Jaques Law Bits 9608 (© Kevin Jaques 1996)

©(c)1996 Kevin Jaques. All rights reserved excepting that this file may be copied for non-commercial purposes, unchanged. No warranties apply. I am just a user volunteering my observations and collecting those of others.

•Note about this issue
Sadly, it is more than 32k. Consequently, it cannot be opened by SimpleText as an editable document. So I saved it as a read–only document. To copy stuff, you must change its file type to TTXT or some other text format which can be read by another text/word editor you may possess. BBEdit Lite is a good choice.

•LaserWriter 8 v8.3.4 Update
Recommended for all customers who have PCI based Power Macintoshes or are using System 7.5.3 or System 7.5 Update 2.0.
NOTE: This disk image contains only the disk driver and Read Me file.
If you need a full version of Laserwriter 8.3.x files, download the LW
8.3.2 or CLW 8.3.2 software from this server.
PowerPC-based computers may have difficulty printing to some third
party network printers or print spoolers in certain network
configurations. When printing to one of these devices, your computer
may freeze or never complete printing, and you may need to restart
your computer or cancel the printing job. LaserWriter 8 version 8.3.4
fixes this problem. Note: If you have already installed LaserWriter 8
version 8.4 you do not need version 8.3.4.
ftp://ftp.info.apple.com/Apple.Support.Area/Apple.Software.Updates/US/Macin
tosh/Printing/LaserWriter/LW_8.3.4.sea.hqx

•Apple Mailing Lists
Automated Information about Apple Software Updates (as of 27-Oct-95)
--------------------------------------------------
You can obtain the latest information on where to find Apple Software
Updates via automated email.  Here's the documents we currently have
available, where to send the email message to and what to type:

* Where to find Apple Software Updates
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: swwhere

* What's New-USA Apple Software Updates - current listing, by date, of
recently posted software.
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: swnew

* USA Apple Software Updates - Alphabetical List.
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: swalpha

* USA Apple Software Updates - Structure List.
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: swstructure

* What's New-Worldwide Apple Software Updates - current listing, by date,
of recently posted software.
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: wwswnew

* Worldwide Apple Software Updates - Alphabetical List.
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: wwswalpha

* Worldwide Apple Software Updates - Structure List.
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: 
wwswstructure

* Current list of all Apple Mailing Lists
-> Send email to info@thing2.info.apple.com with the subject: listinfo

•AppleScript to concatenate Eudora messages
From: jkline@mail.coin.missouri.edu (Jeffrey S. Kline)
To: Subscribers to <applescript-users@solutions.apple.com>
I want to thank all of you who have offered many fine suggestions during my
travails attempting to get a script to combine split digest files into
single  text files outside of Eudora.
property theRootPath : "Merlin:System Folder:Apple Menu Items:Digests:"
-- these are the subfolders for each digest
property TidBITSFolder : "TidBITS Folder:"
property InfoMacFolder : "Info-Mac Digest Folder:"

if blockFinished then
     -- save the text
     saveText into theName at alias theLocation from theData
     -- now we start a new block
     set startingNewBlock to true
   end if

to saveText into theName at theLocation from theData
        set imFile to (new file with prompt "Save mail messages as" default
name theName)
        --opens a new or found file for write access
        set reffile to (open for access imFile with write permission)
        write theData to reffile starting at eof
        close access reffile -- closes access
end saveText

•URL for Netcraft's survey of Webservers on the net.
<http://www.netcraft.co.uk/survey/Reports/960601/ALL/WebSTAR.html>

•peer to peer transmission of  files between 2 Macintosh computers on the internet?
FTPShare. [Editor - this appears to be a 1994 file. Has it been updated?]
<ftp://mirror.apple.com//mirrors/Info-Mac.Archive/comm/inet/ftp-share.hqx>
OR Timbuktu
Farallon has a free 30 day trial at
http://www.farallon.com/www/gen/tb2maceval.html
And not only does it let you send files from mac to mac... You can control
and use the mac on the other end.
See also FreeTCP

•The Millenia Bug
>From A recent Reuters story:
"A U.S.-based computer company, the Gartner Group, estimates it will cost
$600 billion worldwide to correct the computer fault."

