NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #26

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #26 / NN_1992_26.iso / spool / comp / sys / apple2 / 23556 < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1992-11-08 | 50.9 KB | 1,012 lines

Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2 Path: sparky!uunet!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!destroyer!cs.ubc.ca!unixg.ubc.ca!kakwa.ucs.ualberta.ca!ee.ualberta.ca!jpenne From: jpenne@ee.ualberta.ca (Jerry Penner) Subject: GEnieLamp Nov 1992 [4 parts] Message-ID: <jpenne.721126321@ee.ualberta.ca> Sender: news@kakwa.ucs.ualberta.ca Nntp-Posting-Host: eigen.ee.ualberta.ca Organization: University Of Alberta, Edmonton Canada References: <jpenne.721126159@ee.ualberta.ca> <jpenne.721126202@ee.ualberta.ca> Date: Sat, 7 Nov 1992 08:52:01 GMT Lines: 999 This is GEnieLamp, an Apple II newsletter. It's in four parts. This is part three. --------------------- cut here --------------------- INTERNET ON GEnie With GEnie open beta-testing an Internet gateway, I """"""""""""""""" thought it was about time to get serious about learning about the Internet. Good references on the Internet are not all that hard to find; I located a number of downloadable files on GEnie that told me a lot about it. However, finding good, comprehensive information in book form was beginning to look like a challenge. Then, O'Reilly and Associates came out with The Whole Internet Users Guide and Catalog, by Ed Krol. Talk about synchronicity... Krol is also the author of The Hitchiker's Guide To The Internet, a well-known source of Internet info. He's been involved with the Internet since 1985. In The Whole Internet User's Guide, he pulls together a wealth of info on virtually all aspects of "the world's largest computer network". The book is written for everyone from the total beginner to the experienced Internet user. A guide on page xxii indicates which chapters will help the reader most, depending on his or her level of expertise. Being a total beginner and a Mac user, I wanted to find out just what the Internet could do for me, and how best to access it with a Mac. I quickly learned that the Internet is a sort of 'network of networks', consisting largely of computers and computer networks on college campuses, and in businesses, libraries and government institutions. They are spread all over the USA and a great many foreign countries, forming a gigantic spider web of computer systems. Any computer with access to the system can connect to the other networks as a remote user and make use of the resources at that end. I was pleased to learn that a Mac (or any other computer) with a basic terminal emulation program can access the Internet through one of its 'servers', and basically log on in real-time to a host computer. Many college students and employees of some businesses can get free access through their respective organizations. The rest of us have to find a site that provides dial-up access and purchase an account. There are a number of such services popping up all over the country, and the book provides listings for a number of them. It's difficult to describe or even imagine the breadth and scope of information and services accessible through the Internet. It includes the ability to access card catalogs and online databases at universities around the world. Also on the network are private and proprietary databases, specialized research databases maintained by schools, businesses and independent researchers, including unusual and esoteric material that only may be found at one or two locations in the world. How to find and access this enormous wealth of information is the purpose behind The Whole Internet User's Guide. The Guide contains detailed chapters that will tell you how to log on and use the various features of the Internet. Although the Internet operates mainly on unix-based machines, almost any computer can access and use it. Since the Internet has no central office, customer service or index, one of the most useful features of The Whole Internet Guide is the Catalog of Resources. This is a topical listing of some of the more interesting and useful resources accessible through the Internet. It is by no means comprehensive, but serves as a starting place for new user. Also included in the book are descriptions of some of the newer software resources that make finding things on the Internet much faster and easier. Programs like 'archie', 'gopher' and 'finger', will automate searching for files and for the addresses of other users. Krol supplies descriptions and instructions on how to use these programs, and throws in some illustrations to boot. Reading research papers isn't the only thing you can do on the Internet. There is also Internet mail, which transfers e-mail all over the world. And there is 'anonymous ftp', which is like having a world-wide library of downloadable files and software, including tons of stuff that will never be seen in stores, or even on GEnie. There are also 'newsgroups', which are the Internet equivalent of GEnie's Roundtables. The Guide provides complete descriptions of all of these, and how to use them. There is a lot more to the Internet than I can touch on here. Someone wanting to explore should just log on and go for it. The Whole Internet User's Guide includes a chapter on Internet protocol, what's allowed and what's offensive, legal considerations and more. I found the Guide to be both informative and readable. Given the highly technical nature of the subject, producing an interesting guide that's useful to novices is no mean feat. I'd recommend it to anyone getting started with the Internet. Those who've already gotten their feet wet should also find it a handy reference to keep by the terminal. The Whole Internet User's Guide And Catalog is available from the publisher, O'Reilly & Associates, Inc., and bookstores including those in the GEnie Online Shopping Mall. List price is $24.95. [*][*][*] NOTE GEnie's Open Beta of Internet is available at page m207. As of """" November 1, 1992, the pricing for Internet will be: $2.00 registration fee - this will be a