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FAQ- comp.sys.apple2 Frequently Asked Questions 1/2
- Subject: FAQ- comp.sys.apple2 Frequently Asked Questions 1/2
- From: nathan@visi.com (Nathan Mates)
- Date: 1996/08/02
- Expires: 1 Sep 1996
- Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
- Organization: (missing)
As promised, it's August 1st, and an updated FAQ is out. As I noted in
it, its new home location is
http://www.visi.com/~nathan/a2/faq/csa2.html
Please email all comments, corrections, fan mail, or anything else to
nathan@visi.com
---
Archive-name: apple2/part1
Last-modified: Aug 01 1996
Version: 4.4
Big thanks to Dan DeMaggio (dmag@umich.edu), the previous maintainer
of the comp.sys.apple2 FAQ, and anyone who took up that mantle before
him.
This FAQ is posted on the WWW for 24 hour a day (assuming the systems
stay up) availability from http://www.visi.com/~nathan/a2/faq/csa2.html
As I plan to update and fix this FAQ, linking in the document over the
WWW is preferred-- that way, there aren't obsolete versions floating
around.
Table of Contents
Q#1 What's a FAQ? 2/8/95
Q#2 How do I get to comp.sys.apple2 and what is it? 2/9/95
Q#3 How do I get files off the net? 2/8/95
Q#4 Where can I get Apple II software and info on the net? 2/8/95
Q#5 What archivers do I need to know about?
Q#6 More about BinSCII
Q#7 ShrinkIt and NuFX archives
Q#8 Executioner
Q#9 Apple Archive Format (aaf)
Q#10 Net standard formats
Q#11 A quick note about ProDos filetypes
Q#12 What do the file extensions mean?
Q#13 How do I tell what kind of file this is? 2/8/95
Q#14 What is an Apple II? 1/1/95
Q#15 The Apple I
Q#16 The Apple ][ and Apple ][+
Q#17 The Apple //e
Q#18 The Apple //C and IIC+
Q#19 The Laser 128EX
Q#20 The Apple IIGS
Q#21 The Apple ][e Emulation Card
Q#22 Some Common Questions (with answers!) 2/8/95
Q#23 Info about A2's:
Q#24 What is 8 bit and 16 bit?
Q#25 How can I tell what version my computer is?
Q#26 What programming languages are available for the Apple ][?
Q#27 Adding Hardware:
Q#28 Can the Apple II connect to SCSI devices?
Q#29 Can I use Macintosh Monitors or 3.5" drives with my ][?
Q#30 Can I hook up a LaserWriter, DeskJet, etc to my Apple //e?
Q#31 Can I hook up a LaserWriter, DeskJet, etc to my Apple IIGS?
Q#32 Can I hook up a scanner up to my //e? Can it do OCR?
Q#33 Can a Disk ][ be used on a GS smartport?
Q#34 What's the scoop on the new HD 3.5" drive?
Q#35 I want a Y-adapter for my GS keyboard.
Q#36 File Transfer:
Q#37 How can I transfer stuff to/from an IBM/Mac?
Q#38 File transfer: Apple //e ---> Macintosh
Q#39 File transfer: Apple //e <--- Macintosh
Q#40 File transfer: Apple //e ---> IBM
Q#41 File transfer: Apple //e <--- IBM
Q#42 File transfer: Apple IIGS ---> Macintosh
Q#43 File transfer: Apple IIGS <--- Macintosh
Q#44 File transfer: Apple IIGS ---> IBM
Q#45 File transfer: Apple IIGS <--- IBM
Q#46 What's the CTI Drive?
Q#47 How about hooking up cheap IDE Hard Drives?
Q#48 How do I USE stuff I have transferred to/from an IBM/Mac?
Q#49 How do I get cool Mac Icons and fonts onto my GS?
Q#50 What programs are there for conversion of graphic images?
Q#51 I have an old CPM / PASCAL / DOS 3.3 disk. How do I get it
into ProDos?
Q#52 How do you copy from a 5.25" disk to 3.5" disk?
