If a program wants to achieve some kind of a global effects (like QuicKeys allowing you to define macros that work in any program), it has to find out how to graft itself into your system and keep a portion of memory for itself that will stay around even when a program quits (remember folks, the memory a program allocates for itself is freed up again when it quits).
We are talking sophisticated stuff here
When an INIT causes a problem, you'll hear ten people shout in unison, "Have you increased the size of your System Heap?" There are utilities out there that let you manually make the System Heap bigger in an effort to fix crashes due to INITs
Many people do not realize this, but with all versions of MultiFinder, the System Heap can actually grow even after start up time, easing INIT memory conflicts
Properly written INITs shouldn't exhibit any of the above stated problems. But if your Macintosh needs a little tweaking to get it working smoothly again, there is nothing wrong to giving a little more memory to the System Heap
Apple recently informed dealers that the Macintosh Portable backlit display upgrade will no longer be available. This upgrade combined a replacement screen with a new ROM and a controller card that could provide original Portable owners with the backlit display of the "new" Portable (no relation to the new PowerBooks that we've heard so much about lately)
The estimated 400,000 worldwide QuickMail users will be pleased to hear that CE Software, Inc. is now shipping the long-awaited version 2.5, a major upgrade to QuickMail that offers improved server architecture, many new features, System 7 compatibility, a vastly-improved QM Remote, and an integrated packaging scheme that puts all versions in one box
I'm a utility fiend. I admit it freely. I like nothing better than using Norton or MacTools or something similar to recover damaged files or a whole hard disk (preferably not mine, however)
I'm fairly proud of the fact that I am currently working with the oldest of Apple's current Mac models, the SE/30. I bought it not because it was the obvious computer to buy at the time (it wasn't even available), but because all I could afford at first was an SE, and then the upgrade to an SE/30 was irresistible a year or so later
The latest in cool hardware comes from Micron, which has been working on a couple of video cards for the SE/30 (and this right after I get through talking about how there aren't very many PDS cards for the SE/30)
My mail link still isn't completely solid, and it's certainly not as quick as I was used to when I connected to the Internet via Cornell, but at least most mail is getting through now
If we had presses, we'd have to stop them for this story. Apple has dealt with the dirty ROM problem by making a deal with Connectix to distribute MODE32 free of charge (yes, you read that right) to all users
[Editor's Note: Even though I wrote a bit on the DeskWriter C last week based on my impressions at the dBUG meeting, I felt that this piece was more complete and accurate, coming from a knowledgeable person inside HP who has used the printer extensively
[Editor's Note: This is the first in what will hopefully be a long string of columns from John C. Fuller probing the edges and the futures of computing
Well, I'm back, more or less. I won't completely take over until I get my network connections to the rest of the civilized (read: electronic) world up and running (note that the address below may not work, and I should have a better one soon), and it's taking a long time for even the snail mail to return to normal
Recently, I went to the local Macintosh Users' Group meeting here in Seattle. dBUG (for downtown Business Users' Group) as it's called, is ever so slightly different from MUGWUMP (Macintosh Users' Group for Writers and Users of Macintosh Programs, or something similar), the users' group in Ithaca