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Getting Started

Conventions

This document uses the following formatting conventions:

ℹ️ NOTE: Information that is useful but incidental to the text appears like this.

⚠️ WARNING: Important warnings appear like this.

🚧 FUTURE: Notes about upcoming versions of DeskTop appear like this.

Keyboard shortcuts will be called out using these symbols: 

△ = Open Apple (labeled ⌘ on some keyboards)

▲ = Solid Apple (labeled Option on some keyboards)

Compatibility

Apple II DeskTop requires an Apple II, compatible, or emulator with at least 128k of RAM and double hi-res graphics support. This includes the following models:

• Apple IIe (except the rare Revision A motherboards), with Extended 80-Column Card

• Enhanced Apple IIe, with Extended 80-Column Card

• Apple IIc

• Apple IIc Plus

• Apple IIgs

• Apple IIe Option Card for Macintosh

• Laser 128, 128EX, and 128EX/2

• Franklin ACE 500, 2000, 2100 and 2200

• Emulators such as Virtual ][ (macOS), AppleWin (Windows), MAME (including Ample), Apple //jse and Apple2TS (browser-based).

A mouse is strongly recommended, although most functions are available via the keyboard. 

DeskTop uses the double hi-res display mode. On the Apple IIgs, or on systems with RGB adapters (e.g. A2 VidGA, Video 7, AppleColor RGB card, Le Chat Mauve, etc) and a compatible monitor, DeskTop will automatically switch the display to monochrome mode. On other systems, the display may appear in color and text may be blurry. See Help for some solutions.

DeskTop is a ProDOS 8 application, and works best on a mass storage device or at least an 800k floppy. Running from a 140k floppy is possible (without desk accessories) but is not recommended.

ℹ️ NOTE: Certain features are known to fail with versions of ProDOS before 1.1. Booting with a newer version is recommended.

⚠️ WARNING: DeskTop is not compatible with the experimental ProDOS 2.5. Booting with an earlier version (e.g. ProDOS 2.4.3) is required. Files already on disks with mixed-case names created with ProDOS 2.5 will be displayed correctly.

⚠️ WARNING: DeskTop is not compatible with the experimental ProDOS.FX from the A2osX project. Booting with an earlier version (e.g. ProDOS 2.0.3) is required.

Installation

Apple II DeskTop is distributed as a ZIP file containing multiple disk images:

• A2DeskTop-1.3...32MB.hdv is a 32MB "live install" disk image containing the the full application and all accessories. This is intended for use with emulators or modern solid state drives like the Floppy Emu or CFFA3000.

• A2DeskTop-1.3...800k.2mg is an 800k "live install" disk image containing the full application and all accessories. You can transfer it to an 3.5" floppy using ADTPro. 

• A2DeskTop-1.3...140k_disk1.po, A2DeskTop-1.3...140k_disk2.po, and so on are 140k disk images containing different parts of the application. You can transfer the images to 5.25" floppies using ADTPro. When copying the files from 140k disk images to a larger disk, arrange the files as shown below.

An Apple II DeskTop installation has the following structure: 

• 📄 DESKTOP.SYSTEM (system file) — You run this to launch DeskTop. 

• 📁 MODULES (subdirectory) — Contains the different sub-applications (DeskTop, Selector, and Disk Copy). 

• 📁 APPLE.MENU (subdirectory) — Contains Desk Accessories (DAs) that appear in the Apple menu.

• 📁 PREVIEW (subdirectory) — Contains file preview accessories.

  • 🚧 This directory is no longer present in version 1.4. 🚧

• 📁 EXTRAS (subdirectory) — Contains optional components.

• 📁 LOCAL (subdirectory) — Created when you run DeskTop. Contains configuration and temporary files.

You can install and run Apple II DeskTop in two ways:

• Boot directly into DeskTop. To do this, place the above files and directories in the root of your boot disk. If DESKTOP.SYSTEM is the first system file on the disk (after any device drivers such as CLOCK.SYSTEM) then ProDOS will run DeskTop automatically. This is how the packaged .HDV and .2MG "live install" disk images are configured. 

• Boot into a ProDOS selector such as Bitsy Bye, and launch DeskTop manually.  To do this, copy the above files and directories into a specific directory on your boot disk, such as A2.DESKTOP. To run DeskTop, select this directory then run DESKTOP.SYSTEM.

