Commodore 128 Productivity Software Review - Multiplan, Paperback Writer128 and Fleet Systems 3

[@networkg]

Wow. I never knew you could make so much from KZbin and retro-computers.

[@10MARC]

Yep. I am writing this from my solid gold jet flying to France. All paid for by my KZbin videos! ;)

[@islygon]

How to know that you are a geek... “Hey! There is a 50 minute video about Commodore 128 Productivity software! I must watch it!” Yep.. that was me. Very cool though! Have you tried Word Writer 128 or any financial software yet?

[@10MARC]

Glad it caught your eye! I tried a copy of Word writer 128 that a friend sent me but it is not working. I need to maybe copy it to a disk again. I hear it is a good one, though.

[@AS-ly3jp]

What a cool video! Please correct me if I am wrong, but isn't it possible to change the c128d internal drive (8) to 9 via basic and switch your sd2iec to 8 via the switches on the back of the sd2iec? You then wouldn't have to copy the file over to a actual floppy disc. And can you please make a step-to-step video on how to create a actual working cp/m disks for the 128 when all you've got is a couple of downloaded cp/m files on a PC? That would be great. I am unable to find such a video anywhere here on YT. Where can I get the partner128 cartridge, or is he selling this as a crt file? I would pay for this.

[@10MARC]

@@AS-ly3jp Yes, you can change both the internal drive and the SD2IEC via software. Luckily, my C128D has a switch on the side to switch from 8 to 9! That is quite helpful! I have plans for a CP/M Episode where I will show how to create the disks. I beleive I did mine with a Zoomfloppy. If you don't have access to one I am sure I can help you out getting some copies made. The Partner 128 requires the cartridge and a special cable for the joystick port. I don't think it works without that. I got mine off of eBay a few months back.

[@LeftoverBeefcake]

I just wanted to give a little shout out to my C128 terminal program of choice: DesTerm128 - it has a very nice menu system, works with just about any kind of old or new modem, has a color ANSI mode for IBM-based BBS's, and has been very bulletproof for me so far. commodore.software/downloads/download/789-c128-terminal-programs/1145-desterm-v3-02 I don't think there's enough room here to list my favorite 128 software so here's just a few... iPaint by Free Spirit Software (who also did a ton of other awesome 128 only programs), SpeedScript+, Warp Speed & Mach 128 fast loader carts, and Big Blue Reader 128.

[@10MARC]

I have hear a lot about DESTerm, and it is on my list to try out. Thanks for the link to it!

[@a4000t]

@@10MARC checkout Proterm 128

[@10MARC]

I will do that too! Thanks so much!

[@MrToast64]

Cool. I need to give that a drive as well!

[@YarmouthHoops]

I thought you handled the technical issues from the last virtual event with class, Doug. Well done and thanks for taking the time to post this!

[@10MARC]

Thanks! I really appreciate that! I hope you enjoy this uninterrupted version.

[@eebaker699]

Very nice video, thank you. I remember using Jane128. Though I think I didn't get the full benefit while using a TV screen back in the day. Actually, your discussion on productivity software has given me food for thought... I could essentially run a great deal of my business on a C128 machine and interchange documents, spreadsheets, etc. to and from a "modern" computer at will. I could incorporate it in my tax returns. WOW! Do more videos like this!

[@10MARC]

I have Jane 128 but have not opened the package yet. I need to get that running! Yes, it would still be quite possible to run a business on one of these old machines.

[@eebaker699]

Yes, I think you are right. From memory Jane128 was GUI based and could take advantage of a mouse connected to the joystick port. I, unfortunately only had the luxury of a joystick. It was a little difficult with a joystick.🙂

[@n.miller907]

My gawd, this is such walk down memory lane for me. It brought tears to my eyes. I owned the productivity you showed here, except the Microsoft one. I loved using them all. I also bought all the GEOS 64 and 128 software. I loved the database and spreadsheet. The main reason I stopped using my Commodore 128 is because my pet supply died and I couldn't find a replacement. It wasn't long after I bartered my boss for a 386 PC tower and replaced the motherboard with a 486. I still have a soft spot on my heart for the Commodore 128 and related software. Thank you for making this video!

[@10MARC]

Glad you enjoyed it. The software for the C128 was certainly nearly as useful as the software for the PC's of the same era. The Whipper-snappers of today mostly just look on the 8 bit era with video game goggles and forget that most people used these for work, too.

