Re: Mac to Apple // downloaders: ProTYPE works!!!!

[shack@deimos.frii.com (Randy Shackelford)]

In article <5h7a57$maj$1@darla.visi.com>, Nathan Mates <nathan@visi.com> wrote:

[snip]

>   As I noted in the FAQ, there *was* another program to do exactly
>the same thing, but it disappeared from the Mac ftp sites. I'm not
>responsible for maintaining Mac programs, keeping them around or
>anything else, so if the magic Mac downloading program of the month
>disappears, we'll go through this again. And again.

You are a veritable wealth of misinformation on this subject. Small wonder
considering how you've never used a Mac. It's still beyond me why you 
presume to be the authority on any Mac related info. The fork stripper 
program I located on info-mac a few months ago during your last chorus of
the same old whine was a general purpose resource fork stripper for MacOS 
files. ProTYPE does that plus does file type changing and binscii decoding
using the same drag 'n drop setup. The fork stripper app  was on info-mac,
and anyone who USES Macs or takes the trouble to check something out before
writing about it would know that files there are subject to deletion. It's a 
real ordeal to FTP a file you mention from an info-mac mirror and FTP it onto
a site where it won't vanish, such as ground.

>   This has demonstrated my point about downloading through Macs once
>again: they're god-awful inconsistent about doing Apple II file
>writing correctly right out of the box. You *DO* need helper apps do
>do the job right. 

Yep just like it takes a helper app or plug-in to play a quicktime or au 
sound file, unzip an archive, or basically do anything with stuff you
get from online. And it's just so utterly beyond the capacity of anyone
who wants to use files to FTP a file to get an app which can convert the
files to the correct format by dropping the file's icon onto the app's icon.

>   Time to troll around a few Mac ftp sites to try and find the program
>of the month...

Doubt you find ProTYPE on info-mac since it's needed by a very small 
proportion of Mac users. I would expect that seldom used files vanish off
info-mac. Not too many people need to strip resource forks.

>   That's partly because the Macheads have been in denial about the
>need for helper programs, continually claiming "it works for me." And,
>if you DID read the FAQ, I clearly stated that there used to be
>another program to do what ProTYPE's doing for you. But, it
>disappeared. Not under my control, go bug whomever wrote that.

I've lost count of the solutions to this "problem" I've documented. You've
blown it entirely out of proportion and people who don't know better 
swallow it and vainly try the halfassed workarounds in the FAQ.

>   The FAQ was updated last summer when the last program to do this
>was mentioned.  And updated when that program disappeared. And will be
>updated again. You just happened to read it at a time when for reasons
>totally beyond my control, the magical necessary program was
>unavailable, and nobody was saying precisely where a replacement could
>be found.  "Go look for it on a Mac site" is probably what I'll say
>for now.

See above remarks on how tough it is to download and reupload to a
permanent site.

>   "Not rocket science to download properly thru a Mac", my ***. It
>isn't done right, and neither Apple nor Macheads will tell you
>otherwise.

It's so easy even you could master it in a few tries I bet.
-- 
Randy Shackelford                                 
shack@frii.com