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Electric Pencil

Electric Pencil, developed by Michael Shrayer Software, Inc., was one of the earliest dynamic screen-oriented word processors for CP/M-80 systems, notable for pioneering real-time text editing on microcomputers despite incompatibilities with standard file conventions.

Electric Pencil emerged as a trailblazer in microcomputer word processing, arriving when most systems still relied on line editors that obscured document structure1. It demanded a memory-mapped video interface; users had to obtain the version specific to their hardware1. This tight coupling to video hardware limited portability but enabled its defining feature: dynamic screen-oriented editing, where text could be inserted and revised in place, a novelty in 19781. The original version, marketed to non-CP/M users, inserted carriage returns without line feeds, a quirk that disrupted interoperability with other software1. Files created by Electric Pencil were not directly usable as CP/M program or data files, requiring the separate $35 CONVERT utility to bridge the gap12510. A version from the CP/M Users' Group also reportedly performed this task1.

Electric Pencil II, introduced shortly after, corrected key flaws and expanded compatibility. It automatically inserted carriage returns where needed, easing integration with standard text processing workflows24510. The software supported CP/M, IMDOS (Imsai's operating system), and HELIOS, and could address up to four disk drives23567810. It operated on 8080/Z80-based systems with 32K or 64K of memory15, and was adaptable to Micropolis and North Star disk systems through version suffixes: "A" for North Star, "B" for Micropolis (e.g., SS-IIA, DV-IIB)3678. Printer support included DIABLO and NEC packages, with advanced features like bidirectional printing, character spacing, multicolumn layout, and right justification yielding clean, typeset-like output23456781011. The Diablo versions notably enabled bold face and bidirectional printing, features that used the printer’s mechanical capabilities for near-letter-quality results2451011.

Functionally, Electric Pencil II offered a comprehensive set of formatting tools: full margin control, end-of-page handling, line and paragraph indentation, hanging indents, centering, underlining, and bold face367815. It supported settable tabs, embedded print commands, and could print from both memory and disk15. A subsystem with a "print value scoreboard" and "print value chaining" allowed complex formatting logic, suggesting a proto-scripting capability for layout automation3678. Page-at-a-time and bidirectional multispeed scrolling enhanced navigation3678. Non-printing comments let users annotate documents without affecting output3678. The software also tallied words and record numbers automatically3678, and supported cassette backup for additional storage3678. A peripheral feature, DICTAMATIC cassette control, enabled transcription from dictated messages, indicating use in office environments where voice input was emerging15.

Marketing materials claimed it was "the most powerful 8080/Z80 character oriented word processor on the market today"411, a bold assertion in an era crowded with early word processors. The Electric Pencil II was priced at $225 for standard printer versions and $275 for Diablo versions, while a 1982 ad listed a "NEW ** ELECTRIC PENCIL** ** $99.95" deal, possibly a discount or bundled version415. The company, Michael Shrayer Software, Inc., operated from Glendale, California, with a listed phone number for support and sales23567816. Third-party tools extended its ecosystem: PENCIL SHARPENER, a utility for Electric Pencil II under CP/M, was available by 1979, with a TRS-80 version forthcoming9. A separate proofreading tool advertised a 38,000-word dictionary compatible with Electric Pencil, underscoring its role in professional writing workflows13.

Electric Pencil’s legacy lies in its timing and ambition. It predated the dominance of WordStar and demonstrated that microcomputers could handle document creation with sophistication. Yet its file incompatibility and hardware-specific versions reveal the fragmented state of early CP/M software. It worked in multi-user environments with the RK4/8 Multiplexor15, and driver support spanned parallel, serial, and video interfaces15, showing adaptability. Still, the need for CONVERT and the lack of serial terminal support1 suggest a tool built for disk-based, single-user systems with dedicated video hardware, typical of high-end hobbyist and early professional setups. Its documentation of version suffixes for disk systems and specific video boards remains one of the clearest surviving records of how CP/M software adapted to hardware variance.

References

  1. OsborneCPMUserGuideSecondEdition 1982 ThomHogan (1982)
  2. 1978 10 BYTE 03-10 Chess for the Microcomputer (1978)
  3. 1979 10 BYTE 04-10 Genealogy (1979)
  4. 1978 05 BYTE 03-05 Graphics in Depth (1978)
  5. 1979 03 BYTE 04-03 Plain Text (1979)
  6. 1979 08 BYTE 04-08 LISP (1979)
  7. BYTE Vol 04-08 1979-08 Lisp (1979)
  8. 1979 07 BYTE 04-07 Automating Eclipses (1979)
  9. 1979 12 BYTE 04-12 Numerical Analysis (1979)
  10. 1978 11 BYTE 03-11 The Sky is the Limit (1978)
  11. 1978 07 BYTE 03-07 How To Get Your Tarbell Going (1978)
  12. 1980 04 BYTE 05-04 Printed Software Becomes a Reality (1980)
  13. 1981 07 BYTE 06-07 Energy Conservation (1981)
  14. sim 80-micro 1980 index (1980)
  15. 1982 12 BYTE 07-12 Game Plan 1982 (1982)
  16. 1978 12 BYTE 03-12 Life (1978)