one time charge for all new users signing up for the service. However, if a user cancels and signs up another $2.00 charge will be incurred. $.30 for each 5000 bytes or portion thereof for incoming or outgoing messages. //////////////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE //// / "This is what I was looking for! Involved discussion....ooh yeah!" / //////////////////////////////////////////////////// R.MARTIN22 //// [EOA] [MOO]////////////////////////////// . . . . . . . . . CowTOONS! / . . . . . . ///////////////////////////////// . . . . . . . Moooooo Fun! . . . . . . . . . . """""""""""" . . . . . . . . . . By Chris Innanen . . . . . . . . . . . . [C.INNANEN] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o ____ o . . . \ / \ / . . ___ \( (__) )/ . /\ . / o\ . . ( (oo) ) . . | o | . \ \/ / () Invaders from the \___/ . _____====_____ /__\ Planet Moo... . . / / \ \ . . . . /O O O O O O\ . . . \_-__-____-__-_/ . . . . / . \ . . . o . o . . . . . . . . . . . [*][*][*] CowTOONS? Chris Innanen took us up on (__) our offer and sent in this month's (oo) ---- CowTOONS selection. /--------\/ ----- / | || ------- If you have an idea for a CowTOON, we |\-----| \ ------ would like to see it. And if we pick ^ ^ ^ ^ your CowTOON for publishing in GEnieLamp we will credit your account with 2 hours ~ Mycow Jackson ~ of GEnie non-prime time! (Doing the Moowalk) /////////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE //// / "Aw Mike, you shouldn't have done that because now you got me / / upset. So put on your flak jacket ... here it comes:" / ///////////////////////////////////////////// R.C.GOSEWEHR //// [EOA] [AII]////////////////////////////// APPLE II / ///////////////////////////////// Apple II History, Part 6 """""""""""""""""""""""" By Steven Weyhrich [S.WEYHRICH] >>> APPLE II HISTORY <<< """""""""""""""""""""""" Compiled and written by Steven Weyhrich (C) Copyright 1991, Zonker Software (PART 6 -- THE APPLE II PLUS) [v1.1 :: 12 Dec 91] INTRODUCTION This part of the Apple II History gives the lowdown on the """""""""""" version of the Apple II where I cut my teeth -- the II Plus. The modifications made from the original II to this version I just took for granted at the time (like using IJKM to edit, instead of the older ABCD a character at a time -- ugh!). Also in this part, for nostalgia's sake, is a reproduction of an original Apple II Plus packing list. Don't read it just before bed, or you'll probably be too excited to sleep. :-) [*][*][*] THE APPLE II PLUS: HARDWARE We now go cruising ahead in time about one """"""""""""""""""""""""""" year, to June of 1979. Applesoft BASIC had been in heavy demand since the introduction in late 1978 of an improved version. It was needed by those wanting to write and use applications that needed the capability of floating-point math. Because of this, Apple engineers had begun working in 1978 on the Apple II Plus, a modest enhancement to the Apple II. The main attraction of this newer Apple would be Applesoft in ROM, available immediately without having to load it from cassette or disk. Also, having it in ROM would move it out of the part of memory where RAM Applesoft conflicted with hi-res graphics (after all, Applesoft had commands specifically written into it for manipulating those graphics, something that Integer BASIC could only do via special CALLs to the routines in the Programmer's Aid 1 chip). With the decision made to upgrade the Apple II, other changes were made to make it more attractive to new computer buyers. The cost of RAM chips had dropped considerably, so most new II Plus systems came standard with a full 48K of RAM. Since the disk operating system consumed about 10K of memory, having the full complement of available RAM made it easier to use the Disk II with either version of BASIC. Since users would not need to add the smaller 4K memory chips, the strapping blocks that had made it possible to use either 4K or 16K RAM chips on the original Apple II were removed. Small changes had already been made to the product since it first began distribution. Most of these changes were made primarily to simplify it and decrease costs of manufacturing. First of all, the original Apple II motherboard, designated as "Revision 0", was changed to make it possible to display two more colors in hi-res graphics. The Revision 0 board had only four colors (green, violet, black, white), but Wozniak had learned that by making a simple alteration he could get two more colors (blue and orange) and two more varieties of black and white. The Revision 1 and later boards were capable of displaying all eight colors. The means of making this modification to Revision 0 Apples was described by Wozniak in his reply to an article by Allen Watson III about hi-res graphics (in the June 1979 issue of Byte magazine). With that change, people who were not afraid of doing a little electrical work on their computers had some of the benefits of an updated Apple II. Hardware bugs that Apple engineers fixed included one that caused text characters to be displayed with green and violet fringing, whether in graphics mode or text mode. The "color killer" circuit they added fixed things so that non-graphics text would display in black and white only. Another problem involved RAM configurations of either 20K or 24K (a 16K RAM chip plus one or two 4K RAM chips). In those systems a hardware bug caused the 8K of memory from $4000 to $5FFF to be duplicated in the next 8K of memory, from $6000 to $7FFF, whether there was RAM present at those locations or not. This made a 20K Apple appear to have 24K, and a 24K Apple appear to have 36K. The Revision 1 motherboard fixed this problem as well.<1> Revision 1 boards also modified the cassette input circuit to respond with more accuracy to a weak input signal, making it easier to load data and programs from cassette. Also, one "feature" of the original Apple II was that any sound generated by the internal speaker also appeared as a signal on the cassette output connector; this was fixed in the new motherboards. Lastly, the RESET cycle was made part of the power-up circuitry, eliminating the requirement that the RESET key be pressed after turning on the computer.