Service Source CDs contain comprehensive troubleshooting and repairing information on Apple products, as well as Apple Authorized Service Provider Program information. They were a primary resource for technicians and administrative personnel about Apple service. These CDs are an extremely useful source of technical details about 80s and 90s Macintosh Systems.
1 CommentCategory: Macintosh 68k
Apple’s Information Exchange (1987 to 1989)
The Information Exchange was a collection of marketing program descriptions, tip sheets, Apple event schedules, key Apple contacts, Apple trade-show schedules, and other information. It provided readers with an overview of Apple’s marketing direction, as well as outline specific opportunities that readers could take advantage of to help market their Apple-compatible products.
Leave a CommentApple Service Guides (1990 to 1997)
A series of supplemental booklets that help Apple certified technicians troubleshoot and repair Apple products at customer’s sites. The Apple Service Guide series contains information condensed from a number of Apple Service products and sources, it includes only need-to-know information for the experienced technician. These guides to NOT replace the Apple Service Source CD.
Leave a CommentApple Technical Information Source CDs (1990 to 1992)
The Technical Information Source CD-ROM provides fast, fingertip access to a wide range of support tools and information-all in one place. Contents include technical databases, frequently used system utilities and diagnostics, and support-oriented HyperCard stacks.
Leave a CommentApple Service Technical Procedures (1982 to 1992)
From 1982 to 1992 Apple published a significant amount of documentation for use by the technicians and hardware developers who repaired Apple hardware and/or designed new hardware components in the Apple Service Technical Procedures Binders. Includes an extensive amount of diagrams and also part numbers for the various components. In 1992 these binders were replaced by the Apple Service Source CDs and later the Apple Service Source Website.
Leave a CommentApple Developer Catalogs (1996 to 1997)
The premier source of Apple-labeled tools, books and technical resources for development on all Apple platforms. I found these catalogs to be very useful for finding URLs I could use in the way back machine to find cached versions of Apple’s sites, and to find out what documents were being published at the time the catalog was published.
Leave a CommentApple’s Inside Macintosh 1984 to 1996
These books provided guidance and examples for developers about the features, routines, and services available in the Macintosh Operating System for interacting with and managing Memory, Files, Sound, Toolbox etc.
Leave a CommentApple’s AppleFacts 1993 to 1998
Concise guide to Apple computers, printers, displays, and other Apple products. AppleFacts was a convenient, one-stop reference for basic technical information, such as key product specifications, upgrade paths, and accessories. Also includes information on Apple software and occasionally 3rd party software.
Leave a CommentApple’s Technical Notes and QA 1985 to present
Apple’s Technical Notes and Technical Q&A Notes provide technical information, sample code, and answers to common question for developers of Macintosh hardware and software with references to other Apple documentation such as inside Macintosh. At this time they are still available from Apple in their documentation archive. I’ve made backups of these articles with the assumption that like the Technical Information Library, Apple may as some point delete these files too.
Leave a CommentApple’s Software Recovery CDs 1999, 2000
The Apple Software Recovery CDs, a four volume set, were designed to provide users with a complete and efficient tool for disaster recovery, software installation, and maintenance. I found these CDs, in addition to Apple’s Developer CDs and Apple’s Restoration CDs, to be extremely useful for setting up my 68k Macintosh Systems and you will see them referenced in many of my guides.
Leave a CommentApple’s develop: The Apple Technical Journal 1990 to 1997
Published from January 1990 to March 1997 develop was Apple’s quarterly technical journal that provides information to 3rd-party developers. The journal was intended to lead developers into other reference materials like Inside Macintosh and the Apple IIGS Reference Manual. It did not replace these books, but compliments them and helped the reader identify which sections of those document they many need to study more carefully. Stating in 1998 develop became a section in MacTech, and MacTech’s site also includes HTML versions of the journals.
Leave a CommentApple’s Developer CD Series 1989 to 2009
Starting in 1989, following the release of Apple’s first CD-ROM drive in 1988 (the AppleCD SC), Apple began distributing software updates and technical information about it’s products on CD. In addition to downloading these for my own use, I am including links to online sources to make it easier for others to find these CDs and I’ve included links to the relevant Apple Direct/Directions articles that describe the contents of each CD. I have found these CDs incredibly useful for learning about and setting up these old systems.
