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- Z3TIPS04.LBR Bill Tishey 9/10/87
-
- I have compiled this series of notes/tips relating to ZCPR3 primarily from
- messages between users on Z-Node #3 (617-965-7259) and sysop Jay Sage. Jay
- graciously provided me his message base for the effort. Messages from other
- sources may also be included occasionally to expand on certain topics.
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-
- WordStar 4.0 for CP/M-compatibles
-
- 08/05/87... MicroPro International Corporation announced that an
- updated version of WordStar for CP/M microcomputers will begin shipping
- in mid-August. WordStar, CP/M Edition, Release 4, offers more than 100
- enhancements over the current CP/M version.
- Among the new features CP/M users requested and will find
- in WordStar, CP/M Edition, Release 4 are: "Go-to page," stored ruler lines,
- new 61,000-word dictionary (dictionary size may be smaller depending on
- hardware), programmable macros, an "Undo" command, built-in four function
- calculator, user number path support, onscreen bold and underline (available
- on most hardware), function keys (depending on hardware), laser printing
- capability, and improved speed throughout the program. The product has
- been designed to support floppy-based and hard disk-based systems and to
- take maximum advantage of available system memory resources.
- Release 4 will be priced at $295, updates to all CP/M users
- will be available for $89.00 plus tax and $5.00 for shipping and handling.
- The price for user groups who order 2-9 CP/M updates is $85.00.
- For general information on update policies and procedures
- or to place an order, interested parties can call MicroPro directly at
- (800) 227-5609 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific time Monday through Friday.
- (Bill Duerr)
-
- 08/05/87... I couldn't resist..... after getting the phone number off
- Bill's message, I called MicroPro. Here's what I got:
- They'll want the serial number off your disk, it's the same
- one you get at boot. Plastic money is accepted. Shipping is $5 and expect
- to pay tax in many states. Kaypro, Osborne and 8" format will ship by the
- end of August. Apple, the end of October. The gal taking the order did not
- know why Aplle was 2 months later, but I can speculate that it's due to
- Apple's open and closed Apple key geedunks that come w/WS and the infamous
- Apple GR format (the NON-format format!). I got Kaypro since I can read that
- on my other CP/M box and I never use the "keys". The "keys" are not
- compatible with PCPIGRF2 and, besides, I did not want to wait 2 months!
- (Jim Lill)
-
- 09/09/87... I've just received WS 4.0. Here are my first impressions...
- - the upgrade kit seems to be a special. There's no fancy binder or cover on
- the books. Sorta cheap! Maybe this is the current MicroPro standard but it's
- a far cry from the old 3.3 stuff. It's still a good bargain at the upgrade
- price though.
- - it comes with 6 disks, these were Kaypro SSDD.
- - the 'Generic won't work on an Apple' probably because there are files
- larger than 126K. I can't see any other restriction or problem.
- - the install and all is pretty straightforward. The printer selection is
- a lot better and supports microjustification on many NLQ printers.
- - the general appearance and use of highlighting is 'different'. I have to
- do more to sort that out.
- - like anything different, it'll take some getting used to. More news here
- as I figure it all out! (Jim Lill)
-
- 09/09/87... I received my Wordstar 4.0 upgrade last week and spent the
- three-day weekend sorting it out. What I ordered was the version for
- "generic cpm". Like Jim Lill said, the binder and packaging was not all
- that great... But I didn't think what I got with 3.0 was that hot either.
- Both seem functional, and tell me what I need to know (or most of what I
- need to know...). The installation was pretty straightforward but I had
- to use the WSCHANGE.COM program to get anything to work. My terminal was
- not listed among the options so I had to patch all of that stuff. That
- done, most everything worked properly. Since I only have a little better
- than 47K when running the Z-system, I really had to cut some stuff down to
- get a version to run. This is not a problem generally, but it does limit
- the size of the printer driver that is runnable. More on the printer drivers
- later. Even though WS 4.0 will search through a path in Z, the spelling
- utilities don't seem to have that ability. In fact, until I put the whole
- shebang into a *public* (ZRDOS) directory, it wouldn't work at all when it
- had to look around. Now I log into the directory I want to process in
- before going into WordStar. That done, everything seems to work ok. When
- I tried out my printer drivers, I noticed that extra codes were being
- transmitted to the printer. Since I had to pick drivers that were similar
- to my printer, this wasn't too surprising. With the ability to send the
- output to a file, it was easy to find the *bad* codes and then scan the
- printer drivers (use ZPATCH or something like it) for the strings and modify
- them. If you're used to this sort of thing, it's not hard. I like 4.0...
- It's a little work to install and tune up, but now that it's done, I think
- it's great! I recommend it. (Ken Brookner)
-
- 09/09/87... I got the Inverse sorted out. As usual the Apple doesn't
- exactly emulate Terminals when it comes to Dim, Bright, Inverse and, just
- like with TurboP, things go amuck. I installed it for a TVI925/950 and
- using WSCHANGE fixed the codes. Around 0388H there's a 1B 29 that needs to
- be 1B 28. At 03CE there's a 1B 28 that should be 1B 29 followed shortly by
- a 1B 29 that changes to 1B 28. If you pick the Soroc 120 the exact address
- will be a few bytes dif. I agree with Ken... In just a hour or so, it seems
- great. Lots of neat and sometimes subtle features. One warning though for
- floppy-only owners. WS4 creates two temp files, so your disk needs original
- filespace times 3 for editing. (Jim Lill)
-
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