lphillips@lpami.wimsey.bc.ca (Larry Phillips) (03/10/90)
In <13468@baldrick.udel.EDU>, BARRETT@owl.ecil.iastate.edu (Marc Barrett) writes: > > I am going to post this message to the list once a week until >I start getting results. I am tired of everybody blaming the >business magazines when they leave the Amiga out of articles >about the Amiga. The blame belongs to Commodore, and Commodore >alone. Another candidate for my kill file. Thanks for the warning. It isn't the ignoring that clenches my jaw, but the half-truths and blatant lies that I read. I don't care what the reasons for them are. I see the lies and I flame the liars. Period. -larry -- Entomology bugs me. +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | // Larry Phillips | | \X/ lphillips@lpami.wimsey.bc.ca -or- uunet!van-bc!lpami!lphillips | | COMPUSERVE: 76703,4322 -or- 76703.4322@compuserve.com | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
BARRETT@owl.ecil.iastate.edu (Marc Barrett) (03/11/90)
As I said in a previous message, I am sick and tired of people complaining about the Amiga not being mentioned in articles about multimedia. What do you expect from a machine that isn't being supported by the company that sells it?? Don't write your letters to these magazines. Write your letters instead to Commodore!! Pressure Commdore to get off their corporate asses and start seriously pushing the Amiga in multimedia. If any magazines are going to take the Amiga seriously in mutlimedia, they have to first know that it even exists. Unfortunately, most of them don't know that it exists. Even if they do, they don't know anything about its capabilities in multimedia. It's not hard to figure out why these magazines seldom mention the Amiga: the poeple who write the articles know nothing about it, whereas they are inundated with material from Apple and IBM about the capabilities of thier systems with regard to multimedia. I am going to post this message to the list once a week until I start getting results. I am tired of everybody blaming the business magazines when they leave the Amiga out of articles about the Amiga. The blame belongs to Commodore, and Commodore alone.
jcb@frisbee.Sun.COM (Jim Becker) (03/14/90)
BARRETT@owl.ecil.iastate.edu (Marc Barrett) writes:
As I said in a previous message, I am sick and tired of people
complaining about the Amiga not being mentioned in articles about
multimedia. What do you expect from a machine that isn't being
supported by the company that sells it??
Don't write your letters to these magazines. Write your letters
instead to Commodore!! Pressure Commdore to get off their
corporate asses and start seriously pushing the Amiga in
multimedia.
I have to second this. The Amiga is great for multimedia but the
support has to come from CBM in terms of the basics needed. My tenure
with the Amiga was early on, doing this stuff now called `interactive
multimedia' the first couple of years the machine was out (InfoMinder).
My system kinda wanted a Genlock, harddisk and extra memory to work. I
demoed a prototype of my stuff on Computer Chronicles, with one of the
first genlocks, videodisk and BbyB Pal box. This was in September of
1987. The problem was that CBM didn't come out with the needed
hardware until years afterward, although they *had* the technology at
the time.
Did they ever really come out with `Live!' ? That was showing the
first time that I saw an Amiga. They were taken to court and lost over
that one. From what I was told the genlock only surfaced because
there were threats of FCC legal action due to false advertising. (They
advertised it but never came out with it.)
Also, in spring of 1987, Irving Gould told me that they had Unix
running in the labs and it would be out soon. So is it out yet?
The bottom line is that the people of CBM work really hard to do a
good job, but historically upper management has dropped the ball on
the things that would improve the image of the Amiga as a real
computer. They could have come out with harddisk and extra memory for
the A1000 at launch in 1985. Instead they pushed it down toward the
game and A500 market. The other various hardware that was done came
out years after it was implemented and debugged by engineering. There
is some lead time to get things to market, but the problem wasn't the
engineering feats needed, it was political direction of the machine.
I invested a lot of time and resources in the Amiga, but after running
into lots of walls waiting for CBM to do something useful I joined the
ranks of the ex-Amiga addicts..
-Jim Becker
--
Jim Becker / jcb%frisbee@sun.com / Sun Microsystemspsu@mtuni.ATT.COM (Paul Siu) (03/15/90)
For all those people who are sick of Amiga never being mentioned in multimedia article may want to read "The Four Multimedia Gospels, by Phillip Robinson" in the Feb 90 issue of Byte. The article describes the different direction each manufacturer: Commodore, Apple, IBM, and Sony/Philips is taking Multimedia. The article describe each machine's strength and weaknesses. Read it, it's a good educational experience to know what's going on out there, as opposed to rumors.
Classic_-_Concepts@cup.portal.com (03/16/90)
I don't buy the notion that lack of coverage of the Amiga in the media
is entirely Commodore's fault.
If a writer researches a topic and leaves out important platforms or
software that relate to the topic, the writer is at fault.
If an editor edits the article written by above writer and does not provide
checks and balances for biased reporting, the editor is at fault.
If the reading public does not see the kind of information they've paid
for with their subscriptions and they don't inform the magazine, they give
up valuable opportunities to influence editorial direction.
In spite of Commodore's lack of advertising, I had no trouble educating
myself about the Amiga. Writers who choose to specialize in the
areas of microcomputers who fail to research the Amiga are irresponsible.
Period.
