"I've got to level with you, Ms. Novice."
We're up against Blacky Powerout--a
master criminal who preys on computer
novices.
^
Really?  What does this Blacky do?
^
He shows up unexpectedly and pulls the
power plug.
^
Unless you're on your toes with your
"Apple II, you'll be kissing some"
important info good-bye and saying hello
to a lot of extra work.
^
That's right.  I have to retype
everything I lost this morning.
^
Hope it isn't too much.  Now let's
retrace this morning's events.
^
"Sure.  First, I put a startup disk in"
the disk drive and turned on the
computer.
^
"When you do that, the microprocessor"
takes some instructions from ROM and
then checks the disk drive for a disk.
Watch....
^
"If there's a disk, the microprocessor"
looks for an OPERATING SYSTEM on it.
^
The microprocessor needs the operating
system to handle the flow of information
between the disk and RAM--the temporary
storage area.
^
So a copy of this operating system is
put into RAM.  Like this...
^
Sometimes your disk also has a PROGRAM
on it.  And that gets put into RAM next.
^
You mean the program is on the disk and
that's why the Apple II can be a game
machine one minute and a word processor
or whatever the next?
^
You got it.  It's the program that
creates the personality of the computer.
You were using a word processor this
"morning, weren't you?"
^
"Yes, I was."
^
"OK, so you had started up, or booted,"
the Apple II.
^
And you had RAM with the operating
system and the word processing program
loaded in.  What did you do next?
^
I started typing.  And I kept it up for
almost half an hour.  Then the accident
"happened, or should I say 'the crime'!"
^
Let me show you what was going on when
you were typing.  Type your first name
now and then press RETURN.
^
See.  Whatever you type appears on your
screen and gets put into RAM.
^
I get it.  Nothing I've typed is
permanent yet because it's just in RAM
and not on the disk.
^
"Absolutely.  Hey, you're good at this"
"stuff.  If you want to keep your info,"
you've got to send it from RAM to the
disk.
^
Each program will differ in the exact
way you do this.  But the principle is
always the same.
^
Let's see.  How do I know where to put
it on the disk?
^
"Good question.  In fact, you don't have"
to worry about where.  That's one of
the jobs of the operating system.
^
It's like this.  All the stuff on the
disk is kept in various FILES.
^
A file can contain anything--an
"operating system, a program, a letter to"
"Auntie Shift, whatever."
^
But each file on a disk has to have its
own unique FILENAME.
^
"And when you save your info, you pick"
that filename.
^
Say you choose the filename MY.NAME.
Here's what happens when you save...
^
I see.  I can make the filename anything
I want.
^
"Within certain limits, yes.  But it's"
a good idea to pick a name that
describes the contents of the file.
^
But the really important point is to
save FREQUENTLY--every 10 minutes or
so.
^
That's what you didn't do this morning.
And Blacky caught you.  The power went
"off, and all your work disappeared from"
RAM.
^
What happened?  Is he here again?
^
"Naw, that was me.  I just switched off"
the Apple II myself.  Watch what happens
when I switch it back on...
^
"As I said, this is called starting up,"
"or booting, the Apple II."
^
And now I can get back the work I stored
"on the disk, can't I?"
^
You got it.  You can load a copy of
"MY.NAME back into RAM.  Again, the exact"
way you do this will be a little
different with each program.
^
But the idea is the same--put a copy of
the info you want to work on into the
computer.  Like this...
^
And there are the contents of MY.NAME in
RAM.
^
Now go ahead and change the name.
Press RETURN when you're finished.
^
I get it.  I've changed the info in
"RAM, but the file on the disk is"
exactly as it was.
^
"Right!  Now you can save again, and"
you've got a couple of possibilities.
^
Hmmm.  I can save the information as
MY.NAME again.
^
"That's fine.  If you do that, though,"
you'll write over the old file.
^
You could also pick a new filename and
keep the old version around.
^
"It's up to you.  Just remember:  Saving"
things with the same filename will erase
the old file.
^
"Well, Ms. Novice, I hope this little"
tour of the Apple II was helpful.
^
"Yes, Mr. Capslock.  It's been a great"
help.  And now I've got a little
surprise for you...
^
I couldn't believe my peepers.  This
Novice woman reaches up and takes off
"her false nose, and then her wig."
^
It was Rita Return underneath!
^
"Rita Return!  What's happening?"
What are you doing here?
^
"Hi, Sherlock.  Just checking you out."
^
I can't believe it.  What's all this
about Nancy Novice?  You're one of the
engineers at Apple who designed the
Apple II!
^
Sure I am.  But I'm not going to lunch
with anyone who doesn't respect a
novice.  And you know what?
^
You did fine.  Now let's get after this
Blacky Powerout jerk before he causes
any more trouble.
^
So that was the hot beginning of the
"Powerout case.  We finally got our man,"
but that's another story...
^
Press RETURN for The Inside Story Game
"               or"
"   ESC to go back to the menu."
^EOF

