This is the monthly newsletter of the Eagle Computer Users Group, P.O. Box 3381, Saratoga CA 95070. The material in this newsletter is copyright~=005~q~=251~ 1990 by the authors. Unless otherwise noted, the author is theeditor of the newsletter. Permission is hereby given to reproduce materialbelonging to the editor, as long as the notice ~=010~Q~=251~Copyright~=005~q~=251~ 1990 David A.J. McGlone~=010~q~=251~ is included in thereproduction. For permission to reprint other material, contact its author orauthors.
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~=008~[BMEETING PLACE[B~=251~
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Meetings are held at Tandem Computers Incorporated, 10435 North Tantau Avenue,Cupertino. To get there, take 280 to Wolfe Rd. exit, left at Vallco Parkway,left at Tantau, over the bridge and turn in where it says ~=010~Q~=251~TandemComputers~=010~q~=251~ on the left. Sign in with the guard at the lobby. Hewill know what room the meeting is in.
Meetings are the second Saturday of every month, from 9 A.M. to Noon. Theremaining 1990 meeting dates are Sept. 8, Oct. 13, Nov. 10, and Dec. 8.
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~=008~[BSEPTEMBER 8 MEETING[B~=251~
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~=257~9:00~=251~ Meeting begins.
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~=257~9:30~=251~ Either Bob Vinisky will demonstrate Z-System menu shells, orDavid McGlone will show color graphics.
Joe Wright, George Warner, and Terry Hazen of ZSUG attended our August meetingand were exposed to the noise that the 96-tpi drives in my SB180FX make. Inever thought anything of the noise, because the disk drives in CP/M Eaglesmake the same noise. Therefore I thought that kind of drives always made thatnoise. Not so, it turns out. At the suggestion of Joe ~=003~et al., ~=251~Ichanged the step rate of my disk drives (this is easy to do with XBIOS on aMicromint SB180 or SB180FX). Result: very quiet drives, that sort of chucklequietly to themselves, instead of that loud GRRRR GRRRR GRRRR sound we're allused to. Not only that, but on this new setting the drives are ~=003~faster,~=251~too!
This strongly suggests that the Eagle BIOSes could be altered similarly, withsimilar results. By changing the appropriate values in the BIOS source andassembling a new system, then SYSGENing the new system to our computers, weshould be able to make the drives on our Eagles both quieter and faster. Anyvolunteers?
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~=257~July meeting demo postponed~=251~
Bob Vinisky was unable to present the menu scripts he's been working on. MyEagle IVx2, which he had borrowed, suddenly stopped working for him. He hopesto have it back from Jerry and have the scripts finished by next meeting. Failing that, George Warner has promised to help me set up my NEC Multisyncmonitor so I can demonstrate Z-System color graphics.
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~=257~Eagles used by UPI stringers~=251~
With Bob's presentation shelved, the meeting broke up into small groups talkingabout individual concerns and getting help from more knowledgeable members;what we call a ~=010~Q~=251~free for all~=010~q~=251~. Joe Wright told about acall he got from a UPI stringer (a person who sends news items in to UPI over amodem). This stringer has used an Eagle II and MDM791 for years. Lately,however, UPI changed the program on their end of the telephone line. To thisnew program, the control-Z ending a file is a command to disconnect and hangup. Worse still, input from the field is echoed back, which means the Ctrl-Zis sent back to the stringer. As you will remember from a couple of issuesback, Ctrl-Z is a clear-screen command for most terminals! Joe solved theproblem by writing two programs. The first converts Spellbinder files into theformat the new UPI interface expects. The other is a modem program that doesnot put a Ctrl-Z at the end of the file, but puts instead a Ctrl-C, which marksthe end of file for the new UPI interface.
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~=257~Answer to last issue's riddle~=251~
Last issue I presented a program and challenged you to recognize the languageand tell me what the program did. Bob Kowerski greeted me at the Augustmeeting with the answer. The program is written in PostScript, a language usedby expensive laser printers to mix text and pictures in ~=010~Q~=251~desktoppublishing~=010~q~=251~. The program prints the picture shown below in thecenter of a page, in exactly the size shown.
