EI Z-NEWS 705 30 March 1987
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Of Significance. We happily announce long-delayed ZCPR, Version 3.3, goes
into beta-site testing first week of April. Jay Sage has greatly enhanced the
command processor over original created by Richard Conn. Version 3.3 has many
new features:
1. Extended command processors and error handlers work together, and can run
in high memory so the GO command can be used.
2. Command Processor configures itself dynamically from environment descript-
or as do ZCPR3 utilities. Maximum drive and user area, acceptance of DU
form, and addresses of RCP, FCP, and NDR are fully accessible. Utilities
install automatically.
3. Speed of processing increased. Path searches are faster, current direct-
ory can be omitted, explicit directory declaration bypasses path altogeth-
er, each directory searched only once, RCP commands are run before less
powerful CPR ones, and many more such features and options.
4. ZEX jobs treated as shell scripts. ZEX now runs under shells, e.g., MENU,
VMENU, and VFILER, quickly and efficiently.
5. DU form permitted with full pass-word security. Password checking of
named directories can be disabled when the wheel byte is on.
6. Both RCP and CPR commands are shown using the built-in H command.
7. Improved CPR commands REN, SAVE (an added SAVS command saves sectors),
DIR, and GET.
8. Significant bugs fixed. Long command-line tails handled correctly, init-
ialized and filled file control blocks when an ECP is invoked, path root
correctly calculated, built-in error handler activated when external hand-
ler cannot be found. No more infinite loops!
9. Code structure reorganized, made more efficient with different algorithms,
and then completely rewritten.
If all goes as planned we should be shipping 3.3 in a month, about first week
in May. Now that Jay has taken over the management of ZCPR, we can expect
lots of new, timely, exciting features periodically--Richard Conn is off
working other projects. We wish him well in his new endeavors not associated
with Echelon.
Major enhancements are being made to ZRDOS to work with BIOSs that handle
features of newer chips. In-house, we call new ZCPR, ZRDOS pair: ZOS, the
new Z-System. Besides Jay, Bridger Mitchell, Malcolm Kemp, and Ken Taschner
join Z-Team to design, develop, code, and produce ZOS, under Bridger's leader-
ship. First machines to receive ZOS as bootable-disk upgrades will be SB180,
SB180FX, and DT42, other HD64180 and Z180 machines, then computers using
Zilog's new Z280.
Hopefully, the delays of the past are behind us. We are on new footing,
moving ahead on many fronts with new optimism (see Software Beat below.)
From Our Mail Box. Jerry Nelson, Marburg, Germany, relates his feeling about
General Motors and the company's Chairman, similar to ours (Z-News 609-5).
And about STD bus (he wishes more hardware and software vendors would get
their combined act together) he says, "We are not trying to finalize the Manu-
facturing Automation Protocol for a steel mill or the Technical Office
Protocol for a building full of Boeing engineers. We are the other people who
make machines and research labs go. Our common ground is a pile of STD
cards..." along with Z-System and Quick-Task. Yes, Jerry, we agree STD bus
can be an economical solution having open architecture, and there's develop-
ment software to do what needs to be done. And that more needs to be done to
make the developer's life easier. We support companies offering STD Z80,
NSC800, HD64180, Z180, and Z280 processor boards. Don't forget, we presently
have versions of Z-System that are ROMable. (Refer to Hardware Beat below for
more on Zilog's newest chip.)
"About a year ago, I purchased the SB180 computer with a full software
package (Z-System + Z-Utilites). Later on, I also purchased some additonal
software from your compay (The Libraries, Graphics, Windows and Pull Down
Menus). Working with the Z-System and its utilities has been a great pleasure
for me. Your software is excellent and so is the documentation that comes
with it! At present, I am upgrading the system with the SB180FX, GT180,
COMM180, 1 Mbyte of RAM and I hope that my `new' system will work as well as
and reliably as the `old' one.
"After installation of the COMM180 modem I would like to try to establish
a connection to Z-Node Central and upload some software if possible. Is there
a password .. line 65 because of helv header required to do this?" A fragment
of letter from Ernst Schmid, Bern, West Germany, along with $650 order for
more software. Thanks Ernst for kind words and wonderful order. To answer
your question: many Europeans access Z-Node Central with no trouble. You
don't need a password. But first time you log-on you must leave your name and
address, so that next time you log-on you will have full access to file system
for up and downloading.
Correction. Contact in England for Z80 Turbo Modula-2 is Mr. Ian Rangely,
Grey Matter, Ltd., Prigg Meadow, Ashburton, Devon TQ13 7DF, telephone 0364
53499. Z-News 704 confused Grey Matter's street address with Mr. Rangely's
name, dropped his name, and declared the street's name to be his. Doing some-
thing like that intentionally is meaner than a boot full of barb wire. It was
not intentional...fortunately only the hardcopy edition of the newsletter got
out with this typographical aberration.
