Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!samsung!usc!apple!dlyons From: dlyons@Apple.COM (David A. Lyons) Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2 Subject: Re: P8 Message-ID: <42783@apple.Apple.COM> Date: 9 Jul 90 00:03:16 GMT References: <21307.chatter.infoapple@pro-beagle> Organization: Apple Computer Inc, Cupertino, CA Lines: 42 In article <21307.chatter.infoapple@pro-beagle> lhaider@pro-beagle.cts.com (Laer Haider) writes: >Suggestion Dave... In your next release of the IIgs System Software, it would >be nice to have a GS specific release of P8. What I'd like to see is the >ability to access more than two drives per slot. I know there will be some >compatibility problems with current Prodos 8 software, but I'm sure most of >it can be taken into consideration and worked around. (Of course, I'm not in a position to actually *make* this sort of decision, but I can always investigate and recommend.) I wouldn't mind being able to get at all my SmartPort devices under ProDOS 8...that would be cool. There would have to be "fake" device numbers (since the device number format has 1 bit for Drive and 3 bits for Slot, leaving an absolute maximum of 16, maybe 15). The trick would be guaranteeing that no properly written ProDOS 8 application would take a fake device number and wind up accessing the *wrong* device if it went directly to the $Cnxx firmware based on the device number (see the ProDOS 8 Technical Notes for the things applications are allowed to do). This could be quite a trick--I'll have to look at it more carefully sometime. >I'm sure there are a >lot of others out there that can think of other improvements to P8. >Oh yea, like access to >32 megs per volume. :) By your ":)" I assume you know this, but for lurkers' benefit note that the ProDOS volume structure is inherently limited to 32 megabytes. You *can* access AppleShare volumes across an AppleTalk network, and those volumes can be bigger than 32 megs--*but* there is no access at the block level. >Laer Haider >lhaider@pro-beagle.cts.com -- David A. Lyons, Apple Computer, Inc. | DAL Systems Apple II Developer Technical Support | P.O. Box 875 America Online: Dave Lyons | Cupertino, CA 95015-0875 GEnie: D.LYONS2 or DAVE.LYONS CompuServe: 72177,3233 Internet/BITNET: dlyons@apple.com UUCP: ...!ames!apple!dlyons My opinions are my own, not Apple's.