Re: Apple // networking?

[Paul & Sharyn Bramscher <brams007@tc.umn.edu>]

I'm a programmer (primarily unix/PHP/Java/mySQL), but I don't mess around at
the OS or hardware level.  I used an Apple //c for gaming in the mid- and
late 1980's, especially the Ultima series.  Then ran a BBS for a couple years
with it.  A port of the Citadel software, someone here in Minneapolis wrote a
version called Pseudodel.  I made some changes to it, and had fun with it for
awhile.

Bought a 386 DX2 66 with DOS 5.0, and started to neglect the Apple //c after
that.  I always wanted a //e, so ended up getting a couple, cheap, at rummage
sales.  Haven't used any of them in a few years but I'm sure they're all in
good order.

But I've been thinking about networking them.  I think a workable solution
would be a limited TCP/IP stack through a serial port.  If someone could hack
a simple ftp daemon and telnet terminal, you could do a few things with it.
I'm thinking mainly of transferring all of my old Apple // disks, remotely
administering my Linux server, and simple historic preservation.

Ideally, there would be an external //c serial port -> ethernet adapter, but
that would involve some hardware hacking, and therefore probably wouldn't
catch on for the average person.


Chris Morse wrote:

> On Wed, 13 Jun 2001 13:51:49 -0500, Paul Bramscher
> <brams006@tc.umn.edu> wrote:
>
> >I've got a full Apple //c system and a small home LAN (including Win98
> >box, Linux server, and a networked Mac iici).
> >
> >Just for amusement, I'm curious whether it's possible to network the
> >Apple //c somehow into my environment.  As I understand it, it's
> >possible to run a TCP/IP stack on a //gs (that won't help me here).  But
> >I'm wondering if it's possible to network my //c via the Mac iici
> >(serial connection, apple talk?).  Anyone ever do this sort of thing
> >before?
> >
> >-Paul Bramscher
> >brams006@tc.umn.edu
> >
>
> I've read that there is NO tcp/ip implementations available for the
> Apple //e or //c, but there is one for the Apple //GS.
>
> I am myself a software engineer & network programmer.  As it would
> happen, in the last couple days I have been thinking about
> _attempting_ to implement a tcp/ip stack for the //e and //c.
>
> A part of my inspiration comes from IPic, the worlds smallest web
> server (with, most probably, the worlds smallest TCP/IP
> implementation, done in about 256 bytes of assembler!)
> You can see it here:
> http://www-ccs.cs.umass.edu/~shri/iPic.html
>
> I am reading RFC 1122 and going through the 2 volume set of TCP/IP
> Illustrated, and I hope that I can get to the point where I can build
> a simple (but working) TCP/IP stack and Serial Line IP packetisation
> (SLIP), thus allowing a //e or //c to dial into an ISP host.
>
> Anyone out there with the skills to help me on this? =)
>
> I used to own an Apple //e, purchased in Feb 1983, and used it
> exclusively until 1988.. Then it sat in storage until I graduated
> college (in 1992) at which time I donated it to a friend of mine (her
> son actually) to play Lode Runner and other games on.. Since then I've
> been without an Apple // of any kind - until yesterday when I
> purchased a complete Apple //c from someone on eBay (with S/H it came
> to just under $50!)  The only printed material I have on my bookshelf
> at home is a copy of Zack's "Programming The 6502".  I recall that,
> back in "the day", I used a few different assemblers.. "Merlin",
> "Lisa", and "Orca/M"..
>
> Cheers!
> // CHRIS