Does it effect the mac directly?
(no, see <http://dev.info.apple.com/technotes/tn1049.html>)

>From that Technote:
All Mac OS date and time utilities have correctly handled all issues
related to the year 2000 since the introduction of the Macintosh. The
original date and time utilities, introduced with the original Macintosh
128K in 1984, used a 32-bit low memory global value to store seconds,
starting at 12:00:00 a.m., January 1, 1904. Since the Mac OS used a 32-bit
value to store seconds, this means that the last date represented in this
32-bit value is 6:28:15 a.m. on February 6, 2040. The current date and time
utilities, documented in Inside Macintosh: Operating System Utilities, use
a 64-bit signed value. This covers dates from 30081 B.C. to 29940 A.D. For
further reference, see Inside Macintosh: Operating System Utilities,
Chapter 4, or its predecessor, Inside Macintosh Volume II.

Gregorian calendar support is included with all localized versions of the
Mac OS. In addition, the Arabic version of the Mac OS supports both the
Arabic astronomical lunar calendar and the Arabic civil lunar calendar. The
Hebrew version of the Mac OS supports the Jewish calendar. The Persian
version of the Mac OS supports the Iranian national calendar.
(/quote)
A well organized web page with links to lots of M2K info is at:
<http://www.year2000.com/cgi-bin/clock.cgi>
...and a very detailed and interesting FAQ is at:
<ftp://www.year2000.com/pub/year2000/y2kfaq.txt>
and, for the top 25 reasons you're not working on the Y2K problem:
<http://www.year2000.com/notworking.html>

•CENTENNIA (formerly called MILLENIUM)
<http://www.goldbug.com/GoldBugCentennia.html>
>Software for DOS and Macintosh ...............
>Version 1.21 Available Now!
>The complete software Historical Atlas of Europe and the Middle East from
>1000 to 1993 A.D.

•Apple Systems Motto
Normal people ...  believe that if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Engineers believe that if it ain't broke, it doesn't have enough
features yet.   - Scott Adams, The Dilbert Principle

•FileMaker Pro 3.0v3 Updater
Claris has also released an
  update that updates the U.S. versions of FileMaker Pro 3.0v1 or
  3.0v2 to 3.0v3. The update corrects problems with calculations,
  ScriptMaker, and AppleScript, and improves relational portals and
  file recovery. The Macintosh updater is about 1.4 MB in size.
  Claris is also set to ship a version of FileMaker Pro 3.0 which
  (finally) supports Windows 3.1 as well as the currently supported
  Windows 95 and Windows NT. [GD]
<ftp://ftp.claris.com/pub/USA-Macintosh/Updaters/FileMakerPro3.0v3.hqx>
<http://www.claris.com/press/company/archive/fmp-win31.html>

•Official Motorola Library
In TidBITS-322_ we mentioned a
  PowerPC math library compiled from Motorola's PowerPC SDK. The
  library was later withdrawn due to licensing concerns and
  Motorola's intent to release their own version. Though it's a few
  weeks late, Motorola has indeed released LibMoto, which improves
  the performance of some floating point math functions on Power
  Macs. The shared library is available for free (a developers
  version is also available), although Motorola asks users to
  register online to download the library. If you don't do extensive
  number-crunching or graphics work on your Power Mac, you probably
  won't significant benefit from this library, but some users could
  see worthwhile performance improvements. I've seen unconfirmed
  reports of problems using LibMoto with the GeoPort Express Modem
  and some fax software (surprise!), so be sure to take normal
  precautions before installing this (or any) system software. [GD]
<http://www.mot.com/SPS/PowerPC/library/fact_sheet/libmoto.html>

•Brand New Suitcase 3.0
In Symantec's Suitcase 3.0
  ($64.95, $34.95 upgrade), Symantec has kept the best aspects of
  the old program while totally revamping the interface. Suitcase
  3.0 takes advantage of several Apple technologies including Apple
  Guide, AppleScript, and QuickDraw GX fonts.
<http://www.symantec.com/compinfo/news/products/suit30pr.html>
NOTE -  Symantec has released a patch to Suitcase 3.0.1 which fixes
  several bugs. Note that the patch comes in three different
  versions: 68K, Power Mac, and Universal (Fat). If you installed
  Suitcase 3.0 using the Easy Install option, you must use the
  Universal patch.
<ftp://ftp.symantec.com//public/Updates/mac/suitcase/>

