System 7 updater

[hiroProtagonist]

I recently rolled back my Classic II from System 7.5 to 7.0.1 with some original Apple disks I got off e-Bay. I'm trying to update it with the System 7 updater but not having much success. The web pages I've found to use as guides suggest down loading the System 7 Tune up from Apple, to a Windows PC, which I did. The file has a sit.bin extension. Then I'm told to expand the file using Stuffit. When I try this Stuff it creates the file as a .sea file. I was under the impression that Stuff it should expand it as an image file. I'm using Stuffit 11.0. After that I'm to copy the image to a floppy using rawrite, but I do not seem to be able to get to the point that I have an image file to work with. Not sure where I'm going wrong.

 

[equill]

It is possible to download software and make floppy disks of software for Macs using a PC, but it needs care to avoid damage to the resource forks of Apple files.

Even when you use Macs alone, it is preferable to use StuffIt Expander (5 or) 5.5 for older Mac software, and nothing later than Expander 7.0.3 for OS 9 software. StuffIt 11 has no special role to play. Mac OS X looks after itself.

If you are getting .sea where you expect .img, you can always use DiskCopy 6.3.3 to make floppies from the self-extracting archives.

 

[hiroProtagonist]

It is possible to download software and make floppy disks of software for Macs using a PC, but it needs care to avoid damage to the resource forks of Apple files.
Even when you use Macs alone, it is preferable to use StuffIt Expander (5 or) 5.5 for older Mac software, and nothing later than Expander 7.0.3 for OS 9 software. StuffIt 11 has no special role to play. Mac OS X looks after itself.

If you are getting .sea where you expect .img, you can always use DiskCopy 6.3.3 to make floppies from the self-extracting archives.

Unfortunately I do not have access to a pre OS X Mac other then the Classic II (which is not connected to the internet). Does anyone know where I can download an image as opposed to a .sea or .sit.bin file?

 

[pee-air]

Why not try a Mac emulator on your PC? That should do it.

 

[equill]

Unfortunately I do not have access to a pre OS X Mac other then the Classic II (which is not connected to the internet). Does anyone know where I can download an image as opposed to a .sea or .sit.bin file?

The given link above enables you to do it all on a PC without losing the Apple resource forks.

de

 

[pee-air]

The given link above enables you to do it all on a PC without losing the Apple resource forks.

de

The question though, is what link to follow from that link. There's about 3 gazillion pieces of software at that site. Which ones are you telling him to use?

 

[hiroProtagonist]

From the link

http://macfaq.org/software/macos.shtml#Q1.1.6

Once you have everything, install Stuffit Expander, unstuff the disk image to a new folder on your hard disk, and name the folder something short, like "Mac." Copy the RAWRITE program into this same folder. Rename the image file to image.img.

The problem I am having is that Stuff it expander does not unstuff the archive as a disk image but as a .sea file. This is where I think that I'm either making a mistake, or the current version of Stuffit expander for windows handles .sit.bin differently then earlier versions.

 

[hiroProtagonist]

Why not try a Mac emulator on your PC? That should do it.

That presents a an amusing situation. Can I run a Mac emulator in Widows which in turn is running in Virtualization (Parallels 3) on my MacPro?

 

[chris]

Why not run a Mac emulator on the Mac?

 

[hiroProtagonist]

Why not run a Mac emulator on the Mac?

To use a Mac emulator don't I need a copy of a ROM. In that case the only one I would legally have is the one from the Classic II. Would I be able to use my MacPro II to emulate a Classic II, download the system 7 updater and write it to a floppy that my Classic II could understand?

 

[gobabushka]

you cant really extract it on a pc, because you'll loose the resource fork. if at all possible, extract it on a mac

 

[The Macster]

Why not just download the .sit.bin file on the PC, put it on a floppy, and then open it with StuffIt 5.5 on the Classic II? That should work. If you don't have PC Exchange (for reading PC floppies) on the Mac (not sure if an OS as old as that has it), then you'll need to format the floppy in the Classic II, and use TransMac for Windows to move the .sit.bin across to the floppy. That should convert it to just .sit, and then you can open it with StuffIt on the Mac. StuffIt should also open .sit.bin - you'll probably need to open StuffIt and open the file from there, rather than just double-clicking the file.

 

[hiroProtagonist]

Why not just download the .sit.bin file on the PC, put it on a floppy, and then open it with StuffIt 5.5 on the Classic II? That should work. If you don't have PC Exchange (for reading PC floppies) on the Mac (not sure if an OS as old as that has it), then you'll need to format the floppy in the Classic II, and use TransMac for Windows to move the .sit.bin across to the floppy. That should convert it to just .sit, and then you can open it with StuffIt on the Mac. StuffIt should also open .sit.bin - you'll probably need to open StuffIt and open the file from there, rather than just double-clicking the file.

This sounds like the best approach. I'll need to find a copy of stuffit to use on the classic, or is it built into 7.0?

 

[The Macster]

StuffIt sometimes comes with OS discs, but I don't remember it coming with OSes as old as 7, more like 9. Any version up to 5.5 works on 68ks, though I'm not sure about 7.0 as I always use 7.5.5 as a minimum. There is an issue with using very old versions though, they changed the format of the archives at some point and I think the two are incompatible, but which you need will depend on which the archive you are trying to open is. I would try with 5 or 5.5 first. I got my copy of 5.5 off some OS 9 discs.

 

[equill]

A .sea file is a Self-Extracting Archive. Double-clicking is all that you need to do to see the contents. Even if one will not respond correctly, dragging it onto a StuffIt 4.0.1 icon (or 5.1 or 5.5 icon or alias) should achieve the desired decompression/decoding. Disk Copy 4.2-type .img files are limited to System 6 and early System 7 downloads, but entirely unnecessary if you are getting .sea files, or even .smi (Self-Mounting Images), which also open at a double-click.

Difficulties arise in the download-and-extract process depending on the source of the downloads. Apple archived some System files differently after their general currency, and you may have acquired some of these rather than the original Disk Copy 4.2-type archives.

Jan Hedlund is one of the best advisers in the Apple Discussions about downloading System 7 through PCs. This thread deals with almost all of the ins and outs of the game, and is well worth your attention. Note also the recommendation about the superiority of a pared-down 7.5.x over 7.1 as an alternative to what you are planning.

de

PS In the referenced discussion you will read about initializing transfer floppies on PCs. Given the differences between the writing characteristics of FDDs for the platforms, it is indeed better to initialize (virgin disks) and format for DOS in the Mac, write the files for transfer in the PC, and return the written disks to the Mac for use.