Best CP/M machine ?

[Brendon]

What was the best CP/M based machine for business?  Are applications and
utilities still obtainable?  What about development tools and documentation?

[xlar54]

Best machine of course is subjective... one could argue the C128! (actually, I wouldnt be the one to argue that - IMHO, what made hobbyists love the 128, made businesses HATE it - Commodore 64 mode).

As for CPM software - google CP/M, and you will find that there is still a huge amount of software out there, including development tools. Id post links, but there are just too many.

[Brendon]

Best machine of course is subjective... one could argue the C128! (actually, I wouldnt be the one to argue that - IMHO, what made hobbyists love the 128, made businesses HATE it - Commodore 64 mode).

As for CPM software - google CP/M, and you will find that there is still a huge amount of software out there, including development tools. Id post links, but there are just too many.

And CP/M on the 64 was painfully unusable as I recall, somewhere I;ve still got the CP/M cartridge for the 64, I think I used it once or twice & gave up on it. Proprietary disk format.... blech.

Brendon

[6502Dude]

My first introduction to CP/M was on C128.

However, I prefer to use my Kaypro 10 for CP/M.

SuperCalc on C128 is painfully slow by comparison.

[Blacklord]

My first introduction to CP/M was on C128.

However, I prefer to use my Kaypro 10 for CP/M.

SuperCalc on C128 is painfully slow by comparison.

Are you still using the CP/M supplied with the C128 or have you replaced it with the Y2K fixed fast updated (http://landover.no-ip.com/128/olate/details.php?file=148) ? This makes CP/m on the 128 much more usable.

I don't have SuperCalc to be able to test the difference though

Lannce

[bill.mann]

My first introduction to CP/M was on C128.

However, I prefer to use my Kaypro 10 for CP/M.

SuperCalc on C128 is painfully slow by comparison.

If you're using the bog standard CP/M BIOS then doing anything is a lesson in frustration. But there are a lot of tools that you can use & replacement utilities that will speed up the 128's CP/M. There are many of these in the CP/M download area on this forum. It's well worth going over & picking stuff out.

First & foremost though, don't use 40 column mode, it's just way too cumbersome!

Get the fast replacement BIOS & get the ZCPR tools.

Throw a 1581 at it as well if you've got one & get the utilities that make use of an REU & create a nice fast, large ramdisk.

Bill

[6502Dude]

.. replaced it with the Y2K fixed fast updated (http://landover.no-ip.com/128/olate/details.php?file=148)

No, I have not tried this.

Thanks for the tip!

[6502Dude]

....that make use of an REU & create a nice fast, large ramdisk.

Wow, this brings back memories. I used to load up 512K memory as ram disk with utilities, do a bunch of BBS calling (at an amazing 1200bp/s) and then later unsqueeze the stuff I collected.

Downloading via bbs (and paying long distance) was often quite an investment in time and $.:lol:

[8502]

... get the utilities that make use of an REU & create a nice fast, large ramdisk.

A ramdisk is installed by default as drive m: if a REU is found at boot on versions of c128 cp/m dated 6 December 1985 or later.

Paul.

[adric22]

....that make use of an REU & create a nice fast, large ramdisk.

Wow, this brings back memories. I used to load up 512K memory as ram disk with utilities, do a bunch of BBS calling (at an amazing 1200bp/s) and then later unsqueeze the stuff I collected.

Downloading via bbs (and paying long distance) was often quite an investment in time and $.:lol:

I didn't know you could call BBSs from CP/M mode.  What terminal software did you use?  What type of protocols and graphics (ASCII, ANSI, PETSCII, etc..) did it support?

[Guest]

I didn't know you could call BBSs from CP/M mode.  What terminal software did you use?  What type of protocols and graphics (ASCII, ANSI, PETSCII, etc..) did it support?

When I first got my 128 I was attending Tennessee Tech University in 1989 and was given a Kermit program for CP/M that I used to get on our VAX cluster via 1670 modem at 1200 baud.  Once I had that, it was pretty easy to get other Commodore (non-CP/M) software by downloading files to my VAX account, then using Kermit to copy them to a CP/M disk on my 1571 and then copy files to my 1541 within CP/M.  I remember this was a huge advantage of the 128 as I could also take any Kaypro formatted disk to the labs and copy at lightening quick speeds from the VAX to our Rainbow workstations and then take the disks back to my dorm room to process the data in CP/M.

[6502Dude]

I didn't know you could call BBSs from CP/M mode.

CP/M systems were what BBS hobby (industry) was invented on.

What terminal software did you use?  What type of protocols and graphics (ASCII, ANSI, PETSCII, etc..) did it support?

Back in late 1980s there still were a bunch of RCPM BBS systems still operational.

I used IMP245. But there are other terminal programs such as MDM7.

I had .SUB file on my "BBS disk" that I would boot with into IMP245 and set up comm parameters.

While this happened I could usually go grab a cold one.

IMP245 It supports ASCII.

Transfer protocol includes Xmodem (and I think Kermit - memory is a little fuzzy).

It is in the downloads section:

http://landover.no-ip.com/128/olate/details.php?file=424

Cheers!

[adric22]

I remember this was a huge advantage of the 128 as I could also take any Kaypro formatted disk to the labs and copy at lightening quick speeds from the VAX to our Rainbow workstations and then take the disks back to my dorm room to process the data in CP/M.

Well, I think you are one of the very few 128 users that actually used CP/M mode.

I used a 128 from age 12 to 14.  About the only thing I ever did with CP/M was boot up and look at the command prompt and think to myself, "Gee.. I'm operating on the Z80 now."  But as I had zero CP/M software programs and I didn't know a single other person who had a CP/M machine (other than a few kids at school who had C128's, but only used the 64 mode to play games) I was never able to see any CP/M software operate on the 128.  In fact, to this very day I've never actually seen CP/M software running on a 128 other than what came with the system from Commodore.

[Guest]

I remember this was a huge advantage of the 128 as I could also take any Kaypro formatted disk to the labs and copy at lightening quick speeds from the VAX to our Rainbow workstations and then take the disks back to my dorm room to process the data in CP/M.

Well, I think you are one of the very few 128 users that actually used CP/M mode.

I used a 128 from age 12 to 14.  About the only thing I ever did with CP/M was boot up and look at the command prompt and think to myself, "Gee.. I'm operating on the Z80 now."  But as I had zero CP/M software programs and I didn't know a single other person who had a CP/M machine (other than a few kids at school who had C128's, but only used the 64 mode to play games) I was never able to see any CP/M software operate on the 128.  In fact, to this very day I've never actually seen CP/M software running on a 128 other than what came with the system from Commodore.

Again, this was the beauty (or curse) of the 128, you had three completely different ways (four if you include GEOS, which my 128DCR came with) to use it, none of which was very compatible with the others.  Many people with a 128 never saw a native 128 program.  I had a teacher who used the 128 exclusively with TimeWorks' software in 128 mode to write his thesis paper for his PHd, and he didn't have a monitor that could do 40-columns.