Drop III Inches

As August 2017 draws to a close, here is an episode we recorded in May with a lead-in we recorded earlier in August. It’s been a busy summer. Topics include: Martin Haye’s Satan Mode disk, Reactive Micro’s universal power supply, Paul Rickards’ WiFi232, Big Mess o’ Wires’ Floppy Emu, John Morris’ Applesauce, Great Plains Hardisk Accounting.

Here are some of the links that relate to the stuff we talked about.

Cult of Mac article: Today in History, Apple Introduces the Doomed Apple ///.

Martin Haye’s HackFest 2017 entry (“Satan mode” boot disk)

HackFest video descriptions (Martin’s is first)

Apple III development memos (last two are most pertinent)

Reactive Micro’s universal power supply kit for Apple ///

Paul Rickards’ WiFi232

Nishida Radio’s UNISDISK Air

Toshiba FlashAir WiFi-enabled SD card

FlashAir SD card developers site

Floppy Emu

Floppy Emu on the Apple /// (as a boot disk)

Unidisk firmware update for Floppy Emu

John Morris’ talk about Applesauce at KansasFest 2017

Apple ///s crunching election data

Open Emulator on Github

Apple Orchard scans on yesterbits.com

v5n6 July 1984 (last Paul’s ever laid eyes on) will be there (and on archive.org) shortly.

Great Plains Hardisk Accounting and related links

GP Modules listed in the Resource Guide

20 years ago, Great Plains had a reunion

GP logos through the years

Microsoft Dynamics GP

Manuals and disk images when finished will be posted in a separate blog post on either/both yesterbits.com and/or drop-iii-inches.com

[A couple of these links are I.O.U.s, like the Apple Orchard and Hardisk Accounting links, which will come later, but we just wanted to get this episode finally posted.]

We’re back, with an episode that was three months in the making. Mike and Paul talk (in November 2016) about the state of things in our Apple /// worlds, and then speak at some length with Don Burtis (in December 2016), who designed (among many other things) the Microsoft SoftCard III.

Don Burtis, who is probably most prominently associated, in the eyes of the Apple II and III enthusiasts, as the designer of the Microsoft SoftCard, a Z80 coprocessor card that enabled the Apple II series computers to run CP/M software. As Paul Allen indicated in his book “Idea Man,” this was strategically important for Microsoft early on, as VisiCalc was beginning to take off on the Apple II for businesses, as it would allow Microsoft’s existing software to run on the platform without the delay and investment of porting the software to the 6502. Microsoft had a run at the project internally but was having trouble with the design, and Don Burtis (of Burtronix) was called in to design the board. And later, the SoftCard III for the Apple III, as well as several other peripheral cards for the Apple III (including the Floppycard III, Protocard III, Printercard III).

If you’re here just for the conversation with Don Burtis, it starts at minute 52.

But before we talked with Don, we talked about several of the following things:

Apple III ProFile Sales Kit

Apple Orchard

Apple Orchard on yesterbits site

Apple Orchard on archive.org

Contact magazine on archive.org

Fall 1980 v1n2: Apple III is here!

Aug 1983 v4n5: Apple III, Wordstar, NoDOS 2

Mar 1984 v5n3: Apple II and III trap mouses

Apple /// Guide for humans (Sep-Oct 1982 v3n4)

Using SOS (Mar 1984 v5n3)

A Look inside Apple /// (Fall 1980 v1n2)

Apple /// Users unite (Summer 1981 v2n2)

Apple /// Dabbling (Summer 1981 v2n2)

Apple /// BASIC compare (Aug 1983 v4n5)

Apple /// text file case converter (Sep 1983 v4n6)

Burtronix/Rana FloppyCard III (Feb 1984 v5n2)

Burtronix/Rana PrinterCard III (Jan 1984, v5n1)

/// E-Z pieces review (Jun 1984 v5n5)

Word Juggler review (Feb 1983 v4n1)

Dvorak keyboard for Apple /// (Feb 1984 v5n2)

Coming Full Circle (Aug 1983 v4n5)

Unlocking Apple ///, part 1 (Mar-Apr 1982 v3n1)

Unlocking Apple ///, part 2 (May-Jun 1982 v3n2) (invokable modules)

Unlocking Apple ///, part 3 (Sep-Oct 1982 v3n4)

Unlocking Apple ///, part 4 (Mar 1983 v4n2)

Unlocking Apple ///, part 5 (Feb 1984 v5n2)

