THE APPLE BLOSSOM
vol. 1 no. 4 Fall 1995
=====================================================================
ABOUT THIS ISSUE
===============
This marks the fourth issue of the Apple Blossom, one complete year!
I'm pleased to say that we'll be continuing next year as well, thanks
to the support and encouragement that I've received from the Apple II
user community, which makes this effort worthwhile. This issue sees an
article from a new contributor, Dave Grenda, who reports on KansasFest,
the celebration of the Apple II that occurs in Kansas City each summer.
I had to edit Dave's article for space reasons, but you can read the
entire article on the new Apple Blossom Web site (more on that later).
I also had a lot of input for the article on printers from Apple II
users who are using DeskJet and LaserJet printers, which helped to give
a lot more depth to that article.
For the next issue there are already two submissions lined up
including one from a reader in Denmark! So, the support for this
project is continuing to grow, and I hope that it will serve your
needs. If you know of someone who ought to be receiving the Apple
Blossom, let me know, so that I can be sure to send them an issue. Also
be sure to check out the Apple Blossom Web site if you have Internet
access! Every article from all issues is there, and plus some other
informative documents and links and the updated Apple II Vendor List!
The URL is , and you can view it from
your Apple II if you have a shell account or from GEnie with Lynx, or
using a Mac or PC using NetScape or Mosaic. I hope you enjoy the Web
site which will be adding more content and links. Enjoy this issue as
well.
Regards,
Steve Cavanaugh,
publisher of The Apple Blossom
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
================
Hellos & Good-byes
New Printers for your Apple II
Mac<-->GS products from EGO Systems
KansasFest
The Apple IIGS DOS-Compatible
Bargain Hunting
Apple Blossom on the Web!
ABOUT THE APPLE BLOSSOM
======================
The Apple Blossom is published quarterly and is sent free to schools,
and to other individuals interested in the Apple II computer. It is
also available in GraphicWriter III and text formats on GEnie, America
Online and the Internet. You are invited to copy this freely, in whole
or in part, and to share this with other Apple II users. If an article
from the Apple Blossom is run in another newsletter, please include
appropriate credit for the author and for the Apple Blossom.The Apple
Blossom is composed on an Apple IIGS computer using GraphicWriter III
and is printed on an Apple LaserWriter Select 360 over an AppleTalk
network.
All product and company names included are for reference only, and are
the trademarks & property of their respective owners. Send subscription
requests, article submissions, and suggestions to Steve Cavanaugh, 1117
Maple St., Wilmington, DE 19805, or email them to me on GEnie at
.
GREETINGS & FAREWELLS
====================
The end of August brought the sad news that GS+, the bimonthly
magazine/disk subscription put out by EGO Systems, was folding. A
falling subscriber base was cited as the main cause of cashflow
problems. Despite steppedup advertising efforts, the publication of new
programs like Balloon, and the distribution of other software companies
products, EGO Systems couldn't keep the magazine in publication. They
do plan on continuing to create software for the IIGS, and announced a
Macintosh Easy Open translator for IIGS Teach files for a cost of
$20.00.
If you have a lot of Teach files (I know that I do) which are created
by many programs on the IIGS, then this will definitely be a useful
utility for you.
SoftDisk Publishing also announced the end of their 8bit monthly disk
for Apple IIs, SoftDisk. The final issue will be 166. You are able to
order back issues at this time, but that may not continue into the
future. The company's Apple IIGS subscription is not affected by this
decision, and in fact SoftDisk has stated that the IIGS subscription is
in no financial trouble.
Just as sadly, NAUG, the National AppleWorks User Group, announced in
its November issue that it will be closing up shop and ceasing
publication of its acclaimed AppleWorks Forum in December.All three of
these announcements underscore the point that if you want to be able to
buy products for your Apple II you shouldn't keep putting those
purchases off--if you do, you might just find that you are not able to
purchase them at a later time. Software and Hardware manufacturers need
cash flow like any other business.
Script Central Again Available
On the positive side of things, Joe Kohn and "HangTime" have announced
that the entire 22 set collection of Script Central, the HyperCard IIGS
disk subscription has become available again from Shareware Solutions
II. The latest issue of SSII detailed the contents of the disks, and a
new demo of Script Central has been uploaded to GEnie and America
Online for you to check out. The demo not only shows the quality of the
series, but includes Joe's exhaustive concordance of SC disks. Single
issues are available for $7 each. A six issue combo pack (choose any
six issues) is available for $36. Shipping charges are $3 for US
destinations or $5 elsewhere. As a bonus, we will include a one disk
"HyperCard Player" that will allow you to launch each issue of
ScriptCentral.You can purchase all 22 issues for $99. As a bonus, we
will include the full six disk set that comprises HyperCard IIGS. Due
to the weight involved, shipping charges are $6 for US or Canada
delivery; $20 elsewhere.
Script Central is one of the best ways to learn to use HyperCard, and
can help you in creating your own stacks; each issue is full of XCMDs,
sample scripts and great ideas that you can use in your own HyperCard
stacks. All orders will be shipped by air mail, and Shareware
Solutions II can accept money orders or checks made payable in US funds
to Joe Kohn.
Joe Kohn
Shareware Solutions II
166 Alpine St
San Rafael, CA 94901
HyperCard Documentation Re-Released
One of the other great ways of learning to use HyperCard also became
newly available in August. Mike Westerfield of The Byte Works, has
announced that he is putting the HyperCard IIGS manuals back in print.
The cost of these is detailed below:
APDA 48 Getting Started with HyperCard IIGS 156 pages $15
APDA 49 HyperCard IIGS Reference 389 pages $25
APDA 50 HyperTalk Beginner's Guide IIGS 171 pages $15
APDA 51 HyperCard IIGS Disks 6 disks $20
APDA 52 APDA 4851 in a package $60
To order, call Mike Westerfield at the ByteWorks at 505-898-8183.
TimeOut Central Available Again Too!
Another re-release is courtesy of Marin MacroWorks which is pleased to
offer all 26 back issues of TimeOut Central. Each issue is an 800K disk
magazine full of tips, techniques, templates, tools, and programs for
enhancing AppleWorks. Including tools for AppleWorks 3 (circa 1990)
through AppleWorks 5 (January, 1994), TimeOut Central offers sound
advice from the people who made AppleWorks what it is today. The
complete contents of these 26 disks is too large to reprint here, but
is available on the GEnie A2 Bulletin Board as message 77 in Category
13, Topic 11 as well as on the Apple Blossom Web site.
