Today is the 11th anniversary of Mac GUI Vault, and today TeleDisk, a disk-transfer utility for classic Macintosh, is available to order. - 09 Sep 20
TeleDisk, a disk-transfer utility for classic Macintosh, will be available to order next week. - 02 Sep 20
Added 3 Apple Lisa files and 200 Macintosh files to Vault Downloads. About 1,200 more Macintosh files are still waiting to be sorted. - 29 Jun 20
Added a couple thousand Usenet posts from summer 1996 to the Apple II newsgroups. Thanks to Andrew Roughan for providing these posts in QWK format. - 26 Jun 20
I started working on a new TCP/IP stack for Macintosh 128K and 512K called Sabina. Read all about it at the Sabina TCP page. More Macintosh Vault files will be added soon. - 04 May 20
Added 1,513 Macintosh files. This is the first part of the Macintosh update. I have a second batch of 2,000 files that still needs to be sorted. - 06 Apr 20
Most Apple III files and many Apple Lisa files in Downloads now have catalog listings. Format Converter does not yet recognize certain versions of the Lisa file system; I plan to add this functionality later. Spyglass is compatible with Apple III disks, as they use the same ProDOS format. - 15 Mar 20
Over 1,000 Apple II files were added to Vault Downloads. Macintosh files will be coming next. Format Converter and Spyglass will also be updated to recognize Apple III disk images, which are typically the same ProDOS format as on the Apple II. - 12 Mar 20
680 Apple III files and 192 Apple Lisa files are now available in Vault Downloads. Apple II files will be coming next. - 08 Mar 20
Over a year passes, and I am once again making preparations for the next Vault update, the first in about five years. There are so many new files, and new categories, that this update will come in at least two, possibly three parts. The first part will contain Apple II and Apple IIgs updates. The next part will introduce the new Apple III and Lisa categories. Macintosh files will be updated afterward. - 24 Feb 20
For the past year, I've been gathering files (over 4,500 new files so far) for one of the largest Mac GUI Vault updates ever. This will be the "come back" update. I've extracted 660 files from Usenet newsgroups mod.mac.binaries, net.sources.mac, mod.mac.sources, and net.micro.mac. Mac GUI Vault will also expand to feature dedicated Apple III and Apple Lisa archives. A complete redesign of Mac GUI is in the works too, as it's long time for an update and reorganization of this massive site, which is still the largest online resource for vintage Apple computing. - 31 Dec 18
The Mac 512K Blog, chronicles the Macintosh 512K and my projects with it. We will test software, fix hardware, program it, hack it, and generally take the 512K Macintosh to its limits. - 16 Jan 18
Spyglass, the online Apple II disk image browser at Mac GUI Vault, now supports ShrinkIt files and CP/M disk images. These features will continue to be improved. - 21 May 17
The GEnie and Delphi Apple II Roundtables and file archives are now available at Mac GUI Vault. See the official GEnie announcement for full details. - 05 Jul 16
The Read Me and documentation files for 1,243 Apple II and IIgs files, totaling 8 MB, have been extracted, formatted, and included in the Vault file listing below the catalog. Read Me files will be added for more Vault files later. - 06 Jan 16
The protoype Mac Twiggy disk containing MacAuthor (MacWrite) has been patched to work on a Mac 128k and this disk is now uploaded to Vault. Another user on Mac GUI has had wonderful success in converting a production Mac 128k to a Twiggy Mac by substituting ROMs and patching in the .Sony disk driver. He has been able to boot, on real hardware, both the Twiggy MacPaint and MacAuthor disks! He has uploaded several photos of the running system to the Gallery. - 21 Nov 15
Regarding the prototype Mac Twiggy disks, I have figured out how to patch them to boot on a Mac 128k, and I have made the necessary changes to the MacWrite (MacAuthor) disk, allowing it to boot in the mini vMac 128k emulator, where the program can be used to open and view the several text files on the disk. The Finder version on this disk is 1.7, dated 15 Aug 1983, and the disk was used until at least the middle of September, judging by dates in the text files. See the screenshots uploaded to the Gallery. Still no luck with modifying mini vMac to use the prototype Mac Twiggy ROM. - 17 Nov 15
Today is the Last Mac GUI Vault Update, bringing a little over 1,000 new files. Most important among these are the Boston Computer Society disks contributed by Neil Thayer, and the Twiggy Mac prototype firmware and disks from Adam Goolevitch (previously reported on Mac GUI back in 2014). - 14 Nov 15