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~=257~Roster corrections~=251~
Two members whom I could not reach for last month's roster were at the meetingand gave me permission to print their addresses and full roster information.
David Honkala
1307 Erinwood Court
San Jose CA 95121-2538
(408) 578-9395H
(408) 473-7781W
Eagle IV, Osborne I, Osborne Executive
Epson LQ-510, Epson MX-80
Internal modem in the Executive
Robert Kowerski
4 Calypso Lane
San Carlos CA 94070
(415) 595-1241
386 PC
HP LaserJet IIP, Diablo 630ETS
No modem
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~=257~Sydex relocates~=251~
You may remember Sydex, a company that sells some great software for PCs,including (but not limited to) 22DISK and 22NICE. 22DISK lets a PC read,write, and format disks in most CP/M formats, and only costs $25. 22NICE isperhaps the fastest CP/M emulator for PCs.
Jerry Davis tells us that Sydex is moving to Eugene, Oregon. They will beclosed for the move from September 2 through September 8. On September 9 theyplan to be back doing business as usual at their new address: Sydex, P.O. Box5700, Eugene OR 97405. Their new phone numbers are (503) 683-6033 (voice),(503) 683-1622 (fax), and (503) 683-1385 (BBS).
~=257~David McGlone~=251~ General CP/M and Z-System help, TURBO Pascalprograms, Spellbinder 5.3H for CP/M or the Z-System $100 a copy (including allmanuals), disk-format translation, LaserJet fonts ($5 apiece). (408) 293-5176.
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~=257~Eagle II for sale~=251~
Original owner (serial number 303200-47). All manuals and disks forSpellbinder 5.12, Spellbinder 5.3 and Electric Webster, CP/M and CBASIC, andUltracalc 2.0. Includes ~=003~CP/M Primer ~=251~by Murtha and Waite, disk andnotes for The Word Plus 1.22, and two printer cables. $350. Call J.J. Lamb at(415) 883-3046.
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~=257~Eagle III or IV wanted~=251~
Walsh Property Management is looking for another Eagle III or IV for theiroffice. Contact Ed Walsh at (415) 538-6930.
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~=257~Copy machine for sale~=251~
3M 283 copy machine with stand. Very good condition. $200. Call DickDethlefsen (408) 246-5378.
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~=008~[BECUG LIBRARY[B~=251~
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The contents of the ECUG Library reside at the editor's house. Regular membersmay borrow them between one meeting and the next. Either call me evenings at(408) 293-5176 and ask me to bring them to a meeting, or phone to arrange atime to come over and borrow them.
ECUG also has two software libraries. For CP/M software, contact Ken Thomson,71 Rosenkranz Street, San Francisco CA 94110, phone (415) 648-7550. For MS-DOSsoftware, contact Jack Morse, (408) 252-6103.
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~=008~[BLETTERS[B~=251~
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I have just ordered a Wilkinson 2.9 BIOS for my Eagle 1600. My system is asingle 360k floppy with a 10Mb hard drive. Do you know whether I'll be able touse WordPerfect 5.0, and what, if any, limitations I'll suffer? Also, I'm~=257~new ~=251~to computers. I have just finished an Intro to DOS class, aswell as a class introducing WordPerfect 5.0, Lotus 123, and dBase III+. Do youhave any literature that may help familiarize me with my Eagle 1600 and itsstrange 105-key keyboard?
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John Connelley
P.O. Box 1147
Felton CA 95018
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~=003~Literature such as you request is in the works, John, but we have nonenow. I suggest you contact David Banoff, (408) 244-5894. Dave has had anEagle 1600 for many years, and is also familiar with MS-DOS word processors andtheir limitations.
