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18th March 2001 |
KEN ABOUT ... GEOS |
Ken Ross |
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GEOS FROM ZERO (part1) GRAPHIC ENVIRONMENT OPERATING SYSTEM, which if you've not encountered it, is a Mac type OS for the C64. After it's loaded by the usual 'load"*",8,1' and run biz, GEOS takes over things from then on, with things dealt with by clicking on them. GEOS, from Berkeley Softworks, breathed new life into the C64/C128 with its graphical operating system like the then new Apple Mac. In 1986 icons, windows, desktops and menus were new in personal computing. For various reasons, until recently I'd not had much to do with GEOS beyond using GEOS1.3 to look at Macpaint pictures on my C64. This was to see how they looked when I was putting PROJECT64's service manuals onto floppy disk. Then, 'inheriting' a GEOS capable printer along with some GEOS software, (GEOWRITE etc. ), gave me reason to explore things to see what it was all about. First sensible thing to do is to make backup copies of your GEOS system disk. I used my 8096 along with a 4040 drive to create clone(s) before starting, (safety in numbers). Sometimes, it seems, there is a copy program on the disk itself, but it can be temperamental, so it could be better to make alternate arrangements with whatever copier you like most. When GEOS starts up you're confronted with a Mac 'classic' like desktop, with various icons to double click on.
GEOS uses port1 for control of the pointer, unlike most other C64 items that use port2. The pointer can be used with either a joystick or, if you're fortunate enough, a Commodore 1351 mouse. (If you can't find one get a CMD Smartmouse from Allan Bairstow at CS). GEOS will recognise two drives, (what as depends on which version of GEOS). They can be as A & B, (device 8 & 9), and also RAM drives. In later incarnations, MP3 and Wheels, up to 4 drives are recognised. GEOS formatted disks have some extra information on them that can only be dealt with in GEOS, so don't mess with them in BASIC as they'll end up corrupted and GEOS will throw a wobbly. When a BASIC formatted disk is being used in GEOS it'll offer to change it a GEOS format disk and write the extra info on to it. I found that I had a copy of GEOS1.2 that would work with GEOWRITE2.1 and a GEOS1.3 that would work with GEOWRITE1.3, but not vice versa. A reference book revealed that when first run GEOWRITE will make note of the GEOS kernal number it's first used with and then refuse to work with any other. Another book gave me the location on disk of the GEOS kernal number, which was altered to suit using a block write utility. The 'desktop' folder displays 8 icons at a time and the various pages can be clicked through. The file pull down menu gives you options to view by name etc., but double clicking only works when viewed by icon. Pull down menus stay in position while the pointer stays on them - nice touch. On the 'desktop folder' are a number of system files. These have to be there and 1541 disk space is limited so two drives are really best to work with. (Without two drives life with GEOS is a disk juggling affair to be honest ). GEOS behaves much better, (at least I've found in the copies I've got ), if the desktop file is copied to work disks that contain the GEOS applications in use - GEOS files are in USR format as opposed to the usual BASIC PRG/SEQ/ REL formats and contain a header for the icon etc. GEOS uses a fast loading system, which greatly speeds up loading times from the disk drive, so things happen sooner than BASIC2.0's routines. To copy files from one disk drive to another just click on the icon of the file to be copied and it'll appear as a shadowed icon that can be dragged onto the other drive. At first I kept launching things then I hit the knack of doing it. To use a printer with GEOS a suitable driver file has to be on the system disk and the choice of printers can include types with PC type parallel connections by using a GEOCABLE from the user port. At first, I thought it was some special variety of adapter until I found out that it was just a variation of the cable I used to connect my 8096 to a Panasonic daisywheel printer many years ago, which was still lurking in my odds and ends box. To get hold of one, if parts are unavailable to you, contact either CMD in the States or the excellent Mr. Bairstow in the U.K. Software for GEOS can be found on the Internet. Fill in your own method of getting stuff onto a disk your C64 likes(!), but due to the way things are it'll most likely be a file in SEQ format with a CVT extension on it. This requires a conversion utility, (called CONVERT funnily enough), run over it to turn it into a GEOS USR file with an icon. Further sorting of my box turned up some copies of GEOS 2.0, which was faster than the GEOS 1.3 I'd been using until that point. GEOS 1.3 got retired straight away and pointed in the right direction GEOWRITE2.1 was fired up... A few words from Mr. Bairstow himself on the subject: "It is important to remember that GEOS v2.0 will only recognise two drives, (3 at a push), so if you have a drive attached set to device 10 it will not recognise it. Also if you had a drive attached set as device 11 then GEOS will not work at all because GEOS uses device 11 as storage for devices 8, 9 & 10 - it all gets very confusing. The best bet is to have a minimal set up of 1541, (or 1571), as device 8 and, for example, have an FD2000 as device 9. An REU would be nice, but it is not essential. If GEOS does not recognise the FD2000 as a 1581 on boot up, (it should do), then just go to the 'configure' file and set the second drive to 1581. (You will first have to select 'no drive' to bring up the options menu). Another point is that copying GEOS disks with anything other than CMD's geoMakeBoot & Original GEOS disks will result in compatibility and application problems. It will also mean that you will not be able to upgrade to either MP3 or Wheels as these programs require the original GEOS disks to install themselves - pirate copies will not work." FIRST STEPS After formatting a floppy disk as a 1581 in my FD2000 (device9) things were a lot easier as I'd been trying to get GEOS 2.0 to recognise a 1.6MB formatted disk, which it wouldn't. With it GEOS formatted I started to put various applications on it. (Macattack, for converting Mac paint files into GEOPAINT, was one important item!). GEOWRITE can use seven fonts that are stored on the disk that it's on. A bit of experimenting worked out which ones I liked the look of. They will be the only ones that can be displayed in the font selection menu along with the selection of sizes that it comes in. On the other hand, each font is available in the full range of styles, underline, italic and so forth. If a document uses fonts that aren't available the default one of BSW is used it seems. There is a downgrade utility to modify GEOWRITE docs to earlier versions. V1.3 can't read V2.1 docs and results in an error message. (A few of my problems were caused by my paper system. I've got a few very large rolls of fax paper that I wanted to use instead of single sheet feed or buying tractor paper, but a bit of fiddling sorted that out.) As yet, (due to my other hats), I've still got to try experimenting with importing pictures into a GEOWRITE document. Also on the GEOS disk are the system utilities:
