[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: Uprgading IIgs
Jay C. Sabol wrote:
>
> Hello Everyone!
>
> I've decided to upgrade my ROM 01 IIgs (I have a 3.5 drive and 5.25
> drive). I've been pouring over Mr. Mates outstanding Apple II FAQ to
> try and get myself up to speed and it has made me aware of many things
> I didn't know about the IIgs, but I do have a basic question I could
> use some guidance on:
>
> I have the impression that having ROM 01 does not prevent me from
> attaching a hard drive, using GS/OS 6.01, upgrading RAM, attaching a
> modem, etc.
Right. Only the ROM 00 can't run current System Software.
What happens is that for both the ROM 01 and ROM 03, there
are patches on disk that update the tools in ROM each time
the machine is booted into GS/OS. ROM 03's tools are more
modern and ROM 01 has an older, less complete version. As
a result, booting on a ROM 03 is somewhat faster from floppy,
but you won't notice much difference if you add a fast hard
disk drive.
> I am still a little unclear about what I am losing by not
> having those extra intsructions in the ROM 03. Would the difference
> be enough so as to be worthwhile to get ROM 03 motherboard and
> replace my current motherboard?
Well, the toolbox is patched to look identical from the software
point of view. The only thing you gain from a ROM 03 is better
support for Extended Keyboards (both support them, but the ROM 03
toggles the LED's, etc.), more memory built in (not important
when you add a 4MB-8MB memory card), and more flexibility on an
AppleTalk network (you don't lose slot 7).
You probably would want to spend your money getting a hard
drive and 4MB-8MB of memory rather than upgrade the motherboard.
>
> Thank you very much in advance for any advice/suggestions/opinions on
> this matter!
>
> Jay C. Sabol
> jaycs@earthlink.net
Here are some suggestions. Where does one get GS software and
hardware these days?
To get started:
You need to get the System 6.0.1 six disk set from Alltech Electronics
(http://www.allelec.com). Shareware Solutions II carries various
and many other softwares for the price of postage and handling and
he publishes a newsletter about the computer (http://www.crl.com/~joko).
Better yet, connect a modem and hard disk to it to make it into an easy
to use, web capable education and productivity platform for your nephew.
When clocked at 13.75MHz with an addon board, a GS word processes faster
than the 25MHz '486 PC that I also use. :) See below for sources.
Where do you get information and products for the GS?
Short answer:
Alltech Electronics (http://www.allelec.com/)
Sequential Systems (http://www.sequential.com/)
Seven Hills (http://www.sevenhills.com/applesoftware/iigs/)
Long Answer:
Friend, you are in for a treat. GS software has come a long way
since the time when the "desktop" was an optional program. The
GS's native OS is GS/OS, a modular OS that can accept drivers and
foreign filesystems with ease and has an integrated GUI that is
almost identical to MacOS. It is not a precursor to MacOS, but
an independent creation of Apple. The latest version can read
and write Macintosh disks and read MS-DOS disks (with the right
drive).
Even more good news, if you are a linux fan, you may like to
investigate the version of UNIX called GNO/ME for the GS. Sold
by EGO Systems, GNO/ME will give you a UNIX style shell and
command line that you are familiar with. And yes, it implements
pre-emtive multitasking of processes.
All this progress comes at a cost. Modern GS software requires
4MB (8MB of memory is even better). The good news is that if you
have any 1MB SIMM modules lying around, you can use these with
the Sirius memory board for the GS. You should also get a hard
drive for the computer (it can use both SCSI and IDE/EIDE hard
drives with the right controller card).
Hop over to Alltech Electronics (http://www.allelec.com/) and
Sequential Systems (http://www.sequential.com/) to find the
needed upgrade peripherals. I recommend you get a Sirius memory
board from Alltech Electronics and fill it with your spare 1MB
SIMM modules to boost your GS computer's memory to 8 megabytes.
You might also want to pick up a 500 megabyte Focus hard disk
drive from Alltech. Alltech sells the Focus drive preformatted
with GS/OS with System 6.0.1, so you get the OS preinstalled.
For software, I recommend AppleWorks GS v1.1, also from Alltech.
They carry it for $15 and it includes a nice graphical GUI
word processor, a draw/paint program, spreadsheet, a nice DB
module that supports graphics, and a page layout module that
resembles an early version of PageMaker. With the right addon,
you can use TrueType fonts on the GS.
If you have an spare SCSI CD-ROM drive lying around, there are
CD-ROMs for the GS! Look at them at http://www.crl.com/~joko
(Joe Kohn's SSII organization) and http://www.sequential.com/
(Sequential Systems).
There is also a Netscape-like graphical web browser for it, but
it requires a 4MB-8MB GS and for all practical purposes a hard
drive and a 14.4 or faster modem (the GS can handle 33.6 ones
just fine, but 14.4 will do). It functions like a cross
between Lynx and Netscape with autoload graphics turned off.
See Seven Hills (http://www.sevenhills.com/applesoftware/iigs/)
for more information on the SIS browser for the Spectrum program.
For ftp freeware and shareware, investigate ground with your
web browser (http://ground.isca.uiowa.edu/)
As you well know with your PCs, more memory and hard drive space
is better. The same thing applies on the GS. Have fun!
-Scott G.