To order, please send prepayment (check or money order in U.S. funds)
to:
Marin MacroWorks
1675 Grand Avenue, Suite 1
San Rafael, CA 94901-2211
or call (415) 459-0845.
Update to AutoArk
EGO Systems has announced that an updated version of AutoArk is now
shipping! AutoArk is a file compression utility that works behind the
scenes to automatically compress and decompress files on your IIGS. With
AutoArk installed, you can compress the files that you rarely use and
regain the use of much of the space on your hard drive. When you need
to use a compressed file, you don't have to run a separate utility,
AutoArk will automatically decompress the file for you! And, when
you've finished with the file, AutoArk will automatically recompress
the file for you! (AutoArk also has the ability to password protect
and encrypt any of your files!) The regular price of AutoArk v1.1 will
be $35. As with EGO Systems' other products, this price includes first
class shipping to anywhere in the United States, Air Mail shipping to
Canada and Mexico, and surface mail shipping toanywhere else in the
world. (For Air Mail delivery outside North America, add $3, for a
total of $38.) If you are a previous owner of AutoArk, the cost to
upgrade will be $10. For more information, contact EGO Systems at
(615) 332-2087.
If you want to purchase AutoArk v1.1 and Balloon v2.0 at the same
time, there is a special deal on that too. The cost will be $55.
(Balloon is a new desk accessory that lets you open, create and
otherwise manipulate ShrinkIt archives from inside any IIGS desktop
program.)
Keyboarding 5 updated for Network Use
Finally, Charles Hartley has announced that his acclaimed Keyboarding 5
program is now available in a network version that is perfectly suited
for school labs running on an AppleShare network. Keyboarding 5 has
been called the most effective software for helping people learn touch
typing available on the Apple II. The network version of Computer
Keyboarding 5 is capable of handling as many as 26 different classes of
as many as 50 students each. This network version of Computer
Keyboarding 5 sells for $100, the same as the cost for a site license
for the standalone version.Orders may be sent to:Charles Hartley455
Foster LaneShepherdsville, KY 40165School purchase orders are
accepted.Additional information may be obtained by sending email to Mr.
Hartley at one of these addresses: or
.
PRINTERS TO USE WITH YOUR APPLE II
==================================
The ImageWriter and ImageWriter II are ubiquitous in the Apple II
world. You can often find them in schools and homes where Apple IIs are
used. But they are far from being the only printers that the Apple II
can use. While I am not even going to try to cover every printer
compatible with the Apple II, I do want to explore some of the latest
printers to market that you can connect to your computer, along with
the software you need to use the printers. Types of Printers First of
all, lets examine the three major kinds of printers: Impact, InkJet,
and Laser (there are a few other types of printers, thermal transfer,
LED, and plotters, for example, but they are not as common, and are not
included in this discussion).
Impact printers create a character on the page in the same way a
typewriter does...by striking a ribbon which leaves ink on a page.
There are two major types of dot matrix printers: Dotmatrix and daisy
wheel. A daisy wheel printer is even more like a typewriter: it has a
round printhead with all of the alphabet and other characters (numbers,
punctuation, etc.) engraved on a ball that spins and hits the ribbon
with just the right letter. These printers tend to be noisy, but they
do produce excellent quality printing. The downside is that they can't
be used to print graphics. Dotmatrix printers, on the other hand, use
small pins which strike the ribbon in varying patterns to produce
letters, numbers and graphics (the ImageWriters are dotmatrix). These
are also pretty noisy, and their quality is not usually as good as
daisy wheel printers.
The next type of printer is the InkJet. These printers literally spray
ink on the page in the shape of letters or graphics. Typically they
have higher resolutions than impact printers, producing 300--720 dots
per inch (dpi), compared to the 72 dots per inch of the ImageWriter II
in normal mode. The problem with InkJet printers is that the ink tends
to spread into the fiber of the paper, causing a fuzziness in text and
graphics. This can be greatly lessened by using special, coated paper.
Even with the "spread", the results of printing to a InkJet printer are
far superior to those of an impact printer.
The third major class of printers are the laser printers. These
printers usually have an embedded controller and a photocopier engine,
which uses toner to produce an image on a page which is then heated to
fix the toner on the page. Laser Printers have resolutions of 300--2400
dpi, although most consumer printers are in the 300--600 dpi range. This
results in great looking output, and it doesn't have the spreading
problem of inkjets.
Making the Connection
So, which printers can you use with your Apple II? Well, there are a
few more things to take into consideration. The first is the type of
connection: parallel or serial. A parallel connection allows data to be
sent from computer to printer 8 bits at a time, whereas a serial
connection allows the computer to send only 1 bit at a time. As you can
imagine, parallel connections are usually faster. In fact, for the first
8 years that Apple IIs were produced, parallel printers were the usual
choice. That began to change in 1984, with the addition of the Apple
IIc to the product line, which has only serial ports. A quick look at
the Apple IIc's rear panel (or the rear panel of the Macintosh, which
was introduced at the same time) will show two small serial connectors.
One reason Apple went with serial connections is that the connections
are smaller, 8 or 9 pins, instead of the usual 25 pins of a parallel
connector. Putting in a parallel connector would probably have required
a larger case! If you have an Apple IIc, then, you have to look for a
serial printer: an ImageWriter, one of the older DeskJet printers (DJ
500, 500C, 550C) or a Laser printer with a serial port such as the
LaserWriter II series from Apple or the LaserJet II, III, and IV series
from Hewlett Packard. (Although it is possible to connect a IIc to a
Parallel printer using a Grappler type serial to parallel converter,
these are pretty expensive, and wouldn't be very cost effective, unless
you were trying to tie a IIc into a printer being shared with several
other computers.) If you have an Apple IIe or IIGS however, you have
more choice. Because these computers have expansion slots, you can
install a Serial or Parallel Card in one of the slots (typically slot 1
or 2). With a IIGS you don't even need to install the serial card, as it
has 2 serial ports builtin, with the added bonus of both being AppleTalk
ports, meaning you can connect to an AppleTalk network via the printer
or modem port. Therefore you have the widest variety available with
these two models of the Apple II.
Serial and Parallel cards are available from Quality Computers,
Sequential Systems, Alltech Electronics, Sun Remarketing, and other
mail order houses. Prices range from about $35.00 to $95.00 depending
on the model.
Now that we have covered printer and connection types, it's time to get
down to specific printers.
