Apple IIe Card
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Developer | Apple Computer |
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Type | compatibility card |
Release date | March 1991 |
Introductory price | US$250 (equivalent to $560 in 2023) |
Discontinued | May 1995 |
The Apple IIe Card is a
Overview
Well into the 1990s, most schools still had a substantial investment in Apple II computers and software in their classrooms and labs. However, by that period Apple was looking to phase out the Apple II line, and so introduced the Apple IIe Card as a means to transition Apple II educators (and to a smaller degree, home and small business users) by migrating them over to the Macintosh. By adding the card to certain
Apple asked the media to call the peripheral the "Apple IIe option board", as earlier "emulator" cards were not successful.[3] The Apple IIe Card works in the Macintosh LC series (I, II, III, III+, 475, 520, 550, 575), as well as the LC-slot compatible Color Classic (I and II).[4] When running in Apple II emulation mode, the card uses Macintosh peripherals as Apple II devices. The mouse, keyboard, internal speaker, clock, serial ports (printer, modem, networking), extra RAM (up to 1024 KB), internal 3.5 floppy drive, and hard disk all function as Apple II devices. With the included Y-cable, Apple II specific peripherals can be used as well: The Apple 5.25, Apple UniDisk 3.5, and an Apple II joystick or paddles. The host Macintosh requires special emulation software (a boot disk) launched from System 6.0.8 to 7.5.5 in order to activate the IIe Card. Apple II mode runs only in full-screen (a windowed mode is not possible) and all Macintosh operations are suspended while running, as the IIe card takes over the host computer.
Technical aspects
Like the
The IIe card has 256K RAM; half is used to emulate the Apple IIe's standard 128K memory (reproducing its 64K main RAM plus the 64K bank-switched Extended 80-Column Text Card), and a small portition of the other half stores the IIe's ROM. Macworld reported that because Apple IIGS engineers helped design the IIe Card, all copy-protected and other software except for "a few very esoteric games" are compatible.[3] The host Macintosh emulates or provides native access to many of the expansion cards and peripherals one might install in a bare Apple IIe. These services provided to the IIe card makes the simultaneous running of the host's System 7 impossible. Hardware services include a 1.44 MB 3.5" SuperDrive, mouse, 1 MB RAM, 80-column text and graphical monochrome or color display, clock, numeric keypad, two hardware serial ports (in addition to the emulated serial port necessary for the IIe mouse), SCSI hard drive, and AppleShare file server. An included "Y-cable" enables the attachment of up to two external 140 KB floppy disk 5.25" Drives, an 800 KB "intelligent" 3.5" UniDisk drive, and an Apple II joystick or paddle control for use in Apple IIe emulation mode. 800 KB 3.5" Drive and 1.44 MB SuperDrives are not supported nor function if attached directly via the Y-cable due to the Disk Controller on the IIe card lacking compatibility. (chip labeled U1A located in zone A1 of card – lower left as pictured above)
The product included the PDS card, Y-cable, owner's manual and two 3.5" floppy disks: the 'Apple IIe installer disk' and the 'Apple IIe card startup disk'. Version 2.2.2d1 is the final revision of the startup disk. Version 2.2.1 and a patch to reach 2.2.2d1 was originally available at Apple Support Area (this software now archived and moved off site, as is the case with the original manual).
Reception
Apple stated that the LC helped the company regain educational market share lost to inexpensive PC clones. As of May 1992[update], about half of the LCs sold to schools used the IIe Card.[5]
Technical specifications
- LSI Logic Gemini chip (similar to Mega II); a nearly complete Apple IIe on a single microcircuit – minus RAM, firmware, CPU and video generation
- IWM (Integrated Woz Machine) for 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 the Apple IIe, only a full-screen mode is available and all native Macintosh functions are suspended while running (a proprietary graphical control panel, running outside MacOS, is available for configuring the virtual Apple II slots and peripherals; however, both native and emulated computer function are 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
Contrary to some sources,[4] the LC 630 and Quadra 630 are not compatible with the Apple IIe card because those computers do not support 24-bit mode.[6][7]
Timelines
Timeline of Apple II family |
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Timeline of Macintosh Centris, LC, Performa, and Quadra models, colored by CPU type |
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See also
References
- ^ Advert:The Macintosh LC. Archived March 10, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, InfoWorld, 12 Nov 1990, Page 81, ...And, with an optional Apple(tm)IIe Card, it runs thousands more Apple II applications as well...
- ^ "11-The Apple IIGS, cont". Apple ][ History. June 26, 2010. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c Spencer, Cheryl (December 1990). "Mac LC". Macworld. Vol. 7, no. 12. pp. 180–187.
- ^ a b Knight, Daniel (February 8, 2018). "Apple IIe Card: A Tool for Getting Macs into Schools". LowEndMac. Archived from the original on April 12, 2021. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
- ^ Heid, Jim (May 1992). "More for Less: An Updated LC and LaserWriter Duo". Macworld. Vol. 9, no. 5. p. 136.
- ^ Cook, David (April 15, 2022). "Quadra 630 does not support 24-bit memory addressing mode". 68kmla.org. Archived from the original on February 15, 2023. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ^ "Macintosh Quadra 630: Technical Specifications". Apple.com. Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved November 2, 2022.