Re: Dos 33 Launcher

[Alex Lee <alelee@mac.com>]

On 2013-04-25 06:44:15 +1000, Rommel Junta said:

> posted this in another discussion forum and was told to post it here.
>
> Ive dloaded Dos 3.3 launcher for my rom 3 IIgs.  I have read the txt file on
> how to use it with gs/os and installation to hard drive.  I cannot get my
> head around on actually how this works on the hard drive partition (32mb).
> If anybody is using this software I would appreciate some assistance on how
> to prepare my hd partition and gs.os for using the launcher.
>
> Some of my questions are as follows:
>
> 1. with the 32mb partition, I want it to hold all my dos 3.3 files.  Do I
> need to divid this partition into smaller 140k partitions?
> 2. When I run dos 3.3 launcher it boots Prodos 8 but this gives me a 'no
> startup file' prompt.
> 3. Do I need a physical 5.25 disk to transfer files to hard drive?
> 4. can someone do a run through or step by step on how I can install d3l and
> put dos 3.3 files onto hd.
>
> thanks for any help you may provide.

I've been preparing a DOS 3.3 Launcher 32meg ProDOS image for quite 
some time now and hope to release it soon. It’ll include as many single 
loader/ file based DOS 3.3 games as I’ve found rummaging through 
various archives and sources, as well as some full disk images that 
work with it (although I haven’t found as many as I’d like that work).

Until then, if you want to better understand it:

1) You don’t need to do anything special with partitioning. Just keep a 
32 meg ProDOS image.

2) With the IIGS, you don’t need to specifically run the DOS Launcher 
SYS executable. What you do need to do is once you have the DOS 3.3 
single files or disk images on your ProDOS volume, that you run the 
‘DOS.3.3.COPIER’ S16 application. For each single file or disk image, 
you need to ‘Set Launch Options…’ from the file menu. The defaults are 
best. What this does is not only set those options for each file, but 
when you return to the IIGS Finder, when you double click that file, it 
will then load the ‘DOS3.3.LAUNCHER’ and then automatically load the 
file you just double clicked.

It’s preferable to run System 6.0.1 with DOS 3.3 Launcher from 
experience. I had trouble double clicking on a DOS 3.3 game and System 
5.0.4 knowing where to find the DOS 3.3 Launcher app.

3) You don’t need physical 5.25” to transfer files to the hard drive 
image, although, I’ve found that emulators don’t play perfectly when it 
comes to the Disk ][ and the emulated System 6.0.1 environment. Sweet 
16 can’t deal with it. KEGS (and variants ActiveGS and GSPort) can deal 
with it, but it’s rather slow.

4) The quickest way would be to use a program like CiderPress or Apple 
Commander to copy files from DOS 3.3 disk images, or the whole disk 
images themselves, to your 32 meg ProDOS volume with DOS 3.3 Launcher. 
Are you on a Mac or PC?

- Alex
--
http://www.whatisthe2gs.apple2.org.za/