Q#53 Strange problems:
Q#54 How do I get out of Basic (that little "]" prompt and flashing
cursor?
Q#55 What are the problems with GSCII?
Q#56 AppleWorks won't print to my printer. What gives?
Q#57 My GS control panel keeps resetting to the defaults and/or
forgetting the date.
Q#58 I'm getting Error XXX. What's it mean?
Q#59 Why does my Apple II lose characters when I'm using the modem?
Q#60 Where do I get support for AE boards now that they are closed?
Q#61 Is there a QWK reader for the Apple //e?
Q#62 System 6.0 mini-FAQ
Q#63 Common Problems
Q#64 Tips & Hints
Q#65 If you have a RamFast
Q#66 If you have a Vulcan or AE High Density disk
Q#67 If you have ProSel
Q#68 If you have an AMR 3.5"
Q#69 GSCII+ & HFS Note
Q#70 What to do with an Apple ][? 2/8/95
Q#71 What can you hook up to an Apple ][?
Q#72 What can you do with an Apple ][?
Q#73 What can the //e can "borrow" from other computers?
Q#74 What can the GS can "borrow" from other computers?
Q#75 Resources for the Apple II 2/8/95
Q#76 Apple II Groups
Q#77 Getting Parts & Software
Q#78 Fun hardware add-ons
Q#79 Periodicals & Books
Q#80 Misc Resources
Q#81 General guidelines on How To Troubleshoot
Q#82 General troubleshooting
Q#83 Trouble shooting and good maintenance
Q#84 GS Trouble shooting
Q#85 SCSI
Q#86 Tips on setting up a SCSI system:
################################
# Q#1 What's a FAQ? 2/8/95 #
################################
Hi! Welcome to the comp.sys.apple2 newsgroup!
This has not been posted for a very long time. Sorry about that, but
as the new maintainer of the FAQ, please feel free to email me
comments, criticisms, or reminders to post it. It should be posted to
comp.sys.apple2 monthly on or about the first of the month.
I hope it becomes a valuable resource. If not, what's it missing??
Nathan Mates (nathan@visi.com)
##################################################################
# Q#2 How do I get to comp.sys.apple2 and what is it? 2/9/95 #
##################################################################
c.s.a2 is a USENET newsgroup. USENET posts can originate from your
local newsreader and spread to hundreds of thousands of machines
throughout the the world.
comp.sys.apple2 - General discussion and questions
relating to all Apple //'s
comp.sys.apple2.comm - Communications and networking related
issues
comp.sys.apple2.gno - Discussion of program GNO/ME for the
Apple IIGS (UNIX for the Apple IIGS)
comp.sys.apple2.marketplace - Buying, selling and promoting Apple //
related products
comp.sys.apple2.programmer - Discussion relating to any aspect of
programming the Apple //
comp.sys.apple2.usergroups - Discussion relating to Apple //
usergroups
comp.binaries.apple2 - Public Domain/Shareware Software for all
Apple //'s
comp.sources.apple2 - A moderated newsgroup for the posting of
Apple // related source code
comp.emulators.apple2 - Discussion relating to the use of Apple //
emulation software/hardware on an IBM
compatible system
alt.emulators.ibmpc.apple2 - Older "ALT" version of above
If you only have e-mail access to the Internet, you will find the
following addresses helpful. Make sure you have a large mailbox and
the time to sift through lots of messages per day. Consider getting
better connected to the Internet (read "The Whole Internet Users Guide
And Catalog" for more info.)
For this: Send a message body of "help" to:
--------------------------- ---------------------------------
Subscribe to C.S.A2 (internet) LISTSERV@vm1.nodak.edu
(BITNET) LISTSERV@NDSUVM
APPLE2-L archives (internet) LISTSERV@brownvm.brown.edu
(BITNET) LISTSERV@BROWNVM
Games from APPLE2-L (internet) LISTSERV@utarlvm1.uta.edu
(BITNET) LISTSERV@UTARLVM1
More files via E-Mail (i-net) archive-server@plains.nodak.edu
(BITNET) FILESERV@PLAINS
Kermit file transfer program KERMSRV@cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu
(BITNET) KERMSRV@CUVMA (BITNET)
Apple /// files (internet) APPLE3-L@WVNVM.WVNET.EDU
Once you are getting c.s.a2 in your mailbox, you may want to post.
