Introductory Macintosh frequently asked questions (FAQ)

[Elliotte Rusty Harold]

Archive-name: macintosh/general-faq
Version: 2.3.3
Last-modified: November 4, 1994
Maintainer: elh...@shock.njit.edu
URL: http://rever.nmsu.edu/faq/generalfaq.html

MACINTOSH FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
====================================

comp.sys.mac.faq, part 1:
Introduction to the Macintosh Newsgroups
Copyright 1993, 1994 by Elliotte Harold
Please see section 5.8 below if you wish to
distribute or revise this document in any way.
Version: 2.3.3
Last-modified: November 4, 1994
Address comments to elh...@shock.njit.edu

What's new in version 2.3.3:
----------------------------

1.2. What other information is available?

I now mention the Well Connected Mac as a useful source of information.

2.6. What is .bin? .hqx? .cpt? .image? .etc.?

StuffIt Expander combined with Drop Stuff with Expander Enhancer
now handles most common UNIX and PC compression formats.

I've added MacGzip to the list of recommended decompressors.

2.8. How can I get BinHex, StuffIt, etc. from a PC?

The DOS shareware macette lets you mount Mac disks on a PC and
transfer MacBinary files from the PC to the Mac in a format the
Mac can launch.

3.6. Isolate the problem.

PowerPC users should try turning off the modern memory manager.

Table of Contents
=================

General FAQ
-----------
I. I have a question...
1. How do I use this document?
2. What other information is available?
3. Which newsgroup should I post to?
4. How should I answer frequently asked questions?
II. FTP, Gopher and the World Wide Web
1. Where can I FTP Macintosh software?
2. Can I get shareware by E-mail?
3. Where can I find application X?
4. Where can I find an application to do X?
5. Can someone mail me application X?
6. What is .bin? .hqx? .cpt? .image? .etc.?
7. How can I get BinHex? StuffIt? etc.?
8. How can I get BinHex, StuffIt, etc. from a PC?
III. Troubleshooting. What to do when things go wrong
1. Identify the problem.
2. Read the READ ME file.
3. Check for viruses.
4. Reinstall the application and all its support files.
5. Reinstall the system software.
6. Isolate the problem.
7. Contact technical support.
IV. Preventive Maintenance
1. Trash Unneeded Files
2. Reevaluate Your Extensions
3. Rebuild the desktop.
4. Zap the PRAM and Reset the Clock
5. Resize the system heap. (System 6 only)
6. Reinstall the system software.
7. Disk Utilities
8. Backing Up
9. Disk Defragmentation
10. Reformatting and partitioning your hard disk
V. Meta-FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions about the FAQ)
1. There's a mistake in your FAQ.
2. Why don't you include this complicated/payware solution?
3. Would you please include my software in your FAQ?
4. Why don't you post the FAQ more often?
5. Can you help me with this problem I'm having with my Mac?
6. Will you send me the FAQ?
7. Why don't you format the FAQ in Word? Digest? HTML? etc.?
8. Can I repost, revise, publish or otherwise use this document?

comp.sys.mac.system
-------------------

I. Memory
1. Why is my system using so much memory?
2. What is Mode 32? the 32-bit enabler? Do I need them?
3. Cache and Carry (How much memory should I allot to my cache?)
II. System Software
1. Why does Apple charge for system software?
2. What does System 7.5 give me for my $35/$50/$99 that System 7.1 doesn't?
3. Where can I get System 7.5?
4. How can I use System 6 on a System 7 only Mac?
5. Non-US scripts and systems
6. What is System 7 Tuneup? System Update 3.0? etc.? Do I need them?
7. Why do my DA's disappear when I turn on MultiFinder?
8. Do I need System 7.0.1?
9. How can I get System 7.0.1 on 800K disks?
10. How can I get System 7.5 on 800K disks?
III. Hard Disks, Filesharing, and the File System
1. Help! My folder disappeared!
2. Why can't I throw this folder away?
3. Why can't I share my removable drive?
4. Why can't I eject this SyQuest cartridge? CD-ROM? etc.?
5. Why can't I rename my hard disk?
6. How do I change my hard disk icon?
IV. Fonts
1. How do I convert between Windows fonts and Mac fonts?
TrueType and PostScript?
2. What font will my screen/printer use when different types
are installed?
3. Where should I put my fonts?
V. Miscellaneous:
1. What does System Error XXX mean?
2. What is a Type Y error?
3. What is A/ROSE?
4. Easy Access or One Answer, Many Questions
5. How can I keep multiple system folders on one hard disk?
6. How do I access the programmer's key?

comp.sys.mac.misc
-----------------

I. Viruses
1. Help! I have a virus!
2. Reporting new viruses
II. Printing and PostScript
1. How do I make a PostScript file?
2. How do I print a PostScript file?
3. Why won't my PostScript file print on my mainframe's printer?
4. Why are my PostScript files so big?
5. How can I print PostScript on a non-PostScript printer?
6. How do I make my ImageWriter II print in color?
7. Why doesn't PrintMonitor work with the ImageWriter?
8. Why did my document change when I printed it?
9. How can I preview a PostScript file?
10. Can I use a LaserJet or other PC printer with my Mac?
11. How can I print grey scales on my StyleWriter I?
12. How can I edit a PostScript file?
III. DOS and the Mac
1. How can I move files between a Mac and a PC?
2. How can I translate files to a DOS format?
3. Should I buy SoftPC or a real PC?
IV. Security
1. How can I password protect a Mac?
2. How can I password protect a file?
3. How can I password protect a folder?
4. How can I prevent software piracy?
5. How can I keep a hard drive in a fixed configuration?
V. Sound
1. How can I copy a track from an audio CD onto my Mac?
2. How can I extract a sound from a QuickTime movie?
3. How can I convert/play a mod/wav/etc. file?
VI. No particular place to go (Miscellaneous Miscellanea)
1. Are there any good books about the Mac?
2. How do I take a picture of the screen?
3. How do I use a picture for my desktop?
4. Can I Replace the "Welcome to Macintosh" box with a picture?
5. What is AutoDoubler? SpaceSaver? More Disk Space? Are they safe?
6. How do they compare to TimesTwo, Stacker and eDisk?
7. Where did my icons go?
8. Where can I find a user group?
9. Where can Ifind the 1984 Quicktime movie?
10. Do RAM Doubler and Optimem work?
11. I'm greedy. Can I triple my RAM?
12. How do I run software that needs an FPU on a Mac that doesn't
have one?

comp.sys.mac.apps
-----------------

I. What's the Best...
1. Text editor
2. Word processor
3. Genealogy software
4. TeX/LaTeX
5. Integrated application
6. Spreadsheet
7. JPEG Viewer
8. Electronic publishing software
9. Drawing application
10. Typing tutor?
11. OCR software?
II. Microsoft Word
1. How can I assign styles to characters?
2. How can I automatically generate cross-references?
3. How can I change a Word document to TeX? and vice-versa?
4. How can I depersonalize Word?
5. Where can I get more information?
III. TeachText
1. How can I change the font in TeachText?
2. How do I place a picture in a TeachText file?
3. How do I make a TeachText document read-only?

comp.sys.mac.wanted
-------------------

I. Buying and Selling Used Equipment
1. Should I buy/sell on Usenet?
2. Where should I buy/sell used equipment?
3. I've decided to completely ignore your excellent advice and
post my ad anyway. What should I do?
4. I've decided to completely ignore your excellent advice and
buy something offered for sale on the net anyway. How can
I avoid being ripped off?
II. Fair Market Value
1. How much is my computer worth?
2. What is used software worth?
3. Going prices?
III. Where Should I Buy a New Mac?
1. Authorized Dealers
2. VAR's
3. Superstores
4. Performas
5. Educational Dealers
6. Direct From Apple
7. Auctions
8. Does anyone know a dealer in New York City?
9. New Equipment Prices
IV. When Should I buy a New Mac?
1. Macrotime
2. Microtime
3. When will I get my Mac?
V. How Should I Buy a New Mac?
1. Know what you want
2. The dealer needs to sell you a mac more than you need to buy one
3. Have a competitor's ad handy
4. Cash on delivery
5. The sales tax game
6. Leasing
7. Be nice to the salesperson.
VI. The Gray Market and Mail Order
1. What is the gray market?
2. Are gray market Macs covered by Apple warranties?
3. Does anyone know a good mail-order company?

comp.sys.mac.hardware
---------------------

I. Maintenance
1. How do I clean a keyboard?
2. How do I clean a screen?
3. How do I clean a mouse?
4. How do I clean a floppy drive?
5. How do I clean the inside of my mac?
II. Problems And Repairs
1. How do I open a compact Mac?
2. Now that I've opened my Mac how might I electrocute myself?
3. Where can I get my Mac fixed?
4. Can you recommend any good books about Mac repair?
5. The screen on my compact Mac is jittering.
III. Upgrades
1. What Macs will be upgradeable to the PowerPC?
2. Can I increase the speed of my Mac by accelerating the clock?
3. Can I add an FPU to my Mac?
4. Can I replace the 68LC040 with a 68040?
IV. Thanks for the Memory
1. What kind of memory should I use in my Mac?
2. Can I use PC SIMM's in my Mac?
3. What vendors have good prices on memory?
4. Do SIMMdoublers work?
V. Video
1. What's VRAM?
2. All monitors are not created equal.
3. There's a horizontal line across my monitor.
VI. Floppy Disks
1. What kind of floppy disks do I need for my Mac?
2. Why can't my Quadra (SE/30, Iici, etc.) read the disks from my Plus?
3. Does punching a hole in a double-density disk make a high-density
disk?
VII. SCSI Troubles
1. How do I put my old internal hard disk in an external case?
2. What's the cheapest/fastest/most reliable/most common removable
drive?
3. What's the best CD-ROM drive?
VIII. Printers
1. What's a good printer?
IX. Miscellaneous hardware FAQ's
1. What power adaptor do I need to use my mac in another country?
2. How can I fix the sound on my IIsi?
A. Models

RETRIEVING THE ENTIRE FAQ
=========================

This is the FIRST part of the this FAQ. The second part is
posted to comp.sys.mac.system and features many questions about
system software. The third part answers miscellaneous questions
about Macs and is posted every two weeks in comp.sys.mac.misc.
The fourth part covers frequently asked questions about Macintosh
application software and appears in comp.sys.mac.apps. The fifth
piece covers buying and selling Macintosh computers, software and
peripherals and is posted in comp.sys.mac.wanted. The sixth part
answers many questions about Macintosh hardware and peripherals
and appears in comp.sys.mac.hardware. Tables of contents for all
pieces are included above. Please familiarize yourself with all
six sections of this document before posting. All pieces are
available for anonymous ftp from

ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/macintosh/

Except for this introductory FAQ which appears in multiple
newsgroups and is stored as general-faq, the name of each
file has the format of the last part of the group name followed
by "-faq", e.g the FAQ for comp.sys.mac.system is stored as
system-faq. You can also have these files mailed to you
by sending an E-mail message to mail-...@rtfm.mit.edu with the
line:

send pub/usenet/news.answers/macintosh/name

in the body text where "name" is the name of the file you want as
specified above (e.g. general-faq). You can also send this server
a message with the subject "help" for more detailed instructions.
For access via the World-Wide-Web use

http://rever.nmsu.edu/~elharo/faq/faqs.html

===========================
I HAVE A QUESTION... (1.0)
===========================

Congratulations! You've come to the right place. Usenet is
a wonderful resource for information ranging from basic questions
(How do I lock a floppy disk?) to queries that would make Steve
Jobs himself run screaming from the room in terror. (I used
ResEdit to remove resources Init #11, WDEF 34, and nVIR 17 from my
system file and used the Hex Editor to add code string #A67B45 as
a patch to the SFGetFile routine so the Standard File Dialog Box
would be a nice shade of mauve. Everything worked fine until I
installed SuperCDevBlaster, and now when I use the Aldus driver to
print from PageMaker 5.0d4 to a Linotronic 6000 my system hangs.
P.S. I'm running System 6.0.2 on a PowerBook 170.)

Since the Macintosh newsgroups are medium to high volume, we
ask that you first peruse this FAQ list including at least the
table of contents for the other pieces of it, check any other
relevant on-line resources listed below in question 1.2, especially
the FAQ lists for the other Macintosh newsgroups, and RTFM (Read
the Friendly Manual) before posting your question. We realize that
you are personally incensed that the System is taking up fourteen
of your newly-installed twenty megs of RAM, but this question has
already made its way around the world three hundred times before,
and it's developing tired feet. Finally, before posting to any
newsgroup (Macintosh or otherwise), please familiarize yourself
with the basic etiquette of Usenet as described in the newsgroup
news.announce.newusers. Usenet can be a real nerd-eat-nerd world
and it's a bad idea to enter it unprepared.

