wordproc@ucf-cs.UCF.EDU (wordproc) (11/04/89)
/* ---------- "Re: IBM and Apple Operating Systems" ---------- */ > How many businesses were using CP/M machines? How many were using > PCs four years later? My experiences with the Radio Shack Model 3 > were a chilling reminder of how untrustworthy some of the early > microcomputer hardware really was -- and how slow it was, even > compared to an IBM PC. WAITAMINNIT, them's fighting words! Are we talking "BUSINESS" computers here or not?! The Model III, although it could be used in a small business, was not intended to be a business computer. For specifically BUSINESS machines from old-time Radio Shack, you have to look at the Models II, 12 and 16. These machines were far superior to the Model III and even Model 4 for business application, and for serious home use. A Model II was a Z80 machine running at, as i recall, 4 MHz. One of these with a hard drive (one of those monster 8-megabyte units) would be more than comparable in performance with anything else in its class from that era in any business applications which both machines have (spreadsheets, word processing, accounting, etc.). A Model 16 would be a bit unfair, though, being a dual-CPU machine with a 8 MHz Motorola *and* a 4 MHz Z80. The Z80 allowed the 16 to run all Model II software. I'm currently helping a Ph.D. student do her dissertation on a Model 16 running Scripsit II, a Model II word processing package. In this mode, the Motorola chip is idling and the Z80 is doing all the work. Let me assure you that this machine is most enjoyable and easy to use and is not slow in the least. A Model III, though? Running a 2 MHz Z80 and two 174K floppies and, at best, 48K RAM? A screen that had 64 columns by 16 lines?!? One aquaintance of mine did use four Model III's working through a multiplexer into a 15-meg hard drive for several years in an insurance agency. The system worked fine and he finally upgraded to AT-based for greater capacity and speed. So, although some businesses used the Model III, there were better Z80 business machines. If you've used any of those I've mentioned, you'd believe it. ___________________________________________________________________ _________ / Marcus Clenney ___ ___ /___ ___/ ________ / U. of Central Florida / | / | / / / ______/ / Dept. of Computer Science / /| | / /| | / / / / / Orlando, FL 32816 / / | |/ / | | / / / /_____ / wordproc@ucf-cs.ucf.edu /_/ |___/ |_| /_/ /_______/ / ____________________________________________________________/