Just use the addresses listed below. People with direct access to the
newsgroups do not need these, as they can use their news software to
post.
Post to any newsgroup group-name@cs.utexas.edu
OR group.name.usenet@decwrl.dec.com
OR group.name@news.demon.co.uk
OR group.name@news.cs.indiana.edu
OR group-name@pws.bull.com
OR group-name@ucbvax.berkeley.edu
Post to comp.sys.apple2 info-apple@apple.com
Comp.binaries.apple2 is a newsgroup used to distribute PD (Public
Domain - may be used and copied freely.), FW (Freeware - ditto, except
that the original owner retains the Copyright.) or SW (Shareware - try
it for free, pay for it if you use it) Apple II software (executables,
pictures, sounds, etc...). Software distributed on
comp.binaries.apple2 is expected to be a BinSCII text file containing
a ShrinkIt archive. Please post a text description of your program and
what it requires to run so people can tell if they need it or not. You
may cross-post the description (only) to comp.sys.apple2. Please don't
post questions or answers in the binaries group. Remember,
distribution of commercial software is illegal.
Comp.sources.apple2 is a newsgroup used to distribute Apple II source
code. The posts in comp.sources.apple2 should be in Apple Archive
Format. Contact jac@paul.rutgers.edu for details.
Discussions concerning the software posted in these groups, or the
methods of locating, decoding, or accessing this software, or
questions on locating archive sites of this software, or any OTHER
discussions are to be held in comp.sys.apple2. If someone DOES either
intentionally or accidentally post to the binary/source groups, please
respond only in E-mail - do not compound the problem!
##################################################
# Q#3 How do I get files off the net? 2/8/95 #
##################################################
Quick Summary:
Step 1: Make a list of files that you want
Step 2: Get files to your host (a UNIX box or ProLine BBS)
Step 3: Get files to your Apple II
Step 4: Create BINSCII
Step 5: Create ShrinkIt
Step 6: Use BinSCII & Shrinkit to create Shrinkit GS
Step 7: Extract the files you _REALLY_ wanted
----
Step 1: Make a list of files that you want
1) You need BINSCII (binscii.exe) and ShrinkIt (shrinkit.3.3.exe.bsc).
For a shortcut, see Chuck Orem in the resources section.
2) If you have a GS (and use GS/OS), you will want Shrinkit GS
(shrinkit.gs.exe) and GSCII (gscii.bsc)
3) Add any other files you want. Don't try to get everything the
first time around. Try one or two test files for starters.
Note: Filenames can vary from site to site. Shrinkit and Binscii
are usually available on all the Apple II FTP sites.
Step 2a: (For ProLine users) Get files to your host
1) Dial up your host and log in.
2) I'm not familiar with ProLine, so I'll be vague here. Just go
into the files section and look... Anyone wanna clue me in?
Step 2b: (for those with a Sell account) Get files to your host
1) Choose an FTP site from the FAQ
2) At your UNIX prompt, type "ftp _____" (fill in hostname)
3) At the "Login:" prompt, type "anonymous" (or "ftp" if you are
a bad speller like me ;)
4) Type in your e-mail address when prompted for a password.
5) Type "bin" unless you are only getting text files
6) Type "cd ______" (directory) to move to the right directory.
6) type "ls" to see a list of files.
7) Locate each file (more "cd ___"'s and "ls"). Also, "cd .."
will move up a directory in the tree.)
8) use "get ______" (filename) to get it
9) When you are done using FTP, type "quit"
Step 3: Get files to your Apple II
1) Find out what file transfer protocols your Apple communications
package supports. (see below for a list)
2) On your local comm program, set your file transfer type to Text
(TXT) or Binary (BIN) depending on what type of file you are
downloading. If there is an option to "strip incoming linefeeds",
try turning it on.