[@pacbilly]

You're doin' the lord's work here, Doug. The lord's work. The C128D remains my dream computer. I see you've got the switch for Jiffydos on yours. I have a regular 128, but not the D.

[@10MARC]

Yes, JiffyDOS is quite a nice little addition. It also has a switch on the right side to toggle between drive 8 and 9 for the internal floppy! That makes it handy when I use my SD2IEC sometimes. I normally keep that as device 10, but some software is so finicky about device numbers.

[@mrbrad4637]

I always wanted a C128 with an REU just to get the most out of GEOS as it was and still is an amazing GUI OS for the hardware limitations of the C64 and 128. This is a great video showing all the productivity software I never knew about

[@10MARC]

So glad you enjoyed it! I will be doing a C64 version of this too, in the next few months

[@ScrapKing73]

Ditto. Once GEOS came out in all its WYSIWYG glory, I never instigator why anyone would buy anything else for productivity. So I watched this with interest! I guess how fast they were would have appealed to some.

[@darioperezdario2638]

Thank you 10 Minute Amiga Retro Cast, for making this video. For several years I have been looking for videos about applications for the Commodore 128, as I consider it a powerful computer, both now and when it was released in 1985. Very undervalued at the time, since for office tasks some preferred the IBM PCs or the compatible ones. And for games, many already had the Commodore 64. In addition, the arrival of 16-bit computers, such as the Commodore Amiga 1000 and the Atari ST 520 overshadowed its launch. But as you demonstrated in the video: the 128 was a powerful and great computer.

[@10MARC]

Glad you found my video useful! Yes the C128 was underrated and underappreciated. It is by far my favorite 8 bit computer. I will be doing more videos on it soon.

[@darioperezdario2638]

@@10MARC Thank you for answering my comment. I will be looking forward to the next video on Commodore 128. I encourage you to make more videos on the C128. A greeting.

[@danield.7359]

Fantastic video. Finally a video about productivity software and not only games!! I used Vizawrite and Multiplan on the C64.

[@10MARC]

Vizawrite? Never tried that one. I will have to look it up. Thanks for the kind words! And I agree there was so much more than games for these machines.

[@curiousottman]

Memories... misty watercolored memories! So loving these videos. I remember using paper clip 3 and having insert the spellcheck disk to run at the end of my projects.

[@10MARC]

So glad they are bringing back fond memories for people! I hear Paper Clip is a good Word Processor.

[@CommodoreKazz]

Thank you very much for the shout-out Doug. Great video as usual!!

[@10MARC]

You bet! I put your BBS in the description, too. I will be doing an entire video on BBS'ing on 8 bits and Amiga's soon, and yours will be highlighted again.

[@CommodoreKazz]

@@10MARC Thank you again! My 40 column BBS did not fair well in 80 column. 😱 😂

[@mycommodorecollection]

Actually, I have an MSD drive which has a 0/1 drive setup. We used these back in the day for additional storage on our BBS systems.

[@10MARC]

Oh I know some kinds existed, and I know you can hook up a PET drive with the right interface, but I would guess maybe one in a thousand or fewer users ever did that. It confused me why these companies would code for them

[@MrHowlinAlan]

@@10MARC , plus, I can just about guarantee that none of the software you talked about would load on an MSD.

[@MrHowlinAlan]

@@10MARC , plus, I can just about guarantee that none of the software you talked about would load on an MSD.

[@10MARC]

They had compatibility problems? I have a few Excalerator brand drives that have compatibility issues too.

[@c128stuff]

On modern storage devices like the sd2iec, the drive numbers are used to reference 'partitions', which all of a sudden makes it a bit annoying when software insists on only supporting drive 0.

[@ssdravidian]

Hey Doug, any suggestion on what would be the best C128 word processor that can be used today? that can save the text document in ascii so that i can access / view and edit on a pc?

[@10MARC]

I know for sure that paperback writer 128 and fleet system 3 can save an ASCII. Paperback writer is a little bit easier to use for sure. I think most of them can save an ASCII without any real problem, some of them by printing to a file instead of printing to the printer.

[@curiousottman]

I’ve seen converters for Paperclip 3 for the 128 to export them to CSV etc.

