Re: RAM cards

[Warren Ernst <wernst@gmail.com>]

On Sep 18, 9:38 pm, "ict@ccess" <gids...@sasktel.net> wrote:
> KP wrote:
> > A few questions about RAM cards:
>
> > 1) The Oxen Industries (now remarketed by MC Pricebusters) "Super
> > Expander E" is marketed as a clone of the AE RAMWorks card.  However,
> > I am concerned that the Super Expander E would not be recognized by
> > non-AppleWorks programs (the card comes with software for patching AW,
> > but not for patching other software).  Is the Super Expander E
> > unrecognized by other software that would normally recognize an AE
> > RAMWorks card?  e.g., CP/AM, some of the Beagle Bros. programs that
> > utilize expanded RAM, etc.?
>
> > 2) Can you use both a RAMFactor and an Aux card at once in a //e?
> > Would the total available RAM reflect both cards, or just one card?
>
> > 3) Can you use both a RAMFactor and a Mem-slot card at once in a
> > IIgs?  Would the total available RAM reflect both cards, or just one
> > card?
>
> > 4) If you used an 8-Meg Mem-slot card and a 1-Meg RAMFactor
> > simultaneously in a IIgs, then would the total available RAM be 9 Meg
> > (or nearly 10 Meg in a ROM 03)?
>
> > Thanks!
>
> You can have more than one memory card plugged in but only one can be
> used for expansion RAM in appleworks and the other as a RAM drive or
> you can have two RAM drives.
>
> A Ramfactor card can never be used as expansion RAM for programs, only
> as a data storage media.
>
> Rob

Not totally true. AppleWorks 3 and higher will automatically work some
voodoo to make a larger AppleWorks desktop with whatever free memory
it finds in a RamFactor (or any Slinky-style) card. For example, if
you have an empty 1 MB RamFactor, AW3 will report a Desktop size in
the 900KB range. However, if you fill up a 1MB RamFactor with about
750KB of stuff, then AW3 reports a Desktop size around 250KB or so.
All through college, I ran a //e with a 1MB RamFactor loaded up as a
ramdisk with about 750KB of stuff like ProDOS, AW3 and lots of Timeout
stuff, ProTerm, ProSel, and some development tools. I would leave it
on for weeks at a time to keep the ramdisk populated, and I still had
a large AW3 desktop even though I only had an extended 80-column card
in the AUX Slot.

Today, that //e now has a 1MB RamWorks III card in addition to the 1MB
RamFactor card. When I load up the RamFactor with its 750KB of stuff
and run AW3, AW's Desktop is now close to 1MB. Conclusion: when AW3
and later finds both an AUX-Slot memory card and a Slinky memory card,
it will use the AUX-Slot card's memory for desktop expansion.

As I recall from my time at Beagle, AW3 can only use one memory card
for memory expansion.

Finally, I seem to recall there were a few programs that were also
able to make use of the AUX Slot RAM from large RamWorks cards, but I
am at a loss to remember any of them? Did ProTerm give you larger
scrollback buffers? Did MultiScribe (or BeagleWrite) let you open
larger documents? I just don't remember anymore...

-Warr