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Path: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!usc!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!caen!dmag
From: dmag@caen.engin.umich.edu (Dan DeMaggio)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2,news.answers
Subject: comp.sys.apple2 - Frequently Asked Questions (and answers) part 1 of 2
Supersedes: <a1_751507756@caen.engin.umich.edu>
Followup-To: comp.sys.apple2
Date: 4 Dec 1993 04:31:38 GMT
Organization: University of Michigan Engineering, Ann Arbor
Lines: 715
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
Distribution: world
Expires: 7 Jan 1994 04:30:30 GMT
Message-ID: <a1_754979430@caen.engin.umich.edu>
Reply-To: dmag@umich.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: ri.engin.umich.edu
Summary: What you need to know about comp.sys.apple2 and comp.binaries.apple2,
two newsgroups dedicated to the Apple ][ family of computers.
Originator: dmag@ri.engin.umich.edu
Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu comp.sys.apple2:65886 news.answers:15462
Archive-name: apple2/part1
Last-modified: 03 Dec 1993
Version: 3.4.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 1/1/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: The FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) post
Hi! Welcome to the comp.sys.apple2 newsgroup!
This article contains the answers to some Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ) often seen in comp.sys.apple2. I am posting this article (once every
three weeks or so--but once a week in September) to help reduce the volume in
this newsgroup and to provide hard-to-find information of general interest.
I hope it answers some of your questions. If you have other questions,
feel free to e-mail me.
Dan DeMaggio (dmag@umich.edu)
P.S. On a suggestion, I've converted this to the news archive format (I
think).
Table of contents
-----------------
Part I: The Net
- What is c.s.a2? What is INFO-APPLE? (Why is there air?)
- What is c.b.a2? (Binaries only please)
- FTP sites and e-mail servers (or How To Get Great Programs for Free!)
- File name extensions (How to ID a file)
- Archivers and decoders (What they are useful for)
- Downloading (Term programs and download protocols)
- Field guide to file formats (How to ID a file part II)
Part II: Apple stuff
- What is an Apple II? (common configurations and additions)
- Frequently Asked Questions (IBM+HFS disks, HD drives, computer versions)
- GS System 6.0 Notes (from the experts)
- What the Apple II can do (ideas for adding to your system)
- Apple II resources (Places supporting the II)
- troubleshooting (90% of problems can be solved with these hints)
- SCSI Notes (Notes on dealing with SCSI)
New items are marked with:
---- NEW OR CHANGED
FTP-able items are marked like this:
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/faq/faq1.txt
Note that the apple2.archive.umich.edu site is often loaded down, so see
the section on FTP for other sites, including mirrors of umich.
------------------------------
Date: 8/8/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: What is comp.sys.apple2? What is INFO-APPLE?
Comp.sys.apple2.* are a series of Usenet newsgroup that created for the
discussion of the Apple II series of computers. This forum provides a way for
interested people to compare notes, ask questions, and share insights about
Apple IIs. Each message gets passed on to tens of thousands of systems around
the world that make up Usenet. Please do not cross-post unnecessarialy.
comp.sys.apple2 Discussion about Apple II micros.
comp.sys.apple2.comm Apple II data communications.
comp.sys.apple2.gno The Apple IIGS GNO multitasking environment.
comp.sys.apple2.marketplace Buying, selling and trading Apple II equipment.
comp.sys.apple2.programmer Programming on the Apple II.
comp.sys.apple2.usergroups All about Apple II user groups.
comp.sources.apple2 + Source code-only postings for the Apple II.
comp.binaries.apple2 Binary-only postings for the Apple II computer.
alt.emulators.ibmpc.apple2 discussion of an IBM program that emulates a II
(+) c.sources.a2 is the only group that is moderated.
INFO-APPLE is a mailing list that is maintained on some networks other
than Usenet. Comp.sys.apple2 messages are sent to INFO-APPLE and INFO-APPLE
messages are sent to comp.sys.apple2. The central location of INFO-APPLE is
at apple.com.
