Info-Mac-Request@SUMEX-AIM.STANFORD.EDU (Jon Pugh and Lance Nakata) (11/14/88)
INFO-MAC Digest Monday, 14 Nov 1988 Volume 6 : Issue 100
Today's Topics:
New virus warning (again!) [forwarded message from Virus-L]
Viruses
Butbutbut (NeXT vs. Mac III (four square))
Re: Montage FR1
Daynafile
Backing up my Hard Drive
Re: Do-It-Yourself Mac SCSI Hard Drive
Lightspeed Pascal 2.0 Availability
Linking cdevs (It works!)
Problems with MacDraw II
Strange file, and crashes
Classified Ad SIMMs
XCMD troubles;HC bug
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Date: Mon, 31 Oct 88 11:13 EST
>From: Jim Shaffer <SHAFFERJ%BKNLVMS.BITNET@Forsythe.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: New virus warning (again!) [forwarded message from Virus-L]
>From: "David D. Grisham" <DAVE@UNMB.BITNET>
Sender: Virus Discussion List <VIRUS-L@LEHIIBM1.BITNET>
Hi group,
One of our student consultants mailed this to me. Note: This happened
in a Mac Lab, with 512s and SEs. I don't have a copy of this yet.
HAS ANYONE HEARD OF THIS TROJAN OR VIRUS?
---
This afternoon, I found that we have what I think is some form
of mutated virus. IT CHANGED MY VIRUS RX PROGRAM TO A GENERIC DOCUMENT
ENTITLED "PLEASE THROW ME IN THE TRASH". This is no joke. It did it right
in front of my eyes.
I got a message box, which stated "There is a penetration attempt
on VirusRx, if the disc is unlocked, it will be changed
to "Please throw me in the trash"".
This sounded like so much BS to me, but when I looked, IT WAS
NO JOKE! I don't have any time to devote to isolation because of comps
this Wed. Joseph has the altered VirusRx (now a 44k generic document).
Let me know your thoughts on this subject.
----
******************************************************************************
* *
* Dave Grisham *
* Senior Staff Consultant/Virus Security Phone (505) 277-8148 *
* Information Resource Center *
* Computer & Information Resources & Technology *
* University of New Mexico USENET DAVE@UNMA.UNM.EDU *
* Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131 BITNET DAVE@UNMB *
* *
******************************************************************************
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Nov 88 09:42:42 MST
>From: <dbirnbau@NMSU.Edu>
Subject: Viruses
Allow me to comment further on the virus problem:
ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
I work at New Mexico State University, just down the Interstate from UNM, which
just run into another virus problem (see MAC-USER@IRLEARN.BITNET). We have so
far had trouble with the SCORES virus several weeks ago, which managed to wipe
out most of our lab disks, nail our hard disks, and infect about 20% of
the entire Mac-using student body. We have been checking our disks constantly
for traces of the SCORES virus, when what should happen but....
..the **** nVIR virus shows up! This is getting REAL irritating! Of course,
Virus Rx, Apple's handy-dandy virus checking program totally misses the nVIR
virus (NOTE THIS EVERYONE!) We found the virus using Interferon v. 3.0, now
v. 3.1. Unfortunately, we have no good way to kill the virus dead, other
then a lot of finiking with ResEdit (not clean, but effective). Interferon
simply deletes the file...clean, effective, but bad for lab PR when you start
wiping out peoples applications. And, we weren't looking for the nVIR when
we were spot checking, so now we have to start the whole quarentine process
over from the beginning, with Interferon instead of KillScores.
The point of all this is that I AM SICK AND TIRED OF THESE VIRUSES!! I am just
a lowly student (in search of revenge) but this means I have classes and other
things to worry about, and I don't need to be putting in 40 hour work weeks
telling everyone how they can kill a virus, organizing the effort, recopying
lab disks, etc.
And now I find out that UNM, who is having the same kind of problems we are,
has uncovered another potential nasty. With complete sympathy to UNM, I do
hope that none of your disks make it down this far, or my hands will be full
once again. If anyone out there who will ever read this message has
written a virus, please let me know SO I CAN FIND YOU AND KILL YOU!!!
Ahem...please excuse the violence. It's been a long year.
+--------------------------------------------+------------------------------+
| David Birnbaum, programmer/consultant | dbirnbau@nmsu.edu |
| Small Systems, Computer Center | VTIS001@NMSUVM1.BITNET |
| New Mexico State University <--+ They pay my bills, but |
| 10 PRINT "Basic is Dead!" : GOTO 10 | they don't write my opions! |
+--------------------------------------------+------------------------------+
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Nov 88 00:05 EST
>From: <SERETNY%HARTFORD.BITNET@Forsythe.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: Butbutbut (NeXT vs. Mac III (four square))
1. Apple has not announced no intention of having the DMA channels the NeXT
machine has to make I/O transparent to the processor... Also, they are
their usual lax selves when it comes to hardware augmentation of the graphics
and sound units (no DSP!). Sure, who needs all that, well DSP's (Especially
Motorola's) can be used for more than just fudging samples: it can be used as
a general 24-bit vector processor of a sort)...