THE SMARTMOUSE Whilst in the early stages of things I obtained a CMD Smartmouse from Mr. Bairstow and this makes life a lot easier/smoother than using the joystick, as well as making things feel a lot faster than before. Along with the FD2000 it's an item that enables the C64 to achieve a lot more than when it was first created. GEOS2.0 uses a date/time clock and this can be set to be updated with the Smartmouse's driver software. (A Mac has one button on the mouse. My Amiga has 2. Now I've got one with 3!) A BIT OF HISTORY? In the June 1986 issue of Compute's Gazette, (from the USA), is the first real review of GEOS I've been able to find with screen shots. However, ICPUG members got their first glimpse of GEOS back in the Sept./Oct. 1986 issue of the journal - reviewed by our very own Brian Grainger. (I'll let him take a curtain call here!). It was probably version 1.1. Version 2.0 is a great deal swifter!. Editor: Those were the days. The roar of the greasepaint, the smell of the crowd have long gone! Clearly the version I reviewed was not the latest. My disk collection holds version 1.2 so maybe it was that. Anyway I did mention a couple of items to add to Ken's summary. I noted three more system utilities:
I also noted that one of the advantages of having GEOS convert a disk to GEOS format is that it uses the turbo loader to load the files on it. If you do not convert you are back to normal speed. More GEOS from Zero soon! (also, after reading this through I realise Mr. Bairstow hasn't paid me enough for all the plugs!). GRAPHIC EXPERIENCES Back in the days when I were a lad comics from America came in two varieties - the ones bearing the comic book approved code logo and others that didn't. Most of the approved code ones were incredibly dire and, given a choice, no child would have wasted money on them unless pressurised by grown-ups. Following in this vein I missed the press launch of this character: A far more enduring character can be found at Nicholas Hill's extensive Dan Dare and Eagle Comic Site, (and in folklore): IF I HAD A PENNY...... I've spent an interesting few minutes this morning talking to a chap at Amiga Active about a third party, most of which was spent by the chap at Amiga Active laughing his socks off. Using the threat of ''I'll ave the law on you I will '' in an email for repeating information gathered from public sources isn't very realistic. Especially when most of the source is the third party's own website.... (the phrase ''to have someone going through your trash '' turns into a Freudian statement in this case!). The fact that 'information technology' has been around for a while has not had much effect on some people. A single statement or phrase entered into the search engine can turn up all sorts of unexpected results and the threat, ''I want you to give me full details on all information you hold on my company, which you are required to do by law.'' can be checked at a government site to see if it holds any validity, which of course it turns out not to. 2 comments on this subject : A/ ''He could only request that from a company or other certain corporate body as covered by said law, not from a single private person.-Markus'' B/ ''Of course, as everyone knows (though some neglect to mention), it is a legal requirement for the enquirer to pay a small administrative fee for data recovery (ten pounds, according to Channel 4's Mark Thomas) -Niall Tracey'' Editor: I believe Ken is talking about Data Protection Law here. Point A is kind of interesting. I never realised it when acting as a Data Protection Officer but I guess it is true that an individual could hold any amount of personal data, but a corporate body cannot! If an individual provided personal data on a web site could they be prosecuted? Would the ISP be responsible? Interesting. Point B is not quite true though. It is not a legal requirement to pay £10. The law lays down that the corporate body may charge a fee, (of up to £10), for EACH data recovery search. The corporate body does not HAVE to charge a fee. Indeed, where I worked at the time did not do so. The Commodore world is a community of sorts and we've long grown used to ignoring certain people, as it's easy to set filters to dump things into Eudora's trash folder. For example, those streams of not very convincing adverts for people in America offering untold riches if a credit card is taken up or mortgages switched from one vendor to another. (Most of these are sent from dummy or onetime addresses. Some offer to remove you from a mailing list if you tell them remove etc., which is a ploy to gather another mailing list that can be sold by itself to yet another advertiser). Only the very foolish part with money without some sort of research, even if it's just the question ''do you have it in stock'' and when one finds that no one has actually seen any evidence of an item that's supposed to have been produced one can express doubts about such a thing and ask other questions. As to whether or not these will be answered is another matter indeed!. (back to the fun items!) TOLD YOU SO? For those people who look at Internet Magazine for Feb. 2001. You will find a small item about classic Macs and Jag's house which can be found covered in my article in the e-journal issue 3/99. By the way, they mention in passing that an older Mac is better for doing Internet things than an equally aged PC! - we'll pause for any remarks from the followers of Bill Gates! |
