Should I leave IIe unenhanced?

[dmemphis]

Is there any charm to not enhancing?

If not, what is really useful in the enhancements.
I read what the features are, are the benefits actually significant?

- IIc compatibility. Don't know that's important to me
- The MouseText character - don't know if I'll do mouse stuff.
- Accepts BASIC commands in both upper- and lowercase - might be nicer
- Additional instructions in the 65C02 - don't know if I'll use s/w that uses them.
- Mini-assembler for machine language programs- cute but probably use a real assembler.

Does BASIC use the DELETE key finally in this enhancement? That might be the price of admission...

 

[Wayne Stewart]

There are quite a few programs that require an enhanced IIe and almost none that will only work on an unenhanced IIe. Some just require a 65C02 such as later versions of ProDOS.

 

[pcjunky]

I find the oposite to be true. Unless you are talking about newer software running on Prodos. Many older games used obfucated code to hide the DRM (they didn't call it this back in the day) they were doing. This would frequenty entail using undocumented op-codes of the 6502. Assembly listings would only show ??? for such opcodes so it would be unclear what they were doing. The 65C02 didn't execiute these the same way so such software would crash.

 

[pcjunky]

A mini assembler was included with Integer basic. No enhancement or 65C02 needed.

Whether or not to enhance your //e depends on what you want to do with it. Older games may not run on enhanced //e.

 

[KC9UDX]

BASIC always uses the DELETE key. You get a cursor-looking character when you press it. :D And, of course, any BASIC program can do whatever it wishes with that key. But, there is no difference here between enhanced and not.

I've only encountered software that requires enhancement, not the other way round, but that's just been my experience.

I recently went through a lot of trouble to un-enhance my ][e because that's the way it was when I first got it in 1984, and it just didn't seem right seeing it say Apple //e on boot. Also, I'm not sure that the enhancement package in mine was legitimate. It seems to behave differently than official ROMs. The most obvious difference is that the ROM I had wouldn't work unless there was a 65c02 present. (I had multiple machines that exhibited this behaviour). It was my former employer that had it 'enhanced' and I have no idea what they did. They could have bought a legitimate third-party kit for all I know.

The biggest reason I didn't mind doing it though, is that I have a 'Platinum' //e if I need an enhanced one.

 

[Great Hierophant]

An Enhanced //e contains four swapped chips from an unenhanced //e, the 65C02, the CD and EF firmware ROMs and the Character Generator ROM. The 65C02 does not support any of the unofficial/illegal opcodes of the 6502, and some earlier programs use the unofficial opcodes. Some programs also use the alternative text characters in the Character Generator ROM which were replaced with Mouse Text symbols.

Unenhanced //e revision A motherboards do not support double high resolution graphics modes, but
Unenhanced //e revision B motherboards support double high resolution graphics modes. An Enhanced //e is not required to use double high resolution graphics modes.

The Apple IIe Technical Reference Manual from 1985 includes the Monitor ROM listings for the Enhanced //e, but I cannot tell if it uses the 65C02 opcodes.

 

[vwestlife]

I say leave it original. The "unenhanced" IIe was only around for just over two years (1983-early 1985), while the Enhanced and Platinum IIe continued all the way until 1993. Especially if yours has a Revision A board which lacks Double Hi-Res graphics, it is quite rare, because Apple offered Rev B boards as a free upgrade to Rev A owners.

 

[dmemphis]

Great input everyone, thanks!

Yeah, Basic always uses the delete key... love it!
How could they stomach releasing the IIe without putting proper use of all the keys in the ROM monitor and Basic
to use them? Could it NOT be done without breaking it, really?

I think I will leave it unenhanced. I'm more interested in history than later compatiblity.
Good call vwestlife, i'm with ya, get a platinum for a legit ehnanced experience.
It is a rev B with all socketed ICs.
So it can do the double high res... if the things that use that don't also require the actual enhancements...
Again, I don't care I think.

The machine did a rather nice job of demoing vintage VisiCalc at VCFeX though I would have preferred an earlier II model.
Ran all weekend no probs.

 

[KC9UDX]

Yeah, Basic always uses the delete key... love it!
How could they stomach releasing the IIe without putting proper use of all the keys in the ROM monitor and Basic
to use them? Could it NOT be done without breaking it, really?

That was more or less my reaction the first time I used a brand new ][e!

 

[vwestlife]

How could they stomach releasing the IIe without putting proper use of all the keys in the ROM monitor and Basic
to use them? Could it NOT be done without breaking it, really?

Because in 1983, Apple was hurting badly due to the unsuccessful Apple III and Lisa and the unfinished Macintosh project, and they had let their cash cow, the II Plus, remain unchanged for far too long. So the IIe was a quick-fix to bring the III's most useful new capabilities into the II product line, as a stopgap until the IIc and Macintosh were released.

Apple had hoped that the Mac would be a huge sales success and that they could leave the IIc as the sole remaining member of the II family, but the enduring popularity of the IIe forced them to keep selling it practically forever and to bring the IIc's new features over to the IIe, making the Enhanced IIe.

 

[TX_Dj]

FWIW, in later ProDOS/BASIC combos, Delete is backspace. Can't do that without enhancement kit.

I have two unenhanced //e's, and a spare (Rev B) unenhanced board. I see no point in enhancing them, because if I need an enhanced machine, I pull one of those off the shelf. That is the real solution to the question. Why not both?