•Cache Comments
Essentially, a cache is a piece of memory which operates faster than the memory ordinarily used and is used in substitution for that ordinary memory.
It could be RAM used to simulate a disk, a hard disk to simulate a CD, fast RAM to simulate RAM, or whatever.
* Level 1 Cache: A Level 1 cache is a bit of high speed memory
  built into PowerPC processor. The processor can cache frequently-
  needed data here and access it rapidly, saving it the trouble of
  requesting data from RAM or disk. Level 1 caches vary among
  PowerPC designs, but loosely speaking, PowerPCs have between 16K
  and 32K of Level 1 cache. Because the cache is built into the
  processor, you can't upgrade it separately from the processor.
* Level 2 Cache: A Level 2 cache works much like a Level 1 cache,
  but it is separate from the processor and you can upgrade it. Some
  Macs ship with no Level 2 cache, though most currently ship with a
  256K Level 2 cache, and you can often upgrade to 512K or 1 MB.
  Results vary, but increasing Level 2 cache can improve performance
  somewhere between 5 and 30 percent, with best results for
  processor-intensive functions common to science, engineering, or
  high-end graphics applications. For many users, increasing the
  Level 2 cache is an inexpensive way to improve the performance of
  their Macs.
  A problem with Level 2 caches is figuring out how much you have -
  the About This Macintosh dialog doesn't report such information,
  and it's tough to figure out unless you know what your Mac model
  shipped with or you feel like opening your Mac and reading cryptic
  numbers on the cache module. Newer Technologies has a free tool
  that reports on a Power Mac's Level 1 and Level 2 caches (up to 1
  MB). Its results have been accurate on machines I've tested.
<ftp://ftp.newertech.com/users/ntech/download/cache22.hqx>

•Processors
* Clock Multipliers (or Bus Divider Ratio): A clock multiplier
  allows a processor to run faster than a computer's bus oscillator,
  and it's one way recent machines have achieved such astoundingly
  high clock speeds. As an example, the PowerTower 180 sports a
  PowerPC 604 running at 180 MHz. Power Computing did this by using
  the 3x clock multiplier built into the PowerPC 604 in combination
  with a 60 MHz bus speed on the PowerTower motherboard. Similarly,
  Apple's Power Mac 9500/150 runs at 150 MHz, three times the unit's
  50 MHz bus speed. Different PowerPC chips have different clock
  multipliers available; for instance, the Performa 6300 uses the
  PowerPC 603e's 2.5x multiplier to get to 100 MHz using a 40 MHz
  bus, speed. The upcoming PowerPC 603e-200 and 604e also have 4x,
  5x, and 6x multipliers.

**Current PowerPCs** -- Here's a brief outline of the PowerPC
  processor family as it relates to the Macintosh.

* PowerPC 601: The 601 has the honor of having been the first
  PowerPC processor available, and it's at the heart of many systems
  from Apple, IBM, Power Computing, Radius, and other vendors. Mac
  systems based on the 601 range from 60 to 120 MHz. Development of
  the 601 has basically ceased in favor of newer processors;
  however, 601-based systems are certainly still viable today.

* PowerPC 603: The 603 is intended to be a low-power version of
  the 601, aimed at laptops and other devices where power
  consumption and heat are significant design factors. The PowerPC
  603 typically uses between one-quarter and one-third the power of
  a PowerPC 601 running at the same clock speed. The 603 is also
  supposed to be equivalent in performance to a 601 at the same
  clock speed. However, that didn't prove to be the case in Apple's
  early 603-based 5200 and 6200 series LCs and Performas, or
  prototype PowerPC-based PowerBooks, mostly due to the 603's small
  Level 1 cache. A 75 MHz 603 delivered roughly the same real-world
  performance as a 60 MHz 601.

* PowerPC 603e: The PowerPC 603e (also known as the 603+) is
  basically a 603 with a larger cache and higher clock speed, and is
  equivalent in performance to a PowerPC 601 at the same clock
  speed. Most 603-based Mac systems shipping today (including
  desktop units and PowerBooks) use the 603e chip. Machines based on
  the 603e should be around for some time, and their speed and
  performance should continue to improve. Right now, shipping 603e
  systems peak at 120 MHz.

