Apple Macintosh before System 7

Hardware releases ~ Software releases

Macintosh 128K and 512K ~ manuals ~ software bundles

Macintosh Plus and 512Ke ~ manuals ~ software bundles

Macintosh 512K/800 ~ Macintosh ED

Apple OEM upgrades

Disk images ~ Working with disk images ~ Working with Floppy Emu

Apple's developer CDs and their spawn

All information presented here is based on primary sources, mainly original, unmodified Apple disks and other Apple documentation.

Anyone interested in this history must be especially careful when reviewing the information presented in Apple Knowledge Base article TA31885 (last modified in 2001), Macintosh: System Software Version History, which is highly problematic:

Understandably, this old Apple Knowledge Base article has been widely used as a source of (mis)information. Beware!

Sites with information about various aspects of early Macs include Low End Mac, Mac Daniel, 68k Mac FAQ, Mac 128 Update, Mac SE Support, Mac GUI, The Mothership, The Vintage Mac Museum, GUIdebook. Download sites include Macintosh Repository, Macintosh Garden, MacFixer. Discussions include Vintage Macs, System 6, and 68k Macintosh Liberation Army. Expert Classic Mac Tech Info is available in a PDF document here. Decode your 68k Mac serial number at myoldmac.net. First-hand history is available at Folklore and Making the Macintosh.

Mini vMac is an excellent Macintosh Plus, SE, and 128K emulator that runs on Mac OS X and earlier, as well as Linux and Windows. Requires the appropriate ROM. E-Maculation is a good place to check on the progress of other early Macintosh emulation projects.

Finally, Big Mess o' Wires offers the essential piece of equipment for anyone who owns a functional early Macintosh and wants to use it: a floppy/hard disk emulator that allows you to save your work to a current SD memory card.

Macintosh hardware releases

Table of hardware releases before System 7 (May 1991)

Date Name Model # Tech Specs Original System file
01/84 Macintosh (128K) M0001
M0001P*		 SP186 System 1.0†
09/84 Macintosh 512K M0001W
M0001WP		 SP187 System 1.1‡
01/86 Macintosh Plus M0001A
M0001AP		 SP190 System 3.0
03/86 Macintosh 512K/800 M0001D n/a System 3.0
04/86 Macintosh 512Ke M0001E SP188 System 3.0
03/87 Macintosh SE M5010
M5011**		 SP191
SP192		 System 4.0
03/87 Macintosh II M5000 SP193 System 4.1§
09/88 Macintosh IIx M5840 SP194 System 6.0.1
01/89 Macintosh SE/30 M5119 SP195 System 6.0.3
03/89 Macintosh IIcx M5650 SP196 System 6.0.3
09/89 Macintosh IIci M5780 SP197 System 6.0.4
09/89 Macintosh Portable M5120 SP140 System 6.0.4
03/90 Macintosh IIfx M5525 SP203 System 6.0.5
10/90 Macintosh Classic M0420 SP198 System 6.0.7
10/90 Macintosh IIsi M0360 SP199 System 6.0.7
10/90 Macintosh LC M0350 SP205 System 6.0.7

* "P" after the model number indicates a 220-240V power supply (Europe, Asia, Australia), as opposed to a 110-120V power supply (North America, Japan).
** M5011 was used for Macintosh SE machines configured with internal hard drives. This would later include the SE FDHD (SuperDrive), which replaced the SE in August 1989.
† Apple's recommended System file is version 2.0, with 3.2 as the maximum.
‡ Apple's recommended System file is version 3.2 (or 3.3 as an AppleShare client), with 4.1 as the maximum.
§ While both Macintosh SE and Macintosh II were introduced in March 1987, the II did not actually ship until April 1987, with System file version 4.1. See MacTech.

Printers: ImageWriter, LaserWriter, ImageWriter II, LaserWriter Plus, ImageWriter LQ, LaserWriter IISC, LaserWriter IINT, LaserWriter IINTX, Personal LaserWriter SC, Personal LaserWriter NT, Personal LaserWriter LS.

Monitors: High-Resolution Monochrome Monitor, High-Resolution RGB Monitor, Two-Page Monochrome Display, Macintosh Portrait Display, Macintosh 12-inch Monochrome Display, Macintosh 12-inch RGB Display.

Macintosh software releases

All of the information in the table below comes from original copies of the disks in question.

