Date   : Mon, 25 Feb 1991 13:48:18 -0500
From   : Jay Sage <sage@ll.mit.edu>
Subject: Help for New CP/M User

Craig Hagan recently asked the following questions:

>> 2) are there any pascal or c compilers out there that i could run and if
>> so, how much would it cost for me to purchase them.

As others answered for me, my wife's company has Turbo Pascal ($60) and BDS C
($60 for a limited version, $90 for the full package, which I recommend over
the limited one).

However, these are not the only routes.  If you just want to dabble a bit
without (or before) spending any money, there are public-domain compilers
available.  For Pascal, you can get the old JRT Pascal, which was released
when the company went out of business.  This package is no where near the
quality of Turbo Pascal (probably why JRT went out of business), but it is
quite usable -- in fact, I used it on some major projects before Turbo came
along.

There are also some public-domain implementations of C, notably SMALL-C.  I
am not a C programmer, so others will have to supply details on this.

>> what do people recommend for a 2 drive system for shareware software
>> (remember its a Morrow, not a kaypro, etc) the cpu is a 4mhz Z80

What is that crack about "it's a Morrow, not a Kaypro?"  The Morrow, like the
Kaypro, is a very fine machine.  Its terminal is different, so software has
to be configured for it, but that is generally not a big problem.  Most CP/M
computers in use today have 4 MHz Z80s.  I think you have a nicer machine
there than you realize!!

>> point of interest: are there any benchmark programs out there (preferably
>> in z80 assembly to give it its best showing) i am curious.

Bridger Mitchell wrote what is currently the state of the art in sieve
programs.  I know it is posted on my Z-Node, and it is probably on Simtel20,
but I cannot remember its name just now.  Sorry.  Something like JSIEVE or
ZSIEVE, perhaps.  If you really want to know and no one else can supply the
answer, I can fetch it off the Z-Node.

>> p.s. i have found, so far, that the cp/m community is by far the nicest
>> group of pc owners yet...

Yes, and I think that is why quite a few of us have stuck with CP/M.  The
hardware may not be as powerful as with some other machines, but the user
community has a different ethic.

-- Jay Sage