* PowerPC 604: At the moment, the PowerPC 604 chip comes at the
  high end of the line, with configurations currently shipping at
  speeds of 120 to 180 MHz. The PowerPC 604 is intended for high-end
  workstations and servers, and a PowerPC 604 is, roughly speaking,
  about 50 to 75 percent faster than a 601 running at the same
  speed, making it the chip of choice for users with processor-
  intensive tasks. It also consumes two to three times the power of
  a 601, so don't expect to see a 604 in a laptop or hand-held
  device.

* PowerPC 602: The 602 is a lower-end chip intended for set-top
  boxes and similar devices. I don't know of any Macintosh-related
  projects using the 602, but 3D0 plans to use it in a 64-bit game
  console codenamed M2.

<http://www.3do.com/3dosystems/m2/>

**Future PowerPCs** -- The PowerPC shows no signs of slowing down
  in terms of developments of faster processors. Future processors
  should include the PowerPC 603e-200, which is essentially a 200
  MHz version of the PowerPC 603e, sporting that processor's low
  power requirements and higher clock multipliers. If you'd rather
  think about improvements to the 604, think about the PowerPC 604e,
  an enhanced version of the 604, offering higher speeds (166, 180,
  and 200 MHz, to start with), larger clock multipliers, and
  increased processor cache size. Quantities of the 604e are
  shipping right now, and you can expect to see high-speed 604e-
  based machines from Apple, Power Computing, and other vendors
  later in 1996.

  If you think the 604 is fast, the forthcoming PowerPC 620 is the
  first 64-bit PowerPC implementation, and it's an even higher-
  performance processor designed for very high-end systems. The
  PowerPC 620 uses the same basic design process as the 604e.
  Although the 620 has been delayed more than a year by problems
  with technology and reported staffing problems, I expect to see
  620-based machines available from Apple and other vendors by early
  1997, and some manufacturers have versions of the 620 in-hand now,
  reportedly running at 200 MHz. The 620 is geared toward multi-
  processor implementations and transaction processing, and could
  support up to a whopping 128 MB of Level 2 cache.

  IBM and Motorola are currently the sole providers of PowerPC
  chips, but a little company in San Jose could change that. IBM has
  granted Exponential Technology a licence to develop PowerPC-
  compatible processors. Headed by CEO Rick Shriner, a former Apple
  vice president, and other industry veterans, Exponential plans to
  use BiCMOS technology to form its processors' core logic, while
  using more conventional CMOS for on-chip memory - sort of the
  reverse of the way Pentium chips are manufactured. Although
  Exponential hasn't made specific speed claims, it anticipates
  achieving twice the performance of today's microprocessors, which
  would put their processors in the 300 to 400 MHz range.
  Exponential still has to prove the feasibility of its technology,
  but the company has significant financial backing from Apple and
  other investors, and it claims that its chips will be ready in
  early 1997.

<http://www.exp.com/>

•Save $s on Faxes
There's a service on the Internet that provides an e-mail to fax gateway. 
You can find more info about it at <http://www-usa.tpc.int/tpc_home.html> 
Basically, this service accepts e-mail messages and routes them to fax 
servers local to the desired telephone number. 

•Be an Internet Server (demo)
Stalker Software produces Communigate. You can 
find it at <http://www.stalker.com>. A user reported: “Suffice to say 
that after downloading the *free* online demo and configuring it, I had a 
running server in 4 hours! I sent a message to the folks at the tpc.int 
service and they provided me with some routing information for my server 
to allow it to accept remote messages. Within 2 days I was up and running 
as a tpc.int server.“

•Commercial Electronics simulation software
Interative Image Technologies is offering its mixed signal EE simulation 
software, "Electronics Workbench 4.1" for $99 (plus free Model Set#2, 500 
additional transitor models) for a savings of $200. For $199, Mac users 
can receive the "Engineer's Pack" with all the additional model sets (2 
thru 5 - transitors, FETs, Diodes, Thyristors, Opamps). Offer is good for 
30 days??
800-263-5552, North Tonawanda, NY
<ewb@interactive.com>

•Customized Maps?
At this web site you can input and address and a map will be created for you.
<http://www.geocities.com/cgi-bin/main/BHI/proxmap.html#street>

•Largest Macintosh Internet Archive Announces World Wide Web Site
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah. -- May 14, 1996 To better provide Macintosh users 
worldwide information and software, the moderators who maintain the 
Info-Mac Internet Archive along with Pacific HiTech, Inc. today announced 
a World Wide Web site dedicated to the archive.
[Editor - I tried it. It said they had moved the page, but the forwarding address was the same as the page itself, so no luck.]
The site is located at <http://www.pht.com/info-mac/>. It will be kept up 

•Flight Planning Software - Private pilots dream
DUAT 2.02 is excellent flight planning software. I use it and it is 
direct to the FAA centers. It is available through the AOPA. (Aircraft 
Owners and Pilots Association.) It's a freebie.