<2>,<3> THE APPLE II PLUS: FIRMWARE More important than the minor hardware """"""""""""""""""""""""""" changes, however, were the changes in the ROM code. The new ROM replaced the original Monitor with one that, among other things, better supported the new Disk II drive. Since RESET was now automatically activated when the power was turned on, the new ROM code had the computer automatically do a few things. It cleared the screen (displaying "APPLE ][" at the top), and began a scan down the slots, starting at slot 7 down to slot 1. It examined the first few bytes of code in each card's ROM for a specific sequence that identified it as a Disk II controller card. If one was found, control was passed to that card, causing the disk drive to startup and begin loading the disk operating system into memory. If no disk controller was found, the ROM code jumped instead to the start of BASIC (instead of leaving the user in the Monitor, as in the old ROM). This "Autostart ROM", as it was called, made it possible to have a system that started up a program on the disk with little action needed by the user. The RESET code was more intelligent in the Autostart ROM than in the Old Monitor ROM. There was now a "Cold Start" RESET (which functioned as described above), and a "Warm Start" RESET. A Warm Start RESET could occur without re-booting the Disk II (if it was present); in fact, it ensured that the disk operating system remained "connected" after RESET was pressed. This feature was implemented by setting three bytes at the end of page $03 in memory. Two of the bytes were the address of the place in memory to which the Apple should jump if RESET was pressed. The third byte was a specially coded byte created from half of the address byte. When RESET was pressed, this special "power-up" byte was checked with the address byte. If they didn't properly match, the Monitor assumed that the power had just been turned on, and it executed a Cold Start RESET. This feature was extensively used by writers of copy protected software, so users could not modify or copy the code in memory simply by pressing the RESET key. The other major change, mentioned earlier, was the BASIC that was supplied in ROM. Gone was Steve Wozniak's hand-assembled Integer BASIC, in favor of the newer Applesoft. Since these ROM versions of BASIC used the same memory locations, they could not be used simultaneously. With the introduction of the II Plus, Apple also released the Applesoft Firmware card. This card, which plugged into slot 0, made it possible for previous Apple II owners to have some of the benefits of the II Plus without having to buy an entirely new computer. Even with that card, however, you could not use features of one BASIC while the other was active, and switching from one BASIC to the other erased any program that was being used at the time. The two BASICs could be told apart by the prompt they used; Integer BASIC used the ">" character, but Applesoft used the "]" character. Another change made to the Monitor ROM made screen editing easier. The original Apple II's procedure for editing a line typed in BASIC or in the Monitor was tedious at best. To change a line of text in BASIC, you had to list the line, move the cursor up to the start of the line, and then use the right-arrow key to "copy" text from the screen into the input buffer. If you wanted to skip part of the line, you had to move the cursor past the text that you wanted to eliminate WITHOUT using the arrow keys. If you wanted to INSERT something into the line, you had to move the cursor off the line (above it or below it), type the additional text, and then move the cursor back into the line to finish copying the original part of the line. For example, suppose you had typed this line in Applesoft and displayed it on the 40-column screen: ]LIST 100 100 FOR I = 1 TO 100: PRINT "I LIKE MY APPLE": NEXT : END To change that line so the PRINT statement read "I REALLY LIKE MY APPLE" meant either retyping the entire line, or using the edit feature. (If the line was particularly long, it was preferable to edit rather than retype the entire line). To edit this line, you would have to move the cursor up to the "1" of "100" and begin pressing the right arrow key. When you got to the "L" of "LIKE" you would have to move the cursor above or below the line, type the word "REALLY" followed by a space, then move the cursor back to the "L" of "LIKE", and continue copying with the right arrow key. After editing a line, the screen might look like this: 100 FOR I = 1 TO 100: PRINT "I LIKE MY APPLE": NEXT : END REALLY (In this example, I moved the cursor down one line, typed "REALLY", and then moved it back to the start of the word "LIKE"). If you didn't make any mistakes it would read like this: ]LIST 100 100 FOR I = 1 TO 100: PRINT "I REALLY LIKE MY APPLE" : NEXT : END However, if you didn't take care to skip over the extra spaces inserted in front of the word "LIKE" by the Applesoft LIST command, it could appear this way: 100 FOR I = 1 TO 100: PRINT "I REALLY LIKE MY APPLE" : NEXT : END The big problem with these cursor moves for editing under the Old Monitor was that each move required two keypresses. To move the cursor up, you had to press "ESC" and then "D" EACH TIME you wanted to move the cursor up. "ESC A" moved right, "ESC B" moved left, and "ESC C" moved the cursor down. With a long line that needed much editing, this would get old real fast. Not only was it cumbersome, but the layout of the keyboard made it difficult to remember the correct letters used for cursor movement; although "D" (up) was above "C" (down), it seemed that "D" should stand for "Down". Also confusing was that "A" was to the left of "B", but their functions were the opposite of their position! The new Autostart ROM improved this screen editing process just a bit. Now, pressing "ESC" turned on a special editing mode. Repeated presses of "I" (up), "J" (left), "K" (right), and "M" (down) continued to move the cursor until a key other than ESC was pressed. On the keyboard these letters were arranged in a sort of "directional keypad" or diamond, which made remembering the moves a little easier. The previous ESC editing codes were still supported, but still with their previous limitations. Unfortunately, however, you still couldn't tell whether you were in the regular text entry mode or in the ESC editing mode, and often attempts at changing a line took several tries to get it right.