Appendix A

Quick Reference

A place to look things up once you know what you are looking for.

Asking c64cast What It Can Do#

These commands need no hardware, no configuration file and no network. They answer from c64cast's own definitions, so they are always current for the version you have installed.

Command	Answers
`--list-scenes`	Every kind of scene, with a one-line description
`--list-overlays`	Every overlay, and which modes it works on
`--list-modes`	Every display mode
`--describe NAME`	Everything about one scene, overlay, section or mode
`--compat`	The overlay against display-mode matrix
`--print-schema`	The configuration schema, as JSON
`--suggest-palette FILE`	The C64 colors that best represent an image
`--list-devices`	Cameras and audio devices this computer can see

--describe takes a bare name when it is unambiguous, and a prefixed one when it is not:

c64cast --describe clock
c64cast --describe scene:video
c64cast --describe section:color
c64cast --describe mode:mhires

The Options You Will Actually Use#

c64cast -h prints every option, grouped. The ones worth remembering:

Option	Does
`--config PATH`	Use a specific configuration file
`-u TARGET`	Choose the hardware and where to find it
`-s NTSC` or `-s PAL`	Set the machine's timing
`-d INDEX`, `-d NAME`, `-d VID:PID`	Choose the webcam
`-D INDEX`, `-D NAME`	Choose the audio input
`--no-audio`	Mute
`--loop` / `--no-loop`	Repeat the playlist, or stop after one pass
`--serve`	Run as a host with a browser console instead of playing once
`--doctor`	Check everything and report
`--skip-probe`	Run checks without touching the Commodore
`--check-for-updates`	Ask PyPI whether a newer c64cast release exists
`--upgrade`	Detect how you installed c64cast and upgrade it, one command either way
`--init`	Build a configuration interactively
`--save-settings`	Remember this run's connection and devices
`--dump-char-rom`	Re-read the character ROM from the Commodore
`--install-char-rom PATH`	Use a character ROM dump you already have
`-v`	Debug logging (`-vv` adds a line per HTTP request)
`--log-file PATH`	Also write the log to a file

Naming Devices Instead of Counting Them#

-d and -D both take more than a bare index. Device numbers are a poor thing to rely on — they shuffle when you plug something in — so prefer to name the device instead. Both options match on any part of the device's name, case-insensitively, and -d will additionally take a USB VID:PID when two devices share a name.

Start by asking what is attached:

c64cast --list-devices

Then use enough of the name to be unambiguous:

c64cast -d "HD Webcam" -D "Scarlett" clip.mp4

Name matching for cameras needs the camera extra, and for audio the mic extra; the [all] install in Chapter 1 has already provided both.

Best of all, do it once:

c64cast -d "HD Webcam" -D "Scarlett" --save-settings

Now every future run picks the right devices by itself, and you can stop passing either option at all.

Where Settings Come From#

When the same setting is given in more than one place, the later one wins:

c64cast's built-in defaults.
Your machine settings, from --save-settings.
The configuration file.
Options typed on the command line.
The C64CAST_DMA_PASSWORD environment variable, for the password only.

Where Files Live#

What	Where
Machine settings	`~/.config/c64cast/settings.toml`
Saved data, calibrations, presets	`~/.local/share/c64cast/`
The configuration c64cast finds by itself	`./c64cast.toml`

Both locations follow the usual conventions for your operating system, and both can be redirected with an environment variable. --doctor prints the paths it actually resolved, which is the quickest way to settle any doubt.

The Configuration Sections#

Section	Governs
`[hardware]`	Which backend, and the machine's timing
`[ultimate64]`	The C64U's address and password
`[teensyrom]`	The TeensyROM's transport and port
`[video]`	Camera selection and default display mode
`[audio]`	Audio on or off, backend, sample rate
`[dsp]`	Signal shaping before audio reaches the Commodore
`[color]`	Dithering, palette, color matching
`[audio_features]`	Reacting to live audio input
`[interstitial]`	The card shown between scenes
`[playlist]`	Looping, and video interleaving
`[preview]`	The local mirror window
`[recording]`	Recording to a video file
`[control]`	The web control service
`[web]`	The browser console host (`--serve`)
`[midi_control]`	Live control from a MIDI device
`[performance]`	The clip grid, the beat grid, and saved looks
`[menu]`	The on-screen menu on the Commodore
`[vision]`	Hand-gesture control
`[wled]`	The LED bridge
`[[scenes]]`	One per scene, in playing order
`[[scenes.overlays]]`	One per overlay, within a scene
`[ensemble]`	Several Commodores driven together
`[debug]`	Diagnostics and profiling

Run --describe section:NAME for the full contents of any of them.

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