Re: ROM 01 Superiority

[dempson@actrix.gen.nz (David Empson)]

Ken <kennethweibel@yahoo.com> wrote:

> >I have heard it claimed that there are 
> >a very few programs, I think games, that would not work properly on a
> >Rom 3, but have had no personal experience.  
> 
>    I'm going to nit-pick for a minute in a plug for the (IMO slightly
> superior) ROM 01.  I have both a ROM 01 and a ROM 03 IIgs.  My best
> hardware is on my "favorite" computer, the ROM 1, despite the fact the
> ROM 3 is equipped with extra memory.  (I've also heard people say the
> ROM 3 has better sound, but I can't tell the difference.)

It is significantly better.  On my ROM 1, holding a menu open in some
desktop applications caused an audible tone through the speakers, with
the tone changing in pitch depending on which menu item was highlighted!

The 3.5" drive stepper motor also induced noise in the audio output,
probably feeding through the +12V power rail.

My ROM 3 exhibits neither of these features.

>    Secondly, is a GS/OS disk space issue.  For a long time, my IIgs
> computers did not have a hard drive.  Because of this,  I have
> converted many small GS/OS programs to self-boot on a single floppy
> disk.  You know, you take system software and you name one of the
> programs "STARTUP" and put it in the right place so it boots
> automatically when the disk is in the drive.  (I did this because
> there is a lot od disk swapping involved with loading finder disk and
> then inserting and running from a floppy.)
> 
> When you run system software, there are two files on the system disk
> (System setup folder) called TS2 and TS3.  A ROM 1 needs the TS2 file
> (37 k).  A Rom 3 needs the TS3 file (40+k).  So, by using my ROM 1, I
> can trash the larger TS3 file and save myself a few prescious
> kilobytes of disk space.

There is an easier method: you don't need some of the files in the
"Tools" directory if you are running on a ROM 3, because the appropriate
toolsets are in ROM, with patches from the TS3 file.

I'd have to dig out some documentation to find exactly which ones you
can remove.  It varies depending on which system version you are
running, with more of them being required by a ROM 3 under System 6.0.x
than under 5.0.x.