AmigaOS Manual: Devices

The Devs and Storage drawers both contain the following subdrawers:

• DataTypes
• DOSDrivers
• Keymaps
• NetInterfaces
• Monitors
• Printers

The Devs drawer contains the device files for the devices that are currently active on the system. The Storage drawer is for device driver files that are not currently in use. Storing unused files in the Storage drawer reduces clutter in Preferences editor windows.

To activate a monitor or DOS driver:

1. Double-click on the icon. The file is then active during the current session only.
2. To have the icon active in all sessions, drag it from the Storage drawer into the corresponding Devs drawer and reboot your system.

To activate a keymap:

1. Drag keymap files from the Storage drawer into the Devs drawer.
2. Select the appropriate Keyboard Type in the Input Preferences editor.

To activate a network interface:

1. Drag network interface files from the Storage drawer into the Devs drawer.
2. Select the appropriate interface in the Internet Preferences editor.

To activate a printer driver:

1. Drag printer files from the Storage drawer into the Devs drawer.
2. Select the appropriate Printer Type in the Printer Preferences editor.

Data Types

Data types are software files used by tools, utilities, editors, and applications. They are used to describe file formats to the system, such as picture files, sound files, and text files. The following default data types are included with the system software:

8SVX	IFF sound files
AIFF	AIFF audio files
ANIM	ANIM-format animation files
AmigaGuide	Amiga Help files
BMP	BMP picture files
CDXL	CDXL-format animation files
FTXT	IFF text files
GIF	GIF picture files
ILBM	Bitmap picture files
JPEG	JPEG picture files
PNG	PNG picture files
TIFF	TIFF picture files
WAVE	WAVE audio files

Adding data types from other applications into the Devs/DataTypes drawer makes them available for use by the Workbench, as well as the application. Add new data types by dragging them into the Devs/DataTypes drawer and double-clicking on them.

DOSDrivers

DOS drivers are software drivers that extend the capabilities of AmigaDOS. The following DOSDrivers are included with the system software:

AUDIO	Audio driver for recording and playing
AUX/AUX1	Auxiliary serial Shell driver (see the AmigaDOS User's Guide for details)
CDMRW	CD-MRW driver
CDRW	CD-RW driver
DVD-RW	DVD-RW driver
FD0	Floppy driver
PAR/PAR1	Parallel port driver
PC0/PC1	CrossDOS drivers for floppies, respectively (see Chapter 11 for details)
PIPE	Pipe driver (see the AmigaDOS User's Guide for details)
PRT	Printer port driver
RAD	Recoverable RAM disk driver (see Appendix B for details)
RANDOM	Pseudo-random data generator
SER/SER1	Serial port driver
TEXTCLIP	Clipboard handler
URL	URL handler
ZIC	CrossDOS driver for Zip drive
ZIP	Zip drive driver

Using CD-ROM

CD-ROM drives allow you to read information from CD-ROM disks. When the CD0 device driver is activated, you can use the device name CD0: to refer to a connected CD-ROM. Refer to the documentation that came with your CD-ROM device for specific information about connecting and using the device with the Amiga.

To be sure that the CD-ROM drive works with your Amiga, you must determine the name of the device driver that provides the interface for the CF-ROM drive, typically scsi.device. You must also determine the unit number of the CD-ROM drive, which is included in the drive's documentation. The default device name is scsi.device and the default unit number is 2.

If your CD-ROM drive and interface device do not match the default, change the device name and the unit number to those appropriate for your CD-ROM drive as follows:

1. Select the Execute Command item from the Workbench menu.
2. Enter the following command and click on the OK button:
   ED SYS:Storage/DOSDrivers/CD0
3. Replace the device name on the DEVICE = line with the appropriate device name for your drive.
4. Replace the unit number on the UNIT= line with the appropriate unit number for your drive.
5. Save your changes by selecting the Save item in the Project menu.
6. Quit ED by selecting the Quit item in the Project menu.

Keymaps

Keymaps control how text characters are mapped into the Amiga keyboard. For any Keyboard Type other than the default American to be available in the Input Preferences editor, the keyboard's keymap must be in DEVS:Keymaps. A list of keyboards and their corresponding keymaps appears in the Input editor section of Chapter 5.

Monitors

The Devs/Monitor drawer and the Storage/Monitors drawer contain icons for the available monitor types that you can use on your system. For any monitor type other than the default (NTSC or PAL, depending on your country) to be available in the ScreenMode Preferences editor, the corresponding monitor driver must be in DEVS:Monitors. See Chapter 7 for more details on using monitors.

Printers

The Devs/Printers drawer holds your printer drivers. Printer drivers that have not been loaded onto your system are located in the Storage/Printers drawer within the software floppy disk set. On a floppy disk system Devs/Printers initially holds only the Generic printer driver. On hard drive systems, the printer drivers specified during installation are installed there.

Activating a printer driver that is not already in DEVS:Printers is the same for floppy and hard disk systems. To load a printer driver and use a printer with your Amiga:

1. Open the Devs drawer on your Workbench disk.
2. Insert your Storage disk or disk containing the Storage drawer and open the Printers drawer.
3. Drag your printer's icon onto the Devs/Printers drawer icon. (For singly floppy systems, follow the messages to change disks.)
4. Open the Printer Preferences editor.
5. Select the appropriate printer type from the Printer Type field in the Printer editor window.

On hard drive systems, you can store unused printer drivers in the Storage/Printers drawer.

See Chapter 9 for more details on using printers and activating printer drivers.