The following letters were forwarded in a batch from Ron Woods' administrationservices manager, Maria R. Godfrey. Ron markets PC clones under the name EagleComputers, Inc. (no relation to the Eagle Computer that built our machines),and is located in Los Gatos. Hence he gets letters and phone calls from peoplewho think they've found the original Eagle Computer. Maria sent these lettersto Jerry on July 20, and I got them August 1. They would have gone into lastissue, except that we had to print our annual roster.~=251~
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May 22, 1990
Dear Sirs:
I have a computer Eagle II and I like to know in what place here in Miami,Florida is possible to buy a Floppy Disk for that computer. If is possiblesend me a catalog with the directions for the use to the computer. Thanks foryour attention. Truly Yours,
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Silvia E. Rodriguez
1545 W 73 Street
Hialeah, Florida 33014
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~=003~Silvia, you should be able to buy floppy disks for your Eagle in anycomputer store, and probably many drug stores, stationery stores, etc., aswell. If you can't find disks that say ~=010~Q~=003~96 tpi~=010~q~=003~ or~=010~Q~=003~quad density~=010~q~=003~ on the package, ordinary ~=010~Q~=003~48tpi~=010~q~=003~ or ~=010~Q~=003~double density~=010~q~=003~ disks usually workjust fine. ~=257~Don't ~=003~buy ~=010~Q~=003~high density~=010~q~=003~ disks,because they won't work in your computer.
Others things we can send you are (1) a disk with the Eagle II version of CP/M,CBASIC, and the CP/M utilities, for $15; (2) the manual for your machine, whichincludes instructions for using it, for $10; (3) Spellbinder, the wordprocessor that came with your computer, for $100; (4) one years' membership inour club, which includes a year of this newsletter, is $15; (5) issue #6 of TheZ-Letter, which had an article on the Eagle, is available for $2; a 12-issuesubscription to The Z-Letter is $24. Good luck with your new computer, anddon't hesitate to ask questions when you have them. In the future, though,write directly to our P.O. Box (see Page 1), or to me: David A.J. McGlone, 720South Second Street, San Jose CA 95112.~=251~
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June 25, 1990
To whom it may concern:
I recently purchased an Eagle II computer from a Flea Market. However, therewere no instructions or DOS disc with the computer.
This is my first computer and I'm basically lost without instructions. I wouldappreciate it if you could send me any instructions for this computer and alsosomething that could tell me where I can purchase a DOS disc for it and anyother software. Also I would like to know if this computer is compatible withany other computer. Perhaps there is a catalog you can send me. Anything youcan send me would be appreciated.
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Denise Neal
Rt. 3 Box 211-3
Stroud, Oklahoma 74079
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~=003~Denise: See my answer to Silvia, above, which answers most of yourquestions also. Your computer is compatible with other computers that run theCP/M operating system, or its offshoot, the Z-System. It is ~=257~not~=003~compatible with IBM PCs or PC clones of any sort, which run a weirdoffshoot of CP/M called MS-DOS. Some of the companies selling software thatwill run on your machine are:
Alpha Systems Corporation
711 Chatsworth Place
San Jose CA 95128
TURBO Pascal, NZ-COM, etc.