Software developers and the Apple /// (Winter 1981-82 v2n4)

Control your input (Nov-Dec 1982 v3n5)

CP/M to SOS text mover (Sep 1983 v4n6)

Apple /// clock install (Nov 1983 v4n8)

Hot stuff for Apple /// (Jun 1984 v5n5)

Driving your disk (Nov 1983 v4n8)

Installing an Apple /// driver (Oct 1983 v4n7)

Changing CP/M driver (Oct 1983 v4n7)

The Apple nobody knows, part 1 (Fall 1981 v2n3)

The Apple nobody knows, part 2 (Mar-Apr 1982 v3n1)

///plus, development program (Mar 1984 v5n3)

Apple National Account Program brochure (April 1982)

Universal PSU from ReactiveMicro

Apple /// (to /// plus) upgrade

Interlace upgrade

Clock upgrade kit on eBay (vintagemicros)

Upgrade kit contained: Keyboard, cover, keyboard encoder ROM, logo replacements

VintageMicros on eBay

vintagemicros.com

Axlon RAMDISK 320

Drop /// Inches episode 13

Paul’s Axlon RAMDISK 320

InfoWorld Nov 29 1982, RAMDISK 320 now CP/M compatible

A brief review from Softalk December 1982

RAMdisk 320 ad

RAMdisk 320 review in Open Apple Gazette v2n2

Connecting TRS-80 Model 100 to Apple /// (Open Apple Gazette v2n2)

Gibson Light Pen system, manual scans

Apple /// SAM

Rob Justice’s Apple3SAM project on github

Rob’s Retrochallenge blog

Retrochallenge

Chris Zuhars’ homebrew Apple ///

Quinn Dunki’s Veronica

Blondihacks blog entries

Quinn’s Veronica talk for Hackaday

Hantarex CT 2000 monitor

Hantarex CT 2000 monitor

eBay auction

Charles Mangin (Retroconnector) news:

Apple /// Raspberry Pi enclosure on Shapeways blog

Making the Apple /// case (time lapse video)

Replacement floppy drive doors

Model M keyboard (that… does not type)

A few Apple III images from Ian

ADTPro 2.02

Taylor Pohlman interviewed by Computer History Museum

Part 1

Part 2

And here, finally, are links to many of the things that came up in our conversation with Don Burtis:

Don Burtis on LinkedIn

Paul Allen’s book, “Idea Man”

D-K research (LisaCalc to Lotus Jazz)

Diversified I/O (SoftBackup)

Z-80 SoftCard manuals (Don Burtis’ proofing copy)

West Coast Computer Fair review in Open Apple Gazette v1n6 (May 1983)

FloppyCard III (Apple Orchard Feb 1984, v5n2)

Vern Raburn

Microcomputing Sep 1982

Kilobaud Microcomputing, Oct 1981

California Computer Systems (CCS)

PrinterCard III (Apple Orchard Jan 1984, v5n1)

Extender card, prototyping cards

Burtronix ProtoCard III mentioned in Open Apple Gazette v1n5

8086/2 “Rana box”: Infoworld April 30, 1984

Goodwill industries auction site

DTACK Grounded 68K development board Apple II interface

Vista Computer Company ad (Byte, Oct 1982). TimeCard III, A800 Floppy Disk Controller

Story of phone.com at Unwired Planet

Berkeley Nucleonics

DB-2

Eclipse Aviation

Vulcan Ventures

Capstone Turbine

Eclipse 500

Titan Aerospace

Google

In this episode, Mike and Paul chat about various things that were newsworthy when the recording was made. Replacement power supplies, insights from the last Apple /// product manager, Apple ///-themed iPhone cases, drivers, Record Processing Services, and more.

For those following along in real time, this episode was recorded a long time after the one that preceded it, but even longer before it was actually released. There were some technical issues with the recording that required a fairly laborious amount of reconstruction, and, well, life kept happening as well. But, we’re still here.

So, here are the linky links.