The October 2015 edition of the Marina IP stack for Apple II was released today. Visit the Marina IP web site for more information. - 25 Oct 15
Today is the 6th Anniversary of Mac GUI Vault. - 09 Sep 15
Spyglass, the online Apple II disk browser available only at Mac GUI Vault has received some upgrades and improvements to its user interface. Text and Appleworks word processing files are now automatically word-wrapped at 90 columns to improve readability. - 04 Sep 15
The Downloads Queue, which makes it simple to download up to 50 files in a single Zip archive, has long been plagued with problems resulting from large files (greater than 10 MB). Today, the system has been improved and should handle larger files much better than before. The Marina IP stack continues to be updated, and you can find the latest edition for download at the official Marina web site. - 10 Aug 15
Today's Vault update adds over 650 new files. - 13 Jul 15
In related news, today is the first public release of the Marina IP stack for Apple II. Visit the Marina web site for more information. - 01 Apr 15
Format Converter was updated to recognize and catalog Apple CP/M disks, as well as to improve Pascal and DOS 3.3 catalogs. All Vault file catalogs were refreshed today using this new version. - 29 Jan 15
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Today's Vault update adds 500 new files. - 15 Jul 14
I have had some success with patching mini vMac 3.3.3 to work with the Twiggy Mac ROM. I published the report of my analysis today. - 07 Apr 14
Adam Goolevitch has now sent me the Twiggy Mac ROMs, 4.3T and 4.4T. I am working on analyzing them. So far, I have pulled out the Stolen from Apple Computer icon. They do not work with the vMac emulator because they do not have the .Sony disk driver. - 21 Feb 14
Adam Goolevitch gave me a chance to analyze the Mac Twiggy disks, and I've made some very interesting discoveries, a full report of which shall be published later this week. - 04 Feb 14
Vault file catalogs were refreshed today, taking into account several bug fixes and enhancements to Format Converter. One of the biggest fixes is that dates are now correct in NuFX/ShrinkIt archives, and dates are now shown for StuffIt 1.5.1, StuffIt 5, Compact Pro, and PackIt II archives. Now 85% of all Vault files have a catalog listing. - 28 Jan 14
Release dates were added to 12,171 files using the program that I had mentioned back in September. Now 62.7% of all Vault files have a release date. In other news, Format Converter can now list the contents of Macintosh PackIt II archives. - 27 Jan 14
The Vault file catalogs were refreshed today. Approximately 77% of all files have a listing of their contents (disk images, ShrinkIt archives, etc.) I hope to increase this total in the coming weeks. The next project is to make a search engine for the contents of these files. - 11 Nov 13
A new feature called Spyglass lets you browse through Apple II disk images. More features will be added in the coming weeks. - 16 Oct 13
Mac GUI Vault opened to the public four years ago today! Since then, the site has been a huge success and hundreds of files are downloaded every week. I made a small update to the collection today, adding 100 new files. - 09 Sep 13
You can now easily download binaries from comp.binaries.apple2 using Format Converter to decode BinSCII and Executioner formats. The next update will fill in the Date Released field for thousands of files in the Downloads area. - 08 Sep 13
Enhanced file catalogs appeared two weeks ago for almost 20,000 files, then 10,600 screenshots were added for over 4,500 Apple II programs. I am working on the Format Converter and related projects. StuffIt 5 files will be cataloged shortly. - 06 Aug 13
Today's Vault update brings over 1,200 new files. The enhanced file catalogs should appear within the next week or two for most all Apple II files, then Macintosh files later. - 08 Jul 13
The ebook edition of The New Apple II User's Guide is for sale now. Email me to get a copy. I am working on updating the disk cataloging software to recognize more disk and file formats, including Pascal and ShrinkIt. The next Vault update is scheduled for this month of July. - 02 Jul 13
Mac GUI user retrogear notified me that it was impossible to log in using older 5.x versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer on Mac OS 9. I have corrected this problem, so now you can use your Mac GUI account on older MSIE and Netscape web browsers. - 02 Feb 13
