Best method of file transfer between Mac-Amiga?

[snoopy77]

He guys,

I looking at methods of file transfer between mac-amiga (for games etc). The Amiga is 1200 (desktop) with Indivision AGA 2-CR and a Blizzard 1230 IV arriving soon also. Mac and Amiga are in different rooms of the house.

What is the most practical solution,

-PCMCIA/CF - Like the amiga kit one?
-Subway with usb stick?
-I do have a freebie orinoco gold PCMCIA coming also, could transfers be done easily via wifi?
-Network card? Machines are in different rooms but there is Ethernet running.

Is there another option you'd suggest?

I'm looking at the subway a bit but not sure how well this will work in terms of easily attaching the USB ports, I don't want to have to cut holes in the case and I I'm not so big on wires hanging out with ports on the end as the Indivision already has that type of issue.

 

[Templar]

As long as my A1200 isn't connected to the internet, the PCMCIA transfer kit is the second best option.

 

[MartinW]

If they're in different rooms of the house then personally I'd suggest you're going to be doing a lot of trudging backwards and forwards and realistically there IS no decent option.

Beyond that, I'd suggest network card but you don't say how much memory or what OS/WB you're running.

I've got Macs (a PC running OS X and a Mac Book Air) and previously an A600 and now an A4000D. On the 600 I had a PCMCIA compact flash card reader which was probably as convenient as it got but constantly swapping cards about was a right royal pain in the behind. The most convenient for me, if a little slow was a serial cable and some terminal software but I couldn't get it to work reliably.

Now I'm on the 4000 PCMCIA is not an option so I'm currently using floppy images on SD Card (HxC Floppy Emulator) for small stuff and CDRW for bigger stuff. Again it's a pain though. I intend to try the serial cable again just in case it was capacitor rot on the 600 causing my reliability problems with the serial transfer but I doubt it.

Oh, one note, even the HxC transfer option is a damn nuisance on a Mac because the software simply doesn't work properly and if you want to do anything other than convert an ADF/DMS image to HFE then you need to run boot camp or a VM. I do intend to download the source and have a go at fixing that though. I might even get to it today given the weather's so rubbish!

Sorry to be so negative but I haven't found transferring stuff to be a positive experience full stop. We need a custom solution - something like parallel port to USB or something with software at either end to match.

 

[snoopy77]

Beyond that, I'd suggest network card but you don't say how much memory or what OS/WB you're running.

Hi Martin,

Will have 34mb soon when the accelerator arrives. Am running 3.0 at the moment (could upgrade to 3.1 if need be)

 

[SkydivinGirl]

As others have said, it sort of depends upon the type of Amiga you have. Networking is available for Amiga computers so that is the most universal option. For the systems with PCMCIA, I think those adapters are marvelous. For any of the big box Amiga systems with either SCSI or IDE, Iomega JAZ drives are wonderful options.

Another option on big box IDE systems is to use a CF adapter that has external access. You can't hot swap the cards, but it doesn't take long to boot most Amiga systems. I use this method mostly and JAZ drives as secondary options.

Good luck,

Heather

 

[Buzzfuzz]

CDROM is the way to go if you are using a Mac.
The thing is, you have to get a PCMCIA solution like a squirrel with CDROM or overdrive or custom SCSI tower.
Writing the cd on ISO9660 at low speeds 2/4/8 speed will make it easy to transfer 650MB to your Amiga 1200.

You could also attempt to get a Blizzard SCSI kit, once you have the 1230 IV and connect it to that, but it will be more expensive.

 

[snoopy77]

Networking is available for Amiga computers so that is the most universal option.

One thing I was wondering with networking, if I'm using say a NAS with a 1gb drive is that goes to be tricky to get recognised by the amiga? I'm thinking in terms of 4gb volume restrictions and the like. I wonder if the standard software that comes with amiga networking cards is going to be suitable to connecting to a NAS?

If it was fairly straightforward it could be a good option because there is an ethernet 30cm from where the amiga sits and also very good wifi access.

 

[Countraven]

No need to make things so complicated.

The amigakit pcmcia kit will do the trick. You only have to use a usb card reader on your mac which cost nothing. Copy on the cf card anything you want and then your amiga will be ready to read the stuff. I recommend you to use the lha format to compress your stuff and transfer lha files on your amiga through the cf. You can extract then on their final destinations on the amiga. Ussing lha you will meep your file attributes untouched. Use the good o,d fat32 file system to firmat the cf card. It is supported both in mac and amiga. The amigakit boot disk have all the tools you need on the amiga side.

 

[matt3k]

Go with a NIC in a LAN. Best long term solution...

 

[Astral]

I vote for the PCMCIA / CF transfer. This works on A600/1200 and now I am assuming on the ACA500/A500. Cheap, easy, quick.

Other Amiga's, other solutions...

 

[Jeff_HxC2001]

...
Oh, one note, even the HxC transfer option is a damn nuisance on a Mac because the software simply doesn't work properly and if you want to do anything other than convert an ADF/DMS image to HFE then you need to run boot camp or a VM. I do intend to download the source and have a go at fixing that though. I might even get to it today given the weather's so rubbish!
...

Have you tried the latest software ? :
http://hxc2001.com/download/floppy_drive_emulator/HxCFloppyEmulator_softV2_beta.zip

BTW : The right place to complain and got a fast solution is there : http://torlus.com/floppy/forum/index.php or by email.
How do you expect any correction if i am not aware of the issue ?

 

[MartinW]

Whose complaining?? Not me. I'm simply stating a fact. No, I've not tried beta software but I check for the latest release version very frequently.

 

[Jeff_HxC2001]

Whose complaining?? Not me. I'm simply stating a fact. No, I've not tried beta software but I check for the latest release version very frequently.

Then please try the beta and report me at least if the issue (which one exactly btw?) is solved.