[@cmmolthr]

Great presentation, Doug! Sadly, I cannot recall the name of the word processor I used with the C=64. I used the mentioned WordWriter 128 with my C=128, and for the C=64, I used NovaTern to logon to BBSes I wasa late bloomer, entering the realm of computing circa1989-1990, age 23-24, using an old VIC-20

[@10MARC]

These machines really worked fairly well for Word Processing. It was amazing what they were truly capable of. I know lots of people using them as their daily drivers into the mid 90's!

[@OldAussieAds]

I’ve always said that while the Commodore 64 was better for games and the Apple II was better for applications, the Apple II made a better games machine than the C64 made a business machine. But looking at your video I reckon the Commodore 128 would have given both a run for their money. Like you, I never had a C128 as a kid (or even played with an actual C128 except for briefly at Kmart). But I had a stack of Compute! Magazines and I lusted over both he C128 and the C64. Now as an adult, I have both a C64 and C128Dcr, as well as an Apple IIc. I’m now living the high life!

[@10MARC]

I have actually been pretty darn impressed with the amount of business software for the Commodore 64. I never used much of the business software as a kid of course, but now that I see how much was available and how good quality it was I am fairly impressed. I did use my Commodore 64 to hold the database for my stepfather's music business back in 1985. Wiest crate mailing labels and do Mass mailings all from a Commodore 64 and a dot matrix printer

[@OldAussieAds]

@@10MARC I think the thing that held the Commodore 64 back for business computing more than anything was it's slow 1541 disk drive. This is something that was rectified in later years with the 1571. Oh and of course it was known as a games machine so many people just didn't see it as a serious computer.

[@AussieAmigan]

My C128D just arrived an hour ago (in Australia) from Belgium!!! Yay!!! I always wanted one. I'm not sure I'm gonna do any of the stuff in the video though. I still have a lot to figure out. My Epyx fastload cartridge boots it into C64 mode and the SDEIC works with C64 mode, but I need to still figure out if it'll work in C128 mode so I can try out some C128 software via disk images. It is sitting proudly beside my A1000 which looks like a sibling. My C128D needs some retrobriting though. First impressions are entirely visual, in that it sits about half a centimeter shorter and is 2cms less in width but 4cms deeper. I'm a little shocked the keyboard doesn't sit nicely below the case's raised front panel nook, not to mention the silliness of having the keyboard plug into the side rather than concealed in some clearly dead space underneath, which pushes the joystick ports back even further, almost to the point of inaccessibility.

[@10MARC]

You will love the C128D - it is such a great machine. Try the CPM modes - there is some fun to be had there!

[@temporarilyoffline]

I am really glad I got my start right when computers were trying hard to standardize on user interfaces. It looks like all of these apps all have different user headspace setups. Just as dbase and 123 were dying...

[@10MARC]

There certainly were a lot of different ways of doing things, especially on the PC. I was spoiled by the Amiga having a fairly standardized interface on software by 1988, and when I started looking at PC's the interfaces were all over the place until Windows 3.1, really. Nothing was ever quite standardized on the C128 and C64, though...

[@amadagio2856]

Thank you for this. Great inspiration on how to use the 128 for productivity. Do you plan on more videos similar to this in the future? I would for sure watch them.

[@10MARC]

You bet. I still have a full review of the 128D scheduled, a special on using the Modem, and a GEOS for the 128 video being planned.

[@amadagio2856]

@@10MARC nice! Looking forward to it. 👍

[@robertserver3846]

@@10MARC GEOS 128 2.0 was very usable produced good results when you had a nice printer. I used it until about 94 when I got my first PC.

[@scottfike9755]

Doug, what is that strip of red lights in a beige case used for sitting underneath your C-128D monitor in this video? Thank you

[@10MARC]

That is one of those Surge Protector boxes from the 80's and 90's - the ones you could turn off and on individual switches to power your goodies.

[@scottfike9755]

@@10MARC Oh, okay. I've seen 80's and 90's surge strips before, but not surge boxes.

[@ninline2000]

When I bought my A3000 in 92 I sold my neighbor my C128D with a 512K expansion and 1581 drive. I had a lot of productivity stuff for it. She used it to run her florist business for the next 15 years until it died. Then she had a nightmare when she got a windoze computer and had to figure out how to change everything over to new software.

[@10MARC]

That is too cool! I bet she did not know she could have just bought another C128D and it would still be running her business!

[@barryon8706]

For getting to device 9, etc., for drives, you might look at the configure file. I'm going from the Pocket Writer 2 manual, which is in the same line of software, and it has something about assigning the drives to different devices, if I'm reading it correctly. Assign0=0,8 Assign1=0,9 I'll include a URL for the manual in a separate post in case spam-eaters devour it.

