Source File Control: Echelon controls all releases to ZCPR3
software. If you fix a bug please send fix to the single point
of distribution correction: Echelon. We give full credit to
authors of corrections and upgrades. Please consider us your
only point for authorized fixes and changes. Also, please don't
put fixes on RCP/M's -- we simply can't keep track of programs we
don't absolutely control. We certainly appreciate your concern
and consideration for ZCPR3 improvements and problems.
There's a rumor circulating stating ZCPR3 is only useful on big
systems, those with double-sided 8" or hard disks. We tabulated
the file sizes and came up with these approximate figures:
Programs Kilobytes
Phase 1, 58 COM Files 161
Beta Test Phase 2 COM Files 48
Complete online HELP Phase 1 285
Additional HELP Phase 2 120
System Segments 8
DISCAT Catalog Modules 52
DISCAT online HELP 34
===
TOTAL 600
A small disk system could not have all programs
simultaneously online. Certainly all the features of Z3 are
available using double-sided 5 1/4" disks with over 350K storage.
(Our AMPRO BOOKSHELFtm Model 122 with dsdd drives works nicely,
386K storage on each disk.) A newcomer would have the help files
available until the system is learned, then that space would be
given up to applications and data. Not suited to small systems?
On the contrary, we cater to Kaypro, Osborne, Apple CP/M, and
Epson QX-10 users; Z3 is a major enhancement for these computers
and their present operating systems. ZCPR3 puts Unix-like power
in machines of the 8-bit world. And so easy to install using Z3-
Dot-Com(tm).
Speaking of Z3-Dot-Com, we are shipping! The program has
turned out even better than first hoped. All the normal features
of standard ZCPR3 are contained. Marketing this program conforms
to our company philosophy: bringing useful, cost-effective
solutions to the console operator, matter not what his/her level
of expertise is. With Z3-Dot-Com, you need know nothing of
programming to get ZCPR3 up and running on any type CP/M-80
machine. It takes about a dozen keystrokes, eact number
determined by your terminal being on the first or second install-
menu! Simple, for example, our mothers could install it, though
they have never used computers.
Z3 Bug Report: MCOPY doesn't correctly indicate a target disk
directory-full status during copying. So be careful at how many
files are transferred to a disk to avoid crashing the disk. And,
MKDIR, when writing a new or updated directory to disk, 25% of
the time erroneously reports a disk write error message. If this
happens, you must manually re-enter the entire SYS.NDR. Thanks
to Joe Wright of San Jose, California, for pointing these two out
to us. Another, MENU may crashi if a letter or number command,
followed by a carriage return, is entered that is not on current
menu screen; this, first from Chris Hays of La Canada,
California. There's more. Lots of minor operational ZEX and
Shell problems pointed out by Jay Sage, Lexington, Massachusetts.
Thanks to all! These bugs have been verified and presently are
being studied. Finally, we are planning an on-one-disk release
of bug-fixed programs, hopefully before end of the year. Now to
paper bugs.
In three places on page 91 of SAMPLER, the L80
$1,Z3LIB/S,... batch statement should read:
L80 /p:100,$1,Z3LIB/S,...
Without the /p:100 declaration, L80 linker adds an unrequired
jump instruction to the object code. Special thanks go to Al
Dunsmuir of Scarborough, Ontario, CANADA, for first bringing this
typo-error to our attention. Trust our negligence hasn't caused
too much pain to those attempting to link utilities after
assembly. (By the way, we recommend using the latest L80 Version
3.44, December 1981. The earlier versions, even 3.42 dated
February 1981, seem to have too many problems with our REL
files.)
While installing ZCPR3, for the first time, the user can't
use ZEX batch processing as indicated in SAMPLER, pages 60 to 62.
Use EX.COM (for Executive) instead, and rename all the *.ZEX
files to *.SUB. Replace all ZEX commands with EX <SUBFN> <FN>
commands. After the system is fully installed, and you have
assembled ZEX.MAC for your environment, of course it is better to
use ZEX for all further batch processing.
Z3 TIPS: The MCOPY utility and the RCP-resident CP (for copy, not
for command processor) are tailored for different applications;
CP for quick, short file copying from or to different disk/user
areas without concern for copy verification, but with optional
renaming. On the other hand MCOPY is best used for lengthy,
multiple file movements with default automatic verification, file
existence testing and inspection, multiple disk copying, and
optionally, no-verification. With either utility you can copy a
file from (or to) an area you aren't logged into! The DIR and DU
forms consistently apply. Remember Z3 "fn.ft,fn2.ft2,fnn.ftn"
multiple file syntax, in addition to normal wild card (? and *)
naming, makes utilities like CP and MCOPY extremely effective.
