Super-Text (long)

[casa@unm.edu (Jim Pittman)]

Hmmm, lately several people are asking about old Super-Text files.

Super-Text was an early Apple II word processor. It was written in
6502 machine language (definitely not Pascal). It never became very
popular -- it was copy-protected and making backup copies of the
program disk was difficult. It works very well on an Apple II Plus
equipped with a Videx 80-column card, a Videx keyboard enhancer and
an accelerator. The later versions of Super-Text would run on a IIe,
a IIc or a IIgs but no one in their right mind would want to do so;
AppleWorks can run rings around it. Nonetheless, I still use it on
my II Plus for some of its unique capabilities.

Early versions of Super-Text saved documents as binary files in a
modified format based on Apple DOS 3.2 -- 13-sectors/track. (As I
recall the directory was located on some track other that the Apple
standard $11 track.) Later versions could save files as standard
Apple DOS 3.3 (16-sector) TEXT files, a much more useful format. The
later versions could only edit a file with a maximum of 14,639 bytes
(yes, just over 14-k bytes!) while the original version could edit
files of 20,049 bytes. Later versions of Super-Text had a simple way
to split large files into two or more pieces for editing on the newer
version.

If you have files written by a later version of Super-Text, probably
the best way to deal with them is to try to read them on an Apple II
that can read DOS 3.3 TEXT files (Copy II Plus could do it, as well
as GS/OS on an Apple IIgs which has the DOS 3.3 FTP installed) and
then go from there: copy them to ProDOS or whatever.

If, however, they are ORIGINAL Super-Text files, you would probably
need to read them on an Apple II running a late version of Super-Text,
translate them into DOS 3.3 TEXT files (possibly having to break long
files into two files) and then go from there.

One more thing. Super-Text used its own print formatting control
codes that nothing else would recognize, so if there's a lot of
printer formatting, all these odd control characters would have to
be stripped out, potentially a time-consuming chore.

Super-Text was a great program in many ways; I still use it regularly,
but it is definitely not user-friendly in terms of interacting with
any other Apple II program or any other kind of computer.

It may be difficult to copy Super-Text document disks to backups so
as to send the backup disks to someone who could move the files to a
Mac or a PC. (It would have to be done on an Apple II, and if the
files are the original binary file types many Apple IIs wouldn't be
able to do it easily.)

I translated some files for a friend who wrote his master's thesis on
an Apple II with an early version of Super-Text, and then ten years
later decided he wanted the thesis to be readable on his Mac, so I
know it can be done, but it takes time and knowledge and both early
and late versions of Super-Text.

- Jim Pittman - AppleQuerque Computer Club - casa at unm dot edu

Re:

> Subject: Re: Need help please Date: Thu, 11 Sep 1997 09:58:57 +0000
> From: Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
> Organization: Southwestern Bell Internet Services, Richardson, TX
> 
> JB writes ...
> > 
> > I'm trying to copy recover some files written with the program
> > SUPERTEXT. Apparently this program is on DOS 3.2 disks. I can't
> > seem to access these disks with any program. Even the supertext
> > program wont launch on my IIc, IIe, or IIgs. The system utilities
> > won't do the 3.2 ---> 3.3 conversion. It keeps giving me an I/O
> > error.
> 
> Some old A2 word processors were done in Pascal. Perhaps SUPERTEXT
> is one of these. If it is, you may be able to transfer the files
> from a Pascal format Save diskette to a ProDOS diskette using a
> program on the IIc utility disk or the program named "Chameleon".
> 
> Otherwise, you may need to start SUPERTEXT to get to the files. If
> the program is protected or uses non-standard ROM calls, it may be
> necessary to boot SUPERTEXT on a II+.
> 
> Rubywand
> 
> Subject: Re: Need help please Date: 12 Sep 1997 03:06:14 GMT
> From: hurry@imap2.asu.edu
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
> Organization: Arizona State University
> 
> If this "Supertext" really is DOS 3.2, you'll need 2 programs from
> the DOS 3.3 master. To boot it, you need the "BOOT13" or "START13" 
> (depending on whether you have the II+ or IIE master) program. To do 
> file conversions from DOS 3.2 to 3.3, you need the program "MUFFIN."
> You have to use the command "BRUN MUFFIN" or "BRUN BOOT13" to get at 
> these. You use "RUN START13" if that's the program's name. If you
> have no DOS 3.3 master, good luck! They are only available used.
> 
> Adam Myrow
> 
> Subject: Re: Need help please Date: Fri, 12 Sep 1997 12:05:08 -0400
> From: Michel Trudel <Michel_Trudel@concepta.com>
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
> Organization: Concepta Communications
> 
> SUPER TEXT is a MUSE Software. This company has is own protected
> format disk. The program has his own initialisation part.
> 
> Documentation say "Disks initialized for Super-Text files cannot be
> used to store other than Super-Text information."
> 
> Michel Trudel