[NTLK] Advice on setting up my new eMate?

From: Becky K (kohali_at_nefermoon.com)
Date: Wed Apr 06 2005 - 11:25:26 PDT


Hi folks,

I joined this list last week when I purchased an eMate off ebay. While waiting
for the UPS man to place it in my loving arms, I've read up as much as I can
(or at least as much as I know to look up) on the eMate. I'm completely new to
the Newton OS, so I'm starting fresh.

I purchased the eMate to be a glorified typewriter. No intentions of internet
use, MP3 playback, or even using the datebook, really. It arrived last night
and works beautifully. It has an original power adapter. I've got a spare
battery pack on the way, and as soon as I find a T-8 screwdriver, I'll be
opening it up to preemptively fix the hinges.

At home I use an OSX G4 running 10.2.x, and at work I use an OSX G5 working on
10.3.8. Both machines have Classic installed on the same partition.

I've purchased the Keyspan USB/Serial adapter, and am tracking down a serial
cord or two (you *know* I probably threw out half a dozen when Mac phased out
the serial port!).

I have *not* yet attempted to connect the computer and the eMate. I'm the type
that likes to read about problems to prevent them, rather than learn from
experience. ;)

I'm not entirely clear on what advice I've read applies to my situation. What
I'd like to know is the following:

1) What do I need to do to convert an MS Office/Word 2001 .doc to a file that I
can transfer to the eMate?
1b)Does everything sent to the eMate need to be in a package, or can I send a
single word file over au natural, for example, or a plain .gif for the
background application?

2) What software do I need on the Mac to connect with the eMate via Serial
port/Appletalk? Just package installers, or is there a driver of sorts as well?
2b) How does the connection behave? Like a computer on a local network, like an
external hard disk, or like a PDA (eg, only through a hot-sync program)?

3) Should I go through the trouble of setting up drivers and applications on my
Mac OSX machines, or would I save myself a lot of trouble using my 1st gen iMac
(OS9.2) when I connect to the eMate?

And of course, every time I look for the answer to one question, I discover the
need to ask two new questions. If anyone has any advice for this first-time
Newton user, I'd appreciate a tip!

Thanks so much for sharing your experience and expertise!

Becky K

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