Quick Tips

• No mouse? Check out sections below on controlling the DeskTop with the keyboard and general keyboard controls.

Using the DeskTop

The DeskTop is a program for managing the contents of disks, running programs, and previewing text and graphics files. It provides a graphical user interface like the macOS Finder or the Windows Explorer shell. It requires the ProDOS operating system for the Apple II. It works best with a mouse, although most functions are available via keyboard as well.

ℹ️ NOTE: It is assumed that the reader is familiar with modern desktop operating systems and using the mouse to control windows, icons and menus. Only features specific to DeskTop will be called out.

Starting DeskTop

Execute the DESKTOP.SYSTEM file from a ProDOS selector (such as Bitsy Bye) to launch DeskTop. 

⚠️ WARNING: The ProDOS /RAM volume will be disconnected while DeskTop is running, and any contents will be lost.

ℹ️ NOTE: If a RAM expansion card such as an Apple II Memory Expansion Card or RAMWorks card and a RAM disk is present, then DeskTop will copy itself the RAM disk. This allows DeskTop to restart faster. Hold down △ or ▲ while starting to prevent this.

Once DeskTop has started, a menu bar will appear at the top of the screen. If your system has a real-time clock and appropriate ProDOS driver, a clock showing the day of the week and current time will appear in the upper right. Icons for ProDOS volumes will appear along the right side of the screen (and bottom if necessary). A Trash can icon will appear in the lower right of the screen. If you have run DeskTop before and exited with windows open, those windows will reopen as well. 

Working With Disks

Icons represent the type of volume:

• 5.25" floppy icon for 140k disks.

• 3.5" floppy icon for 800k disks.

• RAM card icon for RAM disks.

• File share icon for AppleTalk, VEDRIVE/VSDRIVE, and other network drives.

• CD icon for CD-ROM disks.

• ProFile external hard disk icon for all other disk types. 

If a drive supports ejecting disks, drag the volume icon to the Trash to eject it, or use the Special > Eject Disk command or the △-E shortcut.

On some systems and some drive types, DeskTop can detect if a disk is manually ejected or replaced. On others, it is necessary to use commands. Special > Check All Drives will close all windows and check all drives for disks. Use Special > Check Drive to check only the drive holding the selected disk.

ProDOS disks can be formatted or erased using Special > Format a Disk... or Special > Erase a Disk... respectively.

ProDOS, DOS 3.3, and Pascal formatted disks can be copied using the Special > Disk Copy... command (see below).

ℹ️ NOTE: Disk Copy is a launched as a separate program. You may restart DeskTop after running this command by selecting File > Quit.

Working With Files

Double-click a volume icon to show a window containing icons for each file in the volume. Icons represent different ProDOS file types:

ℹ️ NOTE: DeskTop is limited to displaying up to 127 icons at once. If there are not enough icons available to display a directory's files, DeskTop will ask you to close a window and try again.

Moving, Copying, and Deleting Files

Drag a volume icon onto a window, folder or volume icon to copy the contents of the source volume into the destination.

Select more than one icon by dragging a rectangle around the icons, or by holding △ (or Shift on the IIgs) while clicking each icon.

To move files on the same volume, drag the file icons to a window, volume icon, or folder icon. To copy files on the same volume instead, start the drag then hold down △ or ▲ while dropping.

To copy files to a different volume, drag the file icons to a window, volume icon, or folder icon. To move files to a different volume instead, start the drag then hold down △ or ▲ while dropping.

To delete files, drag the file icons to the Trash, or use the △-Delete shortcut. 

⚠️ WARNING: Deleted files can not be recovered from the Trash, unlike in modern operating systems.

You can use the File > Copy To... and File > Delete  commands instead of dragging icons. 

View Options

The View menu allows changing how the contents of a window appear: as icons, or as a textual list sorted by name, date, size or type.

Previewing Files

You can preview Text, Graphics, Music and Font files without leaving DeskTop. Either double-click the file, or select the file use the File > Open command. Use the Esc key to exit the preview.

ℹ️ NOTE: Previews are handled by desk accessories present in the PREVIEW directory. 

Using BASIS.SYSTEM

ProDOS 2.4's Bitsy Bye introduces the notion of BASIS.SYSTEM as a fallback interpreter. DeskTop will try to use this when you open a file that DeskTop does not know how to open. DeskTop will look for BASIS.SYSTEM in the same directory or a parent directory and use it to open the file.

