- Where can I find software for my Newton?
- What software is available from Apple?
- Software Problems
- Internet
- Fonts
- Audio
- International & Localized Software
- Data Transfer & Synchronization
A. Where can I find software for my Newton?
1. Software Archives
- The United Network of Newton Archives (UNNA) is by far the most comprehensive collection of Newton software and documentation, including site mirrors of historical importance.
- Pawel Piotrowski’s Newton Software Backup Server consists of a large repository of CD images, plus a mirror of UNNA.
- The Info-Mac Archive has a smaller collection of files, also browsable via their forum interface.
2. Software Developers
There are several Newton developers who still actively support and maintain their products or at least have kept information and downloads available.
- Simon Bell
- Avi Drissman
- Enfour (Japan)
- Enfour (North America)
- Five Speed Software
- Frank Gründel
- Paul Guyot
- Eckhart Köppen
- Daniel Padilla
- Sealie Computing
- SilverWare
- Smart Dog Software
- Softwarebüro Müller
- Stand Alone
- Thomas Tempelmann
- Adam Tow
- Steve Weyer
The following defunct developer sites have been saved in the Internet Archive.
B. What software is available from Apple?
1. Connection, backup, and package installer software
a. Newton Connection Kit
Newton Connection Kit (NCK) is an application that allows you to synchronize, backup, and manage data from a Newton device using a Mac OS or Windows computer.
NCK only works with Newton OS 1.x devices. For Newton OS 2.x devices, use Newton Connection Utilities (NCU).
Downloads
Documentation
See also: Where can I find user manuals and documentation?
b. Newton Backup Utility
Newton Backup Utility (NBU) can install packages, as well as backup and restore data between a Newton device and a Mac OS or Windows computer.
Downloads
- Newton Backup Utility User’s Guide (Mac OS)
- Newton Backup Utility User’s Guide (Windows)
See also: Where can I find user manuals and documentation?
c. Newton Package Installer
Newton Package Installer (NPI) does what it says. It installs packages on a Newton device from a Mac OS or Windows computer.
Downloads
d. Newton Connection Utilities
Newton Connection Utility (NCU) provides package installation, data backup, import and export of data.
NCU only works with Newton OS 2.x devices. For Newton OS 1.x devices, use Newton Connection Kit.
Downloads
Documentation
- Newton Connection Utilities User’s Manual (Mac OS)
- Newton Connection Utilities User’s Manual (Windows)
See also: Where can I find user manuals and documentation?
2. Book creation and development software
a. Newton Press
Newton Press can be found on UNNA.
See also: Where can I find user manuals and documentation?
b. Newton Book Maker
Newton Book Maker with documentation can be found on UNNA.
c. Newton Toolkit
See: Development: Newton Toolkit
d. Newton C++ Toolbox
See: Development: Newton C++ Toolbox
3. MacinTalk
a. Does MacinTalk work on my Newton?
MacinTalk only works with Newton OS 2.1 devices, including the MessagePad 2000, MessagePad 2100, and eMate 300.
Detailed information on using the various text-to-speech capabilities of MacinTalk can be found in the following articles:
- How to Work with the Text-to-Speech Extension by William Nelson and Jake Bordens
- More Newton Text to Speech by Jim Bailey
If you have a Newton OS 1.x device, you can try John Saccente’s Yak instead.
b. Where can I find MacinTalk?
To use MacinTalk, you’ll need to install the MacinTalk and SpeakText packages, which are usually named macintal.pkg
and speaktex.pkg
respectively.
These packages are available here:
- UNNA’s TextToSpeech
- Chris Frost’s Newton Home
c. How do I use MacinTalk to convert text to speech?
In most applications, tap the action or routing button and select “Speak Text” from the picker. MacinTalk will begin speaking the text in the current window. A good place to try this is the Notepad application.
You can also use MacinTalk to speak the contents of a Newton Book.
See also: How do I use MacinTalk with a Newton Book?
d. Can I change the voice used by MacinTalk?
MacinTalk includes nine voices to choose from.