HOW DO I USE THIS DOCUMENT? (1.1)
----------------------------------

comp.sys.mac.faq is currently divided into multiple pieces, a
general introduction which you're reading now, and specific lists
for the newsgroups comp.sys.mac.system, comp.sys.mac.misc and
comp.sys.mac.apps. This introductory document is posted to all
of the concerned newsgroups. The tables of contents for each of
the specific FAQ lists are at the beginning of this file so you
should be able to get at least some idea whether your question is
answered anywhere else in the FAQ even if you don't have the other
parts at hand. It's not always obvious, especially to newcomers,
where a particular question or comment should be posted. Please
familiarize yourself with the FAQ lists in all the major Macintosh
newsgroups before posting in any of them. Which questions
appear in which FAQs can serve as a basic guide to what posts
belong where.

To jump to a particular question search for
section-number.question-number enclosed in parentheses. For
example to find "Where can I FTP Macintosh software?" search
for the string "(2.1)". To jump to a section instead of a
question use a zero for the question number.

This document is in "setext" format. Akif Eyler's freeware
application EasyView can parse this document into a hierarchical
outline view that makes for easier browsing. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/EasyView.sit.bin

Files available by anonymous ftp are here listed in URL
(Uniform Resource Locator) format. To retrieve a file you can
just paste the URL into Mosaic's Open URL dialog or you can
retrieve it manually. A typical file URL looks like

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/UUTool.sit.bin

If you don't have Mosaic, Cello, MacWeb or some other World Wide Web
browser this reference is easy to decode for use by regular, manual
ftp. (In fact it's easier to use than the form I used to use which
didn't include directories.) Ignore the "ftp://". The next part,
"rever.nmsu.edu" is the site. The last part, "UUTool.sit.bin"
is the file itself. Everything in between is the directory. Thus
to retrieve this file by ftp you would ftp to rever.nmsu.edu, login
as "anonymous" using your E-mail address as your password, switch to
"binary" mode (since the .bin on the end of the file indicates this
is a binary file), change directory to pub/macfaq and get the file
UUTool2.3.2.sit.bin. Directory URL's are similar except they end
with a / symbol. A typical directory URL looks like

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/

Here rever.nmsu.edu is the site and everything after that is
a directory.

WHAT OTHER INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE? (1.2)
-------------------------------------------

comp.sys.mac.faq provides short answers to a number of
frequently asked questions appropriate for the comp.sys.mac regions
of Usenet. Five other FAQ lists are worthy of particular note. All
are available for anonymous ftp from rtfm.mit.edu [18.181.0.24] in the
directory pub/usenet/group-name (where "group-name" is the name of the
group in which they're posted) as well as in their respective
newsgroups. Jon W{tte maintains a public domain FAQ list for
comp.sys.mac.programmer which is posted about every three weeks. See

ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/macintosh/programming-faq

The original FAQ list for comp.sys.mac.programmer is no longer being
posted or updated but is still useful and available via anonymous ftp
to rtfm.mit.edu. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/info/Original_Programmer_FAQ.txt

David Oppenheimer maintains a FAQ list for comp.sys.mac.comm. This
list answers many frequently asked questions about networking, UNIX
and the Mac, telecommunications, and foreign file formats. See

ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/macintosh/comm-faq/

Norm Walsh has compiled an excellent FAQ for comp.fonts that answers
a lot of questions about the various kinds of fonts and cross-platform
conversion and printing. See

ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/comp.fonts/

Finally Jim Jagielski maintains a FAQ for comp.unix.aux covering
Apple's UNIX environment, A/UX. It's posted every 2 to 3 weeks in
comp.unix.aux. See

ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/comp.unix.aux/

Much other information is accessible via the World Wide Web by
pointing your favorite browser at The Well Connected Mac, located at

http://rever.nmsu.edu/~elharo/faq/Macintosh.html

Among other things this site contains hypertext versions of many
of the above FAQ lists, lists of Macintosh FTP and Web sites, a
directory of vendors doing business in the Macintosh market, many
reviews of hardware and software, and much more. If you only
have a dialup UNIX account and can't use Mosaic, see if lynx is
installed on your system. If it is, use it. Otherwise if you can
telnet at all try telneting to www.njit.edu which is a publically
accessible text-based browser for the Web.

WHICH NEWSGROUP SHOULD I POST TO? (1.3)
----------------------------------------

There are no stupid questions, but there are misplaced ones.
You wouldn't ask your English teacher how to do the definite
integral of ln x between zero and one, would you? So don't ask
the programmer newsgroup why your system is so slow when Microsoft
Word is in the background. Ignorance of basic netiquette is not an
excuse. If you want people to help you, you need to learn their
ways of communicating.

Posting questions to the proper newsgroup will fill your
mailbox with pearls of wisdom (and maybe a few rotten oysters too
:-) ). Posting to the wrong newsgroup often engenders a thundering
silence. For instance the most common and glaring mispost, one
that seems as incongruous to dwellers in the Macintosh regions of
Usenet as would a purple elephant to Aleuts in the Arctic, asking
a question about networking anywhere except comp.sys.mac.comm,
normally produces no useful responses. Posting the same question
to comp.sys.mac.comm ensures that your post is read and considered
by dozens of experienced network administrators and not a few
network software designers.

Please post to exactly ONE newsgroup. Do not cross-post.
If a question isn't important enough for you to take the extra
minute to figure out where it properly belongs, it's not important
enough for several thousand people to spend their time reading.
For the same reason comp.sys.mac.misc should not be used as a
catch-all newsgroup.

The breakdown of questions between different newsgroups in
this document can also serve as a reasonable guide to what belongs
where. Questions about productivity applications (software you
bought your Macintosh to run, not software you bought to make your
Macintosh run better) should go to comp.sys.mac.apps unless the
application is covered in a more specific newsgroup. Communications
programs, games, HyperCard, compilers and databases all have
more topical comp.sys.mac.* newsgroups. Post questions about
non-communications hardware including questions about what
software is necessary to make particular hardware work to
comp.sys.mac.hardware. Questions about MacOS system software
belong in comp.sys.mac.system. Questions about utilities and
extensions normally belong in comp.sys.mac.misc. Questions about
A/UX go to comp.unix.aux. Detailed questions about Appletalk
belong in comp.protocols.appletalk. Direct questions about
HyperCard to comp.sys.mac.hypercard. Non-HyperCard programming
questions and questions about development environments should go
to comp.sys.mac.programmer unless the question is about object-
oriented programming in which case it belongs in one of the three
comp.sys.mac.programmer.oop groups. ResEdit questions may be
posted either to comp.sys.mac.misc, comp.sys.mac.system, or
comp.sys.mac.programmer; but generally the netters who inhabit
the darker recesses of comp.sys.mac.programmer are considerably
more practiced at the art of resource hacking.

A general exception to the above rules is that any VERY
technical question about an application that actually begins to
delve into the how's of a program as well as the what's (Recent
example: How does WriteNow which is written entirely in assembly
compare to other word processors written in high level languages?)
might be better addressed to the programmer newsgroup.

For Sale and Want to Buy posts should go to
comp.sys.mac.wanted and misc.forsale.computers.mac ONLY. We
understand that you're desperate to sell your upgraded 128K Mac
to get the $$ for a PowerBook 180; but trust me, anyone who wants
to buy it will be reading comp.sys.mac.wanted. Political and
religious questions (The Mac is better than Windows! Is not! Is
too! Is not! Is too! Hey! How 'bout the Amiga! What about it?
Is Not! Is too!) belong in comp.sys.mac.advocacy. Anything not
specifically mentioned above probably belongs in comp.sys.mac.misc.

Finally don't be so provincial as to only consider the
comp.sys.mac newsgroups for your questions. Many questions about
modems in comp.sys.mac.comm are much more thoroughly discussed
in comp.dcom.modems. Questions about Mac MIDI are often better
handled in comp.music even though it's not a Macintosh specific
newsgroup. Posts about the Newton belong in the comp.sys.newton
hierarchy, not in ANY of the Macintosh newsgroups.Look around.
Usenet's big and not everything relevant to the Macintosh happens
in comp.sys.mac.

HOW SHOULD I ANSWER FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS? (1.4)
------------------------------------------------------

Mostly through private E-mail. Frequent answers are just as
boring and uninteresting as frequent questions. Unless you really
have something new to add to the traditional answers (such as the
recent discovery that fonts in System 7.1 could eat memory) private
E-mail is a much better medium for answering FAQs. You might want
to add a mention of this FAQ list in your E-mail response and a
polite suggestion that your correspondent read it before posting
future questions.

==========================================
FTP, GOPHER, AND THE WORLD WIDE WEB (2.0)
==========================================

WHERE CAN I GET MAC SOFTWARE? (2.1)
------------------------------------

The two major North American Internet archives of shareware,
freeware, and demo software are Info-Mac at sumex-aim.stanford.edu
[171.65.4.3], and mac.archive at mac.archive.umich.edu
[141.211.120.11] Unless otherwise noted shareware and freeware
mentioned in this document should be available at the above sites.
Unfortunately these sites are extremely busy and allow very few
connections. Thus you should try to connect to a mirror site
instead.

In the United States Info-Mac's files are available from
grind.isca.uiowa.edu [128.255.21.233] in the directory mac/infomac
or wuarchive.wustl.edu [128.252.135.4] in systems/mac/info-mac.
Mac.archive files are available from mirror.archive.umich.edu.
Scandinavians should try connecting to ftp.funet.fi (128.214.6.100)
or ftp.lth.se [130.235.20.3] first. In the U.K. look to
src.doc.ic.ac.uk [146.169.2.1]. Continental Europeans can try
nic.switch.ch [130.59.1.40], ezinfo.ethz.ch [129.132.2.72], and
anl.anl.fr [192.54.179.1]. In Australia check out archie.au
[139.130.4.6]. Japanese users will find sumex mirrored at
ftp.u-tokyo.ac.jp [130.69.254.254]. In Israel try
ftp.technion.ac.il [132.68.1.10] in the directory
pub/unsupported/mac. In Taiwan nctuccca.edu.tw [192.83.166.10
or 140.111.1.10] mirrors both sumex and mac.archive.

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/info/Mac_FTP_List.txt

U.S.: ftp://grind.isca.uiowa.edu/mac/infomac
ftp://wuarchive.wustl.edu/systems/mac/info-mac
ftp://mirror.archive.umich.edu/
Finland: ftp://ftp.funet.fi/
Sweden: ftp://ftp.lth.se
ftp://ftp.sunet.se/pub/mac/
U.K.: ftp://src.doc.ic.ac.uk/packages/info-mac/
Switzerland: ftp://nic.switch.ch/
ftp://ezinfo.ethz.ch/
France: ftp://anl.anl.fr/
Taiwan: ftp://nctuccca.edu.tw/
Israel: ftp://ftp.technion.ac.il/pub/unsupported/mac/
Australia: ftp://archie.au/
Japan: ftp://ftp.u-tokyo.ac.jp/

More complete lists of mirrors are available from

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/info/Mac_FTP_List.txt
http://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/~elharo/faq/software.html

Another very useful site is ftp.apple.com [130.43.2.3], particularly

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/

This is Apple's semi-official repository for system software,
developer tools, source code, technical notes, and other things
that come more or less straight from Apple's mouth. Some material
at this site may not be distributed outside the U.S. or by other
sites that don't have an official license to distribute Apple
system software. Please read the various README documents
available at ftp.apple.com for the detailed info if you're
connecting from outside the U.S. or if you wish to redistribute
material you find here.

All software mentioned in these FAQ lists which may be freely
posted is available for anonymous ftp from rever.nmsu.edu in the
directory /pub/macfaq, i.e.

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/

rever.nmsu.edu is NOT a general archive site like info-mac or
mac.archive and does not endeavor to store every piece of shareware
in the Macintosh universe. However it should have most software
mentioned here, and should be easily accessible.

Finally if you have one flavor or another of Gopher available,
Apple maintains an astoundingly useful gopher server at

gopher://info.hed.apple.com/

This site contains gobs of PR, technical specs for Apple products,
and pointers to sumex and mac.archive. It's often much easier to
browse mac.archive and sumex through gopher rather than directly
by ftp.

CAN I GET SHAREWARE BY E-MAIL? (2.2)
-------------------------------------

The info-mac archives at sumex-aim are available by E-mail from
LIST...@RICEVM1.bitnet (alternately list...@ricevm1.rice.edu).
The listserver responds to the commands $MACARCH HELP, $MACARCH
INDEX, and $MACARCH GET filename. Mac archive files are available
from m...@mac.archive.umich.edu. Send it a message containing the
word "help" (no quotes) on the first line of your message for
instructions on getting started. You can retrieve files from
other sites by using the server at ftp...@decwrl.dec.com. For
details send it a message with just the text "help" (no quotes).