Table of software releases before System 7 (May 1991)

Date Title System Finder MultiFinder
01/84 Mac Software 1.0 1.0 N/A
05/84 Mac Software 1.1 1.1g* N/A
04/85 Mac Software 2.0 4.1 N/A
09/85 Mac Software 2.1 5.0 N/A
01/86 Mac Software 3.0 5.1 N/A
02/86 Mac Software 3.1 5.2 N/A
06/86 Mac Software 3.2 5.3 N/A
01/87 Macintosh System Software 4.0 5.4† N/A
04/87 Macintosh System Software 4.1 5.5† N/A
10/87 Macintosh System Software 5.0 4.2 6.0 1.0
11/87 Macintosh System Software 5.1 4.3 6.0 1.0
04/88 Macintosh System Software 6.0 6.0 6.1‡ 6.0
08/88 Macintosh System Software 6.0.1 6.0.1 6.1 6.0.1
09/88 Macintosh System Software 6.0.2 6.0.2 6.1 6.0.1
12/88 Macintosh System Software 6.0.3 6.0.3 6.1 6.0.3
09/89 Macintosh System Software 6.0.4 6.0.4 6.1.4 6.0.4
03/90 Macintosh System Software 6.0.5 6.0.5 6.1.5 6.0.5
10/90 Macintosh System Software 6.0.7 6.0.7 6.1.7 6.0.7
04/91 Macintosh System Software 6.0.8 6.0.8 6.1.8 6.0.8

* System 1.1 supported at least two beta releases of the Finder (Finder 2.6 and Finder 3.4), widely distributed amongst developers, as discussed in MacTech: see the Letters sections of Volume 1, Issues 5 and 6.
† System 3.3 (for the Macintosh 512K) was distributed on the Work Station Installer disk for versions 1.0 (with Finder 5.4) and 1.1 (with Finder 5.5) of the AppleShare file server.
‡ System 3.4 (for the Macintosh 512Ke) was distributed with AppleShare version 2.0 (with Finder 6.1).

Notes:

Throughout 1987, Apple considered System file 3.2 (or 3.3 as an AppleShare client) to be the maximum for machines with 512K memory. By early 1988, however, this recommendation had been changed to System file 4.1:

From "A History of Macintosh System Software," Appendix A in Macintosh System Software User's Guide Version 6.0 (1988).

Macintosh 128K and 512K hardware

The following information reflects the current state of my knowledge of Macintosh 128K [M0001 and M0001P] "Mac" and 512K [M0001W and M0001WP] "Fat Mac" hardware. It may not be complete, but it is accurate, based on personal experience and detailed reports from others, along with conclusions gleaned from the M0001 Registry.

There were three cases:

  1. Early M0001 cases that read "Macintosh" on the back.
  2. Later M0001 cases that read "Macintosh 128K" on the back. This change was made in week 47 of 1984 (November).
  3. M0001W cases that read "Macintosh 512K" on the back.

There were (at least) three generations of logic boards:

  1. [820-0086-C] © 1983, 128K (630-0101) only.
  2. [820-0086-F] © 1983-84, could be configured as either 128K (630-0101) or 512K (630-0118) boards.
  3. [820-0141-A] © 1983-84, could be configured as either 128K (630-0101) or 512K (630-0118) boards.

There were (at least) two generations of 128K/512K analog boards (630-0102):

  1. [820-0082-B] © 1983, had a metal shield that ran along the top at BB1. Apple later removed the shield to increase convective cooling.
  2. [820-0082-C] © 1983-84, had neither the shield nor BB1.

There were two generations of disk drives:

  1. Early Sony model OA-D34V.
  2. Later Sony models OA-D34V-02 or OA-D34V-22. These models had a new insert/eject mechanism.

There were two series of external disk drives (model M0130):

  1. Serial number started with D, made in USA.* The earliest of these contained Sony OA-D34V drives. Later they contained OA-D34V-02/22 drives.
  2. Serial number started with Y, made in Japan.* These contained Sony OA-D34V-02/22 drives.

* There is a difference between the two in the coloration of the plastic case. The plastic used for the D drives is the same as that used for early Macintosh machines. The plastic used for the Y drives is slightly different and does not yellow, at least not nearly as much.

Macintosh 128K and 512K manuals

Macintosh owner's guide:

MacWrite manual:

MacPaint manual:

Other items:

Macintosh 128K and 512K software bundles

The first Macintosh 128K machines came with a plastic box that included:

MacWrite and MacPaint came in a cardboard box that included:

Font Mover was included on the MacWrite MacPaint (Write/Paint) disk.

In May 1984, the software bundle was updated and reorganized for System 1.1 Finder 1.1g. Font Mover and the additional fonts were moved to the System Disk in order to create more space on the MacWrite MacPaint disk and a new MacPaint disk was added. The two audio tapes remained the same [with the recordings updated?], and MacWrite MacPaint still came in a separate box:

In September 1984, with the introduction of the Macintosh 512K, the bundle was changed so that all the components would fit inside the plastic Macintosh box:

* There is no difference in content between the 690-5003B, 690-5003-C, and 690-5003-D disks. The different part numbers reflect changes in the packaging.

In June 1985, the software bundle was updated for System 2.0 Finder 4.1. The training disks and audio tape remained the same:

Macintosh Plus and 512Ke hardware

Macintosh Plus

All original Macintosh Plus [M0001A and M0001AP] machines had the words "Macintosh Plus" on the front and came with the M0110A extended keyboard. There were three generations:

  1. "Beige" Macintosh Plus machines read "Macintosh Plus 1 Mb" on the back, with no copyright date. Beige was also the color of the Macintosh 128K and 512K, as well as the 512Ke.
  2. In 1987, Apple changed the label on the back to read "Macintosh Plus 1 Mb" with a 1987 copyright date. The case color was changed to "platinum" to match the color of the new Macintosh II and SE machines. The owner's guide was redesigned and revised (see below).
  3. In 1988, Apple changed the label on the back to read "Macintosh Plus" with a 1988 copyright date. The owner's guide was redesigned and revised again (see below).