[@10MARC]

That would be nice. I found nothing in the manual except referencing drive 0 and 1. Maybe I missed something!

[@mcd3379]

Superscript 128 was also very good and got me through University. It was quick to boot, very quick and easy to use and to be honest wouldn't be matched until years later on much more expensive machines with heftier software.

[@10MARC]

It is really excellent software. I agree that it could do just about anything that PC software could do!

[@stephenbruce8320]

I used my 128 and 128D mostly for productivity stuff. My favorite program from TimeWorks was Sylvia Porters Personal Finance which I used for years. I think I did have a Partner 128 Cartridge but for some reason I don't believe I used it all that often and it might of been because I was using that port for something else on both 128's . Hey it was a long time ago. In the past couple of years I did pick up a C128 and a couple 128D's although one of the 128D's is on my bench but I have not touched it in a while because of my Amiga Projects. Commodore4ever is not to far from me I have purchased quite a bit of stuff from them, power supplies, WiFi Modem, PiHat, ACA500, always happy with buying stuff from Commodre4ever. I did play with the WiFi Modem for a while and its a cool device, it brought back some fun memories. I did run a BBS on the 128 using C-Net 128 before moving over to the Amiga version but for a while I actually had a C128 and 128D running BBS's and because they were connected to a Lt Kernal HD system through a multiplexer I was able to setup a chat room called a Teleconference Area but I was never able to implement the LU Locking software which prevents more than 1 computer to write to the hard drive at a time to prevent hard drive corruption but multiple computers could read from the hard drive at the same time no problem. Yea that was a long time ago.

[@10MARC]

Cool! I have that Timeworks Sylvia Porter software. It came in the bundle I bought a month ago. I tried it once but have not spent much time with it yet. Great story about your BBS!

[@fsphil]

Not many people could make a near 40 year old spreadsheet program interesting. Well done!

[@10MARC]

Thanks! It was actually surprising how much fun I had playing with Multiplan! I really like the software.

[@garyhart6421]

Ah CP/M :) Reminds me of the Amstrad PCW I used back in 94/95.

[@DrDavesDiversions]

32:26 lolololol "It only goes up to 1998 [...] but it's still fun to play with." .oO( Imagining making appointments in my past on an alternate timeline... ) You crack me up, Doug. :)

[@10MARC]

It is pretty interesting, as you can go month to month all the way up to 1998. I think they stopped because they ran out of memory on the ROM. Who would have thunk we would use these things decades later! The manual says you can write custom code and upload it to the device, at the expense of some space for memo storage. I wonder if I could find a way yo upload new calendars? Who knows?

[@DrDavesDiversions]

@@10MARC If it handles a 28-year window of years, info from this site suggests that just changing the year numbers should work: www.reference.com/science/calendar-repeat-itself-6348a8075e70592a If you can dump the ROM and look for strings in it, you could see if the year numbers exist in the ROM (as strings). I would not be surprised if the calendar uses a table in ROM, but it could be partially implemented by algorithm, e.g., for leap years: every evenly divisible by 4 year, but not every evenly divisible by 100 year unless evenly divisible by 400. (Trivia: that happens to be a Y2K bug that I consulted to fix in 1999 because Y2K was a leap year but some systems didn't check for the evenly divisible by 400, presumably b/c it never happened before in the computer age.) Happy hacking!

[@10MARC]

That is so cool! I will dig into that more and see if I can get it to work for another 28 years! Awesome!!!!!

[@zzarko]

Hi! Great video, I really like to see how this kind of software worked! And one question/plea: apart from obvious - having original C128 software, is there some place where productivity software for C64/C128 can be found? I have managed to get a hold of Jane for C128 (D71) and some Paperback/Pocket programs for C64 and C128 (G64) that work, but generally that kind of software is almost nowhere to be found. In the era of ZoomFloppy, CryoFlux and similar tools, I have expected that software of that kind is preserved on a daily basis, by the ones that managed to find an original copy. Anyhow, if someone has managed to preserve some of C64/C128 productivity software (I guess that G64 file format would be the most convenient), if you are OK with it, please share.

[@10MARC]

Well... Not really. You can find a few pieces here and there but I have not found a real centralized location for a lot of the software. The FTP archive at Zimmer's (dot) net has some, archive (dot) org has a few...

