[HEA]
    _____________________   ___                                   _
    |___   ______________| |   |                                 | |
        |  | _             |   |                                 | |
        |  || |            |   |                                 | |
        |  || |            |   |                                 | |
        |  || |            |   |   ____ _   _ _   _   ______     | |
        |  || |            |   |  / __ \ | | / \_/ \  | ___ \    | |
        |  || |__   ____   |   | / /  \  | |  /\ /\ \ | |  \ \   | |
        |  ||  _ \ |  _ \  |   | \ \__/  | | | |_|| | | |__/ /   | |
        |  || | | || |_||  |   |  \___/|_| |_|    |_| | ____/    |_|
        |  || | | || |__   |   |____________________  | |         _
        |__||_| |_|\____/  |________________________| | |        |_|
                                                      | |
         Lighting Your Apple II Path                  | |
                                                      |_|

-----------------------------------


                       >>> WELCOME TO THE LAMP! <<<
                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


           THE BEST OF THE A2 BULLETIN BOARD ON Syndicomm Online
          AND THE BEST OF THE DELPHI A2 AND A2PRO MESSAGE BOARDS
           "Teaching the Apple II user how to fish since 1998"


 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
 The Lamp!            An Onipa'a Software Production       Vol. 4, No. 12
 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
 Publisher................................Ryan M. Suenaga, M.S.W., L.S.W.
 Editor.....................................................Lyle Syverson
 Internet Email, Publisher.........................thelamp@sheppyware.net
 Internet Email, Editor................................lyle@FoxValley.net
 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                            TABLE OF CONTENTS
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                            December 15, 2001

HIGH ABOVE THE ROCK RIVER---------------------------------------------[OPN]
     Milestones
     The Little Seed That Could

A2 FORUM AT Syndicomm Online (A2Central.com) DISTILLATIONS
     Gotta Haves for the IIgs-----------------------------------------[GHG]
     Temperamental IIgs-----------------------------------------------[TGS]
     Cleaning the Contacts on a IIgs----------------------------------[CTC]
     Unannounced, Secret Contest--------------------------------------[USC]
     Another Winner---------------------------------------------------[AWR]
     Manual for Original Apple II SCSI Card---------------------------[MSC]
     SOAR 1.0b7 Available, v1.0b8 Available Soon----------------------[SUA]
     Most Comprehensive Set of Apple II Files-------------------------[CAF]
     Registering a Domain Name----------------------------------------[RDN]
     What is DNS Serving?---------------------------------------------[WDS]
     The MOSP---------------------------------------------------------[TMP]
     Dealing With Spam in Email---------------------------------------[DWS]
     A2PIX Updated to v3.0b9------------------------------------------[APU]
     Apple II Software for GIF Files----------------------------------[ASG]
     Numbers of ROM 01 vs ROM 3 GSs Produced--------------------------[NGP]
     AppleDesign ADB keyboard work on an Apple IIGS?------------------[ADK]
     Super Serial Card vs Super Serial Card II------------------------[SSC]
     Hard Drive Preferences-------------------------------------------[HDP]
     Interested in a MPW IIgs Bundle CD-ROM?--------------------------[MBC]
     LANceGS Glitch Found---------------------------------------------[LGF]
     Apple II Documentation for Newbies-------------------------------[ADN]
     What Documentation is Needed?------------------------------------[WDN]
     The Welcome Wagon Project----------------------------------------[WWP]
     Were IN/OUT Vectors Fixed in GS/OS?------------------------------[IOV]
     Network Time Protocol--------------------------------------------[NTP]
     Recommended Book?------------------------------------------------[RBK]
     PDF File Type - More Discussion----------------------------------[PDF]

ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM SYNDICOMM
     Free Game for Joining Syndicomm Online---------------------------[FGJ]
     Been a Good Year For Syndicomm Online----------------------------[BGY]
     Adding Forums at a Good Clip-------------------------------------[AFC]
     The Prolific Quill community invites you to participate----------[TPQ]
     Syndicomm Online opened its doors one year ago,------------------[SOO]

DELPHI A2 DISTILLATIONS
     Strange Memory Card----------------------------------------------[SMC]

DELPHI A2PRO DISTILLATIONS
     Marinetti Open Source Project------------------------------------[MOS]
     The Apple IIgs Debugger------------------------------------------[AGD]

CHANGES AT DELPHI
     Delphi Merging With eHow and Idea Exchange-----------------------[DMG]
     Delphi, the Latest Score-----------------------------------------[DLS]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
     No Letters to the Editor This Month------------------------------[NLE]
     An Invitation----------------------------------------------------[LTE]

KFEST 2002
     Plan Ahead for K-Fest 2002---------------------------------------[PAK]

EXTRA INNINGS
     About The Lamp! ------------------------------------------------ [INN]


                                [*] [*] [*]

READING THE LAMP!   The index system used by The Lamp! is designed to make
"""""""""""""""""   your reading easier.  To use this system, load this
issue into any word processor or text editor.  In the index you will find
something like:

EXTRA INNINGS
     About The Lamp! ------------------------------------------------ [INN]

To read this article, simply use your search or find command to locate
[INN].  There is a similar tag at the end of each article: [EOA].



[OPN]-------------------------------
         HIGH ABOVE THE ROCK RIVER |
------------------------------------
From The Editor
"""""""""""""""
by Lyle Syverson <lyle@FoxValley.net>

                                Milestones
                                ~~~~~~~~~~
     The view from High Above The Rock River this day in mid December is
unusual, but beautiful.  Unseasonably warm weather, with abundant rain
rather than snow, has resulted in the ground being carpeted in a rich green
color.

     We have a clear view of the "mile markers" along the sides of the
highway in the distance... a reminder of the milestones of many years ago.

     Syndicomm Online reached a milestone this month.  The service went
online December 8, 2000 with an open beta test period.  The growth of
service and the evolution of the software to provide this service has been
very impressive.

     Other milestones were reached this month.  This is the forty eighth
issue of The Lamp!... a full four years of publication.  I have served as
editor for twenty four months... which means I have tied Ryan in length of
service as editor of The Lamp!

                        The Little Seed That Could
                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     Early this past Spring, there appeared in a crack in the sidewalk near
a flower bed nearby, the sprout of a viola.  A seed from the previous year
had fallen into the crack and sprouted.  This plant, small in stature, was
soon displaying brilliant yellow blooms... radiating a beautiful greeting
to all who passed.

     The gardener has removed all the plants from the flower bed so as to
clean it up for the following season... but overlooked the little viola.
The unusually warm, moist season has favored this tiny plant... it
continues to bloom to this day.

     So if you think you have it tough and have no time to help others who
have an interest in Apple II computers, consider the tiny viola growing in
that crack in the sidewalk.

     You might consider helping with the Apple II Documentation Project or
the Welcome Wagon Project.  (For more information see Distillations from
Syndicomm Online in this issue.)

     You might consider a presentation at K-Fest 2002.  (See the K-Fest
section in this issue for dates.)

[EOA]



ASCII ART BEGINS
_________  _                     _                                      _
|__   __| | |                   | |                                    | |
   | |    | |                   | |                                    | |
   | |    | |___     ____       | |       _____   __ ___ _   _ _____   | |
   | |    | ___ \   / __ \      | |      /____ \  | v   v | | v ___ \  | |
   | |    | |  | | | /__\ \     | |       ____| | | /\ /\ | |  /   \ \ | |
   | |    | |  | | | _____|     | |      / ___  | | || || | | |    | | |_|
   | |    | |  | | | |_____     | |____  | |__| | | || || | |  \___/ /  _
   |_|    |_|  |_| \______|     |______| \____^_| |_||_||_| | |\____/  |_|
                                                            | |
                                                            | |
                                                            |_|

ASCII ART ENDS
[EOA]

---------------------------------------------------
DISTILLATIONS FROM The A2 FORUM at Syndicomm.com  |
                                  (A2Central.com) |
---------------------------------------------------

by Lyle Syverson <lyle@foxvalley.net>

[GHG]
GOTTA HAVES FOR THE IIgs
""""""""""""""""""""""""
I am currently reinstalling my GS and was wondering (so I don't miss
something) what are must haves on any GS system?  From patches, to sound
tools, to games, telecom, text editors....whatever you can think of.  CDAs,
NDAs..whatever:)

Thanks for your help,

Dain
Keeper of the A2 Boards.
A2 on Syndicomm.com.

