Apple III Collected Papers

Dave Ottalini released this DVD into the public domain on Jan 7, 2012.

First of all, thank you for purchasing this disk. It represents hundreds of hours of work and took literally years to compile. At its most basic, this disk represents the life’s history of the Apple /// computer. It includes hundreds of articles, source code, photos, audio and video files, vendor information, information about the only known Apple /// emulation mode (for Classic Macs), Apple’s Technical Information Library about the /// and one of our gems, virtually all the files from Ed Gooding’s Three’s Company BBS. We are also thrilled to offer the entire WAP Public Domain library of some 200 disks as well.

I can’t possibly thank everybody who made this disk possible but every time you see the name of an individual below, or an author in an article (and you will see many) know that they have our thanks.

The Apple /// was one of those computers that was probably doomed even before it started. The history is well known, but the real story of the /// is the story of the users like you and me who persevered much longer than anyone might have thought they would.

For whatever reason, people really loved this machine - the author included. Maybe it was because they cost so much many felt they had to keep using it to get their money’s worth. Or they just liked the feel of the keyboard (still one of the best ever). A better explanation is that users found a common bond in the /// that went beyond just a machine. At this point, it really doesn’t matter. What does is, that thanks to the advent of electronic bulletin boards / listserves, newsletters, email, etc. we have a virtual start to finish record of everything Apple ///. And that’s what this compilation is all about.

I can in no way claim that this DVD contains everything ever written about our SARA. There are many, many manuals for example, that need to be scanned for preservation, but it is not a task I choose to spend a lot of my time on. Others have – David Craig and Paul Santa-Maria were particularly diligent in their scanning and have added tremendously to this DVD because of their efforts.

But what I can tell you is that the DVD is likely to be the best single source of information of the machine ever produced. A heady claim, to be sure. But it is that important, if for no other reason than the fact that it serves as an historical archive of the first computer ever designed and manufactured by a company called Apple Computer.

You will see the name David Craig on many files. His contribution to this project and suggestions for improvement made a tremendous difference. I also need to thank my wife who had to put up with all of my Apple /// foolishness over many long years. I need to mention Lorin Evans, Jim Ritz, Beth Medlin and John Ruffatto at Washington Apple Pi for their long years of support too (and there were many others).

This DVD is a companion to the two-set DVDs that were originally offered by Washington Apple Pi. The DVDs include the video “How To Use Your Apple /// In Ten EZ Lessons” (Chapters 1-5 are on disk 1, 6-10 on disk 2) as well as some videos and slide shows produced by this author. Video iPod versions have found their way to this DVD, by the way!

Note that you will find FileMaker Pro 7, Word 6, text and PDF files on this disk. Some folders have been compressed using Stuffit (.sit files only). We’ve included a number of versions of Acrobat Reader and the latest Stuffit Expander for OSX for you as well.

I hope you enjoy this disk. Any comments, updates, suggestions for another disk is appreciated.

Dave Ottalini
February 2007

Table of contents is below. The forward/back links below the table of contents let you navigate page-by-page. Most documents are embedded PDFs. From the toolbar you can make the PDFs full screen, for easier reading. - Tom