SSG Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I'm curious about the Apple III and I have been wondering if any of us own one. Anyone here have one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I have three of them left. 2 ///s and 1 ///+. I don't really use them much. It's been years since I powered'em up. I have some expansion cards and 3 profiles and variety of disks. Eventually that stuff will probably go since I dig the II+ and //e a whole hella lot more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I know someone that does and I've seen it in action. It's interesting (it's OS was like a forerunner of ProDOS) but it hardly had any software, and IIRC it was mostly business-related. I think you can emulate the ][+ with it, but then you might as well just stick with a ][+ or ][e. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NE146 Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 As a kid I "worked" (actually volunteered under a 4H program) at a local computer store and I remember being introduced to the Apple III where the lady told me all sorts of specs that I had zero idea what the heck it meant, so I just opened my eyes and says "WOW!" It was disappointing to me though that it wouldn't play any games because I was hoping for a more advanced gaming system like the Colecovision was over the Atari, etc. Another funny story is as I worked there that month or so I would hear indescribable cussing and hitting and throwing of objects as the manager there had issues with it.. I assume he would lose hours of work or so when the Apple III hardware would fail, and he would SHOUT like crazy. It was hilarious in retrospect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesD Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I have one but I need to repair the power supply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david__schmidt Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I've got a few. As a programmer, it's like an Apple II on steroids. It's got a bank-switched architecture where 32k chunks are swapped in and out a the flip of a softswitch. It's got an extended addressing mode that gives a program access to storage all over the place. And it all still happens with the 6502 (which itself can be switched between 1 and 2 MHz). Plus, basically all off the II+ stuff you know and love is still there - the screen memory, keyboard interaction, etc. can be done at the hardware level. SOS abstracts that away, which itself is innovative with its loadable device drivers. And my favorite part: the arrow keys have two rates of repeat, based on how hard you push them. People badmouth it, but to me - it's a technical tour de force given the environment and era it came from. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 How is the /// for wordprocessing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I've casually tried over the years to acquire one, but never was able to. These days, the prices for a reasonably configured working model are well beyond what I'd like to spend, so I probably missed my window. Ultimately, it's not a big deal, because there are only a couple of games specific to it, and I have countless dozens of other systems if I get a vintage productivity itch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Usotsuki Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 There's /// E-Z Pieces, which is basically AppleWorks for the ///. (Or rather, AppleWorks is a port of /// E-Z Pieces to the //e.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkO Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 How is the /// for wordprocessing? IIRC, Word Juggler has an Apple /// version... MarkO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbalion Posted January 9, 2016 Share Posted January 9, 2016 I missed out on an Apple /// a few years back when I got all my Apple IIe's. Was introduced to a salvage place where I found an Apple /// monitor, but the system has just gone out that day in a load to the recyclers. Monitor worked for a while, then blew a capacitor, but I still have it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSG Posted January 9, 2016 Author Share Posted January 9, 2016 I still want one to cross my path at the right time when I can afford it! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david__schmidt Posted January 9, 2016 Share Posted January 9, 2016 I still want one to cross my path at the right time when I can afford it! You can play with a virtual one for free... a fairly recent MESS version came out that is very, very good. There's a wrapper for it called Apple3rtr (Apple /// Ready-to-Run) that makes it all really simple, and is better outfitted than most real ones: https://github.com/datajerk/apple3rtr 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Usotsuki Posted January 9, 2016 Share Posted January 9, 2016 http://3.buric.co/star4.dsk.gz http://3.buric.co/satan.dsk.gz These allow some degree of Apple ][ compatibility without locking a /// into emulation mode (I've only tested them on MESS). satan.dsk is the DOS from the diagnostic disk, and boots into DOS 3.3 with Integer BASIC, leaving the ROM font loaded; star4.dsk loads a more Apple ][-like font and a tweaked monitor/FPBASIC, and is capable of running a bit of 48K Apple ][+ software unmodified. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoTonah Posted January 9, 2016 Share Posted January 9, 2016 I have one, with the second external floppy drive, Monitor ///, and a 5Mb Profile drive. Looking to sell it soon. Gotta say boxing it for shipping is a scary, scary idea, especially for the hard drive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david__schmidt Posted January 9, 2016 Share Posted January 9, 2016 Gotta say boxing it for shipping is a scary, scary idea, No kidding - the weight alone... Successful shipments to me consisted of tightly wrapped, dense bubblewrap. And a HUGE box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkO Posted January 11, 2016 Share Posted January 11, 2016 I missed out on an Apple /// a few years back when I got all my Apple IIe's. Was introduced to a salvage place where I found an Apple /// monitor, but the system has just gone out that day in a load to the recyclers. Monitor worked for a while, then blew a capacitor, but I still have it. Capacitors can be replaced.. Some other parts are much more difficult to replace... MarkO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 I remember seeing one when my parents were buying a house around 1990. I had an Apple IIe at the time and I had never heard of a /// so I thought it was a more advanced and newer system. I didn't get to see it do much since they had it running some productivity stuff, but I distinctly remember thinking that it looked kind of ugly (more industrial) and wondered why they only had a green screen for it. It wasn't until years later that I learned the details about it. I've almost bought one a few time in the past (when they were more reasonably priced) but since I only use my IIe for gaming it would be a complete waste. I believe there are cards that can improve the compatibility so it can be on par with a 64K II+, but I think things like DHRG are beyond it even with an add-on card. It's sort of like the TRS-80 Model II of the Apple world, meant to be a business system and ultimately not of interest to most people other than as a curiosity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Usotsuki Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 It actually has graphics capabilities comparable to the //e, but incompatible with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david__schmidt Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 Well, not just comparable... there are modes where you can have colored text (more like, say, the color Commodore computers of the era). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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