Impact Printers
The ImageWriter II is a good place to start. It is compatible with the
widest variety of ProDOS 8 software, and with Pointless on a IIGS can
produce pretty good text using TrueType fonts. It can also be used with
a four color ribbon that lets you print in color using programs like the
Printshop. Additionally, it can accept a card that allows it to be
placed on an AppleTalk network, so that it can be shared with other
computers. The ImageWriter II is compatible with Macintosh and IBM &
Clone PCs as well. However, I wouldn't recommend buying a new one, as
the price is almost $400.00, which is just too much. However, they can
be had on the used market for as little as $50.00, and at that price,
I'd pick one up just to have as a backup printer. (Another use that you
can put the ImageWriter to is as a scanner! The Thunderscan is a scanner
that replaced the ribbon cartridge and connected to the joystick port of
Apple IIe, IIc, and IIGS computers. While no longer sold new, you can
often find them used from places like A+ Computing. I have used this
scanner on an Apple IIGS and a IIc+ and the results are pretty
impressive.) The IIGS includes a driver for Epson dot matrix printers,
and many printers include Epson emulations. Look for Epson emulation if
you are going to purchase a dotmatrix printer. In addition, many ProDOS
8 applications, such as AppleWorks, have Epson drivers. Most printers
marketed for PCs use a parallel interface, since the parallel port is
universal on PCs, so you will want a parallel card if you want to get
one of these.
InkJet Printers
Hewlett Packard has a reputation for quality and service as a printer
manufacturer, and while you won't get direct Apple II support, buying
an HP printer is rarely a bad move. In fact, when I made a call on
GEnie for people to write in about their printers and printer setups,
of the six responses, 5 were DeskJets. There are two classes of HP
InkJets: the DeskJets and the DeskWriters. The DeskJets are marketed
for PCs, and have builtin fonts--which means, for the Apple II user,
that they can be used with ProDOS 8 programs that print to a slot (such
as BASIC or AppleWorks) as well as from IIGS specific applications like
AppleWorks GS or DreamGraphix. If you do have an Apple IIGS, then you
will also need to purchase printer drivers for a DeskJet. Vitesse sells
Harmonie, which supports color printing and has drivers for the DeskJet,
the DJ 500C, the DJ 550C as well as for other types of printers, and
Seven Hills sells Independence which supports greyscale printing on all
DeskJet & LaserJet models. The DeskWriter models are marketed for the
Macintosh, and do not have builtin fonts (which means that they cannot
be used with programs such as AppleWorks); however, they can be used
with the IIGS, using the same Harmonie drivers as you would use with
the DeskJets, along with a special high speed printer port driver.
DeskWriters have builtin AppleTalk, which means that they can be shared
on a network among Macintosh computers.Unfortunately, neither Haromnie
nor Independence supports AppleTalk printing at this time, so that
capability goes unused on the IIGS.
Color printing with the DJ 500C, 550C, 560C and 540 and the portable
310 and 320 is best when you use IIGS 320 mode graphics. [Quick note:
The IIGS has 2 graphic modes, the 640 which supports 640 horizontal
pixels with 16 dithered colors, and the 320 mode with 320 horizontal
pixels and either 16 or 256 "pure" colors.] Programs that support 320
mode graphics will give the best results as both David Kerwood and John
Holloway noted: "Color is vibrant when doing 320 mode graphics. Color is
muddier and requires more fiddling with 640 mode graphics. Color text is
fine," and "Setup of the DeskJet line is easy."
David Kerwood wrote in, "I never had to do this [type printer codes
into individual programs]. Other than flipping dip switches and making
sure the printer port settings were as recommended in the Harmonie
manual, setting up the DeskJet 500C was simple."
Carl Knoblock echoed David's comments about using the DeskJet, and
added that setting up his DJ 550C with his IIGS "was pretty easy with a
parallel card. The card init code had to be added to AppleWorks to get
full width landscape mode printing." If you want to do special print
jobs, like labels from AppleWorks, it may take a bit more work, as John
Holloway wrote in: "It took me about 4 tries to find the right
combination of codes to get the position just right for printing
mailing labels. A more advanced AW [AppleWorks] user could probably
have done it faster; someone who had never customized print codes may
have a hard time. The code chart in the manual [of the DeskJet] is well
presented and gives escape codes, decimal, and hex equivalents."
Some of the programs that the above contributors noted using were
AppleWorks Classic (both version 3.0 and 5.0), GraphicWriter III,
PublishIt! 4, Platinum Paint, EGOed, Addressed for Success, ProTerm
3.1, WordWorks Pro 2.1 and AppleWorks GS 1.1. Apple's original
StyleWriter can also be used on an Apple IIGS, using a driver supplied
with system 6.0 and 6.0.1. Unfortunately, this driver does not do a
great job with graphics, and its word spacing is not perfect either.
None of the later Stylewriters are supported on the Apple II.
Laser Printers
To use a Laser printer, it must be a PostScript or a PCL laser.
PostScript is a graphics programming language from Adobe, Inc., that is
built into most Apple brand LaserWriters (but not all) and HP LaserJets
that are marketed for the Macintosh. PCL is a printing language
developed by Heweltt Packard, and it is standard on their printers.
Many other vendors sell Laser printers that use PCL. To use a
PostScript printer from IIGS programs, you use the LaserWriter driver
supplied on the system disks. This allows you to print to the many
PostScript LaserWriters that Apple has sold (the LaserWriter II family,
the Personal LaserWriter NT, NTR, and 320, LaserWriter 360, 4/600PS,
etc.) Many HP printers also have PostScript, and allow you to use this
driver. To use a PostScript printer from ProDOS 8 programs you can
download the ImageWriter Emulator program (IWEM) to the printer, which
makes it behave like an ImageWriter. Programs that can print to a slot
instead of a specific printer (again, such as AppleWorks and BASIC) can
be used in this way.
An exception to this is the ProDOS 8 based program PublishIt, which has
a driver for the LaserWriters. To use a PCL printer you can use Harmonie
or Independence on the IIGS which has a LaserJet driver, or you can
print using the resident fonts from programs that support this such as
AppleWorks (There is also a shareware driver for the LaserJet. The
driver does not print graphics, but is very fast at outputting text.
There are also shareware programs for downloading fonts to the
LaserJet.) Several Apple II owners have reported satisfaction with the
LaserJet, including David Kerwood, Joe Kohn (who publishes Shareware
Solutions II on a LJ IIp), and Margot Taylor. In fact several folks on
GEnie who have LaserJets with PostScript, as well as folks with
LaserWriters have been conducting a year long exploration of using
PostScript fonts and EPS graphics on the Apple II, with some great
results. But that will have to wait for an article in the next
newsletter.
