info-mac@uw-beaver (01/25/85)
From: cowan@GE-CRD
I was rather disappointed by the announcements. Except for Microsoft
Word, there was no good news for standalone users. And if Apple gets too
used to its in-house networks, they might follow the Xerox's error (with
Stars, Dandelions) of making things difficult without a net. 90% of PC's
here are ordered by INDIVIDUALS for their own desks, and paid for by GE.
Connection to a net is becoming more important, but will always be
secondary to the personal pride the researchers have in the speed of
their machines and the power they feel with 20 Mbytes of their own
information storage. Most disturbing:
; - Sculley and Jobs swore up, down, left, and right that there would be
; no changes in the Macintosh hardware during 1985. All of their
; development plans are timed for '86 and '87.
How far-reaching is the statement that there will be "no changes" in the
hardware in 1985? I will assume, for the moment that this precludes:
1. double-sided drives!
2. better HARDWARE support for a hard disk
3. video output!
4. a Macintosh XL which is a true 1Mb macintosh, which boots with
Macintosh ROM and has a 1:1 screen aspect ratio? (or has this change
been made already?)
Is anyone from Apple listening who can disspell these worst-case assumptions?
On a more positive note, there will be major software additions. But
there is already quite an imbalance between the memory demands of the
system software and the amount of RAM and disk space in which it was
designed to fit. I hope the new finder (which, to support networking,
spooling, and hard disks must be drastically changed) isn't even more
cramped by space. There's no reason such a Finder should not allow
application-switching on a 1Mb "Macintosh XL." (correct me if I'm missing
something)
Thinking about short disk space, I realize that the LaserWriter, with 300
dot per inch resolution, must have fonts stored in ROM, and should use
font sizes up to 4 times the size of the screen font. Printing, to
achieve any speed whatsoever, must involve sending macdraw-like
representations of pages over the net to the LaserWriter, along with any
non-standard fonts that are used in the document. That would mean the
lists of fonts built in to the LaserWriter must be kept in a System
Resource by each Macintosh. Does anyone know the actual details of how
printing and mail will be implemented within the Finder?
Thanks in advance for your answers?
Rich (currently at GE on co-op)