Thank you, Apple Computer!
Comp.sys.apple2 is also accessed by users of ProLine bulletin board
systems. ProLine systems run, appropriately enough, on Apple II computers.
ProLine users account for a large group of participants on comp.sys.apple2.
Using ProLine's Conference System, users can read and reply to articles on
comp.sys.apple2, as well as many other Usenet newsgroups. And since ProLine
systems have UUCP/Internet access, users can also exchange electronic mail
with people world-wide.
To subscribe (or (sadly) unsubscribe) to INFO-APPLE, send your request to
the info-apple-request@apple.com address. Please do not send subscription
requests to info-apple@apple.com - it is doubtful that you will achieve what
you are attempting!!!! There is no need to subscribe to INFO-APPLE when you
are getting comp.sys.apple2, since the messages are identical.
To post a message to the thousands of readers of INFO-APPLE (and
comp.sys.apple2) subscribers send their messages to one of the following
addresses: info-apple@apple.com OR comp-sys-apple2@ucbvax.berkeley.edu. To
post programs to be used by thousands of grateful readers, send the
appropriately formatted mail to one of the following addresses: Ececutable
code in BSQ format (with text describing what it is in the first message) to
comp-binaries-apple2@ucbvax.berkeley.edu. Source code in AAF format should go
to comp-sources-apple2@ucbvax.berkeley.edu
[There is no need for comp.sys.apple2 users to do this - they can use the
standard posting features of Usenet.]
On BITNET, INFO-APP@NDSUVM1 (aka VM1.Nodak.Edu) is available through the
LISTSERV on NDSUVM1 to distribute the Apple II discussion mail and
APPLE2-L@BROWNVM distributes messages dealing with programs. They work by
maintaining a private list of users who wish to see the messages in their
mailbox.
------------------------------
Date: 1/1/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: comp.binaries.apple2 and comp.sources.apple2
Comp.binaries.apple2 is a newsgroup used to distribute public domain,
freeware, and shareware Apple II software (executables, pictures, sounds,
etc...). Software distributed on comp.binaries.apple2 is expected to be a
BinSCII text file of ShrinkIt archives. [See later in the FAQ for information
on getting these programs.] ALWAYS include text in the first message that
describes what is in the BSQ file. Include such things as what type of
computer it runs on and what it does.
[Public Domain programs may be used and copyied freely. FreeWare is the
same, except that the origninal owner retains the Copyright. ShareWare
programs can be distributed freely, and tried out for free, but if you use it
a lot, you are expected to help pay for it.]
Comp.sources.apple2 is a newsgroup used to distribute public domain,
freeware, and shareware Apple II source code. The posts in
comp.sources.apple2 should be in Apple Archive Format. Contact
jac@paul.rutgers.edu for details.
Discussions concerning the software posted in these groups, or the
methods of locating, decoding, or accessing this software, or questions on
locating archive sites of this software, or any OTHER discussions are to be
held in comp.sys.apple2. If someone DOES either intentionally or accidentally
post to these groups, please respond only in Email - do not compound the
problem!
Note: Distributing commercial software on the net is a crime - just don't
do it!
------------------------------
Date: 1/1/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: E-mail to other services
Compuserve: Enter the Compuserve numerical address, replacing commas with
periods, and tack "@compuserve.com" to the end. America Online: Enter the
America Online address, followed by "@aol.com". Do not use uppercase letters
in the AOL name.
------------------------------
Date: 6/7/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: Anonymous FTP sites and e-mail servers
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It allows one Internet computer to
access files on another site. Many sites archive software and make it
available via Anonymous FTP. The following is a list of sites with Apple //
related files.