•Mac–Taught Students win
<CPTRTCHR@aol.com>
I, in addition to teaching both platforms, also participate in the 
Southern California Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) yearly 
competitions for high school business students. I help grade the Computer 
Applications tests. 
This spring, like each spring, students competed after having been 
trained at their home schools on either IBMs or Macs. Both groups took 
the same test. The test covered Word Processing, Data Base, Spread Sheet, 
and graphing from the spreadsheet. The test was written by an IBM user.
The results: The Mac students scored 79%, the IBM students scored 49%.

•Visit the new Apple Small Business website at: 
http://smallbusiness.apple.com

•Another listing of sources for System 7.5.3 Revision 2.0
System 7.5.3 Revision 2 is available today in the U.S. and can be 
downloaded at the following Internet sites free of charge: 
ftp.info.apple.com, ftp.support.apple.com, http://www.info.apple.com, 
http://www.support.info.com. The revision is also available on most 
online services, including America Online, CompuServe, and Applelink. 
Customers in the United States may also order the update on two floppy 
disks for $13 by calling 1-800-293-6617, ext. 1198. In Canada, customers 
may order the update on two floppy disks for $20 by calling 
1-800-361-6075, ext. 1198. 

•v1.1.1 of freeware utility TechTool.
Check out contents of PRAM, save it, zap it, delete desktop, etc.
America Online: Go to the MicroMat area using keyword MICROMAT. You'll 
find it in the file library.
CompuServe: Go MACAVEN. MicroMat has a file library there. File library 
13.
FTP: <ftp://ftp.sonic.net/pub/users/jeffb/TT111.Hqx>
Web: <http://micromat.com/mmcs/>

•pre–release Beta of CafE available
CUPERTINO, Calif. -- May 29, 1996 -- Symantec Corporation (Nasdaq:SYMC) 
today announced a pre-release beta program for owners of Symantec's 
popular CafE product for Windows or Macintosh. Symantec CafE is the best 
selling cross-platform visual Java development tool that features 
Symantec's award-winning integrated development environment.
 The preview tools will be available for download in June from the CafE Update Center on 
Symantec's CafE website, <http://cafe.symantec.com>.
The new RAD toolset, called Visual CafETM, will be available in separate 
versions for Windows or Macintosh
The pre-release version of Visual CafE will be available 
free-of-charge to all registered owners of CafE for Windows or Macintosh 
in late-June.

•IBM’s MacOS
June 7, 1996 - IBM Corp. opened the first of three Mac OS tech support centers in 
Taipei, Taiwan and unveiled its PowerPC reference platform, called Long 
Trail, at the Taipei International Computer Show today.

•Lots o’ Icons
An icon for every Mac compatible ever made!? Custom Icon Pack III.
http://www.zdnet.com/macuser

•How Power Computing did it
Power Computing has a 180 mhz 604. However, it is based, not on their high–end PowerWave systems (the Tsunami architecture, like Apple’s 9500), but on their lower PowerCurve models (Apple’s Catalyst architecture, like Apple’s 7200). Why? Because the processor bus on the Catalyst can be pushed to 66 mhz, while the Tsunami runs at 50 mhz. Therefore, when the processor is set to run at triple the bus speed, it runs a little over 180 mhz. Does anybody know of any problems with the Catalyst? Our own Gordon Meggitt has heard it has a narrow bus width (64 bits, not 128).

•PC Card
OrangePC Model 290 v.3.8 is out. You can get up to 100 mhz 486 DX4. That configuration costs $999US for NuBus and $740US for PCI. MacUser seemed to like it. Since it is basically a computer on a card, putting it in a slow Mac doesn’t affect its performance. It has simms for up to 32 mb, a 128K Level 2 RAM cache, AMI BIOS chip, Super VGA chips, serial & parallel ports, OR a built–in PC Card slot. Windows 95 ran fine. You can switch between it and the MacOS easily, either by running Windows as a window, or by running it full–screen with a button to switch them. Apparently, you can even use Mac hardware like CDRoms and printers from the Windows OS.

