Creating File Archives
To create a new file archive, select the File > New File Archive menu item. Choose the desired archive from the list, and click OK. Use the file dialog to choose a location and name for the new file. The empty archive will be opened automatically.
Some utilities may be confused by completely empty file archives, since they're not very useful. Binary ][ archives do not have a file header, so empty archives are zero bytes long.
You cannot create AppleSingle, AppleDouble, or gzip archives with this interface because they are designed to store a single file. To create AppleSingle or AppleDouble, extract a file with the appropriate preservation mode enabled.
Creating Disk Images
To create a new disk image, select the File > New Disk Image menu item. This opens a window with a variety of options to choose from.
First, you need to pick the disk size. Standard floppy disk sizes can be chosen from the available options, or a custom size can be specified in blocks.
Second, choose the filesystem to use. Only the filesytems that are compatible with the specified disk size will be available. If the filesystem has a volume name or number, you can enter those below. For DOS 3.x and CP/M floppies, you can also choose whether to reserve space for the operating system image. (For DOS 3.2/3.3, a copy of the operating system will be installed.)
Third, choose the type of disk image to create. Only the files that are compatible with the specified disk size will be available.
Briefly:
- Unadorned DOS-order (.do/.d13): this stores an Apple II 5.25" floppy disk as a series of 256-byte sectors. This is probably the most common format used for 5.25" disks, often used with the ambiguous ".dsk" extension. ".do" is used for 16-sector disks, ".d13" for 13-sector disks.
- Unadorned ProDOS-order (.po): this stores a disk as a series of 512-byte blocks. The popular ".hdv" and ".iso" extensions are identical, and sometimes ".dsk" is used for this as well. This is the most common format for 3.5" disks, hard drives, and other block-oriented media.
- 2IMG (.2mg): this can store data the same way a .do, .po, or .nib image would, but it also adds a file header that allows the receiving application to recognize the contents unambiguously. This format is widely supported by Apple II emulators. Here, it's only used for ProDOS-ordered images (.po).
- ShrinkIt (.sdk): compressed 5.25" or 3.5" disk image. Convenient for transfer to a physical Apple II, because it's smaller and you can use ShrinkIt to unpack it to a physical disk, but not all emulators support it.
- DiskCopy 4.2 (.image): developed by Apple to image 3.5" disks for the Macintosh. Widely supported by Macintosh applications, less popular with Apple II applications.
- WOZ (.woz): faithfully captures 5.25" and 3.5" floppy disks. Normally you would only use this when making a digital copy of physical media. Supported by most modern Apple II emulators.
- Nibble (.nib): low-level representation of an Apple II 5.25" floppy disk. This holds more detail than block/sector formats but less detail than WOZ. It's supported by most Apple II emulators.
- Trackstar (.app): disk image format used by the Trackstar Apple II emulator card for the PC. Only use this if you're creating images for the Trackstar.
Make your selections and click Create. Use the file dialog to choose a location and name for the new file. The new disk image will be opened automatically.