Elliam Associates
P.O. Box 2664
Atascadero CA 93423
Lots of CP/M software
KaftorWare Corporation
P.O. Box 1674
Chicago IL 60690
We also got letters from RoseMary O'Connor (Longwood, Florida) and Jessica A.Meeuwsen (Cotati, California) with the same predicament and the same questions. See the answers to the above letters, ladies, and let us know if we can helpyou further.~=251~
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June 27, 1990
Dear Sir/Madam:
I own a Eagle Computer (model #File10B; serial #31190051) and am having troublegetting cables that would cross connect with other monitor, etc. I needinformation on a 5 ~=010~$~=251~~=010~Q~=251~ disk drive, compatible to mine. I could use a scham and any information on this Eagle model. Sincerely yours,
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Alvin Coleman
P.O. Box 192211
San Francisco CA 91346
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~=003~You only think you have a computer, Alvin. What you actually have is anEagle File 10. This is an external hard disk unit which is connected to theback of an Eagle I, II, or III to give it a hard disk, or to the back of anEagle IV to give it another hard disk. You have two options at this point. You can buy an Eagle computer (see our Advertisements, for instance) and gethelp from Jerry Davis (see Consultants) to hook up your File 10 to it. Or youcan get another kind of computer altogether and put your File 10 up for sale. I recommend the former, but it's up to you. Good luck!~=257~
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THE EAGLE IVx2 ~=010~- ~=257~AN EXPERIMENT IN HARDWARE
by David A.J. McGlone
Part 1
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~=251~In February and March 1990 Jerry Davis and I conducted an experimentwhich I call the ~=010~Q~=251~Eagle IVx2~=010~q~=251~. The inspiration forthis is simply stated. All the CP/M Eagles use the same motherboards in thesame cases; what distinguishes them is what else is put in the case and hookedup. How far can that be taken?
For instance, the only ~=003~hardware ~=251~difference between an Eagle II andan Eagle III is that the former uses single-sided drives, where the latter hasdouble-sided drives. An Eagle IV contains the same hardware as an Eagle III,except that the second floppy disk drive has been replaced by a 10-Mb harddisk. This hard disk draws power from a second power supply at the top leftrear of the case. Data cables run from a hard-disk port on the Eaglemotherboard to a SCSI master card, from the SCSI card to a Xebec hard-diskcontroller card, and from the Xebec card to the hard disk itself. A seconddata cable runs from the SCSI card to the port on the back on the machinelabeled ~=010~Q~=251~system interface~=010~q~=251~, which is where the cablefrom a File 10 hard-disk unit hooks up, if you have one. Room is made for theSCSI card and the Xebec controller in the bottom of the machine by raising themother board on standoffs; the SCSI card sits under the mother board on theleft, the Xebec controller on the right.
The Eagle IV BIOS, however, is capable of handling more hardware than is packedinto a standard Eagle IV. For instance, the single full-height, double-sided96-tpi floppy disk drive may be replaced by a pair of half-height, double-sided96-tpi floppy drives. If you did so, you would find, when you turned on themachine, that you now had drives F and J (when the second drive is addressed asEagle III format or Eagle II format, respectively), as well as the drives E andI you already had. No change is needed to the operating system, which was setup all along for two drives. If
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you copy the DISKUTIL.COM from an Eagle III to replace the DISKUTIL your EagleIV had before, you will find you can even do floppy-to-floppy copying on yournewly refurbished Eagle!
At least in theory, then, it should be possible to put the components of a File10 inside an Eagle IV. See the illustration on Page 6, which Deborah Snavelyprepared on a Macintosh. The upper schematic shows the hard disks, powersupplies, Eagle mother board, and controller cards in an Eagle IV and a File10. Other components are omitted, and no attempt is made to show the physicalarrangement of these parts in their respective boxes. Only power lines fromthe power supplies to the various parts, and data lines between them, areshown.
In the lower schematic the components of the Eagle IVx2 are shown. Notice thatall the components from the first schematic are present, and have the sameconnections, except that the File 10 power supply is not needed. Componentsthat drew power from it now get power from the second power supply that wasalready in the Eagle case, which supplied power only to the original hard disk. This, then, is the Eagle IVx2, so called because it has two hard disks and twofloppies, where a standard Eagle IV has only one of each.
Next issue: We get down to the nuts and bolts.
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~=257~EASY AS PIE
by Ernie Shields
Part 1
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~=003~Having first made the offer to donate my time, I could hardly turn downDeborah's suggestion that I write a piece on the problems of self-taught modemuse. My idea was to write a humorous article, but somewhere along the way itturned on me! What I got was a set of instructions for instant downloading,which doesn't begin to reflect the frustration, aggravation, and false startsyou run into when you go it alone.