Z-Node Activity. Z-Node Central activity is at all-time high even with PC-
Pursuit blocking access to the 489 and other significant exchanges...what can
we say? PC-Pursuit must make a profit, just as we.
Ben Grey operates Z-Node #24, Ken Jones, #4. Will we never get them
right (Z-News 703's corrections failed)? Maybe the red Zinfandel has gone to
our head...we switched recently to some vintaged in Oregon, based on advice
from Z-User Davis Northnagel of Eugene. We wonder...
Bruce Chilers, P.O. Box 3033, Oakton, VA 22124, provides a super drawing
program, written in Turbo Pascal, contained in file WDRAW.LBR. Bruce runs his
own RAS, 703/281-7907. Give him a call to show your appreciation for WDRAW.
And, windows come from Bob Catiller, El Torro, CA. Bob's programs,
written in Turbo Modula-2, are in file WINDOM2.LBR. Rea Williams's Z-Node #10
is focal point for TM-2 programs, 714/855-0672. Gee! Lots of high-level
language activity caused by both Turbo Pascal and Modula-2. WDRAW and WINDOWS
should keep us busy, learning and understanding, for months to come.
Z-User's Corner. A neat alias we call DEFRAG uses RESTORE (on SUS #9 and Z-
Nodes), Steve Dirickson's file block allocation fragmentation correction
utility, to automate disk and partition file de-fragmentation process while
retaining critical operator interaction. It sorts and packs the directory
area using CLEANDIR, enters RESTORE and calculates status of disk fragmenta-
tion, then asks operator to proceed or not, and finally resets disk system
using DISKRST of ZRDOS v1.3 and after.
ROOT:cleandir;restore;ROOT:diskrst
RESTORE.COM must be on the drive that disk restoration is to take place, which
is the default, currently logged-into drive. Other files may be along path.
Once into RESTORE, control-C safely cancels process. At anytime you can go
back and start process again--now that's nice!
RESTORE orders disk allocation blocks based on an alphabetically sorted
directory. Blocks are sequentially re-located to also be numerically sorted.
After restoration, entire disk is one of order based on these sortings. If
you add a file with name whose first letter is in low alphabet, say ARUNZ.COM,
nearly the entire allocation has to be re-done, because file will be last on
the disk format. There is nothing wrong with this but RESTORE will indicate a
disk completely needing restoring.
We wonder...sure, it is important to have file blocks allocated contig-
uously on disk. But having the allocation alphabetically sorted may or may
not be important. Remember Z-News 205-2, Speed Tip Reminder? It suggested a
file placement order on floppies to speed access on cold boot and during
normal use. Principle applies to all rotary storage devices.
Maybe Steve will rethink his algorithm and offer options, ones to better
optimize the defragmentation process. We would like to have the ability to
declare the names of the first 20 to 30 files on the disk.
"The multiple command capability of Z-System is important not so much
because it allows the user to enter a whole sequence of commands man-
ually but because it allows programs to do so automatically."---Jay
Sage, ZSIG Corner, The Computer Journal, Issue 27, page 31.
Z-System permits knowing about command search paths. Few if any appli-
cation programs written for CP/M take advantage of paths. Take WordStar (or
Newword) as example. Word processing program has an "R" command to run files
from within itself. The files to be run must be in the default or logged-in
directory for R to work. (ZCPR3 shells should not be run because of conflict
between way shells return to themselves and way WordStar returns after it runs
programs.) Try using SHSET and CMD to make WS into temporary shell and see
what happens...we have, and it was lots of fun learning from such experiment-
ing.
SHSET WS;CMD<cr>
Another neat thing to try: from VFILER load WordStar, then use R and
LZED, the Z-System editor from Zivio and NAOG/ZSIG (Z-News 701-1), to edit a
file while you still have WS loaded. On exit from LZED, saving your work, you
instantly return to main menu within WordStar. Oh! Wow! What a trip!
On the other hand, Backgrounder ii (Z-News 704-1, Item 10 on our Price
List, $75.00 plus $4.00 S & H) provides an even more multidimensional trip.
BGii permits being within a file with your favorite editor, exiting, leaving
the text just where you happen to be. Next, opening another file with another
editor, and finally, when desired, returning to the first file and being at
exactly the same place you left.
Software Update Service Report. SUS diskette #8 has been shipped to all
registered subscribers. It's the eighth disk shipped in eight months to those
without easy access to Z-Nodes but keeping pace with public domain and other
support programs mentioned in Z-News. Service has been an unexpected but
welcomed success. Thanks to you who subscribe--we appreciate your business.