<4>,<5> Other features added in the new Autostart ROM included the ability to pause a listing by pressing Ctrl-S (VERY helpful when trying to scan through a long program!) As mentioned above, pressing RESET would return control through the soft-entry vectors on memory page $03. This would allow a user to exit from a runaway BASIC program by pressing RESET, and still keep program and variables intact in memory (which could not be guaranteed with the old Monitor ROM).<5> John Arkley at Apple wrote the changes to the original Monitor ROM and created the Autostart ROM in November 1978 (he's the "John A" mentioned in the source code listing found in the 1981 edition of the APPLE II REFERENCE MANUAL). After he had done the work and the ROMs had been created, Apple wanted to publish a new version of the Reference Manual to cover the Apple II Plus. The older Reference Manual (affectionately known as the "Red Book") had included an assembly language source code listing of the Monitor ROM. They wanted to include the source for BOTH versions of the Monitor, but a problem came up. While developing the Monitor, Apple had used a local mainframe computer dial-up service known as "Call Computer." They used a cross-assembler on that computer, assembled the code, and then used the resulting object code to create the ROM. (A cross-assembler is an assembler that creates object code for a processor other than the one the cross-assembler runs on. For example, if you can write 8080 machine code with an assembler running on a 6502-based computer, you are using a cross-assembler). Unfortunately, Call Computer had accidentally done a system backup with the source and destination disks reversed, erasing all the files containing the source code for the Apple II Monitors. There were no disk or cassette copies of the source code for the Autostart ROM back at Apple. Working from the source listing in the Red Book, John recreated the source file for the original Monitor, and then disassembled his own modifications for the II Plus and re-created his Autostart ROM source file. Those reconstructed listings are what appeared in the 1981 edition of the Apple II Reference Manual.<6> Not everyone was pleased with the modifications made in the Autostart ROMs, however. Some of the authors of the magazine CALL-A.P.P.L.E. liked to refer to the new computer as the "Apple II Minus", since Arkley had to remove some of their beloved routines from the ROMs to make room for the new features. Missing from the Apple II Plus ROMs were Integer BASIC, the miniassembler, and Woz's SWEET 16 interpreter (that entire space now being used by Applesoft). Missing from the Monitor were the assembly language STEP and TRACE features, and a set of sixteen-bit multiply and divide routines.<5> THE APPLE II PLUS: COST The new Apple II Plus, at $1,195, sold for over """"""""""""""""""""""" $100 less than the original Apple II, although it came with more memory and had Applesoft (previously an added expense item) in ROM. THE APPLE II PLUS: BELL & HOWELL Apple made a deal early on with Bell & """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Howell to let them sell the Apple II Plus with a Bell & Howell name plate on it for use in schools. These Apples were black colored (instead of the standard beige), and had screws on the back to keep the lids on (apparently to keep students' hands out). These Apples (sometimes called "Darth Vader" Apples) also had the "shift-key mod" (see below) applied. Since Bell & Howell was a major supplier of school equipment, this was a means for Apple to get a foothold in the school environment.<7>,<8> Bell & Howell also had electronics correspondence courses, and used the black Apple II Plus for one of their courses. They offered a one year warranty, instead of the ninety-day warranty offered by Apple.<9>,<10>,<11> THE APPLE II PLUS: EARLY USER EXPERIENCES An Apple II veteran on GEnie, """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Dennis Ulm, kindly provided me with the following reproduction of his ORIGINAL Apple II Plus packing list. It gives a little picture of what early non-disk users had to work with: APPLE II PLUS PACKING LIST """""""""""""""""""""""""" This package should contain the following items: item no. part number description ---- --- ----------- ----------- 1 1 600-2023 cassette tape: LITTLE BRICKOUT, COLOR DEMOSOFT 2 1 600-2024 cassette tape: RENUMBER/APPEND, ALIGNMENT TEST TONE 3 1 600-2025 cassette tape: FINANCE I, PENNY ARCADE 4 1 600-2026 cassette tape: LEMONADE, HOPALONG CASSIDY 5 1 600-2027 cassette tape: BRIAN'S THEME, PHONE LIST 6 1 030-2057 manual: Introductory Programs for the Apple II Plus 7 1 030-0044 manual: The Applesoft Tutorial 8 1 030-0013 manual: Applesoft II BASIC Programming Reference Manual 9 1 030-0004 manual: Apple II Reference Manual 10 1 030-0035 publication: Apple Magazine 11 1 600-0033 1 pair of game controls 12 1 590-0002 cable: to hook up a cassette recorder 13 1 590-0003 cable: power cord for the Apple II Plus 14 1 030-0001 Apple Warranty Card 15 1 600-0816 Apple II Plus System 16K or 600-0832 Apple II Plus System 32K or 600-0848 Apple II Plus System 48K (LITTLE BRICKOUT was an abbreviated Applesoft version of Woz's Integer BASIC Breakout game (the reason he designed the Apple II in the first place). BRIAN'S THEME was a hi-res graphics program that drew lines on the screen in various patterns. HOPALONG CASSIDY was a "guess who" program that also used the hi-res screen).<12>,<13> Also included in Dennis' II Plus box was this photocopied instruction sheet: TAPE LOADING INSTRUCTIONS """"""""""""""""""""""""" If problems are encountered in LOADing tape programs, it may be necessary to "queue" (sic) the tape before LOADing. To queue a tape, use the following procedure: 1. Rewind the tape. 2. Disconnect the cable from the tape recorder (so you can hear what's on the tape). 