Re: Ethernet & Internet on Apple 2

[mjmahon@aol.com (Michael J. Mahon)]

sca no@spam.com asked:

>Ok, guys, I'm returning to the Apple 2 world after abandoning it 10 
>years ago.  I was a true believer even while Apple was cutting the legs 
>out from under us.  I finally gave in, bought a Mac and never looked 
>back.  I soon got rid of the Mac and bought my first PC and I've been PC 
>ever since.
>
>A few years ago I bought an Imac, but the fire didn't catch.  That Bondi 
>Blue Imac is sitting in a closet downstairs.  I'm typing this on a 2.6 
>ghz P4 with 1 gig of RAM, 200 gig of hard disks blah blah blah
>
>But I miss my apple 2!

Welcome!

>I'm buying up a lot of apple 2 stuff for next to nothing and going to be 
>back with a vengeance, but I've been gone so long that I'm behind the 
>curve on how the apple 2 has been faring in network and internet hookup 
>potentials.  
>
>Can you guys give me a short course on what is currently (or soon to be) 
>available for the IIgs and how to begin the process of implementing the 
>hard/software to make it work on ethernet and the internet?  Can I use 
>wireless yet?  Those types of questions.

Your question is an interesting one.

There is at least one Ethernet card available for the Apple II, but
there is, as yet, no software for anything but the IIgs.  There is
the possibility of a software release that would support simple
TCP/IP interconnection, but at speeds typical of an Apple II--
that is, slow.

Further, no Apple II platform is up to the task of surfing today's
graphics-rich web--by about a factor of 500 in speed and space.

Your question sounds to me like:  "I used to have a Model T
that I loved to drive and tinker with, but I have been driving an
SUV for many years.  Now I'd like to know what's available
for Model T's in the way of air conditioning, stereo surround-
sound, turbochargers, and trailer hitches."

See what I mean?

I have no interest in hooking an Apple II to the Internet, since
I have blazingly fast machines for doing that, and can easily
transfer any useful files to the Apple II using a removeable
disk (ranging from a floppy to a Zip Disk).  I also have little
interest in hooking a snowplow to my sedan.  ;-)

The joy of the Apple II is that it is still pretty much the way
that it was ten or twenty years ago--with a few conveniences
added, like the possibility of adding a solid-state hard disk
based on flash memory--kind of like an add-on electric starter
for the Model T.  ;-)

But it's still a Model T, and that's what I love about it.

-michael

Check out amazing quality sound for 8-bit Apples on my
Home page:  http://members.aol.com/MJMahon/