Date   : Fri, 15 Feb 1991 19:27:31 PST
From   : cwr@pnet01.cts.com (Will Rose)
Subject: ZCPR, ZCPR3.x, and the Z-System

In short:  oooooooh, aren't they luvverly....

Meanwhile, back in the real world, the Z-stuff (I can't think of a better
generic) started with a CCP replacement and went on from there to replace
the whole CP/M 2.2 and 3.0 OSs.  I use ZCPR 3.3 and ZRDOS: the former is
PD, and the latter is now probably outdated.  There are better BDOS 
replacements around, including one sold by Jay Sage called ZSDOS.  The
current version of ZCPR is 3.4, and I *think* it's not much different
from 3.3.

If you are using CP/M 2.2 the message is clear, switch to the Z-system.
It will run on any machine that runs CP/M.  I personally dislike CP/M 3.0,
and even if I liked it, I'd still prefer Z (there's logic for you).  Sage
sells autoinstalling versions of Z, and a lot of related stuff.  Most of
the code is available on Z-nodes scattered around the country.

Why is the Z-system such an improvement?  For a start, it integrates
user areas very effectively; you still have a flat file system, but
you can used named directories and other helpful guides.  It also has
an unrivalled selection of command processors, some memory resident
and some disk based, for repetitive tasks.  It is also very configurable,
both at build time and boot time (and while running, for that matter).
I don't make use of half the Z-system features, but going back to CP/M
I still feel hampered.

Good luck - Will

"If heaven too had passions  | Will Rose
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