Universe Master review
By Cameron Brawn
Copyright (c) 1993 Apple Users' Group, Sydney
Republished from Applecations, a publication of the Apple Users' Group, Sydney, Australia.
"Life, Universe Master, and Everything."
A review of "Universe Master" from Econ Technologies, by Cameron Brawn.
Before I begin this review, I would like you to be aware that I provide a service to people recovering corrupt/unreadable disks. While this may be seen as a conflict of interest, I have approached the review with an open mind.
"Universe Master is a full feature disk maintenance utility. Its main features are: file recovery, disk repair, data backup and disk optimization." This quote is taken from the manual, and the above features are also listed in the advertisements that appears in various magazines. I suppose 2.5 features out of an advertised 4 could only be classed as average. The missing feature is disk optimization, and I could only class the backup feature as 50% useful (more on this later).
Universe Master is a program that has been advertised in Apple II publications for about twelve months now. When the adds first appeared, I was interested in the product, but I could not see the justification for the price of USD149.00. With the RRP dropping to USD99.00, and the "mail order" price of USD79.00, it is now competitively priced against its rivals (Prosel-16, USD70.00 and Salvation Supreme, USD89.95)
When I received Universe master, the first thing I noticed was the size of the manual (150 pages). Software manuals are usually to small or too large, but this one seems to have struck the perfect medium. Well written, it includes a tutorial and comprehensive index. Experienced users can use it as a reference, while beginners would be able to read the manual cover to cover. There is an excellent section titled "data loss survival guide" that is well worth reading, the average user can pick up a lot of tips here on how to make disasters less damaging.
When the program loads, you are presented with a well laid out screen, split into three sections (as well as the menu bar). Along the top of the screen is a list of online volumes (with relevant icons). If you have more that 5 drives online, the section of the window can scroll left/right to show all the volumes. Down the left hand side of the screen are 8 large "command buttons". These buttons are for the functions that are used the most. The remainder (majority) of the screen is for viewing the disk map, with a few small buttons along the bottom. Everything is well laid out and the program is easy to use.
After selecting a volume from the list along the top of the screen, Universe Master loads a previously stored map from the disk, and displays it in the large section of the screen. If Universe Master has not accessed this disk previously, it builds the map for you.
I feel that users of the program have not been warned sufficiently that this map could cause serious problems if allowed to be written back to a "damaged" disk. You could easily overwrite valuable data with the map information. In the original version of Universe master, you had to hold down the option key while the program was loading to stop this from happening. Problem was, the instructions were a little hidden in the manual, and I guess many people were burnt. Now, the program only writes the details to disk when you quit or select another volume. It still writes the details without asking, and I managed to get caught out a few times while testing the "recover" features. I would try to recover a file, only to discover that the stupid map had been written to disk on top of the file I wished to recover. Not a good execution of a good idea.
Once the map has appeared on screen, you select the folder you wish to work on from the map, and 8 buttons down the left become "lit". You can now perform the following operations:
* Copy: Copy the selected folder(s) and the files within to another disk or elsewhere on the same disk. Not a simple as Finder, and not as useful. It is impossible to specifically copy files, you must copy the entire folder.
* Delete: About as useful as copy. You cannot delete specific files, only folders and their entire contents.
* Backup: After reading the manual on "backups" I was impressed with the way it appeared to work, however on using it, I was very disappointed. The backup option runs off a script, generated by Universe Master. The script generation part of backup is very easy to use and very powerful. Multiple scripts can be joined together to create comprehensive backup scripts. The "ease of use" is extended by the ability to execute scripts from Finder. Universe Master even compresses files for you as it backs up. So what is the problem? Backup does NOT work if you have to change disks. It will NOT backup anything that will not fit on one disk. This is fine of you have a spare (& empty) hard disk to back up on to, or even a 44Mb removable disk, but for the average user that has to back up on to 3.5" floppies, the backup feature is useless. Econ Technologies have promised the ability to "span disks" when writing backups in version 1.1 (a free upgrade), but until then....
* Restore: The opposite of backup. Just as easy to use. One problem I did have with the backup facility is that when the backup is created, Universe Master merely creates folders and files on the destination volume with the same name as the source volume. If you try and open one of these folders from within Finder, Finder attempts to read it's "Finder.Data" file and gets confused by the invalid (compressed) information contained in this file. The result is that the window is opened into hyperspace (off the edge of the screen) and is confusing. The solution to this is to open the folder while holding down "Control", telling Finder to ignore the Finder.Data file. This is really a Finder problem, but is caused by Universe Master.
* Catalog: Lists all the files in the selected folder(s). The catalog details file name, size, and type. This catalog can be saved to disk as a text file.
* File Info: Displays specific information on the files in the selected folder(s). You are given the opportunity to alter some of the information, such as file type and "Access Attributes". The attributes control information such as invisible, backup needed etc. Other statistics such as size, modification date & others are also displayed.
