alan@allegra.UUCP (Alan S. Driscoll) (08/29/84)
>> A small business owner decides he wants to get a small computer to help >> with his business. He goes down to the local bookstore and buys a few >> computer magazines to acquaint himself with what's available. Leafing >> through the pages, he sees ad after ad for IBM, Commodore, Apollo, >> DEC, Wang, etc., etc. Seeing the plethora of available products, each >> claiming superiority, he throws up his hands in dismay and says, >> "There's no way I can choose. There's so many and they all say they're >> the best." He finally rejects the idea of buying a computer. > Is this fictitious businessman's conclusion valid? Positively not! > He certainly could find a computer -- if he really wanted to in the first > place. [Ken Ewing] Yes, if the business owner is serious, he'll wade through all the claims and choose a computer that suits his needs. On the other hand, the next time he hears that, "XYZ is the greatest computer ever designed, the last one you'll ever buy, that is slices, dices, and shreds..." he'll probably mutter something that I shouldn't say on the net. The point is, the business owner may choose one computer over the others, but won't he reject *all* the advertising hype? Also, he better shop around, and understand the differences between the various products he's considering. It would be silly to buy one without knowing what his alternatives are. Finally, if the business owner runs around telling everyone that he has *the* computer, and everyone else wasted their money, then I will assume that either (a) he's a real nerd, or (b) he still feels unsure about his decision, and is trying to reassure himself with this obnoxious behavior. Now, back to religion. I'm objecting to three things: Jeff's hype, his ignorance regarding other religions, and his arrogant claims that we're all wasting our time (we being non-Christians). -- Alan S. Driscoll AT&T Bell Laboratories