ℹ️ NOTE: ProDOS 2.4 disks can use custom files named BASIS.SYSTEM to support different file types. For example, a disk with video demos will name the player application BASIS.SYSTEM. Selecting video files from Bitsy Bye will launch it automatically. Bitsy Bye only looks in the root directory of the drive, unlike DeskTop.

Startup Menu

The Startup menu shows options for restarting the computer from any slot with a disk drive. For example, Startup > Slot 6 is the same as typing PR#6 from BASIC.

Shortcuts Menu

The Shortcuts menu allows you to edit a list of applications that appear in the menu itself. You can add up to 8 shortcuts to the menu, and you can run them from the menu or using the △-1 through △-8 keyboard shortcuts.

The shortcuts also appear in the separate Selector application (see below). You can add 16 more shortcuts which only appear in the Shortcuts > Run a Shortcut... dialog or the Selector application.

ℹ️ NOTE: Any type of file can be specified as shortcut, but SYS, S16, BAS, and BIN files make the most sense.

When you add or edit an shortcut, you can configure DeskTop to copy it to a RAM disk, either when DeskTop starts or when the entry is first used. DeskTop will copy the entire application directory including subdirectories to the RAM disk.

ℹ️ NOTE: When copying to a RAM disk, DeskTop will copy the entire directory containing the target file.

Keyboard Shortcuts

It is possible to execute most functions of Apple II DeskTop with the keyboard. Menus will display shortcuts for many actions. These shortcuts can also be used:

⚠️ WARNING: Some keyboard controls behave unpredictably on the Apple IIe if a mouse card is present but no mouse is attached.

Windows

• △-Tab or △-` — Cycle through open windows. △-Shift-` (or △-Shift-Tab on the IIgs) cycles in reverse order.

• △-G — Resize window; Arrow keys to resize, Return to finish, Esc to cancel.

• △-M — Move window; Arrow keys to move, Return to finish, Esc to cancel.

• △-X — Scroll contents; Arrow keys to scroll, Esc or Return when done.

• △-Up Arrow — Open the parent of the current window.

• △-▲-Up Arrow — Open the parent of the current window, then close the current window.

Icons

• Arrow keys — Cycle through selectable icons.

• Tab or ` — Cycles through selectable icons in alphabetical order. Shift-` (or Shift-Tab on the IIgs) cycles in reverse order.

• Type a file or volume name — Select the matching icon.

• △-Down Arrow — Open (or preview) the selected icon(s).

• △-▲-Down Arrow or △-▲-O — Open the selected folder(s), then close the current window. 

Menu Shortcuts

ℹ️ NOTE: If a menu command does not have a shortcut listed here, you can press Esc to activate the menu and then use the arrow keys and Return to select any menu item.

• File Menu

  • △-N — New Folder...

  • △-O — Open

  • △-W — Close Window

  • △-▲-W — Close All

  • △-A — Select All

  • △-I — Get Info

  • Return — Rename...

  • △-D — Duplicate...

  • △-Delete — Delete (or Eject, if volumes are selected)

  • △-Q — Quit

• Special Menu

  • △-E — Eject Disk

• Shortcuts Menu

  • △-0 — Run a Shortcut... (dialog)

  • △-1 ... △-8 — Run a specific shortcut.

ℹ️ NOTE: You can use ▲ instead of △ for most command shortcuts.

See the General Keyboard Controls section below for more.

Desk Accessories

The Apple menu contains accessories, which are small applications that can be run without leaving DeskTop. Some accessories operate on the current selection. Some are useful utilities, while others are purely for entertainment.

ℹ️ NOTE: The Apple IIgs supported different types of desk accessories: Classic Desk Accessories (CDAs) and New Desk Accessories (NDAs). NDAs run in the GS/OS Finder and are not compatible with DeskTop. CDAs run in the text-based Control Panel and can be installed when booting ProDOS-8 using P8CDA.

Some items in the Apple menu open DeskTop windows which contain more Desk Accessories. Run them by double-clicking the icons.

Sort Directory 

This accessory will reorder the files in the current window (volume or directory).

• • If any files are selected, these are moved to the start of the directory listing, in selection order; other files appear after, order unchanged.

  • If no files are selected, all files are sorted by type (DIR, TXT, SYS, then others), and further sorted alphabetically by filename.