3. Start the tape recorder in PLAY mode. 4. When a steady tone is heard, STOP the tape recorder. 5. Connect the cable to the tape recorder and adjust the volume and tone controls on the tape recorder to the recommended levels. 6. Make sure your computer is in BASIC. 7. Type LOAD. 8. START the tape playing. 9. Press RETURN. The program should LOAD properly. If an error message occurs, repeat the procedure, but try readjusting the tone and volume controls on the tape recorder. Dennis says that in his experience it took at least five to ten tries to get anything to load properly from tape! THE APPLE II PLUS: MORE HARDWARE ADD-ONS Lower-case was still not """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" supported on the new Apple II Plus, though it was a popular user-modification. The thriving industry for Apple II peripherals made up for this shortcoming, with various vendors supplying small plug-in circuit boards that fit under the keyboard, allowing display of lower-case on the screen (and sometimes direct entry of lower-case from the keyboard). By 1981, when the Revision 7 motherboard was released for the Apple II Plus, a different method of character generation was used, which reduced radio-frequency interference that was generated. For Revision 7 boards, lower-case characters could be displayed with the addition of only a single chip. However, unless a user changed the keyboard encoder with a third-party product, only upper-case characters could be typed.<14> The keyboard itself underwent some changes, both by users and by Apple. The original RESET key was in the upper right-hand corner of the keyboard. The problem with that key was that it had the same feel as the keys around it, making it possible to accidentally hit RESET and lose the entire program that was being so carefully entered. One user modification was to pop off the RESET keycap and put a rubber washer under it, making it necessary to apply more pressure than usual to do a RESET. Apple fixed this twice, once by replacing the spring under the keycap with a stiffer one, and finally by making it necessary to press the CTRL key and the RESET together to make a RESET cycle happen. The keyboards that had the CTRL-RESET feature made it user selectable via a small slide switch just inside the case (some people didn't want to have to press the CTRL key to do a RESET). Another keyboard limitation was addressed through a modification that became known as the "shift-key mod". This was such a widely used trick that Apple ended up supporting it in hardware when they designed the Apple IIe. Since the II and II Plus keyboards could not directly generate lower-case characters, early word processing programs had to find some way to make up for that deficiency. Apple's own Apple Writer program used the ESC key as a shift and shift-lock key, displaying upper-case characters in inverse video and lower-case in regular video. Other programs suggested installing the shift-key mod to allow more natural entry of upper-case, using the SHIFT key already present on the keyboard. The user had to attach a wire to the contact under the SHIFT key, and run it to the game port where the input for push-button 2 was found. (This push-button PB2, $C063 in memory, was for one of an optional second pair of game paddles that third-party hardware companies supplied for the Apple II). The program would assume that all letters being typed were in lower-case, unless the SHIFT key (attached now to paddle button PB2) was also being pressed; in that case the letter would be entered as upper-case. Since the PB2 button was not often used for a second pair of game paddles, it was unlikely that this modification would be accidentally triggered by pressing one of the game paddle buttons. This modification did NOT use buttons PB0 or PB1, which were on the first pair of game paddles. (PB0 and PB1 now correspond to the Open-Apple and Solid-Apple/Option keys on modern Apple II computers). [*][*][*] NEXT INSTALLMENT The Apple IIe """""""""""""""" NOTES """"" <1> -----, "Memory Organization", APPLE II REFERENCE MANUAL, 1979, 1981, pp. 70-73. <2> -----, APPLE II REFERENCE MANUAL, 1979,1981, pp. 25-27, 34-36. <3> Bruce Field, "A.P.P.L.E. Doctor", CALL-A.P.P.L.E., Jan 1984, pp. 74-75. <4> -----, "Apple and Apple II History", THE APPLE II GUIDE, Fall 1990, pp. 9-16. <5> -----, APPLE II REFERENCE MANUAL, 1979,1981, pp. 25-27, 34-36. <6> John Arkley, (personal telephone call), Sep 9, 1991. <7> Joe Regan, GEnie A2 ROUNDTABLE, Category 2, Topic 16, Apr 1991. <8> Dan Paymar, "Curing A Shiftless Apple", CALL-A.P.P.L.E., May 1982, pp. 63-64. <9> Tom Vanderpool, GEnie A2 ROUNDTABLE, Category 2, Topic 16, Mar & Aug 1991. <10> Tom Zuchowski, GEnie A2 ROUNDTABLE, Category 2, Topic 16, Mar 1991. <11> Steve Hirsch, GEnie A2 ROUNDTABLE, Category 2, Topic 16, Mar 1991. <12> Dennis Ulm, GEnie A2 ROUNDTABLE, Category 2, Topic 16, Apr 1991. <13> Wes Felty, GEnie. A2 ROUNDTABLE, Category 2, Topic 16, Apr 1991. <14> Bruce Field, "A.P.P.L.E. Doctor", CALL-A.P.P.L.E., Jan 1984, pp. 74-75. ////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE //// / "Wow, talk about a rumor. Take no prisoners, Steve. :^) / / No mercy. :^)" / //////////////////////////////////////////// E.KRIMEN //// [EOA] [LIB]////////////////////////////// THE ONLINE LIBRARY / ///////////////////////////////// Yours For The Downloading """"""""""""""""""""""""" By Mel Fowler [MELSOFT] >>> TOP UPLOADS: SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER '92 <<< """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ~ ** 8-bit programs for the Classic Apples ~ ONLY THE BEST! These are among the best UPLOADs to the A2 Software """""""""""""" Library in the past month. Please check them out. You will not be disappointed. [*][*][*] 19318 Name: LETTERSLIDE.BXY LetterSlide is a companion piece to Boggled """""""""""""""""""""""""""" GS. Although both programs share some of the same graphics, gameplay is radically different! In LetterSlide, you must push blocks around to form words so you may collect jewels and advance to the next level. If you have played SokoBan, then there are some similarities; except instead of pushing blocks to an area, you must push blocks to create words. Challenging yet amusing! The program comes with a Level Editor, so you can create your own levels and boards if you wish. 19378 Name: SOUNDSMITH.BXY V1.01 SoundSmith returns to shareware with """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" the new version 1.01! SoundSmith is a music creation program that can make songs for playback on your IIGS. SoundSmith uses ASIF instrument files which can be created from digitized sounds. SoundSmith 1.01 features MIDI support as well as other minor enhancements. A must download for the SoundSmith fanatic, would-be music writer, or for anyone who likes neat IIGS sound software. $20 shareware. 