Technology
 

Talk:CHDK

From CHDK Wiki

Contents

Help: talk pages, talk page guidelines

[edit] New Discussions

[edit] What happened to the forum?!

May 20: It says "this account has been suspended" now. Hope none of the posts will be lost!

[edit] Changed browser title bar

I think we should change the name that appears in the title bar of your browser on every page of this wiki from "CHDK Wiki" to "Canon Hack Development Kit (CHDK) Wiki". That way when someone does a google search say for example "SX10 Hack" the SX10 CHDK page would come up listed as "SX10 - Canon Hack Development Kit (CHDK) Wiki" which would be better for someone who does not know about CHDK and is just searching the web for a camera hack. I would do this but I do not know how to change the "Project:About|CHDK Wiki" property.

Just my two cents feel free to tell me my idea sucks - LukeS 19:41, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

[edit] Digic DV II

I did a Search on the Wiki for the Digic DV II processor, didn't find anything, so I thought I share a hopefully interesting idea I had: using an AVCHD-Cam with an Digic DV II processor to encode an HDMI signal (or even a USB-Transported RAW-like Video Signal) to MPEG4/AVCHD, which is stored directly on the camera-memory (Flash/SDHC/HD). Since the processor is doing this compression task all the time as the cam is recording, it should be definitely able to handle this from another input. Or do I not know my camera well enough, and it already does it?

[edit] Making CHDK more manageable and easier to edit

I've move the Features and News sections of the CHDK page into their own pages and transcluded them back into the main page. This should make it easier to edit these and make the CHDK page more manageable.

MartinBudden 11:12, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

[edit] CHDK on Scratchpad

Hey guys,

I just wanted to give you a quick heads-up: we noticed that the old CHDK pages on the Scratchpad wiki were getting a bunch of traffic. We wanted to make sure that all of that traffic reaches your new site, so I turned interwiki redirects on for that wiki, and set them to redirect to corresponding pages on this wiki. If you see any problems with the redirects, you can access the original page by appending "?redirect=no" to the address. It's a bit tricky because, but I can help if you see any specific problems. Thanks! --KyleH@Wikia (talk) 00:09, 11 November 2008 (UTC)


[edit] Old links & manuals

  • Firmware Usage - The main CHDK Manual, explaining all the original features.
  • Allbest Firmware Usage - The Allbest CHDK builds required a whole new page added to explain the vast array of new features. This is the HELP section. (a work in progress, please help!)
  • CHDK End-Users-Guide - a manual, also available as offline (pdf) version.

where to put these?


[edit] ffs

either i'm stupid or the wikia is too powerful. for christs sake, i tried removing the content of the links section on the main page (i already copied it over to a new Links site)

Fe50 i added the features on the frontpage for a purpose, but maybe keywords are sufficient?but they have to be there!

  • Yes, i agree; some keywords as 'appetizers' would be nice, with a link to CHDK Features, where they're all listed with a short describtion, a small sample application and the wikia interlink to the feature's page (imo we should have own pages for the main/big features) or to the section in the documentation/manual where they are described. Fe50 15:07, 21 November 2008 (UTC)


[edit] Older Discussions

[edit] Open Downloads

Hello folks,

thank you very much for developing CHDK. The package is growing with additional applications (I bear in mind above all the CUrveEditor), but registration in the CHDK forums is required to download these.

Would it be possible to create a public download page in the CHDK Wikia with those additional programs in open download?


Cheers, Fab

[edit] Beginner Question

Is this CHDK hack a way to get to disabled functionality already in the camera or is it new functionality developed by the authors of CHDK? For instance, why would Canon put RAW functionality in the camera but disable it?...unless the camera has the same brain as other Canon cameras that have RAW (G9) Further, if these goodies are already in the camera how were they found? Decompiling the internal software? (I have tried googling for this information but have been unable to find it.) Thanks. Zazu88hike

re: "Is this CHDK hack a way to get to disabled functionality already in the camera or is it new functionality developed by the authors of CHDK?"
It's a little of both. Take for example your question about RAW. Every camera sensor must be able to create the RAW data, or it wouldn't be able to take a picture. Whether you have access to this data or not lies wholly within the whims of the camera maker for that particular model of camera. It is usually done to encourage you to buy a more expensive camera on which that feature was enabled. Or their marketing departments thought it was a good idea to "dumb down" a camera's features for the casual photographer so they wouldn't be overwhelmed or confused by choices. Now take the motion-detection feature of CHDK. The CHDK authors found a way to use the EVF/LCD image data to detect changes in the viewfinder scene and incorporate that into a feature that was never a part of the original camera. Other features are combinations of built-in features of the camera, with enhancements, or completely new functions that were never designed into the camera (ex: merging the burst-mode feature built into the camera with EV and focus bracketing, RAW Merge, space-left indicators, scripting capability, etc.) Others with more knowledge about the internal workings of the camera's software might expound on your other questions.

[edit] Sorting it all out

I propose that any further references to this remarkable firmware add-on be referred to as "CHDK". I presume the C was chosen to denote this being for Canon cameras? From past experience I am aware of HDK meaning "Hacker's Development Kit". (yes? no?) Since HDK is a rather generic string used for many things online for all sorts of tweaks and modification systems, I think it would be best to at least always include the prefix C with HDK. Then at least it will be easier to find in search engines when trying to hunt down more information and feedback in discussion forums, keeping it apart from the 1,420,000 Google hits for HDK alone. CHDK at least narrows it down to 45,300 Google hits. A slight improvement. Adding in "Powershot" with CHDK results in an even more precise search -- results of 65 hits for chdk + powershot. Using Canon instead of Powershot in conjunction with CHDK results in 313 hits. Still much better than 1,420,000 hits.

