Re: can 6.0.1 boot on a GS floppy?

[spec@vax2.concordia.ca (Mitchell Spector)]

In article Jon Dickason <dickason@dickason-pc.eng.mc.xerox.com> writes...
> 
>I'm new to my Apple IIGS and was reading a FAQ about making a minimal 6.0.1 
>boot disk. My GS has a 3.5 and a 5.25 floppy but no hard disk. Can I boot 
>OS/GS from a floppy disk?

    Yes, but on the following conditions. First that the IIgs system is
a ROM version 01 or higher (the original ROM only supports up to System 
3.2) and that you have at least 1.25MB (or 1.125MB) of memory. Of the
six disks included, 'System Disk' and 'Installer' are the only two that
can be directly booted (or you can use the 'Installer' disk to create
a fresh bootable version of 'System.Disk'). You'll be using the 3.5 drive,
the 5.25 drive cannot run GS/OS, it can only be used to store files under
it (though I'd recommend you not even use it for that, it is exteremly
limited in terms of speed and storage; use it just for old 8-bit software).

    Note that 800K (what the 3.5 stores) is a very tight squeeze, so
you'll only be able to install a minimum setup. You can delete some of
the non-essential tools and files for more space, but it still won't be
nearly enough to use all the features of System 6.0.1. The recommended
setup for running System 6.0.1 is 2MB+ of memory and a hardrive, and
personally I find an accelerator nice (I find the Finder very sluggish
without one). Even a second 3.5 disk can make things easier though, 
trying to run System 6.0.1 on a bare-bones system (1MB and 3.5 drive)
can drive you mad from constant disk-swapping alone. :-)

Mitchell Spector
spec@vax2.concordia.ca