(A2.DAIN, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 15)

>>>>>
"""""
hehe, I'll be doing that before too long too, since my HD was trashed while
in storage.  It seems that the answer to that would make a great chapter in
the A2 Documentation project.

The things I wouldn't/couldn't do without?
PROSel,  GShrinkit,  ShowMe NDA,  Hermes/Shadowrite,
ProTERM A2 and/or Spectrum

Things I really like?
HFS patch,  Sheppy's boot thing I forgot the name of,  Appleworks Classic,
Appleworks GS,  Microsoft Word IIGS -(... only kidding)-,  Platinum Paint,
Beagle Draw,  Quick Clic Calc,  Kangaroo,  Wolfenstein 3D

I don't know much about patches, but what would be really neat would be a
disk with a set of the essential patches that are known to be compatible
with each other.  Of course, there would be copyright problems with
distributing such a disk, but just a list of said patches would be
invaluable.  One could assemble their own disk then.

_________
  | homas

(TCOMPTER, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 16)

>>>>>
"""""
Looking through the list on mine the following stand out:

PIFs:  GUPP,  Quick Launch,  II Not Disturb,  Initmaster,  Desktop Doctor,
       More Info

NDAs:  Balloon,  Hermes,  Show Me,  Megabox,  Sound It,  Sonobox,
       Desktop Alarm,  FreeK,  Telnet NDA,  Yahtzee NDA

CDAs:  Screen Saver,  Zippy

CDVs:  Hierarhic,  Pointless

Of course, I'm far from the most experienced here, buy my GS runs pretty
well these days :)

Kim Howe
Newton Forum Host

(KIMHOWE, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 18)

>>>>>
"""""
I seem to recall there being a GUPP patch.  I need to look around for that.
I know it patched up a few things for you.

Dain Neater
BB Manager

(A2.DAIN, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 17)
[EOA]


[TGS]
TEMPERAMENTAL IIgs
""""""""""""""""""
This tale is a little strange .  It started when my GS would just out of
the blue freeze.  By that I mean that nothing would work, not the mouse,
not the keyboard (except usually for the three finger reset).  This never
seemed to happen when the computer was in use, but when it was just
sitting, usually with the monitor off.

This last time I had to turn the computer off, and when I turned it back on
I got a message about my Ram Disk was too big.  I do not have a ram disk.
Turning it off and back on usually got me the same error message, as did
the warm boot, but occasionally I would get a 308 error (or maybe -308?)
I took out the ram card (just purchased about a month ago) but there was no
difference.  I then removed the ethernet card, the RamFast card, and
finally the ZipGS card (putting back the original cpu chip). At this point,
with all of these cards out but with the ram card in, it almost booted from
a floppy.  Almost, but not quite.

I put everything back in and was getting it ready to take to my local Apple
store tomorrow.  I turned it on and I am writing this message on it. :)
Now, I'm sure that somebody will say that the contacts on one of the cards
was corroded or that one of the cards was not completely in the slot, but I
had taken each card out separately and re-seated it previously in my
trials.

So, I would appreciate any guesses as to how long I will be able to keep
this machine running, and any guesses as to which of the four cards was the
most likely villain.

 David R. Pierce
 Delivered by Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR v1.0b7

(DAVIDP, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 19)

>>>>>
"""""
No clue here.  I am one of those people who have had surprisingly good luck
with my IIgs.  About the only thing that I have had gone bad, is my Hard
Disk that was on a focus drive.  I just swapped in a new one and it works
good as new.  I also have never had many problems other than freezes when
trying to push a TranswarpGS.

Dain Neater

(A2.DAIN, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 20)

>>>>>
"""""
Although you have taken out all the cards and cleaned their contacts, have
you also taken out the power supply connector and cleaned its contacts?
I find that needs to be done about every six months, or the voltages drop
to a point where things start to fail. If you see the screen flicker at all
during floppy access, then it is a sure sign that the power connector needs
to be cleaned.

You could also check that all the removable chips, and SCSI connectors,
have clean contacts as well...

 Ewen Wannop - Speccie - Sat 8 Dec 2001 - 227 days till KFest '02
 Delivered without using a IIgs by Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR 1.0b5
 Setup: Bernie ][ the Rescue 3.0 and a dual G4/800Mhz GeForce3
 http://www.ewannop.btinternet.co.uk/

(CONDUCTOR, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 21)
[EOA]


[CTC]
CLEANING THE CONTACTS ON A IIgs
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
I have never cleaned the contacts on this ROM 3 that I have, although
I really haven't had it that long.  It hasn't been that unreliable for me
either.  I am sure that it is different for everybody though.

Can cleaning these be dangerous in any way?

Thanks,
Dain Neater

(A2.DAIN, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 23)

>>>>>
"""""
Yes, if you leave the power on you can do serious damage to the GS. :)
Seriously, the best way to clean contacts is to pull and reseat the cards
or chips a couple of times. Same goes with the power connector. For more
serious dirt on card edge connectors, wipe with a lint free cloth with
alcohol.

 Carl Knoblock - Telephone Tech - Sat  8 Dec 01  4:00:38 pm
 cknoblo@applelinc.org - Via Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR v1.0b7
 KFest 2002, July 23-28, 2002 - 227 days till KFest
 On cable via LANceGS & Marinetti 2.0.1 - Thank you, Richard.
 A2 RTC Staff - Saturday Night House Party - carlk@syndicomm.com

(CARLK, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 24)

>>>>>
"""""
I had a GS that would do exactly the same thing (as best I can recall from
about 8 years ago :). I tried what you tried, and it worked, but I couldn't
figure out why. So the next time it did it, I started pulling out cards
again.

Eventually, I determined that if I stripped EVERY CARD out of the computer,
and hooking up NOTHING but the monitor and keyboard, and entered the
control panel  by holding down the Open Apple key at power up and then
chose "set standards and 50 hz" (not 60), exited the control panel and shut
down, that I could then hook everything up, go back into the control panel
and "set standards and 60hz" and it would work fine.

Now that is nothing but voodo. There is no reason why that should work.
None.

But I've seen it work on a grand total of 2.5 machines. (2 for sure, and
one more I think, so I'll count that as .5 :)

If you wind up taking it apart again, give that a try, just for grins.

Gary R. Utter

(HINDMOST, Cat 2, Top 9, Msg 25)
[EOA]


[USC]
UNANNOUNCED, SECRET CONTEST
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Unannounced to the general public, A2 on Syndicomm.com was running a secret
contest during the month of October.

We looked at all the posts to A2 and chose one winner, who would receive a
$10 credit toward their Syndicomm.com account bill.

The winner this month is none other than our own KWS, Kelvin Sherlock!

Keep watching A2 as we hold more secret contests every month.

(A2.RYAN, Cat 2, Top 1, Msg 14)
[EOA]


[AWR]
ANOTHER WINNER
""""""""""""""
Salutations!

As RTC Manager, I was forced by Ryan to give away a $10 credit to some
deserving chatmeister.

It was tough narrowing down the selection though.  After reviewing
megabytes of logs, studying the AFK ratios, measuring verbosity and wit,
and finally general charm, I made my decision.

Then Ryan said I couldn't accept it myself.  *sigh*

So instead, it will go to the second most qualified Real Time Chatter, your
friend and mine...

Carl Knoblock

Congratulations!

Oh.. And Carl... If @Home bites the dust tonight... Never mind.  B-{)

Kirk
RTC Manager

(A2.KIRK, Cat 2, Top 35, Msg 19)
[EOA]


[MSC]
MANUAL FOR ORIGINAL Apple II SCSI CARD
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Wanted: Printed manual that shipped with the original Apple II SCSI card.

Thank you,

Barry Rees
brees@syndicomm.com

(BREES, Cat 3, Top 32, Msg 1)

>>>>>
"""""
If you just need technical info as opposed to the actual manual, you may
want to check <http://kbase.info.apple.com/>  Articles 2075, 2097, 1938,
and 6781 in particular have all the info you'd want on the SCSI card.

Ryan
Chief Sysop and Head Turkey

(A2.RYAN, Cat 3, Top 32, Msg 5)
[EOA]


[SUA]
SOAR 1.0b7 AVAILABLE, v1.0b8 AVAILABLE SOON
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
I have posted a SOAR 1.0b7 update on my web site
<www.ewannop.btinternet.co.uk>. If you have problems with that URL, try
<www.btinternet.com/~ewannop> instead.