19388 Name: GECOPILOT.BXY Co-Pilot 2.0.3 is a IIGS message processor for """""""""""""""""""""""""" GEnie that works with Talk is Cheap (v.3.20 or later) or Point-to-Point (version 4.0 or later) to automatically download messages from RoundTables and GE Mail which you can then read, reply to or save off-line. Co-Pilot then calls GEnie and uploads your replies. You can download or get descriptions of files automatically. Operation is simple and fully automated. This evaluation version of Co-Pilot has some non-essential features disabled. On payment of a $25 fee (or a $10 update fee) you will be told how to activate all features. 19444 Name: MINEFIELD.BXY This is one of the best kinds of games: """""""""""""""""""""""""" simple and addicting! Minefield is a game for the Apple IIgs that plays like the game Mine Sweeper. The object of this game is to clear a grid of squares (the minefield) of mines, without hitting any of them. Every time you click on one of the squares, it will either be a mine or a number. The number will show you how many mines are surrounding that square. From this, you decide which other squares are clear or have mines. When you're sure a square has a mine in it, you can put a flag on that square. Multiple levels of difficulty and options are available. 19445 Name: MINESGS.NDA.BXY An NDA version of this great simple and """""""""""""""""""""""""""" addicting game! Mines GS is a game for the Apple IIgs that plays like the game Mine Sweeper. The object of the NDA version of this game is a little different from the full GS/OS application. In this NDA, all you have to do is clear a path from one corner of a grid of squares (the minefield) to the other. Every time you click on one of the squares, it will either be a mine or a number. The number will show you how many mines are surrounding that square. From this, you decide which other squares are clear or have mines. When you're sure a square has a mine in it, you can put a flag on that square. 19471 Name: W6BBS.BXY Warp Six BBS, public domain version 1.1. Requires """""""""""""""""""""" a IIe Enhanced or IIGS and Hayes or compatible external modem. Docs included, in AppleWorks 3.0 format. 19472 Name: SUPERBASIC.BXY This utility allows anyone with knowledge of """"""""""""""""""""""""""" BASIC programming to create stunning IIgs programs with Super-High-Resolution graphics. An 84 page manual and many examples are included. Use Shrinkit to unpack the program files to a blank disk called /SUPER. Then copy PRODOS and BASIC.SYSTEM to the disk and boot it. 19475 Name: SHOWME.NDA.BXY V1.0B2 Beta release 2 fixes problems with """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" large GIF's and file selection restriction problems. This NDA works under System software 5, but has System software 6 Finder enhancements. You can view all IIGS graphics, view GIF files, view MacPaint files, save graphics in Screen or APF formats, and do some simple color conversions. Beta Release. JesusAware released the same as Freeware. **19478 Name AW.INSTRUCT.BXY This well-written 29K text file gives """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" complete instructions on how to get started using Applewriter. Thanks are owed to Gareth Tucker who explains everything in the simplest and clearest possible terms. 19484 Name: DOS3.3.LNCH.BXY All the way from new South Wales comes this """""""""""""""""""""""""""" incredibly useful GS/OS utility that allows you to store, and run, older DOS 3.3 software on your previously non-DOS 3.3 compatible hard drive. Written by the author of Roger Wagner's Graphic Exchange, John MacLean, this is a $10 shareware utility. It's very easy to use, it's desktop based with pull down menus, and it even has the ability to slow down your system to 1 Mhz when running DOS 3.3 software, but returns you to the Finder at the GS's faster speed. Supports DOS 3.3 BIN files and single or double sided disks. **19511 Name: HWEN3.DHR.BXY Graphics guru Pat Kern offers more of her """""""""""""""""""""""""""" handiwork in this interesting collection of double hi-res Halloween clip art. The large jack-o-lantern and trick-or- treating scene look sharp. Useful for Publish IT! school newsletters. 19517 Name: GSHK.BSE V1.1 This is GS-ShrinkIt v1.1. This is also a """"""""""""""""""""""""""" ShrinkIt self-extracting archive inside a Binary II wrapper. This means that you'll have to remove the Binary II wrapper either when downloading using your communications program (ie, turn Binary II mode ON), or remove the Binary II wrapper with a separate program once you've downloaded this archive. GSHK v1.1 is faster compressing, faster decompressing, can make self-extracting archives, and has been made easier to use. A MUST-HAVE for anyone downloading files from A2 or A2Pro! Remember, you MUST download this with Binary II turned on, or use some other utility after the download to remove the Binary II wrapper. Then just run the program to have it extract itself. Enjoy! **19529 Name: WSCRAM.BXY The dynamic-duo team of Preston and Sara """""""""""""""""""""""""" Boomer have released yet another shareware educational program. This cute little Applesoft program does a swell job of printing word scramble puzzles for teachers. The program sports an easy to use interface for inputting your own word lists. Share this one with your local school. **19540 Name: GENEALOGY2.BXY This freeware Applesoft program can print """""""""""""""""""""""""""""" predecessor and descendant charts on any ImageWriter printer. Fully listable code for snooping programmers and other nice people. 