|||||| |||||| || || |||||| |||||| || || ||| || || || || ||| |||| |||||| || |||| Your || || || || ||| || || |||||| |||||| || || |||||| |||||| GEnieLamp Computing || |||||| || || |||||| RoundTable || || || ||| ||| || || || |||||| |||||||| |||||| RESOURCE! || || || || || || || ||||| || || || || || ~ WELCOME TO GEnieLamp APPLE II! ~ """""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ~ POLISHING GREEN APPLES: Hooked on Classics, Part 3 ~ ~ PROFILE: Randy Brandt, AppleWorks programmer ~ ~ TYPESET on DR's Examining Table ~ ~ TECH TALK: More About Apple II Hybrids ~ ~ APPLE II HISTORY: Part 19a, AppleWorks ~ ~ HOT NEWS, HOT FILES, HOT MESSAGES ~ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\//////////////////////////////////// GEnieLamp Apple II ~ A T/TalkNET OnLine Publication ~ Vol.2, Issue 22 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Editor....................................................Douglas Cuff Publisher.............................................John F. Peters Copy-Editor...........................................Bruce Maples \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\//////////////////////////////////// ~ GEnieLamp IBM ~ GEnieLamp ST ~ GEnieLamp [PR] ~ GEnieLamp Windows ~ ~ GEnieLamp A2Pro ~ GEnieLamp Macintosh ~ GEnieLamp TX2 ~ ~ GEnieLamp A2 ~ A2-Central ~ LiveWire (ASCII) ~ GEnieLamp MacPRO ~ ~ Member Of The Digital Publishing Association ~ GE Mail: GENIELAMP Internet: genielamp@genie.geis.com FTP: sosi.com ////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ >>> WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE APPLE II ROUNDTABLE? <<< """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ~ January 1, 1994 ~ FROM MY DESKTOP ......... [FRM] HEY MISTER POSTMAN ...... [HEY] Notes From The Editor. Is That A Letter For Me? HUMOR ONLINE ............ [HUM] REFLECTIONS ............. [REF] Apple Pie. Telecom Training Centers. BEGINNER'S CORNER ....... [BEG] REAL-TIME CHATTING ...... [RTC] Polishing Green Apples, Part 6. WWUG Snapshot, Live! CowTOONS! ............... [MOO] DR'S EXAMINING TABLE .... [DRT] Beef Futures. Review of TypeSet. PROFILES ................ [PRO] TECH TALK ............... [TEC] Who's Who: Randy Brandt. Apple II Hybrids, Part 2. WWUG NEWSLETTER ......... [WWU] APPLE II ................ [AII] January 1994 Report. Apple II History, Part 19a. LOG OFF ................. [LOG] GEnieLamp Information. [IDX]""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" READING GEnieLamp GEnieLamp has incorporated a unique indexing """"""""""""""""" system to help make reading the magazine easier. To utilize this system, load GEnieLamp into any ASCII word processor or text editor. In the index you will find the following example: HUMOR ONLINE ............ [HUM] [*]GEnie Fun & Games. To read this article, set your find or search command to [HUM]. If you want to scan all of the articles, search for [EOA]. [EOF] will take you to the last page, whereas [IDX] will bring you back to the index. MESSAGE INFO To make it easy for you to respond to messages re-printed """""""""""" here in GEnieLamp, you will find all the information you need immediately following the message. For example: (SMITH, CAT6, TOP1, MSG:58/M475) _____________| _____|__ _|___ |____ |_____________ |Name of sender CATegory TOPic Msg.# Page number| In this example, to respond to Smith's message, log on to page 475 enter the bulletin board and set CAT 6. Enter your REPly in TOPic 1. A message number that is surrounded by brackets indicates that this message is a "target" message and is referring to a "chain" of two or more messages that are following the same topic. For example: {58}. ABOUT GEnie GEnie's monthly fee is $8.95 for which gives you up to four """"""""""" hours of non-prime time access to most GEnie services, such as software downloads, bulletin boards, GE Mail, an Internet gateway, multi-player games and chat lines, are allowed without charge. GEnie's non-prime time connect rate is $3.00. To sign up for GEnie service, call (with modem) 1-800-638-8369. Upon connection type HHH. Wait for the U#= prompt. Type: XTX99014,DIGIPUB and hit RETURN. The system will then prompt you for your information. Need more information? Call GEnie's customer service line (voice) at 1-800-638-9636. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" //////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE //// / "To tell the truth, I personally learn more about the / / Apple II here on GEnie's A2, and I definitely prefer the / / courtesy and respect that we have here in A2 a whole lot / / more than the chaos and anarchy of the Internet. But, / / every day, the Internet both amazes me and amuses me. If I / / were looking for some type of arcane bit of trivia on any / / subject, I know I'd turn to Gopher or WAIS before I turned / / anywhere else. But, if I had an Apple II related question, / / I'd ask it here on GEnie's A2." / //////////////////////////////////////////////// J.KOHN //// [EOA] [FRM]////////////////////////////// FROM MY DESKTOP / ///////////////////////////////// Notes From The Editor """"""""""""""""""""" By Douglas Cuff [EDITOR.A2] >>> A MIND FOREVER FORAGING <<< """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""" The tale had a familiar theme, but it still unnerved me. Tim Rogentine was regaling the denizens of GEnie's A2 RoundTable with the story of an acquaintance planning to buy a new computer. Mr Rogentine mentioned the Apple II to this acquaintance, who responded with derisive laughter. "Do you know anything about them?" he asked. "Enough not to get one!" was the reply. "I know enough not to need to know any more" is a phrase that scares the willies out of me. It's the beginning of prejudice. Mr Rogentine's story has a happy ending, for his acquaintance was reasonable enough to allow him to demonstrate what an Apple IIgs can do, and open-minded enough to be impressed by it. Occasionally, though, you come up against someone incapable of understanding the difference between making up one's mind and closing it. One of my first lessons in keeping an open mind came from a digital watch. When I was in high school, my best friend and I both thought the digital watch was a pretty neat idea. However, my best friend preferred an LCD (liquid-crystal digital) display similar to the type now found on solar-power calculators, while I had nothing but scorn for anything but an LED (light-emitting diode) display of the sort that now graces our VCR and microwave oven. After some good-natured but heartfelt debate, we approached Mr Hicks, a teacher whose opinion we both respected, and laid the matter before him. "Which of the two do you prefer?" we asked. I was confident of a judgment in my favor, a victory. I knew I had right on my side. "Oh, a liquid-crystal display," Mr Hicks smiled at both of us. I was sure he had overlooked the ultimate advantage of the LED display. "But with LED, you can check the time in the middle of the night!" I insisted. (For younger readers: LCD watches have not always featured a night light.) "Yes, of course," Mr Hicks acknowledged. "That's why I have that sort of alarm clock. But not on my wristwatch." Before I could rally from my shock and offer a rebuttal (which ran, I believe, "Er--"), Mr Hicks distributed another of his all-friends-here smiles and closed the discussion by leaving us. I had invested too much emotional energy in my watch to abandon it on the spot; however, some years later I returned to a more traditional watch with a dial face that showed time as a kind of distance instead of a collection of numbers. It took a while, but I had learned a valuable lesson about the way people think when they are convinced they are on the side of the angels. Such people make up their minds -- and then they close them. Worse still are those who close their minds on the assumption that they have all the facts. Opinions of one's friends are not facts. One _own_ opinions are not facts. In short: opinion, no matter how widely held, is never fact. Apple II users are accustomed to those who only know enough not to want to know any more. Occasionally we even find ourselves dismissing the competition without examining it. Or perhaps we perform a grudging examination of the alternatives, paying lip-service to the idea of being open-minded, while determined to remain convinced that the Apple II is superior. "We'll give 'em a fair trial... and then we'll find 'em guilty!" It doesn't matter what your position is -- closing your mind will weaken it. My Apple IIgs can't do everything, but it does do everything I need it to, and more. This doesn't mean I refuse to recognize the utility of other computers; there are indeed tasks currently beyond the capacity of my IIgs. However, here's the nub: I don't need to do any of those things! Many years ago, when computers were just starting to become popular acquisitions, I was given sage advice: counter sales talk of what a computer can _do_ by reminding yourself what you was _need_ it to do. For some reason, people seem eager to persuade themselves that they need something they didn't know existed a minute before. Built-in animation may be impressive, but not terribly useful if you use your computer for word processing and telecommunications. Only once in my life have I need a full-featured desktop publishing program... and that was when I was working for a book publisher. The responsibility of keeping an open mind involves a lot more work than making a decision and sticking to it, come hell or high water... and of course, there are times when sticking to your decision is the Right Thing. But closing your mind isn't, not ever. Once when I was in England, I saw a poster advertising beer which simply consisted of the brand name and the slogan "I haven't tried it because I don't like it". I chuckled appreciatively. That was many years ago... when I was still wearing a digital watch. [*][*][*] One or two ancillary matters to deal with before I let you loose on this month's issue. First, we love for you to reprint GEnieLamp articles in your non-profit newsletters, but do be aware that you're required to give us credit. I read a lot of Apple II user-group newsletters and magazines, and most are scrupulous about giving credit where credit is due. Last month, though, I noted with some dismay that one editor had reproduced an article by Darrel Raines and neither mentioned its source nor printed the copyright information. Please... if you reprint us, give us credit. See the end of any issue of GEnieLamp for further information. Second, thanks to Peter J. Paul for responding to the November 1993 plea of Steven Weyhrich, Apple II historian, for a copy of _Fire in the Valley_. Thanks also to Dan Cross, who also offered a copy. -- Doug Cuff GEnie Mail: EDITOR.A2 Internet: editor.a2@genie.geis.com [EOA] [HEY]////////////////////////////// HEY MISTER POSTMAN / ///////////////////////////////// Is That A Letter For Me? """""""""""""""""""""""" By Douglas Cuff [EDITOR.A2] o BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS o A2 POT-POURRI o HOT TOPICS o WHAT'S NEW o THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE o MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT >>> BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS <<< """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" [*] CAT2, TOP3 .............. Computers of yesteryear [*] CAT5, TOP3 .............. Recommend an Apple IIgs? [*] CAT9, TOP5 .............. GS/OS disk cache setting [*] CAT10, TOP10 ............ Apple II on the Internet [*] CAT12, TOP6 ............. Best external speakers for IIgs [*] CAT17, TOP9&10 .......... lastPATCH for AppleWorks 4.01 [*] CAT20, TOP12 ............ CD-ROM formats supported [*] CAT44, TOP5 ............. At the Apple auctions >>> A2 POT-POURRI <<< """"""""""""""""""""" AREA CODE CHANGES Starting tomorrow, our area code will change from """"""""""""""""" (313) to (810). Actually, you will still be able to get through if you use (313) but you'll get a recording reminding you to use (810) the next time. By this time next year (313) will no longer work. So if you want to fax something to us, the number is (810) 774-2698. Our BBS number is (810) 774-2652. And our main voice number is (810) 774-7200. Our toll-free order line remains unchanged at (800) 777-3642. (QUALITY, CAT42, TOP1, MSG:9/M645;1) >>>>> North Carolina has added an area code, and mine has changed: """"" Eamon Adventurer's Guild 7625 Hawkhaven Dr. Clemmons, NC 27012-9408 (910)766-7490 (T.ZUCHOWSKI, CAT16, TOP1, MSG:2/M645;1) BBS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM FOR SALE The following came in over the APPLE """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" echo on Fidonet this morning. Please sit down and hold on to something before reading it :) - cut here - [Apple Users Conference #5] [303/307] From : Lance Taylor-Warren To : All Subject: Carry on a Apple II Software tradition... Date : 29 Nov 93 16:00 Have I got a deal for you... Have you ever wanted to be your own boss? Have you often thought about writing your own BBS Program? Now is your chance to do both. I have the following for sale: 1 - Apple IIgs ROM 03, RGB Monitor, Extended Keyboard (5mb RAM) 1 - Apple IIgs ROM 01, Green Screen, Regular Keyboard (1.5mb+Ram) 1 - 3.5" drive 1 - 5.25" drive 2 - 5.25" drives (w/ controller) 2 - ZipGS Accelerators (8mhz & 9mhz) 1 - Apple SCSI card1 - RAMFast SCSI card (rev c) 1 - Seagate 43mb Hard Drive 1 - Quantum 80mb Hard Drive 1 - Stereo Card for GS 1 - ProDEV DDT 16 Debugging board And the icing on the offer, all the source code and commercial distribution rights for GBBS Pro (Both ProDOS and DOS 3.3 versions) and the source code and distribution rights for LLUCE as it stands today. This means you will fully own BOTH products. I will also include EVERYTHING I have Apple II related. The systems will include everything on the hard drives. All the sources and other development stuff as well as the DPS Support BBS as it is the day of the sale. Also included is the index cards of all known registered owners of GBBS Pro. As you have by most likely figured out, I'm selling all my Apple II stuff in hopes that someone out there has the time and the motivation to finish LLUCE and make a run for the market that's out there for it. I'm tired of looking at it and would love to see someone else run with it. Our projected marketing figures for LLUCE show that is has the potential to make well over $100,000 once it's done. All that is really left to finish is the docs and the installation/configure program. Once someone has come up to speed on how things are setup, you could have a new BBS product within a month. With the rapidly declining prices of Apple II equipment it becomes an even better platform to use as a base for a BBS. Why tie up a Mac or a IBM to use as a BBS with that Apple II sitting in the corner collecting dust is just perfect for the task. So now the BIG question... How much do I want for everything listed above? Well, even tho it's worth well over $20,000. I'm willing to let it go at a fraction of that price to the right person. If you are interested, please contact me at 702-322-5533 or via the following e-mail address, Internet: lance@dps.com, Fidonet 1:213/312 or 1:213/0. Visa/MC/Discover/AMEX accepted. - Lance Taylor-Warren --- GoldED 2.42.G1125 * Origin: Net 213 NC - Internet Gateway Reno, NV (702) 322-9796 (1:213/0) - cut here - My comments? I'm not sure how he was expecting to make $100,000 off it with METAL being freeware... if it was going to make that much, why didn't he finish it? But then who knows... Dave (JUST.DAVE, CAT41, TOP9, MSG:141/M645;1) BACKDROP PATTERNS CONTEST Send us your original BackDrop patterns by """"""""""""""""""""""""" January 31, 1994 and we'll pick the best one. The winner will recieve a shiny new check for $25 (ok, it's not a lot, but this isn't brain surgery either folks ;-) AND you'll get your name and pattern published on an issue of Softdisk G-S!!! You can send your patterns to SOFTDISK.INC or you can mail them: Softdisk Publishing ATTN: Softdisk G-S 606 Common Street Shreveport LA 71101 Good Luck! (SOFTDISK.INC, CAT34, TOP15, MSG:1/M645;1) WORDPERFECT WASHES THEIR HANDS, THEN FLUSHES I received WPGS from a """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" parent of 1 of my students when they got a Mac. The WPGS came with manual and 4 disks. . .No program disk. They moved out of town. I sent in the registartion card to Utah and requested a backup copy. WP called me back and said they copied over all GS copies with Mac versions. No more copies available. Nice huh? (M.SCHOOP, CAT8, TOP8, MSG:84/M645;1) EASTER EGG IN APPLEWORKS 4 there's even an easter egg in AWKS 4.0 - go to """""""""""""""""""""""""" the very end of the main menu Help screen and press OA-A... Udo - ... just a IIGS freak - (U.HUTH, CAT42, TOP29, MSG:170/M645;1) TRIVIA DROPS TEXT MODE I would like to know how the TRIVIA board can get """""""""""""""""""""" away with kicking all Apple users off of TRIVIA? TRIVIA no longer plays in TEXT format and they do not offer front end graphic software for the Apple users IIE, IIC, or GS. They decided a couple of weeks ago to stop playing in TEXT mode. I complained in an e-mail to the Trivia feed back, and I will admit I called them Creeps for doing it but that was after I spoke with customer service and they said they could do nothing about it. The answer back to me was that they would not put text format back and that my system was obsolete and I should buy a new one. That they are not responsible for people who insist on keeping obsolete systems. WRONG THING TO SAY TO AN APPLE USER!. They even informed me I could buy inexpensive equipment from them. I think that the answer stunk and I almost dropped Geanie services. I decided to give it another month because Gene from the round table was supposed to get back with me, but I have not heard anything. Another person is now investigating, I think her name is Pat (I forgot to write it down). I really enjoyed playing trivia and had friends that played there. It really isn't fair that TRIVIA is allowed to disciminate like this. Please, the powers that be, consider putting back Text mode or giving the Apple IIE & C, C+ & GS users front end graphic software so we can fully enjoy ALL of Geanies services. PeggyTheodorakis (M.THEODORAKI, CAT3, TOP13, MSG:148/M645;1) >>>>> There are a few multi-player GEnie games that require graphic front """"" ends where none are available for the Apple II (Air Warrior and BattleTech, I think.) But this is the first I've seen of a current game that actually removed a text version for no apparent reason. Most of the games have graphic front ends, but for the most part they aren't required. I can't think of a reason why Trivia can't be played in straight text unless they've made some major changes. If you get a response explaining their reasoning, please let us know. Tony Ward [via GEM 4.21/PT 3.1] (A2.TONY, CAT3, TOP13, MSG:151/M645;1) >>>>> I hate this. """"" No, what's going on in NTN Trivia is not a "sign of things to come." We're still gung-ho on Apple II support here, and plan to be here for many years to come, and we're still at work on new products for the Apple II to make GEnie a better experience. Why the folks who run NTN Trivia are doing this is beyond me. I'm offended by the "obsolete computer" line myself. One of the things we have trouble making people understand is that on GEnie, different people run different areas. We who run the A2 RTs have nothing to do at all with the people who run NTN Trivia. What they say does not go for us, and vice-versa. I will have a word with them about their choice of language. I can't argue with them about their software choices; apparently they feel that the changes they're making to their own software makes an ASCII version undoable. I can't argue with them about that because I'm not a programmer. But I WILL speak to them about their attitude. Dean Esmay (A2.DEAN, CAT3, TOP13, MSG:158/M645;1) EASTER EGG IN QUICKIE Has anyone else found Quickie's Easter Egg? """"""""""""""""""""" I'm