This release fixes recent problems with reading some message files where
new Topics are being announced. You will also find that your message runs
are very much faster, as Syndicomm now supports faster access for OLRs at
Forum menus.

Note that Syndicomm will also now abort login if you are using a version of
SOAR earlier than 1.0b5. From version 1.0b7 onwards, SOAR will warn you at
login if a newer version of SOAR is available than the one you are using.

Please also note that a temporary bug on Syndicomm causes spaces in Topic
and Category data to be replaced with tabs. This corrupts the data files
that SOAR collects when it rebuilds the Topic files, and makes them
unusable by the SOAR script set. SOAR ships with correct data for the A2
and Mac Forums, and if you have already got working database files for
other Forums, continue to use those files. For the moment it is unwise to
reset the database files till this bug has been fixed.

 Ewen Wannop - Speccie - Fri 16 Nov 2001 - 249 days till KFest '02
 Delivered without using a IIgs by Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR 1.0b5
 Setup: Bernie ][ the Rescue 3.0 and a dual G4/800Mhz GeForce3
 http://www.ewannop.btinternet.co.uk/

(CONDUCTOR, Cat 10, Top 59, Msg 229)

>>>>>
"""""
Fri Dec 14, 2001:

A small change to the Forum prompts will be made in the next 24 hours. This
change is related to the harmonisation of the Text and the Web side of
Syndicomm.

As a result, an update to SOAR will be necessary to handle the changed
prompts. As soon as the change has been made, and my tests prove all is
well, a new version of SOAR (1.0b8) will be available from my web site.

After the change, SOAR 1.0b7 will either announce at logon that an update
is available, or that it is no longer usable and you should update.

 Ewen Wannop - Speccie - Fri 14 Dec 2001 - 221 days till KFest '02
 Delivered without using a IIgs by Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR 1.0b5
 Setup: Bernie ][ the Rescue 3.0 and a dual G4/800Mhz GeForce3
 http://www.ewannop.btinternet.co.uk/

(CONDUCTOR, Cat 10, Top 59, Msg 234)
[EOA]


[CAF]
MOST COMPREHENSIVE SET OF Apple II FILES
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
BTW, if you didn't know it, you all have access to the most comprehensive
set of Apple II files on the Internet:

ftp://ftp.syndicomm.com

Ryan

(A2.RYAN, Cat 11, Top 2, Msg 12)
[EOA]


[RDN]
REGISTERING A DOMAIN NAME
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
Hello,

I'm thinking of registering a domain name.  Last time I did so, I went
through networksolutions.com and paid $35/year.  Does anyone recommend
another provider of domain names to use, maybe at a cheaper rate?  When
registering, what features or services should I look for that are separate
from those offered by the hosting company?

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 39)

>>>>>
"""""
I haven't registered anything with anyone aside from kfest.org with Network
Solutions.

However, as usual, to find all computer related things cheap, check
dealmac.com.  It lists godaddy.com offering .net, .org, and .com
registrations for $8.95 a year. . .

Ryan

(A2.RYAN, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 40)

>>>>>
"""""
You'd be hard pressed to find a more expensive registrar, or one with worse
customer service than network solutions.

You should probably look for a registrar that lets you update your DNS
server, contact info, etc instantly via a nice web page.  Also, if they
provide free DNS serving, that might be useful.

(KWS, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 41)

>>>>>
"""""
A domain I registered with Network Solutions two years ago is up for
renewal.  Can I renew it with another company, or am I "locked" into NS?

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 45)

>>>>>
"""""
Register.com is a good deal and while not $9.95/year, you get what you pay
for. ;-)

Register.com will let you do your own DNS or do it for you, included in
their price. Register.com will transfer your domain from NS automagically
by just renewing with them instead.

We 'renewed' pacificcoastflyers.org with NS and a month after it was due it
still showed as not being paid but the check was negotiated with the
invoice number written on it even being circled by one of their gnomes and
the domain was not credited. I called them on it and they said "did you put
the right invoice in the envelope" (yes, it was the right one and the same
number written on the check that one of your people circled). "because
perhaps you put the wrong invoice in the envelope and it got credited to
another domain." ... WORTHLESS idiots.

I am not alone with this, as each domain has come due that I have had with
NS I have renewed at register.com instead and it takes care of it for you.

You can transfer any domain simply by paying a year registration right
then. All on the site. Simple.

Tony

(A2.TONYD, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 46)

>>>>>
"""""
I like register.com.  They cost the same as NSI (so not the cheapest in the
world), but they're reliable, easy to deal with, and they have nice online
domain management tools.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                         sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                           http://www.syndicomm.com
                Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 47)

>>>>>
"""""
I use NetworkSolutions for my domain name.  I have never experienced any
problems and prefer them over others.

* They are very conscientious of name harvesting and people stealing names
and have taken actions to limit that kind of abuse

* Lots of payment options: snail mail check, snail mail credit card, online
credit card, phone credit card to person, phone credit card in an automated
system (which I prefer)

* $35/year is still cheap

* Been in business since 1995

* Doesn't track requests through the "whois" server

* I feel safe having my name with them.

* They won't go out of business any time soon so there is no concern having
to pay an additional annual charge within a year

* They are an U.S. company (do you want your personal info going to a
foreign company?)

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 49)

>>>>>
"""""
For many of us, the USA *is* a foreign country!  ;-)

Peter               peterw@syndicomm.com

Palm OS Community Bulletin Board Manager

(PETERW, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 50)
[EOA]


[WDS]
WHAT IS DNS SERVING?
""""""""""""""""""""
What exactly is DNS serving?

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 42)

>>>>>
"""""
DNS servers are used to translate the human readable name that you register
to an actual IP address (as well as other stuff like mail exchanging)  If
you're a big site, you probably have your own DNS server.  If you're using
virtual hosting, the virtual hosting company will tell you to use their DNS
server.  If you're hosting your site from your own computer (and don't want
to deal with DNS serving yourself), you might want to use your registrar's
DNS.

(KWS, Cat 11, Top 11, Msg 48)
[EOA]


[TMP]
THE MOSP
""""""""
Just curious about Marinetti and the M.arinetti O.pen S.ource
P.roject(MOSP).  Has there been any word on it?

Dain Neater
A2 Bulletin Board Manager
Syndicomm

(A2.DAIN, Cat 11, Top 15, Msg 29)
[EOA]


[DWS]
DEALING WITH SPAM IN EMAIL
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
There's an email address I have had for abt seven years but no longer use.
It gets about 100 spam messages a month.  My new address (a year or two
old) is starting to get at least one or two a day now.  What a pain.

So, I just signed up for spamcop.net.  I've been cutting and pasting my
email into their report form for awhile, but now I have all my mail routed
and filtered through them.

It's too soon to determine its effectiveness, but the control and
configuration options of spamcop.net look *much* more powerful than I
expected.

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 1)

>>>>>
"""""
Keep us posted on how effective spamcop.net is.  I'm curious. :)

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 2)

>>>>>
"""""
Sheppy,

I have SpamCop set to either forward my mail to a "clean" account, or
"hold" in my spamcop mailbox what it suspects might be spam.  I think
SpamCop is currently experiencing an error where it "holds" everything not
on my pre-approved white list (a list of specific email addresses or
domains from which to accept email); I'm not sure why that is, but I saw
someone else report the same behavior.

It also appears that SpamCop is due to switch to a new filtering system
soon that many people are complaining about, saying that it drops the catch
rate from 100% to 10%.  Some vocal individuals are cancelling their
membership over this change.

The new system will also come with a different price structure.  Currently,
SpamCop charges $.50/meg; they'll be changing it to $3/month.

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 3)

>>>>>
"""""
Well, so far I have plenty of problems with SpamCop.net:

1) All inbound email, spam or not, is being held unless I previously
whitelisted the sender.  It's almost like having to check two email boxes
now, one for received mail and one for held mail.

2) Some emails that make it through the filter have their contents
duplicated in HTML, when it was not sent that way.

3) I subscribed Monday afternoon with 50 megs of email bandwidth; I'm now
down to 49.3.  SpamCop has *not* received or held 700K of email on my
behalf in the last 48 hours.  I don't know what kind of "new math" this is,
but considering I pay by the meg, I don't like it.

4) A mailing list for newbies exists, but none of my questions have been
satisfactorily answered.  The man responsible for SpamCop (it's a one-man
show) obviously doesn't have time to read and respond to posts to that
list, either.