I also would like to know what the "official" name of this great software is. Should we refer to it as "the CHDK firmware"? ->"Have you seen the latest CHDK firmware? It's fantastic"

If yes, we should check that this name is used in the whole wiki. And perhaps we should write a short explanation in the FAQ what "CHDK" means.

Harvester

I agree that there should be some name assigned to this that's going to stick. When describing it to others I've used "The GrAnde Hack", the "Firmware add-on", "HDK", "CHDK", "That way cool amazing new software that makes my camera into the most fantastic camera ever!" and things like that. :-)

The only reason I've been using CHDK is that GrAnde started up this whole Wiki page system and used HDK and CHDK in various sections of it, as well as his own folders where he and others store their stuff. So I'm not sure what HDK means to him/them, or even what CHDK means to him.

This is GrAnde's amazing thing, so it's only right that he should pick a unique name for it. But it sure would help if there was one!

YO! GrAnde! What do you want to officially call this thing so we can tell others about it and find it in search engines easy??

-)

(He's probably off adding in even more way cool stuff into "it".)

Until further notice, I'll feel comfortable calling it CHDK, but if GrAnde want's something more unique and special, I'm all for that too.

Once a name is decided on, and it sticks, you're right ... go through the Wiki pages and use a global replace. I did some of that with the [alt] to <ALT> thing the other day.

What do you think of the idea to translate this wiki into other languages?

Harvester

Good idea!! You start on the Chinese, Swahili, Kanji, German, Italian, Portuguese, and French, and I'll try to get the English parts I've added more comprehensible. :-)

Seriously though, I was thinking that just yesterday myself. Then I realized how badly I've written my own English sections and I wondered how anyone would be able to translate them sensibly. We need to hire a good proof-reader/editor if I'm going to be involved.

if you have the time, how about one of those "Uncle Sam Wants YOU!" posters to recruit some translators at dpreview threads? :-)


It seems that I can't find anybody willing to help with a German translation, so I deleted that paragraph. I guess it's not really needed, since most people here in Ger can speak english anyway. :)

Harvester

[edit] RAW also increases image area!

Explanation:
  • Why are dcraw output images larger than camera JPEGs?
  • Any algorithm that combines each pixel with its neighbors is going to have problems near the edges. C code is cheap, so dcraw applies a different algorithm to edge pixels. Hardware logic is expensive, so cameras crop off the edge pixels after processing.
From the dcraw FAQ (dcraw is Dave Coffin's famous raw decoder softwarea for linux). Pretty interesting reason as it turns out, or at least I think so--Fitzhugh 05:07, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

I was experimenting with some of the RAW files made with CHDK. Hoping to find other viewers/editors that would open them. So I thought I'd try that DNG-for-PowerShot converter to see which of my programs will read the DNG files. I didn't know that utility would also automatically tag on the corresponding EXIF info from the JPG file, that's really nice. But after I converted some and started flipping through the images using IrfanView, I noticed something odd. As I flipped between the same JPG and RAW images, the JPG image would act as if I zoomed in a bit. Losing a small border around all the edges from the RAW format. Then I looked at the pixel dimensions. Canon's JPG files have been robbing me of extra pixels!

Here's what I get from my S3IS:

  • JPG: 2816 x 2112 = 5,947,392 pixels total
  • RAW: 2840 x 2128 = 6,043,520 pixels total

RAW provides 96,128 extra pixels.

That's like getting a free 1.6% increase in resolution!

This extra resolution seems to be divided equally horizontally and vertically. So I get an extra +12 left/right, and +8 top/bottom. Center of JPG is still center of RAW. It's not just empty border, there's actual image detail in all those pixels.

I wonder if this is happening in the A-series cameras too?

This settles it, I'm going to leave RAW enabled on my camera more often now. Every little pixel can matter. Especially when you have to rotate an image. The smallest rotation can make you lose a good chunk of border all the way around. Using RAW from this camera can now prevent that.

What a nice find!

This got me to wondering ... I wonder if there's a way to get the RAW file to show ALL of the CCD sensor? The CCD sensor is always much larger than the actual image area we are given. Would it be possible to get a slightly wider image out of these things? According to the manual "Effective pixels = 6.0 million". But it also states, "Total number of pixels: Approx. 6.2 million". What a nice increase that would be. That would be like going from a 36mm lens to a 35mm lens on wide-angle. Not to mention all that extra resolution to play with when zoomed. Every bit helps! (pun intended)


Nice find! I just checked my A610, and the RAW file here is also slightly larger:

  • JPG: 2592 x 1944 = 5,038,848 pixels total
  • RAW: 2608 x 1952 = 5,090,816 pixels total (= 51,968 extra pixels)
Harvester

From dcraw sources: 

 } else if (!strcmp(model,"PowerShot A610")) {
   if (canon_s2is()) strcpy (model+10, "S2 IS");
   height = 1960;
   width  = 2616;
   raw_height = 1968;
   raw_width  = 2672;
   top_margin  = 8;
   left_margin = 12;
 } else if (!strcmp(model,"PowerShot A620")) {
   height = 2328;
   width  = 3112;
   raw_height = 2340;
   raw_width  = 3152;
   top_margin  = 12;
   left_margin = 36;
 } else if (!strcmp(model,"PowerShot A630")) {
   height = 2472;
   width  = 3288;
   raw_height = 2484;
   raw_width  = 3344;
   top_margin  = 6;
   left_margin = 12;
 } else if (!strcmp(model,"PowerShot A640")) {
   height = 2760;
   width  = 3672;
   raw_height = 2772;
   raw_width  = 3736;
   top_margin  = 6;
   left_margin = 12;
 } else if (!strcmp(model,"PowerShot S3 IS")) {
   height = 2128;
   width  = 2840;
   raw_height = 2136;
   raw_width  = 2888;
   top_margin  = 8;
   left_margin = 44;
-- GrAnd 18:25, 6 May 2007 (UTC) --

