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From: rmeier@su-star.ARPA (R. Meier)
Newsgroups: net.micro.cpm
Subject: re: ram disks (Saturn 128K)
Message-ID: <291@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Date: Tue, 30-Jul-85 11:22:58 EDT
Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.291
Posted: Tue Jul 30 11:22:58 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 1-Aug-85 05:39:41 EDT
Sender: news@brl-tgr.ARPA
Lines: 28

Seepee Emm,
	I have been using a Saturn Ramdisk 128K with my Apple ][+ for
over a year now, with no problems.  The supplied interface software is
needlessly complicated, slow and uses almost all of the Cp/m configuration
block, but despite this, I have not yet bothered to rewrite it.
	I find that I only use it about 15% of the time, but that when
I use it, it is well worth it.  I use it when I know that a given
program will have many disk references.  I typically use Wordstar,
by copying my file to the ramdisk, there editting it, and periodically
copying it back to floppy disk.  I find that the reduction in WAIT
(for disk operation) time is much more comfortable, and avoids the
problem of lost characters when a disk operation is performed while
typing.  I have found that when compiling with small c or using
the asm assembler, it is worthwhile to send the hex to the ram disk
and then load from the ram disk back onto a floppy.
	In summary,
		Saturn Ram Disk 128K
		No Problem operation > 1 yr
		Interface Software inconvenient
		Editting Speedup (x2) (mostly psychological)
		Assembly/Compiling Speedup (x2) (including copy time)

	Before, getting the new version of Kermit which does disk
buffering, I could almost double my effective file transfer rate, by
copying to ram disk.
					Bob Meier (riacs!meier@pluto)

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