Re: PC Transporter Help

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

In article <4mm01s$jq2@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu>,
Gary Sutton <cvotter@firefly.prairienet.org> wrote:
> Bill Scheffler (schefflr@news.msus.edu) wrote:
> 
> : 	Do you have the software (preferable 2.04 or 2.05)?  The PC 
> : Transporter won't run in MS-DOS mode without the PC Transporter System Disk.

It won't do _anything_ without the software, except allow the normal
IIgs video to pass through the ColorSwitch card.  You can't even use
it as a RAM disk.

> Still, I'm not certain if the drive needs to be plugged into the PCT to 
> be able to run MS-DOS disks, or if it will work from the SmartPort.

You must plug the Apple 3.5 Drive into the PC Transporter to access
MS-DOS 720K disks.  I wouldn't recommend keeping it there, though -
the PC Transporter is VERY slow at accessing an Apple 3.5 Drive for
800K disks while in ProDOS, there are programs which are not
compatible with it, and you can't boot ProDOS from it (well, I
couldn't on mine - it always breaks into the monitor if you try to
boot from the PCT slot; yes, this is AFTER booting a copy of ProDOS
which has been patched with the drivers).


A quick summary of what the software includes:

- Control program to allow the PCT to act as a PC (AEPC.SYSTEM and
  lots of support files, including an image of the BIOS, and a set of
  PC-based utility programs for interacting with the Apple).

- "Portware" drivers for the PCT, which remap PC I/O accesses to the
  appropriate Apple II peripheral (e.g. emulation of an 8250-based serial
  port which gets re-routed through the IIgs serial firmware).

- A driver which gets patched into PRODOS and is downloaded into the PCT
  at boot time.  It provides access to disk drives connected to the PCT,
  and allows the use of the PCT as a RAM disk (compatible with the Apple
  II Memory Expansion Card).

- Various support utilities.

The software does NOT include a copy of MS-DOS.  You need a bootable
MS-DOS system disk (version 3.3 or later - I am using 5.0), including
at the very least the FDISK and FORMAT utilities.  Given that you will
be using an Apple 3.5 Drive, you need to set this up on a 720K MFM
disk, which can be created on a real PC if your distribution MS-DOS
disks are not in the right format.
-- 
David Empson
dempson@actrix.gen.nz
Snail mail: P.O. Box 27-103, Wellington, New Zealand