Mini vMac Question...

[Juliet Elysa]

Hi. I'm trying to make a System 3 boot disk for Mini vMac. I have it in a .sit file, but the StuffIt Lite on my current boot disk doesn't like it. My question is, what version of StuffIt *will* accept the file and work with System 7.5.5 on an emulator? Or is there another way to get this done?

This question may be answered somewhere, but I can't find it.

 

[uniserver]

here are some ready to go images for you.

http://tkc8800.com/page/Macintosh-128k-512k-disk-images

 

[Juliet Elysa]

Awesome, thank you! I've been following these instructions for a bunch of things, but they're a bit of a hassle sometimes.

 

[uniserver]

those blank images are pretty cool.  and you can use the import/export utilities

but yes pre made is kinda nice

http://www.bigmessowires.com/2015/02/13/rom-inator-disk-setup-tutorial/

start reading at " creating an image "  its the same concept.

Steve knows this stuff well, and he has a great way of explaining things, (simply), toboot!

here is a link to a pretty useful HD20 image as well.

this one

 

[Juliet Elysa]

I'm still having the .sit expansion problem though, there's some great software out there that I can't use 'cause it's stuffed/whatever.

 

[tanuki65]

It probably needs StuffIt 5.5, which doesn't run on a 68000 like Mini vMac emulates.

I (with a MacBook Pro) have a modern version of StuffIt Expander and when I used Mini vMac I would decompress on my modern Mac, then use the terminal command "macbinary encode" to encode the file. Then used importFl to get it into Mini vMac.

Don't do this if you use a Windows or Linux PC thought; it may corrupt the file.

P.S. This is my first reply to someone else's thread!

 

[bigmessowires]

I get so frustrated with StuffIt sometimes! Tanuki65 is right. A lot of software for 68000 Macs is (perversely) compressed using a version of StuffIt that doesn't run on 68000 Macs. ARGGGGGHHHHH!! Worse, it doesn't even give you a sensible error message like "This file is from a different version of StuffIt".

My admittedly poor solution is to use an emulator like Sheepshaver or Basilisk II, which can emulate a more modern Mac. Then run a later version of StuffIt on there, unstuff the file, and if desired re-stuff it using an older version of StuffIt. Then take the result back to Mini vMac.

Unfortunately it's kind of a pain to set up Sheepshaver and Basilisk II. 

You know what would be super awesome? A Windows / Mac OSX application that could automatically down-convert any StuffIt archive to StuffIt 1.5.1 format.

 

[IPalindromeI]

Usually Stuffit just doesn't even try and does nothing but open and close the progress window.

 

[uniserver]

gosh if BMOW made a program to convert those… i bet people would pay 30 bucks a copy for something like that!  

i would.

 

[Juliet Elysa]

I so would too, though I could always run down to my iMac with a flash drive and unstuff there... but that would be tedious.

 

[tanuki65]

Couldn't you run Mini vMac on your iMac?

 

[Juliet Elysa]

Hm, would be an interesting experiment. The reason I'm using it on my Windows box is internet access for downloading software... but the whole unstuffing thing would be easier if it were all done from the iMac.

 

[gsteemso]

Huh. Being able to move software etc. around without needing to resort to SneakerNet is so useful that getting them connected (at least within the house, and to the Internet if possible) is one of the first things I do for any machine, new or old, that I own network hardware for.

Given this mindset, my first question is, why exactly is the iMac not already online? If it’s too old to have built-in AirPort and running an Ethernet cable is impractical, used wireless-B Ethernet access points or USB 1.1 adapters are fairly cheap. Wireless B at 11 Mb/s is kind of slow, but for small files like floppy-disk images and other vintage software, it works just fine.

 

[Juliet Elysa]

The iMac isn't online at the moment because I haven't needed it to be until now. It's been on my list of things to do for a while now, but it keeps getting bumped lower and lower by other, more urgent things (computer related and not). Thanks for the suggestions for the wireless-B and USB adapter, one of those would be the most practical option.

Edit - In my dream world all of the computers in my house (both the modern ones and the vintage ones) would be connected to a network that would allow them to transfer files between them without SneakerNet, as well as access the internet. I still can't directly transfer files between my Windows 7 computer and a family member's Windows 7 computer, I've had to use email or SneakerNet. Networks appear to hate me, and lately (since I've needed to transfer a bunch of large files) the feeling's been mutual.

 

[gsteemso]

Ouch. Network Gremlins are among the most pernicious and hard to exorcise, at least in my experience. It might be worth starting a new thread for help with that. There are a few things you can try, though with regards to the specific issue you mention, I think the vagaries of Windows file sharing are just a bit off topic for this forum. :¬)

 

[Juliet Elysa]

I think at least part of it is user error, I had it working for a while then didn't need to transfer files for a few months and I seem to have forgot what I did.

 

[tanuki65]

I'm afraid I can't help you here, I don't use Windows very much anymore (Mac, Linux, Android, Classic Mac, Apple DOS 3.3).

 

[Juliet Elysa]

The network issues will eventually be worked out. I only have a limited amount of frustration I can handle, and network gremlins eat up all the bandwidth, so to speak.

 

[techknight]

Gremlins in general tend to kill off all my patience. System Errors, Type Errors, etc.. on and on the list goes. haha.