WHERE CAN I FIND APPLICATION X? (2.3)
--------------------------------------

If you can't find shareware you're looking for at one of
the above sites, archie will help you find it. If you have a
macTCP connection to the net, you should use Peter Lewis's
graphical archie client Anarchie, available from

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/Anarchie.sit.bin

Otherwise try telnetting to your nearest archie server or
sending it an E-mail message addressed to archie with the subject
"help." Archie servers are located at archie.rutgers.edu (128.6.18.15,
America), archie.mcgill.ca (132.206.2.3, Canada), archie.au
(139.130.4.6, Australia), archie.funet.fi (128.214.6.100,
Scandinavia), and archie.doc.ic.ac.uk (146.169.3.7, the U.K. and
the continent). These sites index the tens of thousands of files
available for anonymous ftp. Login as "archie" (no password is
needed) and type "prog filename" to find what you're looking for or
type "help" for more detailed instructions. For instance you would
type "prog Disinfectant" to search for a convenient ftp site for
Disinfectant. If the initial search fails to turn up the file you
want, try variations on and substrings of the name. For instance if
you didn't find Disinfectant with "prog Disinfectant", you might try
"prog disi" instead.

Most common payware is stocked by MacWarehouse and featured
in their catalog which you can request from MacWarehouse at
(800) 622-6222. Apple brand software not stocked by MacWarehouse
and not available on ftp.apple.com is often available from
APDA, the Apple Programmers' and Developers' Association. Call
(800) 282-2732 in the U.S., (800) 637-0029 in Canada, (716) 871-6555
elsewhere, for a catalog. Finally most third party programming
tools with too small a market to be advertised in the MacWarehouse
catalog are advertised in every issue of MacTech along with
information on how to order.

Please check the above catalogs and archie personally BEFORE
asking the net where you can find a particular piece of software.
These sources provide answers much more quickly than the net.

WHERE CAN I FIND AN APPLICATION TO DO X? (2.4)
-----------------------------------------------

Most archives of shareware and freeware have index files
which briefly describe the various programs available at the site.
At anonymous ftp sites these files typically begin with 00 and end
with either .txt or .abs. Lists that cover the entire archive and
topical subdirectories are both available. For example if you're
looking for a program to play MOD files, ftp to sumex-aim and
look in the directory Sound/util for any files beginning with two
zeroes. You'll find 00Utility-abstracts.abs. Get it and then
browse through it at your leisure. Then when you've located a
likely candidate in the index file you can ftp it and try it out.

The best source of information about payware programs is the
MacWarehouse catalog. You'll occasionally find it on sale at
newsstands for about two dollars; but if you call MacWarehouse
at 1-800-622-6222, they'll be happy to send you one for free.
Unlike many other catalogs almost all common software is
advertised in the MacWarehouse catalog. A quick browse through
the appropriate section normally reveals several products that
fit your needs.

CAN SOMEONE MAIL ME APPLICATION X? (2.5)
-----------------------------------------

No. Nor will anyone mail you a part of a file from
comp.binaries.mac that was corrupt or missed at your site.
Please refer to the first questions in this section to
find out about anonymous FTP, archie, and E-mail servers.

WHAT IS .BIN? .HQX? .CPT? .ETC? (2.6)
--------------------------------------

Most files available by FTP are modified twice to allow them to
more easily pass through foreign computer systems. First they're
compressed to make them faster to download, and then they're
translated to either a binhex (.hqx) or MacBinary (.bin) format
that other computers can digest. (The Macintosh uses a special
two-fork filing system that chokes most other computers.) BinHex
files are 7-bit ASCII text files, while MacBinary files are pure
8-bit binary data that must always be transferred using a binary
protocol.

How a file has been translated and compressed is indicated
by its suffix. Normally a file will have a name something like
filename.xxx.yyy. .xxx indicates how it was compressed and .yyy
indicates how it was translated. To use a file you've FTP'd and
downloaded to your Mac you'll need to reverse the process. Most
files you get from the net require a two-step decoding process.
First change the binhex (.hqx) or MacBinary (.bin) file to a
double-clickable Macintosh file; then decompress it. Which
programs decode which file types is covered in the table below.
Also note that most Macintosh telecommunications programs will
automatically convert MacBinary files to regular Macintosh files
as they are downloaded.

*******************************************************************************
Suffix: .sit .cpt .hqx .bin .pit .Z .image .dd .zip .uu .tar .gz
Extractors
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
StuffIt 3.0| X X X X X X X X X X
Compact Pro| X X
Packit | X
UUTool | X
MacCompress| X
SunTar | X X X X
BinHex 5.0 | X X
BinHex 4.0 | X
DiskDoubler| X X
ZipIt | X X X
DiskCopy | X
macutil | X X X X
MacGzip | X X
*******************************************************************************

A few notes on the decompressors:

StuffIt is a family of products that use several different
compression schemes. The freeware StuffIt Expander will unstuff
all of them. Versions of StuffIt earlier than 3.0 (StuffIt 1.5.1,
StuffIt Classic, UnStuffIt, and StuffIt Deluxe 2.0 and 1.0)
will not unstuff the increasing number of files stuffed by
StuffIt 3.0. You need to get a more recent version of StuffIt
or StuffIt Expander. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/StuffItExpander.sea.bin

StuffIt 3.0.7 (Lite and Deluxe) consistently makes
smaller archives than any other Macintosh compression utility.
To allow maximum space for files on the various ftp sites and
to keep net-bandwidth down, please compress all files you send
to anonymous ftp sites with StuffIt 3.0.7. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/StuffItLite.sea.bin

UUTool, MacCompress, MacGzip and SunTar handle the popular
UNIX formats of uuencode (.uu), compress (.Z), gzip (.gz) and
tar (.tar) respectively. The UNIX versions are often more robust
than the Mac products, so use them instead when that's an option.

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/UUTool.sit.bin
ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/MacGzip.sit.bin
ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/MacCompress.sit.bin
ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/SunTar.sit.bin

StuffIt Deluxe or the combination of the freeware StuffIt Expander
and the shareware DropStuff with Expander Enhancer can also decode
these four formats in a relatively reliable fashion. However be warned
that the registration dialog in these products is more than a little
annoying. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/DropStuffInstaller.bin

Macutil is dik winter's package of UNIX utilities to
decompress and debinhex files on a workstation before downloading
them to a Mac. Since UNIX stores files differently than the
Mac, macutil creates MacBinary (.bin) files which should be
automatically converted on download. It can't decompress
everything. In particular it can't decompress the new StuffIt 3.0
archives. However, if you need only one or two files out of an
archive--for instance if you want to read the README to find out if
a program does what you need it to do before you download all of
it--macutil is indispensable. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/MacUtil.shar

A few notes on the compression formats:

.bin: These are MacBinary files. Always use a binary file
transfer protocol when transferring them, never ASCII or text.
Most files on the net are stored as .hqx instead. Only rascal
stores most of its files in .bin format. Most communications
programs such as ZTerm and Microphone are capable of translating
MacBinary files on the fly as they download if they know in
advance they'll be downloading MacBinary files.

.image: This format is normally used only for system software,
so that on-line users can download files that can easily be
converted into exact copies of the installer floppies. Instead
of using DiskCopy to restore the images to floppies, you can use
the freeware utility MungeImage to treat the images on your hard
disk as actual floppies inserted in a floppy drive. MungeImage
sometimes has problems when doing installs, so you should have
some blank floppies and a copy of DiskCopy handy just in case. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/MungeImage.sit.bin

.sea (.x, .X): .sea files don't merit a position in the above
table because they're self-extracting. They may have been created
with Compact Pro, StuffIt, or even DiskDoubler; but all should be
capable of decompressing themselves when double-clicked. For some
unknown reason Alysis has chosen not to use this industry standard
designation for self-extracting archives created with their
payware products SuperDisk! and More Disk Space. Instead
they append either .x or .X to self-extracting archives.

HOW CAN I GET BINHEX? STUFFIT? ETC.? (2.7)
---------------------------------------------

By far the easiest way to get these programs is to ask a
human being to copy them onto a floppy for you. If you're at a
university there's absolutely no excuse for not finding someone to
give you a copy; and if you're anywhere less remote than McMurdo
Sound, chances are very good that someone at a computer center,
dealership, or user group can provide you with a copy of StuffIt.
Once you have StuffIt (any version) you don't need BinHex.

If you're such a computer geek that the thought of actually
asking a living, breathing human being instead of a computer
terminal for something turns you into a quivering mass of
protoplasmic jelly, you can probably download a working
copy of StuffIt from a local bulletin board system.

If you have religious objections to software gotten by any
means other than anonymous ftp, then I suppose I'll mention that
you can in fact ftp a working copy of StuffIt though this is
by far the hardest way to get it. Ftp to rever.nmsu.edu and
login. Type the word "binary." Hit return. Type "cd pub/macfaq"
and hit return. Then type "get StuffItExpander.sea.bin" and hit
return. If you've ftp'd straight onto your Mac you should now have a
self-extracting archive which will produce a working copy of StuffIt
Expander when double-clicked. If you've ftp'd to your mainframe or
UNIX account first, you still need to use a modem program to download
it to your Mac. Just make sure that the Mac is receiving in MacBinary
mode and the mainframe is sending in binary mode. If you need more
details on the last step, consult the FAQ list for comp.sys.mac.comm
and the manuals for both your mainframe and Macintosh
telecommunications software.


HOW CAN I GET BINHEX, STUFFIT, ETC. FROM A PC? (2.8)
-----------------------------------------------------

Paul Thomson's shareware DOS utility Macette can transfer
MacBinary files like the ones stored at ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/
from a DOS file system onto a Macintosh high density diskette,
translating from MacBinary into a standard two-fork executable
Macintosh file in the process. It can even format the diskette
for you. Thus once you've gotten StuffIt Expander from

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/StuffItExpander.sea.bin

you can use macette to move it from the PC to your Mac.
I've made macette available at my ftp site. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/macette.zip

========================================================================
TROUBLESHOOTING: WHAT TO DO (BEFORE POSTING) WHEN THINGS GO WRONG (3.0)
========================================================================

While the various FAQ lists cover a lot of specific
problems, there are far more problems that aren't covered here.
These are a few basic techniques you should follow before
asking for help. You should probably also perform the ten-step
preventive maintenance routine described in section four,
especially rebuilding the desktop (4.3) and resizing the system
heap (4.5). Following these steps may or may not solve your
problem, but it will at least make it easier for others to
recommend solutions to you.

IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. (3.1)
----------------------------

"Microsoft Word is crashing" doesn't say much. What were you
doing when it crashed? Can you repeat the actions that lead to
the crash? The more information you provide about the actions
preceding the crash the more likely it is someone can help you.
The more precisely you've identified the problem and the actions
preceding it, the easier it will be to tell if the following steps
fix the problem. For example, "Sometimes QuarkXPress 3.0 crashes
with a coprocessor not installed error." is not nearly as helpful
as "QuarkXPress 3.0 crashes when I link two text boxes on a master
page when copies of those text boxes already contain text." The
former will leave you wondering whether the bug remains after a
given step. The latter lets you go right to the problem and see
if it's still there or not.

READ THE READ ME FILE. (3.2)
-----------------------------

Many companies include a list of known incompatibilities
and bugs in their READ ME files. Often these aren't documented
in the manual. Read any READ ME files to see if any of the
problems sound familiar.

CHECK FOR VIRUSES. (3.3)
-------------------------

Run Disinfectant or another anti-viral across your disk.
Virus infections are rarer than most people think, but they do
occur and they do cause all sorts of weird problems when they do.

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/Disinfectant.sit.bin

REINSTALL THE APPLICATION AND ALL ITS SUPPORT FILES. (3.4)
-----------------------------------------------------------

For half a dozen reasons (external magnetic fields,
improperly written software, the alignment of the planets) a file
on a disk may not contain the data it's supposed to contain. This
can cause all types of unexplained, unusual behavior. Restoring
from original masters will usually fix this. Check to see if the
application has a preferences file in the Preferences folder in
the system folder and if so trash it. This is often overlooked
when reinstalling. Since the preferences file is often the most
easily corrupted file in an application, reinstalling it alone
may be sufficient to fix the problem.

REINSTALL THE SYSTEM SOFTWARE. (3.5)
-------------------------------------

Bits are even more likely to get twiddled in the system file
than in the application and the effects can be just as disastrous.
See question 4.6 for a detailed procedure for performing a clean
reinstall.

If the problem continues to occur after you've taken these
steps, chances are you've found either a conflict between your
application and some other software or a genuine bug in the
program. So it's time to

ISOLATE THE PROBLEM. (3.6)
---------------------------

You need to find the minimal system on which the problem
will assert itself. Here are the basic steps of isolating the
cause of a system or application crash:

1. Run only one application at a time. Occasionally applications
conflict with each other. If the problem does not manifest
itself without other applications running simultaneously,
begin launching other applications until you find the one that
causes the crash.

2. If you're running System 6, turn off MultiFinder. If you're
running System 7, allot as much memory to the application as you
can afford. Sometimes programs just need more memory, especially
when performing complicated operations.

3. If you're running System 7, turn off virtual memory and 32-bit
addressing. There's still an awful lot of 32-bit and VM hostile
software out there including some from companies that really
have no excuse. (Can you say Microsoft Word 5.1, boys and girls?
I knew you could.) Some of this software only expresses its
incompatibilities when certain uncommon actions are taken.

4. If you have a 68040 Mac, turn the cache off. Many older
programs don't work well with the built-in cache of the 68040.

