Apple IIe Card
Encyclopedia
Compatibility card
A compatibility card is an expansion card for computers that allows it to have hardware emulation with another device. The most popular of these were for Macintosh systems that allowed them to emulate Windows PCs via NuBus or PCI. Apple Computer made many of these cards A compatibility card is an...
which allows compatible Macs to run software designed for Apple II computers (except the 16-bit Apple IIGS
Apple IIGS
The Apple , the fifth and most powerful model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The "GS" in the name stands for Graphics and Sound, referring to its enhanced graphics and sound capabilities, both of which greatly surpassed previous models of the line...
). Released in March 1991 for use with the LC
Macintosh LC
The Macintosh LC was Apple Computer's product family of low-end consumer Macintosh personal computers in the early 1990s. The original Macintosh LC was released in 1990 and was the first affordable color-capable Macintosh. Due to its affordability and Apple II compatibility the LC was adopted...
family of Macintosh computers, Apple targeted the card at its widely dominated educational market to ease the transition from Apple II-based classrooms, with thousands of entrenched educational software titles, to Macintosh-based classrooms.
Features
Like the Apple IIeApple IIe
The Apple IIe is the third model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The e in the name stands for enhanced, referring to the fact that several popular features were now built-in that were only available as upgrades and add-ons in earlier models...
itself, the Apple IIe Card uses an onboard 65C02
WDC 65C02
The Western Design Center WDC 65C02 microprocessor is an upgraded CMOS version of the popular NMOS-based MOS Technology 6502 8-bit CPU — the CMOS redesign being made by Bill Mensch of the Western Design Center...
CPU
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
. The CPU is software-configurable to run at the Apple IIe's native 1.0 MHz speed or at an accelerated 1.9 MHz. Video emulation (text and graphics) was handled through software using native Macintosh QuickDraw
QuickDraw
QuickDraw is the 2D graphics library and associated Application Programming Interface which is a core part of the classic Apple Macintosh operating system. It was initially written by Bill Atkinson and Andy Hertzfeld. QuickDraw still exists as part of the libraries of Mac OS X, but has been...
routines, which often resulted in operations being slower than a real Apple IIe except on higher-end machines. Any Macintosh that supports the card can be switched into 560x384 resolution for better compatibility with the IIe's 280x192 High-Resolution graphics (essentially doubled on the Macintosh). This was particularly applicable to the Color Classic which was otherwise fixed at 512x384 resolution.
The host Macintosh emulates, or provides native access to many of the expansion card
Expansion card
The expansion card in computing is a printed circuit board that can be inserted into an expansion slot of a computer motherboard or backplane to add functionality to a computer system via the expansion bus.One edge of the expansion card holds the contacts that fit exactly into the slot...
s and peripheral
Peripheral
A peripheral is a device attached to a host computer, but not part of it, and is more or less dependent on the host. It expands the host's capabilities, but does not form part of the core computer architecture....
s one might install in a bare Apple IIe. These services provided to the IIe card makes the simultaneous running of the host's OS 7.x.x impossible. Hardware services include a 1.44 MB 3.5" SuperDrive
SuperDrive
SuperDrive is a trademark used by Apple Inc. for two different storage drives: from 1988–99 to refer to a high-density floppy disk drive capable of reading all major 3.5" disk formats; and from 2001 onwards to refer to a combined CD/DVD reader/writer....
, mouse
Mouse (computing)
In computing, a mouse is a pointing device that functions by detecting two-dimensional motion relative to its supporting surface. Physically, a mouse consists of an object held under one of the user's hands, with one or more buttons...
, 1 MB RAM, 80-column text and graphical monochrome
Monochrome
Monochrome describes paintings, drawings, design, or photographs in one color or shades of one color. A monochromatic object or image has colors in shades of limited colors or hues. Images using only shades of grey are called grayscale or black-and-white...
or color display
Computer display
A monitor or display is an electronic visual display for computers. The monitor comprises the display device, circuitry, and an enclosure...
, clock, numeric keypad
Numeric keypad
A numeric keypad, numpad or tenkey for short, is the small, palm-sized, seventeen key section of a computer keyboard, usually on the very far right. The numeric keypad features digits 0 to 9, addition , subtraction , multiplication and division symbols, a decimal point and Num Lock and Enter keys...
, two hardware serial ports
Serial port
In computing, a serial port is a serial communication physical interface through which information transfers in or out one bit at a time...
(in addition to the emulated serial necessary for the IIe mouse), SCSI
SCSI
Small Computer System Interface is a set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices. The SCSI standards define commands, protocols, and electrical and optical interfaces. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it...
hard drive
Hard disk
A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the...
