using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

About SheepShaver, a PPC Mac emulator for Windows, MacOS X, and Linux that can run System 7.5.3 to MacOS 9.0.4.

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akessel56@gmail.com
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using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

So is there any hope to use a physical usb floppy disk to install software in sheepshaver?

Not looking to do this with super old software, but more 1990s era.

So not certain, I can read them at all, and I have to find my usb floppy, but there your are!

Thanks, Andy
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

Which is your host system?
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

Using a MacBook Pro with Big Sur. But I have a windows 10 laptop as well.

Oldest Mac I have is a G4 Cube (my se/30 is currently dead)
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

I do not know what the possibilities are in Windows.

On a Mac with macOS Catalina or later the possibilities are few.

1. SheepShaver does not recognise USB connections. (Connected mouse and keyboard are seen as as ADB devices).

2. The floppy disks will have an older file system. In macOS Mojave and earlier, HFS volumes can be mounted and read (not written to). If the disk can be mounted, it may be possible to use the mounted disk as "shared folder" ("Unix" volume in SheepShaver).

3. If the disks are in HFS format, you can use this workaround to create disk images in Catalina and later: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10709

4. The best way would be to find an older working Mac with which you could create disk images from the floppies.

Disk image files can be added to the volumes list in SheepShaver preferences and will thus be mounted on the SheepShaver desktop.

Note that much older software is already available on the web as disk images. See for instance on Macintosh Garden
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

Thanks, I appreciate the information. Andy
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

By the way, if I want to be able to go between a 7.6 sheepshaver and a 9.0.4 sheepshaver, any I reason I can't have to sheepshaver folders in different folders, and then run the one I want? Thanks.
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by adespoton »

akessel56@gmail.com wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 4:34 pm By the way, if I want to be able to go between a 7.6 sheepshaver and a 9.0.4 sheepshaver, any I reason I can't have to sheepshaver folders in different folders, and then run the one I want? Thanks.
If you're using macOS, create .sheepvm folders, as all the PRAM settings, etc. get stored in there too. Otherwise, you're going to have issues with the prefs files and NVRAM files getting overwritten between the two instances of SheepShaver. No need to duplicate the application; the two instances will stay separate.

Or, you can do what I did, and create "Applications" for each version of Mac OS, each containing its own instance of SheepShaver.app, .sheep_prefs file and NVRAM settings. But this gets more complex to set up and maintain.
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

adespoton wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 4:41 pm
akessel56@gmail.com wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 4:34 pm By the way, if I want to be able to go between a 7.6 sheepshaver and a 9.0.4 sheepshaver, any I reason I can't have to sheepshaver folders in different folders, and then run the one I want? Thanks.
If you're using macOS, create .sheepvm folders, as all the PRAM settings, etc. get stored in there too. Otherwise, you're going to have issues with the prefs files and NVRAM files getting overwritten between the two instances of SheepShaver. No need to duplicate the application; the two instances will stay separate.

Or, you can do what I did, and create "Applications" for each version of Mac OS, each containing its own instance of SheepShaver.app, .sheep_prefs file and NVRAM settings. But this gets more complex to set up and maintain.
Can you explain or point me to somewhere with more detail on what your are talking about with the .sheepvm folders?
I don't see anything currently hidden, or where the .sheepvm folder might exist at the moment, or the sheepshaver prefs for that matter, have to be somewhere. Nor do I follow what you would be doing to keep the versions separate.

Thanks, I appreciate it. Maybe there is already a doc somewhere with how to do this.

I used the comand-shift-. method to show hidden items.
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

If you want to use different SheepShaver setups on your Mac, the best way to do that is with .sheepvm virtual machines. It cannot be done with classic SheepShaver setups because, as adespoton points out, all those setups will share one single prefs file that contains all your setting, the hidden .sheepshaver_prefs file in your Home folder.

The .sheepvm virtual machines each contain their own prefs file.

The setup is explained in our setup manual: https://www.emaculation.com/doku.php/sh ... l_machines
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

Thank you, will give it a try.