5. If you have a PowerPC turn off the modern memory manager.
Some software doesn't get along with it.

6. Restart your Mac and hold down the shift key (or boot from
a virgin system floppy if you're using System 6). If the problem
disappears you likely have an init conflict. You need to
progressively remove extensions until the problem vanishes.
Ricardo Batista's freeware Extensions Manager 2.0.1 lets you
decide at startup which extensions to load so you don't have
to spend a lot of time moving files into and out of the System
Folder. See

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/hacks/extensions-manager-2-0-1.hqx

Use a little common sense when choosing the first extensions
to remove. If the problem occurs when you try to open a file,
remove any inits that mess with the Standard File Open procedure
such as Super Boomerang first. If the problem remains after
the obvious candidates have been eliminated, either remove the
remaining extensions one at a time; or, if you have a lot of
them, perform a binary search by removing half of the extensions
at a time. Once the problem disappears add half of the most
recently removed set back. Continue until you've narrowed the
conflict down to one extension. When you think you've found
the offending init restart with only that init enabled just
to make sure that it and it alone is indeed causing the problem.
Although performing this procedure manually can be fairly quick
if you have a pretty good idea of which extensions to check, it
can take quite some time when you really don't have any strong
suspects for a conflict. In that case consider using Conflict
Catcher II to help isolate the offending init. A fully functional
timed demo can be had from

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/ConflictCatcherDemo.sit.bin

7. Remove all external SCSI devices. If the problem disappears,
add them back one at a time until the problem reappears. Once
you've isolated the SCSI device causing the problem check its
termination and try moving it to a different position in the
SCSI chain. It's also possible a SCSI cable's gone bad, so
try replacing just the cable.

8. Turn the Mac off and unplug all cables: power, ADB, modem,
printer, network, SCSI and anything else you've plugged in to the
back of your Mac. Then plug everything back in and try again.
Loose cables can imitate malfunctions in almost any hardware or
software. I recently spent a day in panic because I thought my
analog board had died before I could back up the latest draft of
the hardware FAQ. I even went so far as to E-mail my favorite
repair shop (Tekserve, 212-929-3645) before I thought calmly for
a few minutes, unplugged all my cables, and plugged them back in.
My Mac booted up immediately. The power cable had been loosened
when I moved my desk the previous weekend and a few days later
random motion finally disconnected it enough to cut my power. To
all appearances this was an expensive analog board or power supply
failure rather than a cheap cable problem that I could fix in about
a minute at home.

CONTACT TECHNICAL SUPPORT. (3.7)
---------------------------------

By now you should have a very good idea of when, where, and why
the conflict occurs. If a tech support number is available for the
software, call it. If you're lucky the company will have a work
around or fix available. If not, perhaps they'll at least add the
bug to their database of problems to be fixed in the next release.

=============================
PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE (4.0)
=============================

You wouldn't drive your car 100,000 miles without giving it a
tune-up. A computer is no different. Regular tune-ups avoid a lot
of problems. Although there are Mac mechanics who'll be happy to
charge you $75 or more for the equivalent of an oil change, there's
no reason you can't change it yourself. The following nine-step
program should be performed about every three months.

TRASH UNNEEDED FILES (4.1)
---------------------------

Many of the operations that follow will run faster and more
smoothly the more free disk space there is to work with so spend
a little time cleaning up your hard disk. If you're at all like
me, you'll find several megabytes worth of preferences files for
applications you no longer have, archives of software you've
dearchived, shareware you tried out and didn't like, announcements
for events that have come and gone and many other files you no
longer need. If you're running System 7 you may also have several
more megabytes in your trash can alone. Throw them away and empty
the trash.

RETHINK YOUR EXTENSIONS (4.2)
------------------------------

Some Macintoshes attract inits like a new suit attracts rain.
Seriously consider whether you actually need every extension
in your collection. If you don't use the functionality of an
extension at least every fifth time you boot up, you're probably
better off not storing it in your System Folder where it only takes
up memory, destabilizes your system, and slows down every startup.
For instance if you only read PC disks once a month, there's no
need to keep Macintosh PC Exchange loaded all the time. Cutting
back on your extensions can really help avoid crashes.

REBUILD THE DESKTOP (4.3)
--------------------------

The Desktop file/database holds all the information necessary
to associate each file with the application that created it.
It lets the system know what application should be launched when
you open a given file and what icons it should display where.
Depending on its size each application has one or more
representatives in the desktop file. As applications and files
move on and off your hard disk, the Desktop file can be become
bloated and corrupt. Think of it as a Congress for your Mac.
Every so often it's necessary to throw the bums out and start
with a clean slate. Fortunately it's easier to rebuild the
desktop than to defeat an incumbent.

One warning: rebuilding the desktop will erase all comments
you've stored in the Get Info boxes. Under System 7 Maurice
Volaski's freeware init CommentKeeper will retain those comments
across a rebuild. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/CommentKeeper.sit.bin

CommentKeeper also works with System 6 but only if Apple's
Desktop Manager extension is also installed.

To rebuild the desktop restart your Mac and, as your
extensions finish loading, depress the Command and Option keys.
You'll be presented with a dialog box asking if you want to rebuild
the desktop and warning you that "This could take a few minutes."
Click OK. It will take more than a few minutes. The more files you
have the longer it will take. If you're running System 6 you may
want to turn off MultiFinder before trying to rebuild the desktop.

If you're experiencing definite problems and not just doing
preventive maintenance, you may want to use Micromat's freeware
utility TechTool. TechTool completely deletes the Desktop file
before rebuilding it, thus eliminating possibly corrupt data
structures. Furthermore it doesn't require you to remember any
confusing keystroke combinations. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/TechTool.sit.bin

ZAP THE PRAM AND RESET THE CLOCK (4.4)
---------------------------------------

All Macs from the original 128K Thin Mac to the Quadra 950
contain a small amount of battery powered RAM that holds certain
settings that belong to the CPU rather than the startup disk, for
example the disk to start up from. Unfortunately this "parameter
RAM" can become corrupted and cause unexplained crashes. To reset
it under System 7 hold down the Command, Option, P, and R keys
while restarting your Mac. Under System 6 hold down the Command,
Option, and Shift keys while selecting the Control Panel from the
Apple menu, and click "Yes" when asked if you want to zap the
parameter RAM. Alternatively you can use MicroMat's free utility
TechTool which doesn't require you strecth your fingers across the
keyboard like a circus contortionist. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/TechTool.sit.bin

Zapping the PRAM erases the settings of most Apple Control
Panels including the General Controls, Keyboard, Startup Disk,
Mouse, and Map. It also erases the Powerbook 100's non-volatile
RAM disk. Thus after zapping the PRAM you will need to reset these
Control Panels to fit your preferences. One setting that zapping
the PRAM does not erase is the date and time; but since the internal
clock in the Macintosh is notoriously inaccurate you'll probably want
to reset it now anyway.

RESIZE THE SYSTEM HEAP (System 6 Only) (4.5)
---------------------------------------------

Even after rethinking their extensions as per step two, most
people still have at least half a row of icons march across
the bottom of their screen every time they restart. All these
extensions (and most applications too) need space in a section of
memory called the System Heap. If the System Heap isn't big enough
to comfortably accommodate all the programs that want a piece of
it, they start playing King of the Mountain on the system heap,
knocking each other off to get bigger pieces for themselves and
trying to climb back on after they get knocked off. All this
fighting amongst the programs severely degrades system performance
and almost inevitably crashes the Mac.

Under System 7 your Macintosh automatically resizes the
system heap as necessary, but under System 6 you yourself need
to set the system heap size large enough to have room for all your
extensions and applications. By default this size is set to 128K,
way too small for Macs with even a few extensions. The system heap
size is stored in the normally non-editable boot blocks of every
system disk. Bill Steinberg's freeware utility BootMan not only
resizes your system heap but also checks how much memory your heap
is using and tells you how much more needs to be allocated. If
you're running System 6, get BootMan, use it, and be amazed at
how infrequently your Macintosh crashes. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/Bootman.sit

REINSTALL THE SYSTEM SOFTWARE (4.6)
------------------------------------

System files can become corrupt and fragmented, especially
if you've stored lots of fonts and desk accessories inside them.
Merely updating the System software will often not fix system file
corruption. I recommend doing a clean reinstall. Here's how:

1. Move the Finder from the system folder onto your desktop.

2. Rename the System Folder "Old System Folder"

3. If you're installing System 6, 7.0, 7.0.1 or 7.1 shut down
and then boot from the Installer floppy of your system disks.
If you're installing System 7.5, quit all running applications
and launch the installer on the first installer disk.

4. Double-click the installer script on your System disk. Then
choose Customize... Select the appropriate software for your
model Mac and printer. You could do an Easy Install instead,
but that will only add a lot of extensions and code you don't
need that waste your memory and disk space.

If you're installing System 7.5 type "Command-Shift-K" which is
the magic code to get the installer to do a clean install.. A
dialog will popup. Select the radio button that says "Install
New System Folder" and click OK.

From this point on just follow the installers instructions.
Mostly you'll just need to swap disks. After installation is
finished the installer will ask you to restart your Mac. You
don't really have any choice so go ahead and restart.

5. If you installed System 7.0 or 7.0.1, you should now install
System 7 Tuneup 1.1.1, available from

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/sys.soft/7.0.tuneup/system-7-tune-up-1-1-1.hqx

If you installed System 7.1, 7.1 Pro or 7.1.2, then you should
also install System Update 3.0, available from

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/sys.soft/7.system.updates/

6. Copy any non-standard fonts and desk accessories out
of the old System file into a temporary suitcase.

7. Trash the Finder file on desktop. Now go into the Old System
Folder and trash the System, MultiFinder, DA Handler, and all
other standard Apple extensions and control panels. These were
all replaced in the new installation. If you were running
System 7.x, move everything left in the Extensions, Control Panels,
and Preferences folders into the top level of the System Folder.

8. Now move everything from the Old System Folder you created in step 2
into the new System folder. If you're asked if you want to replace
anything, you missed something in step 7. You'll need to replace
things individually until you find the duplicate piece. Also
reinstall any fonts or DA's you removed in step 6.

9. Reboot. You should now have a clean, defragmented System file
that takes up less memory and disk space and a much more stable
system overall.

DISK UTILITIES (4.7)
---------------------

Much like system files hard disks have data structures that
occasionally become corrupted affecting performance and even
causing data loss. Apple includes Disk First Aid, a simple utility
for detecting and repairing hard disk problems, with its System
disks. It's also available for anonymous ftp from ftp.apple.com in

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/disk-first-aid-7-2.hqx

If you have an earlier version than 7.2 (and most people do)
you should get version 7.2 from ftp.apple.com, make a copy of
your Disk Tools disk, and replace the old Disk First Aid on the
copy with the new version. At the same time you should also
replace the old version of HD SC Setup on your Disk Tools disk
with the new HD SC Setup 7.2.2 from the same directory. See

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/hd-sc-setup-7-2-2.hqx

Several companies sell payware disk utilities that detect
and repair considerably more problems than Disk First Aid though,
interestingly, none of them detect and repair everything that Disk
First Aid does. The three most effective for general work are
Symantec's MacTools 3.0, Public Utilites, and Norton Utilities
for the Macintosh 2.0. A department or work group should have
all of these as well as Disk First Aid since none of them fix
everything the others do. For individuals MacTools ($48 street)
is about half the price of Norton ($94 street) or Public Utilities
($98 street) so, features and ease of use being roughly equal,
I recommend MacTools.

All of these products occasionally encounter problems they
can't fix. When that happens it's time to backup (4.8) and
reformat (4.10).

BACKING UP (4.8)
-----------------

This is one part of preventive maintenance that should be
done a LOT more often than every three months. The simplest back
up is to merely copy all the files on your hard disk onto floppies
or other removable media. If you keep your data files separate
from your application and support files then it's easy to only back
up those folders which change frequently. Nonetheless every three
months you should do a complete backup of your hard disk.

A number of programs are available to make backing up
easier. Apple included a very basic full backup application
with System 6. With the Performas Apple ships a new Apple Backup
utility that can backup the entire disk or just the System folder
onto floppies. The previously mentioned Norton Utilities for the
Mac and MacTools Deluxe 2.0 include more powerful floppy backup
utilities that incorporate compression and incremental backups.
Finally the usual ftp sites should have Diversified I/O's $35
shareware SoftBackup II, a full featured backup program that will
do full, image and incremental backups to floppies, tape drives,
WORMs, Syquest drives, hard disks, servers and other media. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/SoftBackupII.sit.bin

About the only thing thing SoftBackup II can't do is replace old
versions of files in a backup set with newer versions. If you want
to do that check out the more flexible payware utilities Redux ($49
street, doesn't support tape drives) and Diskfit Pro ($74 street).

DISK DEFRAGMENTATION (4.9)
---------------------------

As disks fill up it gets harder and harder to find enough
contiguous free space to write large files. Therefore the
operating system will often split larger files into pieces to
be stored in different places on your hard disk. As files
become more and more fragmented performance can degrade.
There are several ways to defragment a hard disk.