ℹ️ NOTE: The Sort Directory accessory will only work with local disks. It will not work with network file shares.

Control Panels

Control Panels let you change or inspect properties of DeskTop, ProDOS, or your computer.

Screen Savers

Screen Savers provide full-screen visual entertainment. They must be run manually. 

Toys

These accessories are just for fun. 

Extras

Inside the A2.Desktop folder is an Extras folder containing more accessories. You can run these from the folder, or make them appear in the Apple menu by moving them into the APPLE.MENU folder and removing other accessories to make room.

Screen Dump

Dumps a screenshot to an ImageWriter II attached to a Super Serial Card in Slot 1. Works best if added to the Apple or Shortcuts menu.

Print Catalog

Dumps a listing of files in the current window (and all descendants) to a printer in Slot 1. Works best if added to the Apple or Shortcuts menu.

Using Disk Copy

From DeskTop, selecting Special > Disk Copy... will launch the Disk Copy application. Disk Copy allows you to copy ProDOS, DOS 3.3, and Pascal formatted disks. 

Disk Copy supports two modes:

• Quick Copy (the default) — for ProDOS disks, only disk blocks that are in use are copied. For other formats, all disk blocks are copied.

• Disk Copy — all disk blocks are copied. 

Use the Options menu to switch modes.

You may restart DeskTop after running this command by selecting File > Quit or pressing △-Q.

Using the Selector

The Selector allows quickly launching programs via shortcuts without starting the whole DeskTop. A list of up to 24 shortcuts are shown. The Selector application is normally disabled. In DeskTop, use the Startup Options control panel to enable it. If it is enabled, then running DESKTOP.SYSTEM will launch the Selector instead of DeskTop.

To run a shortcut, either double-click it, click it and then click OK, or use the arrow keys or type a number key (1 through 8) then press Return.

To launch the DeskTop, click the DeskTop button or press Q.

The menus offer additional commands:

Use File > Run a Program... (or press △-R) to show a file selection dialog. You can browse disks and directories to find a program to run.

ℹ️ NOTE: You can run SYS, S16, BAS, and BIN files.

The Startup menu shows options for restarting the computer from any slot known to contain a disk drive. For example, Startup > Slot 6 is equivalent to typing PR#6 from BASIC. With the keyboard, use △-1 ... △-7 to boot from a slot.

To configure the options shown in the Selector, launch DeskTop and use the options in the Shortcuts menu to add, edit, or remove shortcuts. When adding or editing a shortcut, it can be set to be copied to a RAM disk either when DeskTop is started or when the shortcut is first used, for faster startup. If so specified, the entire directory containing the application along with any subdirectories will be copied to the RAM disk at the appropriate time.

Keyboard Shortcuts

While Selector is starting, you can use keyboard shortcuts to skip showing the Selector:

• Hold down △ or ▲ and a number key 1 through 7 to boot that slot immediately.

• Hold down Q to run DeskTop.

• Hold down a number key 1 through 8 to run that shortcut.

Once Selector has started, you can use the arrow keys or number keys 1 through 8 to select an item and press Return to run it, or press Q to run DeskTop.

General Keyboard Controls

These shortcuts apply in DeskTop, Selector, Disk Copy, and within Desk Accessories.

⚠️ WARNING: Some keyboard controls behave unpredictably on the Apple IIe if a mouse card is present but no mouse is attached.

Menus

• Esc — enter menu mode; Arrow keys to navigate, Return to select, Esc to cancel.

ℹ️ NOTE: In MAME, Arrow keys move the mouse pointer as well, which confuses DeskTop. See Help for  more info.

Text Input Fields

• Left Arrow and Right Arrow — Move the insertion point through the text.

• △-Left Arrow and △-Right Arrow — Move the insertion point to the start and end of the text, respectively. (▲ works too.)

• Control-X (or Clear on the IIgs) — Clear all of the text.

• Delete— Delete character to the left of the insertion point.

• Control-F — Delete character to the right of the insertion point.

List Box Controls

• Up Arrow and Down Arrow — Move through list items.

• △-Up Arrow and △-Down Arrow — Scroll up/down by a page.

• △-▲-Up Arrow and △-▲-Down Arrow — Move to the first/last item in the list.

Grid Controls

• Up Arrow and Down Arrow — Move through list items by row.

• Left Arrow and Right Arrow — Move through list items by column.