My Own Pick
My own preference of the three types of printers is a PostScript Laser.
The reasons are:
A, PostScript is a graphics as well as a text language, so you can
produce stunningly smooth graphics on a PostScript laser and
B, PostScript Lasers tend to also have AppleTalk and/or Ethernet
networking builtin, so that they can be put on a network and shared
among several computers, which can be different types. At home, that
feature allows us to share our LaserWriter between the LCIII, the
PowerBook 170, and the IIGS--linked together by inexpensive phone wire,
which cost, including the special crimping tool for attaching an RJ11
(standard phone) plug at the end of the wire, around $20.00 (for a 100
foot roll).
However, despite my preference for Postscript Lasers, I would be remiss
to not also mention that color or bitmapped graphics printed on a
DeskJet/DeskWriter look far nicer, because the inkjet is able to
produce true greys (or color in the case of some models), while the
Laser printers only simulate grey with halftones. The downside of laser
printing is lack of color. The LaserWriter driver that is part of System
6.0.1 does not support color. If color is something that is important
for you look at some of the Color DeskJets. If you use Pointless on the
IIGS you will get great looking text using True Type fonts, as well as
color graphics...and if you use a IIe or IIc, you will be able to get
nice graphics using Publish It! (although not in color), as well as
good text using the builtin fonts. Another consideration in purchasing
a printer is thinking about how you will use it in the future. Is there
a chance you will be involved in creating a newsletter? Helping a
nonprofit organization maintain its mailing list and printing labels?
Writing longer documents, or getting involved with computer graphics.
If your Apple II died tomorrow, would you replace it with an Apple II
or with a Mac or a PC? You need to think about these types of questions
before deciding on a printer so that you can really enjoy the value of
your investment.
THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING FILE
=============================
EGO Systems released a new Apple II<-->Mac utility in September in the
form of Shrink II, a compression utility that uses the NuFX (pronounced
"new effects") format, which is commonly used on the Apple II computer
via the utilities ShrinkIt and ShrinkIt GS. An obvious market for this
utility is homeowners and school teachers who work with both types of
computer. Files can be easily transferred between computers by
shrinking them and then transferring them via modem, AppleTalk or disk.
(System 7.5, via PC Exchange 2.0, allows you to use Apple II disks with
your Mac. System 6.0 and 6.0.1 on the IIGS allow you to use HFS disks,
i.e., Macintosh disks, on the IIGS.)
The existence of this program makes sharing your Apple II files with
Mac users much easier. Any word processor can open a text file created
on an Apple II and ClarisWorks can open word processing files saved in
AppleWorks or AppleWorks GS format, and it can also open AppleWorks
databases and spreadsheets. Microsoft Works can also open AppleWorks
files. (In fact, if someone has the DataViz MacLink Plus translators
that shipped with System 7.5, or if they've bought them separately,
they have an option for opening and saving in this format.) HyperStudio
Mac, a hypermedia authoring program from Roger Wagner Publishing, can
open HyperStudio GS files directly (HyperStudio appeared on the GS
first, around 1989). You can even open graphics created on the Apple
II, using programs like Imagery (freeware), GraphicConverter
(shareware) or DeBabelizer (commercial). So if you want to share your
work and need to get it there by compressing it, you can easily use
ShrinkIt or GSShrinkIt to do so, upload it to an online service, and
the folks you want to share with can open up the files. Of course, I
still think that the primary audience for these programs will be folks
using both types of computers. And if you do, Shrink II is an
indispensable utility. Shrink II worked just great. I used it to
unshrink files downloaded from the Internet, and to create archives of
my own. You can automate Shrink II with AppleScript, and it works very
fast. I have used it on the PowerMac at work, on my PowerBook 170, and
on my LC III at home, with no problems at all. If you're interested in
Shrink II, contact Steve Disbrow at EGO Systems using the contact
information at the end of the following article.
TEACH TRANSLATOR FOR MACINTOSH
==============================
Those of us using two or more computer platforms, common in schools and
not unknown in the home environment, know that exchanging data can be
tough. Even though just about every word processor ever written can
import/export ASCII files, a lot gets lost in the translation; after
all, if you've spent time choosing particular fonts, styles,
justifications, etc., that is all a part of your message--and saving as
ASCII in order to exchange data loses part of the message since these
text attributes are lost. Fortunately, for those of us using the IIGS
and Macintosh computers, there is now a way to exchange data more
easily. EGO Systems, publishers of programs such as Balloon, AutoArk
1.1, and Addressed for Success, have now created a Macintosh translator
for IIGS Teach files.
Installation on my Macintosh was simple--I just dragged the Teach
Translator onto the System Folder and it was installed into the
Extensions folder. Then I rebooted (and rebuilt the desktop file by
holding down the Command & Option keys during startup) to try it out.
The translator works in tandem with the Macintosh Easy Open control
panel which comes with System 7.5, and also with the commercial DataViz
Easy Link Translators package. In order to use a Teach file, just double
click on it (the Translator gives the Teach file an icon similar to its
icon on the GS) and a dialog box comes up asking which program you want
to use to import the file. The trick here is to pick a program that is
able to read Simple Text files (Simple Text is Apple's update of its
classic TeachText program--do you see a connection here?--that can not
only read text files, but use different fonts and styles, along with
playing QuickTime movies and opening PICT files). Opening in such a
program (SimpleText, obviously, but TexEdit Plus and others as well)
brings in not only the text, but also the styles and fonts. Opening the
file directly in other programs, such as Microsoft Word, ClarisWorks,
and WordPerfect brings in only the text--the fonts are lost in the
process. However, once the file is open in SimpleText, the text can be
selected, copied and pasted into a window in one of these other
programs, and then the text along with style information is preserved.
This makes sharing information between platforms much
easier--especially since most IIGS text processors (Write Away,
CoolWrite, ShadowWrite/Hermes, Teach, EGOed, and My Word, for instance)
can save files in the Teach format. The Teach Easy Open translator
requires a Macintosh running System 7 or later, and is available from
EGO Systems for $25.00.
Call 800-662-3634, 423-843-1775 (international), or fax to 423-843-0661
to place your order, or send email to diz@genie.com for more information.