My A710 is: JPG: 3072 x 2304 = 7077888

RAW: 3112 x 2328 = 7244736 --> about 7.2 MegaPixels


  • Apparently the reason is that compression algorithms use each pixel's surrounding pixels to determine what information can be dumped to reduce size, some sort of averaging function. Since the pixels along the edges don't have neighbors on one side (or two sides in the case of a corner), or if near but not at the edge, don't have enough near-neighbors on one or two sides it just crops those off. Poorly worded... it crops pixels for which it can't find enough nearby pixels on one or two sides. However, this doesn't happen with raw because, well, it's raw.

[edit] Categories

Does anybody have a link where this categories-stuff is explained? --Harvester 07:22, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

I think I've got it... at least I hope so ;) --Harvester 08:05, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
I had a look at the categories of the pages here and put two new links on the main page: Recent wiki changes, Recent discussions. Do you think this is okay? --Harvester 10:00, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Your Wiki edits/changes are looking good Harvester. I probably won't be helping out much anymore (~Keo~ here), because I'm fed-up with benefiting those that don't even deserve the time of day (you know who they are at dpreview and potn). After all the work that GrAnd and Vitalyb have put into providing this amazing, miraculous (etc. etc.) add-on for us for our cameras, and seeing GrAnd also put the work into providing this Wiki for us and getting it all started, I felt it only right that I help them back as much as I was able. So I did the main brunt of english for the usage page (which you touched-up greatly and GrAnd provided the great images to accompany it all), as well as my doing the scripting tutorial and getting the user-scripts started. I hope that will be enough help on my part. This will always be my stance anytime there are idiots out there ruining it for the rest of us who are trying to make the world a better place. I simply walk away. Their loss, not mine. And thanks again for all that everyone has done to make CHDK a reality for us.
p.s. I agree there should be some kind of convention about replying to the talk sections, :-) I hope one pans out. :-) Seems to be working okay though no matter how the info is shared/replied-to. (Feel free to delete this response if you don't feel it is appropriate here. I made one of those personal Wiki pages things where I could be contacted in the future but I doubt I'll log in much to check it. And feel free to also reorganize any of the scripting-tutorial stuff any way you see fit. I only did it all off the top of my head as a thought-stream, thinking the sections that worked out well could be pulled out and added into an official scripting & tutorial section one day. Hence the reason I titled it "scratchpad".)
Keoeeit 16:03, 16 May 2007 (UTC)
So that's' how you sign a post! I wondered about that. :-)
Thank you very much for your help with this Wiki, Keo! I hope you will reconsider your decision to walk away. There may be two or three people you had some differences with, but there are hundreds of people from all over the world who are grateful and appreciate your help, infos and explanations very much! --Harvester 21:17, 16 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Formatting of Talk Pages

Hi guys, I think it would improve the readability of these talk pages if we would use the normal Wikipedia formatting, which means:

  • New text under old text
  • Sign the posts by typing four tildes (~~~~) or simply click the sig button in the edit box
  • Make a new heading for a new topic
  • Use indentations when replying to a topic by using colons (:)
  • Don't use horizontal lines
-> Example Page

Here are two explanations: Help: talk pages, talk page guidelines.
I didn't do this until now either (mainly because all this Wikipedia stuff is quite new to me), but I think it would be a nice idea. --Harvester 09:15, 14 May 2007 (UTC)


Thank you so much, you have improved my camera considerably. 207.216.12.82 18:46, 18 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Bug Reports

Build 72

RAW, the "After Dark Frame Subtract" crashes on the S3 IS. It does not crash when this is not used.
Disabling the Shortcut button on the S3 IS from actually changing the Shortcut option, SUCKS. At least let me toggle the use of the Shortcut button by holding down the Flash button. i.e. When [Flash] is held down then the shortcut button works normally.
The Zebra function never has worked when flash is set to Auto on the S3 IS. The whole screen shows as if it's underexposed.
I don't know about the other changes, but the "After Dark Frame Substract" crash can not be avoided ATM. This option was deactivated in the CHDK because of these E16-crashes. But on some cameras and/or under certain conditions it works fine, so GrAnd decided to re-implement it. You just have to test for yourself if it works or not. --Harvester 17:11, 24 May 2007 (UTC)


Build 103

No bugs to report! I just wanted some place to post this ... Wow! I had NO idea that my S3 had a way-cool BLUE LED on the back stuck in the middle of that [Shortcut] button. NEAT!!! What a wonderful improvement to spot when RAW is being saved. Unmistakable to see that out of the corner of my eye. Super-bright too.
And another congrats on yet another fine build with even more amazing and excellent features. Love that benchmark, it confirms what I suspected about some generic SD cards beating out some brand name ones.