Dialog Boxes

• In most dialog boxes, Return is the same as clicking OK and Esc is the same as clicking Cancel. In dialog boxes without these options, either Return or Esc will close the dialog box.

• Other keyboard shortcuts may be available in dialogs. To see these, enable the Show shortcuts in dialogs option in the Options control panel.

File Dialog Boxes

• Control-D — Shows the list of disks in drives.

• Control-O — Open the selected disk or folder.

• Control-C — Close the current directory (go to the parent directory).

• In file dialogs without a name field, type a filename to select the matching list entry.

• In file dialogs with a name field, hold down △ or ▲ and type a file name to select the matching list entry. 

Mouse Keys

• To enter Mouse Keys mode, hold down △ and ▲ then press Space. A confirmation sound will play.

• Navigate the cursor with the Arrow keys, and click using ▲.

• To exit Mouse Keys mode, press the Esc key. A confirmation sound will play.

ℹ️ NOTE: Keyboard shortcuts (e.g. △-O) do not work while in Mouse Keys mode.

Tips and Tricks

Customizing the Apple Menu Entries

You can use the Sort Directory DA to order the files in the APPLE.MENU folder, which controls the menu order:

• Open the A2.DESKTOP/APPLE.MENU folder.

• Hold △ and click on each file in the desired order.

• Select Apple > Sort Directory, and verify the order.

• Select File > Quit, and relaunch DeskTop.

You can create folders inside the APPLE.MENU folder and move files inside them to organize the menu. When a folder is selected in the Apple menu, a window for the folder will be opened, showing the accessories. You can run them by double-clicking the icons.

To remove items from the Apple menu, you can do either of the following:

• Move the DA file out of the APPLE.MENU folder. You can run it later by double-clicking if needed.

• Use a utility to change the auxtype from $0641 to $8641.

You can copy the SHOW.TEXT.FILE, SHOW.IMAGE.FILE and SHOW.DUET.FILE accessories from the PREVIEW directory to the APPLE.MENU directory to make them appear on the Apple menu. You can then use them to preview files that do not have the correct ProDOS file types. After restarting, select a file to preview, then select the accessory from the Apple menu.

Executable files (SYS, BAS, BIN, etc) and previewable files (TXT, FOT, FNT, etc) can also be placed in the APPLE.MENU folder for quick access.

Extras

The EXTRAS folder contains some additional utilities. 

• DARKNESS is a desk accessory that paints the entire screen with a dark pattern. This is useful for developers who want to make sure that DeskTop is not repainting more than it needs to, e.g. when an icon is selected or a window is moved. It is useful to configure as a shortcut so it can be invoked with a key sequence such as △-1.

• UNSHRINK is invoked automatically by DeskTop to expand archive files. Utility by Andrew E. Nicholas.

• BINSCII is invoked automatically by DeskTop to decode BinSCII (.BSC/.BSQ) files. Utility by David Whitney.

• BASIC.SYSTEM is invoked automatically by DeskTop to run Applesoft BASIC files. You can run it manually to type in your own programs. 

• INTBASIC.SYSTEM is invoked automatically by DeskTop to run Integer BASIC files. You can run it manually to type in your own programs. See https://github.com/a2stuff/intbasic to learn more.

• AWLAUNCH.SYSTEM is invoked automatically by DeskTop to open AppleWorks files. It requires AppleWorks 5.1 with TimeOut extensions to be installed on the same disk as DeskTop, in a AW5 directory. Utility by Hugh Hood.

• PT3PLR.SYSTEM is invoked automatically by DeskTop to play Vortex Tracker PT3 files. Requires a Mockingboard in slot 4. See http://www.deater.net/weave/vmwprod/pt3_player/ for more information. Player by Vince Weaver.

  • 🚧 This is new in version 1.4. 🚧

If you run out of room in the Apple menu, accessories can also be added to the Shortcuts menu.

For Administrators

If the DESKTOP file is removed (or moved or renamed) from the MODULES folder, then DESKTOP.SYSTEM will launch the Selector instead, and there will be no option to launch DeskTop. This can be useful in classroom settings to limit user choices to a few selected programs.

Secrets and Mysteries

• The Calculator desk accessory has a tiny monogram resembling "JB" drawn in the title bar — possibly the "J. Bernard" thanked in the credits?

• In the This Apple desk accessory, type E to see what other Apple II models look like.