Arriving a little later than planned is the next Vault update, which today adds over 1,000 new files. Over a hundred files were submitted by InkBlot, who is also helping by adding file descriptions, screenshots, and dates. Thanks for your continued help! - 28 Jan 13
Today is the third year of Mac GUI Vault. The enhanced Usenet search engine is now online, and the next Vault update should occur in the next few weeks. - 09 Sep 12
Hardworking user InkBlot has contributed over 400 improved file descriptions for the Downloads. Thank you. I hope that he and others will continue to help with Mac GUI Vault. - 16 Jul 12
The New Apple II User's Guide went on sale about two weeks ago and has attracted a lot of attention and favorable reviews. If you are going to KFest 2012, there will be a surprise for you: 30 autographed copies of the book will be on sale! They should be discounted somewhat from the normal sale price, too. - 02 Jul 12
Two updates for today. First: The New Apple II User's Guide is going to be published on the 18th of June. Second: I've added a few hundred new files to the Vault collection. - 05 Jun 12
Announcing my first book: The New Apple II User's Guide. It should be published in just a few weeks, hopefully May. Official Site. Read updates on my blog. - 20 Apr 12
I just received a shipment of approximately 200 5.25" Apple II disks. I'm going to archive them, and then the next Vault update will be released. - 09 Mar 12
Over 300 items have been newly added to the Vault archive. - 18 Jul 11
The Saltine's disks have been posted online. - 28 Feb 11
The shipment of Apple II disks. I now have approximately 140 5.25" disks to copy into the Vault archive, a task which I have made my top priority for the weekend. Once the disks have been copied, they will be included in the next major Vault update, later this month. - 04 Feb 11
I am working on adding screenshots to the Apple II games. This is a slow process; it involves running each game in an emulator. I am expecting a new batch of donated Apple II disks to arrive soon. I am also working on obtaining more Usenet posts from the 1990's. - 31 Jan 11
Today brings the first major Vault update since February. 1,230 new items have been added. In addition, many hundreds of text and PDF files which were previously inaccessible are now indexed and online in the KB. - 10 Aug 10
A pre-release version of the Apple Card Catalog is now online. Some features still need to be added. Go to the Apple Card Catalog. - 02 Mar 10
520 new files and downloads have been added to the Vault archive. Coming soon: the Apple Card Catalog. - 23 Feb 10
The comp.binaries.mac Usenet archive was extended from 2,955 posts to a grand 9,318 posts by merging in two other archives. I am getting ready to add over 400 new files to the Downloads soon. - 23 Jan 10
I'm working on getting 10 years' worth of historic Usenet posts in to the database; over 240,000 articles. Should be ready next week. - 05 Dec 09
I've made a new form so that anyone may contribute more information on any of the Vault download files. In addition, the Vault DVD offer is over as of about a week ago. I have received 60 orders and hope to get them all satisfied before the end of this month. - 09 Oct 09
After a year of hard work, Vault is finally open to the masses! - 09 Sep 09
I purchased a used color scanner on Saturday, so now I can scan all of the hard-copy materials in my possession. It works quite well! - 24 Aug 09
Thanks to the ProDOS Technical Reference Manual by Apple and Apple ProDOS: Advanced Features for Programmers by Gary B. Little, I have completed the PHP ProDOS disk cataloging program. - 19 Aug 09
Just yesterday, the Public Domain Software on File collection which I had loaned from a distant University library arrived. So far, out of 22 disks, I have successfully copied 11 of them. The rest have disk errors. But it's still better than nothing, since as far as I know, this collection has not yet been made available on the net. - 27 July 09
On July 8th, I received a kind donation of a complete Power Mac 8100/80 system, with a good number of disks and Zip disks. The contents of these have all been archived into Vault. - 13 July 09
I used MacADT to transfer 40 disks from my collection on the 27th, and there are about 20 left. Just yesterday, I stumbled upon a site with many rare, lost-to-the-ages Mac utilities from 1984-87. - 29 June 09
I'd been working on Vault for the past month, but hadn't updated it until today. Lots of more sorting has been completed since then. I am getting quite close to being able to finally put the files online. - 26 June 09