using v3.1 so I'm not sure if it works with earlier versions. Once you have a picture on screen (either loaded or scanned), click on the empty space in the menu bar right of the Color menu. A hidden menu! Now you can change the tone of your picture from Grey to Brown, Green, Yellow, Red, or Blue. -Ken (KEN.GAGNE, CAT40, TOP8, MSG:178/M645;1) >>>>> Congratulations, Ken! """"" As the first user to describe the Easter Egg, you get the prize - specifically, a congratulatory message from me, the author. (Note congratulatory message on first line of this post. :) I had rather hoped that people would find and enjoy this feature of Quickie 3.1, especially since I am a great fan of toning in my own darkroom projects. For many images, toning provides character and depth that is just not present in a simple gray-scale picture. Have fun! Steve (S.MCQUEEN1, CAT40, TOP8, MSG:179/M645;1) APPLEWORKS QUICK-DELETE FOR FILES Tonight I inadvertantly discovered """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" "expert" mode while in the file-delete operations. Which is to say I pressed OA-Return while a file was highlighted. I saw the hard drive light flash, suspected the worst and immediately exited to ProSel and launched the exhume utility -- which, thank Glen Bredon, salvaged a file that had several hours of work in it. I think this is a dangerous feature, and I fear that a few people will lose a few files because of it. (D.CRUTCHER, CAT42, TOP29, MSG:224/M645;1) DESKJET OR DESKWRITER Not quite the ONLY difference. The DeskWriter's """"""""""""""""""""" serial port only speaks at a high baud rate (56.6k?) meaning you need a special high-speed serial driver to use it on a IIGS. Also, the DeskWriter has AppleTalk capability built in (although you need a Mac to use this; there are no AppleTalk DeskWriter drivers for the IIGS). The DeskJet has a parallel interface (in addition to its serial interface) while the DeskWriter only has the serial/AppleTalk interface (it's one port). Finally, the DeskWriter comes with Mac drivers while the DeskJet does not (may come with Windows drivers; dunno). The breakdown - DeskJet: IIe, IIc, IIGS with appropriate interface or cable Works with GS/OS programs via Harmonie Works with 8-bit programs that print plain text or which have drivers (Publish It, AppleWorks) Serial or parallel interface Also the best choice for a PC DeskWriter: IIGS only via serial cable Works with GS/OS programs via Harmonie Does not work with 8-bit programs (or any programs which do not use the GS/OS print manager, e.g. ORCA shell, etc.) Also the best choice for Mac Where I say Harmone, you can also use Independence (similar product). (QUALITY, CAT12, TOP8, MSG:203/M645;1) PICKFONTS WORK-AROUND Pickfonts is not compatible with AppleWorks 4.0. """"""""""""""""""""" I would assume that it will be updated. In the meantime, a good workaround is to create a database with three catagories. (Font name, recno, and font code) Place the following formula in the recno field. @currecno (check the oa-f to be sure I've got it right) Then put this formula in the font code field. @join("<",[recno],"=",[font name],">") Insert enough blank records to hold your fonts. for all the fonts that reside in the superfonts standard directory, type it's name into the font name field. ex courier.12, courier.10... If the font resides elsewhere, type the full pathname. ex /q1/system/fonts/new.york.24 When the file is complete, save it as Superfonts in an easy accessble directory. Create a glossary in the word processor that lists the font name and returns the font code followed by a . There you have it. Pickfonts. You will need to have the database on your desktop when you plan to use superfonts. (W.CARVER1, CAT42, TOP29, MSG:323/M645;1) WHO KILLED THE ROM 04 IIGS? One reason Apple supported the II as long as """"""""""""""""""""""""""" they did was that there were some VERY loyal people at Apple that still believed in the II -- they just happened to be in the minority and weren't the ultimate decision makers. For example: the fabled ROM 04 GS? From what I understand it was all set to go into production and was killed at the VERY last minute by none other than Jean Louie himself. Bryan (SOFTDISK.INC, CAT5, TOP3, MSG:292/M645;1) >>>>> Forgive me, but Jean Louis had long since departed Apple when the """"" ROM 4 was killed. The principle person that killed off the ROM 4 was Bob (Petute) Puette. Tyler (A2.TYLER, CAT5, TOP3, MSG:293/M645;1) >>> HOT TOPICS <<< """""""""""""""""" QUALITY WILL NOT BUY THE APPLE II I want to lay this one to rest once and """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" for all. There are three chances of Quality (or anyone else) taking over the Apple II line: slim, fat, and none. It's not for sale. If it was, it would be priced to drive any potential purchaser out of business shortly (or so that the machines could not compete price-wise with the Macintosh, which amounts to the same thing). Apple is going to sell us THEIR technology so we can turn around and compete with them? I don't think so. We were able to get AppleWorks because it cost Claris basically nothing to give it up. (They are saving enough in tech support staff and getting enough in royalties to make it worth their while.) The fact that we are selling AppleWorks does not compete with Claris in any way; if it did, they never would have allowed it. (QUALITY, CAT5, TOP3, MSG:205/M645;1) WHILE AS FOR AN APPLE II POWERPC... Jerry - Could you comment on the """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" remarks in the latest Enhance about Quality creating a II or IIGS emulator for the PowerPC? Thanks... Joe Kohn (J.KOHN, CAT5, TOP3, MSG:206/M645;1) >>>>> We're looking into it. An Apple IIe emulator would probably be """"" pretty easy (actually, we'd likely try to get our hands on the Laser ROM code); a IIGS emulator would likely require Apple's cooperation, which I don't think we'll get. (We're still studying the technical feasibility of that one yet.) And, of course, we're testing the waters. If a lot of teachers tell us they'll buy such a thing, it would make us a lot more interested in doing it. B) I'm dubious it will come to pass. But then, I felt the same way about the AW4 deal with Claris, so I've been wrong before. B) (QUALITY, CAT5, TOP3, MSG:207/M645;1) AUCTION REPORTS I know there is supposed to be a place to put """"""""""""""" information about the auctions but I can't find it. So if this message needs to be moved, please do so. I want to let everyone who might be attending any future Apple Auctions to get the word out loud and wide NOT to keep bidding up. It makes not sense bidding up for items because then everyone pays a higher price. I got a IIgs, with a color monitor with a Superdrive (is that just a regular 3.5 drive or is it the 1.44 drive?) for $350. I thought that that was a good deal. This is the way the auction works: There is a list of items to be auctioned off and the list just keeps getting repeated throughout the day with a different number of units available each time around. Here is a list of items and their prices the third time around: Quadra 950 8 MB Ram, 400 M HD 2/ 16" RGB, extended keyboard : $ 3950 Quadra 700 4 meg ram, floppy same RGB and kb as above : $ 2400 Mac II vx 4/230 14" color monitor : $ 1300 Mac II vx 4/80 14" color monitor : $ 1000 Powerbook 170 (didn't get the price) Powerbook 165 120 hd : $ 1550 PBook 160 120 hd : $ 1350 PBook 160 80 HD : $ 1150 PBook 145 80 HD : $ 1050 PBook 145 40 HD (all Pbooks w/ 4meg ram) : $ 950 PBook duo 210 80 HD w/ floppy adapter & floppy drive : $ 1050 II si, 3M ram, 40 HD, 12" Mon and standard Kb : $ 800 Laserwriter IIF : $ 825 Laserwriter IIg : $ 1000 Mac Classic II 4 mg ram, 40 HD : $ 525 IIgs RGB Monitor w/ 1 Superdrive : $ 350 Personal Laserwriter LS : $ 375 Select 310 Laserwriter : $ 700 Color Printer : $ 400 Color Scanner : $ 800 CD Rom 150 Drive : $ 150 They had other a few other items but I was unable to get those prices. These were the prices for individual units. The prices when sold in lots of 10 or more were lower. I was going to buy the CD Rom drive but two people told me that the price was too high by about $50. Given some of the bidding I saw and the prices, I wonder if Apple or the auction company had some plants. I saw a few people who keep their cards up on a lot of items until the price got to a certain point then never bid on the item again and did not take any items. Wierd! Sorry for the long message but I wanted to let people who were planning on attending any future Apple auctions to know what the going prices were, at least in New England. (RON.ROYER, CAT2, TOP4, MSG:355/M645;1) >>>>> Here is a list of the things auctioned off in Boston and the """"" prices as the day went on and different lots were reoffered: Quadra 950, 8mb Ram, 400mb HD $4,750 $3,950 $3,850 $3,900 $3,800 $3,700 w/ 16" monitor & Ext Keyb Quadra 700, 4 mb Ram, Floppy $2,400 Drive, monitor & keyb Power Book 170, 4R, 40 HD $1,400 PB 165, 4R, 120 HD $1,550 $1,450 PB 160 4R, 120 HD $1,350 $1,350 PB 160 4R, 80 HD $1,250 PB 145 4R, 80 HD $1,050 $975 PB 145 4R, 40 HD $950 $925 PB Duo 210, 4R, 80HD, $1,050 w/ Floppy adp & drive IIsi, 3R, 40HD, 12"Mon, std Ky $800 $700 $575 $675 $700 LW II F $825 $850 $675 $700 $700 LW II G $1,000 $1,000 $1,000 $1,050 Classic II, 4R, 40HD $525 $525 $425 $500 $525 IIGS Mon, Super Drive $350 $375 $300 $300 $300 Personal LW w/ Accs Kit $375 $400 $400 $425 $400 Select 310 LW $700 $625 $650 Color Printer $400 $375 $350 $350 Color Scanner w/ accs kit $800 $800 $800 CD rom 150 ROM $250 $175 $150 $140 $130 $140 Apple Speakers (pair) $115 $110 16" RGB monitor $800 $800 $775 $775 I missed a couple of prices here than there that's why the blanks. The kidneys only last so long. Also the back in those fold up chairs. My feeling was about the best price you were going to get was wholesale. There was quite a few dealers there and if the prices were to low they would keep bidding because it was a real good buy and where trying to get the merchandise for there business. Once the price was no long attractive the buyers would stop buying and the general public took over. There was around 4,000 bidders there. A good example of this was the MAC Classic at $425. Normally with the price was in the $500 range and a lot of different people bought them at this price. But the classic was bid on right after a comment from the Ross-Davis people that no one was bidding up prices and they didn't care what the prices were. This was in a direct response to a flyer passed around saying Ros-Davis was trying to artificially inflate the prices either in their own interests or Apple's interest. (I don't feel that was happening) The bid on the Classic stopped at $425 and everyone was all set to get a great price, but low and behold when the auctioneer asked the high bidder how many machines he wanted the bidder replied "all of them". No doubt a buyer who also knew a good price. I think the individual buyer some times got caught up in the heat of the auction and where not using there head. A lot of the time there were hundreds of the items being bid and the price was bid to high by some one and there ended up only be a few items sold and the rest ended up being sold in large lots. Also people had there minds set on a particular product and paid the price. I sat next to a guy who wanted a Quadra but he had gotten a quote from a local dealer several hundred dollars less than what the machines went for. Probably on the best bargains were the GS's. It was a Rom 3 machine with keyboard, mouse, monitor AND they were giving you a Super drive for the 3.5" drive (no 5 1/4). If I had known they were giving the super drive I would have bought a couple more than the one I did buy. Parts alone are worth a couple hundred dollars more than that. Live and learn. All in all it was an interesting experience. I bought another GS, a Mac IIvx and a cd rom player. I was happy with what I paid and got, just wish I had bought a couple more GS's. I'd have my own network in the house. Now I have to figure out how to network the ones I have. (___) | Buzz \/\/. _|_ enjoy vino (W.WALLING1, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:26/M645;1) >>>>> I hit the auction in Herndon today. It never fails to amaze me """"" what a**holes people are. People were bidding against each other to get one machine that were in lots of 100+, even when they knew the high bidder wouldn't take them all. The prices were outrageous! Apple Computer made a bundle. They should probably think about getting rid of their dealer network and just hold about 6 auctions a year. :) Some of the audience had flyers from local sellers. The prices in the flyers were often considerably less then what the stuff went for at the auction. They did sell over 400 IIGS's at the auction though. That puts more out there for our developers to reach!! I got one on the next to last lot (5th) for $370. Not bad for a new ROM 3 with RGB monitor and SuperDrive. I got my GS on the 5th lot and didn't wait to see what the last lot went for. Can you believe that people were buying GS's for $575 and $550 ?? They sold a bunch at that price too! I wonder how many of them went home and were suprised that a GS isn't a model of Macintosh. :) \\ ,;\\,, "It's better to be a big fish in a small pond \\\;;::::::::::o:. than a small fish in the ocean" /^^"""//////::::::< -Rod (J.NICOLETTE1, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:37/M645;1) >>>>> I bought 3 ROM 3 IIGSs with RGB and SuperDrives and two CD-150s. I """"" bought the IIGS's for $400.00 and the CD-150s for $140.00. I had a blast. Tony from AllTech was there. He was the only person there I had seen before. Tony was buying up the large lots of IIGSs. __ / \ \__/ 3 GS.Ozoneman - IIGS Infinitum! (GS.OZONEMAN, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:42/M645;1) >>>>> Now THAT is really encouraging! Maybe we'll see his IIgs Portables """"" after all! (Sign me up, Tony!) | -(+)- | | ...Will (W.NELKEN1, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:46/M645;1) >>>>> Was Tony Diaz the guy sitting towards the back of the room? Kind """"" of ethnic looking and sort of nervous. At one point did he buy a balance of a GS lot that included 18? We (Apple II users) should have met at one place in the auction room. One of us could have brought a sign that said something like "Apple II Users Meet Here!" or something. That would have been cool. (J.NICOLETTE1, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:45/M645;1) >>>>> Yes, that was him. I was setting right across from him with my """"" wife. I wish we Apple II users had meet in one place. If not to do anything but meet the people we talk to online everyday. 8-) He told me that he had been to all three of the Ross-Dove Actions, so that most likely was him. When I talked to him he told me he had 800 IIGSs in a warehouse back home. 8-) His portable was back in his hotel room. He offered to let me come by and see it, but I had to get back on the road after the auction for the 6 hour drive back home. (GS.OZONEMAN, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:50/M645;1) AUCTIONS END The party's over. There were only three Apple auctions. """""""""""" I called Ross-Dove to ask about what will happen to whatever's left, and left a message, but they didn't return my call (I'm not too surprised). I suppose: 1) Apple will decide to hold another auction sometime in the future 2) Apple will take a steam roller and roll over whatever's left 3) Apple might take back whatever's left to keep a small inventory Someone better check the dumpsters in Herndon, VA, site of the last auction. :( __!__ | Terrell Smith | tsmith@ivcfnsc.fullfeed.com (T.SMITH59, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:55/M645;1) >>>>> No WAY. They'll probably wind up with Sun Remarketing. """"" (GARY.UTTER, CAT44, TOP5, MSG:57/M645;1) LASTPATCH CONTROVERSY I talked with John Link today to inquire about the """"""""""""""""""""" lastPATCH arrangements. He explained that initially he was only going to release it on his own SuperStuff bulletin board. Then, persuaded by his good friendship with John Connelly, he conceded to letting John release it in his NAUG area on AOL, and granted NAUG the rights to duplicate the disk for their members. So this did not start off as an anti-GEnie move at all, and was only released to AOL and NAUG after some hefty negotiations with a good friend. lastPATCH is a freeware gift from John to the Apple II community in appreciation for the interest and support of the past. It represents about forty hours of work and is thoroughly copyrighted. lastPATCH is an AppleWorks 4.0-specific patch program offering the following options: 1. No return after pressing the number of the menu selection (hot keys). 2. Defeat automatic form feed in Apple-H screen dumps. 3. Overstrike cursor instead of insert at startup. 4. Change error tone on any Apple II. 5. Change "Do you really (etc)" to "Really?" 6. Change "Type entry (etc)" to "Enter any d*** thing you want". 7. Change "Preloading AppleWorks" message to anything you want. 8. Move Apple-Q Menu to upper right corner. 9. MouseText marks instead of text arrows in all menus. 10. Change "Carefully saving" message to anything you want. 11. Change "Path" to MouseText. 12. Change "Subdirectory" to MouseText. 13. Change "Disk" to MouseText. 14. Change "Disk volume" to MouseText. 15. Change "More" to MouseText down arrows. 16. Reverse all "No/Yes" queries to "Yes/No". 17. Change character to MouseText bent arrow. 