@database FileZ88.Guide @author "Owen Birnie" @node MAIN "FileZ88" @{b}FileZ88@{ub} © Copyright, 1998, Owen Birnie. @{" " link WHATIS} What is FileZ88? @{" " link ABOUT} About FileZ88. @{" " link LEGAL} Distribution. @{" " link INSTALL} Installation of FileZ88. @{" " link USAGE} How to use FileZ88. @{" " link ABOUTZ88} About Cambridge Computers' Z88. @{" " link SERIAL} Connecting your Z88 to your Amiga. @{" " link DIARY} Using Digita Organiser with the Diary function. @{b}FileZ88 is a very rough and ready piece of coding. It's not very user friendly, it doesn't adhere to Workbench standards, it just works. I wrote it for my own purposes. I was amazed to discover how popular the Z88 still is and so, if you think that this program will be of use to you, then feel free to use it. @{ub} @endnode @node WHATIS "FileZ88: What is it?" FileZ88 is a program that allows you to transfer files between your Amiga and Cambridge Computers Z88. FileZ88 supports full handshaking as described in the Z88 User Guide. (Well, with one or two alterations as the Z88 didn't react quite as described in the manual ;) Technically, there's nothing to stop you using FileZ88 to connect any two computers together, but there are far better programs that do that sort of thing. FileZ88 requires no other software or hardware with the exception of a @{"serial" link SERIAL} cable. @endnode @node ABOUT "FileZ88: About it." FileZ88 is a small BASIC program. FileZ88.bas should be part of the same archive that this guide file was in. FileZ88 itself is compiled under HiSoftBasic V1.02 (Very old!) but the code is fairly generic. I know that it runs on QBASIC under MS-DOS. Indeed, I usually carry an MS-DOS boot disk with QBASIC and a few other files on it that allows me to turn any PC into a machine that can shift stuff to and from the Z88. There is a problem with the compiled version of FileZ88. When you exit the program, it may or may not alter the screen colours. Sorry. This is the fault of the HiSoftBASIC compiler. But it's more stable that Microsoft's AmigaBASIC so the compiled version got it ;) FileZ88 has been tested on the following:- Original Commodore A1200, Viper '030/50Mhz, 8Mb FastRAM, Kickstart 39.106, Workbench 29.29 and a hard drive. Your mileage may vary.... FileZ88 was compiled under a very old freebie version of HiSoftBASIC. I believe that it as version 1.02. As I do very little BASIC programming, I saw no reason to upgrade this. FileZ88.bas also works under AmigaBASIC v1.2 by Microsoft. If you still have this, you need to go into Prefs/Sound and make sure that both the Flash Display and the Make Sound options are not selected. Run NoFastMem before running AmigaBASIC. Save stuff regularly, as it may crash without warning. (Apparently, as the A500 was a 16/32 bit machine, the programmers at Microsoft used the top 16bits for other uses. Now that the A1200 and others are true 32bit machines, this causes problems.) FileZ88.bas will also run on MS-DOS and Windows 3.x machines that have QBASIC.EXE. It doesn't work under Windows NT 4.0. It may work under '95. @endnode @node LEGAL "FileZ88: Distribution." You can use FileZ88, rip off the code, change the icons, pretend that it was all your own work, or whatever. If you want, you can make a donation to a charity of your choice and you may consider yourself a "registered user". If you want to, drop me an e-mail. There are no warranties supplied with this software. The software works on my Miggy and system. It may do horrible things to yours. @{b}*** You have been warned. ***@{ub} Contacting me:- Owen Birnie 8, Castle Street, Buckingham. United Kingdom. MK18 1BS E-mail: owen@gxn.net I don't know how long any of the above will be valid. @endnode @node INSTALL "FileZ88: Installation." You've obviously managed to unarchive the archive since you're reading this. Drag the FileZ88 icon to where ever you want to run it from. Do the same with the source and documentation too. (Or you can delete it, but you'll probably be sorry!) @endnode @node USAGE "FileZ88: Usage." After double-clicking on the FileZ88 icon (or running it from a BASIC interpreter) you get the following:- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BPS: 2400 Recieve Prefix: RAM: (P)references, (S)end, (R)ecieve or e(X)it: | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- At this point you may select:- @{"(P)" link PREFS}references @{"(S)" link SEND}end @{"(R)" link RECIEVE}ecieve e@{"(X)" link EXIT}it @endnode @node PREFS "FileZ88: Usage - Preferences." The screen will change to:- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BPS: 2400 Recieve Prefix: RAM: New settings:- BPS: | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You can now enter the new speed that FileZ88 will communicate with the Z88. Make sure that this is the same as the Panel option ([]S where [] is the key with the square on it} on the Z88. NOTE: If you enter an unsupported speed, it will cause FileZ88 to