1 Sep
1999
1 Sep
'99
3:59 p.m.
Hello all:
I hope this is "classic" enough . . .
Though I've been involved with and have earned my keep with desktop
microcomputers for a period covering almost twenty years, I was in another
field during the time when CP/M was popular.
I'd like to add a CP/M based machine to my collection but as with all of my
old computers I want to have a system I can use for at least one
business-related application. This helps make my collection tax-deductable
as a business expense ;>) BTW, I don't mind writing my own code.
What was the best CP/M based machine for business? Are applications and
utilities still obtainable? What about development tools and documentation?
Your opinions, please.
Thanks,
Glen Goodwin
0/0
1 Sep
1 Sep
4:25 p.m.
What was the best CP/M based machine for business? Are
applications and
utilities still obtainable? What about development tools and documentation?
Don't know how it is for business, but I'd say the best CP/M machine would
be a Commodore 128. After all it has the best games of any system that ran
CP/M :^) Well, that's not quite true. I've run CP/M-86 on a Pentium/133,
and played a couple cool games on it.
Personally when I think CP/M though, I think "Kaypro 2". It came with what
would have been at the time some decent business apps, including WordStar.
Then again I think I've got an Apple 2 clone that came with W*. Hmmm,
that's right Apples could run CP/M with an add-on card...
OK, OK, I'll try and be serious for a minute. Based on what you want it
for, the Kaypro sounds like the computer for you. Unless you're also
wanting a S-100 based system.
Zane
| Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Adminstrator |
| healyzh(a)aracnet.com (primary) | Linux Enthusiast |
| healyzh(a)holonet.net (alternate) | Classic Computer Collector |
+----------------------------------+----------------------------+
| Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, |
| and Zane's Computer Museum. |
| http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |
2 Sep
2 Sep
1:42 a.m.
Zane H. Healy wrote:
>What was the best CP/M based machine for business?
Are applications and
>utilities still obtainable? What about development tools and documentation?
I would cast my vote for the Kaypro I have one in my office that runs with a nice
continous demo program that I wrote in BASIC. Its a nice conversation piece
everyone that enters my office is imediatly drawn to it.. Its a real work horse,
my has been on for 2 years now almost everyday.
These machines are easily found on Ebay for around $40.00..
Phil...
3:56 a.m.
New subject: HP 120 was Re: Best CP/M machine?
Since we're on the subject of CPM machines I'll mention that I just
picked up a HP 120 CPM machine. It looks a lot like a HP 9816. Cute little
bugger. And it's a lot easier to move around than the HP 125 that I was
using. I have the OS for it and HP's menu program (PAM) and a word
processor. Does anyone have any other software for the HP 120 or 125? I'm
not sure if it will run regular CPM software or not but probably not
knowing how HP did things. I can read both 8, 3.5 and 5.25" disks on them
but they have to be in HP's oddball LIF format.
Joe
9:59 a.m.
New subject: HP 120 was Re: Best CP/M machine?
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999, Joe wrote:
Since we're on the subject of CPM machines
I'll mention that I just
picked up a HP 120 CPM machine. It looks a lot like a HP 9816. Cute little
bugger. And it's a lot easier to move around than the HP 125 that I was
using. I have the OS for it and HP's menu program (PAM) and a word
processor. Does anyone have any other software for the HP 120 or 125? I'm
not sure if it will run regular CPM software or not but probably not
knowing how HP did things. I can read both 8, 3.5 and 5.25" disks on them
but they have to be in HP's oddball LIF format.
Joe, I have the following for the HP 100 machines. E-mail me off list if
interested.
- don
HEWLETT-PACKARD
Name Format Description
100-SYS DSDD HP 100 series (120/125) CP/M 2.2 system disk
100-UTIL DSDD HP 100 series utilities
100-TUT DSDD HP 100 series Computer Tutor
100-WS DSDD HP 100 series Wordstar 3.0
100-WORD DSDD HP 100 series The Word+
100-COND DSDD HP 100 series Condor 20 dbms
100-VISI DSDD HP 100 series Visicalc
100-GRPH DSDD HP 100 series Graphics
100-DLNK DSDD HP 100 series to host comm programs
12:32 a.m.
What was the best CP/M based machine for business?
Are applications and
utilities still obtainable? What about development tools and documentation?
The short list is long!
Kaypro (any)
Compupro (s100 any)
Morrow
Northstar Horizon
Even an IMSAI with a disk.
As to software check ftp.simtel.net (I forget if it's net, org or com).
Also the OAK Archive (oakland.edu). You sould not have any difficulty
finding at least 10-20 sites with CPM-80 software. There were some 20,000
on the walnut creek CPM cdrom alone so thgere are plenty out there.
Development tools, I'd guess between 20-30 different languages alone
including all the well known ones (basic, Pascal, C, Fortran). Then there
are the assemblers linkers and editors. You will be able to find whole
applications as well for most any use.
It was not an orphan OS and was very actively used by many businesses
into the early 90s!
Allison
12:59 a.m.
My favourite was the old Xerox 820-II, with the high keyboard and 8inch
drives. It runs Dbase and WordStar with great dignity. I know there are
plenty of other applications floating around for it, too. multiplan
comes immediately to mind. My second favourite was the Epson QX-10, also
very lovely, with lots of interesting software. The Xerox keyboards
always struck me as being particularly sensual and pleasant to use. The
Epson has a ramdrive. The Epson is also smaller and a bit easier to move
about.