KANSASFEST '95 REPORT--THE TRADITION CONTINUES
==============================================
by Dave Grenda
Up until a few months ago, there was some doubt that anyone would ever
read the title of this article, because the fate of KansasFest was
caught in the balance. Over the years, KansasFest has been held at
Avila College, a small quaint college located on the south side of
Kansas City Missouri. The sponsors of KansasFest have been
numerous--the '94 KansasFest was sponsored by a company called ICON
(previously called Resource Central). When they went out of business
last year, it wasn't known if anyone would pick up the Apple II torch
and conduct another KansasFest. But just as the Apple II computer has
"kept going, and going, and going," so has KansasFest. Through the
efforts of people like Auri Rahimzadeh, Cindy Adams, Gina Saikin, and
Mark Kline, among others--KansasFest '95 was made a reality. Parkhurst
Micro Systems (Paul Parkhurst) was the corporate sponsor of the fest.
You might know Parkhurst Micro Systems (a company who has supported the
Apple II line of computers over the years) from their excellent
ANSI-Term modem program. So here's "one man's story" of KansasFest '95.
Being "just a user," I wasn't sure if I should attend KansasFest. I
think that feeling has kept many others from attending in the past--it
had for me. But all those trepidations faded away as I communicated to
some other KansasFest attendees on GEnie prior to leaving for Kansas
City. During those e-mail exchanges, I learned that KansasFest was
going to be one big friendly user's group meeting. I found out that I
wasn't the only KansasFest Rookie that was attending this year, and
that the vast majority of the attendees were just "average Apple II
users." So like a kid on Christmas Eve, I anxiously awaited the start
of a famous Apple II tradition.
I arrived at the Kansas City airport on the evening of July 26th, a day
prior to the official start of KansasFest. After renting a car, I drove
down to KC Masterpiece. A group of people I met on GEnie had gotten
together to have dinner at this infamous KansasFest hang out. Entering
the restaurant was like going on a blind date-- although I had seen
their names on electronic messages, I hadn't met any of them before.
But that feeling instantly changed to one of meeting "old friends" as I
was warmly greeted and started talking to everyone. That's the spirit of
KansasFest, and I think of the Apple II computer community in general,
it's one big inclusive family!
Arriving at Avila College at 9 am the next day, I checked into the
dorms. Spending KansasFest in the dorms is the best way to experience
this event. Not only is it cheaper, but you get to interact with
everyone after hours. I immediately unpacked and started to visit all
the other attendee's rooms to see what computer systems they had
brought--and it was a diverse lot. There were dozens of IIGS computers,
with every imaginable peripheral attached. There were IIcs, Macs in all
flavors, PowerBooks, Newtons, and even a II+. It was great to see the
new Iomega Zip drive in action, how the new SecondSight VGA card looked
with different monitors, and the various hard drives and CD-ROM drives
available for the Apple II.
All meals were included in the price if you stayed in the dorms, a very
good deal. The food quality was OK, you could eat all you could stand.
There was a salad bar and self-serve ice cream in the dining area after
you picked up your main course. Meal time was another avenue to meet
Apple II legends like Tom Weishaar, "Burger" Bill Heineman, Roger
Wagner, etc, and make new friends.
Conferences and Activities
The first activity after lunch was a talk by Apple Computer's Ashley
Carter, discussing some new com-puters due out over the next couple of
months. New Performas, coming out in August 95, will be going over to
RISC processors and incorporate industry standards like PCI slots.
Following that one hour presentation, each attendee had the choice of
attending one of three presentations. Talking to the Apple rep about
the new computers, learning basic soldering (entitled: "Which End is
Hot"), or attending a "fireside" chat with Joe Kohn--I chose the
latter.
He described starting off with the Apple II; he got an Apple II+ and
100 disks of public domain software. He was in awe of what was out
there. In the mid-80's he started the Apple Users Resource Group, which
lead to the Apple II Information Exchange. It was bought out by
Compuserve in '89. Joe wrote a series of articles on shareware programs
for the Apple II Buyers Guide and transitioned to the Big Red Computer
Club as their Librarian in '83. From there, he hooked up with InCider
to write a shareware article. InCider asked Joe to put together a disk
containing the shareware programs his article covered. After InCider's
demise, Joe thought about writing for II Alive. But luckily for us,
those plans never came together and he struck out on his own with
Shareware Solutions II (SSII). When he worked for other publications,
he used to hate editors--they always changed what he wrote. But now he
misses having an editor when producing SSII. Joe feels SSII is the
"Consumer Reports" of the Apple II world. He emphasized that Apple II
users should "support those who support you." In other words, don't
delay buying those Apple II products you can use and paying those
shareware fees, otherwise there won't be anything new in the future.
Finally, Joe made an announcement that Symbolix (a powerful mathematics
program from Switzerland) is being released as shareware. SSII will be
providing it for $15 for the first month--half the profit will go
toward a yet to be named non-profit organization.
The next period consisted of a demonstration of Mike Westerfield's
Quick Click Morph (QCM) or Ryan Suenaga's discussion of Personal
Digital Assistants & PowerBooks. I decided to see Mike's great new
program.
Mike started off with a quick history behind morphing. The first Cray
computer ever built didn't go to the defense department, but instead
went to Hollywood movie studios to do morphing. Since almost anything
can be done on an Apple II computer, Mike brought this morphing
capability to the IIGS. The user provides a starting and ending picture
to QCM. A series of reference points are then easily selec-ted on the
first and last picture. QCM then starts computing the "tween"
frames--new pictures that transform the first picture into the second.
Morphing time in-creases as the number of "tween" frames increases and
the number of reference points are increased. The time to create a full
morph sequence can take from several minutes to overnight--an
accelerated IIGS is not required but is highly recommended. Those
"tween" pictures, when played as a PaintWorks animation, provides a
smooth morph between the start and ending pictures. The visual impact
of morphing cannot be overstated. Morphs can be added to HyperStudio
stacks, used as a screen saver, or any place that can use PaintWorks
animations. Single frames can also be viewed to see how each "tween"
picture has changed. Although 16 shades of gray is best for the IIGS,
QCM supports 320/640 color palettes, custom colors, and 128/256 custom
color palettes. Mike has also developed a freeware program Quick Click
Movie--it allows the viewing of QCM animations. So with this freeware
program, you can easily share your creations with friends and the world.