Build 115

Camera S3 IS -- Ooops, the new default.bas script doesn't get written to the /CHDK/SCRIPTS/ directory (I don't think), when I installed it and deleted my old default.bas file, the new one diidn't get written, and when you run the script (that isn't there) you get a Parse:7 (?) error. I didn't write it down, but I think it was line 7. Could be that I was using my earlier RCFG.BIN renamed to CHDK.CFG and that I had previously used another script it had recorded, so it didn't write the new default.bas? (Nice improvements otherwise though!!)
Oh, and the Misc Stuff / Show Build Info & Show Memory Info is still not legible in the English language. Could it be because I'm using a non-standard RBF font? I'm using (in Visual settings), Language: English, OSD Codepage: Win1252, Menu RBF Font: MSREF11B.RBF Keoeeit 23:30, 6 June 2007 (UTC)
p.s. Would it be a good idea to make a CHDK/BuildBugs page and put it under the Feedback section off off the main CHDK page? Then bugs could be entered per build under a new section for each build. Keoeeit 23:39, 6 June 2007 (UTC)


Build 116

Works GREAT!!! :-) Keoeeit 02:29, 8 June 2007 (UTC)


Build 148

Camera Powershot 710IS - Firmware GM1.00A

When ever I try o load the CHDK formware, I get an "Update File Error!!!" but can't find any hint in docu or FAQ. Can you give me a hint ? I already tried older versions and other SD card, but same result :-(

  • CRW files created by my A620 cannot be converted using ufraw ("unsupported format" error) or dcraw ("cannot decode" error). These are on linux. I would greatly appreciate any help, including just being told others have had or have not had this problem, suggestions of where to start troubleshooting this, how to verify correct file format, suggestions for fixes, workaround, other software to use... anything! --Fitzhugh 06:30, 12 October 2007 (UTC)
What version of dcraw are you using? A620 raw support is only available from version 8.46 onwards. —cky 07:58, 14 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Feature Requests

(moved to Feedback section)

[edit] How to open RAW files?

I got the RAW files in my SD card, but I don't know how may I open them. I tried Canon ZoomBrowser EX, ACDSee 9.0 PhotoManager and Adobe PhotoShopPS3 (10), but no luck. Can anyone guide me please? Thanking you in advance.

Did you read the FAQ? --GrAnd 21:33, 13 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] RAW on a710IS

Hello,

Thanks for amazing CHDK firmware. I have a question regarding RAW files. After taking pics I convert .crw to .dng then to .tif. This way I can open them in PS7 and play with before saving as .jpg. The thing is, as useful as RAW is the final images never look as crisp as .jpg straight from the a710IS. Is there a reason for this or is it just that Canon set the camera up in an optimum way to deliver their jpg?

Any help appreciated. Thanks,

LG 20:07, 17 June 2007

You should be able to load the DNGs right into photoshop and alter how it is encoded(white balance, contrast, sharpness) before it is made into an image. HighInBC 20:14, 17 June 2007 (UTC)
The author of PhotoLine 32 has been notified of this problem with the A610 and A710 cameras. It will support the CHDK RAW from these cameras in PhotoLine 32 v13.90 when it is released.

[edit] amazing!!!

I'm (you don't need an "a" here) Chinese(so?).I'm also using a610.When I heard (of)the firmware,I was excited!!I have a sug(g)estion: The firmware can read books(the firmware can't read, but the firmware enables the function in the camera),but just English.I hope that the fiemware (firmware) can support Chinese font (why not say East Asian languages) so that I can read Chinese books on the cam.Thank you.

(Man, you'd better improve your English and proof-reading skill. -Another Chinese)

Wouldn't it be possible to just use the method to convert any fonts to RBF fonts mentioned in this tutorial RBF Fonts to accomplish it? Then just select your converted font for the CHDK file reader's options. Wouldn't that work? If you do convert some, and if it works, it might be nice to share them for others that would like the same capability. Keoeeit 03:22, 13 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Question for S2IS

I have Canon S2 IS. Which program should I use? The one on http:// digicanon.narod.ru/rawenabler.htm (http:// altsoph.ru/stuff/prjs/canon/rnws2is_v3.FIR) or the one specified here? (http:// grandag.nm.ru/hdk/pre14-s2is-100f-144.zip)

The second one is much newer and has more functions in addition to RAW. --GrAnd 19:41, 1 August 2007 (UTC)
Thanks! I have installed the second one... its just the info at digicanon.narod.ru goes on to say "Useful only for S2 IS users." which was a little misleading!
It's "Useful only for S2 IS users" because it won't work with other cameras. ;) And S2 was added to the list of supported cameras not so long ago. --GrAnd 13:51, 2 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] S80

I saw that the S80,need just a portage to be active who can do that? the S80 is a very good camera , but need raw, unfortunatly, I am not so good to do that myself

thank u in advance for the attention you could have to this


yes i own a s80 and i want to contribute but i'm not a programmer. my firmware is GM1.00F E18 SEP 24 2005 hope this helps

[edit] RAW files... Real advantage??

Hi guys! As an S3 owner and former S1, im delighted with my new firmware! Thanks u all. I was a basic programmer, so it is great! I'm just starting with raw format, but im not getting very good results... Are u?? Maybe i am not doing it as i should, i had no experience at all so maybe it's my fault.

Images are too noisy, and colors are not right. Im using Raw Therapee (too slow for me). but im converting to DNG and processing in PS CS3 or Lightroom.

So, Could u tell me if u are getting better results shooting RAW. Is it worth the extra work and card space??

Thanks.