[@zzarko]

@@10MARC Thanks for the reply! My hunt continues... :)

[@bendevil8751]

Hi I'm also using Multiplan on a C128. In your video, it seems that you are capable to copy a cell with a formula. I'm using version 1.07 and every time I copy a cell with a formula, Multiplan freeze. What are you doing to not have this issue? Ben

[@10MARC]

Wow. Nothing special with my setup. I am just running it from floppy on my C128D.

[@danielson9579]

Is there any 128 games as it goes 🤔

[@10MARC]

There are about 20 that take advantage of the C128 advantages. I may cover those another time

[@MrThairacer]

great 👍 multiplan reminds me souvenirs, at school we have this on pc xd computer 286 and we have a exam, drawn a spreadsheet in 20 minutes , a facture with operations and one think i will never forget it’s the ASCII codes for put lines , did i have dreamed of not ? or it was only on dos version ? ex alt-286 etc .... very informative video my dear :)

[@10MARC]

I don't recall reading about ASCII codes in the Commodore version to put in lines, but I will check the manual. That would be great!

[@georgemaragos2378]

Hi, at work we used multiplan on 286 and 386's, some lucky people got Win 3.0 or 3.1 later but they did not get office with the new pc's as the standard was the existing DOS programs that already existed - and were expensive. By 486 days most PC's had windows and a few had office 2 or 3 , i was lucky as eventually a few years later i ended up with 4.3 as they wanted me to learn access and make some stand alone databases as i had made some from in Dbase3 ( 4.2 is office , but 4.3 is sort of pro with access back then ) At home i had a C64 and Amiga 500 they had multiplan as well We kept some older NEC 386's as they cross over machines, they had dos 3.3 or 4 on them, i think there was 2 x dos machine and the other 2 were win 3.1 and office set up You would go to the old machines to load old data on older programs, save to a floppy then walk to the new ones and edit or print them BTW there is a dos microsoft word with the same menu interface as multiplan JP Thairacer - By asciii codes do you mean holding the alt button and typing in the ascii number on the number pad to put up a ASCII character eg 064 = A, but you can do borders / patterns etc with the extended ascii Regards George

[@10MARC]

@@georgemaragos2378 I am still pretty impressed with Multiplan. with the Symbolic Link features, it would be super easy to go from the DOS/Windows and Commodore versions! How cool!

[@georgemaragos2378]

@@10MARC Hi, Yes it is still cool that they allow document interchange with other and older formats. I think it disappeared from excel in one or two versions at one stage at say Office XP, as i kept my Pentium 1 at home with office 95 to use for older programs conversion I never used the print to file like you did to use in a word processor like you did - i dont know why i did not think of it - i did use print to file for printing them later on a nice 24pin printer or HP laserjet - young people today would be surprised that a simple 20 page document would have been made from multiple smaller saved files. I did use multiplan export to csv and other formats, as it was common to use Lotus 123 files or AsEasyAs or Unicalc etc Regards George

[@10MARC]

@@georgemaragos2378 I can still save as Symbolic Link in Multiplan in the C128 and open it right up in Excel 365. Excel will save as Symbolic Link, too. Keeps almost all the data intact.

[@joshhiner729]

Write stuff 128. You have to check it out. 80 column word processor with menus.

[@10MARC]

I think maybe I just bought that a few months ago... There was a new package I bought and I haven't even tried it out yet. But I have heard good things about it! Thanks!

[@joshhiner729]

Not a problem. I actually just bought it myself. I have the 80col and 40col version (on opposite sides of the disk). I also have the text to speech add-on? three templates disks, learn to read add on, Illustrator add on and a couple spellcheck add on disks. Also manuals for all. I backed up both 80col and 40col disks to D64 files. I will do the same for the rest. Let me know if you are interested in any of the d64's or need info from the manuals

[@herbmyers805]

In 1988 my son wrote 20 page HS report on the teletype as modern device and all on the C128 PB wrier. They thought where is your PC!!!!

[@10MARC]

Ha! Yep - even in 1988 the C128 could do almost everything a PC could.

[@AmigaLove]

Doug - did you compose (play) that intro music? =D So great. "It is about the coolest thing in the world." Not something you hear every day said about Excel! But, ya know, I have to agree.

[@10MARC]

I found that intro music online. Not sure if it was done on a SID, but I thought it sounded like it did. 34 year old spreadsheets excite me. What can I say?

