Okay, I am very sorry for being such a big headache. I had found MacPaint (
Download MacPaint - Macintosh Garden) and had wanted to run it on this computer. My goal I am trying to achieve here, well, I have no goal. This, this is for fun.
I'm not using this for work because, well, this computer belongs in the Smithsonian. I am using it for fun. It is sitting in my room by my Macbook Pro all hooked up and everything, and I am just trying to see what it
can do. Not what I
need it to do. Because it does't need to do anything.
P.S. $50 piece of software = only MacPaint copy on eBay. I just spent $50 on a keyboard. I'm not spending another $50.
Thank you, thank you, thank you...for all that specific info.
Just for background...have you read these:
MacPaint - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Macpaint.org: How to Run Macpaint Today
MacPaint 1.5
Here's the deal. As I hope that you know...when you operate a computer...it needs to have an OS installed on it to operate. All modern computers have a hard drive...and on that hard drive is an operating system installed on it.
When you turn on almost any modern computer (any modern computer, being just about any computer since probably 1990 onwards)...it will automatically "boot" since there is an OS installed on it.
The difference with many computers from the early to mid to even late 1980's is...not many of those computers had a hard drive. So when you flipped the power switch on...the display would light up...and just stare back at you (no hard drive = no OS = nothing to boot the computer from).
This includes your Mac 512. It has a single floppy drive...nothing else inside other than the display, logic board, and power supply. So when you insert a floppy disk into the Mac 512...it needs to have an OS installed on the floppy, in order to boot the computer.
In some cases...a single floppy disk (if there's enough room) could contain your:
- OS boot files (Mac OS)
- application files (MacPaint app.)
- data files (any files you create in MacPaint for example)
But...because single-sided 400k floppy disks don't have a lot of storage space...sometimes you had to break things up into 2-3 separate floppy disks.
- Disk #1 (OS disk) for the OS
- Disk #2 (App. Disk) for the Application (MacPaint)
- Disk #3 (Data disk) for saving the files you create with apps.
You could also (if there's enough room)...combine the App. Disk & Data Disk on the same disk. What this 1, 2, or 3 disk setup caused was a lot of "disk-swapping". You would have to eject a disk...then insert another disk...for the computer to do everything from booting, opening an app., and saving data.
So my questions/statements to you are:
- Do you have an OS "boot disk" for your Mac 512?
- Downloading MacPaint is going to be really really tough. You basically need a newer Mac that can connect to the internet...but still old enough to be able to read/write 400k Mac-formatted floppies (to write the MacPaint app. onto).
You would need this "newer Mac" to both be able to transfer the MacPaint app. to floppy (after downloading)...and make a "boot floppy" (after downloading the Mac OS for the Mac 512).
This is a REALLY REALLY REALLY difficult project if you don't have the hardware to do it with. If you noticed in one of the links above...you can run MacPaint (an app. from the mid-1980's) on a newer Mac & newer OS (from the 1990's). But I'm guessing you really want to be able to run apps. on the Mac 512 you purchased.
The easiest way to obtain software for your Mac 512 is to buy it off e-Bay (floppies)...which as you mentioned can be expensive. You should also know...after 25+ years...floppy drives wear out...and the magnetic media on floppy disks degrades. So even if you did buy original floppy disks with apps on them for your Mac 512 from e-Bay...there's a good chance when you insert that floppy disk into the Mac 512's floppy drive...that it won't be readable. Either because of the slightly degraded floppy disk...or the slightly or heavily worn out floppy drive.
There are lots & lots of issues trying to run a 25+ year-old computer...and even more hassles when it's a 25+ year-old Macintosh!!! I could write a book on this...but sadly...I don't think many people would be interested!
- Nick