THE BIG SEVEN
=============
(All the shareware, freeware, & PD ware you could possibly want)
Site name Directory
--------- ---------
apple2.archive.umich.edu /archive/apple2 (Note 1)
brownvm.brown.edu LISTSERV.193 (Note 2)
cco.caltech.edu /pub/apple2 (mostly GS, but some non-GS)
f.ms.uky.edu /pub/appleII
grind.isca.uiowa.edu /apple2
plains.nodak.edu /pub/apple2
wuarchive.wustl.edu /systems/apple2
/usenet/comp.binaries.apple2
/usenet/comp.sources.apple2
Note 1: The umich site is hard to FTP to directly. Use Gopher
(type "gopher gopher.itd.umich.edu"), AFS (type "cd
/afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive/apple2"), or use these mirrors:
wuarchive.wustl.edu:/mirrors/archive.umich.edu
info2.rus.uni-stuttgart.de:/afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive
archive.orst.edu:/pub/mirrors/archive.umich.edu
Note 2: Files on brownvm.brown.edu are stored by serial number. For a
human-readable directory, send e-mail with the text "help" to
listserv@brownvm.brown.edu.
Smaller sites
=============
calvin.sfasu.edu /pub/apple2 (HyperC, a few other things)
cs.bu.edu /PC/APPLE (a little bit of everything)
ftp.apple.com /dts/aii (sys software, tech notes)
ftp.cc.utexas.edu /gifstuff (some Apple GIF programs)
ftp.hawaii.edu /incoming/apple2 (a couple of games)
iskut.ucs.ubc.ca /pub/apple (Kermit, BinSCII, unshrinkit)
pindarus.cs.uiuc.edu /pub/apple2 (GNO utils and info)
slab.slip.uiuc.edu /apple2 (GScii, fonts, GS sys 6)
ucrmath.ucr.edu /PC/apple2 (LISA assembler)
Archives of comp.sources.apple2
===============================
wuarchive.wustl.edu /usenet/comp.sources.apple2 (complete!)
cnam.cnam.fr /pub/Archives/comp.sources.apple2 (incomplete)
hp4nl.nluug.nl /pub/newsarchive/comp/sources/apple2 (incomplete)
mcsun.eu.net /pub/newsarchive/comp/sources/apple2 (incomplete)
nic.funet.fi /pub/archive/comp.sources.apple2 (complete?)
Archives of comp.sys.apple2
===========================
relay.cs.toronto.edu /pub/lists.1989 (1989 only)
wsmr-simtel20.army.mil PD2:<ARCHIVES.APPLE> (1990 and 1991 only)
Kermit-only archives
====================
watsun.cc.columbia.edu /kermit/a (the OFFICIAL source for Kermit)
j.cc.purdue.edu /kermit/appleII (an old version)
oswego.oswego.edu /pub/kermit/appleII (an old version)
shark.nosc.mil KER*MIT.
syr.edu /software/kermit/appleII (an old version)
Apple II-related e-mail servers
===============================
Internet address BITNET address
---------------- --------------
LISTSERV@brownvm.brown.edu LISTSERV@BROWNVM (APPLE2-L archives)
LISTSERV@utarlvm1.uta.edu LISTSERV@UTARLVM1 (games from APPLE2-L)
archive-server@plains.nodak.edu FILESERV@PLAINS (lotsa stuff)
LISTSERV@vm1.nodak.edu LISTSERV@NDSUVM1 (INFO-APPLE mailing list)
Users without USENET access may subscribe to comp.sys.apple2/INFO-APPLE by
writing to info-apple-request@apple.com.
Generic FTP-by-email servers
============================
BITFTP@PUCC (BITNET only)
ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com
Subtopic: A quick blurb on Anonymous FTP
================================
FTP is a protocol for tranfer between different computers on the
internet. Most Proline sites are not directly on the internet, and cannot do
regular FTP. Anonymous FTP is where you use "anonymous" as your username, and
your e-mail address as your password. As a guest, you must not abuse your
privileges: Only use the site at off peak times: i.e. after 6pm LOCAL time.
(Yes, these sites are all over the world: fr=France, jp=Japan). Your system
administrator can help you if you are not familiar with FTP.
