Re: Apple II's and highspeed access

[tturner@ecn.ab.ca ()]

Scott Alfter (salfter@salfter.diespammersdie.dyndns.org) wrote:
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[snip]

: http://netatalk.sourceforge.net/

: Put this on a Linux box (it could be an old 486 or Pentium sitting in your
: closet), add in a LocalTalk-Ethernet bridge of some sort (such as a
: GatorBox), and you're all set.  It'll serve up files to Apple IIs and Macs
: equally well, and you can have Samba (http://www.samba.org/) running on the
: same box to serve files to Windows and DOS clients.  If I wanted, I could
: move files across the LAN between my IIGS and my IBM PC/XT with a setup like
: this. :-)

Yeah, this goes back to the unfortunate fact that unless one has some sort
of bridge between the PC-side and the A2-side; there's no way to `trade'
files.  Whether that bridge is a Mac, or a Gatorbox; there seems to be no
way around it.  I understand Appletalk allows `Apples' to talk to each
other - but I always thought that this was a Mac-built thing - and not
specific to the Apple 2-series.  So Appletalk is a required translator
between ethernet (TCP/IP) and whatever ProDOS or GS/OS can do?  In other
words (besides the fact that I know little of this area) they cannot
communicate directly; therefore files couldn't be tossed back 'n forth
between 'em?  So there's no software-only translator?  Some sort of
hardware (translator) device is an absolute requirement?  Whenever this is
discussed - there seems to be an un-spoken understanding that `of-course'
an Apple can't talk to a PC without a hardware bridge, so we won't even go
there.  This may be true - it's just never been fully spelled-out in any
of the fine FAQ's that are around (as they don't cover the networking-side
of life). Like I said, I'd love to know more than
`maybe-if-some-software-gets-written'.

The more I get to learn, the better informed I'll be...

-Tony T.

--
E.A.G.L.E Librarian   A3 BBS:403/481-3133   email:tturner@ecn.ab.ca