For lack of a better analogy, RAW files are similar to having a film negative in your hand. They're only as good as how much work you are willing to do to get a final image out of them. I hate that analogy but it's as close as they come I guess. As far as getting better results, I did some resolution-chart tests to see if I could get more resolution in RAW (my main desire for RAW), and yes, you get some increase in resolution, not much but it was noticeable in my tests. I would say it is almost equivalent in the resolution increase of going from an S3 to S5 (6mpx to 8mpx). Not quite as much, which isn't much between those to cameras to begin with, but it is noticeably there. Depending on how I photographed the chart (what zoom setting, distance, etc.) it would go from 14 lines to 15 lines extinction, or if at 16 in the JPG, then 17 lines in the RAW. (do not use these resolution extinction measures in comparison to others online, it's relative.) This is about the same resolution difference you'll see between dpreview's test shots between the S3 and S5. But your greatest advantage will be in being able to pull extra detail out of the darks and lights that would normally be clipped (and lost forever) in your JPG image. As well as lots of extra color data from those regions that can't be recovered from the JPG files. (see the examples posted at http://bb.org.ua/raw/ and http://digic_anon.nar_od.r_u/compare.htm (remove the _'s in that second link, Wiki won't let me post that URL, it hits their spam filter) One other small, less-mentioned, advantage, you get a few more pixels on each side for your image size in the RAW files. Consider it a free resolution increase (independent of the one I tested for that exists at pixel level across the photo), and an extra degree of wide-angle on your widest zoom setting.
Is it worth the extra work and card-space? Only you can answer that. To tell the truth I hardly use RAW at the moment, even after seeing the advantages, but I do use it for those times when I know I am photographing a killer-shot and I want to be able to get every last bit of quality out of it at some point. So while I don't use it regularly, boy am I glad I have it available when needed. I love doing photography of aurora, meteor-showers, and other things of that nature when those rare times happen. Being able to pull extra meteor-trails, stars, and colors out of the night-sky will be more than welcomed. JPG would normally throw away that data in the darkest values. Keoeeit 02:56, 13 August 2007 (UTC)

Thank you very much for the answer, and your time. I think i have to learn how to get the advantage out of the .raw file. I was wondering if the raw file we get from our PowerShots cameras is as "good" as any other we can get from a "real raw capable camera"... (?) thks

[edit] Camera Photo counter in memory ?

Is is possible to find in memory the camera photo counter ? I want to see how many pictures was taken with the camera.

[edit] Extending Canon 20d functionality??

My understanding of the canon 30d is that it the same as the 20d, they just extended iso stops to 1/3 as well as several other extentions...

is the chdk able to extend the 20d firmware in a similar way to adding raw functionality to non-raw cameras?


Is it possible make/extend CHDK firmware for 350D/400D or 20D/30D/40D ?


I found this post on dpreview, describing a yet-unsuccessful attempt on the 350D. Things went worse on the 400D.  :(

It seems like 350D is x86-DOS driven camera as well as A510 and previous (A70, A95).

[edit] S2IS raw files not parsable?

My S2-IS has firmware GM1.00G. The actual screen says: Canon Powershot S2 IS P-ID: 30F0 NT Firmware Ver GM1.00G E18 Dec 19 2005 18:54:40

I applied pre14-s2is-100g-148.zip

It seems to work, but the raw files are not understood by Adobe Lightroom or Adobe DNG converter. It says they cannot be parsed.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

See this part of the FAQ

[edit] A620 no longer loads or shows CHDK firmware, erases when added to card again??

Somehow I caused my A620 to stop recognizing CHDK firmware as new. I was attempting to try different versions, hoping to remember which one I'd used that had the always-on histogram. Along the way I did a low-level format of the card, and around that point my camera stopped autoloading CHDK (I'd done the make card bootable step previously) and stopped allowing me to load any CHDK firmware manually as it does not show the upgrade firmware option. Of course there was no firmware on the reformatted card, but when I add it back it just erases it. The formatting may be related, may not - I don't know and am not sure if t really happened in that order. I am at a loss as to what to try. When I check my camera's firmware version I show 

Canon PowerShot A620
P-IC:30FC   NT

Firmware Ver GM1.00F
E18
Dec 20 2005   10:42:16

Hitting DISP again while still holding SET shows: 

Canon PowerShot A620
P-IC:30FC   NT

Adj.Ver.001.022
ZoomLensError
Dec 20 2005   10:42:16

(hmm, I've been thinking my zoom shots have looked bad recently but haven't looked into it as I seldom use zoom right now, and didn't want to know! I'll ignore that for now)

Did I do something permanent? Would it maybe recognize the new firmware if I tweaked the code and changed some firmware version constant in it and recompiled, say changing 001.022 to 001.023 (assuming that is in the code)? Any and all ideas greatly appreciated because I had just found this yesterday and was SO excited about it. Thank you! --Fitzhugh 23:02, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

I don't have your model of camera, but I'll suggest some things to consider. Have you tried other SD cards? And did you load the CHDK files into the root of them properly? Are you remembering to boot up the camera in PLAYBACK mode to get the update-firmware menu option? That "ZoomLensError" doesn't look good. Could be it was a coincidence that something mechanical went wrong while you were testing these things. Excitedly trying to get something to work and not realizing you're holding down the zoom lens during power-up or something? Does your model of camera use a coin-cell to keep the internal clock and settings backed up? You can try removing that to reset your camera to complete default factory settings, then put it back in again. To date I've not heard of even one person have their camera ruined by CHDK, even when they were trying some things in testing scripts that could be potentially harmful if repeated often. (I'm one of those people.) So I doubt very much it is a CHDK problem. In your anxiousness you may have been swapping cards in and out too fast from your card reader or camera and corrupted them. That's happened to me in the past, before CHDK was even around. I had one card that would show new files being put on the card in the computer, but when I took it out of the card reader and put it back in again no files were on it. Windows just wasn't showing exactly what was going on with that card. It was corrupted and I couldn't save any new files to that card.