The most tedious but cheapest method is to backup all your
files, erase the hard disk (and you might as well reformat while
you're at it. See question 4.10.), and restore all the files.

A number of payware utilities including Norton Utilities
and Mac Tools can defragment a disk in place, i.e. without
erasing it. Although the ads for all these products brag about
their safety, once you've bought the software and opened the
shrink-wrap they all warn you to back up your disk before
defragmenting it in case something does go wrong. If you use
any of these products, be sure to run a disk repair package
on the disk you wish to defragment before defragmenting.
Defragmenting will almost certainly make any existing problems
with a disk worse so it's important to make sure a disk is in
good health before using a defragmenting utility on it. Fast
Unfrag is a $10 shareware disk defragmenter by Kas Thomas. See

ftp://rever.nmsu.edu/pub/macfaq/FastUnfrag1.0.sit.bin

It appears to do the job it was designed for; (defragmenting the
files on a hard disk) and my brief tests didn't reveal any glaring
bugs or trash any files. Nonetheless, I'm a bit nervous about this
product because the programmer and his skill level are unknown to
me, and writing a disk defragmenter is not something I'd trust to a
novice. The interface is flaky; the program only works on the disk
where the application resides (very unusual behavior for a disk
defragmenter); it's unfriendly to background applications (not so
unusual for any disk intensive app); and neither documentation,
online help, nor an E-mail address are provided with the program.
Since this is still a relative unknown I STRONGLY recommend that
you backup your files before using it. I'd appreciate hearing any
experiences you have with it.

REFORMAT YOUR HARD DISK (4.10)
-------------------------------

Just as a floppy disk needs to be initialized before use, so
a hard disk must be formatted before it can hold data. You don't
need to reformat every three months; but when your system is
crashing no matter what you try, reformatting is the ultimate means
of wiping the slate clean. Reformatting your hard disk may even
gain you a few extra megabytes of space. Not all hard disks are
created equal. Some can hold more data than others. To facilitate
mass production and advertising without a lot of asterisks (* 81.3
megabytes is the pre-formatted size. Actual formatted capacity
may vary.) Apple often formats drives to the lowest common denominator
of drive capacity. When you reformat there's no reason at all
not to reclaim whatever unused space Apple's left on your disk.

Unlike floppies hard disks need a special program to
initialize them. Most hard disks come with formatting software.
Apple's disks and System software ship with HD SC setup, a minimal
disk formatter which will format Apple brand hard drives ONLY. See

ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/hd-sc-setup-7-2-2.hqx

Most hard drive manufacturers ship appropriate formatting software
with their hard drives. Normally this is all you need to reformat
your hard disk.

A number of general-purpose formatters are also available
which go beyond the bundled software to include features like
encryption, password protection, multiple partitioning, faster disk
access, System 7 compatibility, and even compression. Two of the
best are the payware Drive7 and Hard Disk Toolkit Personal Edition
($49 street for either). While there are one or two freeware
formatters available, none are likely to be superior to the
ones bundled with your hard disk.

PowerBook owners should be sure to turn off Sleep and
processor cycling before reformatting their hard drives no
matter what software they use. Otherwise disk corruption,
crashes, and data losses are likely.

===========================================================
META-FAQS (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FAQ) (5.0)
===========================================================

Since posting the first version of my FAQ list a little over
two years ago I have noticed a precipitous drop in the frequency of
certain questions. Most noteably: Why is my system using 14 of my
20 megs of RAM? Though that still shows up occasionally, it's no
longer at the twelve times a day level that induced me to start
writing. I count that as some measure of success. However, I have
experienced one unexpected phenomenom. Certain questions have begun
appearing frequently in my mailbox so I've composed this little list
of meta-faqs, i.e. frequently asked questions about the FAQ. Please
familiarize yourself with this list before mailing me comments
or questions.

THERE'S A MISTAKE IN YOUR FAQ. (5.1)
-------------------------------------

Thanks for pointing this out. Since I maintain several
documents of about 300K total size, it would be helpful if
you would reference the specific document where you found
my error and the question number.

WHY DON'T YOU INCLUDE THIS COMPLICATED/PAYWARE SOLUTION? (5.2)
---------------------------------------------------------------

When there are multiple solutions to a common problem, I try
to pick the one that is achievable with the simplest and cheapest
tools. Chances are I do know about that undocumented feature
of WhizzyWriter 1000 that lets you download PostScript files.
Call me crazy, but I suspect that most people would prefer to
download a free utility from ftp.apple.com rather than shell
out $995 for WhizzyWriter just to solve their PostScript problems.
Similarly if a problem can be solved with the tools that are
bundled with every Mac, I'll choose that solution over one that
requires downloading some shareware. Space in the FAQ is limited;
(mainly by brain-dead news software at some sites that restricts
files to 32K) and I can't give comprehensive lists when they're
not needed.

WOULD YOU PLEASE INCLUDE MY SOFTWARE IN YOUR FAQ? (5.3)
--------------------------------------------------------

As explained above space in these documents is limited, and
I simply can't mention every imaginable software that conceivably
falls somewhere within the purview of the Macintosh newsgroups.
If, however, you feel your software answers a frequently asked
question, e.g. a _working_ PostScript previewer (GhostScript doesn't
count.); or it provides a solution to a common problem superior to
what's already available, then I'll be happy to consider it for
inclusion in the FAQ.

WHY DON'T YOU POST THE FAQ MORE OFTEN? (5.4)
---------------------------------------------

The FAQ is posted automatically about every two weeks, give or
take a day. Normally it doesn't change more frequently than that;
and I want to avoid wasting bandwidth since Usenet is not, contrary
to popular belief, free. The FAQ includes an Expires: header to
insure that one version doesn't disappear from your news spool
until the next one arrives and a Supersedes: header so multiple
copies won't waste everyone's disk space. This is all accomplished
automatically via Jonathan Kamens' faq server. If the FAQ is ever
not available at your site, then your news software is BROKEN and
should be fixed. Complain to your news administrators about their
broken software that ignores Expires: headers, not to me.

CAN YOU HELP ME WITH THIS PROBLEM I'M HAVING WITH MY MAC? (5.5)
----------------------------------------------------------------

Certainly! I negotiate consulting fees on a case-by-case
basis, but they tend to average about $60 an hour with a four
hour minimum. If you're outside the metropolitan New York
area (roughly Philadelphia to New Haven) the minimum is seven
hours and you'll also be expected to provide airfare and $100
a day expenses for meals, hotel, and car rental. Quantity
discounts and support contracts can be negotiated on a
case-by-case basis. Oh, you meant free help?. Sorry, that's what
Usenet is for. Post your question to the appropriate newsgroup,
and you'll probably get a lot more advice than I could give you.

WILL YOU SEND ME THE FAQ? (5.6)
--------------------------------

No. I have neither the time nor the inclination to act
as a mail-server for people who can't be bothered to use the
mail-server at rtfm.mit.edu as outlined in the introduction.
I reject all such requests.

WHY DON'T YOU FORMAT THE FAQ IN WORD? DIGEST? HTML ETC.? (5.7)
-----------------------------------------------------------------

While I get about one request per month to adhere to some
imagined "standard" format, I have yet to receive two requests
for the same format. LaTeX and PostScript versions are
occasionally made available to people with a need for hardcopy
who can either convince me their cause is just or who are willing
to pay. The FAQ has recently been redone in HTML. See:

http://rever.nmsu.edu/users/~elharo/faq/faqs.html

Sometime next year I hope to release a much improved HTML version
with lots of pictures, sounds, and movies. I am exploring the
possibility of publishing that version for profit on the net. The
basic FAQ list posted to Usenet will of course remain free for the
foreseeable future. I'm also interested in Common Ground, Adobe
Acrobat, and MIME based news. However none of these are particularly
high on my priority list.

CAN I REPOST, REVISE, PUBLISH OR OTHERWISE USE THIS DOCUMENT? (5.8)
--------------------------------------------------------------------

This work is Copyright 1993, 1994 by Elliotte M. Harold.
Permission is hereby granted to transmit and store this document as
part of an unedited collection of any newsgroup to which it is posted
by myself. I also grant permission to distribute UNMODIFIED copies
of this document online via bulletin boards, local file servers, online
services, and other providers of electronic communications provided
that no fees in excess of normal online charges are required for such
distribution; i.e. if the FAQ is available on a system, it must be
available at the minimum charge for accessing the system. For
instance you may post it to most BBS's that charge either a flat
monthly fee or a per hour rate. However if there is an extra charge
for downloading files over what is charged per normal access, either
per hour, per kilobyte, or per month, then the FAQ may not be posted
to that system without my explicit, prior permission. Portions of
this document may be extracted and quoted free of charge and without
necessity of citation in normal online communication provided only
that said quotes are not represented as the correspondent's original
work. Permission for quotation of this document in edited, online
communication (such as the Info-Mac Digest and TidBITS) is given
subject to normal citation procedures (i.e. you have to say where
you got it).

If you wish to republish this FAQ in a modified form, or to
redistribute it on disk or paper, please contact me with specific
details. I'm normally receptive to non-profits that wish to
redistribute it at no charge, and to anyone who is willing to
make reasonable remunerative arrangements for non-exclusive
republication rights. Nicely formatted LaTeX and PostScript
versions are available for this purpose.

--
Elliotte Rusty Harold Dept. of Mathematics
elh...@shock.njit.edu New Jersey Institute of Technology
eha...@sunspot.noao.edu Newark NJ 07102
..

[Elliotte Rusty Harold]

Archive-name: macintosh/wanted-faq
Version: 2.3.2
Last-modified: August 13, 1994
Maintainer: elh...@shock.njit.edu

Buying and Selling Macintosh Computers, Software and Peripherals
================================================================

comp.sys.mac.faq, part 5:
comp.sys.mac.wanted & misc.forsale.computers.mac

Copyright 1993,1994 by Elliotte Harold
Please see section 5.8 of the general FAQ if you wish
to redistribute or revise this document in any way.

Archive-name: macintosh/wanted-faq
Version: 2.3.2
Last-modified: August 13, 1994
Address comments to elh...@shock.njit.edu

What's new in version 2.3.2:
----------------------------

I've added info about the new Quadra 630 and Powerbook 150 models.

Used prices continue to drop. A New York City dealer (MPC) was
recently selling new 4/270 Mac IIfx's for $999 cash out the door.

Table of Contents
-------------------------------------------------------------------

I. Buying and Selling Used Equipment
1. Should I buy/sell on Usenet?
2. Where should I buy/sell used equipment?
3. I've decided to completely ignore your excellent advice and
post my ad anyway. What should I do?
4. I've decided to completely ignore your excellent advice and
buy something offered for sale on the net anyway. How can
I avoid being ripped off?
II. Fair Market Value
1. How much is my computer worth?
2. What is used software worth?
3. Going prices?
III. Where Should I Buy a New Mac?
1. Authorized Dealers
2. VAR's
3. Superstores
4. Performas
5. Educational Dealers
6. Direct From Apple
7. Auctions
8. Does anyone know a dealer in New York City?
9. New Equipment Prices

IV. When Should I buy a new Mac?

1. Macrotime
2. Microtime
3. When will I get my Mac?
V. How Should I Buy a New Mac?
1. Know what you want
2. The dealer needs to sell you a mac more than you need to buy one
3. Have a competitor's ad handy
4. Cash on delivery
5. The sales tax game
6. Leasing
7. Be nice to the salesperson.
VI. The Gray Market and Mail Order
1. What is the gray market?
2. Are gray market Macs covered by Apple warranties?
3. Does anyone know a good mail-order company?

RETRIEVING THE ENTIRE FAQ
=========================

This is the FIFTH part of this FAQ. The first part is also
posted to this newsgroup under the subject heading "Introductory
Macintosh frequently asked questions (FAQ)" and includes a complete
table of contents for the entire document as well as information on
where to post, ftp, file decompression, trouble-shooting, preventive
maintenance and conditions for reproduction, posting and use of this
document outside of Usenet. The second, third, fourth, and sixth parts
are posted every two weeks in comp.sys.mac.system, comp.sys.mac.misc,
comp.sys.mac.apps, and comp.sys.mac.hardware respectively. Please

familiarize yourself with all six sections of this document before
posting. All pieces are available for anonymous ftp from

ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/macintosh/

Except for the introductory FAQ which appears in multiple

newsgroups and is stored as general-faq, the name of each
file has the format of the last part of the group name followed
by "-faq", e.g the FAQ for comp.sys.mac.system is stored as
system-faq. You can also have these files mailed to you
by sending an E-mail message to mail-...@rtfm.mit.edu
with the line:

send pub/usenet/news.answers/macintosh/name

in the body text where "name" is the name of the file you want as
specified above (e.g. general-faq). You can also send this server
a message with the subject "help" for more detailed instructions.