On Wed, 1 Sep 1999 Glenatacme(a)aol.com wrote:
Hello all:
I hope this is "classic" enough . . .
Though I've been involved with and have earned my keep with desktop
microcomputers for a period covering almost twenty years, I was in another
field during the time when CP/M was popular.
I'd like to add a CP/M based machine to my collection but as with all of my
old computers I want to have a system I can use for at least one
business-related application. This helps make my collection tax-deductable
as a business expense ;>) BTW, I don't mind writing my own code.
What was the best CP/M based machine for business? Are applications and
utilities still obtainable? What about development tools and documentation?
Your opinions, please.
Thanks,
Glen Goodwin
0/0
M. K. Peirce
Rhode Island Computer Museum, Inc.
215 Shady Lea Road,
North Kingstown, RI 02852
"Casta est qui nemo rogavit."
- Ovid
2:06 a.m.
My favourite was the old Xerox 820-II, with the high
keyboard and 8inch
drives. It runs Dbase and WordStar with great dignity. I know there are
Another good machine.
I have a visual1050, IT's interesting as it was one of the CPM3 machines
with integral video and detached keyboard like a PC, mono video with
graphics was handled by a 6502 and the main cpu was z80. It was
particulary nice as it has a SASI-adaptek-MFM hard disk and the floppies
were an odd 96tpi 380k format, but they read RX50s.
The laptop Epson PX-8 is a fair cpm machine as well. Small too.
Others I have as examples:
Micromint SB180 w/SCSI option
AmproLB (it is!)
DECMATEIII with z80 APU
DEC Vt180
apps/lang/tools I have for those and more listed mostly to show a partial
list of what was/is available.
Dbase
Multiplan
FMS80
Wordstar
Calcstar
Turbo Pascal, C
MIX C
MS Bascom and basic
UCSD Psystem
BDS C
SmallC
TinyC
baseX
S-basic
C-basic
(BASICs about 10-12 of them at last count)
Algol68
DRI PLM
MS fortran
Forth
Assemblers 8080/8085/z80 (asm, zasm, ZAS, asmz...)
Xasms for 6800, 1802, 6502, NEC7800, 8051, 8048,
Editors (too many!)
File and print tools fancyfont and Runoff plus others.
Most of the Adventure game (Zork, ADvent, millionair...)
Comm programs (modem7, MEX, COMM, Microcom...)
Disk format translation tools (many!)
CPM upgrades (ZCPR, ZCCP, P2DOS, ZCPM, CONIX)
Various business packages (accounting, inventory GL)
And the CPM Cdrom.
What makes most of these special to me is amny are available as sources
as well (CPM too!).
Most of these are available at the varions archive sites for free!
Also some of XT class PCs with NEC V20 were CPM80 candidate machines as
the V20 has 8080 emulation on chip.
9:46 a.m.
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999 allisonp(a)world.std.com wrote:
________O/_______
O\
My favourite
was the old Xerox 820-II, with the high keyboard and 8inch
drives. It runs Dbase and WordStar with great dignity. I know there are
Another good machine.
Also some of XT class PCs with NEC V20 were CPM80
candidate machines as
the V20 has 8080 emulation on chip.
As do the V30 and V40.
- don
9:54 a.m.
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999, Don Maslin wrote:
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999 allisonp(a)world.std.com wrote:
> > My favourite was the old Xerox 820-II, with the high keyboard and 8inch
> > drives. It runs Dbase and WordStar with great dignity. I know there are
>
> Another good machine.
Does anyone here rember the GNAT's (System 9 and System 10)? We had them
in high school (1981-1983)
10:36 a.m.
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999, Charles P. Hobbs wrote:
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999, Don Maslin wrote:
Yep! I have one. System 10, IIRC.
- don
On Thu, 2 Sep 1999 allisonp(a)world.std.com wrote:
> > My favourite was the old Xerox 820-II, with the high keyboard and 8inch
> > drives. It runs Dbase and WordStar with great dignity. I know there are
>
> Another good machine.
Does anyone here rember the GNAT's (System 9 and System 10)? We had them
in high school (1981-1983) 
8:50 a.m.
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9:27 a.m.
The best CP/M machine is the Commodore 128D, fortified with CMD hardware.
- Bo
Hello all:
I hope this is "classic" enough . . .
Though I've been involved with and have earned my keep with desktop
microcomputers for a period covering almost twenty years, I was
in another
field during the time when CP/M was popular.
I'd like to add a CP/M based machine to my collection but as
with all of my
old computers I want to have a system I can use
for at least one
business-related application. This helps make my collection
tax-deductable
as a business expense ;>) BTW, I
don't mind writing my own code.
What was the best CP/M based machine for business? Are
applications and
utilities still obtainable? What about
development tools and
documentation?
Your opinions, please.
Thanks,
Glen Goodwin
0/0
9243
days inactive
9244
days old
12 comments
10 participants
participants (10)
-
allisonp＠world.std.com -
ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk -
at258＠osfn.org -
bo＠zimmers.net -
donm＠cts.com -
Glenatacme＠aol.com -
healyzh＠aracnet.com -
musicman38＠mindspring.com -
rigdonj＠intellistar.net -
transit＠primenet.com