UltimateMicro’s universal power supply announced (a2central)

UltimateMicro presents it at KansasFest 2016

UltimateApple2.com

Retroconnector keyboard shield

Source for RetroConnector keyboard interface

Apple /// Pascal scans, complete (apple2scans)

Quark Word Juggler for Apple /// (apple2scans)

Quark Lexicheck for Apple /// (apple2scans)

David Fradin (product manager) talks about Why I failed with the Apple ///

Apple /// Management Demo binder:

Apple /// Management Demo book scan

Apple /// Management Demo disk scan

Apple /// Management Demo Access /// tech notes

New commit in MESS fixes Atomic Defense

Apple /// in-browser emulation has started to work

Trü protection iPhone 6/6s case

Original Wyatt McDill painting on Etsy

dr3vers on github

eBay: old Visicalc

eBay: Apple /// with System Saver

eBay: Apple /// with extras

Record Processing Services (RPS)

Mentioned in Apple /// Dimensions v1n3 (apple2scans)

Scans and disk image (yesterbits)

In this episode, we interview Taylor Pohlman, who joined Apple in 1979 and became the Apple /// Product Marketing Manager in 1981, managing the “Reintroduction” of the Apple ///. He is also well known for the series of columns in Softalk magazine (“The Third BASIC”) introducing concepts in Business BASIC programming. Later, he left Apple to found Forethought (the company responsible for FileMaker and PowerPoint), co-founded Regent Systems, managed the development of GS-BASIC for the Apple IIGS, and then returned to Apple from 1986 to 1992, and is currently principal at Rohner & Associates, having worked with Sybase and Autodesk along the way.

We talked with Taylor about the innovations the Apple /// and SOS brought to the computing landscape, the launch at Disneyland, frustrations and missed opportunities with the Apple ///. We also heard about several other things, not specific to the Apple ///, such as the early days at Apple, interactions with Steve Jobs, launching the black Bell & Howell Apple II, using an Apple II to rock a baby cradle triggered by sound, Apple employees storming the Lisa building in Halloween costumes, the short-lived Apple IV, and lots more.

Links:

Q & A: Taylor Pohlman (Infoworld, Dec 10, 1984).

NCC ’80 and the Apple III (Compute, Jul/Aug 1980).

Apple /// Dimensions (“Let Me Reintroduce Myself”).

Apple “Adam” contest announcement ad.

“Adam” contest winners (Applesource 14).

Andy Hertzfeld “Spoiled” on Bandleys 3, 4, Texaco Towers.

Very early floorplan of Bandley 1.

Mike came across a reference to “The greatest baseball game never played”, a well-hyped simulated baseball game broadcast in July 1982, pitting National League and American League stars of diverse eras against each other in an ultimate fictitious game—simulated using a custom-written program on an Apple ///. The game was later pressed as an LP, and contains not only the game but a description of the mechanics and technology as well.

Other various topics of interest are touched on as well. Chris on the Apple /// enthusiasts group uploaded an Apple /// parts list sourced from the Level 2 service manual, for help in repairs, replacing capacitors, etc. ReActive Micro is contemplating adding Apple /// support to its universal power supply, designed to replace the innards of our aging Apple ones. We talk a bit about the Wico trackball and locating the drivers for it, inspired by Robert’s post on Facebook, and about Apple magazine volume 3 number 1 from May 1982, and about On Three pulling the 65802 replacement kits after discovering matching individual 65802s to individual Apple ///s to be extremely hit-and-miss.

And, we close with Taylor Pohlman’s talk from the Phase /// conference about the history and development of Business BASIC, including a challenge he posed to the community for developing a method for using menus and window overlays, taken up by On Three magazine as a programming contest (announced in volume 5 number 7, entries due by December 1, 1988).

The audio on this talk is not great, but it is possible to hear it. The section of the talk that was incorporated into the On Three contest was quoted in the magazine as well.

Links:

Computerworld July 12, 1982 (Koufax to face Ruth at Schibe)

Greatest Baseball Game Never Played (at Wikipedia)

Softalk July 1982 on Apple /// (and II) in baseball.

ReActive Micro (if you have serious interest in an Apple /// version of the universal power supply, let them know; they are assessing potential demand now in order to decide whether it is worth producing them).

On Three magazine scans:

March 1988, v5n3: Review of Wico trackball

May 1988, v5n5: Trackball ///: The sequel (now sold by On Three)

Jun 1988, v5n6: Letters section, noting reliability issues with 65802.

July 1988, v5n7: On Three programming contest announced

Sep/Oct 1988 v5n9/10: Bob Consorti’s screen save/restore invokable; further notes on reliability issues with 65802.

Apple /// Dimensions

Apple magazine v3n1 (May 1982) (or smaller 300dpi scan)

Apple III Parts List (from Level 2 service manual)

Exploring Business BASIC (text of Taylor Pohlman’s columns, collected together as initial steps of a book project, nearly 250 pages!)