- Fred (Male, middle pitch, default)
- Ralph (Male, low pitch)
- Junior (Male, high pitch)
- Kathy (Female, middle pitch)
- Princess (Female, high pitch)
- Zarvox (Computer, echo)
- Whisper (Male, whispering)
- Good News (Happy, singing)
- Bad News (Sad, singing)
To change the voice, open the InOut Box, tap the “i” button and select “Speak Text Prefs”. Choose the voice you wish to use from the “Voice” menu.
The voice parameter can also be set programmatically using the [[svox]]
syntax.
See the Embedded Commands section of More Newton Text to Speech for more information.
e. Can I change the volume of MacinTalk?
The volume is set to its maximum level by default. The easiest way to change how loud MacinTalk speaks is to change the volume on your Newton device. Keep in mind that if the volume of your Newton is also set to its maximum level, that is as loud as MacinTalk will get.
The volume parameter can be set programmatically using the [[volm]]
syntax. Since the default volume setting is 1.0, it can’t be set any louder than whatever the maximum volume of your Newton device is set to. You can set the volume parameter to an absolute value between 0.0 and 1.0, or you can adjust the volume up and down using a relative value, such as [[volm +0.1]]
or [[volm -0.1]]
.
See the Embedded Commands section of More Newton Text to Speech for more information.
4. Newton Works
a. Does Newton Works work on my Newton?
Newton Works requires a device running Newton OS 2.1, specifically the eMate 300, MessagePad 2100, or an upgraded MessagePad 2000. It won’t work on any other device. Some components of Newton Works are built into the eMate ROM. The various Newton Works packages must otherwise be installed separately on a MessagePad 2100 or upgraded MessagePad 2000.
Paper is the word processing component of Newton Works. It is designed to be used with a keyboard, rather than with a stylus. However, Standalone Software’s HWRWorks enables handwriting recognition to be used as an input method for Paper.
Andree Dettmer compiled a list of Newton Works links on his Newton Does It! site, including software that enhances its functionality.
b. Where can I find Newton Works?
Newton Works is included on the CD that came with the MessagePad 2000, MessagePad 2100, and eMate 300.
Newton Works is also available from UNNA.
See also: Where can I find the software that came with my Newton?
c. What word processing software can I use on my Newton?
Paper is the word processing component of Newton Works. It is the default backdrop application on the eMate 300.
If you’re Newton device does not support Newton OS 2.1, you can use AvailWorks by PelicanWare.
d. Where can I find spreadsheet, drawing, and calculation stationery?
There are several additional stationery packages for Newton Works. Works Calculations provides graphic calculator functionality, Works Draw provides drawing functionality, QuickFigure Works provides spreadsheet functionality, and EBase provides simple database functionality.
Works Calculations is included on the original eMate Connectivity CD. QuickFigure Works is included on the original eMate Connectivity CD and MessagePad 2100 CD.
See also: Where can I find the software that came with my Newton?
Various components and packages for Newton Works, including the Works Draw stationery, are available from UNNA.
e. What spreadsheet software can I use on my Newton?
PelicanWare made a spreadsheet application called QuickFigure Pro. They also made the multi-function productivity suite AvailWorks, which included a spreadsheet tool.
Macapa’s Napkin Calc is a application that lets you create sheets where you enter numbers and text, then perform calculations on that data. Napkin Calc supports more than one sheet on screen at a time.
5. Where can I find the software that came with my Newton?
Newton devices originally shipped with either a CD or a set of floppy disks containing software. Most of the Apple supplied software is available from UNNA.
Additionally, the Windows CD is available online:
- MessagePad 2100 US CD (Windows)
- eMate 300 CD (Windows)
- MessagePad 2100-D CD (Windows)
C. Software Problems
1. I’m seeing an error message on my Newton. What does it mean?
There are two types of error codes that may appear on a Newton device.
a. Negative Numbers
These are errors generated by the Newton OS. The number usually provides some indication about the source of the error.
A complete list of these error codes can be found in the Newton Programmer’s Reference for Newton 2.0
Chris Frost also produced a Newton Book of Newton OS 2.0 Error Codes.
Victor Rehorst created an online database which includes an expanded list of error codes.
See also: What is the -10061 error?
b. Positive Numbers
An error with a positive number usually indicates a bus error caused by a bad reference to a NewtonScript object or an error in some piece of C++ code.
