System 6.0.3: Don‘t Use on Mac II Without SuperDrive (9/95)



Here is a report of multiple oddities about System 6.0.3 when used on a 68020 Macintosh II with two monitors and MultiFinder. If you display source or work on the second screen, several applications (including MS QuickBASIC 1.0, MacDraw 1.9.6, Capilano's DesignWorks 1.11, and MPW 2.0.2 and 3.0) hang the machine when saving or quitting. Note that the save operation is NOT completed before the crash.

Also, mounting a new volume when the last active window was on the secondary monitor occasionally causes an unusually long mount time, on the order of several minutes. (This may be due to a difficulty with building the desktop file). The system also hangs at shutdown, but only following directory changes (as when you move a file from one folder to another).

Admittedly, there were several (four or five) standard INITs in the System Folders on both the machines where the problems occurred. These are probably not a factor, because the problem went away immediately after reinstalling System 6.0.2. Because these were true work sessions, not debugging sessions, the sequence of operations that may have caused the difficulties is uncertain.

Apple Tech Comm has run and continues to run Macintosh IIs with multiple monitors under System 6.0.3 without experiencing the problems you reported. We have been running similar software and using it in similar fashions. This makes us suspect that there was some difference between your system configurations and ours.

If there was a problem with corrupted system software, removing and reinstalling the System and Finder would definitely have resolved the issue. It is possible for problems of this nature to manifest themselves on Macintosh IIs and not on Macintosh IIx or Macintosh IIcx systems.

Although you stated that the INITs you were using are fairly standard INITs, we have seen problems caused by INITs, which you would not suspect as being the culprits. It is possible that one of these INITs does not work properly with System 6.0.3 and that was the root of the problem.

Unless you have an Apple SuperDrive (formerly Apple FDHD) upgrade in your Macintosh II, there is no reason to be running System 6.0.3--System 6.0.2 has the same functionality.

The FDHD/SuperDrive upgrade is no longer available.


Article Change History:
15 Sep 1995 - Revised to show discontinued upgrade.

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Published Date: Feb 18, 2012