•MacUser on Hardware Standards

PPCP is the PowerPC Platform, devised by Apple, IBM, and Motorola (previously known as Common Hardware Reference Platform (CHRP). It is not the same as PReP, which is IBM’s specs for its own first generation PowerPC systems and which does not support the MacOS.

PPCP must have at least 8 mb RAM expandable to at least 32 mb, ADB (apple desktop bus) and/or PS/2 connectors for the keyboard and two–button mouse, 16 bit stereo, full duplex audio. Its hard drive can be SCSI, ICE, or PC Card (formerly PCMCIA). It must have an enhanced Centronics port (the latest version of the parallel port used for PCs). It must have either a 4 mb Mac ROM or at least a socket for it.

Apple ROMs are still needed to run the MacOS, but Copland has promised to remove the need for them.

Most will likely include OSA slots (the low cost and low performance PC standard bus).

How? There is a new standard called Open FirmWare. It tests and initializes the system, scanning for all available devices and loading configuration information into memory, then loading the selected OS. 
Another new standard is the RunTime Abstraction Services (RTAS). It provides standard interfaces to various low level underlying functions.

There is a new memory map. Each system had its own, so the new one won’t be the same as any of them.

There is a new Interrupt model, using the OpenPIC standard, which is highly programmable but backwardly compatible with the Intel 8259 interrupt scheme used in older PCs.

There is a new high performance bridge chip to link the CPU to the buses.

Each OS will contain drivers for all the types of ports and connectors. However, PC printers also require a custom driver. GDT Softworks offers Mac drivers for over 1000 PC printers.

The first PPCP systems will probably ship before Copland. Therefore, Apple must and will come out with an interim system, which will look like System 7.5.

Windows NT, Solaris (Sun Microsystem’s UNIX), AIX (IBM’s UNIX), OS/2, and Novell Netware are all promised. Windows 3.1 and Windows 95 won’t be offered (except through a card or emulation). However, the Windows NT will not run DOS/Windows Applications, though it will have an emulated 286 so the older stuff will run.

PPCP chip sets are available from National Semiconductor, Motorola, Texas Instruments, and VLSI Technology. So any company can get into the game.

Companies already planning to build PPCP systems include Power Computing, New PC Consortium (Taiwan), FirePower Systems (Canon funded).

The MacOS can be installed on any. But manufacturers are seeking rights to build the box to come with the MacOS.

•BenchTesting
Get MacUser’s own stuff from www.ziff.com

•Virtual Reality
The term is heard a lot. All it really means is that the computer has enough information about the object so that the user can view it from different perspectives. The computer needs the algorithms to calculate how a different perspective should appear on the 2D screen. The excitement is that it feels like you are navigating in a 3D world.

There is now a Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML (‘vermal’)), for a standard way to provide such information. Therefore, a ‘browser’ can be designed to read just the information. Therefore, the algorithms can be supplied a single time with the browser, greatly reducing the amount of data necessary for storage/transmission. Therefore, it is ideal for the internet, and browsers should be set up as helper applications for web browsers.

Such browsers include:
Virtus Voyager - free - http://www.virtus.com
VRML Equinox - free, but only for Power Macs - http://www.ipsystems.com/nps

Most require System 7.0.1 and maybe QuickDraw 3D (not to be confused with QuickDraw GX), available (free) at http://www.info.apple.com/Apple.support.area/QuickDraw3D.

Sites are called ‘worlds’, and end in ‘.wrl’. Some demo sites:
http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/vrml/cubesphere.wrl - just a simple geometrical set up
http://jaka.eecs.uic.edu/dave/vrml/CAVE.nongz/base.wrl - Crayoland’s wraparound world of mountains, trees, and clouds.

The normal interface uses the mouse to navigate. Forward=Forward. Sideways=rotation. Option makes it go linearly, shift pitches and rolls.

Information is available at:
VRML Repository - http://www.sdsc.edu/vrml
Mecklermedia’s VRML World - http://www.mecklerweb.com/netday/vrml.html
The VRML Forum - http://vrml.wired.com

•Serial Port Tip
In Communications Toolbox Dialog (used by many programs) that the serial port is busy, hold down the option key. The OK turns into a RESET, permitting you to ‘persuade’ the port that you really would like to use it, right now.