* Recover: I am sure everyone has deleted a file that they didn't really mean to, and if you are like me, you realise just as you "Empty the trash". Normally, when this happens, it is possible to recover the file(s) and folder(s) you just trashed. If, however, you have written files to the disk after deleting your lifes work, the chances of recovery are greatly reduced. Universe Master will look for the files that you deleted, and give an estimate on your chances of recovering the file (if it can find it). The option is described as recover, not undelete, due to the way it works. Other utility programs just change the file entry from "deleted" to "active" and necessary housekeeping, refusing to work on anything that has been slightly damaged. Universe Master will only recover to another volume as it will attempt to recover as much of the file as possible, more than other utilities, and something you cannot do if you were writing back to the volume you are recovering. Unfortunately, due to the way it works, the "recover" option does not let you "undelete" any folders that you deleted. This must be done with "Validate File system" (later)
* Print: This button provides a print out of the disk hierarchy or a catalog of the folders selected. Unfortunately the hierarchy print out will do the entire disk, you cannot just print the "system" folder & below, for example. When printing the catalog, you can select what file information you want printed, the font & size, and save print templates for later use.
Other options:
There are a number of small buttons along the bottom of the window that provide infrequently used functions such as rescan devices, rebuild map, etc.
The Menu Bar:
The menu bar has it's features grouped in logical sections. From left to right we have:
File Menu:
* The standard new/open/save/close features.
* Copy one file: Allows you to copy one file at a time. You cannot copy more than one file at once.
* Delete one file: Opposite as copy. One file at a time. This option is made confusing by the file selection box describing the option as "open".
* Encode one file: Allows you to compress and/or encrypt one file. Much the same as the backup, except it only deals with one file
* Decode one file: Opposite of Encode
Edit Menu: Standard Edit menu options
Scripts: Various options for generating, maintaining & executing backup scripts
Folders: Options that allow you to rearrange folders to your liking.
Volumes:
* Summary: Provides a summary of all online volumes. Information listed includes: file system, total number of blocks and blocks free.
* Erase / Initialize: Standard Apple routines to erase or format a disk.
* Duplicate: Does a block copy of one disk to another. The two disks must be the same size. This is faster than copying all of the files on a volume.
Maintenance:
* Zero Unused blocks: The recovery features of Universe Master scan the disk to try and find files that are not part of the file system. Universe Master relies on empty blocks containing zeroes, or no data. Econ Technologies recommend you zero blocks on regular occasions. Doing this will help prevent Universe Master from detecting erroneous data as valid file structures when attempting to rebuild a disk.
* Edit Blocks: This allows you to directly edit blocks on the disk. This must only be done by experts with knowledge of ProDOS disk structures. Unfortunately the editor is not very powerful, omitting the mandatory "search" feature & many others. I would describe the editor as useless.
* Rebuild Volume: If you have every been through the trauma of having a hard disk "self destruct", you will appreciate this feature. Often when disks are "unreadable", it is only one or two blocks that are damaged. Universe Master will work around the problems. The manual details well the steps you should take to attempt to fix any problems. I repeatedly damaged and resurrected a 32Mb partition on my hard disk. Universe master was sucessfull in overcoming the damage on simple problems. It was not able to repair complicated disk corruption. To be fair, Prosel-16 could not repair the problems either. Major damage to disks can only be repaired by hand.
* Verify Media: I am sure everyone has had the mysterious "Error $27" when trying to run a program or load a document. If this I/O error occurs on a floppy disk, you should copy everything off the disk and throw it away, as it will only get worse. If, however, the errors occur on a hard disk, you can mark the blocks as "bad" and the operating system will work around the bad spot. The Verify Media option will identify any bad blocks, mark them as unusable, and notify you of any files that are damaged.
* Validate File System: This option will check the integrity of folders and files on your disk. It will report & optionally repair any damage encountered in the file system. Another option will cause Universe Master to scan the disk for "orphan folders". You can then restore the orphan. If you have deleted a folder by mistake, this is the only way to resurrect it. Once Universe Master has found the orphan, you can repair the damage. Unfortunately you cannot selectively restore the orphan, you must restore all of them, and then go back and delete whatever you don't want. After restoring the orphans, you must continue to validate & repair the disk until all errors have been eliminated.
In conclusion, I would rate Universe Master as poor. Until Econ Technologies can produce v1.1 (it will be a free upgrade), the program is not worth the high price tag. Perhaps the missing features and a lower price tag would make the program justifiable, but until then, I could not recommend it. While much easier to use than Prosel-16, it does not even come close to Prosel's features. Three out of Ten.
Universe Master v1.02
Written by D. Proni.
Not copy protected.
Requires Apple IIGS, 1.5Mb RAM, System 6.0 or above, Hard disk.
Review copy supplied by Econ Technologies, PO Box 195356, Winter Springs, FL, 32719 USA.
Also available from Two Series Software, PO Box 1, West Hoxton, NSW, 2171. (02)606-9343
Note: No guarantee is made as to the ability of Universe Master to resurrect a damaged or corrupt disk. If you have a disk that needs recovering, please contact the author for help. My phone number is in the front of the magazine.

THIS CONTENT COPYRIGHT © 2007, APPLE MACINTOSH USERS' GROUP, SYDNEY
Permission has been obtained to make this material available on the Internet.

Permission is hereby granted for non-profit user groups to republish this content.
PLEASE CREDIT THE AUTHOR AND THE SOURCE: Applecations, publication of the Apple Users' Group, Sydney, Australia

THIS PAGE COPYRIGHT © 2007, ANDREW ROUGHAN