5) SpamCop is sending spam reports to the ISP that receives and forwards my
email to spamcop.net, despite that ISP not being the origin of the spam.

Until some of these problems get resolved (or at least explained), I've
removed spamcop.net from my email forwarding system.

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 4)

>>>>>
"""""
I am trying spamcop as well and my biggest problem has been significant lag
sometime in the 2 - 3 hour range.

I am not getting many held messages, but have only been trying for a day.

Is there any other services out there?

W

(WAYNER, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 5)

>>>>>
"""""
I just prefer lots of filters for dealing with Spam.

Ryan M. Suenaga, M.S.W., L.S.W. - rsuenaga@apple2.org - A2's Head Geek
Alpha Testing CoPilot v2.55 and ProTERM 3.1
Offline Syndicomm.com Message Manager

(A2.RYAN, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 6)

>>>>>
"""""
>> I just prefer lots of filters for dealing with Spam. <<

Me too. I have a procmail filter running on my ISP shell which blocks about
75% of the spam, thus preventing it from ever being downloaded to my
computer (saves a lot of time on a dialup account when you get dozens of
spams every day.) Almost all the rest of it gets weeded out by my Outlook
filters (rules).

If you're interested, you can find the procmail filter at
http://www.spambouncer.com

Tony

(A2.TONY, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 7)

>>>>>
"""""
I've used OE a lot in the past, and I like it.  However, there's no OS X
version.  I was using Apple's Mail program, but the filtering was not up to
what I wanted.  I'm currently using Eudora 5 for OS X.  The filtering there
is more than adequate.

Ryan M. Suenaga, M.S.W., L.S.W. - rsuenaga@apple2.org - A2's Head Geek
Alpha Testing CoPilot v2.55 and ProTERM 3.1
Offline Syndicomm.com Message Manager

(A2.RYAN, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 8)

>>>>>
"""""
SpamCop.net seems to be working better.  It's captured five spam today, but
has let real mail that I hadn't anticipatory whitelisted still pass through
to me.  It wasn't doing this before, which was one of my major complaints.

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 14)

>>>>>
"""""
Every now and then, I receive an email from hahaha@sexyfun.net with an
attached file, midgets.scr.  I've always deleted it, figuring it was either
spam or a virus.

Today I received that email again, for the first time since I routed my
mail through spamcop.net.  This time, instead of midgets.scr, there was a
.txt file attached:

****** Message from InterScan E-Mail VirusWall NT ******

** WARNING! Attached file midgets.scr contains:

     WORM_HYBRIS.M virus

   Attempted to clean the file but it is not cleanable.
   It has been deleted.
*****************     End of message     ***************

Very cool.  Kudos to SpamCop.

-Ken

(KGAGNE, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 15)

>>>>>
"""""
That's pretty cool.  Sounds like Spamcop is starting to work out for you.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 11, Top 26, Msg 16)
[EOA]


[APU]
A2PIX UPDATED TO v3.0b9
"""""""""""""""""""""""
Lazarus Long, who released the Apple ][ Font for the Macintosh, has updated
his Apple II image viewing program for the Mac, a2pix, to v3.0b9

http://www.versiontracker.com/moreinfo.fcgi?id=11141&db=mac
http://www.lazilong.com/apple_II/a2pix/

(KGAGNE, Cat 12, Top 1, Msg 10)
[EOA]


[ASG]
Apple II SOFTWARE FOR GIF FILES
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Um, #4,558,302 was filed on June 20, 1983 (per the info found at
www.uspto.gov).  It will expire in a little over 18 months.  If LZW follows
the like of RSA, then perhaps something LZW based will appear at KFest
2003.  That would be exciting.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 12, Top 3, Msg 9)

>>>>>
"""""
Yes, that would be exciting.  It'll be nice to have the whole
Unisys-as-bad-guy thing done and over with, at least.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 12, Top 3, Msg 10)

>>>>>
"""""
Is the algorithm publicly available?

W

(WAYNER, Cat 12, Top 3, Msg 11)

>>>>>
"""""
It's patented (until June 20, 2003 :), so until then using it requires
filling out forms and paying licensing fees.

There are plenty of reference implementations of lzw (unix compress, nulib,
gif viewers/creators, etc) with the source code freely available.

(KWS, Cat 12, Top 3, Msg 12)

>>>>>
"""""
Software patents which require license fees doesn't mean that the algorythm
isn't publicly available.  There are a ton of references that explain how
it works.  KWS already mentioned that the implementation in source code can
be found in many places.  This doesn't exclude the IIgs--you should be able
to find several different source codes with LZW on ftp.gno.org.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 12, Top 3, Msg 13)
[EOA]


[NGP]
NUMBERS OF ROM 01 vs ROM 3 GSs PRODUCED
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Anyone have a guesstimate on number of ROM_01's vs. ROM_3's produced by
Apple?

ROM_4's need not apply :)

Ryan

(RSUENAGA, Cat 17, Top 7, Msg 1)

>>>>>
"""""
Not yet, but I sent off an email to a Nathalie Welch of Apple Computer.
I got her email address from the following URL:

http://www.apple.com/pr/prcontacts.html

I asked her for a breakdown of each significant machine type (II, II+, IIe,
IIc, IIc+, IIgs (ROM 00), IIgs (ROM 01), IIgs (ROM 03).

Let's see if they care to respond.

Erick

(WAGNERE, Cat 17, Top 7, Msg 2)

>>>>>
"""""
From postings from Apple employees back in 1992, a little less than a
million Apple IIgs were produced.  Of those, 2/3 were ROM 00/01 and 1/3 was
ROM 03. Based on a report from inCider back in 1986, there was 10,000 ROM
00 produced. I don't think there has ever been any confirmation if that
meant release in just the U.S. or internationally.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 17, Top 7, Msg 3)
[EOA]


[ADK]
AppleDesign ADB KEYBOARD WORK ON AN Apple IIGS?
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
I can't remember the discussion on this, so I need to ask. Does the
AppleDesign ADB keyboard work on an Apple IIGS?

Thank you,

Barry Rees

(BREES, Cat 17, Top 19, Msg 4)

>>>>>
"""""
The AppleDesign keyboard doesn't work reliably on the IIgs, in my
experience.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 17, Top 19, Msg 5)
[EOA]


[SSC]
SUPER SERIAL CARD vs SUPER SERIAL CARD II
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Are the "Super Serial Card" and "Super Serial Card II" the same card?  I've
never been real clear on this. :)

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 18, Top 15, Msg 8)

>>>>>
"""""
The finished one, the one we all know as the Super Serial Card is really
the "II", I have one that is different in that it has a 26 IDC header
connector on it and a slightly different layout where as the one released
has only a 10 pin IDC header on it.

A penny a pin, for 16 extra pins not needed saved a bundle of money in
those days. 16 less holes to drill in the PCB.

This coming from designers driven by Steve Wozniac's obsession to make it
cost as little as possible while still building a superior product. The
Disk ][ analog card layout was completely thrown out and started again to
save just one more hole in the PCB.

On the PCB a hole where a trace goes from the front to the back side of the
board is known as a VIA, the best design with reference to using
through-hole components (DIP chips, resistors, caps like what the ][+ and
//e are made of as opposed to the surface-mount stuff like the IIgs) is to
work the layout to make the most use of the component holes as VIAs instead
of having to drill more holes in the board. Back then each hole was another
10 cents in manufacturing costs. Considering the first 200 Apple II's were
made and paid for before they were sold, every penny counted and that
philosophy stayed with Apple for many years after.

The RAMFast Rev C and Rev D are good examples of through-hole compared to
surface mount. The RAMFast Rev D also has a bit of this same "Woz" approach
to limiting VIAs and board area. The address lines on the EPROM have been
re-ordered as so no traces have to cross each other to get to the ROM where
as the Rev C is not. The Rev C card is huge and has lots of room to run
stuff all over where as the Rev D was a challenge to cram as much as
possible. The smaller the PCB the more you can make on a standard piece of
stock - the less you waste. If you design your PCB to use every inch of the
panel you pay less in that you are paying for the full panel anyway so you
might as well use it. That combined with the fewer holes you have drilled
in it mean fewer incidents of possibly non-plated VIAs and through-holes
meaning a failed board. This is an example of what I mean.