You can use the following commands in FTP:
Command Explanation
------------- -------------------------------------
type binary set binary mode to on for .SHK, .tar,
or .Z files. (Not needed for .BSQ files)
ls list the files in the current remote directory
cd /pub/apple2 to change the current directory
get file.name to get a file from the remote system
put file.name to send a file to the remote system
quit leave FTP
Subtopic: Apple II-related Electronic Mail servers
================================
[users who have access to FTP should not need to use the e-mail servers]
APPLE2-L is an software archive of Apple II programs provided by a BITNET
mail server. To get help, send mail with a body of 'help' to
LISTSERV@BROWNVM.BITNET. You can also send the message 'INDEX APPLE2-L' for a
long listing of the Apple 2 archives. To get a program (BinSCII in this
example), send the message 'get APPLE2-L 89-01123'. The file will come by
return e-mail in text format. Most of the files come in BinSCII format
(except BinSCII, of course-- it's in EXE format). Note that many sites have a
maximum size on e-mail, so be sure to check the size of the file (the nrecs
column) before getting it. The server may break up files for you (and you
must piece them together before decoding them).
Chris Chung <CHRIS@BROWNVM> administers APPLE2-L. (Thanks Chris!)
There is also the server at plains.nodak. Send e-mail with the body
'help' or 'index appleII' to archive-server@plains.nodak.edu for details.
Note that these e-mail servers must do more work than FTP servers, and
they can cause quite a bit of traffic on the networks. Do not abuse them by
requesting large files. For alternatives, check the 'Apple II resources' part
of the FAQ.
---------Internet------------- ----------BITNET--------
archive-server@plains.nodak.edu FILESERV@PLAINS (BITNET)
KERMSRV@cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu KERMSRV@CUVMA (BITNET)
LISTSERV@brownvm.brown.edu LISTSERV@BROWNVM (BITNET)
LISTSERV@utarlvm1.uta.edu LISTSERV@UTARLVM1 (BITNET)
{umn-cs, ogicse, uunet}!plains!archive-server (UUCP)
Note: Most games from comp.binaries.apple2 are stored on UTARLVM1, rather
than BROWNVM.
Subtopic: Archie, the archive searcher
================================
There is a program called archie that allows you to search many archives
quickly. Look for the program 'archie' or 'xarchie' at your site, or you can
telnet (login as archie) to:
archie.rutgers.edu 128.6.18.15 (Rutgers University)
archie.unl.edu 129.93.1.14 (University of Nebraska in Lincoln)
archie.ans.net 147.225.1.2 (ANS archie server)
archie.mcgill.ca 132.206.2.3 (Canada server, original archie site)
archie.au 139.130.4.6 (Australian server)
archie.funet.fi 128.214.6.100 (European server in Finland)
archie.doc.ic.ac.uk 146.169.11.3 (UK/England server)
archie.cs.huji.ac.il 132.65.6.15 (Israel server)
archie.wide.ad.jp 133.4.3.6 (Japanese server)
------------------------------
Date: 6/7/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: Some common filename extensions
Many times, people put filename extensions (extra characters at the end
of a filename) to denote what type of file it is. Please note that these are
just accepted standards. If a file does not indicate it's type, see the
'Field guide to file formats'. The following is a table of some common
filename extensions. See the section on 'Archivers and decoders' for programs
that will deal with these files.
Extension What is it? (What program do I use?)
--------- ---------------------------------------------------------------
.aaf [TEXT] Apple Archive Format for source code (aaf.unpacker)
.ACU NuFX (Shrinkit)
.ARC ARC Archive (IBM ARC, GS Shrinkit, //e Angel or DeArc2E)
.CPT Compactor Pro archive (Compactor Pro on a Mac only)
.BSC BinScii file. [TEXT] (BinScii)
.BSQ BinScii'ed NuFX file. [TEXT] (BinScii, Shrinkit on the result)
.BXY NuFX archive with a Binary II header. (Shrinkit)
.BNY BLU archive. (Shrinkit)
.BQY NuFX with BLU header. (Shrinkit)
.BNX NuFX with BLU header. (Shrinkit)
.exe Executioner file [TEXT]. May only work in DOS 3.3.