19544 Name: SHOVEIT.BXY A brand-new game for the GS that comes under the """""""""""""""""""""""" 'addictive' heading. The game has 50 built in mazes that you move objects through to destination boxes. Included is an editor to make your own maps for play and up-loading. Every game has a playback feature, to enable you to see a high speed movie of your moves AND see the winning moves of other players who upload their 'won' game files. This is a challenging game for both kids (easier levels) and grownups. FREEWARE. 19573 Name: SONIQTRACKER.BXY V0.60 This is the latest version and it """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" seems to be rock stable. This is definitely my mod player of choice right now. This version of soniqTracker adds some nice conveniences (it saves the preference box, mainly the stereo setting) and gives you an instrument list (I forget if the last version did that or not). It's still not as feature-laden as ModZap, but the sound quality is definitely better on some instruments. [*][*][*] WAIT, THERE'S MORE! There are several uploads that are not listed here """"""""""""""""""" do to limited space but are non-the-less deserve your attention: PRIME BBS and all the PRIME BBS accessories. There are so many of them I can't even list the Numbers. History of the Apple II and Astronomer GS are another two programs that must be included here. Simply search on the key words I have listed in this paragraph to get the file numbers. You can then get a description and/or continue with a download. [*][*][*] **Thanks to Phil Shapiro for the inclusion of the 8-bit programs to this list. /////////////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE //// / "Man...it doesn't take long to start a rumor here, does it? :-)" / ///////////////////////////////////////////////// J.TRAUTSCHOL //// [EOA] [ELS]////////////////////////////// GEnie ELSEWHERE / ///////////////////////////////// Electronic Publishing On GEnie """""""""""""""""""""""""""""" By Ron Albright [RALBRIGHT] >>> NOVEMEBER IS ELECTRONIC PUBLISHING MONTH <<< """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Dear Reader, I wanted to make this special mailout to everyone I could think of to keep you posted about the exciting activities the Disktop Publishing Association has planned for the final quarter of 1992. We want to finish off 1992 with a bang and get ready to make 1993 the year that electronic publishing really takes off. Here are some of the things you should be aware of and, hopefully, take an active role in making these events notable successes: Electronic Publishing Month The DPA is proud to proclaim November, 1992 """"""""""""""""""""""""""" as "Electronic Publishing Month." The announcement and the activities planned for the month have been circulated to the media and the national communications networks (CompuServe, GEnie, etc.) and are intended to call attention to wealth of materials available on disk for reading by computer. The DPA membership, which now range across the United States, Canada, and Europe, is encouraged to work actively through their local bulletin board systems (BBSs), commercial communications systems (such as CompuServe and GEnie), and computer user groups, to bolster the awareness among computer users of the quality of reading material available through electronic publications. We hope to call attention to the benefits of "paperless" publishing as both an environmentally-sound alternative to print media as well as offering benefits to readers that are not possible with traditional books and magazines (hypertext linking, animation, and sound). As noted by Paul Saffo in his October, 1992 column in PC/Computing magazine, "We are in the age of electronic incunabula, and the inventions of media entrepreneurs are certain to surprise and delight us in the decade ahead." As a DPA member publisher and author, you are on the cusp of the exciting age of electronic media and "Electronic Publishing Month." The emphasis during the month of November is intended to bring new interest and readers into the group already enjoying the innovative works already existing in computer-readable format. Hardware platforms (like Apple's "PowerBook" and new, DOS "palmtop" computers) now make reading of electronic documents possible anywhere. And electronic magazines, novels, and instructional materials are available through many outlets at prices which are lower than bookstore prices. The 1990s is, indeed, the decade of electronic publishing. What can you do to work toward making the month of November a major step forward for all of us? Here are some ideas from Ted Husted, author of IRIS and DART: o Add an Epub tagline to your offline reader. o Adopt a local BBS, ask them to open an Epub category. o Ask your nearest FIDO net board to carry the DPA echo. o Ask your user group to publish (or republish) their newsletter on disk. o Open a "Electronic Publishing" category on your BBS or file library. o Register an electronic publication or program. o Submit an article to your local users group, or the computer columnist of your local newspaper. (We can get you all the background you need). Can you think of some ideas yourself? It's time to beat the bushes, folks! It's a perfect month to re-double our efforts to put electronic publishing "on the map" of readers and consumers everywhere. The DPA revise our "DEMO-DPA.ZIP" file with its sample publications and informational material about the DPA and its members. You can download the file by modem or, if you like, send me a disk and two stamps, and I will send you a copy. You can then distribute it - by modem or by hand - to the four winds and get the word of the electronic publishing revolution everywhere in your area. GEnie Becomes a National Home For the DPA As you all know, the key to a """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" productive