Keynote Address
After supper, the KansasFest '95 keynote address was given. The keynote
speaker was the (in)famous Roger Wagner of HyperStudio fame. As usual,
he gave a very animated and entertaining speech. First describing a
very artistic video produced by a IIGS user in France-- combining
HyperStudio with a video overlay card on a IIGS. The video was done a
few years ago and won critical acclaim. Roger's company publishes
HyperStudio--a revolutionary program that brought Hypermedia to
computers. Roger now goes around the country showing how schools and
individuals can produce outstanding presentations with HyperStudio.
Although Roger is concentrating on developing and marketing products
for the Mac and other platforms, he's still supporting the venerable
Apple II platform.The last series of presentations that day were: Joe
Kohn discussing changes to the Internet, Erick Wagner presenting how to
hook up "real world" devices to the Apple, and Eric Shepherd
demonstrating two of his new IIGS programs (StationKeeper and
ShiftyList 2.0). I wanted to attend all three, but I ended up listening
to Sheppy.
Sheppy's StationKeeper is something like a document alias. You
double-click a document icon, Finder opens up the application that
supports the document (AppleWorks GS, ShadowWrite, etc) and you start
working on it. Nothing special so far, but when you save the document,
it's saved as a new document--you don't mess with the original. This
would be good for filling out forms, etc. ShiftyList 2.0 will be
distributed on a Softdisk G-S issue. This version is a very powerful
update. By holding down different key combinations during booting, you
can load different groups of INITs, NDAs, CDAs, and CDEVs. The
composition of each group is determined by the user beforehand. You can
also create boot scripts. Scripts could run pictures or sounds during
booting. For example, you could display a picture and play a sound,
load some INITs, display a new picture, load some NDAs/CDAs, display
another picture and play a sound, and load the rest of your
system--total user control. Sheppy expects ShiftyList to be out at the
end of the year. He lost three months of work when his hard drive
crashed. As Sheppy remarked, "apparently back-ups aren't for weenies."
Sheppy also has compiled a spiral bound book containing documentation
for all his software. The book can be purchased for about $12, contact
him on GEnie at E.Shepherd@genie.com. He is also selling a disk
containing all his non-Softdisk G-S programs.
The Second Day's Conferences
The first sessions the next day began at 8:45 am. Roger Wagner provided
a discussion of using the multimedia capabilities of the IIGS, Doug
Pendleton & Dave Ciotti taught the second segment on soldering, and a
trio (Richard Bennett, Tim Buchheim & Nathaniel Sloan) demonstrated the
new Apple IIGS front end for GEnie. I picked the GEnie software demo.
This stand-alone program is called Jasmine, it's a real-time IIGS
interface for GEnie--not an off-line reader like CoPilot or GEM. You
don't need a separate modem program like ProTerm or Spectrum--Jasmine
handles everything. It requires System 6.0.1 and an error-correction
modem (the internal Datalink 2400 is not, but all high speed modems
are)--a hard drive is not required. Jasmine allows 3rd-parties to write
add-ons--like Balloon (a file compression/decompression program). It
supports Zmodem and will support batch Ymodem file transfers. The
interface is all point and click, using familiar IIGS windows, menus,
and dialog boxes. It's Lynx compatible, so you can access the Internet
via GEnie. Jasmine is free and should be out shortly.
[Ed. note: Jasmine still has not become generally available, due to
changes in the software that GEnie uses on its computers. But the team
is still working hard on it.]
The next series of sessions consisted of Mike Westerfield discussing
Quick Click Morph (QCM) from a programmer's view point, Mark Kline &
Cindy Adams discussing AppleShare networking, and Erick Wagner
presenting the second part of controlling "real world" devices with a
computer. I decided to hear Mike's presentation.
Mike gave a good insight into how QCM works. A good way to understand
how the program transforms a picture is to imagine the first picture
being made of rubber. You take a pencil point and stick it to one of
the reference points. You then drag the pencil and stretch the picture
to the corresponding reference point on the ending picture. This
dragging and stretching is done simultaneously for each reference point.
After lunch Tony Diaz from Alltech Electronics showed how to build a
tower case for the IIGS, Roger Wagner presented new things he's working
on, and Glenn Hofman discussed a new Apple IIGS GEnie off-line reader
called PowerGuide. Since I spend a lot of time on GEnie, I thought I'd
get the most from Glenn's presentation.
PowerGuide is a stand-alone program that does not use another modem
program like Spectrum or ProTerm. It uses the familiar IIGS interface,
it's all point and click with keyboard equivalents. It uses Zmodem file
transfers, employs cut & pastes message quoting, has an address book for
e-mail messages, supports 30 GEnie Round-Tables, and uses its own
installer for easy installation. Although still in beta testing, it's
available now and it functions well.The next sessions were Dave Ciotti
showing how to perform some simple equipment maintenance operations
(change a system saver fan, clean a keyboard, etc), Eric Shepherd
demonstrating ProTerm Mac, and Greg Templeman discussing the GS Lib
Programming Library. The choice for me was easy, the equipment session.
Dave did an outstanding job answering questions and showing how even a
novice user can fix things on an Apple IIGS. Following those sessions,
Richard Bennett gave a short recap of what Seven Hills is doing.
SuperConvert 4.0 is about to ship--it's just waiting for documentation
to be printed. The program will squash a few bugs and add SecondSight
and JPEG support.
The new version of GraphicWriter III should be out within a month. It
fully supports System 6.0.1 font menu and interface. The spell checker
has been rewritten, text wrapping around objects has been fixed,
objects can now be positioned by typing in coordinates, objects can be
resized, and an extras menu has been added so 3rd parties can write
add-ons to GraphicWriter III.
[Ed. we're still anxiously awaiting the release of both of these
products!]
The Banquet and Roast
A banquet and roast topped off the day's event. The roastee was none
other than Steve Disbrow of GS+ Magazine. Bill Moore, Roger Wagner, Tom
Weishaar, and Joe Wankerl did a great job putting Steve in his place. Of
course Roger went high tech, with a multimedia presentation. Tom
Weishaar read a hilarious letter from "Bob Dole" talking about Steve
and GS+ magazine. Joe played a funny song about Steve. Then it was
Steve's turn to roast the roasters. All in all, it was a great time.
The Final Day
The next day was bitter sweet. People began moving out of the dorms,
KansasFest '95 was rapidly coming to a close. But after breakfast, Paul
Parkhurst gave an excellent demonstration of his new NDA FAX program. He
created, sent, received, and printed faxes using his new program.
Although still in final beta testing, it still worked like a charm.