Julie Petersen (LadyHawke@cup.portal.com)cmcmanis@stpeter.Sun.COM (Chuck McManis) (03/20/90)
In article <27923@cup.portal.com> Classic_-_Concepts@cup.portal.com writes: > I don't buy the notion that lack of coverage of the Amiga in the media >is entirely Commodore's fault. You're partially correct. > If a writer researches a topic and leaves out important platforms or >software that relate to the topic, the writer is at fault. > > If an editor edits the article written by above writer and does not provide >checks and balances for biased reporting, the editor is at fault. It works a little bit differently than this. Editors and many authors don't really have the time to read *everything* that is going on in the computer business so they rely on the "chat" effect. Meaning that people tend to remember what people are talking about and they focus their readings in that area. The way Commodore can influence this is by getting people to talk about the Amiga, which in fact the Fall advertisements did. This raises the conciousness of the editors and authors and that makes them check out what C/A is doing when they write something. By writing articles and or letters to magazines, one can get the attention of an editor. Commodore needs to be aggressive in sending press releases to those same editors. And developers also need to send press releases to those editors. All of this builds a kind of momentum behind a product. When done carefully, each level of information building upon the next you can create the "rising star" feeling. However if you bomb someone with press releases and then nothing for 6 months you create the "flash in a pan" feeling. Just a steady stream, building up personal ties to editors and writers, and an overall conciousness raising effort are the most successful. --Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis Internet: cmcmanis@Eng.Sun.COM These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you. "If it didn't have bones in it, it wouldn't be crunchy now would it?!"
Classic_-_Concepts@cup.portal.com (03/24/90)
Chuck, your thoughts on publicity are insightful and interesting, but
I'm a diehard. I still think irresponsible reporting and writing without
checking facts shouldn't be considered normal or acceptable. But I'm
also in a rather cynical mood just now.
I keep operating on the mistaken belief that people are logical and have
integrity, even though the evidence all seems piled up the other way.
On the subject of writers and publicity ...
I saw these articles really building up a particular software package.
They were in several publications. I read them.
Then I found out it was a local company.
Then I found out who the writers and PR people were.
I checked back and discovered they'd written the articles. Without
identifying that they worked for the company.
I don't mind them writing the stuff. It may even be true. But I do
mind not being informed that they worked for the company. But now I
suppose people will tell me it happens all the time .... (LadyHawke)
Anyway
THE GOOD NEWS IS ...
Some of those letters people wrote to Computer Graphics Review seem to
have had some positive effect! (Well, at least I wrote one and I'm hoping
others did.)
Instead of the usual Mac, IBM reference, they actually said:
"...further, the readers we do serve work on a variety
of platforms--Mac, PCs, Amiga and a range of workstations,
including Sun, HP and Silicon Graphics."
Well, hallelujah. I'm so used to seeing IBM, Mac, Mac, IBM, as if nothing
else existed that it caught me off guard.
So, the BIG THREE, eh? Amiga, Mac and PCs
Mac, Amiga, PCs
PCs, Amiga, Mac
Amiga, PCs, Mac
Well, heck, we can get rid of the 'PC' part since it stands for personal
computer, and the Amiga and the Mac are personal computers, so it's re-
dundant. Never mind, if I take this any farther, I'll have to eat flames
for breakfast ... LadyHawke (in a manic mood)Classic_-_Concepts@cup.portal.com (03/25/90)
IMPORTANT FOR DEVELOPERS & PUBLISHERS
*************************************
Our company was fortunate enough to be listed in last year's PUBLISH!
Buyer's Guide. Well, that's good for us, but not so good for the Amiga in
general. Publish! is another of the aforementioned bastions of IBM and
Mac products and the Amiga listings in the previous guide were definitely
in the minority. So, to help out the rest of Amiga developers here's some
info we got in the mail regarding the upcoming guide that we'd like to share
with the rest of you (yes, including our competitors. Boy, you never get
anywhere bein' so nice to people :) ).
Here's the scoop:
The categories are:
Page makeup & Word Processing (including forms creation, outliners)
Type (including fonts, font editors, font utilities)
Paint & Draw
Presentations & Multimedia
Utilities (templates, laser printing, file conversions, screen capture)
Scanners and image editing
Monitors
Printers & Imagesetters
Books
Training (software, audio, video)
Systems & Accessories (desktop publishing, mice, special papers, etc.)
Under computer type there are only three boxes:
[] Macintosh [] IBM PC's & compatibles [] Unix-based workstations
So, when you get your forms, be sure to =write in= AMIGA.
The listing is free and MUST BE RECEIVED BY APRIL 2/90 (call 'em and get
them to fax you a copy of the forms). The directory is being published in
the October issue of Publish! Last year's buyer's guide was their most-read
issue.
CONTACT:
Susan Gubernat, Editor in Chief
or DDavid Hopkins (415) 978-3376 FAX: (415) 442-0169
The letter was from S. Gubernat, and I guess David Hopkins is in charge
of answering questions and coordinating the project. Completed forms should
be sent to: Publish 1990 Buyer's Guide
Publish Magazine
501 Second Street
San Francisco, CA 94107
Spread the word (quickly) to your small developers in your users' groups,
as well. For those small companies without advertising budgets, buyer's
guides are one of the few avenues in which they can get out the word about
their products.
The letter mentions only PC, Macintosh and workstations. They basically
ignored the Amiga products because not many Amiga developers knew about
last year's guide. I figure if I can let people know so they can take
advantage of the opportunity, there will be a stronger showing in this
issue.
LadyHawke