3) Get your host to send you the file. I don't know about ProLine,
but UNIX users can use these commands:
For Z-Modem: "sz ___ ____ ____" (file names)
For X-Modem: "sx ____" (one at a time)
For Kermit: "kermit", then "put _____" (filename)
5) If needed, tell your local communications program to Receive. You
must do this quickly, or the other host will give up trying to
send the file.
4) Write down the full pathname of the files you downloaded and where
you put them. There will be a quiz later. Pathnames look like
"/DISK/DIR/FILE.NAME"
Note: If something goes wrong, hit ESC, Ctrl-X or Ctrl-C 3 times.
If you can't get one protocol to work, try the next one
down. Z-modem is much faster than the others. You will
want to find a program that supports it.
Step 4: Create BINSCII (if needed)
1) After you disconnect, go into Applesoft by starting BASIC.SYSTEM
2) At the `]` prompt, type 'EXEC ____' (your BINSCII file name)
Note: If you get ?SYNTAX ERRORs then something went wrong. Try
looking at the file with a Text Editor.
3) Type "cat" and look for BINSCII (type 'SYS')
4) type "-BINSCII" or "-BINSCII.SYSTEM" depending on above
Note: You should get the BINSCII opening screen.
Step 5: Create ShrinkIt (if needed)
1) If your Shrinkit file ends in ".BSC" then (In BINSCII) type in
the filename of your ShrinkIt file
2) Quit BINSCII. Get into AppleSoft again.
3) Type "EXEC SHRINKIT3.3.XTX" (you may need the full pathname)
4) Run ShrinkIt with "-SHRINKIT.SYSTEM"
Step 6: Extracting everything else
1) If it's BSQ or BSC, run it through BINSCII
2) If BINSCII creates a ".SHK" file, or if you download a ".SHK"
file, then use ShrinkIt on the file. It's easy to use and it
doesn't give you the dreaded "FILENAME QUIZ!"
For those who haven't picked a program to download with, here are the
biggies. All of the non-commercial programs are available from FTP
sites. If you don't have a comm program already, your best bet is to
have someone mail you one on a disk or buy ProTerm. (See resources).
Program Comp Emulations Protocols Note
---------|----|---------------------------------------------------------------
ProTerm E$ PSE, VT-100 Kermit, X,Y,Z-modem From InSync
PTP E$, VT-100 X-Modem, (Y-mdm D/L) From Quality Computers
Kermit-65 E VT-100 Kermit, X-modem Hard to use,Works on ][+
Z-Link E VT-100 X-modem Good.
CommSys E none X-modem Works on ][+
TIC E$ VT-100 (+) X-modem Small, Scripting.
Agate E mono ANSI X,(Y,Z D/L only) Unpacks ZIP, Buggy
ColorTerm GS color ANSI X-modem Desktop based
MegaTerm GS color ANSI none ProDOS 8
ANSITerm GS$ color ANSI, PSE X,Y,Z-modem Editor, scrollback, etc.
SnowTerm GS VT-100 (+) none Desktop based
FreeTerm GS none X-modem Desktop based
GenComm GS none none Text, Shell Compat.
GSVT GS VT-100 none Desktop
GTerm GS color ANSI none Written in BASIC/ML
Telcom GS VT-100, PSE X, (Y D/L only) Shell compat
----------Key:---------
| Key: $ = A commercial program + = And other obscure ones
| Computer: E = works on GS and //e, GS = only works on GS
| D/L = Download from other computer
---
PTP = Point-To-Point. I don't think it's being sold anymore. Anyone know?
See the resources section for where to buy the commercial programs.
#########################################################################
# Q#4 Where can I get Apple II software and info on the net? 2/8/95 #
#########################################################################
[A quick note about URL notation: For those of you with full net
access, you can run a web browser (like Lynx if you are dialed in from
your Apple), which will understand URLs directly. Otherwise, ignore
the 'http:' ones and see the previous section on how to use the FTP
ones.)
