Re: Wanted: answers for now...

[Phoenyx <quazar@dcnet2000.com>]

>    Well, now I have it set up on a table in a corner not doing
> much at all. It's a ROM 03 with 3.5 & 5.25 disk drives, RGB
> monitor, keyboard, mouse, 1MB RAM and ImageWriter II.

Ram might be a problem for GS software. You can get a good ram
card from Alltech. It is expandable to 8 megs, IIRC.

All the earlier 8 bit programs should run fine. Well, about 90%
or so. Some real old software may fail to run.

> 1) I can't get 5.25 disk with apps to run. When I attempt to
> mount apps within GSOS 5.0 I get a message to initialize them.
> If I attemtp to start up off them I get the 'check startup
> device' message. Some misc. disks with just data on them mount
> from within the GSOS. IS the drive damaged or is there a trick
> to running apps off a 5.25 disk?

This may be caused by several different things.
 a) disk bit rot. Older disks may lose the image over time.
 b) disk drive needs alignment
 c) wrong DOS. Many earlier software used DOS 3.2 or 3.2
    the GS uses Prodos 8 or GS/OS. For Dos disks, GSOS needs
    a FST handler installed. Actually, this applies for any
    file system which GSOS can handle. GSOS can read Dos 3.3
    disks but I don't think it can handle Dos 3.2.
 
> 2) I see there's a TCP stack for the GSOS but what about for
> gno?

That's a good question. I don't have an answer though. I have
used GNO but it's been a while. GNO can access the desk acc. by
using a graphics shell. The gui system is still limited. I quit
GNO because I can't afford the Orca C system which is the main
programming tool for it.
 
> 3) Is gno really unix for the IIGS. I don't expect to run X
> Windows or anything but that could be interesting....

It's as close as you're going to get. I can't say which version
of standards it follows though. Also, there is very little
development going on from what I can tell.

> 4) I noticed in another posting that there are only 60 MB
> drives being made anymore. If gno needs takes up more than
> that what's one supposed to do.

The drives you mention are from Alltech. Their stock varies and
currently they may only have 60 meg drives. All the drives they
use are laptop sized. 60 megs is probably enough as most Apple2
software is relatively small. The drive will have 2 partitions
probably as Prodos can only handle a 32 meg partition.

Alternatively, you can use a SCSI drive and may prefer to go
this route. I can't help much here though. You will need a
scsi card and drive and maybe an adapter to connect the two.
I have thought about doing this for some 80 meg drives I have
but as yet, I haven't gotten around to this. If you can't find
an external scsi, you should be able to get an external drive
case with power supply from someplace like Tiger Direct.

> 5) Are there any adapters to make the IIGS use Mac/PC
> monitors?

I can't help much here. I prefer the GS monitor myself. There
is a vga adapter. You might get lucky and find one on an 
auction. I have heard good and bad reports on it's use.

 
> 6) Why is it that a computer that people are practicaly giving
> away costs so much to upgrade?! It looks like it would take
> $200 to upgrade the RAM to 8MB and get a HD (assuming I can
> find someplace that has them).

Mainly because the parts are harder to find. Basic components
are easy, but most expansion parts were made by other companies.
Then there is the auction fever. Many people have gotten caught
up in the bidding process and have bid some outrageous prices.
This in turn has led many people to believe they can make a
killing of these old parts. What a vicious cycle.

For the most part, you need more ram and possibly a hard disk.
I would suggest an accelerator but they are hard to find unless
you get really lucky.

> 7) Should I just take it out and shoot it?

Absolutely not!!! If you decide it's too much trouble, please
consider selling or donating it to someone. It can be useful
for something like a day care or school or even the elderly who
have plenty of free time.

> 8) Assuming 7 above is false and I get intersting answers
> there will be more guestions :-)

Please feel free to ask anything concerning the Apple II
computers. Also, join the comp.sys.apple2 newsgroup. This is
the main forum for the general II public.

Also, try this site for FAQ's and other useful info.

http://home.swbell.net/rubywand/

-- 

Thank you for your time and interest. I hope it was helpful
or at least interesting.

Phoenyx,

Apple2 user since March 1984

Links to Phoenyx's pages:
preferred..... http://zip.to/Phoenyx_A2
alternate..... http://www.tinyangeldesigns.com/Apple2