18. Customize Page Break lines as MouseText. John wants everyone to know that the program is available for a phone call to the SuperStuff bulletin board at 1-616-381-1726. I'm not certain yet if it is now available on the following boards, but it is expected to be: John Connelly's BBS (1-313-421-9144) NAUG's BBS (1-615-359-8238) Quality Computers' BBS (1-313-774-2652) It is about a 3-minute download. At the right hour, that call should cost less than mailing a disk for a copy from a friend. | -(+)- | | ...Will (W.NELKEN1, CAT17, TOP10, MSG:46/M645;1) >>>>> > Has anyone flamed-out long enough to call John Link and ask him """"" > to reconsider? I wrote him a letter, but not to ask him to reconsider or to ask him why. Whether his program is on GEnie or not is none of my business or concern. I did ask about some personal business, then lamented the lack of DeskJet documentation on the AppleWorks 4.0 disk. In case anyone has been on another planet, the reason we now have DeskJet Drivers built in to AppleWorks 4.0 is thanks to John Link. The reason we don't know how to use them is because nobody thought to include documentation other than the Ctrl-A and other commands added by Randy. (B.CADIEUX, CAT17, TOP9, MSG:194/M645;1) DISCPASSAGE CD-ROM QUERIES > do the DiscPassage format CD ROMs work the """""""""""""""""""""""""" > same on a GS with discQuest as they do on > whatever platform they were "designed for"? Yes, and in some cases, better (the PC version of the software really bites). > And will the package work with the Apple HS SCSI card, or do I need a > RAMFast? Yes. Only an Apple CD-ROM drive will work with the HS SCSI card, but that onfiguration is fully supported by discQuest. Jawaid (PROCYON.INC, CAT20, TOP12, MSG:83/M645;1) APPLEWORKS 4.01 UPDATES GOOF Apparently, in the fray of stuffing """""""""""""""""""""""""""" all of those little white mailers, we ran out of disks and one of the assembly line folks ran back to the duplicator for a new set of disks. Sadly, they must have picked up a box slated for re-duplication that contained v. 4.0 instead of the newly duplicated 4.01 disks. We think this only affects a small number of the updates sent out. It would help us out a lot if any of you could report the version number of AppleWorks that you get when you get this update. It comes in a small white mailer, and it should arrive at your doors anytime from today till mid next week. Needless to say, we extend our apologies for the mixup. (W.ARCHER2, CAT42, TOP29, MSG:265/M645;1) OUTLINER FOR AW4 DELAYED I had hoped to finish Outliner by Christmas, but """""""""""""""""""""""" it's becoming obvious that it won't be done until 1994 (maybe not started until then). AfterWork is getting close, but I haven't been able to work on it for a few days. I hope to get back to it tomorrow, and I expect we'll be shipping before Christmas. (BRANDT, CAT42, TOP29, MSG:313/M645;1) RECORDING MACROS IN AW4 Three or so people have mentioned limited """"""""""""""""""""""" recording. As Steve pointed out, that's because you're using the default set, which only has a handful of bytes free, thanks to Steve packing it full of features. You can remove the macros you don't need and then recompile and resave the default to leave free space, or if you just want easy playback of temporary keys, use macro 0. The reason you can't use OA-X to replace an existing macro is because of the way commands like "next", "rpt" and "()x" work. This change was made in AW 3 with Ultra 4 to allow maximum speed and to eliminate the old problems with some "bad" numbers causing problems inside of loops. You can record over any temporary recorded macros, but macros which were compiled and are part of the set can't be replaced by OA-X. (BRANDT, CAT42, TOP29, MSG:335/M645;1) >>> WHAT'S NEW <<< """""""""""""""""" SPECTRUM SHIPS! Spectrum is a new graphics-based telecommunications """"""""""""""" program written specifically for the Apple IIgs. It uses the standard Apple IIgs "desktop interface" so it's easy to learn and use. And you don't need to sacrifice speed or features. Spectrum supports baud rates from 50 to 57,600 and includes many file transfer protocols (including Zmodem and CompuServe B+, both of which support auto- receiving and auto-resuming interrupted file transfers). A powerful, yet easy to use, scripting language lets Spectrum be tailored specifically for individual use. Scripts can do almost anything, ranging from emulating a bulletin board to the daily automatic logging, sending and retrieving of mail. A rich text editor is built-in for convenience (supports text, TeachText, and AppleWorks Classic file formats). Spectrum requires System 6.0 (or later) and is compatible with The Manager v1.1 (not available yet). The retail price of Spectrum is $129.95. Special Introductory Offer Through January 31, 1994 Spectrum is available '''''''''''''''''''''''''' at the VERY special introductory price of only $50 plus $3.50 shipping and handling. To order call 904-575-0566, M-F, 9-5 ET, or just submit your order via e-mail (provide your name, address, phone number, and Visa/Mastercard/Discover number with expiration date). Thanks, --Dave (SEVENHILLS, CAT43, TOP15, MSGS:1&2/M645;1) <<<<< ARRRRGGG! Well, after creating the master Spectrum disks we did a """"" test Install to make sure the Installer scripts were working right. Sure enough they did and SP ran on our system. HOWEVER, our system already had a required file installed...Spectrum REQUIRES the "Hierarchic" INIT, but this file was overlooked in our installation scripts, and it is not included on either Spectrum disk. SO, unless you already have Hierarchic (from owning Kangaroo, TransProg, The Manager, or Super Menu Pack) this means you will not be able to run Spectrum until you get Hierarchic. :( I will upload a copy of Hierarchic into the A2 libraries and post the file number when I do. In the meantime you can download Hierarchic (along with some extra tech info) from the A2Pro library: Type: M530;3 (A2Pro software library) Then select option 6 (download a file) Then specify file number 3552 I really apologize for this major oversight. Thanks, --Dave P.S. All disks shipped on 12/17/93 or later have this problem corrected. (SEVENHILLS, CAT43, TOP15, MSG:10/M645;1) DANGEROUS BUG CONFIRMED IN HARDPRESSED There have been a few (two or """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" three) cases where somebody has reported that HardPressed + LZSS has flat-out trashed their files. I've gone around in circles trying to duplicate it, but wasn't able to. Well, finally somebody determined that if you use a profile that compresses everything with the unlikely combination of differential + LZSS + adaptive Huffman (supposedly great for MODs), compressing and uncompressing the same file a couple of times will leave you with a hosed file. Guess what, I made it happen. :-( The fix required is a replacement LZSS module, which I will upload as soon as I verify that I haven't introduced any new problems. I'll be sending a copy of it immediately to everybody who has had problems with it before (assuming I still have their e-mail addresses), so they can verify that the problems are gone. In the mean time, turn "verify" on. It WILL catch any problems with LZSS trashing a file. The nature of the bug is such that, if you haven't seen any problems before now, you probably won't, but there's no telling whether adding a new INIT to the system will shift things around enough. The bug has been in there since HP v1.0, and VERY few people have reported problems. I'm glad we finally got this one... I've been worried about these mysterious file trashings. - Andy (FADDEN, CAT37, TOP3, MSG:151/M645;1) >>> THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE <<< """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" NO GENIE MASTER FOR APPLEWORKS 4? There is a legal holdup right now, so I """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" can't say when, if ever, we'll be releasing an update to GEM to work with Appleworks 4. There's not much more I can say about it at the moment. Dean Esmay (A2.DEAN, CAT29, TOP3, MSG:74/M645;1) NEW COPILOT SCRIPTS BEGIN _SERIOUS_ BETA Okay, it's time for plan B. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" The ProTerm scripts, while very CLOSE to being ready, just won't be in shape for a 12/22 release. The modified Installer (to handle Spectrum) is ready, but has not had ANY Beta testing, which makes it a very iffy proposition to haul off and attempt to produce a new version of CoPilot based on it by 12/22. SO, here is what we are going to do. On 12/22 I will upload the new scripts for TIC and Spectrum, complete with all files needed to run Spectrum/CoPilot as an OPEN BETA. That means that we have already run a Beta cycle, and things look pretty good, but we are going to use y'all for guinea pigs for a couple of weeks. The new PT scripts will also go up, with installation instructions, as Open Beta, as soon as they are ready. (Very soon, but NOT on 12/22.) After those of you who choose to download them and use them for a couple of weeks, and after we have thoroughly tested the other stuff we need to include, we will THEN put together a new release of CoPilot. This will allow us to put out a better product in the long run. Those of you who don't HAVE CoPilot should hold off for a few weeks longer and download the new version when we have it all complete. (That is a VERY strong suggestion...) Those of you who are getting Spectrum, and want to use it with CoPilot, will need to download CoPilot and install it for use with TIC, then download the new Spectrum scripts and install them over the files you just installed. I'll give instructions here for anyone who needs thme. Gary R. Utter (GARY.UTTER, CAT29, TOP13, MSG:84/M645;1) HARDWARE MYSTERY UNDER WRAPS Joachim Lange (J.Lange7) of SHH Systeme has """""""""""""""""""""""""""" contacted me to handle doing some beta testing of a new peripheral for the Apple //e and //GS that is in the final phases of development. I now know exactly what this product is, and what hardware it supports (and is capable of supporting). There isn't (to my knowledge) any product currently available for the Apple // series that does what this card does, or even comes close to it. I believe that it will be of great use to many Apple //e and //GS users (myself included) once it has passed some further real world testing and has had some further development work done on the associated driver code (which exists but needs some minor work done to fully support the capabilities of the hardware). I expect to have a beta revision of this hardware in my hands soon, along with the source code for the drivers. When this "vaporware" is firmly in my hands (err... in my //GS :), I'll post a message confirming it's arrival. -Harold (using the new CoP/TIC scripts :) (H.HISLOP, CAT2, TOP4, MSG:118/M645;1) >>>>> > BTW, my guess is a device to use ISA cards in a GS. I've been """"" > told Derek Taubert is working on one, too. Derek would like to, but I have him quite busy working on something else that will make FAR more money :-) Jawaid (PROCYON.INC, CAT13, TOP23, MSG:26/M645;1) >>>>> Joachim gave a few hints in this topic a few messages back - was """"" last week if I remember correctly. He said: what can be connected to this gizmo is usually cheap(er) and you can connect more than one. Udo - ... just a IIGS freak - (U.HUTH, CAT13, TOP23, MSG:57/M645;1) >>>>> The clues thus far, """"" > what can be connected to this gizmo is usually cheap(er) and you > can connect more than one. > There isn't (to my knowledge) any product currently available for > the Apple // series that does what this card does, or even comes > close to it. > development work done on the associated driver code (which exists > but needs some minor work done to fully support the capabilities of > the hardware). I Usaully cheaper; existing driver code. The only thing I can come up with is a card that allows you to use 1.2 and 1.4 drives. They are the only periphral that is cheaper and we already have 5.25 and 3.5 drivers. (J.FENSKE2, CAT13, TOP23, MSG:64/M645;1) WAITING SIGNATURE UPGRADE AND Q-FAX We'd hoped to have some Signature """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" upgrade or other by now, but D. Proni (the program's author) had his hands more than full with his own company, Econ. If we can get Q Fax finished up, maybe then we can start looking at some new features for Signature. B) (QUALITY, CAT42, TOP2, MSG:76/M645;1) MULTI-LINE BBS FOR THE IIGS? > I think that most sysop's whould jump on """""""""""""""""""""""""""" > that wagon, if the option for a multiline > BBS's systems got serius. The existing GS hardware permits at least a 3-node BBS: two incoming data lines and one local login. When my GS was at 8 MHz, it handled a simultaneous console login and dialup login at 2400 bps very easily. I doubt that a second 2400 dialup would affect performance noticeably. The GNO serial drivers are quite efficient, so I would be interested in seeing how fast I push both serial ports at the same time, while logged in myself. (B.TAO, CAT13, TOP23, MSG:38/M645;1) >>>>> One of the reasons Andrew (Roughan) and myself wrote Eclipse """"" (BBS package with language), was to everntually get a multi-line BBS running, on ONE machine. I believe it is possible, although in those days the line speeds were slow enough to alow multi-threading etc. without the user noticing any slow downs. I don't have GNO, so I don't know how it performs, but a custom threader... If anyone is interested, drop me some mail. We may just continue from where we left off. Regards, Richard (RICHARD.B, CAT13, TOP23, MSG:61/M645;1) WILD RUMOR DEPARTMENT You know, I heard someone say that Apple Inc. has """"""""""""""""""""" just came out with another new computer. But this one is different. It's a 486 clone??? If this is true, then their either desperate for $$$ or they don't have much faith in the Macs! Tim Rogentine (T.ROGENTINE1, CAT5, TOP3, MSG:245/M645;1) IIGS STEREO GIZMO I'm wondering... """"""""""""""""" How many people here would be intrested in an inexpensive (under $30.00 + shipping) gizmo that would provide two (stereo) "line level" outputs from the GS? This would require an external amplifier and speakers (or cables to your stereo system) to complete the setup. Absolutely no adjustments, simply plug it onto the Molex connector (next to the Ensoniqs chip) and hook up the cables. If only so-so intrested, say so here, if _really_ intrested, and willing to commit to a purchase, say so in e-mail. If enough people commit to purchase, I'll start making them. (NO up-front money is being asked for!) If a "poor mans digitizer" is also desired, I can add that to the design fairly easily, guestimate another $5.00. (you supply a mike, or other audio source) -Harold (Running the NEW CoP/TIC scripts) (being released RSN :) (H.HISLOP, CAT12, TOP26, MSG:26/M645;1) $200 REWARD FOR PRINT SHOP/HP UTILITY Regarding the offer of a reward for """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" a Print Shop driver, utility, program or whatever that will allow printing of Print Shop generated letterheads, greeting cards, signs, etc to Hewlett-Packard brand printers... The reward has been doubled, and it now stands at $200! Softdisk Publishing has agreed to match the $100 reward offered by Shareware Solutions II. I'm sure Softdisk will post some type of offical press release in their category, and print their offer in an upcoming issue of Softdisk. In any case, Shareware Solutions II would like to offer a great big thank you to Softdisk Publishing (THANK YOU Lee, Bryan and Dean) for your additional and continued support! Joe Kohn (J.KOHN, CAT28, TOP4, MSG:109/M645;1) >>>>> How about really sweeting the pot? I will contribute $20.00 bucks """"" to the reward. I am sure that there are others out there willing to put up $20.00 for such a desparately needed "shareware solution." How about it folks. Maybe if we have a big enough reward, it will get done a lot quicker! Pax! -=-Plato-=- (A.HUTCHINSON, CAT28, TOP4, MSG:114/M645;1) >>> MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT <<< """"""""""""""""""""""""" Category 28, Topic 4 Message 365 Sat Dec 04, 1993 L.DEVRIES [Lloyd] at 08:29 EST I've suggested this to Quality Computers and I'll suggest it here: I think we're all miss the bulk of current Apple II users.....teachers. I don't think most subscribe to on-line services or Apple magazines and newsletters. I don't think they know the rest of us exist, or that there is any place to buy anything for the Apple II's any more. Every classroom in my sons' elementary school has a IIe; none of their teachers yet has known where she can get software. So, if I were promoting an Apple II publication or service, I'd advertise and publicize in teachers' publications. There are two national unions (the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers), and I'm sure each has its own publication for its members. Most stations have a state union (a branch of NEA, probably), and each probably has ITS own publication. Then there are the local newsletters (where I grew up, it was the "Ossining Teachers Association.") And of course professional journals. What this means is that an advertiser like Joe (or QC or anyone else) could start with some of the smaller, cheaper publications and build up to the bigger ones. Publication advertising is usually less expensive than direct mail. <<>> [*][*][*] While on GEnie, do you spend most of your time downloading files? If so, you may be missing out some excellent information in the Bulletin Board area. The messages listed above only scratch the surface of what's available and waiting for you in the bulletin board area. If you are serious about your Apple II, the GEnieLamp staff strongly urge you to give the bulletin board area a try. There are literally thousands of messages posted from people like you from all over the world. [EOA] [HUM]////////////////////////////// HUMOR ONLINE / ///////////////////////////////// Apple Pie """"""""" By Steven Weyhrich [S.WEYHRICH] (profuse apologies to Don McLean) A long, long time ago, I can still remember how those programs Used to make me smile. And I knew if I had my chance, That I could make those users dance And maybe they'd be happy for a while. November breezes made me shiver With every upload I'd deliver Bad news on the desktop I couldn't make the text stop. I can't remember if I cried When I read about our faltered pride But something touched me deep inside The day the IIe died. So, bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank Mountain Dew and sighed, Typin' "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." Do you know your Apple's core? Do you have faith in Woz's lore If the Red Book tells you so? Do you believe in ROR and ROL Can BASIC save your mortal soul And can you tell me why Pascal runs so slow? Well, I know you love that Lisa hack 'Cause I saw you mousin' in the back Well, MacWrite was big news But AppleWorks got great reviews, oooh I was a twenty-something computer fan With a loaned assembler and some program plans But I knew I'd be just an "also-ran" The day the IIe died. I started singin' Bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank Cola Jolt and sighed, Typin' "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." Now for twelve years we've been on our own The software comes on my telephone But that's not how it used to be When ol' Steve Jobs planned a brand new box With designs he borrowed from Xerox And the cash, well it came from you and me Oh, and while our Woz was looking down Steve Jobs stole his designer's crown The /// plan was adjourned No money was returned And while Wagner wrote "Assembly Lines" We liked our BASIC programs fine And most thought ProDOS was devine The day the IIe died. We were singin' Bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank Dr. Pepper and sighed, Typin' "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." HUFFIN, PUFFIN, move files with MUFFIN Single drive, lots of disks I'm stuffin' Eight piles high, and fadin' fast... With Macs out landing in the grass The Pirates tried for a forward pass Moving IIe to the sidelines, in a cast Now, the IIc Fair was sweet perfume And "Forever!" was our marching tune We all got up to dance Oh, but we never got the chance 'Cause the Mac-heads tried to take the field Our Apple II's refused to yield Do you recall what was revealed The day the IIe died? We started singin' Bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank Diet Pepsi and sighed, Typin' "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." And there we were all in one place An online conference lost in space With no bucks left to start again So come on, Tom be nimble, Tom be quick Uncle-DOS made all our Apples tick 'Cause Merlin is the hacker's only friend Oh, and as I watched him on the stage My hands were clenched in fists of rage No one that I could tell Could break that Sculley's spell And as the flames climbed high into the night To light the sacrificial rite I saw Sculley laughing with delight The day the IIe died He was singin' Bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank lemon tea and sighed, Typin' "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." I met a girl who sang of Blues And I asked her for some Apple news But she just smiled and turned away I went to the computer store Where I'd seen the Apple years before But the man there said the IIe couldn't play And in the schools the children screamed The teachers cried and the hackers dreamed But not a word was spoken The disk drives all were broken And the news mags that I'd liked the most Softalk, inCider -- were all toast They'd grabbed the last train for the coast The day the IIe died And they were singin' Bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank Snapple soda and cried, Saying, "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." They were singin' Bye, bye to my Apple II pie Hooked my RamFAST to the SCSI But the SCSI was fried And hackin' boys drank Snapple soda and cried, Saying, "This'll be the day that I die. This'll be the day that I die." