Search GopherSpace by Title word(s) (via University of Pisa) Enter a database search sring: z88 Getinggopher://ra.unip.it:2347/7 Lookup sra.unipiit:2347. Making Goher connecton to serra.unipi.it:2347. (FILE) comp.sys.sinclair : z88 faq (DIR) 16/09/92 ZAP-Z88 1.02 - Archimedes / Z88 file transfer (DIR) 11/10/90 Z88LINK 1.3 z88->ST comms. program Gettinggophe://cc1.kuluven.ac.be/00/faqs/faq.5405 Lookup cc1.kuleuven.ac.be Making Goher connction to cc1.kuleuven.ac.be. comp.sys.sinclair : z88 faq (p1 of 16) Subject: comp.sys.sinclair : z88 faq Path: blekul11!dearn! nntp.gmd.de!newsserver.jvnc.net!howland.reston.ans.net!pipex!sunic!trane.unine t From: roklein@mzdmza.zdv.uni-mainz.de (Robert H. Klein) Newsgroups: comp.sys.sinclair Date: 8 Aug 1994 06:17:05 GMT Organization: Johannes Gutenberg-Univ. Mainz Lines: 304 Message-ID: <324il1$ssf@bambi.zdv.uni-mainz.de> Reply-To: roklein@mzdmza.zdv.uni-mainz.de NNTP-Posting-Host: vzdmzy.zdv.uni-mainz.de ________________ _______________ ________________ /_______________/\ /_______________\ /\_______________\ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ \ ||||||||||||||||| / ///////////////// \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/ ||||||||||||||||| / ///////////////// \\\\ \ ||||/___________\ / ////___________\ \\\\ \ ||||||||||||||||| / ///////////////// \\\\ \____________ ||||||||||||||||| _\///////////////// \\\\/____________/\ /-----------\|||| /\____________\//// \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ \ ||||||||||||||||| / ///////////////// \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/ ||||||||||||||||| \///////////////// comp.sys.sinclair FAQ list for the Cambridge Z88 Computer This FAQ list has last been modified at 1994-AUG-07 Dear Friends, this is the first version of a FAQ about the Cambridge Z88 Computer. This list is made from various postings to c.s.s. I compiled them into a FAQ. Don't blame me because of errors, because I don't own a Z88 :-(. If you have more information, please inform me. Contents * Warranty and copyright information. * About the Z88 * Adress of supplier * About the memory * About the ROM * Abpout optional disk drives * About the battery * About the time you have to change batteries * How long do the batteries actually last though? * About the wordprocessor * About the Z88 User Club * Internet resources * Warranty and copyright information. In no circumstances will the maintainers of this FAQ be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damage or loss including but not limited to loss of use. stored data, profit or contracts which may arise from any error, defect or failure of the FAQ or the information supplied with it. The FAQ maintainers have a policy of constant development and improvement of their FAQ. Therefore, the right is reserved to change the FAQ contents at any time and without notice. Each part of this FAQ may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without the written permission of the FAQ maintainers. Any suggestions, criticism please email toroklein@goofy.zdv.uni-mainz.de * About the Z88 The Z88 was made by Sir Clives new company which was called Cambridge Computers (or something like that). It was certainly not the first laptop, but it's design was new at the time (I think). It was a very simple machine, making it relatively cheap, it had a good battery life due to it's lack of disk drives and it managed a decent sized keyboard and a full width screen. It runs for around 20 hours on four AA-size alkaline batteries. The rubber keyboard is soundless, though not completely as comfortable as a real keyboard. The software tries to be clever, but I (c.s.s. reader) think it succeeds quite well. Compared to most other word processors I know of, Pipedream (the builtin word processor/spreadsheet) is smooth and easy to learn; it has menus for the novice and shortcuts for the experienced. Later Amstrad brought out the NC100. People tend to mock the machine as being underpowered or simply not a serious computer, but it lets you Word Process a very long time [don't know how long -ed.]. No high powered notebook could do that journey without several changes of batteries. That it is underpowered (well, low-powered) is the major force of e Z88 (and the NC100 as well, I presume). It has a low-powered CPU, but the software is tailored for it and runs very well. Another major plus for such a portable word processor is that all programs and files lie on chip (ROM or RAM), and chips are soundless, fast and not nearly as power-consuming as hard or floppy drives. The major problem with the Z88 is the low amount of RAM it comes with. 32K is too little, and the RAM expansions are too expensive. Otherwise it's an excellent (but somewhat outdated nowadays) machine. (c.s.s. reader:) I liked the Z88, although I never bought one of my own, the NC100 with it's more appropriate software finally convinced me and I bought one shortly after they came out. Despite being used to very powerful machines at home and at the University I get on with the NC100 very well and use it a lot. (answer from another c.s.s. reader:) You are not the only one. My fiancee uses a Z88 with 512K RAM and PC-Link for writing her thesis. She prefers it, even to a PC, because it's mobile and soundless. Okay, I admit it. Her PC is an XT. But, anyway :-) Cambridge Computer have been relaunched! Their new name does not have "Computer" in the title .. which shows where their emphasis is being placed! Theystill sellZ88but many retailers have dropped it. Ranger Computers seem the only people that do anything with Z88s (you can buy rugged and international versions). I've been told that they're still being made on a limited basis by Cambridge Industries (formerly Cambridge Computer Limited) and can be purchased for 200 pounds (UK). Then there's the used market which should have quite a supply of them. A good source should be the Z88 Users' Club (UK - address below). K * Adress of supplier Ranger's address is: Ranger Computers Ltd Ranger House, 2 Meeting Lane, Duston, Northampton, NN5 6JG United Kingdom Phone: +44 604 589200 FAX: +44 604 589205 * About the memory It depends on the intended use, how much memory you need. There's an option to install either 128K or 512K internally replacing the 32K they normally shipped with available from the Z88 Users' 9 Club. Then there's the RAM modules in 32K, 128K, 512K, and 1MB size. If you transfer the files to another computer (Mac, PC, or ?) then you could get by with 128K without problems. Just remember that since it has no internal disk drive that the RAM will be used for storage (RAMdisk) as well as work files. * About the ROM If you have a machine with a v3.0 ROM (at the index press Help and the left arrow) you can upgrade to the new v4.0 ROM (25 UK pounds) which fixes a number of important bugs (such as :RAM.