Apple II Internet Writer's System

["Joseph E. Walsh" <ransom@connect.iconnect.net>]

Hi,

I've finally come to the end of the long road to finding the hardware and 
software configuration that best meets my needs as a freelance writer who 
uses the Internet to collaborate and transfer files to co-authors, 
editors, etc.  I want to point out that what follows is the best system 
for /me/, and not necessarily for anyone else.  But, on the off-chance 
that someone else can benefit from my experience . . .

Disclaimer: This document is meant only to show my own experiences; it is 
not meant to be taken as an endorsement of any one product or group of 
products over any other.  Your own experiences may - in fact almost 
certainly will - vary from mine.


Basic Computer:
First, get yourself a IIGS with at least 4 MB of RAM and at least a 32 MB 
hard drive (either a SCSI drive (which means you'll need a SCSI card) or 
a Hard Card).  Add in System 6.0.1 (and Nathan Mates' GUPP system patch 
collection).  Of course, you'll need a monitor.  Color preferred, but 
monochrome will do.

Printer:
Second, get an ImageWriter II.  It's a flexible printer.  It's also a 
workhorse that's built like a tank.  You'll be doing a lot of printing, 
so call Sequential Systems and buy their MegaBuff II add-on card.  It 
provides a 1 MB buffer to the printer, and also speeds up the transfer 
from 9600 baud to 19.2Kbaud (under ProDOS-8; under GS/OS, it goes all the 
way up to 56kbps).  If you don't like pin-feed paper, you can get a 
ImageWriter II Cut Sheet Feeder as well.

Miscellaneous Hardware:
Third, you'll want to round out your system with a 3.5" drive and an 
external modem. Then go to your local Apple dealer (or Computer City, if 
there is one in your area) and pick up the following Mac cables if you 
don't already have them: High Speed Modem Cable (capable of hardware 
handshaking), ImageWriter Printer Cable.

Now you've assembled a good set of hardware for writing.  The software is 
next.

Internet Connectivity:
Call Seven Hills Software and order their Spectrum product.  It's a great 
terminal program, being both powerful and flexible.  You'll also want to 
get ahold of some shareware programs such as ASCII Helper (strips or adds 
CR's and LF's, flip-flop's CR's and LF's, etc.), GSCII (GS 
encoding/decoding software), and a compression/decompression program such 
as Balloon.  It won't hurt to have an NDA editor like EGOed

Writing Tools:
Now we get to the point.  As chronicled on c.s.a2, I went through a lot 
of programs for writing on the IIGS.  What I finally settled on is the 
AppleWorks 5.1 TimeOut SuperBundle from Scantron Quality Computers.  This 
is one heck of a buy.  $129 for AppleWorks 5.1 with manuals, plus a ton 
of TimeOut programs with manuals.  You get AppleWorks (integrated Word 
Processor, Spreadsheet, and Database package) with a spelling checker, 
thesaurus, and grammar checker.  You also get a program to help you 
integrate spreadsheets and databases in word processing documents, a word 
count program, a calculator, a font manager (and a bunch of fonts, plus 
the ability to use GS system fonts in AppleWorks), and just about everything 
else you could ever want in a single integrated package!  Amazing stuff, 
and well worth the $129.00.  It works flawlessly for me.


So, there you have it: the system I settled on.  I used AppleWorks for 
the last project, but it was a very short project (16,000 words) and I 
didn't have all the neat bells and whistles at my fingertips.  I'm going 
to use it for the project I'm beginning this weekend, which will be a 
standard 100,000 word project (50,000 of which will be written by me, 
50,000 by my collaborator).  I'm betting my productivity will go way up. 
:) 


-Joe
______________________________________________________________________________
Joseph E. Walsh  |  Game Designer for Marc Miller's Traveller
_________________|  Atari 1200XL and Apple IIGS User and Programmer