For access via Mosaic use

http://rever.nmsu.edu/~elharo/faq/faqs.html

========================================
BUYING AND SELLING USED EQUIPMENT (1.0)
========================================

SHOULD I BUY OR SELL ON USENET? (1.1)
--------------------------------------

No, you should not. Usenet is a medium by which information
is broadcast to millions of different people around the world.
It's almost certain that noone in Singapore wants to buy a Canadian
Classic 4/40, even at a really great price. Import laws, the cost
of international shipping and a host of other concerns pose too
big an obstacle to the sale of small quantities of used equipment.
Even within one country geographical distances often pose a severe
obstacle to the sale of used goods. There is simply too great
a chance of either seller or buyer being ripped off in a
long-distance transaction via non-payment, non-delivery,
or non-usable equipment.

WHERE SHOULD I BUY/SELL USED EQUIPMENT? (1.2)
----------------------------------------------

LOCAL bulletin boards, both of the electronic and paper
varieties, are a far better medium for the sale of used hardware,
software, and other tangible quantities. Some Usenet sites and
local areas have local for sale newsgroups (e.g. nj.forsale
here in New Jersey) which are more appropriate for classified
advertising than netwide groups like comp.sys.mac.wanted. In
large cities and college towns you should reach just as many
potential buyers by advertising locally as by posting to the net.
Advertising locally gives both the seller and the buyer the BIG
advantage of being able to meet to test the system, verify that
what is being offered is in fact what is available, and avoiding
the hassle of shipping. The chance of being ripped off either
through non-payment or non-delivery is GREATLY reduced by
advertising and selling locally.

I WANT TO POST MY AD ANYWAY. WHAT SHOULD I DO? (1.3)
------------------------------------------------------

First see section 2.0 below to try and decide on a reasonable
price. Be prepared for flames if your price is too far out of line
including follow-up posts warning potential buyers that you are
trying to rip them off. You may just want to state "best offer."
That way you aren't responsible if someone else misvalues your
equipment. If an offer does come in that meets your minimum price,
you can sell it. If there are no reasonable offers, you don't have
to sell.

Be sure to include a descriptive subject line in your post.
For Sale, Macintosh For Sale, and Macintosh Software For Sale are
all HORRIBLE subject lines. Better subject lines would be

SE/30 4/40, $595 or best offer
or
Photoshop 2.5, unopened, $250.

Then include a more detailed description in the body of the post.
Also be sure to state whether or not you'll pay shipping. (It's
much easier to sell an item if you agree to pay shipping.)

You should post your notice in comp.sys.mac.wanted and
misc.forsale.computers.mac ONLY. Posting a for sale ad to
comp.sys.mac.misc is guaranteed flame-bait, even more so if your
offer is over-priced. You should also restrict the distribution of
your message to as local an area as possible. Ask your local news
administrator for help if you don't know how to do this.

Finally if you've sold your item please don't post a message
saying the item has been sold. Most of us don't care. If you are
getting a lot of offers and want to take the item off the market,
it's better to cancel the original message. The bandwidth cost is
the same, but you'll save a lot of people the trouble of reading
two now-pointless messages from you. Again you may need to ask
your local news administrator how to do this.

HOW CAN I AVOID BEING RIPPED OFF WHEN I BUY SOMETHING FROM THE NET? (1.4)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

You can't, which is the single biggest reason I recommend
against buying and selling on Usenet. The most effective
precaution you can take is to insist on check-on-delivery. That
way you give the seller nothing until something is delivered, and
you can stop payment on the check if what is delivered is not what
was advertised. This may cost a few dollars more, but the added
security is more than worth it. NEVER pay in advance for used
goods from an unknown shipper.

You may also want to insist on a work address and phone number
for the seller. This is especially effective if the forsale post
originates from a company account. The threat of being harassed at
work is more effective than the threat of legal action against some
unscrupulous individuals who realize you probably won't sue but may
complain to their boss. Even when dealing with completely honest
individuals it's still much easier to haggle over terms and work
out shipping arrangements via phone than through protracted
E-mail exchanges.

========================
FAIR MARKET VALUE (2.0)
========================

HOW MUCH IS MY USED HARDWARE WORTH? (2.1)
------------------------------------------

Make your lowest estimate of the resale value of your hardware
taking into account current prices on new hardware of equivalent
capability. Then divide that estimate by two. The price you now
have is somewhere above the fair market value of your hardware.
Almost everyone severely overestimates the value of their
equipment. I've seen friendships and business relationships
destroyed once buyers realized how badly they'd been taken EVEN
THOUGH THE SELLERS DID NOT INTENTIONALLY MISLEAD THE BUYERS.

Computers are like cars in that they lose 30% of their value
as soon as you walk out of the dealer's showroom with one. They
are unlike cars in that they lose more value when new models are
released irregardless of the condition or age of the previous model.
Unlike cars newer models of computer really are better. High-end
systems retain their value longer. My 8/45 SE/30, a high-end system
when I bought it four years ago, is still barely salable today.
Had I purchased a low-end Plus instead it would at most be worth
$100 for parts.

WHAT IS USED SOFTWARE WORTH? (2.2)
-----------------------------------

Almost nothing. It's certainly worth less than the cost of
distributing a for sale message around the world on Usenet. If the
software is the current version AND includes all original master
disks and manuals AND a notarized letter transferring ownership
from the original purchaser to the new owner, then it's worth
about half of the current mail-order or educational discount price,
whichever is lower. Especially note that software left on a hard
disk when a computer is sold adds NOTHING to the value of the
system. The buyer can pirate payware and download shareware
just as easily as the seller.

NO REALLY, HOW MUCH IS MY SYSTEM WORTH? (2.3)
----------------------------------------------

I'll give a few numbers I consider current as of mid 1994.
Unlike the completely ridiculous prices you'll find in the AmCo
index these values shouldn't leave the buyer feeling ripped off.
As a seller you can often get higher prices than these, but as a
buyer these represent what you should be able to bargain somebody
down to. Asking prices and configurations vary WILDLY so haggle
and don't be afraid to wait for a better deal if you don't like
what someone is offering.

When trying to determine reasonable prices for discontinued
equipment I consider several factors. First I set a floor for a
given model based on what used equipment dealers like Sun Remarketing
are willing to pay for inventory and by what repair shops will pay
for parts. Then I set a ceiling based on two thirds of typical
prices for a model at used computer dealers. Used computer dealers
can charge more than individuals because they do offer warranties
that provide some protection against buying a lemon. Nonetheless the
Macintosh market moves so fast that dealers of used equipment
sometimes aren't able to unload inventory before the price of
equivalent new models drops below what they paid for inventory. The
existence of many of these dealers is marginal and depends heavily on
customers who assume that new equipment is more expensive than old
and that mail order is cheaper than buying from the local dealer,
neither of which is necessarily true. Thus I also considered the
prices of equivalent and better new machines as well.

The real kicker here is the LC 475 (a.k.a. Quadra 605), a
25 MHz 68LC040 (no FPU) with 14" basic color monitor, 4 megs RAM,
160 megabyte hard disk, keyboard, several useful applications and
a twelve month warranty for about $1250 new. Very few used Macs
currently being offered for sale have as much horsepower as this
machine though some may have additional features such as a better
monitor or more slots. However very few people buying used equipment
need a better monitor or more than one expansion slot. Thus as a
buyer or a seller ask yourself what a machine is worth compared to
an LC 475. Within this range I try to set the suggested price in
the ballpark of the lowest asking price I've seen on Usenet or
elsewhere. Finally I adjust the prices a little between models to
make sure that equivalently capable used Macs cost about the same
amount. My ultimate goal is to ensure that a buyer who pays the
price listed here does not feel cheated in a transaction, either
because they see the Mac they just bought for $1000 advertised for
$500 two weeks later or because they realize they could have bought
a better Mac new for the same money. Both of these happen far
too frequently.

These prices are mainly for discontinued models. For models
that are still available new, see the list in question 3.8. Figure
the same system used is worth about 64% of that price plus an
extra half percent for every month of warranty coverage left. For
compact Macs all prices include a keyboard and mouse. Take $100
off the price if there's no keyboard or mouse or both. Otherwise
the prices are just for the base CPU with internal hard drive and
RAM. Most offers to sell do include a monitor, keyboard and mouse
and some room for haggling so asking prices will typically be
somewhat higher. RAM and hard drive configurations can vary
greatly. I've tried to include the high and low ends as well as
the configurations you're most likely to run across. Use your best
judgment when interpolating and extrapolating to other models.

Mac 128 $50
Mac 512 $60
Mac 512ke $75
Mac Plus 1/0 $100
Mac Plus 4/0 $150
SE 1/0 $150
SE 1/20 $200
SE 4/0 $200
SE 4/40 $275
SE/30 1/0 $300
SE/30 4/40 $500
SE/30 5/80 $550
SE/30 8/80 $600
Classic 4/40 $275
Classic 4/80 $325
Classic II 2/40 $495
Classic II 4/80 $590

LC 4/40 $300
LC 4/80 $350
LC 10/80 $450
LC II 4/40 $400
LC II 4/80 $450
LC II 8/80 $500
LC III 4/80 $595
LC III 4/160 $650

Mac II 0/0 $300
Mac II 0/0/FDHD $350
Mac II 8/40 $450
Mac II 4/105/FDHD $550
Mac IIx 0/0 $400
Mac IIx 8/80 $625
Mac IIci 0/0 $575
Mac IIci 8/80 $725
Mac IIcx 0/0 $350
Mac IIsi 2/0 $425
Mac IIsi 3/40 $520
Mac IIsi 5/80 $575
Mac IIsi 5/120/FPU $600
Mac IIfx 0/0 $800
Mac IIfx 4/270 $1000
Mac IIvx 4/80 $650
Mac IIvx 5/80/CD $800
Mac IIvx 4/230 $750
Mac IIvx 4/230/CD $950

Centris 610 4/80 $750
Centris 610 8/230 $1000
Centris 610 8/230/CD $1150
Centris 650 8/230 $1150
Centris 650 8/230/CD $1300

Mac Portable 1/40 $350
Mac Portable 4/40 $400
Mac Portable 4/80/Backlit $450

Quadra 700 4/0 $700
Quadra 700 4/80 $900
Quadra 700 8/105 $1100
Quadra 900 4/0 $1200
Quadra 900 4/160 $1500

PowerBook 100 2/20 $500
PowerBook 100 4/40 $575
PowerBook 140 2/20 $600
PowerBook 140 4/40 $675
PowerBook 140 4/120 $850
PowerBook 145 4/40 $750
PowerBook 160 2/20 $800
PowerBook 160 4/40 $900
PowerBook 165c 4/80 $1095
PowerBook 165c 4/120 $1195
PowerBook 165c 4/120/Modem $1295
PowerBook 170 4/40 $1100
PowerBook 170 4/80 $1175
PowerBook 170 8/40/modem $1200
PowerBook 170 4/120 $1265
PowerBook 180c 4/80 $1550
PowerBook 180c 4/160 $1660
PowerBook 180c 4/160/Modem $1770

Duo 210 4/80 $795
Duo 230 4/80 $895
Duo 230 4/120 $995
Duo 230 4/120/Modem $1095
Duo 250 4/200 $1650
Duo 250 12/200/Modem $1950
Duo 270c 4/240 $2100
Duo 270c 12/240/Modem $2595

ImageWriter $50
ImageWriter II $75
ImageWriter LQ $100
StyleWriter $135
Personal Laserwriter SC $200
Personal Laserwriter LS $235
Personal Laserwriter NT $285
Personal Laserwriter NTR $335
LaserWriter IISC $300
LaserWriter IINT $500
LaserWriter IINTX $600
LaserWriter IIf $735
LaserWriter IIg $995

Apple CDSC $50
Apple CD-150 $75
Apple Standard Keyboard $50
Apple Extended Keyboard $85
Apple 12" B/W Monitor $115
Apple 13" HiRes Color $300
Apple Portrait Display $265

====================================
WHERE SHOULD I BUY A NEW MAC? (3.0)
====================================

AUTHORIZED DEALERS (3.1)
-------------------------

Hard as it may be to believe Apple authorized dealers are
normally the most reliable, best stocked, and cheapest source of
Apple brand equipment. You are unlikely to do better by buying at
educational discount, at a superstore, or by mail-order (though
walking in with the price list from a local university or
superstore is often the quickest way to cut through a lot
of haggling).

VAR'S (3.2)
------------

I include Value-Added Resellers (VAR's for short) only for the
sake of completeness. These dealers custom configure Macintoshes
for specific purposes and sell them at a premium price. Generally
they are uninterested in single CPU, retail sales. Very few will
even attempt to match rock bottom prices. However they are about
the only part of the dealer channel that provides significant
after-sale support to their customers.

SUPERSTORES (3.3)
------------------

Superstores like CompUSA are fairly hassle-free since they
won't do any haggling except on the largest orders. They should be
able to match a competitor's advertised price though you may need
to show them an ad with the better price first. On the other hand
any authorized dealer should almost certainly be able to beat a
superstore price. After all, noone puts their best price in an ad
for all their competitors to see. The best use for a superstore is
to tell salespeople at authorized dealers what prices they need to
beat to get your business.