The first impulse to buy a modem comes right after you take your new computerhome, for unless you were very lucky, the Eagle you just acquired didn't comewith much in the way of software and you suddenly discover you're in a CP/Mwasteland when compared to MS-DOS.
While a modem can make up for some of lack of readily available software, youwill find that things are not quite as simple as all those modem ads would haveyou believe!
First the software is generic and you must either acquire a version patched forthe Eagle or do it yourself.
Secondly the DOC files are also generic, cover different types of modems, andexplain ~=257~all ~=003~the features of the software, some which may not beavailable from your patched version.
So as you try to sort it all out in your mind, you get the modem up and workingand access a few bulletin boards only to find that most are verbose in theextreme, with tons of stuff to read and with complicated and multileveled menusand for some reason you keep going around those menus and ending back where youstarted.
~=010~Q~=003~My God, all I want to do is download a program!~=010~q~=003~ youmoan, as the hours slip away. Somewhere in all those screens of chat, items forsale, and incomprehensible instructions, you missed the part that said you mustlog on the board a certain number of times before you're allowed to download!
Don't get me wrong, bulletin boards can be fun. They offer an enormous varietyand you are likely to find one that suits you perfectly. Unfortunately,sitting down with a new modem, unfamiliar software and accessing them to~=010~Q~=003~learn by doing~=010~q~=003~ can be an expensive and frustratingexperience.
And finally to Deborah (who asked for volunteers in the first place): If thisisn't what you had in mind, I'm sorry but maybe deep down I find there isn'tanything humorous about hundreds of dollars in phone bills, many wasted hoursthat could have been productive, and a Beautiful and Gregarious wife whosuddenly (and for several weeks) refused to speak to me . . . On to thearticle.
~=251~First let me say that going on line with your Eagle will open the door toa world of bulletin boards and information services, and you will gain accessto hundreds of CP/M programs that may not be available elsewhere. However,learning to use a modem and software on your own can be compared to riding abike blindfolded, while suffering from bouts of vertigo. This can beespecially true if you have just purchased your Eagle, and are not familiarwith CP/M.
This article is designed to get you on line, and get those all important firstdownloads ~=257~fast ~=251~(instant gratification). I hope it will save youtime, and prevent you from getting some of those heart-stopping phone bills Ireceived while learning. Once you get the hang of it, don't limit yourself tojust downloading. Get on the boards, get involved in the discussions, havesome fun, that's what it's all about.
Buy the highest-baud-rate Hayes-compatible modem you can afford, at least 1200baud (preferably 2400), since the higher the baud rate, the less time it takesto transfer the same amount of data. But if you're on a limited budget, knowthat 300-baud modems are dirt cheap, available at yard sales and bargain binsand will get you on line (at the cost of higher phone bills)
To get started you will need the modem and appropriate cable and a copy ofMODEM7.COM software patched for the Eagle (available from ECUG or from me). The Eagle is wired ~=010~Q~=251~DCE~=010~q~=251~ (Data CommunicationsEquipment), and you only need 3 leads in the RS-232C (serial) cable. Use onlypins 2, 3, and 7. Pin 2 at each end connects to pin 3 at the other end. Pin 7on one end connects to pin 7 on the other end. That's it! (But read your modemmanual anyway.)
Assemble and test your modem as follows: Attach the modem cable between theupper serial port and the modem. Plug in and turn on the modem and your Eagle. Boot up CP/M and insert the disk with MODEM7 in drive B:. Type B:MODEM7, andwhen the menu comes up, select T (terminal mode) by typing ~=257~T[<RETURN[>~=251~. Then type ~=257~AT [<RETURN[>~=251~ and if you're using aHayes-compatible smart modem it should echo back to the screen with ~=257~OK.
~=251~If you don't get an echo back, try the following: ~=257~Turn off~=251~the computer and modem and move the modem cable to serial port B (yourcomputer may be set to use port B), turn everything back on and try again. ifyou still have no luck, check the serial-cable wiring against the instructionsabove.