[edit] SDHC and CHDK auto load

I'm going to purchase a 4GB SDHC card and format it in FAT16. Will it be able to have CHDK loaded automatically at the startup of camera (a S3 IS)?

Can anyone also enlighten me the reason that prevent CHDK to be auto-loaded from FAT32 formated card? It will be wonderful if this can be solved so that people can use bigger card, like 8GB SDHC card with auto-load feature.

This feature (loading the particular file on boot) is in the original firmware. Even more, it's feature of VxWorks. So, it is impossible to modify the behavior due to the code is located in ROM and must be in a camera before it's switched-on.
From firmware code it is clearly seen that the "boot code" is integrated only to FAT12/16 disk driver. I think, this is done for internal/debugging purpose and in this case a user could choose the card size accordingly. It is not intended by VxWorks developers that this feature will be used for something else except debugging, IMHO. --GrAnd 09:51, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

Many thanks.

[edit] Where is the "supported cameras" list that is linked by a # of pages?

There is either an error, or somewhat of a misleading section in the list that appears on the front page CHDK and in a section of the FAQ listing supported cameras. The a570 currently only has a CHDK build for v 1.00e, but not 1.01a.

1.01a is listed in this list in yellow, but in both of these places (FAQ and front page) the color code is not given, so the viewer would probably be led to believe that 1.01a is available. (Two other fw versions are listed in yellow, one can use another fw version build, and one can be upgraded by an unoffical canon FW upgrade to a fw that has a build).

I'd like to be able to edit this list to remove that ambiguity. Anybody know where it resides? It only is referenced on the front page and in the FAQ as "supported cameras" between {{}} (I can't type is as it appears or it becomes a link!), but I don't know how to find the target page.

Thanks - Divalent

I'm not sure I understand your question. Each list has an "edit" link right next to it, front page and FAQ. So I'm not sure which "list" you find missing. I agree that the color codes should be more obvious, with a key to what each one means though.
And if you need to type some Wiki formatting text, try inserting it betweeen PRE and /PRE commands (for pre-formatted text) with greater/less-than around each. Like this: 
click on the edit button to see how this was inserted
     as pre-formatted
text
you can insert [[Downloads|Download Page]] link commands in preformmated text areas.
Without them being interpretted as commands.

you can also
just put a space in front
of each line of text to
denote pre-formatted text but then
it parses link commands normally like this Downloads Page
Are you refering to a target page for the a570 build? That's because there isn't one, far as I can tell. If you click on that opening text on the main page where it says, "... editing over 128 articles...." and click on the word "articles", it will lead to this link of All Pages where you can see all pages made for this CHDK Wikia. I couldn't find an A570 specific one there. So there's no page for that model # to link to, until someone creates it and supports it. This is the problem with having everyone discuss everything at dpreview, few of them care to come here to add the info where it is most needed for those in the future. All their hard work being lost forever in the bowels of dpreview's threads where their search function rarely works, and only for those with an account there too. It's a no-win situation.
p.s. Welcome to the frustration that is being created and why some people (like me) will blow a gasket on occasion trying to help those that won't do the least bit to help. [mr. anon]
oops, I see the problem now, the lists are embedded in a hidden link of some type. I've not run into this before. Let me figure it out.
Okay, I found it on the Help pages, it's a "template" command. On the help page at the bottom is this link current list of all templates on this Wikia And there is the list of supported camera types. You can get to that template and edit it from there.
Thanks, that was it. I wanted to remove 1.01a fw as a supported one for the a570. I was in ruddy yellow, with no indication why, so it appears like the table was saying that it was supported.

[edit] is a570 1.01a out of Development?

is a570 1.01a out of Development? execue me ,can you tell me?i wait for a long time ,thank you!

its been ported! see the front page news

[edit] CHDK firmware to Canon G7 Firmware V. "GM 1.00E"

Hi all

is there anyone who can help with CHDK firmware to Canon G7 Firmware V. "GM 1.00E" (From Denmark) or am i the only lucky one with this firmware ?  ;-(((

Thanks

Jensen

[edit] CHDK for SD750

Hey, guys, you've been featured on Chris Pirillo's podcast! Just found out about the project via him, and noticed the lack of CHDK firmware for the Canon PowerShot SD750. Is there a chance of getting a CHDK build for it? I'm pretty much a script kiddie, with no real experience programming (other than feeble attempts at converting my website to OOP). If anyone can instruct me on getting a firmware dump (the first step from what I've read), I might be able to do so.

Voyagerfan5761 12:58, 22 November 2007 (UTC)

Just found the wonderful FAQ and got a version number for my firmware. It looks like 1.01a is the latest firmware; Canon's site doesn't have any updates. I'm really interested in this software, seeing as how a lot of the things it fixes are annoyances I've noticed ever since buying my camera. Any chance on getting help with this?
Voyagerfan5761 12:57, 23 November 2007 (UTC)
I guess not.
Voyagerfan5761 16:43, 3 December 2007 (UTC)
+1


I second the need for a SD750 version. I'd be glad to dump firmware or whatever you need...just tell me how. Thanks! 198.137.22.31 13:00, 1 April 2008 (UTC)KJK

This would really be awesome if someone could create a stable, fully-featured release. -TJB 08:40, 5 May 2008.

[edit] A650IS Ready for Blinker?

[Winno's edit] on the A650IS Developers page is interesting. Has the blinker been successfully loaded on a A650IS?

[edit] Is EXIF data saved in RAW files?