-/* problems and 9600 XON/XOFF now works properly). * Abpout optional disk drives A third party disk drive is available .. a bit on the expensive side but we are talking vertical markets here. How much does it cost? comp.sys.sinclair : z8 faq (p10 269 pounds including VAT + UK delivery. Its an MSDOS compatible, 1.44 Meg 3.5 floppy drive, which plugs into the serial line and comes complete with application on EPROM. It runs at 9600 BAUD and gave my Z88 a new lease of life 8-). * About the battery Did you know that you can make a 4-D cell battery pack for the Z88 quite cheaply and get over 200 hours on a set of D-cells? It's a fairly simple thing to do, All you need is a battery holder that will hold 4-D cells (C-cells will work as well, just not as long) and then solder on a cable and the plug to fit the mains (AC) socket on the left side of the machine above the reset button. The center hole on the plug should be positive (+). (cani@indirect.com:) I have a battery holder that holds the cell in a straight line, like a flashlight, and I can insert the holder in a pouch, attach a few Velcro strips to the pouch and the bottom of the Z88, and I have a long life batter pack as well as a firm tilt stand. There's several other ways to do this type of thing. Others have said that they use radio control (RC) car and airplane battery packs (up to 7.2v), rechargeable cell packs (you need five cells instead of four for optimum performance due to the lower voltage in the rechargeable cells), gell cells, and other forms including solar cells attached to a lead-acid battery. (cani@indirect.com:) Primarily, I use AA's as I like the weight. Yes, the 4-D cells is a bit heavy for carrying around all the time but not when you're going to be "planted" for a while. You can always plug in and unplug the D-cell pack as needed. cabi@indirect.com) I was able to use a Tandy Model 100 (didn't have a Z88 at the time) at a friend's cabin (no mains) for a couple of weeks - including using the D-cell pack to run the portable disk drive I had with me - without a single low battery warning. I loved the fact that I could work inside, outside, or up a tree if I wanted, for as long as I wanted, without thinking of running short of power. As a matter of fact that same pack was going strong a couple months later. The 200+ hours offsets the weight in some circumstances. * About the time you have to change batteries How long can you take to fumble around with the AA cells before the capacitor fails .. Someone wrote: I've managed over 2 minutes with 1 Meg RAM card and EPROM cards installed 8-). * How long do the batteries actually last though? Difficult to say, supposedly 20 hours but I mostly use mine on AC adaptor or via an external 5 cell nicad battery pack (which gives 4 or 5 hours continuous use). The battery life is also said to depend upon how much RAM you have in the card slots. With the Z88 switched off a new set of alkalines are supposed to last one yearwordprcessor What is the word processor like? Does it have a spellchecker likeNC100? Pipedream (which you can get for some other micros, notably the Archimedes(sp?)) is a combined word processor (with some WYSIWYG output) and spreadsheet and works very well. It has this a nice feature in that you can see the layout of the page on the right hand side of the screen as a small "map". It is simple to use (always a big plus in my opinion) and uses the programmable printer driver to print out bold, italic, underline, super and subscripts and device dependent fonts/characters. There is a separate spellchecker called Spellmaster which costs around 50 pounds, it includes a separate text editor (which is very good as a basic editor), a 60,000 word dictionary (which can be expanded). In the text editor you can turn on spelling checking as you type (beep .. wrong word!). * About the Z88 User Club The Z88 Users' Club (for general advice and further sources) is a UK user's group. They distribute a small magazine and have a good software library which is free to members. The last I heard they weren't planning to print another issue of Z88 EPROM in the near future and were considering releasing the club library for access by non-club members. When I was on CompuServe they were trying to get the files to be available there. An ftp site would be good as well. There's supposed to be hundreds of files available. (Roy Woodward) Z88 Users' Club P.O. Box 15 Belper Derbyshire DE56 0XE United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0) 773-828707 ---- (from the U.S. - 011 44 773-828707) Call in the evening or weekends their time. You'll probably talk with Roy Woodward who is a pretty nice guy. * Internet resources Anonymous FTP site for software, and limited info sun.soe.clarkson.edu [128.153.12.3] in: pub/z88/ ftp.nvg.unit.no in: /pub/sinclair/z88. ftp.csis.oita-u.ac.jp in: /pub/TeX/clarkson-univ/pub/z88 Alternatively try archie using 'Z88' as a keyword for local sites. **** end of the Z88 FAQ for comp.sys.sinclair **** -- Robert H. Klein email: RoKlein@MzdmzA.ZDV.Uni-Mainz.DE papermail: Bluecherstrasse 24, D-56349 Kaub, Germany . back Gettig gophr://serra.unipi.it:2347/7?z88 Select one of: (FILE) comp.sys.sinclair : z88 faq (DIR) 16/09/92 ZAP-Z88 1.02 - Archimedes / Z88 file transfer (DIR) 11/10/90 Z88LINK 1.3 z88->ST comms. program Search GopherSpace by Title word(s) (via University of Pisa)