 ___________________A1       ___________________A6
/ __________________A2      / __________________A1
|/ _________________A3      |/ _________________A7
||/ ________________A4      ||/ ________________A5
|||/ _______________A5      |||/ _______________A4
||||/ ______________A6      ||||/ ______________A8
|||||/ _____________A7      |||||/ _____________A3
||||||/ ____________A8      ||||||/ ____________A2
|||||||/                   |||||||/
||||||||                  ||||||||
||||||||   Rev C          ||||||||  Rev D
o|||||||  Standard        o||||||| Non-standard
 o||||||   Layout          o||||||  Layout
  o|||||                    o|||||
   o||||                     o||||
    o|||                      o|||
     o||                       o||
      o|                        o|
       o                         o

That is why you can not switch the ROMs between RAMFast versions. One was
optimized for PCB layout  and the other is not. The SIMMs on the Sirius RAM
card are the same way. In the two banks each 4 are not wired 1 to 1, 2 to
2, etc either. Storage is storage, as long as the data is where it was
placed it will work. As long as that ROM image for the Rev D card is
organized in the order so that when the ROM is read it gets loaded in the
proper order everything is fine. That meant an extra step when writing the
ROM code for the RAMFast. Run the assembler, save the BIN image and then
run a program on it that acts much the opposite of a drive optimizer
program. Take every 8th byte and swap with every 5th byte, then take every
2nd byte and swap with every 7th byte. In more graphical terms, taking the
columns of the Supreme Court and removing them and putting them back in a
different order. A specified order. From the outside it looks no different
but inside (the computer) the data is now the way it needs to be.

Tony

-- Hmmm.. perhaps I should have saved that for a Juiced.GS article.

(A2.TONYD, Cat 18, Top 15, Msg 9)
[EOA]


[HDP]
HARD DRIVE PREFERENCES
""""""""""""""""""""""
For modern drives, Seagate makes the best drives out there (alternatives
that I don't mind using are IBM SCSI and Maxtor IDE).  I avoid everything
else.  Of course, you should always make backups since drives can fail at
any time--even within a year of purchase.

I have never met a Micropolis drive I liked--I believe all the ones I had
to use are dead.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 19, Top 11, Msg 14)
[EOA]


[MBC]
INTERESTED IN A MPW IIgs BUNDLE CD-ROM?
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
If Syndicomm put together an MPW IIgs bundle CD-ROM, would there be
interest in such a product?  It would include the MPW IIgs Assembler, C,
and Pascal compilers, along with the tools, interfaces, and libraries for
them.  I'd also include the MPW IIgs ORCA/C compiler, and some form of
documentation for the various products.  I don't know the pricing at this
point, I'm just in the contemplating stage.  All of these products are
currently only available on floppy disk, which is why I'm asking.

I'd investigate getting permission from Apple to include MPW itself on the
CD, but Apple may or may not grant it. :)

Eric Shepherd
Owner
Syndicomm

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 33)

>>>>>
"""""
Yes, but it would, as usual, depend on the pricing.

Ryan M. Suenaga, M.S.W., L.S.W. - rsuenaga@apple2.org - A2's Head Geek
Alpha Testing CoPilot v2.55 and ProTERM 3.1
Offline Syndicomm.com Message Manager

(A2.RYAN, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 34)

>>>>>
"""""
I'd be interested in it, depending on the versions.  How far behind the
native IIGS versions are the MPW versions?  If there was not a significant
difference, and there was documentation available (on the CD or pointed to
from the CD) where I could learn what the differences were, I'm sure I
would be interested

Am I missing something, or did you mention the C compiler twice?  Are there
2 different compilers?  .....ahh, I think I see, the first list you
mentioned were apple-branded products, right?  That would make the
documentation issues I mentioned above even more important.

I'd probably be willing to pay at _least_ $50, but almost definitely not
more than $99.

Actually, isn't the MPW C compiler on the OPUS ][ CD?  Or was it just the
documentation for it?  Or is it the MPW ORCA C compiler that is on the
OPUS?

>> I'd investigate getting permission from Apple to include MPW itself on
the CD, but Apple may or may not grant it. :) <<

That would definitely be a bonus.  Even though it is free (?) it would be
worth an extra $10 just to avoid the frustration of trying to find the
latest version of it on their site, and unpacking it and all.

To further expound on my version concern:  I would love to be able to use
the mac to edit my IIGS programs, but I would also like to know that the
source code I developed on my Mac would also compile natively on the IIGS.
If there were functions missing in the APDA versions that were present in
the ORCA versions, or some other difference in compilation, that would have
to be documented.

Also, something else I just thought of.  Is there a hardware or OS
limitation on MPW?  IOW, will it run on a G3 running OS 9?

_________
   | homas

(TCOMPTER, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 35)

>>>>>
"""""
Been moving 5.25s to 3.5s and 3.5s to CDs, etc., in an effort to gain more
storage space, so my ears and eyes are always open when I hear someone
wants to do the work for me :) (i.e. organize everything and put it on a
CD).

Over the past few years we've had some delightful compilations I've been
happy to purchase. This would be another one if you can pull it off.

Thanks for considering the task!

Steve

(KFESTSTEVE, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 39)

>>>>>
"""""
I've only used MPW once, and have never used the MPW IIgs tools, but that
won't stop me from repeating what I've heard :)

MPW IIgs asm is more powerful than Orca/M or APW.  The macros have nicer
local variables, for example.

Orca/MPW C is slightly behind the most recent Orca/C.

Mike W. has suggested the MPW IIgs linker assumes 16 (or maybe 24-bit)
memory, so using it with newer versions of MacOS doesn't always work.

You also have the advantage of faster compiles and more powerful editors.
Plus, you can work while your work-in-progress needs a reboot :)

KWS, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 36)

>>>>>
"""""
The MPW IIgs languages from Apple are:
     MPW IIgs Assembler
     MPW IIgs C
     MPW IIgs Pascal

Of these, the assembler and Pascal compiler are excellent; MPW C is kind of
awful.  There is also a Rez compiler, a linker, and assorted other tools.

The MPW IIgs linker doesn't tend to like newer versions of Mac OS but does
run on just about any hardware.  I generally keep a Mac OS 8.1 or so system
around just for running MPW IIgs on.  Another option that works quite well
is to run the MPW IIgs tools on a Mac emulator like Basilisk (even on the
Mac itself).

The assembler is particularly excellent, with support for records and a
fairly easy to learn macro system.  The Pascal compiler was developed
specifically to create HyperCard IIgs and received a *lot* of engineering
support for that purpose, so it's also quite good.

MPW IIgs ORCA/C is the Byte Works C compiler for MPW IIgs.  It's based on
ORCA/C 2.0.3 but does have a few enhancements, such as support for 4-byte
char/ints and for C++ style comments, among others.

Sheppy

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 37)

>>>>>
"""""
Also, one of my plans is to adjust the pricing of some of the APDA
products, especially the more expensive stuff like the MPW IIgs tools.

Sheppy

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 38)

>>>>>
"""""
>> You also have the advantage of faster compiles and more powerful
editors.  Plus, you can work while your work-in-progress needs a reboot :)
<<

To put this all in perspective, if you have a recent Macintosh that runs at
least at 200Mhz or so, you can use Bernie ][ the Rescue with the IIgs ORCA
environment. For instance this gives me a full reboot in around 10 seconds,
and assembly times are more than 10 times faster than a real IIgs. I don't
need to copy files to and from the IIgs, and I also have the full power of
Mac applications on hand in the other windows. I find that BBEdit's
powerful Find function is invaluable when trying to cross reference the
variables I have used...

 Ewen Wannop - Speccie - Fri 16 Nov 2001 - 249 days till KFest '02
 Delivered without using a IIgs by Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR 1.0b5
 Setup: Bernie ][ the Rescue 3.0 and a dual G4/800Mhz GeForce3
 http://www.ewannop.btinternet.co.uk/

(CONDUCTOR, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 40)

>>>>>
"""""
I've found that compilation speed isn't really an issue, since I use Bernie
or Kegs for development too.  When using Bernie, I can use the Codewarrior
editor to do my editing, and then copy the text to the GS for compiling.
(Although I still haven't perfected that text copying technique, I might
point out)

 So the real question I'm asking myself is: which will be a simpler
process, using the Codewarrior/Bernie process mentioned above, or using
MPW/Bernie?  Which makes a simpler code-compile-test sequence?  I'm sure
that there is some copy-to-the-GS step involved in using MPW, right?

OTOH, if I compile in MPW, and get an error, I can immediately go back to
looking at my code, right?  That might save some time.