SUS #9, directory partially shown in Z-News 704-2, is about 30k-bytes from
being filled, ready to ship. It should ship by end of April or early May.
Programs just keep coming to enhance Z-System computers.
JetFind Report. We have talked (written) a lot about JetFind and its speed
and flexibility. Well, early reports indicate you, our users, agree with our
findings. It is the most, as they say in the trade. Management of text
files, compressed--both squeezed and crunched--and files in libraries, has
never been easier. But the bad news. Introductory period is over, price goes
to $49.95. But if you order before 15 April, order desk is instructed to
honor original price of $39.95. Jet Find is Item 66 on Price List.
Hardware Beat. Toshiba ships their super high capacity floppy, a 3.5" drive
with 4-megabyte capacity. Interface is same as conventional floppies, so
adding one is a matter of providing table space in computer's BIOS. Floppies
just will not die...act as excellent backup media to RAM and hard disks.
Konica and Eastman Kodak, look out!
NEC is producing V30 chips with full Z80 instruction-set compatibility,
an 8086 that runs Z80 code!. They are not offering it in USA because of on-
going copyright battle with Intel. NEC is using the chip in a home computer,
the PC88VA, for the Japanese market. Wonder if Z-System understands Oriental
languages?
"World's fastest microprocessor" is produced by AMD, Advanced Micro
Devices Inc., Sunnyvale, CA. Called Am29000, 32-bit machine has sustained
through-put of 17 million instruction per seconds (mips), peak of 25 mips, at
clock rate of 25mHz and 4-ns instruction cycle time. AMD claims that a multi-
font laser printer built around a 29000 runs four times faster that those with
Motorola's 68020. Surely Apple is looking into the 29000 for their next
version of their relatively slow and expensive, but flexible, Laserwriter.
Grapevine, i.e., according to usually reliable sources, tells of IBM's
success with producing 4-megabit memory chips, code named Gazelle. Appears
USA is closer than the Japanese to being able to offer extreme density DRAM
chips. We understand both IBM and Texas Instruments are at least as close to
volume production with both 4- and 16-megabit chips as their Asian counter-
parts. Here, we salute IBM and TI and their search for excellence, for not
throwing in the towel in face of severe competition. More USA companies
should have that attitude. (We haven't fully assimilated impact of now-
available 1-megabit chips--to be in IBM's to-be-announced-in-April new PCs,
their alleged Apple squashers--now the 4's are almost here. Yes, we live in a
fast changing technological world.)
We have not been missing the new generation of laser printers announced
and shipping. Three using the Ricoh 6-page per minute engine (ppm), Epson,
Okidata, and Ricoh themselves, and Hewlett-Packard's LaserJet Series II using
an upgraded Canon engine, each represent a maturing technology. (Canon's
original 8-ppm engine is said to be good for 100,000 pages before major over-
haul; Ricoh's new 6-ppm, 180,000. We don't know about Series II durability.)
All four retail for under $2500 and can be discount purchased for between
$1500 and $2000. We predict that 300-dot resolution laser printers will be
selling for less than $800 this time next year. These printers produce near-
typeset quality, are physically small for what they do, are fast, quiet, and
reliable. Winners!
Yes, Virginia, there is a Z280. Zilog finally does it--the Z280 exists!
It's what the original Z800 was said to be and more, but Z280 is not vapor-
ware! Chip is super extension of a Z80, much more so than the HD64180.
(Zilog has also started shipping their second-source AT&T WE32100 32-bit
microprocessor chip and an enhanced HD64180 called Z180.) Looks like the
company finally has its act together. Z280 has both 8- and 16-bit signed and
unsigned multiply and divide with expanded set of 46 new instructions plus
additional addressing modes. Set has over 600 instructions (goodbye RISC
concepts). At clock rates of 10 megahertz and above, 16-megabytes of memory
address space, and 8-bit Z80 bus or 16-bit Zilog Z-Bus, capabilities far
exceed Intel's 80286 used in IBM PC AT. Addressing modes offered make high-
level languages more effective than ever. Using Z-Bus we have an extended Z80
instruction set CPU that is true 16-bit, as is the 80286.
Zilog uses 2-micron channel length, a physical aspect of a chip's design,
CMOS technology for the 280; we would feel better if 1.2 micron had been used
for future speed increases, but knowing it not to be a perfect world, we are
thankful for what we get. On the other hand, we know of several 2.0 micron
designs running at 20 mHz--metal pitch, another aspect of chip design, is
likely more important than channel length at determini
ng overall performance.
