Date   : Wed, 06 Jan 1993 01:11:21 GMT
From   : cs.utexas.edu!milano!cactus.org!wixer!fmouse@uunet.uu.net (Lindsay Haisley)
Subject: Re: What is the legal status of CP/M?

In article <1993Jan4.053012.23019@coe.montana.edu> uesu03@giac1.oscs.montana.edu
(Lou Glassy) writes:
>Is CP/M in the public domain now?  Does DRI still own it?  If
>not, is anyone still actively developing it (CP/M) or still
>developing applications for it?

DRI was recently bought up by Novell, so you might inquire of them regarding
proprietary rights, etc.  Yes, there are a few folks still actively
developing stuff for CP/M, or actually for the upward compatable equivalent
of it, ZCPR34 which runs on the same machines.  There are a number of BBS's
around the world (known as Z-nodes) which feature ZCPR3 software and
exchange information with interested users.  CP/M has been religated to
pretty much of a hobby status, and most of the Z system folks are pretty
much like ham radio operators - the do it for fun and are enthusiastic about
it.  I run a CP/M BBS (Z-node #77) and am still an advocate of CP/M as an
educational operating system since it's pretty completely known and quite
transparent if you get down to studying it.  As one of my CP/M
correspondants said, "I studied MS-DOS to learn how applications work - I
studied CP/M to learn how computers work".  There is even a magazine - The
Computer Journal -which devotes considerable space to CP/M and ZCPR3 topics. 
I suggest you check on to Z-node #3 and explore.  The number is 617-965-7259.
Jay Sage, the friendly sysop thereof, also owns Sage Microsystems East which
markets a number of fine CP/M and ZCPR3 products, some of which Jay has
rescued from a one way journey to the ash heap of computer history.

I strongly suggest that if you plan to do any software development for CP/M
you contact Jay and others in the Z System community and make your product
ZCPR3 aware, since the improvements in ZCPR3 over DRI's original CP/M are
very signifigant and intelligent.

-- 
"Everything works if you let it"    |                Lindsay Haisley
-- The Roadie                       |            fmouse@wixer.cactus.org
                                   |                    * * * *
                                   |               Austin, Texas, USA