Hint:
ftp://grind.isca.uiowa.edu /apple2
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^
Hostname Directory
OK, so here's a bunch of resources:
URL: http://www.visi.com/~nathan/a2/faq/csa2.html - Hypertext version of this FAQ
URL: http://www.umich.edu/~archive - Umich archive via the web
FTP: rtfm.mit.edu in /emulate-apple2-faq - Emulation FAQ
URL: http://www.crl.com/~joko - ShareWare Solutions II Homepage
FTP: ftp://babylon.caltech.edu/Zocalo/pub/apple2/ - Caltech Apple II Archive
URL: http://www.visi.com/~nathan/a2/index.html - Nathan Mates Apple II Links. Lots of 'em.
URL: http://www.visi.com/~nathan/a2/bbs.html - Mike Shecket's BBS listing
FTP: ftp.wvu.edu in /pub/apple3 - Apple III stuff
Major FTP sites and mirrors:
FTP: apple2.caltech.edu in /pub/apple2
FTP: ground.isca.uiowa.edu in /apple2
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /archive/apple2
URL: gopher://wuarchive.wustl.edu:70/11/systems/apple2/umich.edu
FTP: archive.orst.edu in /pub/mirrors/archive.umich.edu
FTP: ftp.ms.uky.edu in /pub/appleII
FTP: wuarchive.wustl.edu in /systems/apple2
Other FTP Sites:
FTP: ftp.apple.com in /dts/aii
FTP: ftp.cc.utexas.edu in /gifstuff/apple
FTP: info2.rus.uni-stuttgart.de in /afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive
FTP: syr.edu in /software/kermit/appleII
FTP: watsun.cc.columbia.edu in /kermit/a
Archives of C.S.A2 Newsgroups:
===============================
wuarchive.wustl.edu /usenet/comp.sources.apple2 (complete!)
/usenet/comp.binaries.apple2
?ftp.tohoku.ac.jp /pub/news/comp.binaries.apple2
hp4nl.nluug.nl /pub/newsarchive/comp/sources/apple2 (incomplete)
mcsun.eu.net /pub/newsarchive/comp/sources/apple2 (incomplete)
nic.funet.fi /pub/archive/comp.sources.apple2 (complete?)
relay.cs.toronto.edu /pub/lists.1989 (1989 only)
If you have a Shell account, you can use 'archie' to find ftp sites
with a particular file.
###################################################
# Q#5 What archivers do I need to know about? #
###################################################
There are two programs you will need to have an be familiar with to
get software off the net. They are BinSCII and ShrinkIt. ShrinkIt is
like PKZIP on the PC, or STUFFIT on the mac.: It puts multiple files
into one compressed archive. This way, you can get the program,
documentation and related files in one swoop. Unfortunately, USENET
can only handle text, not 8-bit binary information. Thus the need for
BinSCII, which can take a file (usually a ShrinkIt file) and turn it
into a series of meaningless letters, numbers and punctuation. This
text travels thru USENET to you, where you need BinSCII to turn back
into data that the computer can actually use.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
: Q#6 More about BinSCII :
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
When turning a binary file into text, BinSCII will output a series of
files. Each file contains a segment of the original program encoded
in BinSCII format. These segments are small enough to be posted or
e-mailed without clogging the network. (Actually, they are usually
posted 3 at a time to save bandwidth). [NB: A BinScii text file is
somewhat larger than the original binary file.] On FTP sites, these
will be 'blah.BSQ', but on USENET, you give them your own name when
you save a posting.
When re-creating a binary file from the BinScii segments, all one has
to do is collect ALL the segments and run them through BinScii. Each
segment has a header that tells BinScii what to do. BinSCII is
intelligent enough to wade through all extraneous text (i.e. newsgroup
headers, etc) and find the segments. It does not matter what order
the segments are in, and the segments can be in different files. The
only thing you have to remember is that BinScii does not check to see
if ALL of the segments have been accounted for. If there are segments
missing, the program will not work, or you will get a 'file corrupted'
error when unshrinking.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/8bit/archivers/binscii.exe
GS users can use GSCII+, an NDA version of Binscii. GSCII+ can also
encode/decode several other formats.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/gs/archivers/gscii.bsc
For those with Shell accounts, you can use SciiBin (decode-only
version of BinSCII) to reduce your download time. You will need to
compile this on your Unix box (ask for help from a local Guru), then
run your BinScii files (from comp.binaries.apple2) through it. You
will now have the original (smaller) file. This works great if there
is a NuFX archive in the BinSCII file, but can cause problems if
BinSCII was applied directly to ProDos executable files. In this case,
you will have to download the BinSCII file.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/unix/sciibin.c
If you need a Unix BinSCII encoder, Bsc will do the trick.