These types of errors may also be triggered by hardware problems, where the processor tried to access data at a certain address and the request could not be completed successfully.
2. My Newton crashes or hangs at startup. What can I do?
There is probably an incompatible or corrupted package on your Newton that is causing it to crash. You can try to solve this by deactivating all packages by performing a soft reset with extensions off. Refer to question IIIB2c for details on how to do this. Restarting with extensions off will allow you to start up your Newton and delete the offending package.
3. How do I get support for a software program?
I like a particular shareware program, but it requests that I enter a code to activate it. I tried to contact the author, but with no success. What should I do?
As a Newton developer, I would suggest you work to find the author. Ask the Newton community by a post in the newsgroups and mailing lists.
4. How do I help a developer fix bugs I have found?
a. How do I create an error log?
BugTrap by Tactile Systems creates a new note every time an error occurs, such as when you see the “Sorry an error occurred” message. The contents of this note can be sent to a developer to help troubleshoot the error. BugTrap is also available on UNNA.
b. How do I create a list of installed packages?
TrashPak from Atomic Software has several useful maintenance features, including the ability to create a list of all packages installed on a Newton device. This can help a developer determine if a package or extension is conflicting with another piece of software.
D. Internet
1. How do I connect to the internet on my Newton?
a. What do I need?
First of all, internet connectivity requires Newton OS 2.x.
The download speed when accessing email or newsgroups is limited more by the modem than by the Newton device. Accessing these services on a MessagePad 120 or MessagePad 130 can be done, but it does require a significant amount of memory for the Newton Internet Enabler and associated applications. Web browsing can be painfully slow of these Newton devices.
Sean Luke explains:
“The MessagePad 130 contains an ARM 610 running at 20 MHz with no pipelining, no superscalar architecture, no L2 cache, and a bytecode-interpreted programming language. When was the last time you surfed the web on a Mac Plus? A PC/AT? You should be amazed that Newt’s Cape runs at all on an MessagePad 130!”
You’ll need access to an internet service provider, a compatible modem, as well as the Newton Internet Enabler (NIE) package. This software was provided on the CD or floppy disks that came with your Newton.
See also: Where can I find the software that came with my Newton?
b. What’s the difference between NIE 1.1 and NIE 2.0?
Newton Internet Enabler 2.0 is a major upgrade from 1.1 and includes several new features, including:- Ethernet PC Card support
- Support for both AppleTalk and TCP/IP over ethernet
- Support for TCP/IP tunneled over AppleTalk
- Support for DHCP and MacIP servers
- Support for multiple DNS servers
- Improved modem and serial connection, such as:
- Re-dialing of phone numbers
- Multiple phone numbers for a single location
- Login script activity window
- Logout scripts support
- Advanced serial connection options (PC Card slot, port speed, etc.)
- Bug fixes
Most importantly, NIE 2.0 only works on devices running Newton OS 2.1.
See the Newton Internet Enabler 2.0 Read Me support document for additional information.
c. Can my Newton share another computer’s internet connection?
According to Tom Sheppard, while you can provide MacIP (IP packets encapsulated within the AppleTalk protocol) connections over serial LocalTalk to another Mac OS computer, this apparently doesn’t work directly with Newton OS devices.
However, André Wismer notes that you can share an internet connection from another computer using ethernet. This requires some sort of router or gateway software running on the host computer, such Vicomsoft’s InterGate or Sustainable Softwork’s IPNetRouter. The Newton device is connected to the ethernet network using a LocalTalk to Ethernet bridge and the gateway provides the required IP address and DNS settings.
2. What internet software is available?
Steve Weyer compiled a list of internet related applications and tools as part of his Newt’s Cape browser page.
a. Email
- SimpleMail by Simon Bell
- Mail V by Simon Bell supports both POP3 and IMAP protocols.
- EnRoute was originally bundled with Newton software disks.
- Eudora Pro by QualComm
- Eudora Light for Newton allows you to interact with email messages on a Newton device and then sent via a Mac OS or Windows computer.
