Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!evax!cs4344af From: cs4344af@evax.arl.utexas.edu (Fuzzy Fox) Newsgroups: comp.sys.cbm Subject: Re: Questions about c64 archives ? Message-ID: <1990Dec19.212915.14029@evax.arl.utexas.edu> Date: 19 Dec 90 21:29:15 GMT References: <1990Dec13.224253.12999@cbnewsh.att.com> Organization: Computer Science Engineering Univ. of Texas at Arlington Lines: 65 In article <1990Dec13.224253.12999@cbnewsh.att.com> nms@cbnewsh.att.com (n.m.scribner) writes: >I have been trying to download some c64 utilities from >the anonymous FTP sites, and have some simple questions >about the use and dissection of archived programs. >1. Do all these archive type files need to be FTP'd >in Binary mode, or will ASCII work fine? The only files that should ever be FTP'd in ASCII mode are pure text-only files. Any type of PROGRAM file or archived file of any kind (essentially, any non-text file) should be FTP'd in BINARY mode. >2. Do regular, non-archived c64 programs need to be >FTP'd in Binary mode. Yes, see above. >3. What is the archive program associated with each of >the three types? I figured out that a program called "lynx9" >is supposed to be used with *.lnx, but don't know about *.arc. >I speculated that *.arc files are self-defining or self-dissolving >in the sense that when loaded and run on a c64, they will >expand the archive. What's the real story? If you see a program or sequential file named *.lnx, you need one of the many versions of Lynx in order to extract the archive. Lynx is not a very good way to archive files, because it does NO COMPRESSION AT ALL. The only thing going in Lynx's favor is that it is rather fast, but shorter download times and disk storage requirements are better than speed, when downloading. If you see a program called *.sda, this is a self-dissolving archive that you simply LOAD and RUN in order to extract. Beware, though, if the program is a C128 program, you might have a C128 SDA, which must be run in C128 mode in order to work properly. Most files run in C64 mode, including many C128 programs. If you see a file called *.arc, you will need a de-archiving program to extract the files. For C64 mode, you should use ARC230. For C128 mode, use ARC128 from CS-DOS. ARC230 is a bit buggy, in my opinion, so if you have a C128, use CS-DOS. If you see a set of files called 1!*, 2!*, 3!*, and 4!*, these files have been Zip-Coded, and you will need the Zip-Code program in order to extract the archive. Zip-Code archives are special, in that an entire disk has been archived in the four files. The disk that you unZip onto is erased and replaced with the contents of the archive. There is a new archive format appearing known as *.sfx. This is the latest self-extracting archive from CS-DOS, and can be run in either C64 or C128 mode, and lets you write to the disk and drive you specify. The compression ratios are better, but it takes a C128 to create such an archive. >4. Are there any special instructions needed for downloading or >loading or running the various archives and programs on the c64? Oops, I already answerd this one. :) As for downloading, ALWAYS FTP in BINARY mode, unless you are extracting a text file, such as *.doc. -- begin 644 .signature G5&AI