Programmer's Reference for System 6.0
The Byte Works
Copyright (c) 1992 Apple Users' Group, Sydney
Republished from Applecations, a publication of the Apple Users' Group, Sydney, Australia.
The Byte Works recently released "Programmer's Reference for System 6.0". This book is the latest in the series of Apple IIGS reference books which include the Apple IIGS Toolbox Reference Volumes 1-3 and the Apple IIGS GS/OS Reference. "Programmer's Reference for System 6.0" covers all of the changes, enhancements and additions to the Apple IIGS operating system since these books were published for System 5.0.
This complete technical reference to System 6.0 includes:
* New tool calls and tool updates
* Documentation for these new tools: MIDI Synth, Media Control Tool Set, and Video Overlay Tool Set
* Finder documentation
* GS/OS Update
* Information about the new FSTs
* Sound Control Panel documentation
The Toolbox Concordance
The toolbox documentation streatches across four volumes, now. Between the original documentation, error corrections, clarifications, and new features, some of the tool calls are actually documented in as many as three different books!
The Toolbox Concordance lists all of the places you need to look to find information about a tool call. Every tool call in the entire suite of books is listed. You also get a comprehensive list of all of the error codes used throughout the Apple IIGS operating system, from the tools to GS/OS errors to the System errors.
Toolbox Updates
System 6.0 came with a lot of new features, including the new rectangle and thermometer controls, animated cursors, named resources, new dialog tools that handle all of the controls and the new Media Control Tool Set, Video Overlay Tool Set and MIDI Synth Tool Set. Programmer's Reference for System 6.0 tells you how to use these new features in your own programs.
Changes to GS/OS
Programmer's Reference for System 6.0 is your best source for changes to GS/OS. You'll learn about the new GS/OS calls, changes to the existing calls, and the errors in the original documentation. You will get an update to Apple IIGS GS/OS Reference, which was written for System 5.0. You'll discover the latest on the new FSTs (AppleShare FST, HFS FST, DOS 3.3 FST, and the Pascal FST), the new Initialization Manager, and more.
Finder 6.0
Our documentation of the 6.0 Finder really includes two different kinds of information. First, it tells you how to use the Finder. It describes all of the cool new features for Finder 6.0, but it assumes you are a reasonably computer literate person, and don't need to be told which end of the disk to stick in the drive. You also get all of the technical details you need to make your programs work smoothly with Finder 6.0, including information about the new rBundle and rVersion resources, how to write Finder extensions, and how the Finder communicates with other programs.
New Resource Types
There are a lot of new resources, and the Programmer's Reference for System 6.0 tells you all about them. You also get information about the changes to the system resource file, so you know about the new resources you can use from your own programs.
While there are several new resource types, the major ones are the rBundle, rComment, rVersion and rFinderPath resources. You need to use these resources in all new programs, since they tell the Finder what kinds of data files your program can handle, what icons to use, what version number to display, and what to tell the user about your programs and data files.
Technical Appendices
Several other appendices fill in the details. You will learn about the new uses for the Battery RAM, get an update on how to write your own tools, and get a complete listing of the standard font characters for both the Apple IIGS and Macintosh computers.
What You Get
Programmer's Reference for System 6.0 comes in a 3-ring binder to make it easy to use. Because of the format, you can add your own notes, and we will be able to mail update chapters if the need arises. The binder includes attractive inserts, so you can quickly find the book on your shelf.
The documentation itself is a whopping 478 pages of detailed technical information, following the same style as the toolbox reference manuals. This is final documentation, not beta documentation. A comprehensive table of contents makes it easy to find the information you need, and the extensive index and concordance help cross-reference information by topic.
Programmer's Reference for System 6.0 is published by The Byte Works and is available from:
Resource Central
PO Box 11250
Overland Park, KS 66207-1250
(913) 469-6502 (voice)
(913) 469-6507 (fax)

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