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (c) Copyright 1993 by Steven Weyhrich [EOA] [REF]////////////////////////////// REFLECTIONS / ///////////////////////////////// Thinking About Online Communications """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" By Phil Shapiro [P.SHAPIRO1] >>> SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT TELECOM TRAINING CENTERS <<< """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Our society values learning enough that we spend 200 billion dollars each year on our public school system. Likewise, in the interest of promoting learning, we subsidize a large and robust public library system. As we walk through the portals of the information age, thoughtful people have been spending time thinking about the role that government and industry can play in helping bring more of our nation's population online. What types of social institutions can we construct that can help people learn how to use communications software? Learn how to use bulletin boards? Learn how to use the national information services? And learn how to use the Internet? Currently, just a small fraction of the nation's population is online. This fact is drive home by considering that fewer than 10 percent of all home computers are connected to a modem. Furthermore, market studies have shown that the penetration of personal computers in the home is approximately 35 percent of the nation's households. Taking one tenth of 35 percent yields a paltry 3.5 percent. The bare truth is that the vast majority of the nation's population is not yet online. It behooves the nation as a whole to work vigorously to train our fellow citizens in basic telecommunications skills. The more people that can be reached online, the more each one of us can benefit from communicating with them. I can recall distinctly my own first faltering forays into the online world. A leader in my local user group, Ken DeVito, spoke in an animated voice about connecting up his computer to the online networks. This kind fellow generously offered to take phone calls at his house to help people get connected up themselves. After buying a modem and communications software, I hesitantly called Ken at his home. Having heard that telecommunications can be a complicated subject I went out of my way making sure I had my modem and communications software all set up correctly. Cautiously, timidly, I made my first phone call. Lo and behold, the word CONNECT bounced up onto my screen. I imagine that most of us who are already online had similar help and encouragement from friends and colleagues the first few times we went online. That type of informal learning was fine in the 1980s when online communications was largely the province of computer hobbyists. But as we plunge headlong into the information age, the time is long overdue for our society to set up more formal channels for teaching online communications skills. We cannot continue to rely on the goodwill of the Ken DeVitos of the world to help everyone get connected. What existing social institutions are best suited to take up this task? Schools, for sure, can help train our younger population. User groups, certainly, can help give online demonstrations and tutorials at their meetings. But neither schools nor user groups are equipped to handle the huge numbers of people we need to train. The most suitable social institution to help train our nation's populace is public libraries. Public libraries already have a mandate to promote the dissemination of knowledge and information. Calling upon our libraries to help train our nation in online skills makes even more sense when you consider the great overlap between basic telecommunications skills and basic research skills. The skills of searching and capturing information from an online database is closely parallel to the skills of searching and capturing information from a CD-ROM database. While public libraries serve as the perfect venue for training sessions in online communications skills, no one for a moment would think that libraries have the funds to initiate such services on their own. What is obviously needed is a partnership between the private and public sectors to help bring telecommunications skills to the masses. Phone companies, naturally, can play an important role in giving reduced rates for the installation of new phone lines in libraries. All that would be needed would be about eight to ten new phone lines for each library. Computer manufacturers should obviously step forward to make donations of computer hardware for telecom training purposes. These donated computers need not be an onerous expense since low-end computer systems work perfectly fine for telecommunications purposes. Modem manufacturers, obviously, have a social duty to make their immensely useful devices available for use at library training centers. Here again, the low-end slower modems serve eminently well for training purposes. It goes without saying that the national information services should step forward to donate accounts that could be used in training centers. Many of the national information services have probably already given thought to how they could help support publicly funded telecom training centers. Larger software publishers could step in to provide communications software and general financial support for the training centers. Mitch Kapor, Steve Wozniak, and other luminaries in the computer world have already taken bold steps to promote social causes with the Electronic Freedom Foundation. The participation and support of these luminaries would go far in making the training centers successful social institutions. Finally, the public sector can assist by providing tax incentives to the phone companies, computer companies, modem manufacturers, national information services, and software companies that donate in-kind goods or services to the telecom training center. The public sector could also help with the issuance of "Online Citizen" certificates for those persons who show mastery of basic telecommunications skills. Few North Americans are aware that the public library systems in the United States and Canada are held up as model systems in other nations around the world. Early in our two country's histories the people of our nations gave strong support to funding and promoting schools and libraries. For the good of our nations, we need to take the next step to help bring more of our citizens online. The time for a public/private telecommunications skills initiative is long overdue. For the good of our nations, we need to create social institutions that can take over the supportive role of those who helped get the first 3.5 percent of us online. After we're able to get the first 10 percent online, the momentum will be strong enough that we can pull another 50 percent online before the turn of the century. And with 60 percent of the population online by the year 2000, our countries will then be well positioned to move forward with the exciting possibilities of the information age. -Phil Shapiro [*][*][*] The author takes a keen interest in the social dimensions of communications technology. He can be reached on GEnie at P.SHAPIRO1; on Internet at: p.shapiro1.genie.geis.com; on America Online at: pshapiro [EOA] [BEG]////////////////////////////// BEGINNER'S CORNER / ///////////////////////////////// Polishing Green Apples """""""""""""""""""""" By Steve Weyhrich [S.WEYHRICH] >>> HOOKED ON CLASSICS (Part 3) <<< """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STILL MORE CONTROL PANEL BASICS Yes, we are STILL slogging our way """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""" through the IIgs CDA Control Panel. This month, as you look at ways to lose that holiday weight, pay those holiday bills, and shovel that holiday snow, why not take a break and join me as we learn about "Options" (ROM 01), or "Keyboard"/"Mouse" (ROM 03). Scrape the ice off your monitor, and turn on that heater (this time of year it would probably be NICE to have a Pentium-based computer; they generate a LOT of heat... :-) ) KEYBOARD/OPTIONS Here is another difference between the ROM 01 and ROM 03 """""""""""""""" versions of the Apple IIgs. At this point in the CDA Control Panel, the ROM 01 version is called "Options", and the ROM 03 version is called "Keyboard". They look something like this when you select them: (ROM 01) (ROM 03) Control Panel Control Panel Options Keyboard ~ Display Language: U.S.A. ~ Display Language: U.S.A. ~ Keyboard Layout: U.S.A. ~ Keyboard Layout: U.S.A. ~ Keyboard Buffering: No ~ Keyboard Buffering: No ~ Repeat Speed: |------*--------| ~ Repeat Speed: |------*--------| ~ Repeat Delay: |-------*-------| ~ Repeat Delay: |-------*-------| ~ Double Click: |-------*-------| ~ Cursor Flash: |-------*-------| ~ Cursor Flash: |-------*-------| -Advanced Features- -Advanced Features- Shift Caps/Lowercase: No Shift Caps/Lowercase: No Fast Space/Delete Keys: No Fast Space/Delete Keys: No Dual Speed Keys: Normal Dual Speed Keys: Normal High Speed Mouse: No Select <- -> V ^ Cancel: Esc Save <-| (The "Double Click" and "High Speed Mouse" entries for the ROM 01 version will be discussed below.) Display Language/Keyboard Layout The intent of the top two entries, '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Display Language and Keyboard Layout, was to simplify the manufacture and use of the IIgs for foreign countries. Older models of the Apple II would require a different character generator chip for each country where it was sold, to account for local differences in characters (for example, in Great Britain the character produced with a Shift-3 was the British stylized "L", for "pound", whereas here in the U.S. Shift-3 produces an octothorpe, which looks like the tic-tac-toe board). Manufacturing and stocking all these different ROM chips increased the cost of producing the computer. To have it built into the IIgs, selectable through this Control Panel, simplified things considerably. A separate keyboard is still necessary to be consistent with regional differences around the world, and the Keyboard Layout needs to be adjusted to match the type of keyboard that has been connected. In any case, the modular design of the IIgs still makes that easier than on previous models of the Apple II. If you make changes in the Display Language you will see some unusual characters substituted for characters like "{", "\", and so on. For users in the U.S. this would be primarily a curiosity; however, if you are developing software that might be used by IIgs owners in other parts of the world, you should change the Display settings to ensure that you are not using some characters that will not show properly with other language layouts. (AppleWorks, for instance, may not show proper screen characters with certain features when other Display Languages are selected). One of the other uses of the Keyboard Layout would be to change from the standard (also called "Sholes" or "QWERTY") keyboard to the Dvorak system. This takes the arrangement of the letters on the keyboard and moves them into something that can be much faster to use--once you become accustomed to it. All of the most frequently used characters in English are placed in the home row (where it currently holds "ASDFGH", etc.). If you make this change and don't change the keycaps on the keyboard, you will find that typing a "D" causes an "E" to appear on the screen. I actually changed my Apple IIc keyboard layout years ago (via the "Keyboard" switch in the upper left corner) to the Dvorak layout, and used a typing program called MasterType to teach myself to use it. And I do admit that my typing began to get faster and a little more accurate. However, using a Dvorak keyboard is like being left-handed in a right-handed world. If the ONLY keyboard you are ever going to use is YOUR keyboard, you'll have no problems, once you get used to Dvorak. But since there was a Dvorak keyboard at home, and a QWERTY keyboard at work, my brain became too confused to keep making the switches, and so I went back to the old standard. On the IIc it was not TOO much trouble to pop the caps off of all the keys and rearrange them into the Dvorak layout. However, I've never tried this on my IIgs, and do not know how difficult it would be. If you want to make this change, just be careful not to FORCE anything as you try to remove the keycaps. If you break something, you'll probably have to pay SOMEONE to have it repaired (or replaced). Keyboard Buffering Keyboard buffering allows the user to continue typing '''''''''''''''''' while the computer is busy doing something else, and will save up the keystrokes until the program running is again ready to accept them. I have not personally seen that this works very well in the programs that I regularly use. IBM-type computers seem to buffer up nearly EVERY keystroke that is entered, regardless of what else the system is doing. If you know ahead of time which type of keystrokes will be needed to carry out a certain function, this can be a time saving feature. However, the IIgs buffer doesn't seem to be designed the same way, and you will just have to try it out yourself to see if having this turned on helps out in YOUR situation. Repeat Speed/Repeat Delay Repeat Speed and Repeat Delay refer to the ''''''''''''''''''''''''' auto-repeat of keys pressed on the keyboard. On the Apple II Plus, a separate key was included on the keyboard to allow a key that was held down to repeat. On the IIe and IIc, an AUTOMATIC repeat is built-in; if you press the "A" key and hold it down, it eventually begins to repeat and continues to do so until the key is released. The IIgs does the same thing, but lets you modify it to suit your style. The Repeat Speed is a relative measure of how fast the repeated keypresses are generated, and the Repeat Delay refers to how long a wait there is until a pressed key begins to repeat. If you are a heavy-fingered typist and have the Repeat Delay turned down too low, you may find some accidental repeeeeeeeeetition of some keypresses. If you don't like the default settings for these options, play with them until you find something more suitable. Cursor Flash This should be self-explanatory. If that pulsating cursor '''''''''''' is not at a speed that seems comfortable for you, use this to make it faster or slower. Shift Caps/Lowercase The various advanced features in this next section '''''''''''''''''''' of the Control Panel are primarily for those who have become very accustomed to the feel of the keyboard, and want to work a bit faster. Shift Caps/Lowercase changes the function of the Caps Lock key slightly. When this feature is set to "No", the keyboard will generate uppercase letters when the either the Caps Lock key or the Shift key is down. If this feature in the Control Panel is set to "Yes", the Caps Lock key will still cause letters on the keyboard to come out as uppercase; however, pressing the Shift key while the Caps Lock key is DOWN will cause letters to come out in lower case. In other words, the Caps Lock key will now change the function of the Shift key--but for the letters A-Z ONLY. Other characters on the keyboard (such as numbers and the symbols on the number keys) will STILL require the Shift key be pressed to generate them. Fast Space/Delete Keys, Dual Speed Keys These features allows more rapid ''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' movement of the cursor if the Control key is pressed along with certain other keys. If Fast Space/Delete is set to "Yes", Ctrl-Delete causes the Delete key to erase text twice as fast as other keys repeat, and Ctrl-Space causes you to insert spaces twice as fast. When Dual Speed Keys is set to "Fast", Ctrl-Up, Ctrl-Down, Ctrl-Left, and Ctrl-Right (arrow keys) will move the cursor twice as fast as usual. If the Repeat Speed setting further up in this Control Panel is set to the top speed possible, these particular features will appear to do nothing, since it will not repeat faster than the fastest speed. MOUSE On the ROM 03 IIgs, the ability to make the keyboard simulate mouse """"" movements was built into the firmware code. This was intended to make it easier for handicapped users who could not easily use a mouse still handle software that needed one. Because of this, the mouse-related items in this Control Panel were moved to a separate entry, which looks like this: (ROM 03) Control Panel Mouse ~ Mouse Tracking: |*-------------| ~ Double Click : |-------*------| -Keyboard Mouse- ~ Delay To Start: |-------*------| ~ Acceleration : |-------*------| ~ Maximum Speed : |--------*-----| Select <- -> V ^ Cancel:Esc Save: <-| Notice that the setting in the ROM 01 version (under "Options") calls Mouse Tracking a "High Speed Mouse". Setting that option to "Yes" makes any movement of the mouse on your table top to cause the cursor on the screen to move twice as far as usual. On the ROM 03, you have some finer control over the specifics of the mouse tracking. With enhancements the in System Software made available in System 6, the distinction between a ROM 01 and ROM 03 became less apparent, as now BOTH versions of the IIgs can make mouse movements accessible to handicapped users that cannot handle a standard mouse. However, if a program that does not run under GS/OS (or under System 6) needs this type of access, a ROM 03 GS will still be necessary. Double Click items are present with both versions of the IIgs firmware. The Double Click control adjusts how quickly two clicks must be made in order to be properly registered by programs that use them for shortcuts (such as selecting and launching a program from the Finder). If your double clicks aren't always being accepted, you may have this set too high or too low for the speed you use. Try adjusting it and see what works better for you. The remaining items are specific for the keyboard mouse feature. This is activated by pressing the Open-Apple (Command) and Shift keys at the same time, and then pressing and releasing the Clear key. After you've done this, the numeric keypad can be used to control the position of the cursor on the screen, and the center key ("5") [15is used to] simulate the button on the mouse. Other features involved in controlling the keyboard mouse can be found in the ROM 03 IIgs Owner's Reference or the System 6 User's Reference. Back to the Mouse Control Panel: Delay To Start is similar to the Repeat Delay on the Keyboard Control Panel; this refers to how long the keypad keys have to be held down before the mouse cursor will move. Acceleration controls the speed at which the mouse cursor moves under keyboard control, and Maximum Speed refers to how fast the cursor moves. As mentioned above, if you are running System 6.0 or 6.0.1, you have these features available on ANY version of the IIgs. The adjustable Control Panel settings would not, of course, be available from this CDA Control Panel. Instead, a ROM 01 user will need to access the NDA Control Panel (from the Apple in the upper left corner) in a GS/OS program, and make the changes in how the keyboard mouse works from there. NEXT MONTH Well, the heater finally kicked in, and my monitor is not """""""""" fogging up any more from the melted ice. We are approaching the end of this examination of the Control Panel Classic Desk Accessory. Communication with your printer and modem like you've never seen it before, RS-232 serial interfaces, and more--next time, on "Polishing Green Apples"! Don't miss it!! [*][*][*] Steve Weyhrich is a family physician from Omaha, Nebraska. He has been using Apple II computers since 1981, and writing about them since 1990. He follows closely the events that continue to shape the destiny of the legendary Apple II and IIgs computers, and writes a monthly column called the "A2 News Digest" for A2-Central disk magazine. He is also the author of the "Apple II History", available on fine BBS's everywhere. Add water and simmer until well done. [EOA] [RTC]////////////////////////////// REAL TIME CHATTING / ///////////////////////////////// WWUG Snapshot, Live! """""""""""""""""""" By Gina E. Saikin [A2.GENA] [ The World Wide Apple II User's Group meets every Sunday. This month, we though it would be fun to present you with the highlights of the WWUG meeting, live, as they happened. There's only space for a short extract with featured guest Jerry Kindall of Quality Computers, so drop in on the WWUG meeting this Sunday to find out just how widely the conversation ranges! -- Ed. ] Room 1, Bewitched, Bothered & Bewildered Notice on door: Come on in..new? Never fear...we'll help you unlock the secrets of A2 & GEnie with a few swipes of his magic lamp! Don't forget...starting at 4 p.m. eastern, will be our 3rd meeting of the WWUG...featuring AppleWorks 4.0! [ We join this RTC in progress -- Ed. ] <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I started with an AII + in 79 <[GEna] A2.GENA> I've got about 3-4 working II+'s in my basement... plus a LOT of software, and other parts... <[Paul] PMP> didn't get my ][+ until 82 <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I still have programs on CASSETTES! <[GEna] A2.GENA> This is stuff from A2.Susan's store...over the next several Sat's (after the holidays), I'm going to be taking a box at a time, inventorying it, and then posting it up in the bb <[Paul] PMP> but its an OLD ][+... a reconditioned ][ <[GEna] A2.GENA> Wow, Carl! Those ARE old...they're antiques! <[Paul] PMP> oh, I actually have OFFICIAL Apple cassettes... like Hoppalong Cassidy, Lemonade Stand, etc <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> My gs cant load them and I sold my old IIe. I should have put them on disk <[GEna] A2.GENA> Well...would they work on a II+? <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> Yes--They were written on a II+ <[GEna] A2.GENA> i.e., you culd use the II+ to transfer them over to disk? I would suspect they're old dos3.3 programs, right? <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I never thought of trying that <[Paul] PMP> no o/s at all if they're on tape... <[GEna] A2.GENA> Carl...someone with more expertise than I would have to say if it would work, but... <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> Tey were written before DOS 3.3. THey work with original ROM Applesoft <[Paul] PMP> i used to save my BASIC and machine language programs on cassette... used to mess up all the time, which annoyed me to no end then I took the leap and spend $350 + $99 for the controller for a 5.25" disk drive... <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I would just start up the computer and cue up the cassette and type load <[GEna] A2.GENA> You could pose this ? in the bb... cat 2, topic 4 ** is here. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Hi, Jerry! <[Paul] PMP> Greetings, Jerry. How's it going? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Hi all <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> HI Jerry <[GEna] A2.GENA> So, shall we begin? Jerry, I'm going to make a few announcments, then give it over to you. Since there's not a crowd, I don't think listen-only is necessary... <[Jerry] QUALITY> Oh, OK <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> Jerry--Love Quality--Thanks for your Apple II support <[Jerry] QUALITY> Announce away. (Thanks, Carl.) <[Fred] F.GREATOREX> Hello Jerry. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Alright...as you know, WWUG was the brainchild of Lunatic, while we were sitting in a dorm room at kfest...and as Jeff and myself were the leaders of the BBB, we were appointed to get this group off it's feet. We figured that getting Apple II support out there was becoming more andmore difficult, so we'd try to help with an online support group! Our first area is "What's New in Appledom" - As we all know...AW4.0 is now shipping and becoming very popular. In a few moments, Jerry here will be telling us all about it! Also, Spectrum is soon to come off the drawing board and into production...it's a desktop communciations program...will undoubtedly please those who use Manager and SwitchIt on a regular basis! ANSITerm has come out with a new version, which will be shipping soon. Paul didn't stick around too long for me to have him tell us a little about it, but... as soon as I can find the time, I'm gonna abstract our interview with him last month...all about ANSITerm! Now, for a few previews of some library files I've found quite cool. For holiday pics, file #21761 has christmas and Hannukah stuff... File #21778 is the December Disk of the Month...loaded with goodies. File #21740 is a real nifty little program - it is an auto-trash thing...that is, when you dump something in the trash, it automatically erases it without you having to hit OA-T. File #21728 is a general GS file utility, and file #11631 is a real nice program to play sounds in the background. Right now, I can't get it to work, but I suspect it doesn't like one or more of my myriad da's/inits, and I haven't had time to find out which one is offensive... Does anyone have any questions??? <[Fred] F.GREATOREX> Are any of those files duplicated on the A2 Dom disk? <[GEna] A2.GENA> Fred, I'm not certain...haven't looked at the contents yet of the Dec. DOM...got most of those files from the Dean's List :) I can't dl the DOM right now until I can get my 3.5" drive working :( <[Fred] F.GREATOREX> Cool. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Alright...Here's (said in my best Johny Carson announcement voice ) Jerry! We're going to open the floor to questions...you all know the basics of AW4.0, right? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Well, as you know, AppleWorks 4 has been shipping for about a month and a half... A lot of people are already using it and enjoying it. B) Anything I can help clear up about AW4? <[GEna] A2.GENA> Jerry, I know that it incorporates many of the time-outs...which ones are they? <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> What has been added since VERS. 3? <[Fred] F.GREATOREX> can you send me a free copy? <[GEna] A2.GENA> :) <[Jerry] QUALITY> The majority of things that have been added are new database features, GEna. TotalControl is now built in. Also, UltraMacros is built in... <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> What is total Control? <[GEna] A2.GENA> I haven't played around too much with TO's myself...but... <[Jerry] QUALITY> TotalControl is an add-on Randy Brandt developed... It allows one data base to access data from another data base, or from a spreadsheet. It also lets you use formulas in the data base. <[GEna] A2.GENA> That would have been a BIG help in the job I was on earlier - at home! <[Jerry] QUALITY> Similar features were added to the spreadsheet... <[GEna] A2.GENA> I had multiple db's - one for each customer...and had to make reports on totals (customer = client) <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> Can you set up seperate calc fields in the data base for reports? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Reports no longer have calculated fields... all the calculations are done in the data base itself... You can even set up auto-calculate categories so that when you change one category, the calculated category is automatically updated. <[GEna] A2.GENA> In the DB, too? that could be done already in the ss, right? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Right... the data base has gained a whole bunch of spreadsheet-like features <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> Is this similar to the way AWGS hansles the DB? <[GEna] A2.GENA> Cool! I was using DB's exclusively, due to the fact that I had to cull out stuff... <[Jerry] QUALITY> The spreadsheet remains the best place for number-crunching and what-ifs, the data base is the best place for keeping lists of things. Actually, I'm not sure if it's at all like the AWGS data base. I've never used the AWGS data base. (Believe it or not ) <[GEna] A2.GENA> Actually, the SS WOULD have been better for me (number crunching), but I HAD to take out specific things, say, all records of a given merchandiser from an entire list of merchandisers who worked for one client <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> It's hard to explain how I use the data base for customer order. But I need something that calcs tax and shipping after culling the order from the inventory DB <[Jerry] QUALITY> In the Word Processor, you get Glossary functions. Which allow you, basically, to do mail merge one record at a time... <[GEna] A2.GENA> Jerry, when I worked on the old xerox 860's - glossary function was like a macro...i.e., type one letter, and a phrase would pop up...that's what THEY called glossary <[Jerry] QUALITY> In other words, you want to write a letter to someone, so you pull up your name and address glossary; it gives you a list of the people in your address data base... When you pick the name, it inserts the name and address into the WP document <[GEna] A2.GENA> Wouldn't the new formula thing in the DB fill Carl's "order"? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Yes, you can probably do that all using the data base now, Carl. The data base supports 60 categories instead of 30... so there will be lots more room. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Indeed! (for my vendor database, how nice!) Jerry, one thing...does it support, like the ss, sideways print for the db? <[Jerry] QUALITY> You still need Sidespread for that... Unless of course you have an HP Deskjet 500 <[GEna] A2.GENA> I thought SideSpread only worked with the ss! <[Jerry] QUALITY> True... but you can easily copy the data base records to the spreadsheet <[GEna] A2.GENA> True... <[Jerry] QUALITY> The DJ 500 driver lets you print sideways from any application, but that's only because the DJ can print sideways. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Question...until I get my hands on AW4.0 (which may be a while financially), can I copy the records from the DB into the SS in 3.0? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Yes, you can... anything from one module can be copied to any other module, starting with 3.0 <[GEna] A2.GENA> (there are NO calculations...just data) (now, if I can just find my 5.25" version of SideSpread ) <[Jerry] QUALITY> Let's see... AW4 also has three independent Desktops... and three Clipboards. Built-in disk and file utilities... Better mail-merge... Many of the most popular AppleWorks patches (for example, cursor shape and blink rate) have their own option on the configuration menu. There's a built-in clock display and screen blanker. Lots of other stuff. B) <[GEna] A2.GENA> Alright...anyone have any questions??? Don't all speak at once :) <[GEna] A2.GENA> Jerry...I think you've left them speechless :) <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> what are the prices for upgrade ** is here. <[Jerry] QUALITY> Upgrades from 3.0 are $79.95...from 2.x, $99.95... From 1.x, $119.95... Or if you don't have AW already, you can get the package for $179.95. To upgrade, you just need to send your original disks (or photocopies) to us... Quality Computers, 20200 Nine Mile Rd., St. Clair Shores, MI 48080 <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> What original Time Outs are now part of the new 4.0 package? <[Jerry] QUALITY> Hmmm, TimeOut Paint... There aren't really any TimeOuts included per se... that is, you don't activate them from the Apple-Escape menu... It's more like AppleWorks ate 'em for lunch <[GEna] A2.GENA> Oh...speaking of TO's...what about original TO's...are they compatible with 4.0? <[Jerry] QUALITY> For example, FileMaster is now incorporated...but you access it from the Other Activities menu, not from the TimeOut menu <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I uderstand--Waht features I should say--I understand they have been incorperayted into the core program <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> When's the world conf. <[GEna] A2.GENA> NOW! <[Paul] PMP> what about macros? Does 4.0 have something like UltraMacros built-in? <[Jerry] QUALITY> It has an UltraMacros 4 player built in... <[Paul] PMP> cool! <[Jerry] QUALITY> You need UltraMacros 4.3 or later to compile and record your own <[GEna] A2.GENA> What about compatibility with present TO's..? i.e., side spread, etc. <[Jerry] QUALITY> Some of them will work without modification. AW4 comes with an updater which will update many of them. We hope to have more working early in 1994. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Is there a list of those that will/will not, and those that can or cannot be updated, or is it mainly "hit/miss"? <[Jerry] QUALITY> I don't have the list handy, but it's been posted in Cat 42 Top 29. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Ah....alright! <[Jerry] QUALITY> Sidespread has been, I think <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> Hey, I know it's probably been asked already but what is the status on the AWGS update Jerry??? <[GEna] A2.GENA> Actually, not, Paul :) <[Paul] PMP> good question... <[GEna] A2.GENA> Indeed! <[Jerry] QUALITY> Well, we've got Jim Merritt as project manager... And we're in the process of getting the source Claris sent us to compile... and looking at the suggestion lists to see what we can do in a reasonable time frame <[Paul] PMP> :) thats always a problem... <[Jerry] QUALITY> We hope to have something released next spring. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Great! oh, and make it like system 6.0.1, too :) right? <[Paul] PMP> one feature, if it hasn't been mentioned yet... having the spell checker work in PL... <[Jerry] QUALITY> That might be doable, depending on how closely the two data structures resemble each other <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I am mostly using AWGS--I am also in the AWGS Upgrade <[Paul] PMP> and having 360 degree rotations of objects and text would be nice :) <[GEna] A2.GENA> I like AWGS for page layout...with an old imagewriter I, print quality is better than Publish It... <[Jerry] QUALITY> If you're going to rotate something 360 degrees, what's the point? <[GEna] A2.GENA> Besides...can't use Pointless with Publish It! <[Paul] PMP> :/ 0-360 degree... like having angled text, etc. <[Jerry] QUALITY> Not sure how feasible that is, but I'll add it to the list Anyone else got any pet suggestions for AWGS? B) <[Paul] PMP> oh... and having boxes with widths that scale properly in condensed mode sorta like how GWIII does it... i always have to add additional lines at the top and bottom to make them the same width as the sides <[GEna] A2.GENA> Since mine doesn't seem to like 6.0.1, I don't use it... <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I would like to dee a better telecomm modual for AWGS such as an outo logon modual <[GEna] A2.GENA> Yes!...I'm certain that a LOT of people echo that, Carl... and better "split-screen" capability? <[Paul] PMP> oh... and a BIGGY... make it IPC-compatible with an "Extras" menu kinda like the Finder for external/TimeOut-type programs <[Jerry] QUALITY> I'm not sure how much effort we'll be putting into the telecomm module, to be honest. Most AWGS users don't have modems, so the telecomm is kinda low on our priority list. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Interesting note, Jerry, about users v modems ** is here. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Hi, Auri <[Auri Man] A.RAHIMZADEH> Hey Gena!~ <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> I'm just looking for a good window (GS) interface for my telecomm program <[GEna] A2.GENA> Spectrum, Carl, when it comes out! <[Jerry] QUALITY> My suggestion right now is to invesitgate AnsiTerm or Spectrum <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> That sounds great jerry-- <[GEna] A2.GENA> ANSITerm, though excellent, is not a GS program, right? er desktop, that is <[Paul] PMP> right, its not a desktop program <[Jerry] QUALITY> A stand-alone telecomm program is always going to be more powerful than the one in an integrated package <[GEna] A2.GENA> Hint, hint...Paul...for your next update :) <[Paul] PMP> :/ <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> Well I'm probably going to get FLAMED for this but as far as I'm concerned you can ditch the telecom altogether unless you make it something that the GS can really use like full color ANSI and stuff like that. That's my $.02 worth. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Poor Paul...he's gotten SO many suggsetions for his next update :) <[Paul] PMP> :) hey, 2.1 just came out, gimme a break! <[GEna] A2.GENA> Well...maybe if we badger Paul...hehehe <[Jerry] QUALITY> Paul: Sure, are you willing to pay $50 more for a better telecomm program? <[Carl] C.MANUELIAN1> Jerry--I saw your ad for spectrum--is it out yet? <[David] D.PIERCE8> Has Quality received any shipments of Spectrum from Sevenhills? <[Auri Man] A.RAHIMZADEH> I'm using Spectrum :) It should be out soon! <[Paul] PMP> Jerry, what about the "Extras" menu idea? I'm sure this has been brought up before, since it would be a GREAT advantage for AWGS <[Jerry] QUALITY> ANSI is a good way to slow down your baud rate. B) The good thing about the AWGS comm module is that it will serve to get modem novices online <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> Well Jerry, my point is if it;s not the best why worry about it when the best can be had elsewhere. If a major update to the telecom would cost too much in time and/or money then find something else. I'm happy with PT 3.1. <[GEna] A2.GENA> So am I, Paul, but if I can use a 'com program that is desktop, a good wp desktop program, etc., then I could use some of the other goodies, like SwitchIt, The Manager and HardPressed... <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> I mean Megaterm isn't slow and it does excellent color ANSI for the GS. <[Auri Man] A.RAHIMZADEH> Wait for MultiGS 2.0 Gena :) <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> Good point about novice users, but the package deals that are offered with modems usually provide a telecom package/ <[Jerry] QUALITY> It might get zmodem.. <[GEna] A2.GENA> True, Paul, but most of the modem packages nowadays offer Mac and ms-dos com ware <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> No Megaterm starts as P8 but then uses superhires for complete ANSI emulation. Hey Jerry is Quality working on some sort of FAX software for the GS, I think I remember reading about this somewhere. If so what's its status?? <[Jerry] QUALITY> I think the Q Fax software's gonna be a wash. Unless we can get the author to finish it... <[Jerry] QUALITY> Unless someone has some more questions about AW4 or AWGS, I think it's time for me to move along. <[Paul] PMP> what about the "Extras" menu, Jerry? :) <[Jerry] QUALITY> It's a suggestion many have made, Paul <[Paul] PMP> thought so :) thanks <[GEna] A2.GENA> Alright! Thank you very much Jerry for your informative talk! <[Paul] PMP> Thanks for the info, Jerry. I'll be looking forward to the new AWGS update! <[Paul] P.JANETZKE> Thank for the answers Jerry!! <[Jerry] QUALITY> Thanks for having me, GEna! <[GEna] A2.GENA> You're welcome, Jerry! <[Jerry] QUALITY> Randy has done a phenomenal job with AW4. I'M impressed... and that's not easy. See y'all later. <[GEna] A2.GENA> Laters, Jerry <[Auri Man] A.RAHIMZADEH> l8rness Jerry! looking forward to my next II Alive! :) <[Paul] PMP> has anyone received the new II Alive yet? <[Auri Man] A.RAHIMZADEH> not here... can't wait tho! :) <[Jerry] QUALITY> New II Alive mailed the 7th so it's on the way. <[Auri Man] A.RAHIMZADEH> awesome! ** <[Jerry] QUALITY> has left. I suppose this concludes the formal part of the meeting :) I'm going to TRY to get Brian for January - Internetting [EOA] [MOO]////////////////////////////// CowTOONS! / ///////////////////////////////// Beef Futures """""""""""" by Mike White [MWHITE] ......j.............j.............j.............j.............j........ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ ( )~\ ( )~\ ( )~\ ( )~\ ( )~\ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | (__) | (__) | (__) | (__) | (__) //-_(++) //-_(++) //-_(++) //-_(++) //-_(++) \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ Slaughterhouse Five ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ________________________________________ _ [________________________________________]==[_) ____________________________________________ / . . . |_(__) *~\____________________________________________|~(--) Leather Belts ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Watch for another thunderin' herd of __ __ Moo Fun from Mike White in the next ) \/ ( issue of GEnieLamp. > {: _< / {: \ 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 Leather Vest & Wallet of GEnie non-prime time! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ [EOA] [DRT]////////////////////////////// DR'S EXAMINING TABLE / ///////////////////////////////// Review of TypeSet """"""""""""""""" by Darrel Raines [D.RAINES] TypeSet by WestCode Software Inc. 15050 Avenue of Science, Suite 112 San Diego, CA 92128 1-800-448-4250 (orders only) or 619-487-9200 list price $49.95 (introductory price $29.95) [*][*][*] This time, we'll be putting a software package called TypeSet on the examining table. This program was created by Steve Disbrow and Joe Wankerl of _GS+ Magazine_ fame, and is distributed by WestCode Software. TRUETYPE TECHNOLOGY A little over a year ago, many Apple II computer """"""""""""""""""" users were surprised and pleased to find when TrueType technology arrived for the Apple IIgs. With the introduction of Pointless, Apple IIgs owners could use scalable fonts with many most popular software packages. TrueType fonts are available from a variety of sources. They only limitation to the number of typefaces available from Pointless is the disk space that a person is willing to allow his font collection to eat up. Once the typeface definition exists and is visible to Pointless, the software can generate a font in any size (point) that the user wants. You can probably guess that many people find themselves with more fonts than they know what to do with. When WestCode Software updated their Pointless package this year, they made many significant improvements. Some improvements will allow a user to have even more typefaces available. The trade-off is that it can be confusing to find all your typefaces and to remember what they look like. It is at this point that TypeSet enters the picture. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION TypeSet claims to be a tool that will let you do """"""""""""""""""" three things: 1) You can see a sample of each typeface in the pull-down Font menu. 2) You can choose which of the typefaces will be available from pull-down Font menus. 3) You can print four types of reports to a printer or the screen. TypeSet can be installed using the Apple Computer's Installer program with scripts written for that specific purpose. The first item that the installation process requires is the name of the user. The original can then be copied -- there is no copy protection -- and used to install the TypeSet program on a hard drive or on your favorite floppy system disks. You can also simply take the appropriate file (that's right... only one!) and put it in the System folder of your boot hard drive. If you gather from this that installation is a snap, then I have described the process correctly. The TypeSet software works as a New Desk Accessory (NDA). This type of program is available under the Apple pull-down menu within any standard desktop program. From here, the software can set up and change the way that other software gets information about the Font pull-down menu. When you select the TypeSet NDA, you are presented with a number of choices concerning how the Font menu appears under desktop programs. A button is also available that will take you to the report menu for other choices. When you have made your selections, the TypeSet NDA can be closed and put away until the next time that you want to customize the Font menu look. Under the title of "Settings" you are given the option of whether or not you want What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get (WYSIWYG) Font menus. You may also choose the size of the typefaces displayed. Another nice feature on this page is the ability to change the keyboard selection sequence to your own preference. The main feature of TypeSet is available on the main page. You are given the opportunity to create and manage typeface "Sets" that can be selected on the fly. A set consists of any number of typefaces that have been previously established under Pointless. Any typeface that Pointless knows about is available; however, you can select which typefaces are shown as a Font menu selectable item. Any number of sets can be created and the set membership is available for editing on the first page. When you make a set active on this page, then only those typefaces are shown on Font pull-down menus until you change the set. One of my favorite features of the TypeSet package is the ability to print typeface reports. Four different reports are available: All characters, key equivalents, various sizes (same typeface), and line samples (multiple typefaces). The first three reports are meant to display important information about any single typeface. The final report is meant to be used for giving examples of many different typefaces in a small space. About eight typefaces are shown per page on the line sample report. These reports can be shown on the screen or sent to the printer using your favorite print driver. This NDA, in conjunction with Harmonie or Independence, provides fantastic reports on an HP IIP compatible laser printer. PROGRAM PERFORMANCE The first and last thing that hits me about this """"""""""""""""""" package can be summed up in one word: speed. TypeSet is too slow. I do not mean just a little pokey; I mean that you can eat a heavy snack during some of the operations available in TypeSet... even on my system, which has a 8 MHz Zip card and a RamFast SCSI controller. My major reason for buying the software was the promise of the ability to handle many TrueType typefaces without having to go into Pointless to change what was available. I wanted to be able to create sets and use those sets to limit the typefaces shown on my menus. TypeSet seems to slow down in direct response to the typefaces that have been defined under Pointless. Therefore, the very reason that I bought the package turns out to be its weakest point. WestCode indicates that TypeSet is the perfect solution for managing large typeface selection situations. I have to disagree. The problem is not even limited to using the TypeSet NDA. Because TypeSet is active whenever a desktop program is executing, .some unexpected delays quickly become apparent. Every time you start a new desktop program with a Font pull-down menu, TypeSet sets up the list of typefaces that will appear on that menu. During the initial setup time (i.e. before the menu titles appear at the top of the page), there is an extended delay while the Font menus are created. This was an unexpected event! I have put together some typeface sets that caused the Finder to take an extra two minutes to start up. (It may be that this is due to slowness of the system software's List Manager. However, this is only my personal theory.) Another area that relates to overall speed concerns the Font menu using WYSIWYG names. It takes a long time to move through the menu in this mode. This happens because Pointless has to create the typeface on the fly -- TypeSet's manual even suggests a way to speed this up. You must create a fixed point size font for each TrueType file that you list on a menu. This alternative takes up about 10-25 extra blocks for each typeface. It can take more than 30 seconds to display a 20 item typeface menu. During testing, TypeSet proved to be unstable; a serious concern. By this, I mean that I have had the software crash a number of times while trying to create sets, change sets, create reports or print reports. I have never had a problem with stability in connection with the WYSIWYG Font menu. The only pattern that I can glean from my testing indicates that the more typefaces available from the Pointless setup, the more likely that I am to crash the system. This "feature", combined with the speed problems that I have listed, have made for some slow and frustrating evenings using TypeSet. My last concern may be related to the system crashing -- I cannot honestly rule out that possibility; however, it seems to me to be a different problem: I have had set definitions disappear from one session to another. I will have created a set that has a few of the typefaces for use with a particular type of program. Once I go to another desktop program and reenter TypeSet, the set definition is gone. This tends to serve as yet another area of frustration. I do not want to leave this review without listing one of the outstanding features of this package. The typeface reports are an outstanding facet of the TypeSet NDA. It is extremely nice to be able to choose a list of typefaces and have TypeSet print out a group of professional-looking reports; however, I have found a few areas of instability in this area also. There have been times -- though relatively few -- when the system will crash while printing reports. On the whole, this is the strongest feature of TypeSet in its current state. RECOMMENDATION I cannot really recommend the purchase of TypeSet at this """""""""""""" time. I feel that additional testing is needed to iron out some of the problems that I experienced. I also think that the program needs to be significantly speeded up. The only reason that I would recommend TypeSet at this time is for its reports feature. However, this is an expensive way to handle that task. Even when the software is used exclusively for reports, the speed problems will still be a concern. Most people will want to wait and see what WestCode Software does to address these problems. With some fixes for the most serious defects, I should be able to recommend this software at some point in the future. Until then, I will use Pointless to manage my typeface selection. [*][*][*] Darrel Raines is an electrical engineer who works during the day as a contractor to NASA building simulations. During the evenings, he plays with his Apple IIgs computer and writes articles like this. [EOA] [PRO]////////////////////////////// PROFILES / ///////////////////////////////// Who's Who In Apple II """"""""""""""""""""" By Tara Dillinger [TARA] >>> WHO'S WHO? <<< """""""""""""""""" ~ GEnieLamp Profile: Randy Brandt ~ GEnieLamp> Randy Brandt is the programming wizard behind AppleWorks 4 """"""""" by Quality Computers, and he has his own software company called JEM Software. He was one of the people that worked on AppleWorks 3.0 and also worked for Beagle Bros. Well, Randy, let's start from the beginning... where were you born and where did you grow up? BRANDT> I was born in Morris, Manitoba and grew up in Kamsack, """""" Saskatchewan and Kola, Manitoba. Kola had a population of 80 (7 in my family). Kamsack was [named for] an Indian chief. My parents are back in Kamsack. I have a sister in Phoenix and the rest are in Canada. GEnieLamp> What is your educational background? """"""""" BRANDT> I have a degree in Sec Ed/English from Christian Heritage College """""" in San Diego. Circa 1983. GEnieLamp> What had you originally planned to do with your life? """"""""" BRANDT> End it. Just kidding. I was going to be a scientist. """""" GEnieLamp> In what field? """"""""" BRANDT> I went to CHC as a Biology major. I dropped that after an "A" in """""" Genetics. I loved the theory, but hated the lab work. My virgin female fruit flies kept multiplying. GEnieLamp> How and when did you get started with computers? """"""""" BRANDT> I started with computers in college. In 1980 my school, """""" Christian Heritage College, got an Apple II, and I started hacking. My first program was a grading package for my girlfriend Joanna. She is now my wife and pregnant with kids #4 and 5. GEnieLamp> That first program must have impressed her, then! :) """"""""" BRANDT> Joanna wasn't impressed until I started making some money. """""" GEnieLamp> What was your first programming job, and when was that? """"""""" BRANDT> Beagle hired me in 1984. """""" GEnieLamp> What have you directly worked on for Beagle Bros? """"""""" BRANDT> My Beagle products were ProByter (a disk zap package) and """""" Extra K, doing docs and a bit of software. Then I wrote Big U, followed by numerous others from MiniPix to MacroWorks. GEnieLamp> What was it like to work at Beagle Bros? """"""""" BRANDT> Working at Beagle was great, although I was only there a month or """""" so, since I actually have worked at home for the last 8.5 years. It was great at Beagle Bros because Bert Kersey is hilarious and everyone got along. Bert was always pulling pranks, making phony ads, etc. He's just a funny person. His house had a trapdoor-looking pattern at the front door, with a sign that said "Press doorbell once for trapdoor, twice to ring." At Hallowe'en he had a battery-powered hand clawing at the window. GEnieLamp> Who did you work with there? """"""""" BRANDT> I worked with Mark de Jong, Mark Simonsen and Alan Bird. Later, """""" in the Simonsen era, I worked with Mark Munz, Matt Reimer and Dan Verkade. We used to get together every Friday for lunch since we all worked at home. GEnieLamp> No office to go to? """"""""" BRANDT> None of us _wanted_ to go to the office to work. """""" GEnieLamp> Tell us about each of your co-workers. """"""""" BRANDT> Alan is the genius. He's the only one with as many kids as I """"""" have. Mark Simonsen is a good guy as well, and a very good programmer, especially with graphics and printers. Mark de Jong didn't program as much, but he loved messing with little SuperMacroWorks programs, and even did a text-based game and paint program. Dan was a good friend of mine before Beagle days, and I got him hooked up with Beagle. Matt was a high school student and I met him while subbing his chemistry class. Years later we found out his grandfather and mine had been buddies in Canada in the 1930s. All the more amazing is that we met in San Diego. GEnieLamp> You taught chemistry? """"""""" BRANDT> I subbed chemistry. I taught English, Geometry, History, Math """""" and Comp Sci. GEnieLamp> For how long did you teach? """"""""" BRANDT> I student-taught a semester, then I taught a year, then I did """""" some subbing. Computers were my love and I couldn't land the comp sci job at my school, so I left. Rob Renstrom is another Beagle friend. He wrote PowerPrint and TimeOut Graph and now owns WestCode. John Obberick of WestCode and Jon Simonsen are also Beagle friends. GEnieLamp> I didn't realize that an ex-Beagle Bros alumni owns WestCode. """"""""" BRANDT> Yes, John and Rob started out at Beagle. """""" GEnieLamp> How much were you involved with the AppleWorks 3.0 project for """"""""" Claris? BRANDT> AppleWorks 3.0 was developed by Alan Bird, Rob Renstrom and I. I """""" did a lot of design and my share of programming. GEnieLamp> How did Claris approach you guys with this? """"""""" BRANDT> Claris contacted Mark and said it was between us and Pinpoint. """""" After lengthy acrimonious negotiations, the lawyers made a deal. GEnieLamp> Was it a difficult project? """"""""" BRANDT> Hard to say. It had tough times and easy times, but was weird """""" because we were used to doing our own thing. AppleWorks 4 was easier in that I had complete control, but harder because of the added responsibility and pressure. However, Claris wasn't paying us much so the motivation was lower: we got a flat fee. With AppleWorks 4 I get a royalty. AppleWorks 3.0 is basically the only non-royalty project I've done since 1985. GEnieLamp> When did you start your own company? """"""""" BRANDT> I started JEM Software before my Beagle days, back in January """""" of 1984. My first products included Commodore 64 hardware and my grading package. I came up with name in college using Joanna's initials. I told her it might get somewhere someday, but she just laughed. GEnieLamp> How has having your own company been for you? """"""""" BRANDT> JEM has been fun, but I'm really doing everything through """""" Quality now, except for one MS-DOS program. GEnieLamp> So is JEM defunct now? """"""""" BRANDT> No, it's been around since 1984, just not very active at the """""" moment. To me, I _am_ JEM Software, so everything I do is JEM. I don't have plans for any JEM-published products at the moment. GEnieLamp> What are some of the products that you have at JEM Software? """"""""" Or had? BRANDT> My MS-DOS package is called the Volunteer Management System. """""" Past products included TotalControl, DoubleData, PathFinder, Mr. Invoice, Late Nite Patches, DB Pix and probably a few I've forgotten. Outliner and Ultra 4 were originally JEM products. OmniPrint is another. GEnieLamp> JEM has been doing okay, then? """"""""" BRANDT> Well, we've been busy. That doesn't always mean there are """""" revenues. However, I'm supporting a big family on Apple II income. GEnieLamp> That's pretty amazing in itself! :) """"""""" BRANDT> My wife hasn't worked outside of the home since 1985. """""" GEnieLamp> Anything that you haven't done that you'd like to try? """"""""" BRANDT> Anything I'd like to try? Good question. Skydiving looks """""" interesting, but I have 5 kids now... I love playing hockey, so I'll stick with that. I'd like to travel to Europe someday. GEnieLamp> Which brings up the next question.... You seem to be a very """"""""" competitive person. Why is that? Do you think that helps or hinders you personally and professionally? BRANDT> I _am_ competitive. I guess part of it is because I was a little """""" wimp all my life. I started high school as a 4'11" 85 pounder who had just turned 13. Now I'm a 5'10" 155 pound brute! :) I never shied away from the hitting in hockey and football, but I was always small, wore glasses, and was called "runt" or "professor." Maybe I decided to make up for it. I always loved sports, so maybe that made me competitive, or maybe I loved sports because I'm competitive. Hey, is this a therapy session? GEnieLamp> What, besides computers and hockey, do you do? """"""""" BRANDT> I play church league softball. I play with my kids. I teach an """""" adult Sunday School class in my church. I read a lot. I mess with computers a bit. GEnieLamp> Fill us in a little on the background of the AppleWorks 4. """"""""" How were you approached about this? BRANDT> I wasn't. I approached Joe [Gleason, president of Quality """""" Computers]. GEnieLamp> How did that go? """"""""" BRANDT> Well, he had approached me to work with Quality, then I proposed """""" AppleWorks 4. He liked it. We did it. Claris was a pain, but they finally came to an agreement. GEnieLamp> Who else worked with you? """"""""" BRANDT> Dan Verkade, the author of ReportWriter and DoubleData. He was """""" an accountant when I met him. GEnieLamp> Do you two have a good working relationship? """"""""" BRANDT> Very good. He's one of my best friends. Dan is the nicest guy """""" you could meet. GEnieLamp> Was it a difficult project? """"""""" BRANDT> Yes. It still is. But I _liked_ it (old man voice). """""" GEnieLamp> How do you like working with Quality Computers vs Claris? """"""""" BRANDT> No comparison. Claris was a pain. For example, I put in a """""" spelling dictionary option so users could set the location, but they said that was confusing and made me remove it. Then users accused me of leaving it out so I could sell SpellCopy (another JEM product). GEnieLamp> Really? """"""""" BRANDT> Really. I had total control of AppleWorks 4 since I was the """""" project manager. GEnieLamp> And you like having total control? """"""""" BRANDT> YES. I'M POWER MAD! I HAVE A NAPOLEONIC COMPLEX!!!! """""" GEnieLamp> Is the current version of AppleWorks 4 a stable, bug-free """"""""" program? BRANDT> AppleWorks 4.0 isn't stable. AppleWorks 4.01 is. Debugging is """"""" torture! There are bugs in every big piece of software on every platform. There are a few in 4.01, but nothing too scary yet. GEnieLamp> What did you use as a development system for AppleWorks 4? """"""""" BRANDT> I used a Centris 610 to develop AppleWorks 4. I use MPW with the """""" IIgs assembler connected to my IIgs via AppleShare. GEnieLamp> Can you let us know ordering information and prices for """"""""" AppleWorks 4? BRANDT> Call 1-800-777-3642 (810-774-7200 if not in the US/Canada), """""" or send your order to Quality Computers, 20200 Nine Mile Rd., P.O. Box 665, St. Clair Shores, MI 48080. Prices: $79.95 for an upgrade from AppleWorks 3.0, $99.95 from AppleWorks 2.x, or $119.95 from 1.x. GEnieLamp> Are you working on AppleWorks 5? """"""""" BRANDT> AppleWorks 5 is not being worked on. It might [be] some day. """""" [EOA] [TEC]////////////////////////////// TECH TALK / ///////////////////////////////// Apple II Hybrids """""""""""""""" By Jay Curtis [J.CURTIS8] >>> THE APPLE II AND MS-DOS <<< """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Gregg Keizer may have said it best in a 1991 inCider/A+ article about the Macintosh LC: "The best bridge is one you can't see."