Leave a CommentApple’s First Website: June 1994
When I was looking through Apple’s reference CDs I read a note in the 1997 Service Source v2.5 CD that stated all future documents would only be on Apple’s website. Reading that note made me wonder when Apple launched it’s first website. I thought that would be an easy fact to find, but I’ve yet to find a specific date. So I decided to do some research using the internet archive and wayback machine to see what I could piece together for a timeline of Apple on the internet.
Leave a CommentApple’s Technical Information Library (TIL, KB, TA) 1985 to 2018
When writing posts about old Apple hardware I like to include links to relevant Apple Knowledge Base / Technical Information Library articles created during the 80s and 90s. Until recently (2023) these articles were still available on Apple’s Support Site. Earlier this week I discovered that Apple has now removed these old articles from their site (direct links do not work), and they are no longer returned in the search. (Note to reader, if they were simply moved let me know in the comments). So I published the copies I have to the Internet Archive.
Leave a CommentIDE: Replacing your old IDE drive with a CF2IDE adapter
As part of setting up my LC 630 DOS system I wanted to replace the IDE drive with something faster and more reliable. After some experimentation with various SD2IDE adapters, which I could not get to work, I decided to use a CF2IDE adapter. My first try was with a standard consumer CF card, that didn’t work. So I decided to purchase an Industrial CF card, and that has been working perfectly.
Leave a CommentSCSI2SD: FAT32 32GB easy edit version
A new, and I think a much easier way to use your SCSI2SD with your Macintosh system. This image file can be used to setup your 32GB card with a FAT32 formatted partition that contains a set of volume files that you can easily mount and edit using Basilisk II, Mini vMac, or some other tool. I created this image file after wondering if I could create something for my SCSI2SD that would be as easy to use as my MacSD. Turns out I could, and then I found out that Andrew over on the MLA beat me to it. This is my version of what he created, his version is formatted exFAT, I decided to use FAT32 and I added more volume files and support for an optional second drive (with 4GB volumes).
28 CommentsCD-ROM: Using a Bootable CD-ROM to setup your 68k Macintosh
A few years ago I created a bootable System 7.5.5 CD-ROM image file by editing the contents of a bootable System 7 CD-ROM I have. I discovered that I could change the contents system folder to 7.5.5 and the disk would still boot. This entry describes how you can use my CD-ROM image file and edit it’s contents.
2 Comments68k Accelerators: NewLife Computer Corporation
DaynaFILE SCSI Floppy Disk Drive (5.25″: 360k, 1.2M, 3.5″: 720k, 1.44M)
In the late 90s I picked up a DaynaFile, a SCSI attached floppy drive, with a 360k floppy that someone had thrown out at my work. It sat neglected in a drawer for years until I finally got a power supply to get it working again. Looking around the internet I was able to find a copy of the 2.2 enabler, the 4.1 enabler, a copy of the 5th edition (1989) of the manual, and a brochure (1987), but limited technical information. As usual, I’m using my blog to document what I’ve found and pieced it together so I don’t forget, and to hopefully help others.
4 Comments68k Accelerators, FPUs and other CPUs
Over the years I have been lucky enough to pick up some 68k systems that that had accelerators installed: two MacPlus machines with 68030 accelerators (unlabeled), a SE FDHD with a Mobius 030 SE accelerator, and a collection of NewLife Accelerators. As I dug around the internet looking for information I have found a lot of of advertisements, reviews, and some manuals and drivers for various accelerators, I also found some contact names that I used to track down old employees through LinkedIn (with some success), so I decided to create this post to track what companies I’ve found information about.
10 Comments68k Systems: Researching through the Internet Archive
A lot of the old Macintosh and other electronics I play with as a hobby were long gone before the internet or before the way back machine started archiving the internet in late 1996. Luckily a lot of old computer magazines and documentation can now be found and searched through on the internet archive or on google books. I’ve created this page to help me track my sources, and useful searches that I use for creating this site.