FTP: apple2.caltech.edu in /pub/apple2/source/bsc.aaf
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/unix/bsc.aaf
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
: Q#7 ShrinkIt and NuFX archives :
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
ShrinkIt is an Apple II program which takes one or more Apple II
ProDOS files or disks and 'archives' them into a single file (called a
NuFX archive). It also stores all the vital ProDos information, such
as filetype and auxtype. Usually these files are denoted by putting a
".SHK" extension on the archive. ShrinkIt can also shrink an entire
disk into a file (extension ".SDK"), but this should only used when
the disk is not ProDos. ShrinkIt is also a menu driven utility that
not only compresses and extracts, but it can also format disks, copy
files, etc.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/8bit/archivers/shrinkit.3.3.exe.bsc
If you have a GS, you will want the GShk, which is even more of a
wonder utility than it's 8-bit counterpart. Files encoded with GShk
are usually smaller than those encoded with ShrinkIt, but can still be
extracted with ShrinkIt (except files with resource forks. Watch those
Teach documents if you want Apple //e's to read it!).
If you can't run Shrinkit because you have a ][+, you can use ShrinkIt+,
UnShrinkIt+ and Autounshrink.
:::::::::::::::::::::::
: Q#8 Executioner :
:::::::::::::::::::::::
Executioner is an older format that is only used to distribute BinSCII
(otherwise you would have a catch-22!). It usually has a "CALL -151"
at the top (if not, delete everything above it), and doesn't use
punctuation like BinSCII does.
To translate an Executioner text file to an Apple II file required
that you delete the mail headers/trailers, translated the newlines
into carriage returns, download the file to your Apple II and from
Applesoft Basic, type the command 'EXEC <filename>' where <filename>
is the name of the file you downloaded.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
: Q#9 Apple Archive Format (aaf) :
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Apple Archive Format was invented as a standard way to post source
code to comp.sources.apple2. The C and Basic source code to aaf
unpackers are available on the various FTP sites, in aaf
format. Fortunately, files in aaf format can be turned back into
source code with a simple text editor. Just break the file up into
component files and remove the first character of each line.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/unix/aaf
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
: Q#10 Net standard formats :
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
There are several formats that are used widely on the Internet. The
most common in FTP sites are tar (.tar) and compress (.Z). To undo a
Tape Archive, type 'tar -xvf filename.tar'. To undo a compress, type
'uncompress filename.Z'. Since tar does not make the file smaller,
and compress can only compress 1 file, many times you will find files
that are 'tarred an feathered'. They have a '.tar.Z' extension. Just
run uncompress then un-tar the result. Other USENET groups will use
uuencode (.uu) to send binaries. Just type 'uudecode
file.uu'. BinSCII is better than uuencode because 1> It stores the
ProDos filetype. 2> It splits the file into manageable 12K chunks. 3>
It does a CRC checksum on each chunk.