PERFORMAS (3.4)
----------------

At various times Apple repackages different models of LC's,
Classics and Quadra's with slightly different software and sells
them as Performa's through consumer outlets like Sears. With
one exception (the Performa 600) these have all been virtually
identical to one model or another of the Macs sold at authorized
dealers except for the bundled software. Most of the time the
regular model is cheaper than the equivalent Performa, especially
if you don't want the bundled software; but this isn't always true
so you should double-check the price of a Performa compared to the
model you want to buy. Finally most Performa dealers will sell Macs
over the phone to customers they've never met. So if you can't find
what you want locally, a Performa may be a reasonable choice.

EDUCATIONAL DEALERS (3.5)
--------------------------

The nicest thing about campus computer stores is that they're
willing to distribute firm price lists with reasonable prices so
there's no need to haggle. Also since they typically don't work
on commission they're much more honest and open than the average
authorized dealer. The worst thing about campus computer stores is
that they're normally the last part of the channel to get product.
If you order a Mac that isn't in stock through an educational dealer,
plan on waiting at least two months for delivery.

Educational prices haven't fallen at the same rate as have prices
in other channels over the last two years (mainly because educational
prices were much lower to start with) so larger authorized dealers
should now be able to match or beat educational prices. One of the
most effective tactics for dealing with an authorized dealer that
cuts through a lot of hassle and haggling is walking in with a copy
of a local university price list and asking "Can you do better?"

DIRECT FROM APPLE (3.6)
------------------------

Apple does not sell Macs retail except to their largest
accounts. They occasionally sell discounted Macs to certain
developers but like educational discounts, developer's discounts
aren't what they used to be. Most developers agree that the
paperwork and delays involved in buying direct aren't worth any
small savings that might be had by buying from Apple rather than
from a dealer.

AUCTIONS (3.7)
---------------

Apple occasionally dumps overstocked equipment at various
auctions around the country. Most of the time this is NOT a good
way to get a good deal on a new Mac. Once auctioneers fees (5%)
are factored in prices tend to be higher than you'd pay at a dealer
for newer, better models. However some deals are possible if you
know what you want and how much its worth. Here are a few rules
of thumb for shopping at auction:

1. Get a list of the merchandise offered for sale. Be sure to
preview the items before the auction. Auction configurations
are not always the same as dealer configurations. Check whether
the models you're interested in are new or demos and what their
warranty status is. New equipment should have a full
one year warranty.

2. Make a list of street prices and prices you're willing to pay
for everything you might bid on. The sections on new and used
equipment prices in this FAQ can be of great help here.

3. Don't get caught up in the excitement of the auction. NEVER
bid more than you planned on for any piece.

4. Powerbooks almost always sell for more than their street
price. Don't even bother attending an auction if you only
want a PowerBook.

DOES ANYONE KNOW A DEALER IN NEW YORK CITY? (3.8)
--------------------------------------------------

If you're planning a trip to New York, you may want to do a
little Mac shopping on the side. New York City is one of the most
competitive Mac markets in the United States, and the prices here
reflect it. For the current ads of most NYC dealers pick up a copy
of Tuesday's New York Times. Below I list several dealers you may
want to check out.

PCSI
26 West 23rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues
(212) 255-7600
I've dealt with PCSI several times over the last few years
and they've always been friendly, honest, and had competitive
prices.

MPC
4 West 20th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues
(212) 463-8585
I worked at MPC for about a year a few years back. Since
MPC is also a full-service service bureau as well as being an
authorized dealer, they're by far the most technically
knowledgable dealership in NYC. The prices aren't bad either.

J&R Computer World
15 Park Row
NY NY 10038
(212) 238-9000
(800) 221-8180
This is New York City's superstore. Like most superstores
there's limited haggling, not particularly knowledgable
salespeople, and decent prices; but you can often do better by
going to one of the other dealers and saying "J&R has it for
$2000. Can you beat that?" J&R is also authorized to sell
Macs over the phone.

NEW EQUIPMENT PRICES (3.9)
---------------------------

What follows are mostly maximum prices you should expect to
pay for current Apple models in standard configurations. You should
have no trouble getting these prices at any Apple reseller in the
United States with a little haggling. In competitive markets or
if you're buying several Macs at once, you may be able to get up to
10% or more off these prices. If you do manage to significantly beat
these prices on a single Mac purchase I'd like to hear about it so I
can keep this list current. Most dealers are unlikely to stock all
configurations listed here. You'll generally get a better price if
you order what's in stock (not to mention you'll get it quicker.)

Finally be sure to check the Last modified date at the top of
this file. Apple has been known to cut prices faster than I can
post FAQ lists. To get possibly more recent price lists you can
gopher to

gopher://gopher.utexas.edu:3003/11/txunion/micro/prices
gopher://spinaltap.micro.umn.edu/11/computer/prices

For non-Apple equipment prices just scan the back pages of any
issue of MacWorld or MacUser. Since most companies besides Apple
are willing to authorize mail-order dealers, the mail-order prices
on Radius monitors, GCC printers, Quantum Hard Drives and other
third party peripherals should be fairly close to the minimum you
can expect to pay for such items.

Color Classic 4/80 $610
LC 475 4/80 (Quadra 605) $729
LC 475 8/160 $930
LC 475 8/250 $1250
LC 520 5/80/CD $1560
LC 520 8/160/CD $1790
LC 550 4/160 $1195
LC 575 5/160/CD $1550
LC 575 8/160/CD $1730
Mac TV 5/160/CD $1695

Quadra 610 8/160 $1200
Quadra 610 8/160/DOS $1400
Quadra 610 8/230 $1400
Quadra 610 8/230/CD $1680
Quadra 630 4/250 $1199
Quadra 650 8/230 $1700
Quadra 650 8/500 $2100
Quadra 650 16/230 $2200
Quadra 650 8/230/CD $1980
Quadra 650 8/500/CD $2400
Quadra 660av 8/80 $1150
Quadra 660av 8/230 $1295
Quadra 660av 8/230/CD $1400
Quadra 660av 8/500 $1620
Quadra 660av 8/500/CD $1860
Quadra 800 8/230 $1900
Quadra 800 8/500 $2400
Quadra 800 8/500/CD $2600
Quadra 800 8/1000 $3100
Quadra 840av 8/230 $2260
Quadra 840av 8/230/CD $2895
Quadra 840av 8/500 $3250
Quadra 840av 16/500 $2900
Quadra 840av 16/500/CD $3250
Quadra 840av 16/1000/CD $3900
Quadra 950 8/0 $2660
Quadra 950 8/230 $3100
Quadra 950 8/400 $3250
Quadra 950 8/500 $3500
Quadra 950 16/1000 $3900

Performa 475 4/160/modem/14" $1150
Performa 630 4/250/modem/14" $1499
Performa 630CD 8/250/CD/modem/14" $1899
Performa 635CD 5/250/CD/modem/15" $1899
Performa 636 4/250/14" display $1379
Performa 636CD 8/250/CD/14" $1649
Performa 638CDV 8/250/CD/modem/15"/ $2299
TV tuner

PowerMac 6100/60 8/160 $1500
PowerMac 6100/60 8/250/CD $1995
PowerMac 6100/60 16/250 $2170
PowerMac 6100/60av 8/250/CD $2240
PowerMac 7100/66 8/250 $2325
PowerMac 7100/66 8/250/CD $2569
PowerMac 7100/66 16/250 $2735
PowerMac 7100/66av 8/500/CD $3435
PowerMac 8100/80 8/250 $3510
PowerMac 8100/80 8/250/CD $3735
PowerMac 8100/80 16/250/CD $3995
PowerMac 8100/80 16/500 $4390
PowerMac 8100/80av 16/500/CD $4675
PowerMac 8100/80 16/1000/CD $5090

Workgroup Server 6150 8/500/CD/AS $3635
Workgroup Server 8150 16/1000/CD/DAT $6290
Workgroup Server 8150 16/1000/CD/DAT/AS $7165
Workgroup Server 95 16/230 $4555
Workgroup Server 95 48/1230 $8535
Workgroup Server 6150 8/500/CD/AS $3635
Workgroup Server 8150 16/1000/CD/DAT $6290
Workgroup Server 8150 16/1000/CD/DAT/AS $7165
Workgroup Server 9150 16/2000/CD $7780
Workgroup Server 9150 16/2000/CD/DAT $8660

PowerBook 145b 4/40 $895
PowerBook 145b 4/80 $1030
PowerBook 145b 4/120 $1190
PowerBook 150 4/120 $1239
PowerBook 165 4/80 $1195
PowerBook 165 4/160 $1295
PowerBook 165 4/160/Modem $1395
PowerBook 180 4/80 $1889
PowerBook 180 4/120 $1995
PowerBook 180 4/120/Modem $2150
PowerBook 520 4/160 $1955
PowerBook 520c 4/160 $2500
PowerBook 540 4/240 $2995
PowerBook 540 12/240/Modem $3595
PowerBook 540c 8/160 $2995
PowerBook 540c 4/320 $4080
PowerBook 540c 12/320/Modem $4670

Duo 280 4/240 $2275
Duo 280c 4/320 $3170
Duo 280c 12/320 $3625
Duo Dock 512K VRAM $445
Duo Dock 1/230/FPU $717
Duo Minidock $380
Duo Dock II 1 MB VRAM $820
Duo Express Modem $275
Duo external floppy adapter $92
Duo Type II Battery $73
Powerbook 100 Battery $69

StyleWriter II $250
StyleWriter Portable $345
Color StyleWriter Pro $545
ImageWriter II $350
Personal LaserWriter 300 $450
Personal LaserWriter 320 $805
LaserWriter Select 300 $500
LaserWriter Select 310 $650
LaserWriter Select 320 $805
LaserWriter Select 360 $1340
LaserWriter Pro 600 $1695
LaserWriter Pro 630 $1785
LaserWriter Pro 810 $4070
Apple Color Printer $430
LWPro 500 sheet Cassette $110
PLW, LW II, LW Select trays $62
Portable Stylewriter battery $44
LW 360 PostScript Fax Card $255

12" Monochrome Monitor $155
Apple Basic Color Monitor $195
Apple Color Plus 14" Display $275
Macintosh 14" Hi-Res Display $450
AudioVision 14" RGB Display $580
Multiple Scan 15" Display $499
Macintosh 15" Portrait Display $399
Macintosh 16" Color Display $850
Apple 17" Color Display $900
Apple Multiscan 20" Display $1785
Macintosh 21" Color Display $2145

Apple CD-300 $320
ADB Mouse II $75
Apple Keyboard II $70
Extended Keyboard $150
Adjustable Keyboard $99
AppleDesign Keyboard $79
One-Scanner $590
Color One-Scanner $880
GeoPort Adapter $99
Power-CD $179
AppleCD Multimedia Kit $449
DOS Compatibility Card $395
QuickTake Digital Camera $632

Mac IIsi NuBus Adapter $120
Centris 610 NuBus Adapter $55
Quadra 660AV NuBus Adapter $108
Quadra 610 NuBus Adapter Card $55
PowerMac 6100 NuBus Adapter $82
PowerMac 256K cache Card $247
Workgroup Server 95 128K cache $320
Workgroup Server 95 256K cache $245

PowerMac Upgrade NuBus Card $577

===================================
WHEN SHOULD I BUY A NEW MAC? (4.0)
===================================

MACROTIME (4.1)
----------------

Apple releases new models of Macs about every three months.
Sometime in the late summer or early fall Apple will introduce a
low-cost 68040 AV Mac with a new motherboard design and PowerPC
WorkGroup servers. Beginning in August prices should drop by several
hundred dollars on most Quadras and PowerPC's. In January expect
Apple to introduce PowerMacs in the current configurations running
at 100 MHz (i.e. PowerPC's 6100/100, 7100/100 and 8100/100) with a
PCI bus. There will also be PowerMacs in Quadra 950 boxes, both with
and without built-in video. In spring of 1995 the first PowerPC 603
PowerBooks, low cost LC and Performa model PowerMacs, and perhaps
even PowerPC 604 Powermacs will hit the market. As usual all new
models will be faster and cheaper than the models they replace.
Prices on models being replaced often drop by 15-20% either shortly
before or after the introduction of new models. In particular the
introduction of a rebate program is a sure sign that Apple is clearing
out old stock in preparation for the introduction of new models.

If you don't already have a desktop Mac or a PowerBook, then
by all means buy now. The time you gain with your Mac by buying
now should immensely outweigh the money savings of buying later.
Furthermore if your current Mac has a 68030 or older CPU it's
time to think about moving to a PowerPC. You'll see a speed up
in all your current software and even more speed in native software
down the road.

I advise against buying any more 68000 series Macs
though. The future lies with the PowerPC, not with the 68040
and 68030 models available now; and if you buy one of those now,
it's going to become obsolete and slow even faster than Macs have
done in the past. (The Mac doesn't really become slower. It's the
software that gets more bloated and less efficient, but you get the
idea. When I recently complained about the speed of some software
I was beta-testing, the programmer told me it seemed fine on his
low-end Mac, a IIci that's twice as fast as my SE/30. It took
four years for my high-end SE/30 to become something not worth
programmers' time to worry about. Today's high-end Quadra 800's
and 900's should make that same journey in less than half
that time.)