- LunaSuite Pro by LunaTech. (Also available from UNNA)
- GoFetch by Enfour. (Also available from UNNA)
- Unimail by Enfour. (Also available from UNNA)
b. Web
- Courier by Eckhart Köppen
- Newt’s Cape by Steve Weyer
- NetHopper by AllPen (Also available from UNNA)
- LunaSuite Pro by LunaTech (Also available from UNNA)
- PocketWeb by Telecooperation Office, University of Karlsruhe
- NotesWeb by T. Kuwabara uses the Notepad application as a web browser.
- NewtWap by Eric M. Schneck supports the Wireless Application Protocol (Also available from UNNA)
See also: Is there a web browser that supports non-Roman encodings?
c. Newsgroups
- Ink Spot from DejaVu Software
- Paperboy by Stand Alone
- Newt’sPaper from Serg Koren. (Download available from the Internet Archive for Mac OS & Windows)
- NewsReader by T. Kuwabara (Download available from UNNA)
d. Chat
e. FTP
- NewtFTP by Tactile Systems
- LunaSuite Pro by LunaTech (Also available from UNNA)
f. Terminal Emulation
- PT100 by Scrawl
- PocketCall by Ex Machina
- Easy Connect
- Term
- NewtTerm
- TermLimit by Ed Anuff
- EETransfer by Easter Eggs
g. Telnet
- PT100 by Scrawl
h. VNC
- NewtVNC by Steve Weyer implements both VNC client and server.
3. How do I read AOL mail on my Newton?
Basically, you can’t.
At one point Catamount Software’s Aloha allowed you to access multiple accounts, but as AOL dropped support for older versions of their client protocol, Aloha stopped functioning.
The current iteration of AOL Mail requires secure web access or an email client that supports SSL. Unfortunately, the Newton OS does not support SSL at this time.
4. Is there a Sherlock equivalent for the Newton?
Hemlock is a freeware program created by Sean Luke. It allows you to do searches similar to the original Sherlock, using the most recent versions of Steve Weyer’s Newt’s Cape browser. It also has extra capabilities, such as importing and exporting of plug-ins.
5. Can I use my Newton as a web server?
Believe it or not, yes.
Newton Personal Data Sharing (NPDS) is a software suite consisting of a web server and associated support modules for Newton OS 2.x devices. It provides web-based access to notes, names, calendar items, and more.
6. Are there any search engines I can access using a Newton?
FrogFind is a search engine designed specifically for use with vintage computers, including the Newton. It functions as a wrapper around the DuckDuckGo search engine, converting the search results into very basic HTML that less capable web browsers can understand. It’s quite brilliant, actually.
Pawel Piotrowski also put together a Newton-themed version of FrogFind, appropriately named NewtFind.
While not technically a search engine, the Sloop Web Directory is an organized listing of websites accessible by older computers.
E. Fonts
1. Where can I find Roman fonts for the Newton?
Free fonts:
- Sean Luke’s Fonts for the Newton
- Prism Research’s Free Newton Fonts
- Ben Truesdale’s Fonts
- Michael Peay’s Minico is available as part of Scrawl’s PT100 terminal program.
Commercial fonts:
- The TypeSet module in LandWare’s WriteStuff adds 9 fonts.
- WorksBetter by Stand Alone also includes fonts.
2. How do I make a Newton font?
There are two ways to make a Newton font from either a TrueType or bitmap typeface.
- The Newton Font Tool is the simplest approach.
- A more robust method requires the use of multiple tools as documented in Making Newton OS Fonts.
Some of Apple’s Newton font tools are also available on UNNA.
Sean Luke’s Fonts for the Newton page provides source code for both his set of laser printer compatible PostScript fonts and his customized Chinese language font.
Apple also provided some simple font source code.
3. Why don’t Newton fonts print properly?
The printing capabilities of the Newton aren’t very sophisticated. When printing to a PostScript printer, the Newton expects the printer to already have the necessary high resolution outline fonts built-in. If those outline fonts are not available, your text will either be printed in a “fallback” font, such as Courier or Helvetica, or may not print at all.
When printing to a non-PostScript printer, the Newton OS renders fonts as best it can. Due to limited storage space, Newton fonts are stored as screen optimized, low resolution bitmaps. Since the fonts are not available at a higher resolution, they’ll appear extremely rough or jaggy when printed.
