Re: CC65 and Apple II

[dalloff@gcfn.org (Dave Althoff Jr)]

Scott Alfter (salfter@salfter.ncc74656.dyndns.org) wrote:
: >What communication software will run well on a 1 MHz Apple IIe and a
: >normal ROM 1 IIgs?  For now, I'd prefer something that runs Dos 3.3, but
: >later I will want to use ProDOS as well.

: DOS 3.3 blows chunks, and I don't know of any decent comm program that works
: under it.  ProTERM runs under ProDOS and supports X/Y/ZMODEM; start sz under
: Linux (or whatever you're using) and ProTERM will start receiving
: automagically.  AGATE is a free (as in beer, not as in speech IIRC) comm
: program that implemented true ANSI graphics and (I think) ZMODEM, though
: it's been so long since I used it that I don't recall if it auto-starts
: ZMODEM transfers.

Anybody know where to find a copy of ASCII Express?  I remember really
liking that one, and it ran very nicely under DOS 3.3.  I don't think it
did ZMODEM, though...

Anyway, the point of my argument...

DOS 3.3 does NOT blow chunks on a floppy-based system.  In fact, I found
that ProDOS was extrordinarily cumbersome when I was forced to make use of
it for certain applications on my 128k 2-floppy unenhanced ][e.  Too much
of a memory hog.  Useful commands left out of BASIC.SYSTEM.  Not enough
filename space in the root directory.  No control over file buffers means
ProDOS will build buffers right over top of your variables or your support
routines unless you get permission from BASIC.SYSTEM.  Very slow boot
process compared with DOS 3.3, and file access not significantly faster
than Pronto-DOS.  PRODOS and BASIC.SYSTEM combined take up way too much of
an already crowded disk...suddenly all disks are not bootable anymore.

ProDOS brought us some really nice features, beginning with subdirectories
and building from there, which are not merely "great", but really
*essential* if you are working with a hard drive, or even with 800k
floppies.  But when your system is limited to 143k disks, ProDOS is not
worth the hassle, particularly if you want to get into the guts of the OS
and see what's really going on in there.  If you're limited to working
with 143k floppies and you're learning how to talk to the Apple, you're
much better off, in my opinion, getting to know Uncle DOS first.  Switch
over to ProDOS when you're ready to start doing toolbox-style stuff.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.
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