Re: Third site for obtaining ProTYPE now in use!

[pubpc1@library.ucla.edu]

bjbear@ibm.net (B.J. Major & Dennis J. Gorin) wrote:
>OK, now there's simply no excuse for "Mac-to-Apple // download" users to
>suffer any longer!  We now have a *third* site that is hosting ProTYPE
>permanently.  It's an FTP site and its address is:
>ftp.zws.com/pub/mac/protype1_0.sit.hqx
>
>Thanks go to Lewin A.R.W. Edwards in Australia who is both a Macintosh
>and Apple // enthusiast for wanting to host this file.
>
>--bj
>Apple //--///--Macintosh user/supporter/collector


B.J., I know you ran into trouble following the instructions in
the FAQ and I am happy that ProTYPE works on the Mac side.  You
did mention that you have a GS, however, and as such you might
be surprised to know that you did not even need ProTYPE in the
first place.

The Macintosh is not the only computer that uses forked files.
The Apple IIgs under GS/OS also uses them.  In fact, most modern
GS specific desktop programs have a resource fork.  GS/OS system
sounds under System 6.0.1 are all resources.

Please push the ProTYPE solution for 8-bit Apple II users who
must use regular Shrink-It! and BINSCII, but know that with a
GS, all you need is GSHK and GSCII+.

With a GS, once you are running System 6.0.1 with the HFS FST
you can:

1) Download on your Mac without ANY helper apps onto an 800K
   HFS disk (HFS, not ProDOS).  If you have a high density
   drive and controller on your GS, 1.44MB HFS disks will also
   work.
2) Take the Mac disk with the Apple II .bsq or .shk archives
   over to the GS and stick the disk into the drive.  The Mac
   HFS disk will appear on the GS Finder desktop. Click it
   open and you will find your files.
3) The Mac may have put resource forks on the files.  They
   may have the filetype $00 (unknown filetype).  However,
   the GS specific programs GSHK and GSCII+ will open them
   just fine!
4) If you want to decode .bsq files, run GSCII+.  If you want
   to unpack .shk files, use GSHK.

B.J., remember that most GS programs have resource forks.  Even
if you use ProTYPE and get those archives into a form that the
8-bit unshrink and unbinscii programs can recognize, you have a
second problem of unpacking the files once the archive is open.
8-bit ProDOS Shrink-It! will not unpack files that themselves
contain a resource fork (that is, GS programs with resource forks
that have been archived by GSHK).  At some point, you will need
GSHK.

My recommendation would be to use ProTYPE in order to download
GSHK to your GS in a form that regular Shrink-It! can unpack.
Once you have GSHK and GSCII+, there is no longer a need for
ProTYPE. (GSHK is available on disk from such sources as Joe Kohn).

Now for 8-bit Apple II users, the story is different.  For them,
ProTYPE is the simplest solution.  They still have an alternative,
though: A2FX will read HFS disks, split forked files, and save
clean data forks (with the filetype and auxtype you choose) on
the A2 side.

I agree that the instructions in the FAQ are convoluted, but Nate
did not just omit Mac solutions.  He also omitted solutions on the
GS or II side.

-Scott G.