F. Audio
1. What software can be used to play audio?
On MessagePad 2000 and MessagePad 2100 devices, you can record and play messages and sounds using the recording stationary located in the Notepad application and the built-in microphone.
Roger Milne’s ModPlayer plays .MOD music files on Newton OS 2.0 devices. A MOD file contains a set instrument samples, plus a list of patterns on how those samples are played back similar to MIDI. ModPlayer is also available from UNNA along with a large selection of MOD files.
Eckhart Köppen’s MAD Max audio player supports MP3 audio files. The recommended bit rate for MP3 files being played on a Newton device is is 32 kbps mono. According to Luiz Petroni reportedly offers the best balance between size and quality.
Sound Icon Maker by Deep Focus Designs lets you create your own Newton sounds from audio files.
Sound Off! by Deep Focus Designs lets you link sounds to specific actions and events.
There are also plenty of playable sounds available as individual packages.
- UNNA’s Sounds
- Deep Focus Designs’ Sound Icons
- Shane Hill’s collection of Custom Sounds
2. What software do I need to record audio?
Audio recording requires a microphone or audio input using a serial or Interconnect port adapter.
See also: Are there any accessories that use the Interconnect port?
On MessagePad 2000 and MessagePad 2100 devices, you can record messages and sounds using the built-in microphone and the recording stationary located in the Notepad application.
VoiceNotes by Modasys dramatically improves the recording quality and uses memory more efficiently than the built-in recording stationary. (Also available from UNNA)
VoiceAlarm by Serg Koren allows you to record sounds which can be used as alerts. (Also available from UNNA)
G. International & Localized Software
1. Where can I find software for non-Roman languages?
At one time, C.W. Otto Sohn’s NEWTtools site maintained an exhaustive list of Fonts, Input Methods, and Font Tools. Be aware of dead links when perusing this resource.
Paul Guyot’s DictMgr allows you to disable system dictionaries and manage multiple user dictionaries, particularly for different languages.
- Brazilian Portugese
- DictBR is a 22,000 word Brazilian Portuguese dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by Ricardo Ueda Karpischek.
- Central European
- Mail V supports Central European (ISO 8859-2, Windows) encoding using an optional package.
- Chinese
- Fonts for the Newton by Sean Luke.
- Chinese Input Method, Unicode encoding translator, dictionaries, fonts, and more by Joseph Chen.
- Mail V supports Chinese (Big5) encoding using an optional package.
- Cyrillic
- Cyrillic Reading Pack and Cyrillic Writing Pack by Joseph Chen.
- The SimpleMail Text Encoding page also has some resources, including a Cyrillic Newton Text Encoding module.
- Mail V supports Cyrillic (ISO 8859-5, KOI8-R, Windows, Mac OS) encoding using an optional package.
- Czech
- Czech localized keyboard, Newt’s Cape encoding plugin, and fonts by Michael Vacik.
- Danish
- DictDK is a 31,000 word Danish dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by Morten Wagner, Peter Dam Bové, and Toke Riis Ebbesen.
- Dutch
- DictNL is a 10,000 Dutch dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by Jeroen Goolouze.
- Estonian
- DictEE is a 24,000 Estonian dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by Kaido Tiigisoon.
- Finnish
- DictFI is a 24,000 Finnish dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by Harri Hohteri.
- French
- German
- Nick’s D-Locale by Nick Mueller modifies some settings to use German formatting, such sort order, decimal points, and dates.
- Greek
- Mail V supports Greek (ISO 8859-7) encoding using an optional package.
- Italian
- DictIT is a 62,000 Italian dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by Paolo Matteucci.
- Japanese
- Various localized software packages, including Japanese bitmap fonts by Tomoyoshi Murai.
- Localized software by Makoto “Gnue” Nukui.
- Mail V supports Japanese (ISO 2022-JP, Shift JIS, EUC-JP) encoding using an optional package.
- Korean
- Mail V supports Korean (EUC-KR) encoding using an optional package.
- Spanish
- DictES is a Spanish dictionary by Paul Guyot. Word list compiled by José Luis Moro.
2. Is there a web browser that supports non-Roman encodings?
Newt’s Cape supports Chinese, Japanese, and Cyrillic (in addition to English, French, and German).
