Re: Pointless <-> 6.0.1 problem

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

In article <16JUL199312043460@pavo.concordia.ca> sb_spec@pavo.concordia.ca (Mitchell Spector) writes:
>
> [System 6 problems with an Apple SC20 hard drive]
> 
> 	Can someone verify if this is true? My brother will be buying an
> old Apple SC20 hardrive quite soon, and I'd like to install the lastest
> System Software on it (System 6.0 or 6.0.1). At first I thought the above
> problem might have something to do with the revision of ROM on the 
> Apple rev.C (not hi-speed) SCSI card, since it needs to be updated to order
> to work under GS/OS. However, the current owners have been running the drive 
> with System 4.0 (GS/OS v2.0) with no problems whatsoever.

I doubt it is the ROM revision.  I have a genuine Rev C ROM in my old
SCSI card (in my second computer), and System 6's SCSI drivers refuse
to recognise one of my hard drives.  System 5.0.4's drivers work fine,
and System 6's drivers also work fine if the drive is connected to my
High-Speed SCSI card.

I think it is just a timing problem with slow drives and the older
SCSI card - the SCSI driver isn't waiting long enough for a response
from the drive, or something like that.

> 	If System 6.0 _won't_ install, does System 6.0.1 fix this? I would
> hope there's a better solution that installing System 3.1's disk drivers into
> the /System folder (Not only is it bad idea mixing & matching old and new
> parts of System Software, but ProDOS 16's disk and SCSI drivers were
> incredibly S-L-O-W! :/). 

Not to mention incredibly buggy, and they don't support the High Speed
SCSI card.  I don't know if System 6.0.1 fixes the problem.  I might
be able to tell you in a week or two (I posted my order to Resource
Central two days ago).

It really is a VERY bad idea to do this.  Just to take one example,
Advanced Disk Utility wouldn't work at all with old drivers - it uses
special driver calls to handle partitioning, and these calls didn't
exist until System 5.  Further calls were added in System 6.

Two possible solutions (assuming 6.0.1 doesn't fix the problem):

- Install System 5.0.4 instead of System 6 or 6.0.1  (yuck)
- Get a High-Speed or RamFAST SCSI card

> Please cross-post any replies to mail, thanks.

First time I've tried doing this, so I wonder if it works (just adding
a Cc: line to the header)?
-- 
David Empson                                                               
dempson@swell.actrix.gen.nz                                                
Snail mail: P.O. Box 27-103, Wellington, New Zealand