Don't forget, this naming syntax convention is near universal
throughout the ZCPR3 Utility System.
Try using ALIAS to create fast flow controlled command
files: an example used for global command with DISCAT. ZCPR3's
File and Disk Catalog Subsystem.
IF NUL $1;CAT:;MENU DISCAT.MNU;ELSE;A8:CATSCAN $*;FI
If parametes (file and disk search specifications) are specified
at the command line, the CP (here CP stands for command
processor) runs CATSCAN in A8: using the full Alias tail (the
parameters). If only the Alias command is entered, the CP moves
the machine to directory named CAT: and runs MENU automatically!
This approach can be used in many places to streamline computer
operations, especially with MENU MNU or from VFILER CMD files.
Different MNU and CMD files may be placed in different
directories for extreme flexibility -- UNIX and PC-DOS, move over
and breathe our dust.
Additionally, comes a thought from Rick Conn: to prevent
HELP from returning to the system command line prompt if a
requested HLP file is not found, consider making HELP a Shell
using the SHSET command of Phase 2. The way HELP performs now
was intentional -- if a file is not found, take time, find the
file, and place it in the HELP directory. Perhaps HELP could be
managed by an Alias, searches made for HLP's not in the current
HELP directory. Experiment and announce your findings on AMPRO's
BBS.
Hacker's Corner: A few of you notice minor problems with various
early version of Microsoft L80 -- so do we. What to do about it?
Let Microsoft know your feelings; we have. They don't seem too
interested ... we wonder why! (By the way, we refuse to accept
the distortions in the popular press regarding the meaning of the
word: hacker. It has meant, until the ill or non-informed
popular press arrived, and will continue to mean, "an intensely
caring human being who loves to design, write, and modify
computer programs." Perhaps this press should learn a little
more before it puts pen-to-paper, especially if they think a
hacker is one who electronically breaks into computers.) Echelon
is considering negotiating for rights to sell inexpensive
upgrades to M80 and L80, and also to sell skeleton packages of
MAC. Certainly present sales of these programs must be near non-
existent and the two respective companies should welcome someone
pushing such products, you would think!
As we become accustomed to a particular computer environment, we
expect familiar tasks to take approximately the same time to
accomplish. Such is not the case on a timeshare system. As the
system load changes, it takes different amounts of time to do the
same task! With one user, if it takes 5 minutes duration to
compile and link a program, then with 2 doing similar compiles,
it takes 10 minutes for each. Or if it took 10 seconds to scan,
with your editor from top to bottom of a file, now the duration
is different. What an unnatural thing to have to experience.
Can you imagine a four user 80286 or 68000 running under Unix as
each user loads the CPU with text scanning, accounting
calculations, or compiles. Thus we say, to each his own CPU,
connected through a local area network (LAN) to other machines
and resources, eg, expensive typesetters, mass storage, and
central mainframe processor.
Also think of hardware reliability through redundancy. If
the timeshare goes down, all users must do something else until
it's fixed. With a CPU per user, many parallel units are
available if one of them fails. If the LAN goes down, the
peripheral units are not available to serve the net. We believe
a machine should have a consistency about it as perceived by the
operator. The machine is the tool, not the operator. Or do we
have something wrong? We discuss next the techniques' cost
differentials, both human and hardware.
We at Echelon feel blessed because of the quality of our
customers. You don't seem to have the disease of modern social
Western man: expectation of instant gratification for his
actions. For if you did, you would never have gone through the
learning of ZCPR3 and what that learning can do for your
computing perspective, and your understanding of mind and breain
theory. You who have studied to appreciate principles of ZCPR3
-- studied long and hard -- aren't the same as you were before
getting involved! You are now with expanded vision of computing
and how humans fit into the scheme. So be it ...
Non-customers of Echelon who read the Newsletter from BBS's,
ARPAnet, Compuserve, etc, are missing thrills of seeing the
printed letter's fine character formation, underlining, bolding
and highlighting, and superscripting on multicolored paper.
Moreover, our clear address labels are something all should
investigate. Buy from us (ZCPR3: The Manual, perhaps, or DISCAT)
and you automatically receive the fortnighter, delivered first-
class by the (heaven should forbid) US Postal System. Peace!
See you down the lines ...
Echelon, Inc.
101 First Street
Los Altos, CA 94022
Telephone: 415/948-3820
RCP/M & BBS Modem: 408/258-8128