H. Data Transfer & Synchronization
1. What software can be used to transfer data?
- Newton Connection Utilities can import, export, and synchronize data between a Newton device and a Mac OS or Windows computer.
- Newton Connection for Mac OS X (NCX) by Simon Bell is a modern replacement for Newton Connection Utilities (NCU). NCX can backup data, import and export dates, names, notes and Newton Works documents, install packages, as well as allow the use of a computer keyboard to enter text on your a device.
- Newton Connection 3.0 (Requires macOS X 10.12 Sierra or later)
- Newton Connection 2.3 (Requires OS X 10.10 Yosemite or later)
- Newton Connection 2.0.4 (Requires OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard to 10.9 Mavericks)
- Sloup by Steve Weyer allows you to import and export data between a Newton device and a computer using a terminal emulation program.
- X-Port by Innovative Computer Solutions allows you to transfer notes, lists, outlines, names, meetings, screenshots, and packages from your Newton via a Mac OS or Windows application.
- QuickPort by PowerPen Software provides a global routing mechanism for transferring text to a terminal program on another computer.
- EETransfer by Easter Eggs
- NewtDump by Victor Rehorst is a Windows application that can export Notepad, In Box, Out Box, and Quotes data to text, as well as data from the Name File to vCard or CSV format. Requires Steve Weyer’s Sloup.
- Newton Personal Data Sharing (NPDS) is a web server that runs on your Newton, providing web-based access to notes, names, calendar items, and more.
- NewtonLink transfers data between a Newton device and native applications running on various flavours of Unix. A slightly earlier version is also available from UNNA.
- UnixNPI is a package installer that compiles on most flavours of Unix, including Mac OS X. The current version communicates only via the serial port.
- NewTen by Steven Frank is a Mac OS X package installer based on UnixNPI. Compiled versions of the application are available via the Internet Archive.
- Newton Data Browser by Thomas Tempelmann runs on Classic Mac OS (PPC only) and Windows.
- NewtShare by Andre Beckedorf is a lightweight web server for Windows that converts shared files to Newton-friendly packages accessed using Steve Weyer’s Newt’s Cape browser.
- Revelar Connection Utility (RCU) by Revelar Software.
- PackageBuddy by Tactile Systems provides package exporting.
- BinHexer by Jonathan Kipling Knight facilitates the transfer of binary files between a Newton device and another computer.
- iTunes Newton Plug-in by Eric Schneck allows you to transfer MP3 files directly from iTunes (versions 1 and 2 only) for use in Eckhart Köppen’s MAD Max audio player.
- Desktop Connection Library (DCL) is a multiplatform project to replace Apple’s libraries and applications that connect to and transfer data with Newton devices.
- AmigaNPI by David Fong allows you to install packages from an Amiga computer.
See also: How do I transfer data to and from a Newton?
2. What software can be used to synchronize data with other applications?
Most of the software listed below was originally designed to work with now obsolete operating systems and applications. Please keep this in mind when attempting any synchronization tasks. Also, make sure your Newton and its data is backed up.
- Newton Connection Utilities can synchronize with Mac OS applications such as Now Up-to-Date, Now Contact, Claris Organizer, and Palm Desktop, as well as Schedule+ 7.0 and Lotus Organizer 2.1 on Windows.
- Cadenza synchronizes data with Lotus Notes. The documentation says that you can synchronize with Lotus Notes 4.5 and 4.6, but Harri Hohteri reported that it will also work with the R5 release. It appears that the
nnotes.dll
file is required, but may not be included with all versions of Lotus Notes. - Newtourage from DelCann Software synchronizes Name File and Date Book data with Microsoft Entourage for Mac OS.
- Notes2Notes synchronizes data between the Notepad application and Microsoft Outlook 97, 98, and 2000 on the Windows platform. Notes2Notes requires the use of Steve Weyer’s Sloup utility.
- NewtSync by Everchanging provides a way to synchronize Name File and Date Book items between a Newton and Mac OS X Jaguar. (Also available from SourceForge)
To synchronize, import, and export on various Unix platforms, refer to Reinhold Schöb’s Linux & Newton Mini How-To (2000)
Additionally, Walter R. Basil put together a tutorial on synchronization with Palm Desktop.
See also: How do I transfer data to and from a Newton?