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Re: Questions about the IIGS
Previously mjwst11+@pitt.edu (Mark J Weixel) wrote:
>I'm on an info-gathering mission for my father, who recently purchased a
>second- hand Apple IIGS "Woz" edition. The documentation that came with
>the machine is pretty opaque, so I'm hoping that folks out in netland
>can help.
First thing you need to determine is if this is has the original ROM 00
or the upgraded ROM 01. All you need to do is to turn on the GS and look
at the opening screen where it says Apple IIGS on the top. Look to the
bottom 1/4 of the screen. If there is no mention of a ROM you've got ROM
00, if you see ROM 01, well that's what you got.
If you have the ROM 00 you need to go to an Apple dealer to get your
_free_ upgrade to ROM 01. Note, the upgrade is FREE! Don't let the dealer
tell you otherwise. The dealer has to provide you with the upgrade, if he
doesn't there's an 800 number you can call to have Apple harass them. I
don't know the number off hand, but I'm sure someone on the net can
provide you with it.
>1) Where can one get AppleWorks GS these days? I've found books on it
>
>2) From what I can tell, the computer has 500K of RAM. What is the best
>way to go about upgrading?
Call Quality Computers at 1-800-777-3642 and or Educational Resources at
1-800-624-2926 and ask them to send you their latest catalogs. That
should be enough to get you started.
Good sources of second hand periperals can be found in comp.sys.apple2,
or the newly created comp.sys.apple2.marketplace. Also check out your
local buy and sell or any local computer swap meet. I have a friend who
bought a TransWarp GS through a buy and sell add for $125.00CAN, I also
heard of someone buying a GS system including an ImageWriter II for
$250.00CAN at a flea market. If you want to save money, this is the way
to go.
As for RAM, the more the better, especially since you can get a 4 meg
memory card for under $140.00US. Most other memory cards will run around
an average of $100.00 per meg. The memory card you currently have is
expandable to a maximum of 1 meg, which is really insufficent to run
todays programs.
>3) Someone gave Dad an old Apple FilePro Hard Drive. Is there any way
>to hook it up to a IIGS? If not, would any old SCSI drive work?
I don't know about the FilePro, but most SCSI hard drives for the Mac
will have no problem running on a GS. All you need is a SCSI card, there
are two available, the Apple High Speed SCSI card from Apple, and the
RAMFast SCSI rev. D card from CV Technologies. Both are good cards, but
the latter is much better is more versitile.
>4) Is HyperCard GS worth looking into? I'm pretty familiar with HC for
>the Mac and I'd like to port some of my stacks for my family if at all
>possible.
HCGS is very simialar to the Mac HC. If you know how to use HC for the
Mac, you'll have no problem with the GS version. There is a two part HC
stack that will port Mac stacks and GS stacks both ways called
HyperMover. The problem with HCGS is that it's big and slow. You need at
least 1.5 megs of RAM, but 2 or more is better. Also an accellerator is
highly recommended, not only for this program, but for most GS/OS
programs. Another good authoring system is HyperStudio from Roger Wagner
Publishing, they have also released a Mac version of HyperStudio last
month.
>5) A follow-up to (1): are there any vendors who have large stocks of
>programs written specifically for the IIGS? Right now, my folks have
Check the numbers I provided above.
>6) Is the ImageWriter the only printer option? Is there any upgrade
>possible to use a StyleWriter or a LaserWriter?
No, both West Code Software and Vitesse provide third party printer
drivers that will allow you to hook up almost any non-Apple printer on
the market.
The current system software version 6.0 has a driver for the StyleWriter,
not the StyleWriter II, and the LaserWriter NTX (any PostScript capable
laser printer should work). I heard that system 6.01 might have drivers
for some of Apples other cheaper non-PostScript laser printers.
Hope this helps.
--
Herbert Fung herbertf@ersys.edmonton.ab.ca