•tool/osax/process for running applescripts based upon date &/or time
Chris Johnson's Cron:
<ftp://ftp.utexas.edu/pub/mac/util/cron-10a7-fat.hqx>
ZDNET's T-MINUS TEN utility:
<http://search2.zdnet.com/plweb-cgi/swlib/display.pl?mac?MC10587?zd_exclusiv
es?macuser_utilities_of_the_month>

•Applescript Method to Avoid Requesting User for SaveAs name/location
You could try replacing 
>         set imFile to (new file with prompt "Save mail messages as" default
> name theName)

with

    set imFile to (theLocation & theName)
    try
        create file imFile owner "ttxt" -- or whatever creator you want
    on error
        -- it probably exists
    end try

to get rid of the interactivity, for speed you could just open the file once, and close it when you're done.

•Advice on Installing OpenTransport
I did a clean install of everything again. But this time, instead of trying
to run it all from there, I _deleted_ all of the Open Transport stuff, and
did a Custom install of Open Transport from the 7.5.3 disks. As usual, I
made sure that the "Load only when needed" TCP/IP option was off (as I
always do need TCP/IP, and I always switch this option off anyway on other
machines I have installed 7.5.3 / OT 1.1 on...).
d.figucio@unsw.edu.au (Daniel Figucio)

•Finding other Mac User Groups
Hershey Apple Core's "Ultimate Macintosh 
Users Group List." We currently have direct links to over 240 groups in 
16 countries, with more being added all the time.
<http://www.microserve.net/hac/ug/>

•More on OnLine Banking
While Quicken's online banking alone doesn't do bill 
payment, Quicken with CheckFree does, and CheckFree doesn't care where 
your money is. Wells Fargo, CitiBank, and Security First National bank 
all have online banking now, including Web-based services. (Note that if 
you're using a Web-based bank and your ISP is down or slow, your bank is 
down or slow too.) To reach them, point your browser to

<http://www.wellsfargo.com>
<http://www.citibank.com>
<http://www.sfnb.com>

This tidbit from:<dflory@earthlink.net (David Flory)>
Mac users who are looking for online banking should check out the 
Huntington Bank at: <http://204.107.238.72/services.html>. They have a 
great credit card rate, currently 8.25% (not a price leader, the prime 
rate). They do everything on the WWW using Netscape or that other browser 
that comes from the company that lives in Washington. Two types of 
checking, normal and interest bearing and bill payment online, Visa 
checking debit card, etc. as well as all the normal account checking 
abilities, via the Internet.

This tidbit is from:
<lepard.kevin@mayo.edu>
Quicken is _not_ the only solution for doing 
on-line banking and bill payment on the Mac. I have recently discovered 
and started using Security First Network Bank, an FDIC insured bank that 
operates over the WWW. An account can be opened for as little as $100, 
has no minimum balance, and lets you make 20 electronic payments/month at 
no charge. Furthermore, data from the account can be downloaded in .qif 
format and, therefore, imported into Quicken.
So far, I've been impressed with the setup and service at SFNB. You can 
explore their web site at <http://www.sfnb.com>
This looks to me like a far, far beter general solution for bill paying 
than using Quicken anyway, since I can pay bills, etc., from any computer 
with any web browser that supports SSL.

•Improvements to AppleScript coming
http://www.zdnet.com/macweek/mw_1021/news_scripting.html
After years of neglect, Apple is breathing new life into AppleScript. At
this month's Apple Worldwide
Developers Conference in San Jose, Calif., the company announced plans to
release this year the
first update to its scripting system since late 1993.

The upgrade, Version 1.2, will run native on Power Macs, strengthen its
ties to OpenDoc and include
a swarm of bug fixes. Apple also announced it will soon begin work on
Version 2.0, which is
expected to be tuned for speed, have built-in commands for CGI (Common
Gateway Interface)
development and come with support for the Object Model within itself.

As part of AppleScript's rebirth, Apple said it is putting together a new
AppleScript staff

•Sorry, that’s all the time I have.

This Jaques Law Bits was delivered by:

   Kevin Jaques, B.A. LL.B.
          of the
       Jaques Law Office

#101 - 2515 Victoria Avenue	Fax: 525–4173
Regina, Saskatchewan	Home: 586–2234
email: jaques.law@dlcwest.com	Tel: 359–3041
visit our web page at http://www.dlcwest.com/~jaques.law/