2. Apple's prices for the IIx are rape enough, do you think I want to sell
everything I own to buy their four square? (Mac III) {I am even talking
developer prices here!!!!!!) I can spend far less and get much better.
Apple is still not saying how fast four square will drive NuBus... 10MHz?
Boooo hisss.
3. As operating systems go, Mach (or any UNIX derivative) is far more mature
and robust than the Macintosh OS will ever be for quite some time... They
(Apple) have been patching and hacking the poor beast to do things it was never
intended to do.... It needs a total rewrite (to more natively and efficiently
support multitasking and protected & virtual memory). Apple is being
slow about providing a non-Vanilla UNIX and the means to distribute it...
Apple, in short, is becoming more and more like DEC and IBM: more interested
in pufta business applications accounts than advancing any sort of
technology. I feel really burned by Apple: it's 1988 and still, no DMA i/o,
no hardware-implemented SCSI TIBs (transfer-instruction-block), no
graphics hardware, no virtual memory, no protected memory regions, nothing
at all to really recommend it as an "advanced workstation"! VAXstations
Suns, and many other systems have had these, and much more for quite some time
(with some of the systems liek a Vaxstation costing approx the same!)
$FLAME OFF
Robert M. Seretny
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 31 Oct 88 10:39 EDT
>From: Jeffrey Shulman <SHULMAN@sdr.slb.com>
Subject: Re: Montage FR1
Date: Mon 31 Oct 88 10:39:24-EDT
>From: Jeff Shulman <SHULMAN@SDR.SLB.COM>
Subject: Re: Montage FR1
To: info-mac@sumex-aim.stanford.edu
Message-ID: <594315564.0.SHULMAN@SDR.SLB.COM>
Mail-System-Version: <VAX-MM(218)+TOPSLIB(129)@SDR.SLB.COM>
We have one here and like it a lot! We got one of the early ones and our first
couple rolls of film came out too dark. We called PT and they said they were
aware of the problem, fixed it on all current units and would fix ours. This
meant shipping it out to CA (at their expense). So we shipped it out and to
my VERY pleasant surprize the very next day we received a brand new unit!
PT did not tell us they were doing this but just that our original unit would
be fixed and immediately sent out. Getting the new unit was indeed a sign
of good customer support.
The unit does indeed make excellent slides. It comes with a DA and a program
to drive the unit. You use Copy/Paste to paste slides (or you can add PICT
files) into a queue managed by the DA. Using the Imager application you then
send these slides to the unit. The Imager application will run under
multiFinder though it requires 3Mb memory to itself.
Images can be sent in either 2000 or 4000 line resolution and either 7 or
8 bits per pixel color. With 4000 line resolution and 8 bits per color (such
as fancy ramping effects from PowerPoint) a slide can take up to 10 minutes
each to image. With 2000 line resolution plain text slides take under 1 minute
to image.
Cricket sells a driver that can be used with Cricket Presents (only). We do
have this driver but haven't used it since we mainly use PowerPoint here.
PT also promises full PostScript support before the end of the year (which is
why we chose the FR1 in the first place).
Jeff
uucp: ...rutgers!yale!slb-sdr!shulman
CSNet: SHULMAN@SDR.SLB.COM
Delphi: JEFFS
GEnie: KILROY
CIS: 76136,667
MCI Mail: KILROY
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 31 Oct 88 15:32 EDT
>From: KWALDMAN@wash-vax.bbn.com
Subject: Daynafile
I'm using the Daynafile software/hardware to convert from ms-dos data
to mac data and am having troubles using it. I am using a Mac SE and a 20mB
Bernoulli drive to boot from. The system is 6.0 and the finder 6.1. If the
Daynafile box is connected to my SCSI (daisychained through the Bernoulli box)
the mac will not boot. The smiling mac icon appears but it does not go any
further. The SCSI address are Bernoulli 6 and Daynafile box 3. Even if I
switch priorities the mac won't even detect the startup drive. Anyone have any
idea what this is? Would system 6.02 work and if so how can I get it quickly?
thanks
Karl
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Nov 1988 18:51 CDT
Date: Wed, 2 Nov 88 19:51 EDT
>From: <EBC2044@RITVAX>
Subject: DEC Raw Drives???
To: info-mac@uiucvmd
Original_To: BITNET%"info-mac@uiucvmd"
I own a DEC hard drive, a raw drive with a power supply. I am curious how
to hook this up to my Mac Plus! The drive has no cables with it, and contains
no type of DOS within the casing (if this makes a difference or not I'm not
sure, I just bought my Mac..) I know about the SCSI port in the back of the
computer, but will this port run a raw drive like the DEC??
