On Wed, 28 Apr 1999, fission wrote:

> Okay...just looking at Technote 1061 document at:
> http://developer.apple.com/technotes/tn/tn1061.html 
> 
> "The Open Firmware user interface ... comes up in two-machine mode.  You
> can connect the two machines together using the serial ports and cable.
> Start with the modem ports for simplicity.  Open Firmware defaults to the
> modem port.  Use a communication application such as..."

This info is machine specific. It's true for the 6400, but not true for
the G3's - they default to single machine configuration.

> Okay...I've only started working with Macintoshes this year, so bear with
> me.
> 
> I've got a printer cable plugged into a printer port on an old Mac Classic
> and into a printer port in the Macintosh Performa 6400, the computer I am
> trying to install NetBSD 1.3.3 on.  I have ClarisWorks communications on
> the Classic, settings at 38400/8/N/1.  I would use the modem port on the
> Classic but it is in use [I have used the printer port before to send
> files between these two machines], and on the 6400, there is a piece of
> plastic covering my modem port [I have a COM slot modem card].  When I
> boot and press Command-Option-O-F, nothing happens.
> 
> What I am assuming has happened is that Open Firmware has tried to
> establish a connection over the modem port, which is being "used" in a way
> by the COM slot modem.  And I can't plug in a cable to the modem port
> because of the plastic covering it.
> 
> So, is it possible to remove the plastic thing?  And, I also assume the
> modem would have to be removed if I did so.  Or is it possible to somehow
> configure Open Firmware to use the printer port?

I have no clue about the modem port, but I'd suggest not messing w/ it.

What you want to do is get a copy of bootvariables, which I think comes
from Apple. I've got version 1.3.

It will let you much with all of the boot variables which OF will use.

If you check the all variables option, you'll see lots of stuff. Two
interesting ones are input-device and output-device. They default to
"ttya" and "ttya". If you set them to "ttyb", then OFW should use the
printer port. To boot my 8500, I set them to "kbd" and "/chaos/control"
respectively, and it uses the screen (though there are problems - the
screen is messy). I'm not sure what output-device you want for the screen.

Once you boot off the printer, do

dev /
dev aliases
.properties

which should show all the aliases. If one is screen, you can use it for
output-device, I think.

Good luck!

Take care,

Bill