give a rather non-descript error later on. (Error handling is not one of FileZ88's strong points.) You will then get prompted:- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recieve Prefix: | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The recieve prefix is what gets prefixed onto the filename that is transferred from the Z88 during the FileZ88 (R)ecieve option. After hitting return, you will get returned to the main list of options. @{"" link USAGE} @endnode @node SEND "FileZ88: Usage - Send." After selecting (S)end, you will get prompted for a filename:- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Enter filename: | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You can then enter the path to the file that you wish to transfer to the Z88. All devices and directories are removed before transferring the filename to the Z88. It will be stored on the default device as selected in the Panel. At this point you should select Imp/Export ([]X) on the Z88. Enter `b' to perform a Batch recieve. (Your Amiga will transfer the filename to your Z88.) After entering the filename and pressing , the transfer should start. If you get a weird error, it means that either the transfer rate isn't supported (Stick to 300 / 1200 / 2400 and 9600 to keep out of trouble ) or that the file you specified cannot be found. The program will @{"exit" link EXIT}. Assuming the transfer starts, the screen will show a count showing the number of lines transferred. This should always tally with the number on the Z88. After the transfer is complete, the Z88 will bleep and return to the Imp/Export menu. FileZ88 will return to the main list of options. @{"" link USAGE} @endnode @node RECIEVE "FileZ88: Usage - Recieve." Immediately after selecting (R)ecieve, you shoudl select Imp/Export on the Z88 and select S)end file. You will then get prompted for the filename on the Z88. Enter it. After pressing FileZ88 will show on the screen:- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Remote Filename: Local Filename: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You will then get a count of the number of lines transferred. This should always tally with the number on the Z88. After the transfer is complete, the Z88 will bleep and return to the Imp/Export menu. FileZ88 will @{b}apparently@{ub} hang. At this point you can go to the Z88 and transfer another file using the S)end file option. If you have finished, you can press `E' to End the batch. It is only at this point that FileZ88 will return to the main list of options. @{"" link USAGE} @endnode @node EXIT "FileZ88: Usage - Exit." After selecting e(X)it, the FileZ88 will do exactly that. NOTE: If you are using the HiSoftBASIC compiled version of FileZ88, the screen colours will change. I don't know why. You can go into Prefs/Palette to reset them. @endnode @node ABOUTZ88 "About the Z88." Many people are coming into the computer industry now having never heard of Sir Clive Sinclair. This is quite sad is it harkens back to a time when computers were hobbies rather than just tools. Still, the bottom line about the Z88 is that it's small, black, got a full size keyboard, and runs for about 24 hours on four AA batteries. When all you want to do is make some notes whilst away from home, why shell out three grand on a Wintel box when the Z88 for less than £100 will do the job just as well. I forgot to add that it's got a VT52 terminal emulator which when you administrate SPARC hardware is a very useful tool. For more info, take a look at @{u}http://www.menaxus.demon.co.uk/z88/z88home.htm@{uu} @endnode @node SERIAL "The Serial Connection." I had hellish problems trying to get my Z88 to talk to my Miggy. I've traced it to some rather odd feature of both machine's handshaking. I believe that there are "documented features" regarding hardware handshaking on the Amiga that may not get taken into acount. Still, in the end, this was the connection that worked for me:- Z88 Amiga ~~~ ~~~~~ 2----------------3 3----------------2 4--\ /--4 | | 5--/ \--5 7----------------7 8--\ /--6 | | 9--/ \-20 At first I tried swapping DSR/DTR and RTS/CTS from the Amiga side to the Z88 side to get full hardware handshaking. This meant that the Amiga wouldn't transmit anything which was a bit weird. As is, it's only a three wire connection, but XON/XOF seems to be the standard protocol on the Z88, so it's not really a problem. Despite the fact that the Z88 can support speeds up to 38.4Kbps, it's no faster than using 9600. I find that the Z88 has a hard enough time trying to keep up at 9600bps and so FileZ88 defaults to 2400bps. @endnode @node DIARY "Using Digita Organiser." If you use Digita Organiser, you should also consider getting DiaryConv. This allows you to take a Diary listing from Organiser, run it through this program, port it to the Z88 and the Diary function will read it natively. You should get DiaryConv from the same place that you got FileZ88. @endnode