I had much the same experience, though in addition to the H89 I also found a Kaypro II. I didn't and don't do much in the way of software development, but I did get online with a moderately hacked Turbo Pascal program and a 300baud modem on the H89. Once I moved to the PC, it was strictly appliance computing. I do wonder how hard it would be to make a version of CP/M-86 that would work well on the modern PC, and take advantage of all the memory and storage. I'm probably never going to know.?
Bill in OKC
William R. Meyers, MSgt, USAF(Ret.)
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance
accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders,
give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new
problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight
efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.
LAZARUS LONG (Robert A. Heinlein)
On Thursday, July 30, 2020, 03:21:57 PM CDT, Lee Hart <leeahart@...> wrote:
ajparent1/kb1gmx wrote:
> There are two forms of CP/M experience:
>? ? Small, slow and cramped typical of early floppies of 120 and 241K size.
>? ? High performance using fast large media (hard disks, IDE, CF, SD).? [snip]
That's a good summary of CP/M usage, Allison. It mirrors my experience
as well.
Early on, CP/M computers with primiive software and floppy disks really
slowed software development. But that's all I had; I didn't know any
better. It sure as heck beat a CPU manufacturer's development system
with paper tape and a teletype! So I was in heaven. :-)
As better CP/M editors, debuggers, assemblers, and compilers were
developed, it became much easier to develop code. Things like the SLR180
assembler and Turbo Pascal were great productivity tools.
Then hard drives and higher CPU clock speeds were added, and the
computer's speed no longer limited your productivity; the only limit was
YOUR speed and creativity!
For me personally, the PC was a setback. It put me back at the bottom of
the learning ladder. It was much slower than my Z80 system (a Heath H89
at the time), and its byzantine architecture made it much harder to use.
I tried, but by the late 1980's I gave up. PCs basically became an
appliance; a platform to run someone else's hardware and software. My
time and talents went into other hobbies (electric cars), and in
continuing to develop new applications for 8-bit microcomputers
professionally; areas where I felt I could still accomplish something.
After I retired, I felt a need to get back to when computers were FUN.
Something a beginner could learn and understand, and build and create
useful things themselves. It givee me a sense of accomplishment you
can't get by buying everything and running someone else's software.
My hope for the Z80MC is to get it to the point where *it* can be a good
platform for developing vintage hardware and software. Done right, it's
going to be easier to use it than try to do it on a PC! You can be
running your CP/M programs even before the PC finishes booting. :-)
Thus, I'm hunting around for a video/terminal application. That's the
obvious missing link.
Lee Hart
--
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is
nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
? ? ? ? -- Antoine de Saint Exupery
--
Lee Hart, 814 8th Ave N, Sartell MN 56377, www.sunrise-ev.com
|
Bill in OKC too