2 CommentsARA 1.0 and Basilisk II: AppleShare file transfers from Windows 10 to a 68k Macintosh using Basilisk II, AppleTalk Remote Access (ARA) 1.0 and a USB/Serial null modem cable
About a year ago I purchased a null modem (serial) cable to let me connect my Apple IIe Card enabled LC 475 to my Apple IIc, and decided I should also test it out as a way to transfer files between my Windows 10 PC (should also work with OSX and Linux) and my Macintosh Plus, it was actually fairly easy. Initially I used it with Zterm, but after a bit of experimentation I got it working with Apple Remote Access Personal Server 2.1 (ARA PS) and can now use Basilisk II to access files using AppleShare and see all the shared devices on my LocalTalk (AppleTalk) network. The speed is still fairly slow, so for larger files I use Basilisk II to edit my drive/volume images, or connect using my Asante SCSI to ethernet adaptor.
1 CommentSystem 7.1.3: Editing my Macintosh 68k bootable images to add the full version of System 7.1.3 (System 7.1 + System update 3.0)
In my previous blog entries I mentioned that I could not include the full version of System 7.1.3 (System 7.1 + System Update 3.0) with with my drive images due to copyright restrictions, but you can install the full version of the North American version of 7.1 up to 7.1.3 using Apple’s Legacy Software Recovery CD.
3 CommentsSystem 7.0.1: Editing my Macintosh 68k bootable images to add the full version of System 7.0.1
In my previous blog entries I mentioned that I could not include the full version of System 7.0.1 with my drive images due to copyright restrictions, but you can install the full version of the North American version of 7.0.1 using Apple’s Legacy Software Recovery CD.
2 CommentsMini vMac: Using Mini vMac to edit my Macintosh 68k volume image files
One of the most popular features of my site is my ready made System 6.0.8 or System 7.5.5 bootable images for use with 68k Macintosh systems. This entry describes how you can edit my volume images on Windows 10 using Mini vMac (Mini vMac cannot read or modify drive images). You probably know what Mini vMac is, but if not, a quick summary: Mini vMac is an open source emulator of some 68k-based Macintosh computers that runs on Windows, OS X, Linux, FreeBSD, NetBSD, Open Indiana, Microsoft Windows Mobile, and some other platforms. I mainly use Mini vMac for working with System 6.x and earlier Systems that aren’t supported by Basilisk II. Once I have everything setup the way I want on the volume image I can use Basilisk II to copy the contents of the volume image to a drive image if needed.
Leave a CommentMacSD Volumes: Using a MacSD adapter with volume files to setup your 68k Macintosh
I recently purchased a MacSD adapter to try out and see if it’s easier to use than my SCSI2SD adapters, after some experimentation I can say that it is definitely more flexible than the SCSI2SD, specifically the ability to assemble a set of volume images in a directory on your SD card as a drive. You can directly edit the volume files on your SD card using Basilisk II and other emulators and tools for quicker updates. It also allowed me to increase the number of ProDOS volumes for my Apple IIe card, unlike HD SC Setup which limited me to 2 ProDOS portions per drive, I was able to create 6 on a MacSD composite drive (likely more, but 6 is enough for now). You can also use the MacSD with Drive images (similar to SCSI2SD), floppy images and CD-ROM images.
2 CommentsIPNetRouter and Basilisk II: Creating an Internet gateway for you 68k Macintosh using Windows 10, Basilisk II, ARA, IPNetRouter and a USB/Serial null modem cable
This entry builds on my entry for how to use Apple Remote Access Personal Server (ARA PS 2.1) to connect Basilisk II to a 68k Macintosh with AppleTalk over a null modem connection. Once that connection has been created between your Macintosh system and modern system running Basilisk II, you can use IPNetRouter to bridge the ARA PS’s AppleTalk connection with Basilisk II’s ethernet connection and surf the web from your Macintosh.
