[net.micro.amiga] I'm not such a bad guy!!

ed@plx.UUCP (Ed Chaban) (09/06/86)

I'm sure there are a lot of flames headed my way in response to my recent
postings (Sasquatch print)  I guess I made too much of an issue out of 
the footprint stuff.  What I was trying to say is that the amiga seems
to be having problems trying to decide what kind of computers it wants
to build.  Rather than target a group of users, amiga wants to be all
things to all people. This has made the amiga a machine with creeping
elegance as far as hardware is concerned.

Let me explain,

As some of you remember, the sidecar was originally called the "TRUMP CARD"
Now I understand that the sidecar will contain not one but TWO 5.25 drives
I don't need another 5.25" drive. One is enough thank you! this "Card" is
now an entire computer system.  

Furthermore, 512k is not enough for the amiga.  another 256k would be nice
but everyone in third party land is building 512k and bigger expansion units.
Cheap hard drives are nonexistent.  

Let's see..

Amiga unit I bought:           $2500
Transformer & drive:            $250  (now useless)
sidecar:                        $600  (I'll believe it when I see it!
					I think It'll be closer to $1000)
memory expansion:               $600 (1 MEG)
Hardcard:			$500
Decent Spreadsheet:             $250
			       -----
Total:			       $4700

We are now approaching the price of a Hyundai Excel or a YUGO.
(car or computer, Hmmm.. )  

All this from a company that was supposed to give us a computer
with the above features 6 months ago.

I have lost a lot of faith in CBM in recent months. Why not give us
existing customers a little break AMIGA?  I waited 3 months for
documentation and made 6 phone calls in regard to the same.
I still don't have the updated Lattice "C" I was promised
and am faced with the possibility of doubling my hardware investment
and buying a new desk.  I am the laughingstock of Mac owners everywhere.
My boss told me to use the company's Mac's to do my work.

Don't get me wrong, I still love this machine, its graphics especially it's
music capabilities.  But I need a cheap hard disk, a decent spreadsheet
(is Microsoft EXCEL in the works?) and PC compatability.  Unlike most
of the rest of the folks on usenet, I'm not a programmer I'm in marketing.
Genlock (whatever it is) is useless to me. 

How about letting me trade in my Transformer stuff and apply it towards
the Sidecar? I'll spring for the desk.

I'm sorry if I offended anyone on the net.  


Ed Chaban
Plexus Computers Inc.
Phone: (408) 943-2226
net: sun!plx!mts1!ed

keithe@tekgvs.UUCP (Keith Ericson) (09/10/86)

In article <242@plx.UUCP> ed@plx.UUCP (Ed Chaban) writes:
>I'm sure there are a lot of flames headed my way in response to my recent
>postings (Sasquatch print)...
.
.
.
>How about letting me trade in my Transformer stuff and apply it towards
>the Sidecar? I'll spring for the desk.
>
>I'm sorry if I offended anyone on the net.  
>
>
Seems to me the only one that shold be offended is Commodore; and they
deserve it. I think my Amiga is a neat machine, too. But only because
of Usenet and contributed software (thank you, thank you, thank you).
All Commodore has "helped" with is the C compiler (with help like that...)
to get the programs compiled and running.

keithe

PS - Ed: what is a marketeer doing with a C compiler, anyway :-)

hamilton@uiucuxc.CSO.UIUC.EDU (09/14/86)

>I think my Amiga is a neat machine, too. But only because
>of Usenet and contributed software (thank you, thank you, thank you).
>All Commodore has "helped" with is the C compiler (with help like that...)
>to get the programs compiled and running.

haven't you been paying attention to the return-address on those
usenet submissions?  an awful lot of sources, tutorials, and
horse's-mouth answers have had "amiga" or "cbmvax" in the path.