_________
  | homas

(TCOMPTER, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 41)

>>>>>
"""""
>> OTOH, if I compile in MPW, and get an error, I can immediately go back
to looking at my code, right?  That might save some time. <<

Yes.  What's nice with the MPW/Bernie combination is that you can have both
your code and the app (or debugger!) up at the same time.  And you can drag
the app from the Mac into Bernie after compiling, and that works fine.
It's my preferred way to develop IIgs apps these days..

And the compile time is faster in MPW than it is in Bernie, by a long shot.

Sheppy

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 42)

>>>>>
"""""
I used MPW Pascal IIgs for Jasmine/Albatross, the Apple IIg GEnie front
end. It's a lovely compiler. Has a couple of bugs which you need to be
aware of, but they can be worked around.

I also use the linker for producing OMFs for all my major projects. I have
a Merlin command which copies all the Merlin links files to the Mac (across
AppleShare), MPW then links and builds the OMF, then the Merlin command
copies the resultant OMF back once it has been created. I then use another
Merlin command (my rcopy) to copy the resource files to the OMF, and it's
done. The MPW IIGS linker produces exceptionally small output files,
certainly more so than Merlin does. I can't remember why to be honest, and
I doubt it is super records, because I'm pretty sure later versions of
Merlin did supers. Anyway.

The entire process above is automated. A single build command in Merlin
assembles, copies the link files across, waits for the OMF, copies that
back, attaches the resources and optionally launches the app. Sweet.

For Jasmine, there was assembly and Pascal code, the Pascal in MPW, and the
assembly in Merlin. I also used Merlin to create a bunch of MPW equiv
libraries for the Pascal to call. All works quite nicely in fact,
considering how different Merlin is from everything else.

Regards,
 Richard

(RICHARDB, Cat 24, Top 1, Msg 43)
[EOA]


[LGF]
LANceGS GLITCH FOUND
""""""""""""""""""""
When my first LANceGS arrived, I tried to use the built-in ping function
from the IP Tools application. It never worked for me, and I think I
remember others having the same problem.

I had a couple of hours to waste tonight, so I did some testing and found
out that the checksum for the IP header is being calculated incorrectly.
Some hosts may ignore that (incorrectly), but most do not. After patching
it, ping works great. FWIW, the section of code responsible clears the
processor carry bit when it shouldn't (twice).

My copy is v0.13, so maybe there's a newer version out there already. In
any case, it was fun.

- Aaron

(APULVER, Cat 27, Top 2, Msg 52)

>>>>>
"""""
I haven't looked at version numbers in quite a while. :)

Cool that you found and fixed that glitch.  I'll drop Joachim a note, see
what he knows. :)

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                         sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                           http://www.syndicomm.com
                Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 27, Top 2, Msg 53)
[EOA]


[ADN]
Apple II DOCUMENTATION FOR NEWBIES
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
OK, folks, we need volunteers to put together docs for newbies!
Volunteers? :)

Sheppy

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 30, Top 4, Msg 4)

>>>>>
"""""
What can I do to help?

 Roger A. Schnorenberg - Roger
 "Roger A. Schnorenberg" <AB0MX@ARRL.net>
 Delivered by Spectrum v2.5.2 & SOAR v1.0b6 with NiftySpell 1.0
 Via Marinetti 2.1 TCP/IP stack on a ROM 0 IIGS upgraded to the max!

(SCHNORENBERG, Cat 30, Top 4, Msg 5)

>>>>>
"""""
There are two ways people can help with the A2DP -- the first is to help
figure out what needs to be written.  The second is to actually write
something. :)

Once we figure out what we need to write, we can start getting people set
up to write parts of it.  I'd like to see several people involved, each
writing a chunk of documentation that we can then put into a cohesive
document and run through some editing to improve flow and strengthen the
content.

Sheppy

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 30, Top 4, Msg 6)
[EOA]


[WDN]
WHAT DOCUMENTATION IS NEEDED?
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Let's start planning the sorts of documentation we need.  Maybe an outline
to start with?  Then we can split it up among people willing to write.

I'll start:

I. Apple II Basics
   A. Introduction to the Apple II
   B. Comparison of the various models
   C. Common features
   D. Operating system list

II. Apple II Hardware
   A. Components you need
   B. Recommended peripherals
   C. Options
   D. Setting up your Apple II
      1. Installing cards
      2. Connecting floppy drives
      3. SCSI and SCSI voodoo
      4. Connecting a printer
           a. Using a serial card
           b. Using a parallel card
           c. On the Apple IIc
           d. On the Apple IIgs and IIc+
      5. Connecting a modem
           a. Using a serial card
           b. On the Apple IIc
           c. On the Apple IIgs and IIc+
      6. Memory expansion
           a. Apple II, II+, //e (Slinky)
           b. Apple //e aux slot
           c. Apple IIc and IIc+
           d. Apple IIgs
      7. Finding hardware

Anyone care to pick it up? :)

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                         sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                           http://www.syndicomm.com
                Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 30, Top 5, Msg 1)

>>>>>
"""""
I'm already doing the whole section on vendors.

Ryan M. Suenaga, M.S.W., L.S.W. - rsuenaga@apple2.org - A2's Head Geek
Alpha Testing CoPilot v2.55 and ProTERM 3.1
Offline Syndicomm.com Message Manager

(A2.RYAN, Cat 30, Top 5, Msg 2)

>>>>>
"""""
Great, Ryan, that's super!

Sheppy

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 30, Top 5, Msg 3)
[EOA]


[WWP]
THE WELCOME WAGON PROJECT
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
The Welcome Wagon Project's goal is to create an assortment of starter kit
disks for new Apple II users, that can be available for download or cheap
purchase.

The goal is to have, say, utility disks, productivity disks, game disks,
etc.  Stuff that's considered must-have for the various Apple II systems.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                         sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                           http://www.syndicomm.com
                Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 30, Top 14, Msg 1)
[EOA]


[IOV]
WERE IN/OUT VECTORS FIXED IN GS/OS?
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Did the character in/out vectors ever actually get fixed in GS/OS?  IIRC
there was a bug with these, supposedly fixed, but I don't recall if it
actually was.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 53, Top 22, Msg 1)

>>>>>
"""""
The bug listed in the Orca/M manual was fixed by the time 6.0.1 was
released.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 53, Top 22, Msg 2)

>>>>>
"""""
Excellent.  I have some thoughts for things I can do with this. :)

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 53, Top 22, Msg 3)
[EOA]


[NTP]
NETWORK TIME PROTOCOL
"""""""""""""""""""""
Based on the NTP RFC, it looks pretty simple to implement.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 57, Top 41, Msg 2)

>>>>>
"""""
Are you volunteering? ;D

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 57, Top 41, Msg 3)
[EOA]


[RBK]
RECOMMENDED BOOK?
"""""""""""""""""
I was just curious if the book "Mastering the Apple IIgs Toolbox"  (It's a
book from Compute circa 1987) would be helpful, or is it too old to be of
much use to a programmer trying to learn how to program the IIGS.

Any help is appreciated...

Dain Neater

(A2.DAIN, Cat 59, Top 7, Msg 1)

>>>>>
"""""
This is a great book; I highly recommend it.  It's the book I got my start
with, and it's still relevant.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

<SYNDICOMM, Cat 59, Top 7, Msg 2)

>>>>>
"""""
I've read a couple IIgs 65816 asm books (which give cursory coverage to the
toolbox), and my complaint with them was that the were rushed out the door
in 1986 to cash in while the cashing in was hot.  Consequently, they spend
half their time talking about 16-bit code executed from applesoft, and half
their time talking about 1986-era toolbox programming and prodos 16.

Resources and the TaskMaster made life easier (if they had been available
in 1986, we'd be using IIg4s now :).

If Sheppy recommends the book, it's probably good, but be sure to read the
Programmers guide to System 6 afterwards :)

(KWS, Cat 59, Top 7, Msg 3)

>>>>>
"""""
"Mastering the Apple IIgs Toolbox" wasn't rushed out the door like some of
the others; it didn't come out until '87 or '88.  It includes coverage of
toolsets that Apple didn't even document until '90 or so, like the Note
Synthesizer and Note Sequencer.

However, its examples are all in assembly language, so if you're learning
C, it may or may not be all that useful.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 59, Top 7, Msg 4)
[EOA]


[PDF]
PDF FILE TYPE - MORE DISCUSSION
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Having a PDF file type is debatable since it falls under the same category
if a filetype is needed for HTML files.

