Transferring Macintosh Applications to A/UX

This note describes the basics for using the hfx utility. The note also presents guidelines for what information you need to include in a user's guide to accompany your software application. The hfx utility comes as a part of the A/UX 1.1 distribu­tion, and is a file-transfer tool with a Macintosh inte1face. The hfx utility works similarly to the Font/DA mover, a Macintosh utility.

Any Macintosh application that is written according to the guidelines in Inside Macintosh and that is 32-bit clean runs without change in the A/UX environ­ment. You simply transfer the application to your A/UX file system using the file­-transfer tool hfx. You should test the application thoroughly under A/UX before you publish that your application runs under A/UX.

Using the hfx utility

You need to start up A/UX and bring it to multiuser mode to use hfx. You can invoke hfx from any location in the file system, except another A/UX Toolbox ap­plication. The steps that follow outline the simple procedure a user completes to transfer and launch a Macintosh application.

  1. Start up A/UX.
  2. Bring A/UX to multiuser mode by using the init 2 command.
  3. Invoke the hfx utility by entering the hfx command.
  4. Mount the Macintosh volume containing the application you want to transfer by Using the "Look for Disks" menu commands, or by inserting a 3.5-inch disk into the internal disk drive and clicking Drive.
  5. Select a directory (folder) where you want the application to reside in your A/UX file system by opening directories or by using the volume-title menu to move up the file system structure.
  6. Select the application that you want to transfer by clicking on the filename in the list that appears as the contents of the current Macintosh disk.
  7. Click Copy.
  8. Click OK.
  9. Click Open.

The application should run just as it does in Macintosh OS. The first time you start up a Macintosh application in A/UX, you should use the option "Set background timer to 2 minutes." If the application runs successfully after two minutes, you will return to the A/UX shell or the hfx utility. Then you can disable the timer by deselecting the option and launch your application. If the application crashes, after two minutes A/UX returns control of the system to the console device, usually your Macintosh monitor.

Managing your application in A/UX

You can always start up Macintosh applications from the hfx utility. You can also use the launch command from a shell to start up applications. At the shell prompt, you enter the following command:

  • launch application_name

Replace the italics with the file name of the application. To open a document when you start up the application, enter the following command.

  • launch application_name filename

If your application doesn't run, try using the flag options for the launch command. If the application won't launch, use this command:

  • launch -i application_name

If the screen freezes while the application is running, try this command:

  • launch -t application_name

A/UX does not support low memory global variables. If your application utilizes them, you can use the -t option to initialize the system on start up.

To print a Macintosh document in A/UX, you follow standard Macintosh procedures. You must have a printer that uses AppleTalk software and is connected with LocalTalk compatible cables. The instructions for selling up a printer appear in A/UX Local System Administration and A/UX Network System Administration.

Documentation notes

Several important factors affect Macintosh applications and A/UX. You may want to include the following information as tips, warnings, and notes in your documenta­tion.

  • Warning - You must bring the system to multiuser mode to use A/UX Toolbox utilities. Use the init 2 command to enter multiuser mode.
  • Important - You can only mount hard disks using the "Look for Disks" menu commands. You cannot mount CD-ROM drives, tape backup devices, or other SCSI devices using hfx. Do not use the All command unless you only have hard disks connected to your A/UX system. Using this menu to mount other SCSI devices causes the system to stop functioning.
  • Important - A/UX 1.1 does not support MultiFinder. You can only use one Macintosh application or one A/UX Toolbox application at a time.
  • Important - Don't select the "CR to NL" option when transferring an application. This option translates the end-of-line character (hex ?) to a new line character (hex A).

Tip: If you are copying several applications or files at one time, you can skip the "Copy to" dialog box for each file by pressing the OPTION key when you click Copy.

You can change file attributes and assign the new values to all the files by pressing the OPTION key when you click OK in the first "Copy to" dialog box.

See Also