OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

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garyj
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OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by garyj »

Hi ~ In SheepShaver, my "OS9" Folder/Drive, where my system folder lives, there is only 3.4 Mb of unused space. I would like to install Adobe Acrobat Reader, but the installer says it needs more room in that folder to install.
Can you please tell me how to enlarge that System folder folder, if possible?
I also plan to install Adobe Type Manager there which also may need room in the System folder...

Also, I've heard that I should dump my documents to be trashed into the UNIX drive and trash them on the OSX side. But I've been using the OS9 trashcan and Option–Emptying the trash there, which seems to work fine. Is there any problem with that?

Thanks much, in advance!
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

Enlarging the OS9 startup disk can be done by copying its content to a larger volume:

- Tidy up the SheepShaver desktop, put all loose files and folders on the OS9 disk
- In the volumes list in SheepShaver preferences, create a larger volume, for instance 1 or 2 GB (1000 or 2000 MB) in size.
- Shut down SheepShaver and start it again.
- Allow the new volume to be initialized. In the dialog, choose an appropriate name for the volume and choose Mac OS Extended for the format.
- Copy all files and folders from the OS9 volume to the new larger volume
- When the copy is complete, check whether the System Folder on the new volume shows its System Folder icon. If it only shows a generic folder icon, open the folder so the Finder can "see" the "System" and "Finder" files inside. That way the folder will obtain its icon. (This is called "blessing" the System Folder.)
- In the volumes list in preferences, remove the original OS9 volume, so SheepShaver can start up from the copied system. The new volume should best be on the first line in the list.
- Shut down SheepShaver and start it again.
garyj
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by garyj »

Thank you, Ronald!

Any comments about my Trash question?
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adespoton
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by adespoton »

Where did you hear that from regarding the trash? If you copy them to the Unix folder, it'll still be on the disk image, and will still need to be dragged to the trash. Copying to the Unix folder does the opposite of what you want; it makes a copy instead of removing the file.

HOWEVER, if a file is *iin* the Unix folder, *don't* drag it to the trash; remove it from your host OS instead, as it's not really inside the guest operating system.

[edit] this can get confusing on the desktop, as both the Unix folder and your guest disk images can place files there -- but they're really in the Desktop folder on the parent disk. Don't store things from the Unix folder on the desktop so you won't accidentally try to throw them in the trash. Instead, any file you want to use that's in the Unix folder should be copied to a disk internal to SheepShaver before use.
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classicmacreborn
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by classicmacreborn »

Yeah. Also if by any chance you have an alias in your startup items that points to an application in the Unix folder it can sometimes have problems.

Sometimes the shared desktop folder can get confusing. If I find something on my desktop folder that's actually stored in the unix folder, I'll immediately copy it (to the desktop) to avoid the confusion. Hope that wasn't...confusing.
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

There is no such thing as "the" desktop folder in classic MacOS. Each volume has its own "Desktop Folder". Those folders are hidden in the MacOS Finder . What you see as the desktop is the combined content of desktops of all mounted volumes. When you drag something directly from the Unix volume to the desktop, it is moved into the Desktop Folder inside the shared folder on the OSX side, which is visible there.

To avoid confusion, it is best to never drag items directly from Unix onto the desktop. First copy them to one of the other mounted volumes.
Also if by any chance you have an alias in your startup items that points to an application in the Unix folder it can sometimes have problems.
That will always give problems. You can use (open or save) document files in "Unix", but you cannot use applications while they reside in "Unix". Always copy an application to one of the other mounted volumes and launch it there.
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classicmacreborn
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by classicmacreborn »

Ronald P. Regensburg wrote:There is no such thing as "the" desktop folder in classic MacOS. Each volume has its own "Desktop Folder". Those folders are hidden in the MacOS Finder . What you see as the desktop is the combined content of desktops of all mounted volumes. When you drag something directly from the Unix volume to the desktop, it is moved into the Desktop Folder inside the shared folder on the OSX side, which is visible there.
Yup... I was talking about the invisible desktop folder at the root level of the mounted drive with the currently booted System Folder :-)

What I was trying to say is: if you copy something from unix to the desktop, it will wind up in the invisible Desktop Folder at the root of the booted hard drive. But if you move something from unix to the desktop, it will end up in unix's desktop folder. Hehe, you can also lock desktop folder in the shared folder with your host system to keep you from forgetting, and keep things tidy.

I think we're on the same page.
Ronald P. Regensburg wrote:Always copy an application to one of the other mounted volumes and launch it there.
I agree absolutely.
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

classicmacreborn wrote:Hehe, you can also lock desktop folder in the shared folder with your host system to keep you from forgetting, and keep things tidy.
Good idea. Never thought of that. I will do it here right away. :smile:
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adespoton
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by adespoton »

Funny; I've never thought of doing that either, but it's a perfect solution!

The reason the Unix/shared folder is a problem here is that it doesn't fully support resource forks other than for copying. So you can open/save data files to it with no issues, but if you try opening/saving a file with a resource fork, you're going to run into problems.

However, I can't remember if you can mount data-fork-only disk images from the Unix folder; some niggling memory tells me you can't, even though this doesn't have to do with resource forks.
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by Jorpho »

adespoton wrote:The reason the Unix/shared folder is a problem here is that it doesn't fully support resource forks other than for copying. So you can open/save data files to it with no issues, but if you try opening/saving a file with a resource fork, you're going to run into problems.
Doesn't that just create a folder named ".finf" in the relevant directory of the shared folder, with the resource fork data inside? Of course, that gets pretty messy if you start doing it frequently.
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adespoton
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Re: OS9 System folder space... and the Trash

Post by adespoton »

If you read/write, it uses the .finf files for the resource fork, but if you're using toolbox calls, some don't appear to be implemented in the virtual filesystem used for the Unix folder, and it appears to have something to do with resource handling.
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