If anyone can help me, I would be very grateful! I'd hate to have to go out
and buy another megger when I already own one!
thanks,
Beth Cooke
EBC2044@RITVAX.BITNET
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 3 Nov 88 13:16:00 -0500 (EST)
>From: Michael Joseph Darweesh <md32+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Backing up my Hard Drive
Does anyone out there know of a Hard Drive Backup utility that compresses as it
backs up. I have a 140 MB HD and would like to be able to back it up with less
than an infinite amount of floppies.
Thanks
-Mike Darweesh
Carnegie Mellon University
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Do-It-Yourself Mac SCSI Hard Drive
Date: Thu, 03 Nov 88 16:43:45 -0800
>From: Alastair Milne <milne@ICS.UCI.EDU>
> There is a problem remaining. I am unable to get the Finder to mount the drive.
> The disk is formatted, and the driver works (I am able to mount the drive using
> the SCSI Bus cdev), but Finder can't find it. (I know you can't boot with the
> earlier versions of the MacPlus ROM's, but even if I disable the Unit
> Attention, the drive won't mount from a floppy startup.)
Sounds familiar. I had exactly the same problem with a Seagate-based
60Meg internal hard drive I bought a few months ago for my Mac II.
Fortunately, the manual that came with it had a trouble-shooting section
where I learned:
- if you try to boot, but the system can't seem to find the disk, and
the disc's access light keeps blinking on and off (had to take the top
off again to see this), then
you may have overwritten the Mac's parameter RAM, damaging some
parameters needed for SCSI access. Try clearing the PRAM:
- pull down the DA menu
- hold down ALL 3 SHIFTS ( shift, option, and command)
- select the control panel
Before the panel comes up, you'll receive an offer to clear the PRAM.
Say yes (you'll lose your highlight colour, if you have one, but that's
life; if you really want to keep it, make a note of its values from the
colour selector dialog). As for the control panel itself, just close it.
The manual says you may have to do this a couple of times, but I found
just once worked alright. At the next boot, it choose the hard disc.
One of the few drawbacks of trying out shareware grabbed from info-mac is
that sometimes things crash, or overwrite memory. I've been obliged on 2
or 3 occasions to repeat the treatment, when something trod on the PRAM
again. Tends to give you heart flutters, but so far, I've been lucky.
Nevertheless, I keep at least one separate boot full of every SCSI
utility I can find.
> If anyone knows the solution, I would sure like to hear from you. If anyone
> want more details, I will forward them to you.
I've a better idea: I'll cc this back to the net, and anybody who's
interested can see it there.
Good luck.
Alastair Milne
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 01 Nov 88 09:40:10 PST
>From: "Tim Bienz"
>From: <BIENZ%SLACVM.BITNET@Forsythe.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: Lightspeed Pascal 2.0 Availability
I spoke with the people in the upgrade department at Symantec last week.
They told me that 2.0 would not be available until early DECEMBER! (I'm glad
that I haven't sent in my upgrade fee yet!)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 1 Nov 88 12:50:04 -0500 (EST)
>From: Matt McNally <mm3d+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Linking cdevs (It works!)
What follows is an excerpt from the Inside Macintosh Volume V
Sample cdev with working 'Compile and linking' parameters. I
have included the header for the pascal source in an
attempt to clear up any of the confusion inherent with
linking the cdev.
===== Start of Code Excerpt =====
{ *** Sample.p ***: Sample MPW 2.0 source code for a Macintosh CDEV.
All Pascal and Rez sources extracted from
Inside Macitntosh V pp.336-345 -MMM [10/30/88]}
{ Copyright (C) 1986,1987 Apple Computer, Inc.
All rights reserved. Etc etc.}
{ The 'main' cdev function name has been changed from 'Sample' as it
appears in Inside Macintosh V to 'CDEVSAMP' to clarify the link statement.}
(* === Working Compilation Parameters ===
pascal cample.p
Rez sample.r -o sample
Link -m CDEVSAMP -sn Main=Sample sample.p.o
"{Libraries}"Interface.o
"{PLibraries}"PasLib.o
-o Sample
-rt 'cdev'=-4064
-c 'samp' -t 'cdev'
SetFile -a BIM Sample
*)
Unit cdev;
Interface
Uses
{ $Load Sample.dump } { <== Used for 'speedy' compilation...}
Memtypes, QuickDraw, OSIntf, ToolIntf, PackIntf;
{ $Load }
Function CDEVSAMP(message, item, numItems, CPanelID:Integer;
theEvent: EventRecord; cdevValue: LongInt;
CPDialog:DialogPtr) :LongInt;
Implementation
...{ cdev specific code here [see notes below] }...