(1) An ideal AppleII hybrid would be one that allowed the user simply to stick a foreign operating system's disk into a disk drive, open the directory and either perform file maintenance or launch programs by clicking icons or by highlighting menu items. Many Apple II owners have discovered that something close to that ideal is possible on a Apple IIgs equipped with a PC Transporter. Until recently, owning an Apple IIe or IIgs with Applied Engineering's PCT card was more like owning two computers inside one box, rather than one integrated machine. Except for Applied's excellent file transfer utility -- which runs only on the PC side -- there just wasn't much communication between the PCT and the Apple II. The advertisements that introduced the PCT card in 1988 claimed, "With PC Transporter, MS-DOS programs see your Apple hardware as IBM hardware. You can use the same hardware you have now."(2) While truthful, many claims made in Applied's ads could be somewhat misleading. Users have often found that owning a PC Transporter provided less convenience and integration than they imagined. To be certain, the PC Transporter can (and did) make use of Apple II peripherals. For example, users can store MS-DOS files on standard ProDOS devices and on the PCT's own (MS-DOS) "Transdrives." Similarly, ProDOS files can be stored on the Transdrives as well. However, both kinds of data storage are nonstandard, and users have found that these nonstandard disks cannot be read in disk drives on other machines. Users have also discovered that MS-DOS files, even those stored on ProDOS devices, were inaccessible in Apple II mode. Additionally, ProDOS files that had been stored on the PCT's Transdrives, could only be read in those drives and not in standard ProDOS drives. Despite these limitations, a PCT card can also offer certain advantages. For example, all 768 kilobytes of the PCT's RAM can be made available to an Apple IIe or IIgs as a RAMdisk in ProDOS mode. With Applied Engineering's special ProDOS software, the PCT's RAMdisk can be used as expanded desktop for programs like AppleWorks. Additionally, PCT users fortunate enough to own a PCT Transdrive system have found that they can store up to 360K of ProDOS data on a single 5.25 floppy disk, a much nicer alternative to the 143K available on standard Apple 5.25 floppy drives. An Apple IIe equipped with a PCT card and Transdrive system, remains a formidable tool. Besides it's MS-DOS capability, it has nearly 1MB of RAM available in ProDOS mode. With the additional disk drive storage available through the PCT's Transdrives, all of AppleWorks can be run from a single 5.25 or 720K floppy. Add in Mac file transfer programs for the Apple II such as HFS Link, plus similar Mac file transfer programs for MS-DOS (available from GEnie), which will run on the PCT side, and an Apple IIe shares files with both Macintosh and MS-DOS systems with ease. Today's Apple IIe, running with AppleWorks 4.0, a PCT card, and MS-DOS 5.0 can keep up with the best of them. FILE TRANSFER In recent months, the Apple IIgs has received a major boost """"""""""""" as a "GS/PC" through the development of GS/OS System 6.0.1's MS-DOS file system translator. To make use of this FST, however, you need at least one of the following: a Floptical disk drive, a Superdrive, or a PC Transporter card. With the right equipment, the FST opens and displays MS-DOS volumes right on the GS desktop in the same way that it can open and display any standard GS/OS or ProDOS volume. With the FST, you can copy files from MS-DOS volumes and subdirectories to ProDOS volumes and subdirectories by dragging and dropping icons -- in the same way that you can copy files between ProDOS, GS/OS and HFS volumes. You can also open and display MS-DOS text files on the GS desktop with utilities like ShadowWrite or Teach, simply by clicking their icons. You can modify these files like any text file and save them back to ProDOS. Besides being able to work with standard MS-DOS diskettes, the FST can also open and display those special PC Transporter MS-DOS floppy disk volumes that have been created on standard ProDOS drives. There are, however, some limitations. Using the FST you cannot, for example, copy ProDOS files _to_ MS-DOS volumes or delete MS-DOS files from MS-DOS volumes. The FST is a read-only translator. Additionally, the FST won't recognize PC Transporter hard drive volumes. The FST does not have a complete icon set and will not identify most file types under the "Icon Info" menu bar selection. Blank page icons for unknown file types, text icons, and directory folders are all that appear to be available. Fortunately, MS-DOS filename conventions takes care of part of this problem -- the three-character filename extension can help signal the contents of a file. Further refinement is called for. An ideal FST should have its own set of icons for most of the important MS-DOS file types. COM, BAT, and EXE, for example, are among those which need their own icons. The FST should be able to open and display hard drive volumes on the desktop, and it should be able to perform some basic file maintenance (i.e. copy, move, delete) upon MS-DOS files. Such an FST should permit both reading and writing. In view of the fact that Apple has discontinued the Apple IIe and IIgs including plans for the Ethernet card, it seems most unlikely that any refinements of the MS-DOS FST will be produced by the Apple II development team. That task will be left to Apple II enthusiasts who have the necessary programming skills to finish Apple's work. If a full read/write desktop FST is ever developed for GS/OS, it seems probable that the FST will be created as a system extension, NDA, or separate utility program, rather than being fully integrated into the GS desktop. Hugh McKay, an Apple II programer who had an MS-DOS copy program available for the IIgs before Apple's team had released their own FST, is one likely candidate to write a full set of MS-DOS desktop utilities for the IIgs. You can download Hugh's MS-DOS file copy program from the GEnie A2 Library (file #20669: MSDOS12.BXY). Another likely candidate is Australian Peter Watson. In fact, Watson already has a nearly full set of MS-DOS utilities which run under GS/OS (file #21414: MSDOSUTILS.BXY). Watson's utilities were written as a set of integrated executable files that will run under a GS desktop shell such as ProSEL-16, or under Watson's own minishell which he has named, appropriately enough, COMMAND.COM. The utilities use the text screen display rather than the GS desktop. These 16-bit utilities will not run under ProSel-8 or as 8-bit ProDOS utilities -- bad news for IIe owners. Watson's utilities are good news, however, for PCT-equipped AppleIIgs owners. The utility's shell program can be launched from the GS desktop like any ProDOS system file. The utilities can poll all IIgs devices online, searching for MS-DOS capable volumes. They can display files in _any_ MS-DOS volume, including PC Transporter hard drive volumes. Watson's command-line display is nearly identical to the MS-DOS command line display. When the directory command "MDIR" is typed, the standard MS-DOS header with MS-DOS drive designation, serial number, and directory are displayed first, followed by a list of files for the directory by file name and attribute, number of bytes, date and time -- just like MS-DOS. The only difference for diehard MS-DOS users is that the Apple II's standard text screen characters do not greatly resemble the funky MS-DOS font. The program's command-line syntax is a bit difficult for the beginner, but online help is available for all commands. The user has a definite sense that this is a transitional interface between MS-DOS and ProDOS. The syntax is MS-DOS-_like_ syntax. Command capabilities include format, copy, delete, directory display, rename and type. The most obvious advantage to this program is that the user has considerable control over MS-DOS volumes and files without leaving ProDOS. The program offers more control than that given by the GS/OS FST. Watson claims that he wants to add "make directory" and "remove directory" commands plus an "undelete" command and a "read-only version" of FDISK, which would provide hard disk partition information. He also says, "I want to make this a full desktop interface program -- Real Soon Now!" As they stand right now, the utilities are solid and, at $15 for the shareware fee, they are a real bargain. PROGRAM LAUNCHING Applied Engineering improved on its software for the """"""""""""""""" PC Transporter since its introduction. One upgrade provided a BASIC utility called PC.LAUNCHER. This utility creates task files that allow the user to directly launch any MS-DOS program from GS/OS or ProDOS. On the Apple II side, each task file can be given names like "DBase.IV," "MicroSoft.Works" "ProCOMM.Plus," or whatever applies. The user simply double clicks icons for each of these files in GS/OS and the corresponding MS-DOS programs are launched. The task files can be installed anywhere on your hard drive, or you can create aliases of them under 6.0.1 and place them in a launching menu right alongside ProDOS or GS/OS applications. Apple IIe users with PCTs are also able to take advantage of this launching capability. Because the task files are ProDOS files, they can be run from any 8-bit ProDOS launcher or desktop management program, such as Byrd's Better Bye, Sneeze, or Copy II+. MS-DOS programs are launched like any ProDOS program, by simply highlighting the selected file and hitting . Because I use both AppleWorks classic and Microsoft Works, I have Applied Engineering's MS-DOS File Translation program patched to my AppleWorks TimeOut Program Selector with a PC.LAUNCHER task file. This allows me to access the PCT's file translation program from within AppleWorks, translate files directly into AppleWorks format from MS-DOS, and then return directly to AppleWorks and call up the files. Of course, I can also move things the other way (from AppleWorks to Microsoft Works) when needed. Launching an MS-DOS program occurs almost as smoothly as launching an 8-bit ProDOS program from GS/OS. The only difference is that (in contrast to the GS's "One moment please...") the "PC Transporter" announcement screen is flashed briefly on the screen, and then the traditional DOS memory counter runs before the selected program itself is run. If you're running MS-DOS from a hard drive with RamFAST interface, the time to load MS-DOS is, subjectively, little more than it takes to run a ProDOS session from GS/OS. If you're booting into MS-DOS from other devices (such as a 3.5" disk, much slower than the average hard drive), the wait will be longer. Through use of another executable file on the MS-DOS side of things, PCT.QUIT, it is also possible to quit back to the IIgs or IIe desktop by simply typing BYE at the MS-DOS prompt. While running MS-DOS, IIgs users will especially like the fact that the IIgs control panel and all Classic Desk Accessories are always available during an MS-DOS session, just as they are in GS/OS. Therefore, the IIgs can take advantage of a kind of multi-processing, a capability which Applied Engineering has taken special pains to insure in newer versions of its PCT software. One particularly useful application of this capability may be that it allows users immediate access to ProDOS directories through any CDA file utility while an MS-DOS program is running. CONCLUSION As for the ideal Apple II hybrid posited at the beginning of """""""""" this month's article -- one that would allow any disk to be inserted in a drive and then be available for copying files or launching programs -- it seems to this writer that the evidence is now in. An Apple IIgs with a PCT and/or a drive like a Floptical or SuperDrive is probably the best integrated hybrid that you are likely to see, short of the development of a PowerPC with an Apple II personality some time in the future. Next month we'll talk more about the kinds of disk drives that are necessary for good integration in an Apple II/PC hybrid and about how the PC Transporter does its work within an Apple II. We'll also talk about low-level disk formatting or encoding schemes like MFM and GCR, something a potential hybrid owner/user really needs to know about for successful use of their machine. Until then, think hybrid! NOTES """"" (1) Keizer, Gregg. "The MAC LC's Split Personality." inCider/A+. July 1991. p. 26. (2) Applied Engineering advertisement. inCider. August 1988. p. 46. [EOA] [WWU]////////////////////////////// WWUG NEWSLETTER / ///////////////////////////////// January 1994 Report """"""""""""""""""" By GEna Saikin [A2.GENA] INTRODUCTION The World Wide User Group (WWUG) was the brainchild of """""""""""" Lunatic E'Sex, conceived in a dorm room at KansasFest '93, and nurtered down through the months, until we had our very first meeting in October, 1993! We have discovered that it is at times difficult to find local support for the Apple II's, and so have created an online user group meeting, being held once per month (the 3rd Sunday of every month) at 4 p.m. eastern time in the Apple II Real Time Conference (RTC) center - page 645;2. NEWS FROM APPLEDOM There are several new programs that are out or are """""""""""""""""" coming out very soon in the world of Apple II: Spectrum has been a long-awaited desktop communications program, and will be very handy for those who use the Manager and HardPressed on a regular basis...it should be shipping very, very soon... ANSITerm 2.1 has just started shipping. It's an update to Paul Parkhurst's ANSITerm 2.0 with a lot of added features. And, of course, the long-awaited update to the very popular AppleWorks 3.0, Appleworks 4.0 is now shipping. December's meeting featured Jerry Kindall who told us all about AW4.0, and the cool updates it has! DECEMBER'S FEATURE Jerry Kindall of Quality Computers was our featured """""""""""""""""" guest at the December meeting of the WWUG. He gave us a very thorough look-see at AW4.0 - and told us of it's many new features. I'll give you a brief outline here. AW4.0 incorporates many of the time-outs that now have to be manually patched into AW3.0, including TotalControl, which gives you the ability to pull data from several databases and/or spreadsheets for a report. Time- Out Paint and Time-Out Filemaster are two more TO's that have been incorporated into the AW4.0 package. These TO features will be accessed from the "Other" menu rather than the open-apple-control-escape method used now. Most of the external Time-Out features will be compatible with AW4.0, and some that are not, will be able to be updated by the included Updater. The rest will soon be made compatible. There is also the added feature that allows you to use formulas in databases, and will increase the number of categories to 60, up from the 30 now. This is a very handy tool for those who must use databases, in lieu of spreadhseets for number-crunching, particularly if they have to pull out specific peoples, places or things...when making a final report! Another neat feature will be in the Word Processor. It's called Glossary, and will allow you to merge letters individually from any database of names/addresses...rather than having to tweak the database, when you want to send only one or two letters out, as you do now! Jerry also told us that an update to AppleWorks GS was in the offing. For ordering AW4.0, here are the prices: """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Update from 3.0 $79.95 Update from 2.0 $99.95 Original $179.95 NEWS FROM THE A2 LIBRARY There are several excellent files in the """""""""""""""""""""""" library that I'll recap here, but there are thousands of files available...and all are good! File #21778 is the December DOM - loaded with goodies. File #21740 is called AutoTrash - wherein your trash will automatically be dumped, when you drag it into the trashcan. No more having to hit OA-T to do that! But, be careful! File #21728 File Passage - a great little GS utility program. File #11631 BGSound - plays music in the background - even in 8- bit programs (like ProTERM), as it is a CDA NEWS FROM A2 What's new? New files, new faces and much valuable """""""""""" information for the users of Apple II's! We are the best online support for Apple II's of all the commercial online services! Come visit us - we're on page 645 and have a bulletin board chock full of informative stuff, a library with over 21,000 files, and nightly RTC's for you to come in and either just talk or ask questions about any problems you're having. See ya there! [EOA] [AII]////////////////////////////// APPLE II / ///////////////////////////////// Apple II History, Part 19a """""""""""""""""""""""""" By Steven Weyhrich [S.WEYHRICH] >>> APPLE II HISTORY <<< """""""""""""""""""""""" Compiled and written by Steven Weyhrich (C) Copyright 1993, Zonker Software (PART 19a -- APPLEWORKS) [v1.3 :: 10 Dec 93] INTRODUCTION With all the news recently about the latest version of """""""""""" AppleWorks, it seems appropriate to reach the part of the History that deals with this long-lived and popular program. In this part we will deal with the earlier incarnations of the program, and discuss some of the enhancements made to it in the past. APPLEWORKS There is one program in the Apple II world that has not only """""""""" showed amazing staying power in a world where this year's software hit is next year's yawn, but has also gone on to spawn a number of software companies and magazines that do nothing but sell products for it. That program is AppleWorks. Originally released in 1984 by Apple Computer, it has gone on to become one of the best selling computer programs of all time, on ANY computer. Although few seem to mention the influence it has had, it is evident in the number of computer programs that have come out for the IBM and Macintosh that have the "Works" name on them (Microsoft Works, ClarisWorks, Beagle Works, and others). AppleWorks was one of the first "integrated" software packages, preceded on the Apple II only by The Incredible Jack (published by Business Solutions in 1983; this program ran under DOS 3.3). It put modules that performed word processing, database management, and spreadsheet calculations into a single environment, using similar commands in each module. Previous software programs specialized for each of those jobs had their own unique keyboard commands that were often very different from each other. If you went from Apple Writer to VisiCalc, or from VisiCalc to DB Master, you had to learn a completely different method of controlling the program. Furthermore, the data files created by those programs were usually not compatible with each other, making it difficult and awkward to move information directly from one program to another. AppleWorks not only created a continuity between these modules, but went a step beyond in allowing them to share data with each other via a space of memory called a "clipboard". This clipboard was part of a larger memory area called a "desktop", which could hold data for up to twelve different files at the same time, which made data sharing even more convenient. AppleWorks was written by Rupert Lissner (who later changed his first name to "Robert".