.GIF Graphics Interchange Format: Compressed picture.
(IIGIF for //e, many programs for all other computers)
.HQX Mac BinHex file. [TEXT] (BinHex on Mac or GSCII+)
.JPG Newer graphics format. (only Unix/IBM/etc viewers)
.JPEG Newer graphics format. (only Unix/IBM/etc viewers)
.LZH LZH Archive (IBM/Amiga LZH program, //e Angel)
.LHA LHA Archive (IBM/Amiga LZH program, //e Angel)
.QQ BLU archive. (Shrinkit)
.SEA Self-extracting archive (Might be Mac, Might be Shrinkit archive)
.SIT Mac StuffIt archive. (Stuffit on Mac or GS ShrinkIt)
GS Shrinkit will not decode StuffIt Deluxe files.
.SHK NuFX archive. (Shrinkit)
.SDK NuFX with a shrunk disk image. (Shrinkit)
.tar Unix Tape Archive (Unix tar [with -xvf option, GS EXE tar])
.txt [TEXT] An ASCII text file: usually english text.
.TIFF Graphics format (GS SHR Convert)
.uu Unix uuencode file [TEXT] (//e uudecode, Unix uudecode)
.ZOO IBM Zoo Archive (GS Shrinkit or IBM ZOO program, //e Angel)
.ZIP IBM Zip Archive (GS EXE Unzip, IBM PKUNZIP, Unix unzip, //e Angel)
.Z Compressed file (GS Shrinkit, Unix uncompress, //e Angel)
All of these types, except the ones marked [TEXT] are BINARY files.
Binary files cannot be sent over e-mail, posted to the newsgroups or FTP'd in
text mode. You must FTP them in binary mode (see the section on FTP). You can
also download them using kermit, X-,Y- or Z-Modem.
Generally, anything labeled as 'Archive' above will contain multiple
files, and even subdirectories. Most archives are also in compressed format.
Sometimes you will find multiple filename extensions. Simply take the
filename extensions apart one at a time and you should be able to reconstruct
the original file. (i.e. somefile.bsq.tar.Z would mean: uncompress, untar,
unbinscii, then unShrink to get the original file!)
------------------------------
Date: 1/1/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: Archivers and decoders
Subtopic: BinSCII
================================
BinScii converts binary files to text files and back. Binary files
contain pictures, computer programs, etc. Text files usually contain human
readable text (like this file), but a BinSCII file just looks like a jumble
of letters and symbols. A BinScii text file is larger than the original
binary file. Binscii is needed to transfer programs across the network when
there is no binary mode (like the Usenet newsgroups and e-mail).
When turning a binary file into text, BinSCII will output a series of
files. Each file contains a segment of the original program encoded in
BinSCII format. These segments are small enough to be posted or e-mailed
without clogging the network. (Actually, they are usually posted 3 at a time
to save bandwidth).
When re-creating a binary file from the BinScii segments, all one has to
do is collect ALL the segments and run them through BinScii. Each segment has
a header that tells BinScii which segment it is. BinScii is intelligent
enough to wade through all extraneous text (i.e. newsgroup headers, etc) and
find the segments. It does not matter what order the segments are in, and the
segments can be in different files. The only thing you have to remember is
that BinScii does not check to see if ALL of the segments have been accounted
for. If there are segments missing, the program will not work, or more likely
you will get a 'file corrupted' error when unshrinking.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/8bit/archivers/binscii.exe
FTP: ?
GS users can use GSCII+, an NDA version of Binscii. GSCII+ can also
encode/decode several other formats.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/gs/archivers/gscii.bsc
[ Note that most files on the network are NuFX archives that have been
BinSCII'ed so they can be posted. After running Binscii, you will still need
to run ShrinkIt on the resulting file.]
