Subject: Re: Apple II Csa2 FAQs 9/9/1998 Zip Drive & Tape From: Rubywand Date: Sat, Sep 12, 1998 117 Message-id: <35FB6135.7460539@swbell.net> Supertimer writes ... > > Rubywand wrote: > > >Apple II Zip Drive, Tape Backup, .... Mini-Manual > > > >Csa2 FAQs-on-Ground file: CSA2ZIPTF.TXT rev008 > > Nice FAQ! > > >006- How do I get started using the Zip drive? > > > > Once your drive is connected, its time to start your machine and > >prepare a Zip disk for use. The Advanced Disk Utility (on a IIgs) or the > >utility that came with your SCSI card can do the necessary formatting > >and set up partitions (i.e. named "Volumes"). Each 100MB disk can hold > >three max-size (32MB) ProDOS partitions. > > Rubywand, I don't know if you have tried this, but if I DON'T > partition a Zip disk but instead simply format it from Finder > using HFS on the GS, the volume seems a bit faster than > if I partition it and use HFS. I don't know why this is so. > > The funny thing is that disk utilities recognize that there is > no partition table on the Zip disk but that the disk is one > giant unpartitioned disk. Yes, it takes a few minutes to format > it this way from Finder, but the disk just performs better > than if I "partition" it into a single partition of HFS using ADU. > This only works using MS-DOS preformatted Zip disks, of > course. The disks for Macs have the nasty driver partitions > that you HAVE to get rid of using ADU. ;-( > One thing about the passage you quoted, the phrase "do the necessary formatting" is misleading and, really, incorrect. Most new Zip disks will be for-PC and require just partitioning for ProDOS. The statement has been corrected for the next FAQs release. As you say in your response to Steve's observations, it makes sense that an unpartitioned HFS volume would promote quicker access than one with a partition. Even if you are talking about a single large volume, a partition is one more level of organization to get through. The information that, for HFS, doing a Finder format produces a faster-access volume than doing a full-disk partition will be added to the FAQs. Thanks! Regarding for-Mac Zip disks: what you are saying is unclear. Are you saying that a for-Mac disk can not be formatted as a single HFS volume from the Finder? Are you saying they must be formatted or that they must be partitioned using ADU? .... > > >010- How does Zip Drive perform with an Apple HS SCSI card? > > > >4.) Put the Zipdisk in the drive before GSOS is booted so that it may be > >scanned and recognized. > > Almost correct. You can start up GS/OS with an empty Zip drive. > As long as the Zip drive was powered up (plugged in) before > GS/OS loads, the drive can be empty and you can LATER stick > in a Zip disk and it or it's partitions will be mounted. This is how > it works with an Apple High Speed SCSI controller. > I was not sure about RamFast, so I disconnected our Zip from the PC, extracted its power cord from the rats nest of cables, and moved the thing back to the GS-- as Fox just said (on X-Files): "There are some things better left undisturbed ... some things better left buried." RamFAST, like the Apple Hi-Speed SCSI interface, does not require that a disk be in-place before starting GS/OS so long as the Zip Drive is connected and powered ON before turning ON the computer. There is, however, a reason for inserting a Zip disk before powering up and starting GS/OS on some systems. It has to do with reading the setup parms for RamFAST. RamFAST's setup must be saved to a write-able device on the SCSI chain. Otherwise, you end up with the default setup and must go to ramfast.system to set Options and get more than just one Zip disk partition recognized. Suppose you have no hard disk attached to your SCSI interface. If you are using an IDE hard drive (as we are) and the Zip Drive is the only write-able device on the SCSI chain, then, the Zip Drive must have a disk (with setup parms saved) inserted upon power-up and booting in order to install the correct setup and have more than one partition recognized when GS/OS starts. Anyway, okay, the FAQs statement implies that inserting a Zip disk is necessary and, as you point out, this is not correct. The statement will be modified. By the way, does an Apple Hi-Speed interface expect to find any setup parms from a connected SCSI device? > >012- Which SCSI interface works best with a Zip Drive? > > > > Your best choice is the version 3.01f RamFAST. Along with good > >speed, Direct Memory Access support, and on-ROM utilities, you also get > >an interface which permits ejecting a Zip disk and mounting a new Zip > >disk from the System 6 Finder. (There is no need to turn OFF the > >computer and restart the system in order to swap disks.) > > > > The RamFAST 3.01f also supports a variety of CD-ROM drives and hard > >disk drives. > > Same can be said of the Apple High Speed SCSI, except that it is > a bit slower than RamFAST. However, it actually supports MORE > hard disk drives than the RamFAST. ;-) > This info is included in some other place. It will be added to the above. .... > >014- Should I just let the GS/OS Finder handle formatting of > > new Zip disks? > > > > If you are at the usual GS/OS Desktop display and insert a new, > >"blank" Zip disk, you will be told that the disk's format is not > >recognized and asked if you want to have it formatted. You should answer > >"NO" > > I say "Yes" for HFS Zip "diskettes" because the resulting > volume sans partition table is noticeably faster than one > that has gone through ADU. I'm still trying to figure out why > this is so. Note that this only works with preformatted PC > Zip disks, not preformatted Mac ones (which NEED ADU > or RamFAST utilities to partition away the nasty Macintosh > driver partitions). > Okay, a mod to the above will be included for HFS. > >A new Zip disk is already formatted; what you need is to have it > >partitioned. > > > >ProDOS is limited to 32,768kB ("32MB") per partition. The Finder does > >not know how to correctly format and partition a 100MB ProDOS disk. > > Actually, Finder DOES, but PRO.FST (ProDOS file system) does > not. Now, _that_ is a tad picky and, actually, not correct. GS/OS does not know how to deal with the current ProDOS (or Pascal or HFS ...) except via the File System Translator. Since ProDOS partitions are limited to 32MB, you can not format a Zip disk for three (or more) ProDOS partitions from the Finder. > If you want one BIG HFS volume, then formatting it from > Finder using HFS will get you a 96MB large (partition-table-less) > "diskette" that's faster than one that has been partitioned. Try it. > > It is a neat trick. > > I know I'm repeating myself, but it is very important to me because > I use HFS on my Zip disks almost exclusively. > Understood. I have one Zip disk with an HFS partiton-- mainly as a place to save DOS 3.3 archives and just to prove that you can mix ProDOS and HFS partitions on a disk. I prefer to stick with three ProDOS partitions for most Zip disks. > >022- I've heard that Apple's Hi-Speed SCSI card does not > > allow swapping Zip disks without turning OFF the computer. > > Is this true? > > > > No. The Apple Hi-Speed SCSI interface allows ejecting and swapping > >removable disks. With a partitioned Zip disk (or CD-ROM), you have to > >lasso or shift-click to highlight all the partitions and drag them to > >the trash to eject the disk. (As long as one partition remains on the > >desktop, the disk stays in.) There is no need to turn off the computer > >to swap disks. > > Yup. Thanks for adding my posting to the FAQ! ;-) > Welcome! Thanks for the info. > Note that the "partitionless" HFS volumes generated by formatting > PC Zip disks from the Finder behaves just like a floppy and > ejects and mounts like one (but with a hard disk icon). Okay. This information will be included. Thanks, again. Rubywand