Re: Help w/ GS Ramdisk and Prodos

[Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>]

Ron Fucci writes ...
> 
> Thanks, I've done that.  I'm using Rom03 and tried the reset switch on
> the control panel  both ways, and bouncing the power.   I can't copy a
> file to the RAM disk, and utilities which display volumes don't see
> it.  Any other ideas ? Using ProDOS 2.0.3
> 
> On 1 Nov 1998 18:54:20 GMT, supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer) wrote:
> 
> >ron.fucci@mindspring.com (Ron Fucci) wrote:
> >
> >>Can I access the ramdisk from Prodos ?  I set up the ramdisk in the
> >>control panel, but can't seem to  'see' it from system utilities to
> >>copy a file from diskette. Tks
> >
> >You gotta restart the computer after changing the control panel
> >this way.


     A RAM Disk is very nice to have on the GS.

     One thing you do not seem to mention is how much RAM you have
installed. Try this ...

Boot your system.

Go to the 'old' Control Panel: press OpenApple-Control-Escape (i.e.
press and hold all three keys) to get to the Desk Accessories menu.
Then, release the keys. When "Control Panel" is highlighted-- use the
Arrow keys to cursor up and down-- press Return.

In the Control Panel, select "RAM Disk". (Cursor to "RAM Disk" and press
Return.)

Look at the number next to "-Largest Selectable-". This gives you some
idea of how much RAM you have to use for loading in GS/OS (or plain
8-bit ProDOS, etc.), running programs, and setting up a RAM Disk. If the
number is 3000 or larger, there's a good chance you can run GS/OS and
have an 800k RAM Disk. If the number is smaller, it's a good idea to
experiment with a smaller RAM Disk, maybe something like 100k.

Cursor to "Minimum RAM Disk Size" and set the size using the Arrow keys.
Set "Maximum RAM Disk Size" to the same value. Press Return to exit and
save the settings.

Exit the Control Panel and the Desk Accessories menu. Shut down the
computer and turn OFF power.

Now, turn ON the computer and boot your System. If you are booting some
version of GS/OS, a green icon for "RAM5" should show up on the usual
Finder desktop display.


Here is some additional info which may help:

1. The 9.x version of Copy II Plus does _not_ like RAM disks. If you
want to use Copy II Plus to move stuff to/from RAM5, use version
7.2-8.3.

2. RAM5 will usually be accessed by Copy II Plus and ProDOS-8 programs
as Slot5, Drive2.

3. Copy II Plus and most ProDOS-8 utilities do not know about the
Resource parts which are included in many IIgs programs and other IIgs
files. To copy, etc. IIgs files, it is best to do it from the regular
Finder display.

4. It is okay to rename RAM5 during a session. (Normally, you can treat
RAM5 like any other ProDOS disk.)

5. Whatever files you happen to have on RAM5 will usually survive a
'warm' reboot-- i.e., as long as you do not turn OFF power, the files on
RAM5 will, usually, be there after rebooting.

6. If you have lots of RAM (like you have a 4MB or larger card plugged
into the IIgs Expansion Memory Slot), the best size for RAM5 is 800k.
This makes it easy to do whole-disk copies of 800k diskettes.



Rubywand