🚀 go-pugleaf

Ok.. a display of my ignorance:

I recently began using my ST as a mac...  so far, i haven't
run into any problems... however, i still am wrestling with
the "system folder" concept.  WHile the ST has an "auto" folder
into which one puts TSR's and other programs to run at boot-up,
i never had problems like i am having with the MAC system concept.

I know it is MY problem in understanding what happens to 
the system folder... i guess it has to do with the fact theat
the system folder can be written to and corrupted by applications
and so on.. Here is my dilemma:                

I bought the emulator and bought 6.0.3.  I then set up the 
system folder with several cdevs and inits etc... some very nice
ones, i might add, in comparison to stuff available for the ST.

When i bought the Epson LQ Software package to drive my LQ800,
i began to realize some fundamental misconceptions i have about
how the system really works.  The driver came with an install
program and a folder which contained  a system 6.0.2 and
the epson driver with fonts...  i thought i could simply
copy all but the system 6.0.2 into my 6.0.3 folder on my
drive and all would work.  Well.. this wasn't the case.  
I eventually made an entirely new system folder on my
drive in another partition from which i would boot when
i needed to print.  I didn't like the idea.. thinking i had
to have another entire system folder etc .. just to print..

Then i got a Russian tutorial program... this was came with 4.1 finder
and whatever the system was around in 1987... i loaded this onto
my drive.. . folders and files could NOT be found.. the application
ran fine.. but apparently some table of pointers was never created etc..
SO i popped the stuff off my drive back onto a floppy.. and booted from 
the floppy. .. ran the program off the floppy. 
  I can't imagine that i am going to have to have separate
system folders for "old" programs etc...  i obviously do NOT know
how to redirect the "old" program to look at and use the newest system.
The only other thing i can think is that a program actually 
writes to the system and modifies it in some way.. this 
would be weird, of course....

Another question:  is there a way to put the system folder into
a RAM disk?  Even with my Quantum at 1:1 interleave, accessing
the system to do OS maintenance is a bit slow... 

Any and all help will be much appreciated...  


-kevin]
ramsiri@blake.acs.washington.edu