2 CommentsARA 2.1 and Basilisk II: AppleShare file transfers from Windows 10 to a 68k Macintosh using Basilisk II, Apple Remote Access Personal Server 2.1 (ARA PS) and a USB/Serial null modem cable
About a year ago I purchased a null modem (serial) cable to let me connect my Apple IIe Card enabled LC 475 to my Apple IIc, and decided I should also test it out as a way to transfer files between my Windows 10 PC (should also work with OSX and Linux) and my Macintosh Plus, it was actually fairly easy. Initially I used it with Zterm, but after a bit of experimentation I got it working with Apple Remote Access Personal Server 2.1 (ARA PS) and can now use Basilisk II to access files using AppleShare and see all the shared devices on my LocalTalk (AppleTalk) network. The speed is still fairly slow, so for larger files I use Basilisk II to edit my drive/volume images, or connect using my Asante SCSI to ethernet adaptor.
Leave a CommentApple IIe games: 4am’s and Alex’s ProDOS Collections on my Apple IIe Card
There has been a lot of work in the Apple II community to port Apple DOS games to ProDOS, with the Apple IIe Card‘s ability to support multiple 32Meg partitions (up to 4 at the same time), I wanted to share the steps I use to get the 4am’s Total Replay Collection and the Alex’s ProDOS game bundle on to my LC475 with my Apple IIe card.
3 CommentsZterm and Basilisk II: file transfers from Windows 10 to a 68k Macintosh using Basilisk II, Zterm and a USB/Serial null modem cable
About a year ago I purchased a null modem (serial) cable to let me connect my Apple IIe Card enabled LC 475 to my Apple IIc, and decided I should also test it out as a way to transfer files between my Windows 10 PC (should also work with OSX and Linux) and my Macintosh Plus, it was actually fairly easy. One of the methods I tried, and the one I use the most, is transferring small files from Basilisk II to my 68k Macintosh. For larger files I use Basilisk II to edit my drive images.
1 CommentBalenaEtcher: Using balenaEtcher to create and write disk images
You can use balaenaEtcher to raw-write my drive image files to an SD or Compact Flash Card, and some other USB attached storage. When you raw-write a file it doesn’t simply copy the file to the target storage media/device it writes the file bit-by-bit on to the target storage media/device removing all existing formatting.
2 CommentsMacintosh Plus Upgrades
I’ve been lucky enough to pick up a few upgrades to my classic Macintosh systems over the years, and in the process of hunting down information on those upgrades I’ve come across ads and reviews of a lot of different options that have been produced over the years for a Macintosh Plus, so I thought I’d create this entry to capture some of what I’ve found, and hopefully people will comment on ones I’ve missed.
1 CommentSystem 6.0.8: New images for Macintosh System 6.0.8
As part of a general cleanup and as something to do on rainy days, I’ve decided to make a version 2 of the drive and…
3 CommentsAsante EN/SC: Using Asante EN/SC SCSI to Ethernet with my Macintosh Plus
I’ve finally gotten around to creating drive images for using an Asanté Desktop EN/SC (1996 version), SCSI to Ethernet converter with a Macintosh Plus (once I bought a keyboard from Herb Johnson to replace the ones I had that were lost in a move). I have one of the later versions that draw’s it’s power from the SCSI bus, which caused some issues with the Macintosh Plus.
1 CommentFloppyEMU HD20: Using a FloppyEMU emulated HD20 with my Macintosh Plus
Recently I pickup a few Macintosh Plus systems, so I’ve decided to play around with the FloppyEMU’s HD20 support with the hopes of writing some future blog posts for maxing out a Macintosh Plus. This guide will also work for the SE, Classic, Classic II, Portable, IIci, IIsi, or LC.
2 CommentsSierra SCI: Sierra 256 colour and SCI games for the Macintosh 68k and PPC
Similar to my work to recreate the release timeline for Sierra’s Adventure Game Interpreter (AGI) games, I’ve done a bit of research to gather the…
Leave a CommentApple IIe Card and SCSI2SD: How I have my SCSI2SD setup for my Apple IIe card in my LC 475
For reference by my future self, and for anyone that might want to duplicate my setup, I’ve documented how I’ve setup the 32GB SD card for my SCSI2SD that I use with my LC 475 with my Apple IIe card. Currently I have my SCSI2SD set up as 3 devices, SCSI 0 to 2, this is for two reasons: so I don’t have to update my SCSI2SD settings when I want to test one of my drive images as device 0, and so I can have 4 ProDOS partitions (limit 2 per drive).
3 Comments