End; { End of Unit cdev }
===== End of Code Excerpt =====
Notes:
1) The CDEVSAMP function must be the first code in the 'code' resource.
2) The new 256K ROMS support 'PACK' 7, so you need to either
check which machine you are on and NOT load it if the machine
supports the new ROMS, or simply remove the code in Sample.p that
refences that package. After all this is only a sample...
Many thanks to -
William Bumgarner, Ken McLeod, Larry Rosenstein,
Barry Semo, and Robert White
- for their invaluable help concerning cdevs and linking.
If you would like a copy of the 'rez' and/or 'pascal' sources for the
above sample cdev send me mail at mm3d@andrew.cmu.edu.
==========================================================================
Matt McNally Macintosh II Project Dugan/Programmer
Carnegie Mellon, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
ARPANET: mm3d@andrew.cmu.edu Office: BH239 (412) 268-8454
==========================================================================
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Nov 88 08:28:18 gmt
>From: Stephen Page <sdpage%prg.oxford.ac.uk@NSS.Cs.Ucl.AC.UK>
Subject: Problems with MacDraw II
We upgraded to MacDraw II a while ago, but we have been experiencing lots
of problems. First, we can't get "font substitution" to work: Geneva font
is transmitted to the LaserWriter Plus as a bitmap screen font, irrespective
of the setting of the switch in the dialogue box. Next, we have managed to
draw a couple of boxes in our pictures which defy all attempts to print them.
The rest of the picture comes out fine; a few bits are missing. Nasty!
Our dealer now suggests that the problems are due to incompatibilities between
the software and the system/drivers. Is he right?
There is a general issue here: the Macintosh world is getting in a mess, with
the availability of numerous versions of the system software over relatively
short timescales. For example, on the same date we purchased TOPS and TOPS
Spool, which insist that LaserWriter v 4 be used, and MacDraw II, which
insists that System V6 and its Laserwriter software be used. Of course, any
attempt to pin problems on software manufacturers always brings the response
"but you're not running the right System, LaserWriter, etc etc". We are caught
in the middle - our software suitehas incompatible requirements.
To make it worse, different versions of the operating system are available in
the UK and US: it's all very well for Claris to ship MacDraw II in the UK,
but users are far from happy when the product arrives with a slip announcing
that the product may not run properly unless a system version which has not
been released in the UK is installed.
Solutions: 1. Dealer support is essential. The dealer is the person who must
take on the responsibility for recommending a software set, and handling
the suppliers when there are incompatibilities
2. Apple MUST insist on closer adherence to standards, audit software
manufacturers if necessary, and provide an assurance that later versions
of system software will not cause the software to fail.
Any thoughts?
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Nov 88 08:30:57 gmt
>From: Stephen Page <sdpage%prg.oxford.ac.uk@NSS.Cs.Ucl.AC.UK>
Subject: Strange file, and crashes
I saw a note here recently about System Error ID=2 and a file EIYBSKJTNX
turning up with size=0k. We have also been experiencing this, probably from
MacDraw 1.9.5 (we run System 4.3(B1) over a TOPS network).
Suggestions would be very welcome.
------------------------------
Subject: Classified Ad SIMMs
Date: 2 Nov 88 10:38:42 EST (Wed)
>From: lafcol!buyskes@rutgers.edu
Would anyone like to relate their experiences buying SIMMs from
some of the places that advertise in the back pages of the various
magazines? I'm impressed with some of their prices (under $350)
but I wonder about buying from some place I never heard of and which,
for all I know, is soldering SIMM boards in somebody's basement.
I'll summarize any responses.
--Steve Buyske
BITNET: buyskes@lafayett
Other: buyskes%lafcol.uucp@rutgers.edu (case sensitive)
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Nov 88 14:15 EDT
>From: <V050FN5R%UBVMS.BITNET@Forsythe.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: XCMD troubles;HC bug
I am working on a XCMD for a hypercard that will catalog a hard disk. I managed
to write the routines to catalog a hard disk and am trying to port it over to
HC. There seems to be a problem, though. My XCMD works occasionally. Sometimes,
I click on the button (which contains the command), and it sometimes works;it
sometimes does nothing. Often, I have engage the paint tools; go back to the
browse tool, and then my XCMD works.
There might be something wrong with the way I declared my HParamBlock pointers,
or there may be a problem with way I am accessed the the hard disk, or it may
be something else. I will appreciate any mail or note on the net about this.
Also, when I used the old Hypercard, I managed a few times to comes across a
message that said HC could not read background id #### at ####. I thought this
problem was fixed, but my XCMD seems to have brought it back. I lost two stacks
so far. I remember a few people posted about this problem before, but I did not
see an answer. Anyone have any ideas?
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End of INFO-MAC Digest
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