Re: Newbie Questions

[Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>]

Stephen Granger writes ...
> 
> My wife came home with a IIe from school, and we have some questions...
> 
> 1a) Do I need a system disk to start a IIe?

     If you want to be able to load, run, save, ... programs on disk,
Yes. 


>  If I turn the thing on w/o a
> disk in the drive, the drive keeps spinning.  I remember the "old" computers
> (commodore, atari, etc) used to start BASIC automatically.  Since this IIe
> doesn't, can I assume its broken?

     No. The IIe normally tries to boot a diskette when powered-ON. If
you press CTRL-Reset, the computer will stop trying to boot a diskette
and you will be looking at the standard BASIC prompt. (Since the Apple
II+, Applesoft BASIC is in-ROM in all Apple II computers.) You can
type-in and run BASIC programs but you will not be able load or save
anything via diskette because you have not booted a disk operating
system.


> 
> 1b) if I need a system disk, where do I get one?  How about a comm program
> to download stuff from the internet?  (There's lots of educational software
> out there my wife can use at school...)
>

     A good place to get all sorts of software and plenty of advice is
your local Users Group. If there is no phone listing for an Apple group,
check for a Mac users group-- a number of Apple II groups merged with
their Mac counterparts.

     The Apple User Group Connection (800-538-9696 ext 500) can tell you
the closest Apple II (or Macintosh) User Group. Several web sites
maintain user group lists. Two such sites are ...

http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Technology/AppleUsersGroup/sub/usergroups.html
http://www.frostbyte.com/Apple/Apple_usergroups.html



     One nice 'getting started' package is the Modemming Starter Disk
from Apple Blossom. According to Steve Cavanaugh, it now includes ProDOS
and is bootable. Below is a small clip from the Apple Blossom web site
( http://people.delphi.com/appleblossom/index.html ).


>>

***Modem Disk Available on 5.25" disks***

 last updated: May 4, 1998
 Also available on 3.5" disk* for IIGS and IIc+ users. 

 ....

 If interested, send your mailing address and $3 US currency to: 

 Steve Cavanaugh
 26 Moulton St.
 Brockton, MA 02302 

 If you have questions about this offer, email ....
appleblossom@delphi.com. 

<<



     Another resource is to email some Csa2 regular and request that
he/she send you DOS 3.3 and ProDOS startup disks with a few useful
utilities. Expect to pay $3-$5 to cover the cost of diskette(s) and
shipping.
     


     There are many Apple II books, manuals, etc. which can be a big
help. Some of the materials listed below can be found on the Byte Works
products list page ( http://hypermall.com/byteworks/bwad.html ). Most
will turn up for sale on comp.sys.apple2.marketplace, local swap meets,
and used book shops.


Apple IIe

 Apple IIe Technical Reference Manual  from Apple (Addison-Wesley)


Applesoft BASIC

 Basic Programming Reference Manual  from Apple


DOS

 The DOS Manual  from Apple
 Beneath Apple DOS  by Worth & Lechner


ProDOS

 ProDOS Technical Reference Manual  from Apple (Addison-Wesley)
 Beneath Apple ProDOS  by Worth & Lechner
 Exploring Apple GS/OS and ProDOS 8  by Little
 ProDOS Inside and Out  by Doms and Weishaar


General Apple II

 Apple II User's Guide  by Poole, Martin, and Cook
 What's Where in the Apple II?  by William F. Luebbert 
 Beagle Bros "Peeks, Pokes, and Pointers" (poster)  by Beagle Bros




 
> 2a) When I do the self test, it says " *RAM 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0".  The computer
> has an expansion card in it - looks like 8 ram chips.  When I pull it out,
> everything is fine.  Do I need this expansion card?
>

     The test may indicate a bad or loose RAM chip in the bit 5
position. Evidently, the error is found on the plug-in card you mention.
If the card's RAM chips are in sockets, try removing and re-socketing
each RAM chip on the card.
 
     If the card is your "80-column Card", you need it to have an
'enhanced IIe' and to run newer (128k) Apple II software.


 
> 2b) is a memory error a bad thing?

     Usually, Yes.


>  My wife has MECC disks up the wazoo, but
> has never experienced a problem.
>

     A memory error may not be noticed when running firmware or software
which does not use the affected memory locations. 





Rubywand