Most of these 'Unix' standard formats are available on the Apple. See the
table below.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
: Q#11 A quick note about ProDos filetypes :
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
ProDos keeps some information about a file's type. Files can be text
(TXT), binary (BIN), executable (SYS), fonts (FON), etc. Most other
file systems do not have a place to store this information, so it may
get 'lost' when you upload the file. Similarly, when you download a
file, you may not know the file type. Most comm programs will use some
default. For NuFX archives, this is not a big deal, since you can
still unpack an archive if the filetype is wrong (and the archive
protects the filetype of the files inside the archive). For other
files, you may need to change the file's type. One utility I
recommend is File Attribute Zapper II.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/8bit/util/fazz.2.3.bsq
|Type| NuFX | Bin | uuen-| com- |.ZOO | Bin | LZH/| Stuff| ARC | Other|
Program | | | SCII | code | press | | Hex | LHA | -It | | |
--------|-|------|------|------|-------|-----|-----|-----|------|-----|------|
Binscii |e| | X | | | | | | | | |
Shrinkit|e| X | | | | | | | | | |
DeArc |e| | | | | | | | | D | |
Angel[1]|e| | | | X | X | | X | | X | .ZIP |
GShk |g| X | | | D | D | | | D | D | |
GSCII+ |g| | X | X | | | D | | | | .AAF |
sscii |x| | X | X | | | X | | | | |
PMPUnzip|x| | | | | | | | | | .ZIP |
LHext |x| | | | | | | D? | | | |
BSC |c| | E | | | | | | | | |
Nulib |c| X | | | | | | | | | |
SciiBin |c| | D | | | | | | | | |
(Key: E = Encode only, D = Decode only, X = Encode and Decode)
(Type: e = Apple //e, g = GS Only, x = GS EXE file, c = C Source code)
[1] Angel is pretty Buggy, but it's worth a try.
Program Format Author
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nulib v3.21 C Andy McFadden (fadden@uts.amdahl.com)
SciiBin v3.10 C Marcel Mol, Dave Whitnet, Bruce Kahn
Bsc v1.2 C Neil Parker
Executioner A Glen Bredon
BinSCII v1.0.3 A David Whitney (davewh@microsoft.com)
ShrinkIt v3.3 A Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
(Un)ShrinkIt+ A Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
AutoUnShrink A Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
GShk v1.1 G Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
GSCII+ 2.3.1 G Darek Taubert (dat33228@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu)
Format:
C - Distributed as source code written in C.
A - Executable, runs on most Apple //s.
G - Executable, runs on GS only.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu in /apple2/8bit/util/dearc
#############################################
# Q#12 What do the file extensions mean? #
#############################################
Many times, people put filename extensions (extra characters at the
end of a filename) to denote what type of file it is. Please note that
these are just accepted standards. If a file does not indicate it's
type, your guess is as good as mine. The following is a table of some
common filename extensions. See the previous section (on archivers)
for programs that will deal with these files.
Extension What is it? (What program do I use?)
--------- ---------------------------------------------------------------
.aaf [TEXT] Apple Archive Format for source code (aaf.unpacker)
.ACU Applelink Conversion Utility (Shrinkit)
.ARC ARC Archive (IBM ARC, GS Shrinkit, //e Angel or DeArc2E)
.CPT Compactor Pro archive (Compactor Pro on a Mac only)
.BSC [TEXT] BinScii file. (BinScii)
.BSQ [TEXT] BinSCII'ed NuFX file. (BinScii--then Shrinkit)
.BXY NuFX archive with a Binary II header. (Shrinkit)
.BNY BLU archive. (Shrinkit)
.BQY NuFX or Binary II with BLU header. (Shrinkit)
.BNX NuFX with BLU header. (Shrinkit)
.exe [TEXT] Executioner file. May only work in DOS 3.3. See above.
NB: .EXE also means IBM executable program..
.GIF Graphics Interchange Format: Compressed picture.
(IIGIF for //e, many programs for all other computers)
.HQX [TEXT] Mac BinHex file. (BinHex on Mac or GSCII+ on GS)
.JPG Newer graphics format. (only Unix/IBM/etc viewers)
.JPEG Newer graphics format. (only Unix/IBM/etc viewers)
.LZH LZH Archive (IBM/Amiga LZH program, //e Angel)
.LHA LHA Archive (IBM/Amiga LZH program, //e Angel)
.QQ BLU archive. (Shrinkit)
.SEA Self-extracting archive (Might be Mac, Might be Shrinkit archive)
.SIT Mac StuffIt archive. (Stuffit on Mac or GS ShrinkIt)
GS Shrinkit will not decode StuffIt Deluxe files.