I am using Picasa to view and process the RAW files. Nevertheless , I am not able to see the EXIF data in the RAW file (or more precisely Picasa is not able to display EXIF data). Also , I have tried the GUI for EXIF Tool - same result : no EXIF data in RAW files. I am using the Allbest build from December the 6th,2007 and my camera is a Canon S3 IS. What could be the problem ? How can I see the EXIF data in RAW files?

The RAW file does not contain any EXIF data. You should refer to the FAQ, in particular the section on using and processing RAW files from CHDK. Use the utility DNG4PS and it will copy the EXIF data from the corresponding JPG file to the RAW data.
You might also want to visit the CHDK Forum and read the thread about Converting CHDK EXIF info to Standard EXIF. If you use the utility available in that forum discsussion, then you can modify the unique CHDK EXIF header into a more universal format, before you convert and patch in the EXIF info using DNG4PS.

[edit] RAW Files resolution is always 2 Megapixels ?

I am using the RAW feature on Canon S3 IS. No matter what I do the RAW file size resolution is always 2 Megapixel - more precisely 1420x1064,even when the corresponding JPEG file resolution (e.g. the JPEG of the same shot) is 6 megapixel. Is this a feature or a bug? How can I take advantage of the full resolution of my camera?

—If you use Faststone Image Viewer, press "A" key.

[edit] Amateur with no experience needs help

Hi guys, im sure that more than would think this is a stepback because while you are debating about script programming, im going to ask something extremely ultra basic but i have no option, please some mercy. The thing is i just bought a Canon 570is and trying Fingalos firmware, it is fantastic, but i have one doubt, im trying to capture somes lightings for a while, but i just dont know how to get the motion detection script to get working. Yes i load the script (mdt2) and then press the shutter script, the parameters appears on the screen when theres is motion but there are no photo taken. How i can test this script that it works for sure? I have seen amazing examples with this script and i am just ansious to get it working. Thanks in advance.

It would help to know what script you are using. Some of them are demo scripts just to test the function to make sure it is working, without firing off many shots when first initiated.
If you are using a demo script that has a section that looks like this: 
for i=0 to 10

	let f=0
	md_detect_motion a, b, 1, 30000, d, c, 0, f, 44, 55, 66, 77, 88

rem 	if f>0 then shoot else print "Timeout"

	print "cells: ", f

	for g=1 to b
		for x=1 to a
			md_get_cell_diff x, g, f
			print "[",x,",",g,"]=",f
		next x
	next g


next i
Then all you need to do is remove that "rem" comment from that one line. Use any text editor (even windows Notepad), and just delete those 3 letters "rem", then save it as a new filename and load that new edited one into your camera.

[edit] AllBest in A570IS

I'm using the #16 build in my A570IS (FW 1.01a). No problems using the RAW functions and the shutter speed over-ride, but having difficulty making the Subject Distance over-ride work. Can anyone give me simple step-by-step instructions? Also, does a value of 1500 and a multiplier of 100 give the equivalent SD of 150 meters? Respectfully, Messier42 18:05, 31 January 2008 (UTC)Messier42

To answer my own question, no! 1500 is the distance in millimeters at which the lens will be focused and the Value Factor of 100 (which I erroneously thought was a multiplier) is an amount in millimeters that the focus distance will be increased or decreased with each toggle of the ZOOM lever when in the ALT mode. In the example given above, the lens will focus at 1500mm (1.5m/4.92ft/59.06in) and will be changed in increments of 100mm (0.1m). A Value Factor of "1" changes the focus in 1 millimeter increments, "10" changes in 10mm increments, "1000" changes in 1000mm (1 meter)increments. In the ALT mode, the "Value Factor" is changed by the Left (<<) or Right (>>) cursor. It is cycled from Off to 1 to 10 to 100 or 1000.

IMHO the Canon A570IS is an excellent P&S camera as is, but would profit from a 6X zoom rather than its present 4X. I for one am totally satisfied with this camera and love the added features provided by AllBest CHDK.

Cheers, Messier42 04:35, 16 February 2008 (UTC)Messier42

[edit] Will it Ever Work With A510?

Will there be a working version of chdk for a powershot A510 any time soon? please reply (anonymous user)

At least my A510 reports the version number if I put a ver.req file on my SD card. Reading: Canon PowerShot A510 Firmware Version 1.00E Error 0000 Oct 28 2004 19:49:17 85.177.50.26 22:02, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

UPDATE:

CHDK will probably not work with A510 as it is, cause from the look of the firmware it is under ... DOS. On this page ,rayer.ic.cz/hardware/a70.htm , some years ago a Czech guy managed to do really cool stuff with this firmware. There's even a small hack to launch your home-made dos programs on it. However, firmware at least contains a CRW (RAW) format handling too, and there's a hope that somebody skilled with DOS and assembly under x86 (yes, it runs dos-x86 exe's) will do that.

There's also small hack to skip 30 seconds limitation for movie recording with this model - more details here : wins10sh.narod.ru/index1.html.

In case of any questions (Czech translation and so on) please contact me at sokoow@gmail.com.

141.30.208.211 18:26, 1 June 2008 (UTC) Sokoow

[edit] Will CHDK be able to overcome A590 20fps movie limitation?

Hi folks,

You may have noticed that the new Powershots A580, A590, and A470 are all limited to 20 frames per second in the 640x480 movie mode.

I need to buy a camera now, but because of the A590's limitation, I have been running around trying to buy an A720 at the last moment before it becomes unavailable -- because it has 30 frames per second, as do the A560 and A570.

I wonder though, would CHDK be able to overcome the A590's 20 fps limit?

I hope so. I'd really prefer to buy a newer camera.

Thanks.

