is it called "GreenLightHack"? Well, it's a hack to invert the backlight, but it's free (it saves you "green"). Note: this release is not intended to be a slam against shareware in general or Neal Bridges in particular. I think shareware is great and advocate paying for it if you use it. Looking at Neal Bridges page, he has some other cool programs. I invite you to visit there. Requirements ============ * A supported, black and white, device. * Approximately 1K available memory. * The HackMaster application from DaggerWare or an appropriate competitor. - To get a copy of Hackmaster, go to: . Note that HackMaster is shareware. Please pay for it if you use it. - To get a copy of X-Master, a free version of Hackmaster, go to: . If you're running on OS < 3.5, make sure you are using X-Master 1.3 or later. Installation ============ IMPORTANT: if you do not uninstall a previous version of GreenLightHack before installing this one, your Palm will crash. Nuff said. If you haven't already installed HackMaster, do that first. Follow instructions from the HackMaster web page, which can be found at . Remember to register HackMaster. Now, simply install appropriate GreenLightHack ".prc" file as you would any other ".prc" file. Go into HackMaster and click on the box to select GreenLightHack. That's it. Legal Junk & Distribution ========================= This program and its source code are in the public domain. Enjoy. If you're happy with this program, feel free to e-mail me. Note: although I don't anticipate any trouble I should say that I take no responsibility for any actions this program takes. Contact Info ============ Probably the easiest way to contact me is via e-mail. However, I always appreciate getting real mail... e-mail: da AT byteswapped.com address: Doug Anderson 2235 California St., #205 Mountain View, CA 94040 web: ...hope to hear from you. Known bugs ========== * If your device resets when GreenLightHack is active with the backlight, your screen will be inverted (doh!). To fix this, turn the backlight on and off. Version History =============== 1.3, 01/06/02 - Added support for another backlight function that was sometimes used; removed "sometimes" and "usually" versions; now detects the hack being uninstalled when the backlight is turned on. 1.2, 06/06/99 - The always and sometimes versions always turn inversion off when the backlight is shut off...even if the the graffiti state has changed. 1.1, 03/23/99 - Now comes in always, usually, and sometimes varieties based on a suggestion by Siegfried Runge. 1.0, 03/23/99 - Initial public release.