A song for my father, finding Internet tools, and doubling your RAM pleasure
Bob LeVitus and Christopher Breen handson
Close to the Source
Q. In your answer to a problem you titled "Bookmark Muck" in the May '96 Help Folder (page 123), Chris credited '70s pop group Three Dog Night for the song "One." Although you got the lyrics right, I would have preferred it if you had instead mentioned the author and original performer of the song, Harry Nilsson. Why my interest in this particular topic, you wonder?
Zak Nilsson
via the Internet
CHRIS: Zak, in order to avoid the kind of creeping "People-ization" found in so many of today's computer publications, we try not to duplicate our pop-culture references. The truth is that I didn't want to use up my one allotted allusion to your eminently talented father in a non-"lime and coconut" context. "Coconut" holds a tender spot in my heart: I often sing it around the Breen cabaña when a member of the family is feeling poorly.
They Shall Provide
Q. I'm trying to switch from AOL to MCI for Internet access. I have Netscape Navigator but no software for dialing the provider. I need help locating all the pieces to get back online.
Theo Lotz
via AOL
CHRIS: Most large ISPs (Internet service providers) equip their users with some kind of sign-up kit: a disk or two with an installer, basic software, and instructions. It sounds like your ISP provided you with less than zero.
BOB: The first thing to do is call your ISP and ask for your Macintosh sign-up kit.
CHRIS: If you get a response such as "What's a Macintosh?" or "Is that for Windows 3.1 or Windows 95," we respectfully suggest you find a different provider.
BOB: Assuming you stay with your ISP, request some software and documentation. You should receive a PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) control panel or a less desirable SLIP (Serial Line Interface Protocol) control panel, along with a few Internet tools: usually at least a Web browser and FTP client software. It's the PPP or SLIP software that does the dialing. Based on instructions from your provider, you'll need to configure the MacTCP or TCP/IP control panel that's already in your System Folder.
CHRIS: If MCI can't provide that much for you, it falls out of the "good provider" category. Check with Mac-using friends or with your local user group -- most cities now have a choice of providers that understand and even specialize in connections for Mac users.
BOB: Here's one last hint: Some providers have chosen to support the Mac by giving new customers a copy of Adam Engst's excellent book The Internet Starter Kit for Mac (Indianapolis: Hayden Books, 1995). Adam has included several hundred pages of great information and a disk full of the best Internet shareware. The book is a great resource, even if your provider treats you right.
Virtual Memory Versus RAM Doubler
Q. Can I use RAM Doubler to double my real memory (17 MB) and my virtual memory (a dedicated 60-MB hard-disk partition)?
Bill Pav
via the Internet
CHRIS: No way. The programs don't work in tandem -- you can use either RAM Doubler or Apple's virtual memory, not both.
BOB: Besides, the programs work differently. One of the marvels of RAM Doubler is that, unlike System 7's built-in virtual-memory scheme, it doesn't use a permanent swap file -- a portion of your hard disk that's reserved for virtual memory.
CHRIS: In other words, RAM Doubler requires very little space on your hard disk. And when it does need space to perform its magic, RAM Doubler grabs a small chunk temporarily and then releases it as soon as the space is no longer needed. You'll never even notice it happening, and if you use RAM Doubler, you can reclaim that 60-MB partition.
BOB: So put that partition to better use -- store some data on it!
CHRIS: In your case, using RAM Doubler will create a net loss of virtual memory: You'll have only 34 MB of RAM (your 17 megabytes plus 17 "virtual" megabytes). If you really must, for whatever reason, have 60 MB of virtual memory available to you, you'll have no choice but to use the slower, more-disk-hogging, built-in System 7 Virtual Memory.
Mac Technology: As Seen on TV
Q. How did the Performa in the Apple TV advertisement wake the boy in the morning, and how can I get my Mac to do that?
Martin Cutler
via eWorld (may it rest in peace)
CHRIS: For those of you who've missed it, the commercial in question features a Performa switching itself on in the morning and rudely awakening a kid by blasting him with video, music, and voices.
BOB: It's all possible with just a few bucks' worth of hardware and software.
CHRIS: The first step depends on the Performa model. If your model is in the 200, 500, 600, 5200, 6200, or 6300 series, you can use System 7.5's Auto Power On/Off control panel to start up your Mac at a time you choose. Other Mac models can be started this way as well, but rather than present you with an exhaustive list, I'll simply recommend this: Double-click on the Auto Power On/Off control panel. If the control panel doesn't work with your Mac model, a terse dialog box will let you know.