Same for me (dont wanna buy older 720). Even any available CHDK function would be very good ;)--217.68.188.173 20:58, 26 April 2008 (UTC)


So 2 years later there's still no way to enable 640 x 480 30 fps video on a Canon A590IS?

Please help! I need to unlock this feature :( Is it that posibble? 201.246.54.146 23:25, 21 July 2009 (UTC)

[edit] Support for the SX100IS

Is support for the SX100IS on the way? TIA.

[edit] Big traffic increase!

Hi all, I'm Catherine from the Wikia:Community Team. I've been asked to keep an eye on all our Technology wikis. The community here has been doing a fantastic job! For the past couple of months, CHDK has had consistently high page views, compared to other technical wikis. Since the release of Allbest's build, traffic has just about doubled. (It also got a nice bump from this April 30 entry on the popular Strobist blog, which contains a positive CHDK review in the comments: http://strobist.blogspot.com/2008/04/how-to-sync-canon-g9-at-12500th-of-sec.html )

I'd like to do whatever I can to help ensure this wiki is stable and easy for your new visitors to use. I'll be poking around a bit in the coming days, categorizing uncategorized pages and other wiki-housekeeping bits that tend to get neglected -- I trust you'll let me know if I do anything wrong!

I'd also like to announce the new Monaco skin that's available for your wiki. Currently the default skin seen by your visitors is Quartz, with a wide navigation menu on the right. Monaco is a cleaner, sleeker skin with a lot of new functionality and a fully customizable navigation menu. Please have a look at Monaco: What's New and Customizing Monaco for more information about what you can do to make this wiki look its best. We can help you change over to this new skin whenever you are ready.

Please let me know if there are any questions I can answer, about MediaWiki software or Wikia or web traffic or anything else -- I'm here to help!

Also, please let me know if this would do better as a forum post -- it wasn't clear whether that was the best way to reach as much of the community as possible.  :) — Catherine@Wikia (talk) 02:20, 3 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] New main page format

After talking to User:GrAnd, I have made a change to the CHDK page to make room for an ad at the top of the right column. I apologize for the necessity for this -- Wikia is working hard to find the right balance to sustain itself as a business, so that we can continue providing free hosting, bandwidth and customer service as CHDK continues to grow.

Please feel free to rearrange the other elements of the main page if you want to. We just ask that you leave the "mainpage-column" tags as they are, in the same order, so that the ad remains in the upper right corner. I am happy to help in any way that I can, or answer any questions that you have. Thank you! — Catherine@Wikia (talk) 03:27, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

[edit] A520

Will this firmware work with my A520? (by SML17:05, 6 July 2008 (UTC))

  • No, NOT supported; A520 has DigiC I imaging processor, CHDK is only available for DigiC II / III cameras (Fe50 18:30, 6 July 2008 (UTC))

[edit] Need to add a link on the main page...

... to the new Collaborative "MoreBest Build" firmware usage.

Is whoever it is that locked the main page from edits going to unlock it so that I can add a link in the firmware useage area to the new Collaborative MoreBest Firmware Usage page? Or are you going to let your control-freak paranoia control you and everyone else the rest of your miserable life?

  • Hmm - today it was only locked for anonymous, so i've added a link, hope this is ok for you...Fe50 11:54, 3 August 2008 (UTC)

[edit] PowerShot S500 Elph

Will it work with my PowerShot S500 Elph? Thanks.

[edit] override ISO in video mode

(excuse me for my poor english, i'm french) Hello. Do you think it's possible for device who have this function, (S3IS or others) to override the high limit ISO setting during the video,( setting by the button ISO in the video mode). If this function exists excuse me I did not find (it) Thank you and you do a great job ppbiomart

[edit] S3IS CHDK loads but does not give RAW files

My SanDisk Ultra ll card (2 gig) with CHDK works perfectly in my Canon S3IS camera.

My SanDisk Extreme lll card (1 gig) in the camera splash screen says that the CHDK is loaded, but when I take the pictures, there are only JPEG files on it, no RAW.

Why with this card do I not get RAW files?

Thank you,

Gritty

Thank you. Copied the .cfg file and now works ok.

  • Did you enable RAW saving ?
  • You can also copy the config file (CCHDK.CFG in the \CHDK folder) from the other card, then you'll have the same settings on both cameras... Fe50 11:37, 26 February 2009 (UTC)

[edit] CHDK - Just for Canon???????? 

Does anyone knows if there's a chdk equivalent for other camera brands? I have a Pentax dslr, and I'd love to play the way you guys do!!


Regards,
Gaspar

[edit] How can I make "interlanguage links"? HELP!

I wanted to translate the CHDK wiki into Chinese. But when I added zh: below the codes of the main page, the text "zh:" displayed. How can I add an interlanguage link like the link to the Japanese CHDK wiki? HELP! Not.using.pc 10:09, 30 July 2009 (UTC)

[edit] CHDK - Time lapse / interval record on a G10?

Hi

I am very new to the group.

I am following an artist painting a massive canvas over 4 months and want to set up a camera to record a frame every two minutes or so over the period.

If possible only recording between 10am and 6pm

If possible running off the mains to avoid battery outage or moving the camera

Is the G10 viable for this? Is there a CHDK firmware update for this camera?

Any help appreciated.

Best wishes,

George

  • The Powershot G10 is NOT ported yet (11-Sept-2009), there's NO CHDK available for this camera. Fe50 09:32, September 11, 2009 (UTC)

What camera can anyone suggest that offers CHDK compatability - DC power input - High Quality images and a high image capacity?

Thanks

Retrieved from "http://chdk.wikia.com/wiki/Talk:CHDK"