.SHK NuFX archive. (Shrinkit)
.SDK NuFX with a shrunk disk image. (Shrinkit)
.tar Unix Tape Archive (Unix 'tar -xvf', GS EXE tar)
.txt [TEXT] An ASCII text file: usually english text.
.TIFF Graphics format (GS SHR Convert)
.uu Unix uuencode file [TEXT] (//e uudecode, Unix uudecode)
.ZOO IBM Zoo Archive (GS Shrinkit or IBM ZOO program, //e Angel)
.ZIP IBM Zip Archive (GS EXE Unzip, IBM PKUNZIP, Unix unzip, //e Angel)
.Z Compressed file (GS Shrinkit, Unix uncompress, //e Angel)
All of these types, except the ones marked [TEXT] are BINARY files.
Binary files cannot be sent over e-mail, posted to the newsgroups or
FTP'd in text mode. You must FTP them in binary mode (see the section
on FTP). You can download either with kermit, X-,Y- or Z-Modem.
Generally, anything labeled as 'Archive' above will contain multiple
files, and even subdirectories. Most archivers are also compressed
the files to make the whole smaller than the sum of it's parts. (only
in computers ;)
Sometimes you will find multiple filename extensions. Simply take the
filename extensions apart one at a time and you should be able to
reconstruct the original file. (i.e. somefile.bsq.tar.Z would mean:
uncompress, untar, unbinscii, then unShrink to get the original file!)
###########################################################
# Q#13 How do I tell what kind of file this is? 2/8/95 #
###########################################################
Here is a sample of what file formats look like, in case you get
stuck. View the file in an editor (or use the UNIX "head"
command). Once you have identified the file, see the previous section
(on filename extensions) for what to do next.
BinSCII: (.BSC, .BSQ)
FiLeStArTfIlEsTaRt
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz0123456789()
GBINSCII AQhmAAAAA8)4MIAI02DA9ARMQEDtAQhmAIVZ
gYITA6u7xADA0MjM3YTNBlDOENkQwYURzITM2UDN5gzNDJUQGVERyEDM1QzM4cjN
CFUOFR0QxAjR0MjM3YTNBlDOENkQwAQRzITM2UDN5gzNDJUQGVERyEDM1QzM4cjN
NuFX (Shrinkit Archive) (.SHK)
NuFilei][![/#NuFX_<:c[[[ H`F-fGSCII~[
cRJ0)fNN^P)3'A2p6SF6X#GPd<9#'LC^08N7n\NB7Dd!eMN&eYX0Am=fXp
dsPAsp7rh`I'NS0ALAfi2)2ysGEQ$k9CP%L9
uuencoded file (.uu)
begin 666 nonsense.junk
M4W5N3U,s4F5L96%S92 T+C$s\%-$4U0V,"Ds(SsZ(%1U92!/8W0s.2 Q,CHS
M...3HT.2!%1%0s,3DY, HT4F5L96%S92 T+C$s4F5L96%S92 T+C$s
Executioner (.exe)
CALL-151
E00:38 A5 FF D0 32 D8 20 8E FD AD 30 BF 8D 6A 0E 20 00 BF C7 6D 0E 0D 80 02
E18:D0 1D 20 00 BF C5 69 0E B0 15 AD 81 02 29 0F AA E8 8E 80 02 A9 2F 8D 81
A90885A420732090242039FB2058FCA200BD9220F00620EDFDE8D0F5200CFDA9
008DF2038DF3038DF4036CFCFFE6A4A5A4C96F90CFA9008DFCBFA9018DFDBFA0
A90885A420732090242039FB2058FCA200BD9220F00620EDFDE8D0F5200CFDA9
======================================================================
This FAQ is available on-line at http://www.visi.com/~nathan/a2/faq/index.html
CopyLeft 1996 by Nathan Mates. Non-profit distribution encouraged.
Mail me at: nathan@visi.com
--
<*> Nathan Mates http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~nathan/ <*>
# What are the facts? Again and again and again-- what are the _facts_?
# Shun wishful thinking, avoid opinion, care not what the neighbors
# think-- what are the facts, and to how many decimal places? -R.A. Heinlein