I finally finished the software for cataloging DOS 3.3 disks and it works quite well! I'm working on ProDOS next; it's quite complicated. I also archived some more of my own disks. - 15 May 09
Added some old Usenet posts from late 2006 and removed over 130 spam posts. I'm still fiddling around with this Usenet thing; it's quite fun. I used a utility called Decloner to remove over 2,000 duplicate files from the Vault archive, reducing the total size to 6.99 GB. There are still hundreds more... - 07 May 09
Mac GUI now carries comp.sys.apple2 Usenet discussions! See the Usenet link on the right for access. - 03 May 09
I've archived 24,000 Usenet posts on the Apple II from 2007-2009, and I'm on the lookout for older posts. I'm going to get these sorted by thread and then imported to the KB. I'm also doing more sorting of the Mac files. I've got 13,000 of them, and there is still much sorting which needs to be done! - 30 Apr 09
With over 7,000 Apple 5.25" disk archives, cataloging them by hand would be far too time-consuming. Programs such as ADFS Carbon are great for cataloging disks on the Mac, but I'm looking for something more portable and automatic. Thus, I am looking into using a PHP script to decompress the .dsk archives (if necessary) and scan the catalog to automatically create a listing. I shall have to research into this, but it will be a big time-saver if I can get it to work! - 17 Apr 09
I received another donation of around 100 5.25" disks, a box of 3.5" floppies, some Apple manuals, and a few other oddments. I'm absolutely swamped with disks to sort through! - 11 Apr 09
I gave the Vault page a big redesign and made a bunch of of graphics as you can see! I recently received another donation on March 18th of many Apple II manuals/hardware and Macintosh disks, so photos, scans and files will be on the way soon! - 22 Mar 09
Updated the FAQ and fixed a few typos in it. A lot of sorting has taken place as well, though I'm sure there are still many duplicates to detect. Two new Mac archives have recently opened, so I added around 250 new files to Vault from them. - 21 Feb 09
Enhancements have been made to the Downloads system to allow file queuing, which allows multiple files to be downloaded in one archive. I've also added fields for year released, file type (app, doc, cdev, init, etc), and collation (single, series, compilation). - 01 Feb 09
Many more photos have been taken and processed. I've also acquired approximately 12,000 more Macintosh files, approximately 2 GB in total size. Fortunately the process I've developed for cataloging is fairly automatic! - 30 Jan 09
I received a copy of Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 as a Christmas present. This is just what I needed to process 100+ photos I've had around since Summer 2007. All of these photos, which are of the many Apple II and Macintosh items in my collection, are headed straight for the museum portion of Vault. - 05 Jan 09
Thanks to an automated script, all 700+ Mac and Apple II articles are in the Knowledge Base. Next step is to upload the raw .txt source files and link them up for downloading. See the KB. - 06 Dec 08
Earliest planning started in July, collecting started September. Now it's November and the KB will be filled first, since that's the easiest. For the most part, Mac GUI's infrastructure is ready to handle Vault; only a few schema changes are going to be made so far. There's also a Vault FAQ if you've got questions. - 26 Nov 08
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Book
Mac GUI Vault published its first paperback book, The New Apple II User's Guide, on Amazon.com. Read more at the official book site. | Go to the Book Site > |
Downloads
The Downloads archive, being the heart and soul of Vault, features over 34,000 files. A search engine makes locating long-lost apps a snap! | Go to the Downloads > |
Usenet Discussions
Started in the 80's, Usenet is the Internet's original message board. Mac GUI Vault is host to the Apple II and Mac newsgroups, where new posts arrive every 20 minutes! | Go to the Discussions > |
Knowledge Base
The Knowledge Base (KB for short) features several hundred text files which have been categorized into a database and are fully searchable! Articles range from repair, hardware specs, to software manuals. | Go to the KB > |
Photos
The photo gallery is a visual museum of Apple products ranging from the Apple II to the Mac, with many peripherals as well. A keyword search function helps locate photos. More photos are on the way! | Go to the Photos > |
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