Re: Mystery Card...

[James Noyes <jnoyes@quality.NOSPAM.net>]

Gary Sutton wrote: 
> Heya!  It's time to play Name That Card...
>
**SNIP**
> 
> On the bottom left corner:  (c) 1978
>                             Apple Computer Inc.
>                             ROM Card
>                             600-________-_____
> 

What ya got here is a genuine Apple ROM Card - but I guess you
already figured that out.  :)  I have three of 'em.  They're not
exactly the Holy Grail, but I think they're cool enough to keep.

One sits in my //e, in Slot 3 (they work fine there, making
that slot good for something after all).

> There are 11 sockets on it.  1 - 6 are longer and wider than the
> others, and #2 is empty...
> 
> 1:  8015E
> 2:
> 3:  7845E  1MB-E0
> 4:  7946E
> 5:  7731D  1MB-F0
> 6:  7731D  1MB-f8
> 
These are the ROMS.  The numbers you list here are date codes, so
they don't tell us much.  With #2 empty (the E8 ROM), chances are
REAL good that the ROMS contain Integer Basic (D0 thru F0) and the
standard Apple II+ AutoStart (F8) ROM.

What does this mean for you?  It means if the card is active
(switch up) when reset is pressed or power is turned on, the
machine it's installed in will use the ROMS and look just like an
old Integer Apple II+ to the software.  Handy if you have a program
that requires either Integer Basic (like Oddysey: The Compleat
Apventure) or an older machine (can't think of any right off hand).
Flip the switch, and your machine takes on a whole new personality.

Now, the ORIGINAL purpose for the card had it filled with AppleSoft
ROMS instead, as it was used to convert Apple II's to Apple II+'s.
Many people took the ROMS off the card, switched them with the
motherboard, and took the cards out - hence the Integer on the card,
rather than Applesoft.

These cards were *very* sought after by the - shall we say - "de-
protection" crowd, especially when the old ROMS were in place on
them.  The "Old Monitor" F8 ROM would ALWAYS drop to monitor when
<Reset> was pressed.  And the card didn't change modes with a switch
flip until the next reset.  Set the switch to "normal", boot your
program, wait until it loads into memory, flip the switch, reset,
and "BAM", you're in monitor, free to do what you like with code,
including saving it out to tape, so you could get it back later,
when DOS was loaded.
Some "de-protectors" even went so far as to develop new F8 ROMS
with custom routines, including basic Disk I/O, that they would
burn with EPROM burners and use instead.  Several of these "cracker"
ROMS were published in the early 80's in Computist magazine and
the like.

With the de-protecting application being pointless these days, the
card is mostly a curiosity, but can be employed to make your Apple
look like another machine.  For example, I burned a full set of
UNenhanced //e ROMS to use on mine.  Now, my //e changes from
enhanced to unenhanced at the flip of a switch (and a reset).
Don't worry, folks - I've cannibalized enough unenhanced //e's for
parts that I've got MORE than enough sets of ROMS with which to
satisfy the copyright law.  ;)

With access to a PROM burner, you could make your machine into
virtually anything.  A II, II+, //e (enhanced or unenhanced),
even a //c if you felt like it.  Or you could just make the
machine say something besides "Apple //*" when you turn it on.

> The final and most notable feature on this card is a red toggle
> switch on the end that faces an Apple II's rump.  The positions are
> simply marked A and B.
> 
As mentioned above, up (A) is "active after next reset or powerup".
Down (B) is "inactive, and invisible to the system".

> Anyone have a clue what this is?  Is it something useless or did I
> just score big time like I did yesterday with the Milton Bradley
> Microvision for $3.00?

Useless?  No.  Microvision for three bucks?  No.  Cool enough to
hang onto?  Yes.  Cool enough to use?  I think so.

Just my $.02.  Anyone else?

James Noyes
(jnoyes@quality.NOSPAM.net)

"Thank you for abusing AT&T."

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