Subject: Re: Apple 2 emulator
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From: Phoenyx <quazar@dcnet2000.com>
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Date: Fri, 29 Sep 2000 19:41:16 -0500
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>      The two top contenders for 8-bit (Apple II+, //e, etc.) emulation
> on PC are AppleWin and Apple Oasis. Both run under Win95 and, I'm pretty
> sure, Win98.

 Yes, they both work in Win98. Apple Oasis will also run in Win2k and NT.

>      As for which emu is better, it's hard to say. Each will run most of
> the Apple II 8-bit software available on disk images. Each also has some
> software it will not run correctly. (Fortunately, there is remarkably
> little overlap; so, if you have both emulators, you can run just about
> everything.)
>

By better, do you mean better functionality or better emulation? Applewin
is simply an enhanced IIe with the hardware limitations that implies. It
is generally considered a great emulator for games. At least those with
only a few disks.

In the latest releases of Oasis I have found nothing that won't run.
Perhaps that is because I use the IIe rom and not the II compatible rom
supplied with Oasis.

This is an emulator that you want to spend some time with to appreciate
the functionality and versatility the system has.
 
>      Overall, Oasis seems to supply a more accurate emulation and it
> includes some nice add-ons. On the other hand, AppleWin's front panel
> buttons for configuration and accessing disk drives plus drive activity
> lights make for a more user-friendly interface. And AppleWin's
> 'inaccurate' disk handling results in much quicker disk access and
> program loading.

As I mentioned, you really need to spend some time with this system. It
allows to change slot cards and configure them as necc'. It sets Windows
so you can launch the emulator by clicking on a disk or saved state file.
This is especially useful when sorting disk images and you don't remember
what is on a particular disk.

The only thing lacking here is the on screen panel. Oasis gets around
this by allowing you to change disk with fairly simple keystrokes. These
keys work with any slot you have configured as a disk, provided the disk
is the proper image format.

These simple keystrokes are <CTRL>+<#> where # is the slot number, or
<CTRL>+<SHIFT>+<#> for the second disk in a slot.

> 
>      Solid Oasis plusses are a genuine full-screen mode and the fact
> that it can run a few good SSI AD&D adventures (like Champions of Krynn)
> which AppleWin can not. The price for a registered non-limited version
> of Oasis is something around $25; AppleWin is free.

Depending on whether you use it for anything more serious than game
playing, there are better plusses. For example, the Disk Manager is
extremely useful for manipulating files between the native (PC) OS and
the Apple2 disk images. This works even better when copying the files
to an HD image. I prefer to let the Shrinkit programs to open my arc's.
This way, I don't have to worry about unpacking a bunch of files to my
Linux filesystem. I also seem to have less trouble this way.

There are many more useful things such as disk serving software which, if
connected properly will let you read Apple2 drives from the PC or use it
as a simulated HD with the HD image stored on the PC. I like the latter
method, you can easily backup the Apple2 stuff by making a copy of the
disk image.

There are some interesting miscellaneous options. You can set the keyboard
scroll lock key to light during disk accesses. Control the way Oasis uses
the alt keys. Simulated or real joystick. Inverse Case, which turns all
alpha keys to uppercase. Change the text/screen color, similar to the way
the GS lets you change colors. Use a bitmap character set to customize
the text output.

And, there is some support for gamer's as well. Oasis will let you save
the state of the emulator. I have used this to find the results of
particular decisions in a game. You can also edit the screen colors Oasis
uses to reduce the screen bleeding to something  more viewable.

There is even more that I have left out, but you get the idea.

-- 

Thank you for your time and interest. I hope it was helpful
or at least interesting.

Phoenyx,

Apple2 user since March 1984

Links to Phoenyx's pages:
preferred..... http://zip.to/Phoenyx_A2
alternate..... http://www.tinyangeldesigns.com/Apple2