<1>) Its earliest incarnation was in another product sold by Apple, called QuickFile. QuickFile was an Apple III database program written in Pascal. It was flexible and easy to use, and Apple agreed to market it for Lissner in 1980. It was later translated into a version for the Apple IIe (also in Pascal) called QuickFile IIe. As a database program it was flexible and powerful, but somewhat slow due to the inherent limitations of the UCSD Pascal system that Apple favored at the time. After seeing the Office System on the Lisa computer, Lissner conceived the idea of a single program that would put word processing, database, and spreadsheet capabilities together, and run on an Apple II. It was originally called "Apple Pie", and he began work on it in 1982. Lissner took two years to complete his program, and did it entirely in assembly language to achieve better speed. He wrote versions of the program to work on both the Apple II and Apple III computers, making use of the same filetypes and data structures. Apple Pie files created on an Apple II could be used on an Apple III, and vice-versa. Apple decided to market the Apple II version themselves, and called it "AppleWorks". Lissner was left with the rights to the Apple III version. He sold those rights to Haba Systems, who brought it out under the name, "/// E-Z Pieces". That program continued to be compatible with the AppleII version up until Claris (the software company formed by Apple in 1987) upgraded the Apple II AppleWorks to version 3.0 in 1989. A STAR IS BORN When it was finally released, AppleWorks was one of the """""""""""""" most comprehensive programs ever written for the Apple II. Although neither of the three modules were significantly more powerful than other standalone programs, they had enough power for the average computer user to do what was needed. The memory management system was the extremely flexible, eventually being able to handle not only the basic 128K on a IIe or IIc, but also several different types of memory cards used on those computers and on the IIgs. Far larger than the memory of the 64K Apple IIe on which it would run (as a minimum memory configuration), the program was smart enough to swap in or out from disk the parts it needed to carry out its various functions. Considering that it would run on a computer whose microprocessor could address only 64K of memory at one time, the power achieved by this program is remarkable. There are few other software packages ever released that have as smoothly and seamlessly made up to two megabytes of memory on an 8-bit computer appear to be one contiguous space. AppleWorks' user interface was designed with menu bars, rather than the older command line interface (such as the one used in Applesoft, Integer BASIC, and the Monitor). Apple's own researchers had put human subjects in front of a computer keyboard to learn what was easiest to use. They designed an interface that was based on using arrow keys to move a cursor (or "bar") to different choices in a list, and then using the return key to make the selection. They also came up with the concept of the "desktop" (represented in text rather than in graphics as on the Lisa and Macintosh), and a "clipboard" for transferring data between files. Apple shared this information with Lissner, and he went on to use it in his program design.<2> APPLE'S "PROMOTION" OF APPLEWORKS The marketing decisions made concerning """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" AppleWorks have not been very clear to the outside observer over the years. At the time that AppleWorks was ready for release there was a considerable amount of company money and time being spent in trying to make the Macintosh sell in the computer marketplace. Those who had the most influence at Apple were not very interested in a "simple" text-based program, when the Mac and its graphic interface was the "cutting edge" in technology. Those people believed that the Mac represented the future of Apple, and were not interested in wasting time with old Apple II technology in any form. Another problem was Apple's past record in selling software. Tom Weishaar made these comments in the November 1987 issue of Open-Apple: "...Apple was trying very hard to get the big MS-DOS developers to work with the Macintosh. One of the reasons these developers gave for their reluctance to work on the Mac was their fear that Apple itself would compete with them -- Apple, obviously, had tremendous advantages in terms of distribution and access to inside information. Apple had a reputation for developing applications software for its machines that would kill the market for similar software -- Apple Writer (which was at the top of the Apple II software charts at the time) and a complete set of applications software for the Lisa being major examples. Powerful voices inside Apple wanted the company to get out of the applications software business."<3> However, despite the concern about Apple selling AppleWorks, the decision was eventually made. "Apple's punishment for its indiscretion was immediate -- within six weeks its illegitimate child sat at the top of the Apple II best-seller list. AppleWorks achieved this without the benefits of a mother's love -- it succeeded in spite of, not because of, Apple's meager marketing efforts in its behalf. Since AppleWorks was released, for example, Apple has run 26 pages of ads in A+ magazine. The word 'AppleWorks' appears in those ads exactly zero times. Four of the ads show screen shots of AppleWorks ... the Apple IIgs ad in the September 1987 A+ [shows a screen shot of] AppleWorks ... in the gutter between the pages and is the only one of the 23 programs shown that isn't mentioned by name. This is typical of the treatment Apple's bastard child gets from its mother. [Del] Yocam, [Apple's Executive Vice-President in 1987], didn't mention it or Lissner in his birthday speech [at the 1987 AppleFest, celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Apple II], and John Sculley, Apple's president, doesn't mention it or Lissner in his ... book, Odyssey."<3> When it first appeared on the market, AppleWorks STARTED at number 2 on Softalk's top thirty list. It moved to the number one spot in Apple sales by the following month, and stayed there for a LONG time. By the end of 1984, AppleWorks had moved into the number one spot in monthly retail software sales for ALL computers, overtaking the MS-DOS best-seller Lotus 1-2-3 (a spreadsheet program with graphics and rudimentary word processing capabilities). Some reports estimate that it was selling thirty to forty thousand copies per month at one time.<10> But since it was not their beloved Macintosh that put an Apple program into first place, corporate Apple ignored the milestone. Since that time, though no longer in first place, AppleWorks has continued to do very well, despite an absence of advertising on the part of Apple, and minimal advertising on the part of Claris.<3> APPLEWORKS REVISIONS The first change to AppleWorks came with the """""""""""""""""""" released of version 1.1 in 1985, which was a modification to help overcome problems with non-Apple printers and interface cards. Later that year version 1.2 came out with the ability to use more easily even more of this non-Apple hardware. Both relatively minor updates were made available free of charge to existing owners of the program. Version 1.3 of AppleWorks came out in early 1986 for a $20 update fee. It provided a bit more functionality for those users who had larger capacity disk drives. Specifically, it better supported the new UniDisk 3.5 for file storage and made it possible to format disks on that device. Previous versions could load files from 3.5 disks only by specifying the ProDOS pathname; version 1.3 could access these disks with the more familiar slot and drive numbers. Also, since Apple now sold a large memory card which would plug into any free slot on the Apple IIe, this new version of AppleWorks could expand the size of the desktop to as much as 1,012K. By this time, Applied Engineering and other companies had already been doing quite well selling RAM cards for the auxiliary slot on the IIe, and had also included special software that patched previous AppleWorks versions to allow a larger desktop. They went further than Apple, however, in also allowing larger word processing and database files to be created.<4> Up through the release of AppleWorks 1.3, the only changes that had been made were bug fixes and enhancements to work better with new hardware. In September 1986, along with announcements about the new Apple IIgs, Apple released version 2.0 of AppleWorks. It now required a minimum of 128K (previous versions would work with 64K, but allowed only a 10K desktop). In exchange for the greater memory requirements, it gave users a built-in ability to do mail merge, added more functions to the spreadsheet, and supported Apple memory cards even better than v1.3. Furthermore, word processing, database, and spreadsheet files could be larger than in previous versions. Existing users were able to upgrade to v2.0 for $50, which included a completely new manual, a very reasonable price considering the extra abilities of this new version.<5> July 1987 saw one change that had an impact on future distribution of AppleWorks. Apple decided to create a separate company, named "Claris", to handle some of the popular software that they had released for their AppleII and Macintosh computers over the years. As mentioned above, products released by Apple had a tendency to be the "kiss of death" for third-party companies trying to market similar programs. For example, after the outstanding success of AppleWorks, virtually NO text-based work processors released for the Apple II made much of an impact on the market. Claris had the responsibility of handling AppleWorks, Apple Writer, and the various Macintosh programs that had been available from Apple for that computer. Claris has publicized AppleWorks via only three major ads since they took the product over from Apple (as mentioned above, however, AppleWorks had previously received NO advertising space). Their first promotion, run in 1987, stated that AppleWorks 2.0 had received a unique upgrade -- its own company. This was primarily a plug for Claris, of course. The second ad was rather clever. This one had a white background with a red sports car up on blocks with its wheels missing. The caption read, "There are still some Apple II users who don't have AppleWorks", suggesting that working without that program was like owning a sports car without wheels. Beagle Bros did an even more clever followup to that ad, by using another double-page spread with a white background, and four tires in the same location as the blocks in Claris' ad. Their ad read, "There are still some AppleWorks users who don't have TimeOut", suggesting that the sports car in the Claris ad was AppleWorks, and TimeOut was the wheels for that car. The third promotion run by Claris for the program was to announce the v3.0 upgrade in 1989. This one showed an old worn tennis shoe (representing the old version) and a new running show (representing the new version). A free update of AppleWorks to version 2.1 was released by Claris in September 1988. It provided IIgs users some bug fixes that made it work better on that computer, plus it was supposed to support a desktop as big as eight megabytes, if that much memory was installed. However, because of the way in which desktop memory in AppleWorks was handled, this turned out instead to be a maximum of two megabytes. No further functionality was added to AppleWorks at that time. APPLEWORKS 3.0 In 1988, while Claris was issuing its minor update to """""""""""""" AppleWorks, they were making plans to do some major improvements to the program. Since they primarily had Macintosh programmers working for them, they first asked Robert Lissner, the original author. He wasn't much interested, since he had already made good money off the program and didn't really have the motivation for such a major project. Claris then decided to turn to a third-party company to do the work for their project, which was given the code-name "Spike". There were planning to hire a company named Pinpoint Publishing to do the work. Pinpoint was selling an enhancement package for AppleWorks that gave users some features that MS-DOS users had available on their computers (a "pop-up" calendar, terminal program, and other modules), and seemed to be making a major effort to promote their product and stimulate more sales of AppleWorks. By this time, however, Pinpoint was financially getting into trouble, with sales of their products (AppleWorks-related and otherwise) below what was needed to support the large user support network they had set up. Consequently, they were eager for the chance to contract out to Claris for the AppleWorks upgrade. However, they planned to make very minimal changes to it, staying exclusively within Claris' specifications. During this time, Claris kept hearing from AppleWorks users who were much more loyal to Beagle Bros, who had a series of products called TimeOut. These products worked in a fashion similar to those from Pinpoint. After some complicated negotiations that nearly fell through several times, Beagle finally took on the job to do the AppleWorks project for Claris. Beagle programmers Alan Bird, Randy Brandt and Rob Renstrom worked on it for almost a year, in between a few other projects that were going on at the same time. They did their work on Macintosh II computers running the MPW (Macintosh Programmer's Workshop) cross-assembler, primarily for the sake of speed.<6> As enthusiastic Apple II programmers who also knew AppleWorks inside and out, Beagle's team added a lot of power Claris had not planned on in their original specifications. Occasionally they called on Lissner for help in understanding why certain parts of the code were written as they were, but all of the work came from these "Beagle Boys". Viewing it almost as a labor of love, they went beyond what they were asked to do, and enjoyed making AppleWorks into a program that they would want to use. Randy Brandt stated, "I think it's safe to say the AppleWorks 3.0 project yielded the worst hourly rate I've ever made in AppleWorks-related programming, but it did give me a lot of insight which came in handy on future projects."<7> Additionally, they fixed over one known hundred bugs in AppleWorks 2.1.<8> In June 1989, Claris announced the AppleWorks 3.0 upgrade at the National Educational Computing Conference in Boston. The features that were added or improved are too numerous to describe here; in brief, it added nearly all the things users had wanted the program to do. It was easier to use, it took better advantage of extra memory (going beyond the two meg limit on the IIgs), and it was easier to customize special printers to work with it. And it included a new feature that was becoming standard in many commercial word processors: A built-in spelling checker. Because of these extra features, the maximum desktop size on a standard 128K AppleII was now reduced to about 40K (down from the original 55K). Also, the program now loaded from TWO double-sided 5.25 disks (or a single 3.5 disk), instead of the previous one double-sided 5.25 disk. Apple had for years included registration cards with their products, both hardware and software, to identify the user in Apple's files as an owner of that product. Unfortunately, although they had done a good job at including those cards with everything they shipped out, they had done a somewhat less satisfactory job of actually compiling the data from those cards. Consequently, Claris really had no available information about who was and who was not a "registered" owner of AppleWorks. They decided that they would make an initial upgrade offer of $79 for customers that owned ANY previous version of AppleWorks (from v1.0 to v2.1), and through A2-Central magazine they even made available a special $99 offer: An A2-Central subscriber could get the program from Claris for that price, even if he could not prove previous ownership of AppleWorks.<9> Later, owners of previous versions could still upgrade for $99 if they wanted. Since that time, unhappily, Claris has concentrated exclusively on Macintosh products and apparently has no plans for further updates or upgrades to AppleWorks. This was unfortunate, since there were several known bugs in the program, and Beagle Bros programmer Mark Munz eventually decided to release his own AppleWorks bug-patcher program into the public domain to correct these known problems. Rather than take the hint and make a v3.1 release to officially acknowledge and correct these problems, Claris' policy was to simply wait until a customer complained about them and then to direct them to Mark's Patcher program. ENHANCEMENTS: PINPOINT AppleWorks has been such a major influence in the """""""""""""""""""""" Apple II world that the program has itself spawned a number of related products that act to enhance or expand its usability for different purposes. This is a reflection on the widespread penetration of the program, as well as the desire of Apple II users for more and better features. One of the first customization features that appeared for AppleWorks was from Pinpoint Publishing. They had originally been called Virtual Combinatics, and had sold a program for the Apple II called Micro Cookbook. Suddenly in 1985 they burst upon the market with a new name and a significant new product. Their Pinpoint Desk Accessories was primarily an enhancement for AppleWorks, though it was also possible to install its features for use under Applesoft, and eventually Apple Writer and Word Perfect. Taking after the popularity of "pop-up desktop" programs for the IBM PC like Sidekick, Pinpoint added some similar features to AppleWorks. These features were available at any time, simply by pressing solid-apple and P (option-P on the IIgs). At this point a little "Accessories" menu would pop-up onto the screen, drawn using MouseText characters, and the desired feature was selected by moving the cursor bar up and down the list, pressing RETURN for the one you wanted (working just like AppleWorks). The accessories included Appointment Calendar; Calculator; Communications (a small terminal program for use with a modem, which could send AppleWorks word processing files or save incoming text as a WP file); Dialer (just highlight on the screen the number you wanted to call, and it would be dialed for you via the modem); GraphMerge (which allowed you to print a word processing document with all or part of a double hi-res picture included with the text); Notepad (a miniature word processor, holding up to 32 lines of text and saving notes in AppleWorks WP format); QuickLabel (take an address off the screen and place it on an envelope template for printing); and Typewriter (type and print lines one at a time). This was all very exciting at the time, multiplying the abilities of AppleWorks beyond what it was built to do. Because of disk-space requirements this was more convenient to use from a 3.5 disk or hard disk, but actually could be used from 5.25 disks without TOO much trouble. Eventually a spelling checker was also made available to use with Pinpoint. [*][*][*] NEXT INSTALLMENT: Magazines """""""""""""""" NOTES """"" <1> Weishaar, Tom. "Miscellanea", OPEN-APPLE, Nov 1986, p. 2.74. <2> Williams, Warren, and Carlton, Steve. "AppleWorks", THE APPLE II GUIDE, Fall 1990, pp. 36-45. <3> Weishaar, Tom. "Reality And Apple's Vision", OPEN-APPLE, Nov 1987, pp. 3.73-3.74. <4> Weishaar, Tom. "Does Your Mother Love You?", OPEN-APPLE, Jan 1986, p. 1.97. <5> Weishaar, Tom. "New $999 Apple IIgs Arrives", OPEN-APPLE, Oct 1986, pp. 2.65-2.67. <6> Deatherage, Matt. "Who's Who In Apple II", GENIE LAMP, Aug 1992. <7> Brandt, Randy. (personal mail), GEnie, E-MAIL, Jul 1991. <8> Brandt, Randy. GEnie, A2 ROUNDTABLE, Jun 1992, Category 13, Topic 16. <9> Weishaar, Tom. "AppleWorks 3.0 A Blockbuster", A2-CENTRAL, Jul 1989, pp. 5.41-5.46. <10> Brandt, Randy. 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