, and AppleShare
AppleShare
AppleShare was a product from Apple Computer which implemented various network services. Its main purpose was acting as a file server, using the AFP protocol...
file server
File server
In computing, a file server is a computer attached to a network that has the primary purpose of providing a location for shared disk access, i.e. shared storage of computer files that can be accessed by the workstations that are attached to the computer network...
. An included "Y-cable
Y-cable
A Y-cable or Y cable is a self describing name of a type of cable containing three ends of which one is a common end that in turn leads to a split into the remaining two ends. When looked upon, a Y-cable can resemble the Latin letter "Y"...
" enables the attachment of up to two external 140 KB floppy disk
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
5.25" Drives
Disk II
The Disk II Floppy Disk Subsystem was a 5¼-inch floppy disk drive designed by Steve Wozniak and manufactured by Apple Computer. It was first introduced in 1978 at a retail price of US$495 for pre-order; it was later sold for $595 including the controller card and cable...
, an 800 KB "intelligent" 3.5" Unidisk drive, and a joystick
Joystick
A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks, also known as 'control columns', are the principal control in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or...
or paddle
Paddle (game controller)
A paddle is a game controller with a round wheel and one or more fire buttons, where the wheel is typically used to control movement of the player object along one axis of the video screen...
control for use with the hard-coded Apple IIe
Apple IIe
The Apple IIe is the third model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The e in the name stands for enhanced, referring to the fact that several popular features were now built-in that were only available as upgrades and add-ons in earlier models...
emulator. 800 KB 3.5" Drive and 1.44 MB SuperDrives are not recognized when attached via the Y-cable due to the Disk Controller on the IIe card lacking support. (chip labeled U1A located in zone A1 of card - lower left as pictured above)
The product included an owners manual, Y-cable, and 2 disks: the Apple IIe installer disk and the Apple IIe card startup disk. 2.2.2d1 is the latest version of the startup disk. At time of writing 2.2.1 and a patch to reach 2.2.2d1 were available at http://download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/English-North_American/Apple_II/For_Macintosh/.
Technical specifications
- Mega IIMega IIThe Mega II is a custom chip from Apple Computer used in some of their Apple II product line. It was used particularly in the Apple IIGS microcomputer, and an updated version, called the "Gemini" chip, was used in the Apple IIe Card for the Macintosh LC...
("Gemini" chip); a complete Apple IIe on chip minus RAM and firmware - IWM (Integrated WozniakSteve WozniakStephen Gary "Woz" Wozniak is an American computer engineer and programmer who founded Apple Computer, Co. with Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne...
Machine); floppy control functions - 256 KB RAM built-in (128 KB for Apple II memory, 128 KB reserved for Macintosh)
- 65C02 processor running at either 1.023 MHz or 1.9 MHz
- High-density 26-pin connector with "Y-cable" supports joystick/paddles and two Apple 5.25" or UniDisk 3.5" floppy disk drives
- Ability to access up to 1 MB of native Macintosh RAM
- All Apple IIe text and video modes supported, via QuickDraw software emulation
Notes: When emulating an Apple IIe, only a full-screen mode is available and all native Macintosh functions are suspended while running. A graphical control panel is available for configuring the virtual Apple II slots and peripherals; however, the Macintosh (as well as Apple IIe emulation) still remains suspended during this activity. Macintosh functions and control resume only once emulation is completely shut down and exited.
Host system compatibility
The card plugs into the PDSProcessor Direct Slot
Processor Direct Slot or PDS introduced by Apple Computer, in several of their Macintosh models, provided a limited measure of hardware expandibility, without going to the expense of providing full-fledged bus expansion slots.Typically, a machine would feature multiple bus expansions slots, if any...
slot in many of the LC-series Macintoshes, but not all models and system software combinations are supported. Apple's Tech Info Library article #8458 lists the following models as Apple IIe Card-compatible: Color Classic, LC, LC II, III & III+; LC 475, 520, 550, 575; Quadra 605 and Performa 4XX, 52X, 55X, 56X, and 57X. However, other models that have an LC-compatible PDS slot and support 24-bit memory addressing are compatible with the Apple IIe Card but are not officially supported. Systems 7.0 through 7.5.5
System 7 (Macintosh)
System 7 is a single-user graphical user interface-based operating system for Macintosh computers. It was introduced on May 13, 1991 by Apple Computer. It succeeded System 6, and was the main Macintosh operating system until it was succeeded by Mac OS 8 in 1997...
support both 24- and 32-bit addressing on suitable Macintosh models. (From System 7.6 onwards, Macintosh system software does not support 24-bit addressing.) To enable 24-bit addressing on supported systems, use the Macintosh Memory control panel.