info-mac@uw-beaver (04/03/85)
From: Moderator John Mark Agosta <INFO-MAC-REQUEST@SUMEX-AIM.ARPA>
INFO-MAC Digest Wednesday, 3 Apr 1985 Volume 2 : Issue 25
Today's Topics:
UNIX / Mac AppleTalk programs
Real-time desk accessories
Liberating the MAC [ excerpts from DDJ of April ]
'Mousehole-BBS' reports on 512k heat-problems and BIT9-cards
Promodem price
Macterm xon/xoff
Info on Fonts??
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Date: Sat, 30 Mar 85 00:17:20 pst
From: Bill Croft <croft@safe>
Subject: UNIX / Mac AppleTalk programs
Below is the README file inside <info-mac>seagate-mat.shar. I'll be
on vacation for the next week or so, so don't expect quick answers to
any mail...
---
MAT - MAC ATP TRANSFER (PROGRAM AND DAEMON)
This directory contains the sources for the UNIX and Mac side of a
simple "Mac ATP Transfer" program. You end up with two programs:
'matd' is the UNIX 'mat' daemon. It calls a library of ATP functions
to receive and process ATP transactions from the Macs. The daemon
does authentication, forking, etc.
'mat.rsrc' is the Mac program. It has a simple window for text
messages and menus to select 'get' or 'put' transfers. Stdfile
dialogs are used. When it first comes up (or if you later pull down
'file/new host&user') a dialog box prompts for hostname, username, and
password (the password is in a TextEdit box so tiny that it doesnt
give anything away).
Note that you have to have our Stanford Ethernet AppleTalk gateway
(seagate) to use this. The gateway takes AppleTalk datagrams and
translates them into IP/UDP datagrams, so that no UNIX kernel mods are
necessary to speak AppleTalk (only a user level library).
Between a Mac and our VAX 750 (4.2 bsd) we see about 120K baud on
reads and 70K baud on writes (timed with a ramdisk on the Mac side).
The ATP protocol is more efficient during reads because of the
multiple response packets it allows.
While useful as an example, the main reason we did 'mat' was to test
out our UNIX and Mac ATP libraries and the protocol translating
function of the seagate. The UNIX library is certainly not complete.
It currently supports only 'server' usage; the corresponding 'client'
calls should be added. You would also want to write some support for
the Name Binding Protocol.
We are shortly going to insert the library calls into an external file
system (courtesy of John Seamons). Other uses you might try: (1)
have your Macs spool documents or pictures to a UNIX daemon that hands
them off to Imagen laserprinter postprocessors. (2) write an
interface to the mail system that allows sending and receiving
pictures (and speech?) inside your Internet mail.
FILES in this directory:
Makefile 'make' input file README this file atalk.h general appletalk
header file (mac and unix) atalk.c atalk library (mac) atalku.c atalk
library (unix) atalku.h atalk library header file (unix) mat.c mat
main program (mac) mat.h mat 'protocol' definitions (mac and unix)
mat.rc resource file for mat (mac) matd.c mat daemon (unix) skel.c
toolbox skeleton application called by mat (mac)
---- All material Copyright (C) 1985, Stanford University. May be
used, but not sold, without permission.
------------------------------
Subject: Real-time desk accessories
Date: 01 Apr 85 08:35:49 EST (Mon)
From: Steven B. Munson <sbm@Purdue.ARPA>
A couple of people have complained here that their animated desk
accessories go too slowly when run from the Finder. I'm not very
familiar with writing desk accessories, but I looked at the source
code for the Saddle desk accessory ("String art" seems like a more
appropriate title to me), and I noticed that it draws something and
delays by incrementing a counter every time it gets control from the
application before drawing the next thing. Isn't it possible to call
TickCount from a desk accessory? It seems to me that the correct way
to delay is to set
n = TickCount() + d and check to see if
TickCount() > n every time you get control. When it is, you
draw the next thing. This method of delaying is completely
independent of the frequency with which the application calls
SystemTask, and would probably not even allow the animation to slow
down when the Othello program I have written is doing something
CPU-intensive like figuring out the next move (it still calls
SystemTask, but apparently not as often).
