Is it possible to download software and transfer it to a floppy disk via USB Floppy Drive from a 2018 MacBook Pro?

[HeartletTullius]

Hey everyone, 

I recently began working on fixing up my Macintosh SE/30, and I got the floppy drive working again last night (yay!). I would love to get some software over to the SE/30, but I don’t have any other vintage Apple computers to download software and transfer them to the Macintosh SE/30.

However, someone on eBay is selling an external USB Floppy Drive (here) for a pretty good price, and I am wondering now if it would be possible to download vintage Macintosh software (from the Macintosh Garden etc.), connect the USB Floppy Drive to my MacBook Pro (2018), transfer the files, and then bring the Floppy Drive to the Macintosh SE/30 to transfer the applications/programs?

I know this sounds like a long shot, but it would make my life so much easier if this was something you could do, or if there is a similar method of getting software to vintage Macs.

I should also mention that I actually have Basilisk II working on my MacBook Pro, so that might help you guys answer my question!

Thank you so much for all your help!  All help is really appreciated! 

 

[slomacuser]

I transfer files like that. I have iMac 21" Late 2009 connected to USB 1.4 MB floppy drive. You will need PC Exchange on SE/30 Mac to write files to the Floppy. Floppy is DOS formatted so Mac OS can read/write to it.

 

[HeartletTullius]

@slomacuser That's great! I actually already have PC Exchange installed on the SE/30! That's really great help!

 

[SE30_Neal]

Hey everyone, 

I recently began working on fixing up my Macintosh SE/30, and I got the floppy drive working again last night (yay!). I would love to get some software over to the SE/30, but I don’t have any other vintage Apple computers to download software and transfer them to the Macintosh SE/30.

However, someone on eBay is selling an external USB Floppy Drive (here) for a pretty good price, and I am wondering now if it would be possible to download vintage Macintosh software (from the Macintosh Garden etc.), connect the USB Floppy Drive to my MacBook Pro (2018), transfer the files, and then bring the Floppy Drive to the Macintosh SE/30 to transfer the applications/programs?

I know this sounds like a long shot, but it would make my life so much easier if this was something you could do, or if there is a similar method of getting software to vintage Macs.

I should also mention that I actually have Basilisk II working on my MacBook Pro, so that might help you guys answer my question!

Thank you so much for all your help!  All help is really appreciated! 

You got further than me then as i never managed to get basilisk to work on my mac mini. In theory yes using the emulator you can write hfs formatted floppy disks that said pc exchange is easier as you can just download straight from macgarden or other site and pop it straight onto a readable disk. Myself though brought i few old zip drives from ebay. I really enjoy using them for transfering files.

neal

 

[RC14]

I also transfer files like this, but I write a blank floppy image to a disk with Balena Etcher, which I can then natively write to. I got a zip file of blank floppy images somewhere that I just unzip as needed for more .  I've attached the zip just in case someone in the future is researching and finds this thread (I know the pain).

View attachment blanks-1.0.0.zip

 

[SE30_Neal]

I also transfer files like this, but I write a blank floppy image to a disk with Balena Etcher, which I can then natively write to. I got a zip file of blank floppy images somewhere that I just unzip as needed for more .  I've attached the zip just in case someone in the future is researching and finds this thread (I know the pain).

View attachment 31191

I know its silly and a nostalgic thing as i have a 2001 imac networked to both my 6200cd and an SE/30 so i can just file share which makes transfers easy but not as much fun

keep the zip drives alive i say lol

agree though getting software on these old machines can be an utter pain if you’re new to old macs or any old computer for that matter

 

[Byte Knight]

For transferring larger files, you'll want to find an Ethernet card for your SE/30.  With System 7.5.5, you'll be able to use Fetch to FTP to Macintosh Garden and even to your MacBook Pro.

 

[Cory5412]

Is MacGarden available by FTP? That would be nice, I hadn't realized that.

7.5.5 with opentransport and the right updates can also connect to vtools right in the finder. (vtools also has FPT which should allow make older OSes and non-OT or un-updated 7.5/7.6 setups to work.)

 

[Crutch]

I for one sure didn’t know it was available via FTP, but apparently:  repo1.macintoshgarden.org

https://macintoshgarden.org/forum/public-access-file-repository

 

[Byte Knight]

Is MacGarden available by FTP? That would be nice, I hadn't realized that.

Yes, you'll see "FTP" in the upper left portion on their main page.  Click on that to get details on how to connect.  The FTP files are unsorted, so locate them first via a search of their site.

 

[SBL]

I am trying to do this, but it is more challenging since I have a Mac Plus, whose disk drive cannot read 1.44 MB HD disks, just the 800 MB DSDD disks. All the USB based drives will not read or properly write to 800 MB disks as I understand it. I have a modern Mac, and a PC running XP and one running win 7 Pro. These could be the "retrieval" computers. Still can't see a way to get them to the Mac Plus. What about Mac Link?

 

[SE30_Neal]

Same old issue of transferring files, yes there are ways thats others will better help you with on this one but for me i went with a powerPc as a bridge computer and a Zip drive as getting files to a newer 1990’s os8 machine was easier then use software to convert to 800kb format. 
 

I have them networked together now but it took ages to get it going at first. 
 

p.s a windows xp machine is useful 

 

[LaPorta]

Having multiple generations of Macs helps, too. All my classic Mac stuff is stored on my modern RAID drive on my house server. That can be read by my iMac G4 under 10.4 and copied. Then, my PT Pro running 9 or 8.6 can connect to that and get the files from there. THEN I can get them to a floppy of some sort to a Plus, etc. Machines with Ethernet are much easier, as I usually can skip the PT Pro step and even the iMac by using FTP to get them off the server.

But yes, people are in a rut with a Plus-era Mac and nothing else even close with network capability, or a machine with a SuperDrive.

 

[SE30_Neal]

Having multiple generations of Macs helps, too. All my classic Mac stuff is stored on my modern RAID drive on my house server. That can be read by my iMac G4 under 10.4 and copied. Then, my PT Pro running 9 or 8.6 can connect to that and get the files from there. THEN I can get them to a floppy of some sort to a Plus, etc. Machines with Ethernet are much easier, as I usually can skip the PT Pro step and even the iMac by using FTP to get them off the server.

But yes, people are in a rut with a Plus-era Mac and nothing else even close with network capability, or a machine with a SuperDrive.

Similar to me then with several older machines. You could use apple talk too.

 

[LaPorta]

Yep, all of it is AppleTalk. I just wish 10.14 could speak AppleTalk with System 9, etc.

 

[SE30_Neal]

Yes that’s a-shame , I’m lucky my se/30, 6200 powerpc and g3 are all networked so i use my imac to download and transfer to my powerpc from there my se/30 can see the powerpc although i still use zip between the 2 older machines as i like using that nostalgia and all

 

[Byte Knight]

Yep, all of it is AppleTalk. I just wish 10.14 could speak AppleTalk with System 9, etc.

Don't know about 10.14, but I can connect to my Raspberry Pi server running A2SERVER (with Netatalk 2.2.4) with my MacBook Pro running 10.12 all the way down to System 7.5.5 and even my Apple IIgs!

 

[SBL]

Nobody likes MacLink Plus? I cannot tell from my reading whether it just transfers "files" or could transfer an image.

 

[SE30_Neal]

Nobody likes MacLink Plus? I cannot tell from my reading whether it just transfers "files" or could transfer an image.

This is why a cheap bridge computer and zip drive is my way.  $100 for both is the way you go

and appletalk