Andy
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

Ronald P. Regensburg wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 5:30 pm If you want to use different SheepShaver setups on your Mac, the best way to do that is with .sheepvm virtual machines. It cannot be done with classic SheepShaver setups because, as adespoton points out, all those setups will share one single prefs file that contains all your setting, the hidden .sheepshaver_prefs file in your Home folder.

The .sheepvm virtual machines each contain their own prefs file.

The setup is explained in our setup manual: https://www.emaculation.com/doku.php/sh ... l_machines
That worked really well, thanks for the info, I never made it all the way down the setup page to find it.

Separately I tried setting one up with the old world rom, and chose a system 7.5.3 install image and created a blank disk to install on.
No matter what I do, when I launch sheepshaver (using the .sheepvm method), and when I launch sheepshaver - I get the "This startup disk will not work on this Mac model. Use the latest installer ....."

They are supposed to work together, yes?

Andy
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by adespoton »

akessel56@gmail.com wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 7:31 pm
Ronald P. Regensburg wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 5:30 pm If you want to use different SheepShaver setups on your Mac, the best way to do that is with .sheepvm virtual machines. It cannot be done with classic SheepShaver setups because, as adespoton points out, all those setups will share one single prefs file that contains all your setting, the hidden .sheepshaver_prefs file in your Home folder.

The .sheepvm virtual machines each contain their own prefs file.

The setup is explained in our setup manual: https://www.emaculation.com/doku.php/sh ... l_machines
That worked really well, thanks for the info, I never made it all the way down the setup page to find it.

Separately I tried setting one up with the old world rom, and chose a system 7.5.3 install image and created a blank disk to install on.
No matter what I do, when I launch sheepshaver (using the .sheepvm method), and when I launch sheepshaver - I get the "This startup disk will not work on this Mac model. Use the latest installer ....."

They are supposed to work together, yes?

Andy
Sounds like you're attempting to use a 7.5.3 install image that's for a particular Mac that's not the one SheepShaver reports. Make sure you're using the retail PPC 7.5.3 installer.
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

adespoton wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 7:46 pm
akessel56@gmail.com wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 7:31 pm
Ronald P. Regensburg wrote: Mon Mar 28, 2022 5:30 pm If you want to use different SheepShaver setups on your Mac, the best way to do that is with .sheepvm virtual machines. It cannot be done with classic SheepShaver setups because, as adespoton points out, all those setups will share one single prefs file that contains all your setting, the hidden .sheepshaver_prefs file in your Home folder.

The .sheepvm virtual machines each contain their own prefs file.

The setup is explained in our setup manual: https://www.emaculation.com/doku.php/sh ... l_machines
That worked really well, thanks for the info, I never made it all the way down the setup page to find it.

Separately I tried setting one up with the old world rom, and chose a system 7.5.3 install image and created a blank disk to install on.
No matter what I do, when I launch sheepshaver (using the .sheepvm method), and when I launch sheepshaver - I get the "This startup disk will not work on this Mac model. Use the latest installer ....."

They are supposed to work together, yes?

Andy
Sounds like you're attempting to use a 7.5.3 install image that's for a particular Mac that's not the one SheepShaver reports. Make sure you're using the retail PPC 7.5.3 installer.
That makes sense, now I just need to find the right installer, thanks
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

It is possible that you used a model-specific install disk instead of a generic install disk.

But it is also possible that you used the wrong ROM file. For System 7.5.3 you need the old-world rom file.

From the setup guide:

You can find compatible ROM files when you search the web for “redundant robot sheepshaver” (without the quotes).

With the old world rom file SheepShaver can run System 7.5.3 through Mac OS 9.0.4, with the new world rom file SheepShaver can run Mac OS 8.5 through 9.0.4.

If you want to install 8.6 through 9.0.4, best use the new world rom.
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Re: using a usb floppy on a mac - sheepshaver

Post by akessel56@gmail.com »

Thanks for that. I went with basiliskII FOR 7..5.3, sheepshaver for 9.0.3.
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