I need a priest! (Blessing of a Finderless System Folder)

[Blinkenlightz]

Hey all,

I'm trying to fix my "Your Apple Tour of the Macintosh SE/30" floppy - I've hit a snag, in that this disk originally had a System Folder with only a System file present, no Finder. The tour is the startup application, rather than the Finder. My original disk still boots, but the tour doesn't run correctly and Disk Copy can't read the disk to make an image (so the disk is corrupt).

I have an archival copy of the contents of the disk, but not as a disk image. Copying these contents to a new disk works, but without a blessed system folder, it won't boot the Mac as it originally would have. The Finder doesn't bless the folder when I copy the files to the disk, because of the missing Finder file.

Every instruction I've been able to find says that some combination of opening the system folder, dragging Finder out and back in, double-clicking the System file whilst bowing to the East, etc, is the way to bless a system folder. But none of these address the blessing of an incomplete one. I've tried all actions that don't mention the Finder, on System 6 and 7 both.

Any ideas?

 

[uniserver]

how would you bless it with out a finder?

 

[Blinkenlightz]

That's what I can't figure out... The original disk has a blessed System Folder, without a Finder in it. So Apple had a way, but what is it?

 

[unity]

I thought it had to do with created types, etc. Just like when the old Norton would build a boot disk. I forget the version, it was old, but it left out the finder too. It was simply because there was not room. As far as I remember any app can replace the finder. After all, the Finder is an app. The system simply looks for something that looks like the finder and launches it. Another app can fool the system.

I just don't recall the details. I would have to fire up ResEdit and look around. As for blessing, should be the same. Move the app out, then back in, then close/open the system folder - or some variation of that.

 

[CC_333]

As I recall, I managed to get it to work by making sure the application had the same type/creator code as the real Finder.

Maybe try that? I have no idea if it would bless properly in such an instance, though (maybe go one step further and rename the tour application "Finder" to see what happens?)

c

p.s. Very funny subject line, by the way! :lol:

 

[Charlieman]

You'll need to experiment but there are two options.

1. Rename your Tour app AND set the attributes so that they are the same as a System 6 Finder.

2. Examine the boot blocks of an existing system disk using an editor such as Fedit or Norton Disk Editor. The name of the startup app is specified there. You'll need to use an editor that understands the format of the boot blocks, not just a binary/hex editor. Then copy the required parameters to the boot blocks on your Tour disk.

 

[Blinkenlightz]

Thanks everyone, I think I have a place to start.

I've started looking at as much as I can of the broken original disk with Fedit to see what's going on there... Norton Disk Editor seems to let me see the boot blocks but not edit them, maybe I'm missing something there. The tour application is in a different folder, so not sure about tricking the system into thinking it's the Finder unless I just do away with the folders entirely. I'll keep on poking at it.