Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!ginosko!usc!apple!farrier From: farrier@Apple.COM (Cary Farrier) Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple Subject: Re: More on File System Translators (FSTs) Keywords: FSTs Message-ID: <4454@internal.Apple.COM> Date: 29 Sep 89 07:21:13 GMT References: <404@fawlty.towers.oz> Organization: Apple Computer Inc, Cupertino, CA Lines: 21 In article <404@fawlty.towers.oz> johnmac@fawlty.towers.oz (John MacLean) writes: >Why has Apple released a CD-ROM FST and an Appleshare FST but has >not provided DOS 3.3, or MAC (MAC should be very simple given the >back end of the Appleshare FST could be copied)? It's not that simple, because the Appleshare FST knows nothing about the HFS disk structure used on Macintosh volumes. The AppleShare FST is a front end to a protocol called AFP (AppleTalk Filing Protocol), which is a high level network protocol consisting mainly of commands such as "create a new file" or "duplicate this file". These commands are sent to a file server via AppleTalk, which then does what it pleases with them. The file server doesn't need to be a Macintosh, it just has to know how to speak AFP. Cary Farrier -- +--------------+-------------------------+ | Cary Farrier | farrier@apple.com | +--------------+-------------------------+