Some features demonstrated: generations of fax lists/groups (the cover
page can be automatically personalized for each number on the list),
multiple phone books, scheduled send, selection of cover pages, use of
a dial prefix, selection of modem initialization string, and a host of
others. The fax cover page capabilities were outstanding. The user has
a lot of control over the data on the cover sheet, including adding
memos/graphics/headers/footers/page numbers and automatically adding
names/address/phone numbers. The program works with Express and will be
compatible with Spectrum. You can print selectable pages from a fax and
can even send a quick fax (it sends a cover page with a memo you type
in). The program is expected to ship in a couple months with a price
tag in the area of $80. There will be a discount when updating from a
competitor's fax program. It was a very impressive demonstration.
[Ed. Paul's FAX program is still in beta-testing.]
Following the fax demo, people headed to a swap meet/vendor fair where
attendees scooped up many bargains. ByteWorks, EGO Systems, Digisoft,
and Shareware Solutions II products were all on sale. Many items were
quickly sold out. The final official function was one last lunch at the
college cafeteria. Attendees reluctantly said a fond farewell. But
before things concluded, there was an official announcement--a
KansasFest will be held in 1996! I can't emphasize enough how much fun
it was to attend KansasFest. I strongly encourage all Apple II and Mac
users to attend next year. You'll be warmly welcomed, fit right in, and
a have a super time sharing your computer interests with others. See you
at K'fest next year!
Dave Grenda has been an Apple IIGS user since 1987
THE APPLE IIGS DOS-COMPATIBLE
=============================
What boots into Finder, disposes of files with a trash can, and can use
ProDOS, Macintosh or MS-DOS disks and even run MS-DOS programs? A Quadra
610 with a Houdini card? A PowerMac 610--DOS Compatible? A Nubus based
Macintosh with an Orange Micro DOS Card? Well, yes, those can do it
too--but so can the Apple II!
There are two basic levels of compatibility between different computer
platforms--the ability to share data, and the ability to run each
other's programs. Both levels of compatibility can exist between the
Apple II and MS-DOS machines. Probably the most important level is the
ability to share data. This level requires two things--the ability to
transfer the data, and the ability to read the data.Disk DrivesAs to
the first part of this, how do you get data from an MS-DOS disk onto an
Apple II? As most people know, the 5.25" and 3.5" disk drives used on
Apple II's and MS-DOS PCs can often use the same disks, but the formats
are incompatible once initialized. What is needed is a disk drive that
can read both formats. There are actually several choices for this.
Apple's SuperDrive, which ships with all current Mac models, was one
such drive. This drive can read 720K MS-DOS disks, as well as 800K
ProDOS and Macintosh disks, along with 1.44 MB floppies of any
denomination. Applied Engineering made a similar drive, the AE FDHD
drive (which is currently marketed as the Plus Drive by ABC Direct).
However, Apple no longer manufactures the external SuperDrive (although
those individuals and schools who bought IIGS computers in the Apple
auctions of 1993 were lucky enough to get SuperDrives with their
computers), nor the SuperDrive card needed to use it with an Apple IIGS
or IIe. There is a rumor that ABC Direct will be making such a card
available (which was due in October), but it still doesn't exist. So,
to obtain the needed hardware for a SuperDrive or compatible you will
need to turn to the used market. However, there are a couple of other
alternatives.
The BlueDisk card, by SHH Systeme, allows an Apple II user to connect
standard PC floppy disks to his or her computer. Together with Peter
Watson's MS-DOS utilities, which ship with the card, users may copy
files to and from MS-DOS disks, as well as read Macintosh 1.44 MB
floppies (all 1.44 MB floppies use the same basic encoding, known as
MFM, and can be read by the same drives; MS-DOS 720K disks also use
this method. ProDOS and Macintosh 800K disks, however, use a method
called GCR, which is not compatible with all high density floppies--and
which is why the disks hold 800K instead of 720K). You can even use 2.88
MB floppies, a format that is not used on the Macintosh, but is
supported by some PCs.
The Floptical drive is a SCSI peripheral that can read/write floptical
disks (21MB floppies) or 1.44MB floppies. I recently purchased one of
these from Tulin Technologies, which is selling refurbished Flopticals
for $99.00. It comes with a thoroughly professional manual that is
specific to the type of SCSI card you identify yourself as owning when
you order. The Floptical disks cost $15.00 ($12.00 when ordered with
the drive), which is not nearly as good a per megabyte cost as ZIP
cartridges (one of the reasons, no doubt, that the Floptical technology
never became really widespread), but the fact that it gives
compatibility with high density floppies is a real winner. For me, it
makes trading floppies between my Macintoshes and Apple IIGS much
easier, since many of my Macs' disks are high density. Also, if my
brother should send me something on disk (he uses a Windows PC) I will
be able to read the disks...and create disks for him to use as well.
And the 21 MB cartridges are very useful for creating bootable ProDOS
volumes. I already have the one I ordered filled up with HyperCard
stacks that I am working on. Also, because Flopticals are SCSI devices,
they will work with Macintosh and SCSI-equipped PCs as well, so your
investment will be preserved in the future if you should migrate to
another computer platform.
Transfers without a Disk Drive
Of course, if you don't have access to these types of disk drives there
is still a way to transfer files--you can e-mail them to yourself. If
you have an account on a BBS that allows terminal emulator log ons, you
can upload the file to yourself from your PC or Apple II and download it
with the other computer. This is a good way of getting files from your
workplace to home as well, if you need to work on them at home (just be
sure to have a fast modem if you'll be doing this often). There are
other methods of transferring files as well, but if you have to do this
often, they can be cumbersome. Best of these "other" methods is using
CrossWorks by Soft Spoken which lets you connect any Apple II with a
serial port/card to a PC (with an included cable that will connect
just about any two serial ports that exist) and transfer and translate
files between AppleWorks and WordPerfect 4.1 through 5.1, Lotus 1-2-3,
dBase III & IV, and Microsoft Works, as well as any text file.
Which Files Can You Exchange?
Other than the formats that CrossWorks is able to convert, what types
of files can you transfer? Well, word processing, database, and
spreadsheet files can all be saved as text files and transferred.
Wordprocessing files can also be saved as RTF (rich text format) files
by many programs, which allows you to keep some basic formatting, such
as fonts, font sizes, and styles, intact in your file. On the IIGS,
only EGOed 2.0, which is sold by EGO Systems, can read RTF files*,
which is reason enough (as if there weren't others) to buy this
program. We covered graphics in the last issue, but will repeat that
GIF, TIFF, JPEG and several other types of graphic files can be
translated into Apple II native formats.