When SIS was developed, I suggested that a filetype should be assigned for
this file.  I was thinking along the lines of a GSDOC (i.e. the same main
type as AWGS) with a unique aux type.  HTML is really nothing more than a
text file with special tags which display formatting in a Browser.  And to
support greater compatibility with existing text editors for 8-bit Apple
IIs and the GS, it was decided that HTML files are just TXT files.  SIS
tries to be smart and determine if something is HTML by looking at the
filename (i.e. .HTML extension) and by checking the file content for HTML
code.  Since only a handful of checks are made (for speed reasons), it can
mis-identify HTML files.  A unique file type is the only safeguard, if one
changes all their TXT files into another file type and text editors get
updated to store as that format (there are those who write HTML files
without using a HTML editor).

PDF is also just a TXT file with special information to display a formatted
page in PDF viewers.  PDF files should be transferred as text to and from
a GS.  Communication programs such as Spectrum do not handle "special" text
files as text--anything that isn't TXT is assume to be some sort of binary
file.  Even GWFTP will download a pdf file and save it as a TXT file.

It would be nice to have unique filetype for these special text files, but
how much support will software get to take advantage of them?  Will
developers update old programs (Proterm, text editors, etc.)?  Does the
Apple II user base really care (has anybody opened a non-HTML file into SIS
and had it displayed as HTML due to the poor checking...also PDF has a
unique identifier in the first couple of characters in the file so a TXT
file type is perfectly acceptable so a PDF viewer doesn't need a special
file type to distinguish between PDF and regular TXT).

Going forward, I don't see the continual use of TXT file type as a problem
-- beyond the feature to open a file from the Finder.  I'm sure Apple IIgs
users will not mind running a program to open a PDF file (if such a program
ever is written).

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 60, Top 3, Msg 12)

>>>>>
"""""
Well... I'm a big believer in the convenience of being able to just
double-click a file to get the right app to open.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 60, Top 3, Msg 13)

>>>>>
"""""
If a PDF file type becomes available, I'll definitely make sure that SCAP
supports it.  Heck, if a HTML file type becomes available, I'll make sure
that SIS supports it too.  I'm not going to go through the procedure to
create one due to the decisions made back in 1997, but do not mind
supporting them for the future.

But then what about file types for files such as WAV, JPG, BMP, PNG, etc?
There is software which supports these formats so should there be a unique
file type on the IIgs since they are popular media formats.

Is there a line that is drawn somewhere?

(GEOFF, Cat 60, Top 3, Msg 14)

>>>>>
"""""
I'd argue that while PostScript could (arguably) be called source code, PDF
is more of an end-user product, so if it had a type, it would need to be
somewhere else.  Possibly along with the graphics file formats.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(SYNDICOMM, Cat 60, Top 3, Msg 16)

>>>>>
"""""
Perhaps a hypermedia format since it supports bitmap graphics, vector
graphics, text, and URLs.  I haven't looked at the specs recently to see
what else it supports.

Geoff

(GEOFF, Cat 60, Top 3, Msg 17)
[EOA]



------------------------------------
      ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM SYNDICOMM |
------------------------------------

by Lyle Syverson <lyle@foxvalley.net>

[FGJ]
FREE GAME FOR JOINING SYNDICOMM ONLINE
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
The holidays are nearly upon us, and Gamebits, Syndicomm's video gaming
community, is in the spirit of giving!  While supplies last, all new
Syndicomm subscribers who use signup code "GAME" and remain members for 90
days will receive a free video or computer game for the system of their
choice!

There are no contests, no gimmicks, and no tricks.  Just sign up for
service and get a free game - guaranteed.

Subscribe with a credit card and also get a free month.  That's three
months of Syndicomm service, plus a free video game (average retail price
$40+), for as little as $16.67!

Tell your friends to combine this promotion with the Syndicomm Buddy
Program, and you as the referrer also get a $10 account credit. Just ask
them to enter your username during the signup process when asked for "Your
sponsoring buddy's username."

To subscribe to Syndicomm, visit
            http://www.syndicomm.com/join.html

Full details of this offer can be found at
            http://www.gamebits.net/syndicomm/promo.shtml

Gamebits is accessible at page 850, or with your web browser at
            http://www.syndicomm.com/communities/gamebits/messages

(A2 BB,KGAGNE, Cat 2, Top 35, Msg 16)
[EOA]


[BGY]
BEEN A GOOD YEAR FOR SYNDICOMM ONLINE
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Syndicomm, the company, officially went into business on November 1, 2000
(not counting the predecessor company by the same name, that was around for
most of the 1990s).  The online service opened its doors in a public beta
test on December 8, 2000.  Been a good year. :)

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(HelpDesk BB, SYNDICOMM, Cat 2, Top 4, Msg 23)
[EOA]


[AFC]
ADDING FORUMS AT A GOOD CLIP
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
We've been adding forums at a pretty good clip.  We're at fifteen, if you
count the three that are under construction now.  Not bad, considering we
first opened our doors a year ago Saturday.

Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd                                sheppy@syndicomm.com
Owner, Syndicomm                                  http://www.syndicomm.com
                     Building communities, bit by bit.

(HelpDesk BB, SYNDICOMM Cat 4, Top 4, Msg 23)
[EOA]


[TPQ]
The Prolific Quill community invites you to participate
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
in the "Operation Douglas" writing contest!  Douglas' story will be told
bit-by-bit by each contestant who writes a short chapter in this story,
building on the previous parts.  The author of the best chapter wins a $20
bookstore gift certificate!  Visit Prolific Quill at page 990 and read
Category 2, Topic 8 for details.

(Logon Banner, Syndicomm Online)
[EOA]


[SOO]
Syndicomm Online opened its doors one year ago,
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
on December 8, 2000, in an open beta test period.  Thanks to all of you
that have come aboard since then!

(Logon Banner, Syndicomm Online)
[EOA]



------------------------------------
      DISTILLATIONS FROM DELPHI A2 |
------------------------------------

by Lyle Syverson <lyle@foxvalley.net>

[SMC]
STRANGE MEMORY CARD
"""""""""""""""""""
Ran across a memory card for the IIGS the card says "GS Sauce" from Harris
Laboratories Inc.. It has 4 slots which accepts 30 pin sims..It also has 4
dip switch settings on the board. Anyone have any info on these..?? This is
the only one like it i have ever came across....

(SKEZER, 3535.1, Delphi A2 web side)

>>>>>
"""""
Sounds similar to my Apple Q-RAM card. The simm slots probably only accept
8-chip 1 meg simms. The dip switches probably determine if the simm slot is
filled. You would switch the ones on that are in use and off on the ones
that aren't. My Q-RAM card had two dip switches. One for each bank of two
simms. I switch the dip on to say that the memory in that bank is filled
and off if it isn't. I don't know if that is the same with your card. Try
it and see. My card only accepts 256k and 1 meg simms. It won't recognize
the two or three chip simms either that was popular on some Macs.

C'est moi! http://www.facelink.com/wrstrutts
Email: wrstrutts1@home.com

(WILLIAM7622, 3535.2, Delphi A2 web side)

>>>>>
"""""
Thanks.. I will give that a try.. Were there many of these types of cards
put out for the IIGS...?

Thanks...

(SKEZER, 3535.3, Delphi A2 web side)

>>>>>
"""""
I think most of the later boards came that way. The older boards made in
the 80's were of the ram chip type but most of the ones from the 90's that
I have heard about took simms.

C'est moi! http://www.facelink.com/wrstrutts
Email: wrstrutts1@home.com

(WILLIAM7622, 3535.4, Delphi A2 web side)
[EOA]



------------------------------------
   DISTILLATIONS FROM DELPHI A2PRO |
------------------------------------

by Lyle Syverson <lyle@foxvalley.net>

[MOS]
MARINETTI OPEN SOURCE PROJECT
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Hi all,

Were you interested in helping out with the Marinetti Open Source Project
but did not know how to get started?

I've just posted a number of guiding emails onto the Help discussion forum
on the Sourceforge site.

The emails deal with how to become a contributor to the project, how to get
the latest development object code, where to find the information you need
to set up your development environment, how to get the latest source code,
directions on where to find information about building the source, and
further reading material.

You can find this information here:
Go to the Marinetti Open Source Project home page on SourceForge
   http://sourceforge.net/projects/marinetti/
   then click on the "Public Forums" link
   then click on the "Help" Forum link

The information I refer to above can be found in the "How do I get
started?" thread.