Those with noncompliant Macs can still get there but will need a PowerKey or PowerKey Pro (see figure 1), from Sophisticated Circuits (800-827-4669) -- they cost around $100 (less for PowerKey, more for Pro). They're spiffy hardware/software combinations that let you turn your Mac (and several peripherals) on and off at scheduled times.
BOB: Next, you need some sound files and/or QuickTime movies. To create your own video or sound files, you'll probably need HyperCard, Macromedia Director, Allegiant's SuperCard, or Adobe Premiere.
CHRIS: Now, on with the show! A movie will play automatically at startup if you name it Startup Movie and place it at the root level of your System Folder. Sound files work differently -- to get them to play at startup, just toss them into the System Folder's Startup Items folder.
If you want a more complex morning ritual, you'll need some sort of macro program to script all the events that occur once your Mac comes to life. PowerKey Pro includes a "lite" version of the excellent commercial macro program QuicKeys. The other option is to use System 7.5's built-in AppleScript.
BOB: If you have these tools in your arsenal, you can make your Performa turn itself on at 7 a.m. and do just about anything you like after that.
Although the commercial's use of technology is a bit frivolous, there are many cool ways the technology can be used. For example, I use PowerKey Pro to wake my Macintosh up an hour before I get out of bed. My Macintosh then runs a Claris Emailer session automatically and uses CompuServe Information Manager to download messages from my favorite online forums. When I walk into my office, my Macintosh is all warmed up and my mail has been retrieved from three online services before I lay a single finger onto the keyboard. Neat!
You can find the shareware and freeware programs that are referenced in this article on MacUser's Web page (http://www.zdnet.com/macuser/). You can also find them in the MacUser and ZD Net/Mac areas on CompuServe. See How to Reach Us for instructions on accessing ZD Net/Mac.
Bob LeVitus is director of evangelism for Power Computing. Christopher Breen recently coauthored The Macintosh Bible Guide to Games, published by Peachpit Press.
figure 1/ Here, a PowerKey wakes up a Mac and executes a QuicKeys macro that gets e-mail with Claris Emailer.
Tips / Saving Money
PowerBook SCSI Cable
At around $40, a PowerBook HDI-30 SCSI cable is mighty expensive. And if you want to dock your PowerBook to another Mac, you need yet another pricey cable. Why pay the price when companies such as APS (800-677-3294 or 816-290-4109) and Interex (316-524-4747) offer cheaper, all-in-one solutions for those who have spare SCSI cables lying around (and who among us doesn't)?
For around $25, you can pick up an HDI-to-SCSI docking adapter. This little beauty, when connected to a 25-to-50-pin SCSI cable, turns the old cable into a 50-pin-to-HDI-30 cable that can be used to connect your PowerBook to external SCSI devices. With the flip of a switch, your "new" cable can also be used to dock your portable to another Mac.
D. Howell
via AOL
Cheaper Speakers
Finding a good set of computer speakers is time-consuming, expensive, and perhaps unnecessary -- especially if you already have a boom box or stereo receiver. Sure, you could run a cable from your Mac to the receiver across the room, but why not employ that inputless boom box sitting on your desk instead?
I discovered a wonderful gadget called the Wano-Tech fx Wave at my local Target store. This device (see photo) plugs into my Mac's speaker jack and allows me to "broadcast" the Mac's sound in full stereo over any FM frequency in the 88- to 105-MHz range. At $19.95, it's a steal! It requires two AAA batteries and broadcasts reliably at a range of 3 meters.
Alex Rampell
via AOL
The Wano-Tech fx Wave lets you use your boom box as an external speaker for your Mac.
Tips / A Little Light Hacking
Say Cheese!
Concerned that Goldilocks or someone like her has been sitting at your Mac while you've been out for a walk in the forest? If you own a Connectix QuickCam and have AppleScript installed, you can create a script to take a picture of the person sitting at your Mac whenever your Mac starts up. Here's how:
Copy Scott Gruby's PhotoCapture shareware utility from the QuickCam registration bonus CD-ROM to your hard disk, or download the utility from your favorite online site. Enter the following script in AppleScript's Script Editor:
tell applicatio "PhotoCapture"
Capture to Clipboard
Capture to File "Macintosh
Disk:images:Startup.PICT"
quit
end tell
Note: Substitute the name of your hard disk for Macintosh Disk. You can name the picture file anything you like.
When you run the script, AppleScript will prompt you for the location of PhotoCapture. In Script Editor, save the script as an application and place it in the Startup Items folder inside your System Folder. Create a folder called Images at the root level of your hard disk.
Now when you want to see who was at the Mac when it was last started, open the Images folder and double-click on the enclosed Startup.PICT file.
Matt Ferson
via the Internet
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