For those of us on Unix boxes who are able to transfer binary files to
our Apple ][, SciiBin can reduce the time spend downloading. It is a
decode-only version of BinSCII written in C. The idea is that you compile
this on your Unix box, and run your BinScii files from comp.binaries.apple2
through it. It will re-create the original (smaller) file. This works great
if there is a NuFX archive in the BinSCII file, but can cause problems if
BinSCII was applied directly to ProDos executable files. (Unix has no way of
storing the ProDos file type and aux type of a file, so they simply get lost.
See the section on filetypes.
FTP: wuarchive.wustl.edu /?
If you need a Unix BinSCII encoder, Bsc will do the trick. The source
code is in "Apple archive format".
FTP: cco.caltech.edu /pub/apple2/source/bsc.aaf ?
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/unix/bsc.aaf
Subtopic: ShrinkIt and NuFX archives
================================
ShrinkIt is an Apple II program which takes one or more Apple II ProDOS
files or disks and 'archives' them into a single file (called a NuFX
archive). It also stores all the vital ProDos information, such as filetype
and auxtype. Usually these files are denoted by putting a ".SHK" extension on
the archive. ShrinkIt can also shrink an entire disk into a file (extension
".SDK"), but this is only used when the disk is not ProDos. ShrinkIt is also
a menu driven utility that compresses/extracts, but also formats disks,
copies files, etc. ShrinkIt can also extract programs with Binary II headers,
and files in BLU archives.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/8bit/archivers/shrinkit.3.3.exe.bsc
GShk is a version of ShrinkIt for GS computers. This is even more of a
wonder utility in that it extracts many different archive types (Unix
compress, PC Arc, Mac StuffIt, Apple Single). Files encoded with GShk are
usually smaller than those encoded with ShrinkIt, but can still be extracted
with ShrinkIt (except files with resource forks).
ShrinkIt+ and UnShrinkIt+ are programs for the Apple II+ that allow an
Apple II+ user to create NuFX archives and extract from them. Autounshrink is
a NuFX extractor that attempts to recover from errors within an NuFX file.
Subtopic: Executioner
================================
Executioner was the standard program previous to BinSCII for converting
Apple II files into text to be mailed/posted. It is no longer considered the
standard for most transferals of Apple II binary files. Presently,
Executioner is typically only used to distribute BinSCII. Some older files in
the various archives may also be encoded with this program. Many of them will
not work under ProDos.
To translate an Executioner text file to an Apple II file required that
you delete the mail headers/trailers, translated the newlines into carriage
returns, download the file to your Apple II and from Applesoft Basic, type
the command 'EXEC <filename>' where <filename> is the name of the file you
downloaded.
Subtopic: Apple Archive Format (aaf)
================================
Apple Archive Format was invented as a standard way to post source code
to comp.sources.apple2. The C and Basic source code to aaf unpackers are
available on the various FTP sites, in aaf format. Fortunately, files in aaf
format can be turned back into source code with a simple text editor. Just
break the file up into component files and remove the first character of each
line.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/unix/*.aaf
Subtopic: Net standard formats
================================
There are several formats that are used widely on the Internet. The most
common in FTP sites are tar (.tar) and compress (.Z). To undo a Tape ARchive,
type 'tar -xvf filename.tar'. To undo a compress, type 'uncompress
filename.Z'. Since tar does not make the file smaller, and compress can only
compress 1 file, many times you will find files that are 'tarred an
feathered'. They have a '.tar.Z' extension. Just run uncompress then un-tar
the result.
To distribute binaries on the net, most other groups use uuencode (c.b.a2
uses BinSCII). To return them to normal, type 'uudecode filename'. Note that
uuencoded things were not meant to be split up and posted, so when getting
multiple parts, you will have to paste them together and run them through
uudecode. (BinSCII is a lot smarter, that's why we use it on c.b.a2.) BinSCII
is better because 1) It stores the ProDos filetype, etc. 2) It splits the
file into 12K chunks, 3) It does a CRC checksum on each chunk.
