fclifton

I installed the most recent Mapopolis update (4.8) and was going through the settings to see what might be different. I noticed under the General Program Options a checkbox for 'Use GAPI for video performance'. On my system, the box is greyed out, and is not checked. I am unfamiliar with GAPI, so I have a few questions:

Is GAPI built in to WM5 on my X51v? If not, how is it added?

Will having GAPI enabled really make a difference in how Mapopolis works?

Thanks,
Frank

rohanch

GAPI should be built in to the x51v, but it's there for legacy purposes only. GAPI was discontinued after WM2003, it's only there now so that "old" apps that used to use GAPI still work. Now publishers are encouraged to use DirectX mobile instead.

It actually stands for "Game API" and it was introduced originally by Microsoft to make a way to program games for PDAs faster and more efficiently. It works for anything 2D/3D though including GPS software. If you've only got the choice of GAPI or no GAPI, GAPI is faster in most programs usually. In mapopolis I guess it would make the screen update faster/smoother.

It might be disabled because the program is detecting you have WM5. Or you might need to copy the GAPI dll file to the program folder. If you download Q3CE for x50 from this page it comes with a file called gx.dll, that is the GAPI dll. Copy that file to the same place as the mapopolis exe on your axim.

bigbop

GAPI won't do anything for Mapopolis. In fact, the developer has stated that he is not going to modify mapopolis to work with SEVGA or any other 'true' VGA app on the Axim. They want you to use the app in QVGA mode only.
You can always go on over to www.gpspassion.com and find out why in the official Mapopolis support forum there.

JakeRich

Originally Posted by bigbop

GAPI won't do anything for Mapopolis. In fact, the developer has stated that he is not going to modify mapopolis to work with SEVGA or any other 'true' VGA app on the Axim. They want you to use the app in QVGA mode only. You can always go on over to www.gpspassion.com and find out why in the official Mapopolis support forum there.

I run Mapopolis on both a QVGA X50 and a VGA X50v. On the VGA device the roads are narrower, the font is slightly smaller, the overall jagginess of the display is decreased and the display updates smoothly. All of that indicates it is VGA aware. Unlike QVGA-only applications, where the display has to be pixel-doubled, with the VGA screen ending up looking exactly like the QVGA, Mapopolis actually uses the VGA resolution.

Although the hacks like SEVGA have appropriated the word "true" for their implementation, it's not necessary to use the hack if the application is VGA-aware as Mapopolis is.

bigbop

Originally Posted by JakeRich

I run Mapopolis on both a QVGA X50 and a VGA X50v. On the VGA device the roads are narrower, the font is slightly smaller, the overall jagginess of the display is decreased and the display updates smoothly. All of that indicates it is VGA aware. Unlike QVGA-only applications, where the display has to be pixel-doubled, with the VGA screen ending up looking exactly like the QVGA, Mapopolis actually uses the VGA resolution. Although the hacks like SEVGA have appropriated the word "true" for their implementation, it's not necessary to use the hack if the application is VGA-aware as Mapopolis is.

Correct, I should have added that mapopolis is already VGA aware and that it uses the higher rez of the X50v/X51v. Thanks for pointing that out.