Re: Need info on IIGS - hooking up modem

[wyanttr@spoc.dnet.dupont.com (Tom Wyant)]

Corinne -

<Snip!>

> 1)  There is a circular port with a phone icon above it (a mini DIN-8
> connector I believe???).  Is this a serial port?  Since the connector
> is present, should I expect that there is a UART chip inside attached
> to it and it is usable?

Yes to all. See the control panel for settings, though the software you 
get to drive the modem will probably handle it.

> 2)  Assuming this is a serial port, I read somewhere in one of the
> Apple II newsgroups that I could get a "Mini DIN-8 to DB-25" cable and 
> use that with a modem. I am also assuming then he could use an old
> 1200 BPS Hayes Compatible modem I have lying around.  Correct?

Correct again. I am using a Mac cable, though whether this can be done 
in general I don't know.

> 3)  Where can I get some freeware/shareware terminal emulation
> software for the GS? I don't believe he has any...unless some came
> with the system initially, I would have to have him search his stacks
> of disk for it.  Obviously I can't download it directly to the GS, due 
> to the lack of emulation software!  If I downloaded it to another
> platform, how would I get it onto a disk readable by the GS?  All of
> my work takes place on PCs...but I could probably find a MAC to use.
>  The GS does have a 5 1/4 and 3 1/2 inch drives.  Is the 3 1/2 inch
> drive compatible with one on a MAC?

Ahh ... here's the tricky part. There is no comm software (that I know 
of!) that comes with the GS. You don't want to know how I got Kermit on 
my system, and in a rare fit of restraint I will refrain from telling 
you. If your uncle has GS/OS 6.0 or 6.0.1 he can read Mac diskettes. 
Initialize them as 800 K diskettes (on either the Mac or the GS), and 
both machines can handle them just fine. Versions 7.5 and above of the 
Mac OS are advertised as supporting ProDOS diskettes, but unless Apple 
has done some things to it since 7.5 came out the support is pretty lame 
- it insists on putting a resource fork on all your files (meaning you 
need GS/OS 5.0.4 or above to even read them), and it took a Power Mac 
2-3x as long to write the things as my un-accelerated GS would have.

There are several pieces of software available. Kermit is readily 
available and the price is right (free!); you can FTP from Columbia U. 
if you can't find someone with a copy. You may also need a copy of 
Shrinkit (an archiving and compression program) and/or Binscii (a 
binary-to-text-and-back conversion program), which sould be available 
from most Apple II FTP sites (eg: ftp.cco.caltech.edu, 
archive.umich.edu, etc). Kermit's VT100 support is a little flakey, but 
generally quite usable. Other packages are also available, depending on 
your needs.

Of course, the best thing of all would be to find a local expert to help 
you out. If you call the Apple User Group Connection at 800-538-9696 
they can give you the name and phone number of the Apple II (or MAC) 
user's group nearest you.


Tom Wyant                     The opinions expressed in this
wyanttr@spoc.dnet.dupont.com  document are those of the author,
twyant@freenet.vcu.edu        except for the following, which is
                              William Shakespeare's:
                              "The first thing we do is, we'll kill
                              all the lawyers."
                              Henry VI, Part II, Act 4, Scene 2