Most of these 'Unix' standard formats are available on the Apple. For
example, ShrinkIt GS will uncompress files, there is a uudecode for the //e,
and Tar is available as a GS shell executable.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/8bit/util/dearc.*
Subtopic: A quick note about ProDos filetypes
================================
ProDos keeps some information about a file's type. Files can be text
(TXT), binary (BIN), executable (SYS), fonts (FON), etc. Most other file
systems do not have a place to store this information, so it may get 'lost'
when you upload the file. Similarly, when you download a file, you may not
know the file type. Most comm programs will use some default. For NuFX
archives, this is not a big deal, since you can still unpack an archive if
the filetype is wrong (and the archive stores the filetype of the files
inside the archive). For other files, you may need to change the file's type.
One utility I recommend is File Attribute Zapper II.
FTP: apple2.archive.umich.edu /apple2/8bit/util/fazz.2.3.bsq
Program Format Author
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nulib v3.21 C Andy McFadden (fadden@uts.amdahl.com)
SciiBin v3.10 C Marcel Mol, Dave Whitnet, Bruce Kahn
Bsc v1.2 C Neil Parker
Executioner A Glen Bredon
BinSCII v1.0.3 A David Whitney (davewh@microsoft.com)
ShrinkIt v3.3 A Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
(Un)ShrinkIt+ A Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
AutoUnShrink A Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
GShk v1.1 G Andy Nicholas (shrinkit@apple.com)
GSCII+ 2.3.1 G Darek Taubert (dat33228@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu)
Format:
C - Distributed as source code written in C.
A - Executable, runs on most Apple //s.
G - Executable, runs on GS only.
|Type| NuFX | Bin | uuen-| com- |.ZOO | Bin | LZH/| Stuff| ARC | Other|
Program | | | SCII | code | press | | Hex | LHA | -It | | |
--------|-|------|------|------|-------|-----|-----|-----|------|-----|------|
Binscii |E| | X | | | | | | | | |
Shrinkit|E| X | | | | | | | | | |
DeArc |E| | | | | | | | | D | |
Angel[1]|E| | | | X | X | | X | | X | .ZIP |
GShk |G| X | | | D | D | | | D | D | |
GSCII+ |G| | X | X | | | D | | | | .AAF |
sscii |X| | X | X | | | X | | | | |
PMPUnzip|X| | | | | | | | | | .ZIP |
LHext |X| | | | | | | D? | | | |
BSC |C| | E | | | | | | | | |
Nulib |C| X | | | | | | | | | |
SciiBin |C| | D | | | | | | | | |
(Key: E = Encode only, D = Decode only, X = Encode and Decode)
(Type: E = Apple //e, G = GS Only, X = GS EXE file, C = C Source code)
[1] Angel is pretty Buggy, but it's worth a try.
------------------------------
Date: 6/7/93
From: dmag@umich.edu
Subject: How to get stuff off the net
This is a tricky question. You will have to look around for what
resources you can get your hands on. You can break it down into two steps.
Step 1: Get the file to your online account. Step 2: get the file to your ][.
Step 1:
-Get it via FTP (See section on FTP.)
-get it off of comp.binaries.apple2 (see local readnews [rn] man page)
-Have someone e-mail you the file.
-Find the file in the downloads section of a BBS/online service.
Once you have the file on your online account, you may want to run
uudecode, uncompress, tar, SciiBin, Nulib, etc on the file. See the section
on Decoders and archivers for details. By far, most Apple // files are
transferred around in either .SHK (NuFX) or .BSQ format. I recommend getting
SciiBin to turn your .BSQ files into .SHK files for 3 reasons: 1) The archive
is smaller than the original files, and a LOT smaller than BinScii files. 2)
One file can hold all the files and documentation for the program. 3) The
archive keeps the ProDos filetype information.
Step 2 also has a variety of options:
a) If your ][ has a modem, you may be able to download it directly. There are
a variety of downloading protocols (both sides must support the same
protocol). Kermit is slowest, but can work over a 7 bit network. X-Modem
is faster and available just about everywhere. Y-modem and Z-modem are
even better. (the Unix command for zmodem is usually 'sz'). Sometimes
downloading can be tricky if you are not familiar with your terminal
program.
b) If you have access to a Mac or IBM that is on the internet/has a modem,
see the Q & A section on ways to tranfer files from those computers.
