plouff@levers.dec.com (Wes Plouff) (07/05/89)
Here are a couple of tidbits on Amiga from outside the usual circle of magazines. In its July issue, _Byte_ reviews 12 graphical user interfaces including Intuition. The article has a good overview and comparison chart, although Intuition is not among the eight GUIs rating a picure. Notable quote: "While the Amiga's Intuition wasn't threatened with an Apple lawsuit when it first appeared, it too shared many Mac-like characteristics. But Intuition added a feature that Apple didn't include until several years later: It was the first widely used multitasking GUI. Unlike X Window and SAA, Intuition isn't really designed for remote applications -- it's a single-user multitasking system. But if the Finder is the father of desktop computer GUIs, Intuition is arguably the father of Multifinder." As usual, _Byte_'s opinions are, well, interestingly skewed. The July issue of _73_, an amateur radio magazine, carries a positive review of a peripheral card for slow-scan television and weather satellite fax. (This is from memory, as my issue has been misplaced.) The card runs all standard monochrome modes of amateur SSTV, as well as a recent color mode which is gaining popularity. The accompanying software is truly multitasking -- one can send and receive simultaneously in different operating modes. The software includes some image processing capabilities and an AREXX port. The author was pleased that he could use a paint program to clean up noisy images. Finally, a stockbroker who follows Commodore has sent me information on CBM's new advertising plans in his monthly mailing. Commodore has hired the New York advertising firm of Messner, Vetere, Berger, Carey, Schmetter and has nearly finalized a major advertising campaign. Plans include an "aggressive TV schedule" starting in the fall. Some positive news after Wall Street's recent jitters... Wes Plouff -- Wes Plouff, Digital Equipment Corp, Littleton, Mass. plouff%levers.dec@decwrl.dec.com Networking bibliography: _Islands in the Net_, by Bruce Sterling _The Matrix_, Digital Press, forthcoming