group is communication. Being able to poll the membership on ideas and proposals and inform the membership of new developments is key to the growth and perceived value of any organization. We have tried to establish the DPA BBS (205-854-1660) at the nerve center of our activities and it has served us well up to this point. However, with continued growth and the membership being spread to the four winds across the country and, indeed, the world, it seems time to establish a more cost-effective hub for communications and discussion. Calling the BBS with the long-distance charges involved, has been a burden for many and our organization has suffered for that. Since we are all - shall we say "low profit margin" publishers - it is a strain on all our pocketbooks to call long-distance on a regular basis. For these reasons, I would like to propose a new communications center. You all have probably heard of GEnie, the "General Electric News and Information System." GEnie is a national, modem-accessible system with access numbers a mere local call to 99% of the United States and Canada. A couple years back, GEnie established a flat-rate access system that allows users to access electronic mail, news, and selected "roundtables" (Forums or "special interest groups") during evening and weekend hours for only $4.95 per month. Subscribers do not pay per-minute connect charges when using these services and you can spend as much time as you like in these areas without incurring any additional charges. Since the calls to the GEnie system are local calls, there are no long-distance tolls levied either. There are two areas on GEnie where we can gather. For those of you who want to keep charges down to absolute minimum $4.95 per month, we have an area setup on one of the GEnie*Basic free access roundtables - "The Writers RT" (Page 440) - already has a specific conference set up for DPA activities. CATEGORY 46, TOPIC 38 is the "Electronic Publishing" category. We can leave unlimited messages there in non-prime hours (evenings and weekends) to discuss DPA business. This RT is frequented by a number of writers and is the perfect place for DPA publishers and authors to meet other writers and recruit material for their publications. Again, all your time in the Writer's RT is not billed per-minute and will be covered under the standard $4.95/month basic charge. I further propose that we make the "GENIELAMP RoundTable" (PAGE 515) on GEnie as the "public" headquarters for the Disktop Publishing Association. The GENIELAMP RT, run by John Peters and Jim Flanagan, actively supports electronic publishing through their monthly "GENIELAMP" newsletter and is already recognized by the GEnie user base as the location for on-disk publications. The DPA already has special areas (CATEGORY 6 is a public message area for the DPA and CATEGORY 7 is a private area for member-only conversations) set up on the GENIELAMP RT for messages related to electronic publishing. We also have our own library set up for DPA publications (which I am actively filling up with your publications off the DPA BBS). With these areas in place, we can communicate much more cost-effectively with our members. We can upload new publications to the RT without charge (downloading is billed, though, at the usual $6.00 per hour). GENIELAMP is NOT one of the unbilled Forums, but they are the one that has given us the support we need - with our own conference and file areas - to establish a true national presence and recognition. We can leave messages with a local call into this area and, even at 10 cents per minute, the access charges are cheaper than long-distance rates to the DPA BBS. We can use the electronic mail area for private messages (at no charge over the monthly $4.95 monthly fee. Many of us are already spending much more than that calling the DPA BBS long-distance. Signing on to the DPA is free and can be done in the following way: 1. Set your communications program to half duplex (local echo). 2. Dial 1-800-638-8369 (or 1-800-387-8330 in Canada). 3. When connected, type "hhh" (do not press ENTER). 4. When you get the "U#=" prompt, enter XTX99368,GENIE and press ENTER. 5. Have a credit card or checking account number ready, and answer the questions that follow. To repeat, there is no sign-up fee. The monthly fee is $4.95 for unlimited, non-prime-time use of all basic services (which includes electronic mail, news services, and several RoundTables, one of which is the aforementioned Writers RT). If you don't like GEnie, you can call them within the first 30 days and get your $4.95 refunded. For more information on signing on and technical support for signing on, call 1-800-638-9636 for more information. Remember uploads are free; downloading time is billed at $6/hour. Incidentally, there is a software package, that I will be happy to send anyone who sends me a disk and two 29 cents stamps, called "Aladdin," that automates message reading and sending as well as file uploading on GEnie completely so there is really nothing you will need to learn about GEnie commands or navigating. Thus, you will be up and reading DPA bulletins and downloading the same day you sign up. It all makes such good sense to me. I would appreciate any feedback you have about this idea. I am already on GEnie (my "User Name" is "RALBRIGHT") and, along with several other DPA members (notably Don Lokke, John Gaudreault, Robert Jordan, Thomas Easton, and others), have been beating the drums of the DPA for several months. I would be happy to talk you through accessing the system and getting to the DPA materials. I, therefore, propose we make GEnie's "GENIELAMP" our national public home and the "Writer's Roundtable" as our users home. I look forward to seeing you on that system. For less than $5.00 a month, we can communicate daily and really get this organization moving toward national prominence. What do you say? See you on GEnie. Of course, the DPA BBS (205-854-1660) will continue to operate full-time in case anyone chooses to stay with the long-distance route of access. -- Jerry Penner jpenne@ee.ualberta.ca Try a 1-line .sig today.