Cheers,
Andrew Roughan

(ROUGHANA, 378.2, Delphi A2PRO web side)

>>>>>
"""""
Cool. Thanks for doing that, Andrew. I'll have to stop by there and read
that this weekend.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure when I actually have time to try and help out
but I'm hoping it won't be too long.

Jeff Blakeney
Dean of the Apple II University in the Apple II area of Syndicomm

(JBLAKENEY, 378.3, Delphi A2PRO web side)

>>>>>
"""""
Hi Jeff,

I was searching through comp.sys.apple2 for references to Marinetti when
I found this quote of yours from 2000/04/02:

>> E-mail clients are still in the works and I'm going to finish mine if
for no other reason than to prove to myself that I can actually finish a
project. :-) <<

I thought I'd drop you a line and see how you're going with it. Do you need
any encouragement? :)

I'm trying to get the MOSP site going again. Are you interested in helping
out in any way? One thing that would really help would be some additional
weight on momentum to get things going.

Registering as a developer on Soureforge and sending the MOSP administrator
an email with a request to be included as a developer in the MOSP area
would help out a lot.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/marinetti

Cheers,
Andrew

(ROUGHANA, 378.4, Delphi A2PRO web side)

>>>>>
"""""
I haven't worked on it for a while now as I'm a Windows programmer by day
working under contract to my brother's company and a data entry person by
night working at Fedex. I'm currently working on a project with my brother
that is taking up a lot of my time as we have deadlines and such to meet.

However, I still stand by that statement. It will be finished and I'm
planning on having it ready before KFest 2002.

A little encouragement is always a good thing because most of the folks in
chat in the Apple II area on Syndicomm.com now know how much of a
procrastinator I can be and keep ribbing me about it. :-)

>> I'm trying to get the MOSP site going again. Are you interested in
helping out in any way?  One thing that would really help would be some
additional weight on momentum to get things going. <<

I'd love to help out but like I said in my earlier message, I probably
won't have time to think about helping until January. My Windows
programming has had me working with TCP/IP programming a fair bit lately so
having to read a few more RFCs wouldn't kill me. :-)

>> Registering as a developer on Soureforge and sending the MOSP
administrator an email with a request to be included as a developer in the
MOSP area would help out a lot. <<

I'll get myself registered soon and as soon as I'm ready to help I'll let
everyone know. I downloaded the current version of Marinetti but haven't
had a chance to transfer it to my IIgs to try it out yet.

Jeff Blakeney
Dean of the Apple II University in the A2Pro Forum

(JBLAKENEY, 378.6, Delphi A2PRO web side)
[EOA]


[AGD]
THE Apple IIgs DEBUGGER
"""""""""""""""""""""""
While reading through the Programmers Introduction to the Apple IIgs I came
across references in Chapter 7 to the "Apple IIgs Debugger" and the "Apple
IIgs Debugger Reference".

Does anyone know if these things were actually released to the public? Does
anyone have them?

I think I have the latest documentation available
- "Apple II GSbug and Debugging Tools Reference" draft 3/16/89
- "GSbug and Debugging Tools Release Note" Version 4.0b1 from 13-Apr-89.
- some loose pages with header "GSBug 1.5 ERS 2/3/92" that has a cover page
  titled "GSBug Version 1.6 ERS October 10, 1991" which documents changes
  up to version 1.6b21

However I would interested to read the "Apple IIgs Debugger Reference". If
in fact it exists.

Cheers, Andrew

(ROUGHANA, 412.1, Delphi A2PRO web side)

>>>>>
"""""
Sounds like you have more than I've ever seen. The only documentation I've
ever had for GSBug was in the Orca/M manual.

I learned a lot more at Richard Bennett's GSBug session at KFest '98. I'm
going to have to make a transcript of that session from my video tape some
day just to make sure I don't forget any of the things he showed that I
didn't know you could do. :-)

Sorry I can't help on the Debugger Reference. Hopefully we can get
permission to share all these documents in the future.

Jeff Blakeney
Dean of the Apple II University in the Apple II area of Syndicomm.

(JBLAKENEY, 412.2, Delphi A2PRO web side)
[EOA]



------------------------------------
                 CHANGES AT DELPHI |
------------------------------------

by Lyle Syverson <lyle@foxvalley.net>

[DMG]
DELPHI MERGING WITH eHow and Idea Exchange
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
An Important Announcement to Our Members

Dear Delphi Members,

We are pleased to announce that Delphi is merging with eHow and Idea
Exchange.

This change will enable Delphi to continue as a strong and growing
business. Delphi Forums will grow through cross promotion to an audience of
millions of eHow and IdeaExchange members. Delphi members will also have
access to the ideas and expertise that are the hallmark of eHow and
IdeaExchange.

You will find the Delphi services expanding and improving because Delphi
will receive new engineering and customer service attention and resources.
All three sites will have integrated technology, content, and services. New
features and other opportunities for members, hosts, and DelphiPlus Members
will be announced in the weeks and months to come.

In addition to new features, new opportunities, and a stronger, healthier
company, Delphi Forums will also be introducing a new domain name. Starting
today Delphi Forums will begin to transition to www.delphiforums.com and
forums.delphiforums.com.

Please click on the "More Information" button below to learn more about
these very important changes and how Delphi Members will benefit.

(Delphi login ad)
[EOA]


[DLS]
DELPHI, THE LATEST SCORE
""""""""""""""""""""""""
1. Prospero Technologies sells Delphi, keeps the delphi.com domain.
2. Prospero Technologies sells the delphi.com domain to Delphi Automotive.
3. Delphi merges with eHow and Idea Exchange.
4. Delphi becomes a client of Prospero Technologies and continues to use
   their software.
5. Inforonics Acquires Prospero Technologies.

Bottom line for those wanting access to the Delphi Forums... change your
bookmarks...
     new  <http://forums.delphiforums.com>
     old  <www.delphi.com>

OR FOR SUREFIRE ACCESS, logon with...
     http://forums.delphiforums.com/my-forums

(Editor)
[EOA]



------------------------------------
             LETTERS TO THE EDITOR |
------------------------------------

[NLE]
NO LETTERS TO THE EDITOR THIS MONTH
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
The mail box for Letters to the Editor remained empty this month.
[EOA]


[LTE]
AN INVITATION
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Express your opinions about the comings and goings in the world of the
Apple II computers.

Send your comments to Lyle Syverson, Editor <lyle@FoxValley.net>

The Editor reserves the right to edit any material submitted.

The Editor reserves the right to reject any material he considers
unsuitable for publication in _The Lamp!_.
[EOA]



[KFT]------------------------------
                       KFest 2002 |
-----------------------------------

[PAK]
PLAN AHEAD FOR K-Fest 2002
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
KansasFest 2002 is scheduled for July 23 through 28 of 2002.  Plan ahead.
Mark your calendar.  Start saving your money.  Join us for K-Fest 2002!

For additional information visit the K-Fest Home Page at:
                http://www.kfest.org/
[EOA]



[INN]------------------------------
                     EXTRA INNINGS |
-----------------------------------
About The Lamp!   The Lamp! is published on the fifteenth of every month on
"""""""""""""""   the WEB at:   http://lamp.a2central.com/

This publication produced entirely with real or emulated Apple II computers
using Appleworks 5.1 and Hermes.  Apple II Forever!

     * The Lamp! is (c) copyright 2001 by Ryan M. Suenaga, M.S.W.  All
       rights reserved.

     * To reach The Lamp! on Internet email send mail to
       thelamp@sheppyware.net

     * All issues of The Lamp! are available at The Lamp! Home Page,
       http://lamp.a2central.com/

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors, and do not
necessarily represent the opinions of A2Central.com, Delphi Online
Services, Syndicomm, Ryan M. Suenaga, or Lyle Syverson.  Forum messages are
reprinted verbatim and are included in this publication with permission
from the individual authors.  A2Central.com, Delphi Online Services,
Syndicomm, Ryan M. Suenaga, and Lyle Syverson do not guarantee the accuracy
or suitability of any information included herein.  We reserve the right to
edit all letters and copy.

Material published in this edition may not be reprinted without the
expressed written consent of the  publisher.   Registered computer user
groups, not for profit publications , and other interested parties may
write the publisher to apply for permission to reprint any or all material.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<



[EOF]