Now we re-think our position on appropriate mix between HLL and Assembler
code, considering advanced pipeline-cache architecture of Z280. But most
importantly, Z280 runs Z80 code--Echelon's common denominator in terms of
microprocessor chip support. For more information, contact Jim Magill,
Richard Davies, or Tom Hampton, Product and Technical Marketing, Zilog, Inc.,
210 Hacienda Ave., Campbell, CA 95008, 408/370-8000 or 370-5166. The future
is now!
(block diagram of z280 chip here in hardcopy edition.)
Zilog Z280 highly integrated CPU. Major functions are a paged memory-manage-
ment unit with a 256-byte fully associative data and instruction cache, a
four-channel DMA controller, three 16-bit counter-timers, a 6-stage wait-state
generator, a DRAM refresh controller, and a high-speed UART with rates up to
2.5 mHz. Price: 10mHz parts, $40, quantity one; $20 for 1,000.
Mr. Hampton presently runs Z280 benchmarks versus some common CPUs: Z80,
80186, 80286, etc. We will pass along source code and his results as he
provides them to Echelon.
It's easy to create,
but being responsible for what
the creation does is something else.
Software Beat. Desktop publishing packages, those that control laser print-
ers and phototypesetters, swiftly move down the path to completion. CP/M-
compatible machine users will soon have several choices to permit them to
dress up their hardcopy output, to put them into camera-ready quality class.
WordStar v4.0 leads the pack with potential features--features that are long
overdue--but programs from other sources could offer just as much or more.
Stay tuned...
ZAS, Version 2.6, is being offered free to all licensed users of record.
It's close to what we think it should be. As a gesture of faith in your con-
tinued confidence we want all users to enjoy ZAS in its latest form. The v2.6
release of ZAS has some bugs removed and a few enhancements. So if you
purchased ZAS from us, send in your master diskette and .lh 6
we'll send the new release to you by return mail.
1. ZAS, ZLINK, and ZLIB now incorporate ZCPR3-style help, shows when
trailing "//" parameter is used.
2. ZLINK now accepts DU: (disk/user) as part of filenames.
3. Serious error in ".phase and .dephase" processing fixed. Feature
should now be 100% functional.
4. MACLIB statements within IF conditionals now work correctly.
5. PRN listing object code fields now have accurate information.
6. With permission of the author, we now include XIZ and XZI programs
to replace ZCON (although ZCON is still included).
In Other Words. Present atmosphere cribs and cripples imagination, is more
concerned with image than substance, knows little of essence. "I'm doing my
best," becomes the great American cop-out. "You can house (jail) my body but
my soul soars free," our operative motto. Recent overrunning of U.S. Marines
in Lebanon by terrorists is case in point. Following regulations, they
carried unloaded guns. Under situation they knew themselves to be in, written
rules didn't seem to apply. But blindly, they followed standard regulations,
did not use initiative or even good judgement, their brains turned-off! When
life-threatening trouble arrived, they were completely unarmed. Disarmament
came when first they decided to use not native intelligence or common sense.
Regulations ruled!
We have become a nation of rules and regulations, not so much of laws,
but of men who think not, are so self-centered and self-identified, they think
of only the short-term. If Marines as individuals represent other than
leadership, where does leadership vest? Notice how USA governmental officials
helped stop Fujitsu, a Japanese company, from buying 80% of Fairchild
Semiconductor from Schlumberger, a French company. Such officials are the
ones that make us non-competitive. Show us quality leadership and we can
learn from and follow it. Until that time, rebels we shall remain!
War is not a disease, but rather a symptom of near universal dis-ease.
USA suffers from lack of leadership...our top officials leave us wanting...we
seek from them straight-forward moral and ethical principles, honesty, and
actions based on such...values and doings of the likes of George Washington
and Benjamin Franklin. Please, show us truth, something lasting!
Returning to mottoes. When building the staff for his newly conceived
computer company, H. Ross Perot (Z-News 609-5) hired the best people he could
find. His motto: "Eagles don't flock. You have to find them one at a time."
We wonder what Chairman Smith's and General Motors's mottoes are...
"The brain is an organ that starts working the moment you get up in the
morning and does not stop until you get into the office."
---Robert Frost, 1874-1963, American Poet.
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Of Angels and Eagles. Style, rhythm, beauty--the good life! Happiness is
not a matter of good fortune or worldly possessions. It's a mental attitude.
Happiness comes from appreciating what we have, instead of being miserable
about what we don't have. It's so simple--yet so hard for us humans to
comprehend. Now back to our lute and serenading Magdalena. See you down the
lines...
Echelon, Inc. 885 North San Antonio Road Los Altos, CA 94022 USA
Telephone: 415/948-3820 Telex: 4931646 Z-Node Central (RAS): 415/489-9005
Z-News 705 is Copyright MCMLXXXVII Echelon, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Permission to reprint, wholly or partially, automatically granted if source
credit is given to Echelon.