The Macintosh Plus ROMs were revised twice. The second revision coincided with the release of the platinum machines in 1987.

Macintosh 512Ke

There were two generations of Macintosh 512Ke [M0001E] machines:

  1. Beige machines produced in 1986 have a label on the back with no copyright date. They came with the M0110 standard keyboard and contained first-revision Macintosh Plus ROMs. The location and design of the Apple logo on the front was the same as the original Macintosh and the 512K.
  2. Platinum machines have a 1987 copyright date on the label. They came with the M0110A extended keyboard and contained second-revision Macintosh Plus ROMs. The location and design of the Apple logo on the front was the same as the Plus.

Note: I have never seen a M0001E with a 220-240V power supply.

Macintosh 512K/800

The Macintosh 512K/800 [M0001D or M0001E, depending on the power supply required locally] was a 512Ke with a M0110A extended keyboard. To my knowledge, the 512K/800 was never sold retail in the United States. Like the first-generation 512Ke, the location and design of the Apple logo on the front was the same as the original Macintosh and the 512K.

The M0001D probably existed as a second-generation, platinum 1987 machine, but I have never seen one without "Macintosh ED" (see below) printed on the front.

Note: I have never seen a M0001D with a 110-120V power supply.

Macintosh ED

The Macintosh ED was a 512K/800 sold to educational institutions, mostly, if not entirely [?], outside of the United States. There were four editions of these machines:

  1. Beige with M0001ED model number. [Serial numbers begin with F, for Fremont, California]
  2. Platinum with M0001ED model number.
  3. Beige with "Macintosh ED" printed on the front and M0001D model number on the back. [Serial numbers begin with C, for Cork, Ireland.]
  4. Platinum with "Macintosh ED" printed on the front and M0001D model number on the back.*

* A 1987 Dutch edition of the "Macintosh ED Addendum" booklet, covering System 4.0 Finder 5.4, has come to light. You can download a PDF at Macintosh Garden.

Macintosh Plus ED

The Macintosh Plus ED was a platinum Macintosh Plus with "Macintosh Plus ED" printed on the front.

Note: I have never seen a Macintosh Plus ED with a 110-120V power supply.

Macintosh Plus and 512Ke manuals

Macintosh Plus

Changes in the design of the Macintosh Plus owner's guide (along with the software bundle) parallel the changes in the hardware.

First edition:

Second edition:

Third edition:

Macintosh 512Ke

Sales of the Macintosh 512Ke continued until September 1987. Apple did not update the 512Ke owner's guide along with that of the Macintosh Plus. At the time, Apple considered System 3.2 Finder 5.3 to be the maximum for machines with 512K of memory. [It was only later that System 4.1 Finder 5.4 was declared the maximum.] This fact may explain why no effort was made to update the 512Ke owner's guide and software bundle for the second-generation 512Ke in 1987 (see above), while the Plus received a complete overhaul.

Macintosh Plus and 512Ke software bundles

Before April 1988, all Macintosh Plus and 512Ke software bundles included a demo disk for MacDraw, MacWrite, MacProject, MacPaint.

Macintosh Plus

In January 1986, the Macintosh Plus software bundle featured System 3.0 Finder 5.1:

In June 1986, the System Tools disk was updated for System 3.2 Finder 5.3:

In January 1987, the software bundle was updated for System 4.0 Finder 5.4:

In April 1987, the software bundle was updated for System 4.1 Finder 5.5:

In June 1987, the System Tools and Utilities disks were revised:

In August 1987, the Utilities disk was revised a second time, on two disks:

In October 1987, the software bundle was updated for Macintosh System Software 5.0, on four disks: System Tools 1, System Tools 2 (Printers), Utilities 1, Utilities 2.

In April 1988, the software bundle was updated for Macintosh System Software 6.0, on four disks: System Tools, Printing Tools, Utilities 1, Utilities 2. HyperCard was also added to the box:

Macintosh 512Ke

The Macintosh 512Ke shipped in April 1986. It came with the earlier Macintosh Plus System Tools disk:

In June 1986, the System Tools disk was updated for System 3.2 Finder 5.3 and the Macintosh 512Ke:

Sales of the Macintosh 512Ke continued until September 1987, but the software bundle did not change after June 1986. For more on this, see above.

Apple OEM upgrades

Apple's OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) upgrades:

* As far as I know, this is the only printed Apple manual that tells you how to initialize single-sided 400K disks in the HFS format. Requires Finder 5.x or 6.x: "Holding down the Option key while you click One-Sided (or if the disk is in a 400K disk drive, holding the Option key down while you press the Return key after you've named it) installs the hierarchical file system on just one side of the disk. Use disks initialized this way with updated startup disks only." In other words, they can't be used as startup disks. Or else!

Eric Rasmussen

hello.rasmus@gmail.com