The hypothetical situation is something like this: you have recently bought a stack of GEOS software used. Since the software is used, it is already installed under the Kernal of the software's former owner. You already have some software you have installed with your current Kernal. It is a serious drag to have to load different GEOS Kernals to run different applications. Especially if you have GEOS 2.0, but the used software you have was installed under a GEOS 1.3 kernal. So, it would be nice if there were some easier way to run the used software with your original Kernal. The programs GetID and NewID provide you with a means of doing this. The following assumes that you bought the Kernal with the rest of the used GEOS software.
First, some definitions. Call your original Kernal "Kernal A." Call the used Kernal you have just purchased "Kernal B."
(1) Boot GEOS using Kernal B. Run the program GetID. This will print a four digit hexadecimal number on your screen. Jot this number down. Call this number ID
. Click on the "OK" icon when finished.
(2) Boot GEOS using Kernal A. Again run the program GetID, and again jot down the (presumably different) 4 digit hexadecimal number. Call this number ID
(3) Make two copies of the program "NewID." Name one of these copies ID(ID
) (i.e., if ID
is $032d, name the copy ID032d). Name the other copy ID(ID
(4) Select the icon of ID(ID
) and select "info" from the
file
menu. At the beginning of the info box is a four digit hexadecimal number preceeded by a "$". Replace the hexadecimal number with ID
(5) Repeat (4) with ID(ID
) and ID
(6) Now, whenever you want to run an application installed with Kernal B, first double click on the icon of the program ID(ID
). This will change your run-time Kernal ID to be the same as that of Kernal B, allowing you to run applications installed with Kernal B. Then, when you want to go back and run an application installed with Kernal A, double click on the icon of the program ID(ID
). This will restore your run-time Kernal ID to that of Kernal A. Note that at no time is any Kernal ID or installation ID changed on any disk file. Only the number stored in the memory of your 64 or 128 is changed.
Feel free to distribute these files to anyone who has a need for them. I would ask, however, that you not use these programs to facilitate the piracy of GEOS applications. Also, plese distribute both GetID and NewID together, and with this documentation file. If you have any questions, you may contact me,