This is RE:-Argh-Argh in view mode; [Up]
Date: Tue, 11-Apr-1989 22:19:00 From: Unknown Subject: RE: Argh! Argh! >From: Owner of a lonely heart <BARRSTEVE@UNCG> ?From: Michael Nosal <ST502042@BROWNVM.BITNET> ?Subject: Alternatives to NeXT? WRONG! ?Everyone out there looking for alternatives to the NeXT is barking up ?the wrong tree. In short, THERE ARE NO ALTERNATIVES TO THE NeXT!!! Ah, brand loyalty, something almost unheard of in the computer world. How refreshing. ?Why? I'll explain. ?People are too MIPS-oriented and can't think clearly. As has been said before, ^^^For me, time=money and [IMHO] my computer should wait on me, not the other way around. Would you like waiting for you car to respond to your turn of the wheel? ?the *REAL* power of the machine is not how many MIPS, or MFLOPS, or any ?xxxstones rating, but rather the overall seamless integration of the ?entire system. A couple of things: 1. The machine is separate from the software. I can make my ST act like a UN*X box, a Mac, or an IBM PC [etc...]. How well it does this is to a great deal dependent on how fast my base machine runs. 2. How are you to measure something that is essentially a number processing device [i.e. a computer] except by how fast it processes numbers? 3. For "seamless integration of the entire system" I'd much rather use something like Hewlett-Packard's New Wave(tm) which seems more useful. ?What NeXT has given us is a brand-new tool, unlike any we have ever had for ?spreading the use of computers to LESS and LESS technical applications. Perhaps more refined than any other. To me it is a Mac with UN*X and sound. ?Take the example from the Macintosh world. When it came out, it was slow and ?not as powerful as some other PC-class machines of the time. But it had many ?of the new features that we take for granted now. How many businesses did ?ANY desktop pub. before the Mac? Now ask how many consider their DTP to be ?"essential" to their business. How did they *ever* get along without it? ?Now we must ask "What applications would *REALLY* take advantage of the ?NeXT?" Certainly not more spreadsheets or accounting packages. Actually a spreadsheet would help the NeXT get accepted into the business world ["Oh, I can have an impressive box on my desk AND have a use for it!"] ?How about access for the handicapped (a MUCH overlooked area) ? Please explain your reasoning here. Most devices I've seen to help the handicapped use computers deal with their interfacing with the machine effectively. Devices like a metal keyboard cover with holes to let people "aim" their fingers at the keys is one example. The NeXT does have one good point here, though it is certainly not unique, and that is its large screen and the ability to enlarge the fonts. I find fault with its mouse [difficult for those with motion disorders to control] and the size of the pointer [though it may be possible to change it]. Unless you add other devices to the NeXT I doubt its ability to be used effectively by the handicapped [the power switch being part of my reservation]. ?How about TRUE hypermedia? (Not hacked-up Hypercard stacks) I'd LOVE to punch ?in some old textbooks and use the graphics and sound to *really* explain some ?concepts. (Anyone who has seen "The Mechanical Universe" can appreciate that) The NeXT is useable for this [especially three students or so watching three different lessons on the same monitor >-] as are several computers out on the market like the MacII and the ATW. I don't feel the NeXT excels at this as much as it does in its musical ability. ?* How about Applications in the Classics, English, or History? Strategy ? analysis of famous battles? Exploring the ancient Egyptian society? ? David Macaulay's (sp?) books PYRAMID, CATHEDRAL, CASTLE? The NeXT would ? really be useful in teaching these concepts. How about Applications in Music? If software is being developed that would let the NeXT have at least the editing abilities of the software on the Atari ST and the Amiga the NeXT stands a good chance [IMHO] of becoming a "studio in a box." ?The point is, given the HUGE storage space on the Optical Disk, the fantastic Huge? I disagree. The "floptical" [sp?] is supposed to be able to hold a gigabyte on a 3.5" diskette. Storage of 20meg has already been acheived. ?sound capability (CD's sound pretty Damn good, don't they?) and more than Yes, they do sound good. The NeXT's saving grace [again, IMHO]. ?acceptable graphics (which will eventually be improved into more greyscales, ?higher resolution or color), we now have the ability to really get physical ?with what we are computing. "get physical" If you mean have it more non-computer-like, perhaps, but fear of computers is hardly a problem these days, is it? ?(Personally, I'd *love* to see some KILLER games on the NeXT. This has real ?possibilities, far beyond ANYTHING you've seen, esp. with the sound!) Oh well, somehow it always comes down to games, vital as they obviously are to how valuable a computer is to a user. (personally, I'd like to see some music software, vital as that is to all musicians who are on a budget.) ?No other machine/system out there has everything the NeXT has and nothing ?does it as well. Whoa!! If no other machine has what the NeXT has HOW COULD ANY MACHINE DO "IT" AS WELL?!?! No other machine is a NeXT therefore no machine can act like a NeXT. Was there some point to this statement? I hate to use the MacII as an example, but it does have [at least from a business standpoint, correct me if I am wrong]: 1. a lower price [about 9 thou for the 68030, I think] 2. Similar size monitor available [though without the greyscales, etc] 3. Lots of stuff already available [I know the NeXT is new, tell that to people who purchase computers to help them make money.] I don't know if the business world is going to give Jobs the slack he will need [IMHO yet again] to build up a base of support. The NeXT could develop into a useful machine given support. With IBM having some legal right to use NeXTStep [sp?] [purchased the rights or somesuch] the NeXT might survive in the market. I think the NeXT could be a good friend to the musician, if some company can get the software out the door soon enough. ?--- Michael Nosal ?--- ST502042@brownvm.brown.edu Steve Barr BARRSTEVE@UNCG.BITNET BARRSTEV@NEXT.UNCG.EDU ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- End of NeXT Digest -- >From: jdn@mas.UUCP (Jeff Nisewanger)
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