An old Mac problem.

October 30, 2006 8:49 AM

I have an old Mac (SI - 68030 processor) with a number of files I want to access.

They are ClarisWorks and MSWorks files.I can open them of course on the Mac, but I no longer have a printer attached to it, or even know of one that is compatible. My current system is a PC/XP. Can anyone suugest a means of printing them from my PC (or know of a printer tha is compatible with the Mac). The formatting is quite complex, as these are math files with expressions formatted by MathType. The Mac has no internet access, no CD, and only a floppy drive for data transfer, although I could get access to a zip drive. I've tried emulating (using BasiliskII) the Mac on my PC, but can't get it to recognize the printer while emulating.

posted by Neiltupper to computers & internet (3 answers total)

Install the Laserwriter driver on Basilisk, save the print files as EPS. Open that on the PC, print.
posted by bonaldi at 9:40 AM on October 30, 2006

Apart from Basilisk II, there's also the Mini vMac emulator.

I've had some success in the past in accessing old Mac files on a Windows PC by using QuickView Plus.
posted by ijsbrand at 10:12 AM on October 30, 2006

Another approach might be to print them from the Mac. Checking ebay, I see a number of old Apple LaserWriters for sale. I believe you'd need either an 8-pin serial cable or a couple of Localtalk dongles and some phone line to connect them.

I'm pretty sure that you'll be able to print to any Postscript laser printer that you can physically connect to using the IIsi's built-in Laser Printer driver. Or you might be able to network the IIsi to your current system using a Localtalk/Ethernet gateway. Low End Mac is a good resource for this kind of thing.
posted by adamrice at 10:49 AM on October 30, 2006