Once you get the file to your Apple, you have to undo any encoding (i.e.
run ShrinkIt). Alternately, you may have to change the ProDos file type. One
easy way is to use File Attribute Zapper II (FAZII).
Subtopic: Communications programs
================================
If you go for route (a) above, you will need a communications program on
your Apple //. Most of the time, the program is simply a 'dumb terminal'
putting characters on the screen and sending them out the serial port to the
modem. There are two areas where the program actually DOES something:
terminal emulation and downloading. Emulation is where your computer pretends
to be a certain type of terminal. By far, the standard is VT-100. This allows
the other computer to do nice effects on your screen, like clear it or move
text around. If your program doesn't support it, your screen may look funny,
and you will see ]'s and ;'s where the remote computer is trying to make the
screen look nice. IBM's use a special character set and variation of VT-100
called ANSI. ProTerm supports a subset of this (no graphics), and also
another format called ProTerm Special Emulation (PSE). [Don't you just love
standards?]
The other time your term program matters is when you are trying to
download. By far, the Apple ][ standard is X-modem. It allows a file to be
sent across a modem with an error correction protocol. New variations are
Y-modem and Z-modem. These are very, very nice and should be used where
possible. Note that both sides have to support it in order to use it. There
is also a protocol called Kermit. You are probably better off using X-modem,
but sometimes it is useful.
Program Comp Emulations Protocols Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ProTerm E$ PSE, VT-100 Kermit, X,Y,Z-modem From InSync
Kermit-65 E VT-100 Kermit, X-modem Hard to use,Works on ][+
Z-Link E VT-100 X-modem Good.
CommSys E none X-modem Works on ][+
TIC E$ VT-52 (+) X-modem For hackers. From Q-Labs
Agate E mono ANSI X,(Y,Z rec'v only) Unpacks ZIP, Buggy
ColorTerm GS color ANSI X-modem Desktop based
MegaTerm GS color ANSI none ProDOS 8
ANSITerm GS$ color ANSI, PSE X,Y,Z-modem Editor, scrollback, etc.
SnowTerm GS VT-100 (+) none Desktop based
FreeTerm GS none X-modem Desktop based
GenComm GS none none Text, Shell Compat.
GSVT GS VT-100 none Desktop
GTerm GS color ANSI none Written in BASIC/ML
Telcom GS VT-100, PSE X, (Y rec'v only) Shell compat
----------Key:---------
Key: $ = A commercial program
Computer: E = works on GS and //e, GS = only works on GS
See the resources section for where to buy the commercial programs.
All of the non-commercial programs are available on the different FTP
sites. If you don't have a comm program already, your best bet is to have
someone mail you one on a disk.
*T 1/1/93,dmag@umich.edu,Field guide to file formats
Here is a simple guide to help you identify a file. You should always go
by filename extension first, but not everybody uses those. In Unix, you can
use the 'head' command to look at the first couple of lines of a file. If it
turns out to be a binary file, you may be in for a nasty surprise. You may
want to use the Unix 'file' command to find out if it is a text file or not
first. Once you have identified the file, see the section on filename
extensions for how to deal with it.
If there are lines in the file that look like this (there can be other
text before it--search for 'FiLeStArT'):
FiLeStArTfIlEsTaRt
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz0123456789()
GBINSCII AQhmAAAAA8)4MIAI02DA9ARMQEDtAQhmAIVZ
gYITA6u7xADA0MjM3YTNBlDOENkQwYURzITM2UDN5gzNDJUQGVERyEDM1QzM4cjN
CFUOFR0QxAjR0MjM3YTNBlDOENkQwAQRzITM2UDN5gzNDJUQGVERyEDM1QzM4cjN
..
then you've got something encoded by BinSCII. You must decode _all_ the
parts using BinSCII before attempting to extract using ShrinkIt.
On the other hand, if you have a binary file which resembles:
NuFilei][