[@The_Wandering_Nerd]

I'm actually very impressed that modern versions of Excel still maintain compatibility with spreadsheets written 40 years ago for a completely different hardware and file system architecture. That is an important counterpoint to the classic argument that "Microsoft Office is far too bloated these days!"

[@10MARC]

It may just be an oversight that the old format still works!

[@barryon8706]

Pocket Writer 2 manual I referenced in a the just-prior post. Pocket Writer is the same software as Paperback Writer, but I don't know if Pocket Writer 2 is before or after Paperback Writer 128. archive.org/stream/Pocket_Writer_2_Reference_Guide/Pocket_Writer_2_Reference_Guide_djvu.txt

[@10MARC]

Good to know!

[@HeyBirt]

Nice job Doug!

[@10MARC]

Thanks Jeff! I had a lot of fun learning these awesome programs.

[@HeyBirt]

@@10MARC I really think if Commodore had come out with the C128 sooner, like 3-4 years sooner it would have been a much bigger success. The 128D would have been a budget business machine with its 80 column capability but Commodore did not want to kill the C64 cash cow.

[@10MARC]

When you think about it, 1985 was only three years after the C64 came out, and it that time they also released the Ill fated Plus/4.

[@herbmyers805]

I have this cartridge and may not have docs. No worries lol Nice Partner review!!

[@10MARC]

I can scan the docs and email them to you if you want. My email address is in the "About" section of my KZbin channel, or you can DM me on Facebook or Twitter.

[@Eightbitswide]

Sadly my 128 spent a lot of time in c64 mode back in the day. However BASIC 7.0 with its built in sprite editor is pretty cool.

[@10MARC]

The Sprite Editor and the Machine Language monitor were much needed features for sure!

[@Wallygjs]

Ace video Doug!

[@10MARC]

Thanks so much! Glad you liked it.

[@alaingoulet4468]

They had a World Of Commodore in Canada?!

[@10MARC]

Yep. It was all virtual on Zoom and KZbin this year. You can see the highlights on their KZbin page

[@alaingoulet4468]

@@10MARC wow, I use to go to the world of Commodore in Toronto years ago, bought lots of stuff there, but I did not realized they still had them.

[@10MARC]

They still have them live every year. But of course this year they had to go virtual. I am hoping maybe I can attend the next one in person. That would be really cool

[@CommodoreGreg]

What's up with that comment overlay at 11:13? $ makes perfect sense if you know history.

[@10MARC]

Oh sure, but you could not really get away with that today!

[@herbmyers805]

Mark the C128 can use faster baud rates but this is not my thing

[@10MARC]

Yes it can, but it tends to interfere with Burst mode on the 1571 drives. A trade off, I suppose.

[@barryon8706]

I remember Paperback Writer 128 having a really nice interface for a word processor back then, and having text style support for the 80-column screen with (IIRC) italics supported on-screen.

[@10MARC]

It is really nice software. I live 80 columns on my C128!

[@SteveGuidi]

I wonder if the target market of the C128 productivity software were business that had likely already invested in the dual-drive hardware, and/or were upgrading from PETs to C128s. Pure speculation though -- I wasn't old enough to walk around offices in 1986 checking out the computers on people's desks. On a side note, a few months ago I was able to and connect to a BBS via the VICE emulator over TCP/IP. Yes that's cheating so to speak, but I had a lot of fun doing it! kzbin.info/www/bejne/omSWonasgsmUq5Y

[@10MARC]

I thought about that, too, yet the IEEE-488 interfaces required were not that popular. These drives are referenced in Commodores manuals quite a bit too, and probably 70% of the productivity software support drive 0 and 1, and yet they never shipped the 1572 dual drive. It is weird.

[@c128stuff]

Its less weird if that software shares much of its code with intended or actually existing versions for the CBM II, B128, B500 and similar machines, which most definitely used the IEEE-488 drives. On the 64 and 128, IEEE-488 interfaces were mostly used for the SFD-1001 drive. I used to own one of those. They were not very common, but among those who used their 64 or possibly 128 for running a BBS, or for productivity use requiring somewhat more data than was practical on 15xx floppies, this was quite the thing to have.

[@PrimeRibb69]

Fleet system 128 got me through college in the late 90s

[@10MARC]

It's great software for sure! The late 90's? Really! That is cool that you were using a Commodore 128 at that point in time!