Steve Munson
sbm@purdue.ARPA
------------------------------
Date: Mon 1 Apr 85 18:24:03-CST
From: Werner Uhrig <CMP.WERNER@UTEXAS-20.ARPA>
Subject: Liberating the MAC [ excerpts from DDJ of April ]
[from DDJ, April 1984 REALIZABLE FANTASIES (page 12) ]
Liberating the MAC
------------------ a few paragraphs giving a critical view of the
MAC's closed-architecture leading up to the topics below.
The Hacker's MAC
----------------- to get up-to-date on Lee Felsenstein's "hacker's
MAC", call Gordon French's BBS (French Connection at 408-736-6181) or
send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Lee at Golemics, 2600 10th,
Berkeley CA 94710. [Maybe it could be made available to INFO-MAC ???]
Free the ROM64
--------------- a brief, but interesting description of Steve Jasik's
MacNosy disassembler.
Blue Light Special
------------------- a few words on the "Jackintosh", Jack Tramiel's
Atari ST and DRs GEM user interface.
Virtual Slots
-------------- you can't plug boards into the MAC, but you can add
desk accesories, and make external enhancements. Apple claims that
AppleTalk has opened the MAC, providing "virtual slots". 3Com has
developed an Ethernet link, the AppleTalk protocols are public at all
levels. Or is that just Apple's fantasy?
The Woz Papers
--------------- DDJ offers reprints of Woz's past contributions and
throws in Andy Hertzfeld's LAZARUS to boot (a program for resurrecting
BASIC programs on the Apple II)
------------------------------
Date: Sun 31 Mar 85 10:29:46-CST
From: Werner Uhrig <CMP.WERNER@UTEXAS-20.ARPA>
Subject: 'Mousehole-BBS' reports on 512k heat-problems and BIT9-cards
[ from MacTutor, Vol. 1 # 4, March 1985 ]
BLOWN 512 MACs [on reports of blown MACs] ... out east (DC),
the Washington Apple Pi has temporarily put a hold on further group
buys of the 512k upgrade kit because about 10% of the upgraded MACs
have died in a similar manner. Seems as if the power supply is close
to it's limits. Most of the problems are power supply, some have been
video. They're trying to gather statistics ... Apple claims not to
have any data that suggests a higher failure rate for Fat MACs.
[ I've been concerned about the amount of heat since Mickey got here
and will
shortly be looking into installing a quiet fan 'a la' HyperDrive.
Anyone
done some such yet? ---Werner ]
512K UPGRADE DO-IT-YOURSELF If anyone is interested in upgrade
al DDJ, the BIT9 cards are available from Ken Wilhelm here in Seattle
at (206)322-2128
[ could someone please explain what a 'BIT9 card' is? ---Werner ]
[ MacTutor (formerly MacTech), 12 issues $24, call (714)993-9939 or
write
P.O. Box 846, Placentia, CA 92670. tell them 'Werner sent you' and
they'll
not understand what you're talking about, because they never heard
of me (-:
just another way of saying that I am not affiliated with MacTutor
---Werner ]
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 30 Mar 85 16:43:38 pst
From: Bob Cralle <cralle@lll-crg.ARPA>
Subject: Promodem price
Priority 1 Electronics price now is $299 (bare) $19.95 for 64k buffer
and $79 for options processor. 800/423-5922 to order.
not affiliated, etc., etc.................
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 29 Mar 85 17:08:58 EST
From: Andrew Malis <malis@BBNCCS.ARPA>
Subject: Macterm xon/xoff
Does anyone know if Macterminal recognizes an escape sequence from the
host to toggle whether xon/xoff flow control is in use or not? Being
able to toggle this from the host would be very convenient so that it
could be automatically disabled for macget/macput and reeabled for
normal operation at 9600.
Thanks, Andy
------------------------------
Date: Mon 1 Apr 85 10:20:05-EST
From: Terry "Thunder" Boult <TBOULT@COLUMBIA-20.ARPA>
Subject: Info on Fonts??
I am looking (before I spend the time myself) for anyone that has
generated the Princeton math font in sized other than 12 and 24 point.
If you have these or other math fonts that you feel are better than
The Princeton please let me know. Finally, has anyone done a good
math font for the laserwriter??
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End of INFO-MAC Digest
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