If you already own a 68040 Mac, you should probably wait a few
months before upgrading to a PowerMac. At the moment there isn't
much native software available for the PowerMacs so you won't see
much of a performance boost from a new machine. By the time enough
native software is available to make the transition worthwhile
(probably by the end of the summer) PowerMac street prices will
have dropped from $200-$500 depending on the model. Furthermore
if you can wait till January Apple the Powermacs introduced then
will feature an improved 68LC040 emulator that runs 680X0 software
twice as fast as the current emulator. Due to ROM incompatibilities
this emulator won't work on current PowerMacs though.

MICROTIME (4.2)
----------------

If you're buying a low end home system from a high end
corporate dealer and you want demos or a lot of questions answered,
shop on the weekend. During the week salespeople tend to be busy
with much larger sales and aren't very interested in selling one
4/80 Classic II. On the weekends, however, especially on Sundays,
salespeople are often twiddling their thumbs waiting for any
customer at all. On the other hand if you know exactly what you
want and how much you want to pay for it, shop in the middle of a
weekday, preferably the day or two after the ads come out in the
local papers. During busy times salespeople are much more inclined
to give in to your $650 cash offer for a 4/80 Classic II just to
get you out of their hair.

WHEN WILL I GET MY MAC? (4.3)
------------------------------

I've never heard of a delivery taking more than a year, and
most Macs ordered through whatever channels arrive within six
months. However I strongly recommend not putting more than a one
dollar deposit on any Mac purchase and making certain that you can
back out of a purchase at any time up until the goods are actually
delivered and signed for. It's not uncommon for Apple to lower
prices or deliver an improved model at lower cost before all orders
for older models have been filled. This is especially common for
orders placed through the educational channel. For hot models like
the Quadra 605 you may want to place orders at several dealers to
have a reasonable chance of getting what you want when you want it.

==================================
HOW SHOULD I BUY A NEW MAC? (5.0)
==================================

KNOW WHAT YOU WANT (5.1)
-------------------------

When you walk into the store where you're thinking about buying
for the first time, you should know exactly what you need and the
exact maximum price you will pay for that equipment. Never go in
to "discuss" your needs with a salesperson. Remember they are
there to sell you a computer, not to help you out. If you really
want to discuss your needs, talk to a knowledgable friend or
even hire a freelancer who specializes in Macintosh (not PC!)
pre-purchase consulting. At least that way you're talking to some
one who works for you rather than the store. You probably want
to ask the salesperson what price they can give you on the system
you want before you tell them what price you want to pay. I have
occasionally been surprised by a salesperson who initially offered
me a system at a price several hundred dollars lower than the price
I expected to pay. This is more common on high end systems like
840av's than on low end ones like Classics since there's still more
money for a dealer in a 3% markup on an 840av than in a 10% markup
on a Classic.

Buy the base CPU with the minimum amount of RAM it ships with
and possibly an internal Apple hard disk, an external monitor, and
maybe an Apple printer from your authorized dealer, nothing else.
Many dealers have excellent prices on CPU's but jack up the price
on peripherals to near list. They offer very good prices on the
base configurations of Macintosh and then pile on the extras, $200
for a modem, $50 for a surge supressor, $100 a megabyte for RAM.
Guess where their profit's coming from. Some dealers don't even
bother to put individual prices on your sales order, just a package
price, so you won't realize how much they're ripping you off on the
peripherals. Almost no Authorized Apple Dealer is able to beat
mail-order or unauthorized dealer prices on non-Apple peripherals.
All other non-Apple brand equipment should be purchased from a
dealer who specializes in peripherals, possibly through mail order.
And never, ever, buy software from an authorized Apple dealer.
Software can always be had mail order for about half the price
you'd pay an Apple dealer.

Many stores offer to set-up and test your system for you.
Typical fees range from $50 to $100 and include hard disk
initialization, system software installation, burn-in time, and
installation of one software package (normally HyperCard Player
unless you request otherwise in writing on the sales order). In
other words they're trying to get an extra $75 out of your pocket
to make sure that the computer they're selling you works. This is
a crock. While these charges might be justified on a PC whose setup
is traditionally more problematic, Macintosh set-up is so easy that
anyone who can navigate Usenet can certainly plug in their own Mac.

THE DEALER NEEDS TO SELL YOU A MAC MORE THAN YOU NEED TO BUY ONE (5.2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Remember that the salesperson needs the sale more than
you do. The more time a salesperson spends with you the more
pressure they're under to justify that time to their sales manager
by selling you something. Hemming and hawing over the price
(especially if you haven't told the salesperson how much you expect
to pay) can often lower it. You can ALWAYS get a lower price than
advertised. Aside from the prices in this list a good idea of when
a salesperson is genuinely giving you the lowest price can be had
by noticing the level at which they have to check a price with
their sales manager.

HAVE A COMPETITOR'S AD HANDY (5.3)
-----------------------------------

Nothing is more helpful in convincing salespeople to
lower their prices than a competitor's published ad or written
estimate showing a lower price. This works even if you have no
intention of buying from the competitor in the first place (for
instance because it's a mail order ad and you don't want to buy
through the mail). Except on the cheapest Mac Classic systems you
should ask that the salesperson beat the price by at least $50 and
maybe as much as $300 on high end systems. Justify it on the
grounds that you don't want to have to shuttle back and forth
between dealers to keep getting a $10 drop in price every time.

CASH ON DELIVERY (5.4)
-----------------------

If you're buying at a dealership, don't pay a penny until the
salesperson brings all pieces of what you've paid for out for you
to see. While delivery is sometimes more convenient, it's a lot
safer if you walk out the store with your computer. Too many
disreputable dealers sell stock they don't have, especially of very
popular items. If you must have the computer delivered to you,
insist on a clause in the sales contract specifying that delivery
must be made by a certain date and time or else the full purchase
price shall be immediately refunded. The clause should also
specify that delivery is the responsibility solely of the seller.
It will normally be necessary to cross out (and initial the change)
of a standard clause in the sales contract stating the opposite.
For maximum safety insist that the sales manager also approve that
change in the contract in writing.

Dealers typically pay between 3-5% of the purchase price
(including sales tax) to the credit card company for any purchase
you make on a credit card. Since the margins they'll be getting on
their sale to you are thin enough already, expect that they will
pass the cost of a credit card on to you. If you intend to
purchase your Macintosh on credit and you're not buying mail order,
you're probably better off getting a bank loan or getting a cash
advance on your credit card so that you can give the dealer cash
(or a certified check.) Your interest charges shouldn't be any
higher than if you paid with a credit card in the first place,
(though there won't be any grace payment for repayment) and the
loan or advance charges probably won't be as much as the dealer
would raise prices for a credit sale. Of course if you're buying
by mail you should definitely use a credit card despite any added
expense. Since most mail order companies have higher volume and
lower overhead than independent dealers, the price difference
shouldn't be very far away from the cash price. Some credit cards
offer extended warranties and theft protection on purchases made
with the card. If yours does then the added protection may be
worth the extra money for using a credit card, especially if you're
buying an easily stolen or easily broken item like a Powerbook.

THE SALES TAX GAME (5.5)
-------------------------

In some sections of the U.S. a significant savings can
be realized by crossing a city or state line in search of a more
favorable sales tax rate. For instance in New York City sales
tax is 8.25% while right across the George Washington Bridge in
New Jersey it's 3.5% and a bit northerly in Westchester County it
drops to 6.25%. Drive all the way down to Delaware and there's
no sales tax at all. A New York City resident is supposed to
pay New York City tax even on purchases made out of state; but it
is perfectly legal to use the possibility of your going outside
the city to buy your computer to convince a salesperson to lower
their price. And in most other venues except New York and California
a purchase made by mail from a company outside the state of the
purchaser is non-taxable.

LEASING (5.6)
--------------

The short answer to this option is DON'T. If you're VERY
strapped for capital think about it, but most commonly the lease
payments over the term of the lease add up to as much as or even
more than the cost of the system itself plus the interest on a loan
to buy it. If you absolutely must lease try to keep the term as
short as possible. Generally Mac power doubles every year while
price comes down by about a third. You don't want to lock yourself
into obsolete equipment. The most common lease term is two years,
but with a little shopping around you can find one year leases.

BE NICE TO YOUR SALESPERSON (5.7)
----------------------------------

This final tip ought to be obvious, but many people have a hard
time grasping it. If your salesperson likes you, he or she will
be much more amenable to giving you a good price. At the larger
dealers that will give you the best prices (if you know how to ask)
salespeople often don't care about low-end sales enough to do much
hard bargaining, and will often decide how low they're willing to
go based solely on how much they like a customer and what sort of
mood they're in. (Of course if your salesperson just broke up with
his boyfriend last night you're out of luck.) Not all stores will
be able to offer you a rock bottom price. Please don't get angry
about it if they can't. If your salesperson tells you that the
price you're asking for is ridiculous, get their lowest price,
thank them, and go somewhere else.

=====================================
THE GRAY MARKET AND MAIL ORDER (6.0)
=====================================

WHAT IS THE GRAY MARKET? (6.1)
-------------------------------

Due to Apple's aversion to authorizing mail order dealers,
there are few authorized Apple mail-order dealers (unlike in the
PC world). Unauthorized "Gray Market" dealers take advantage of lower
foreign prices in countries like Mexico by buying computers there and
reselling them in the United States, sometimes selling them to the end
user for prices as low as other dealers can get their machines wholesale
from Apple. They also buy excess inventory from authorized dealers at
cost. The gray market dealers get product, and the authorized dealers
get steeper discounts from Apple for ordering more machines.

ARE GRAY MARKET MACS COVERED BY APPLE WARRANTIES? (6.2)
--------------------------------------------------------

Gray market computers are still official Apple product
manufactured in the same four factories that make the machines sold
in the United States. The main caveat in the gray market is that
the computer you buy may or may not be eligible for warranty repair
by Apple. Whether an authorized Apple dealer will perform warranty
service on a gray market Mac depends almost entirely on the
authorized dealer you bring it to. You must make sure your gray
market Mac has a valid, non-defaced Apple serial number to have
any reasonable chance of getting warranty service. Some authorized
dealers remove serial numbers before selling the Macs into the gray
market so that Apple can't trace the product back to them. It is
almost impossible to find an Apple dealer who will perform warranty
service an a Mac without a valid serial number.

In the end a gray market Mac's warranty is only as good as
the company that sold it to you so make sure that the company you
buy from is reliable in performing service. When you buy from an
authorized dealer even if that dealer has a totally dishonest and
incompetent service department, you can always bring it to their
competitors for warranty service. In the gray market you're only
promised service from the company you buy from. If that company
goes out of business while they've got your computer in their
repair shop, you may never see it again. It's also very
inconvenient to have to ship your computer away by mail for
service and then have it shipped back.

DOES ANYONE KNOW A GOOD MAIL-ORDER COMPANY? (6.3)
--------------------------------------------------

Many mail-order dealers advertise in the back pages of MacUser
and MacWorld. One that has to date seemed reasonably honest and
reliable is MacFriends (1-800-331-1322). However their prices are
not necessarily better than what you could get from an authorized
dealer. Don't automatically assume mail-order prices are better.
In many cases they're not.

Some Performa dealers like Staples (1-800-333-3330) will sell
their Performa configurations over the phone. MacMall (1-800-222-2808)
and J&R Computer World (1-800-221-8180) are the only regular dealers I
know of that are authorized to sell non-Performa CPU's over the phone.
I expect several more dealers to receive approval this summer. This
should drive prices down in smaller, less competitive markets like
Alamagordo but won't have much effect on larger markets like New York
and San Francisco.

There are several steps you should take to protect yourself
when buying Macs through the mail. First pay by credit card even
if there's a surcharge for using a credit card. You should verify
that the card will not be charged until the computer is shipped. If
there is a problem with the shipment or if it fails to arrive, you
can contact the credit card company to dispute the charge. This is
a good idea even if you have had numerous good experiences with the
company previously. Jasmine Technologies, a primarily mail order
company, had an excellent reputation for fast, dependable service;
but when it went bankrupt in 1990, many people who had paid in
advance by check for hard drives were stranded without either a
drive or their money. Those who had paid by credit card were able
to get the charges removed by their credit card companies.

Secondly ask a few questions before purchasing a Mac by mail.
Keep a written record of who you talked to including time, dates
and what was said. Some good questions are:

* Is the equipment brand new?
* Is the box factory-sealed?
* Does it come with an Apple warranty?
* Does it come with an Apple registration card?
* Does it have a valid serial number?
* What is your return policy?

You may also want to verify with a local authorized dealer that the
offered configuration is indeed one Apple manufactures.

--
Elliotte Rusty Harold Department of Mathematics

elh...@shock.njit.edu New Jersey Institute of Technology

erh...@tesla.njit.edu Newark NJ 07103
..