There are also sound files that can be exchanged, notably MIDI music,
AIFF digitized sounds, and WAV tables. There are even some
animation/movie formats that can be grabbed from the PC world, such as
DL and FLI animations. It's also good to know that if you receive a
compressed file from a PC, both Angel and PMPUnZip can handle ZIP
archives (the most popular form of compression on PCs today) while
ShrinkIt GS can handle many older forms of PC Compression.
Running MS-DOS Software
The second level of compatibility is being able to run the software
native to another platform. Some Macs can run Apple II software (using
the IIe card) and PCs can use the TrackStar board or various software
emulators to run Apple II software, but what about Apple II's running
Mac or PC software? Well, there is no emulator or card that allows an
Apple II to run Mac software, but there was a card manufactured by
Applied Engineering, the PC Transporter, which can run MS-DOS and
MS-DOS programs. The transdrive, a unit that can hold PC 5.25 or 3.5
inch (double density only) disk drives can be connected to the unit, as
can a PC-style keyboard. If you have to run an MS-DOS program and have
an Apple II at home, looking into purchasing one of these cards on the
used peripheral market would be a good idea. When not in use as a PC,
the memory on the card is available to the Apple II as a RAM disk,
which is an added benefit. The unit can work in a IIe or IIGS (there
are slightly different configurations for each computer), and it can
use the Apple 3.5" disk drive for reading/writing MS-DOS 720K disks
(although this is not a perfect match, and disks formatted on the Apple
drive are not universally compatible with PC disk drives, although the
reverse does seem to work without a hitch).
Why Care About All This?
If you need to exchange data with a PC, your own or someone else's,
then the advantage of having disk drive level compatibility is obvious.
What may not be so obvious is why you should care about this if you
don't need to exchange data on a regular basis. One reason is that as
your current disk drives grow older, you may find you need to replace
them--and replacing a 3.5" disk drive with a Blue Disk Controller and
PC-style floppy drive might just prove cheaper than buying an Apple
3.5" drive, while giving you expanded capacity on your floppies. The
same holds true for the Floptical drives, which can provide you with
1.44 MB and 21 MB disks--enough space so that you could even forgo
investing in a hard drive if you were upgrading a IIGS or IIe that did
not have one.As to running PC software? While you won't be able to run
Windows on the PC Transporter (it uses a faster version of the older PC
cpu, so while it is faster than the original IBM PC, it cannot run
Windows 3.1) you can use it to run WordPerfect, Quicken, and several
other important PC programs that you might not have available for your
Apple II or that you use at school or at work. Since used PC
Transporters can be found for under $100.00, this gives you a much
cheaper alternative than buying a PC for such tasks, and saves desk
space too. And the PC Transporter will enhance your Apple II system
with an added RAM disk and 3.5" disk drives (great for IIe owners who
need to get a 3.5" disk drive for programs like AppleWorks 5.1). In
this area, as in so many others, the Apple II shows itself to be a very
flexible computer, that can adapt to the needs of the people using it.
The genius of Steve Wozniak in making a microcomputer with expansion
slots continues to benefit users today, as we adapt our computers to
obtain new capabilities.
------------------------------------------------------
*Since going to press, Steve Disbrow of EGO Systems has created an RTF
Import/Export filter for GraphicWriter III which can also handle these
files. Mentioned in volume 2, number 2 of The Apple Blossom.
BARGAIN HUNTING
===============
One thing that is common to computer programs in public, private, and
parochial schools is that the budget is never big enough! Every time a
teacher or student does something creative, it seems, it raises
expectations and calls for them to do more...but often without
supplying the teacher and students with the equipment to get the job
done. What's a teacher to do?
Well, for one thing, don't get limited to just one supplier for your
computer needs, whether hardware, software or supplies like ink
cartridges or paper. It pays (literally) to shop around, and look for
good deals.
For example, MacWareHouse recently had factory refurbished
Hewlett-Packard DeskWriters (and I imagine that PCWareHouse catalog of
the same time period had HP DeskJets) at great prices. The HP
DeskWriter 550 was $219.95. The portable DeskWriter 310 was only
$169.95. And the DeskWriter 520 was $189.95. And there were other
models, all of them (except the 310) carrying a 3 year warranty.
Perhaps you have a disk drive or two failing on your Apple IIs. A+
Technologies, which deals in used equipment, had 3.5" disk drive
mechanisms for sale for $49.00. If you had a bad 3.5" disk drive, it
would be cheaper to yank it out of its case and install one of these
mechanisms than to bring the drive to the repair shop. Tracy Cook, who
runs A+, gets bargains all of the time, although the merchandise
available is subject to change. He regularly posts ads in the Apple II
classifieds area of America Online (keyword:classifieds, Other
Computers folder, Apple II folder) as well as on GEnie (A2 forum,
Category 3 "Free Market", Topic 42 "Reseller Items"). Give him a call
in California at 800-2APPLE2 (800-227-7532).Mentioning those two
areas, on GEnie and AOL (you'll have to have a PC or Mac to access AOL)
reminds me to plug those areas. There are lots of folks who sell
computers, software, disk drives, printers, and other peripherals in
those areas, and bargains are to be had.
Another spot that you can check out is the comp.sys.apple2.marketplace
news group on the Internet. I have bought many items from AOL, GEnie
and the Internet news group over the past year, and I recommend that
you give it a try. It is a good idea to deal via C.O.D. so that you
don't risk sending money and not getting anything in return, but to be
honest, I have only done C.O.D. when dealing with large (over $75.00)
amounts of money. And I have never been cheated online. Last year, the
computer lab's ImageWriter II died...so I scouted the
comp.sys.apple2.marketplace and came up with an ImageWriter II that was
delivered within one week of the old one's failure for $62.00, including
shipping! Literally anything you might use can be had. A few other items
I have purchased for Apple IIs using those three sources were:
3.5" Disk Drive $35.00
ADB IIGS Keyboard $50.00
ROM 01 IIGS CPU with 3.5" drive, mouse, monitor and 1.75 MB RAM $150.00
SuperSonic Stereo Card for IIGS $30.00
Kensington System Saver GS $10.00
HyperStudio 3.0, disks, manual, microphone $15.00
Music Studio 2.0.1, disks and manual $10.00
And the list goes on. With items costing only $10.00 or even less, even
the most tightly budgeted program can buy a few new-to-you pieces of
software. As always, you should be wary of a deal that sounds too good
to be true, but there are bargains for those who hunt for them. So
caveat emptor and happy hunting!