	wayne hamilton
	U of Il and US Army Corps of Engineers CERL
UUCP:	{ihnp4,pur-ee,convex}!uiucdcs!uiucuxc!hamilton
ARPA:	hamilton%uiucuxc@a.cs.uiuc.edu	USMail:	Box 476, Urbana, IL 61801
CSNET:	hamilton%uiucuxc@uiuc.csnet	Phone:	(217)333-8703
CIS:    [73047,544]			PLink: w hamilton

kim@amdahl.UUCP (Kim DeVaughn) (09/17/86)

[ "Send lawyers, guns, and money ..." ]

> Seems to me the only one that shold be offended is Commodore; and they
> deserve it. I think my Amiga is a neat machine, too. But only because
> of Usenet and contributed software (thank you, thank you, thank you).
> All Commodore has "helped" with is the C compiler (with help like that...)
> to get the programs compiled and running.
> 
> keithe

I usually route flames to /dev/null, but I'm not gonna let this one
go by without a response:

Just where do you think alot of the postings on the net have come from,
the tooth fairy?  From the time this net.group was started (before the
Amiga began shipping) until now, Commodore has provided a great deal of
support here.  This has come from both Los Gatos and from West Chester,
and much of it because the CBM developers/contributors *wanted* to
provide this support ... not because it is/was their job to do so.  In
contrast, you only see Apple or Atari on the net infrequently;  and when
was the last time you saw Blue on net.micro.pc?

True, much of CBM's support has been in the way of examples, code fragments,
specific answers to specific questions, and such (as opposed to full-blown
applications), but then that's what I consider support to be ... not a
source of free s/w.  That you can write yourself, or go out and buy.

Then there is the documentation.  Yes, it was a little late in coming out,
but did you ever try and get *comprehensive* documentation for the Mac in
the early days?  Ha!

I too am *very* appreciative of the code that has been posted by third
party developers ... applications *and* examples, but CBM has certainly
their share too, and I for one want to pubically thank them again, and
encourage them to continue despite some ill-founded flames!

/kim

-- 
UUCP:  {sun,decwrl,hplabs,ihnp4}!amdahl!kim
DDD:   408-746-8462
USPS:  Amdahl Corp.  M/S 249,  1250 E. Arques Av,  Sunnyvale, CA 94086
CIS:   76535,25

[  Any thoughts or opinions which may or may not have been expressed  ]
[  herein are my own.  They are not necessarily those of my employer. ]

keithe@tekgvs.UUCP (Keith Ericson) (09/17/86)

In article <148600136@uiucuxc> hamilton@uiucuxc.CSO.UIUC.EDU writes:
>
>>I think my Amiga is a neat machine, too. But only because
>>of Usenet and contributed software.
>
>an awful lot of sources, tutorials, and
>horse's-mouth answers have had "amiga" or "cbmvax" in the path.
>
My point is that I've gotten a lot of stuff because I have "special"
access to you other Amigans, something that I doubt most Amiga purchasers
will get. 

But thanks for the reminder - let me join you in acknowledging the
contributions coming from the folks at amiga and cbmvax.

"Thank you"

keith

bnrrtp@mcnc.UUCP (Stanley T. Chow) (09/27/86)

	Arrggg, my home machine cut me off from the 'miga fix, so I'm using
shared account.    Anyway, I wanted to add my thanks to CBM.  They've been 
more help than ANY of the other computer companies I've ever worked with.
Actually, that goes for software companies too.  Even the one my previous
employer was selling software through.
	I've said some bad things about CBM in the past, but with the Amiga
they're to be congratulated.  Keep up the good work guys!  With all the
help and good feelings you've been resposible for, I'd say you've got a
good shot at becomming the #2 computer company.  And since #1 doesn't count
to me, that's as good as one can be.
	Keep up the good work!

Jay Denebeim
SysOp - Deep Thought, ZNode #42
300/1200/2400, 919-471-6436
ihnp4!mcnc!bnrrtp
ihnp4!ethos!jay

SysOp - ZNode #42,