Z4648252@SFAUSTIN.BITNET (Z4648252) (04/02/89)
I've had the ST system since summer of 1985 and was NEVER an Atari
fan (no flame). Prior to that, I had an Altair during the 70's, an
Apple II while overseas, purchased a Vic 20 when I returned Stateside,
bought a Commodore 64 after a year, needed a commercial grade word
processor and went back to the Apple II series (Apple //e). I became
bored with the //e and bought the ST.
All of these computers indicate that deep down inside, I'm after
something but I'm not sure what. I mainly use my computer for writing
and love to do hardware hacking. In the latter, I miss the //e, it was
a pure joy to hardware hack on. I have done a little of that on my
Mega ST2, but fear hurting the $$$$ ram chips so I tend to keep my
fingers away from the motherboard than what I would normally do.
Backing up a little.... During 1985, I was aware of both the Amiga
and the ST. Gosh, I don't want to get into any speculation of "if I
knew the current ST situation, the availability of the Amiga 2500, etc."
and if I would have continued with the ST or not. Thinking that way
can worry one to death, especially if he is participating in his hobby
as an enthusiast.
My Mega ST2 is *fast* and *friendly*. Using Spectre 128, a monochrome
monitor and (only) a 20 meg hard drive, I can use any MAC software that
I need for my writing needs (FullWrite--the ONLY way to go!). Using a
Hewlett Packard DeskJet printer, I can get near typeset quality output.
I'm in love.
I've got games but rarely play them--instead, I prefer to make $$
off of my ST via doing writing and some DTP assignments for others at
the local university.
The original thread wanted to know what th my "Joe End User" testing. Only
through the ST line have I been able
to reach such levels.
In short, I tend to get bored with a computer system after two years.
The ST system for me is approaching four and I'm still amazed with the
box.
Larry Rymal <Z4648252@SFAUSTIN.BITNET>andyc@hplsla.HP.COM (Andy Cassino) (04/12/89)
| So, all of you out there who are doubtless denying all of the above - let's | hear from you. What do you USE your ST for? Those of you who are authors of | USER oriented software - let's hear what you're doing, and tell us about | your market. Those of you who are USERS, let's hear what you're using, and | what for. Okay, I'm a user: 1) I use LDW Power for personal finances and my small photo business. 2) I use First Word for "word-processing" (letter writing) and plan to upgrade to something better soon. 3) I use MWC for personal programming projects for fun. 4) I use ST Talk to 'tele-commute' into work occasionally. 5) I use GFA BASIC for quick'n'dirty generation of simple tools. 6) I use Easy-Draw for drawing up miscellaneous construction projects and a generating an occasional flyer. 7) I like to dink with Degas Elite, Flight Simulator and Time Bandit! I anticipate purchasing a data-base program for business purposes and insurance inventory. And I might try CompuServe or Genie for the heck of it. Let's see, this list looks like alot of the reasons people buy a PC or a Mac! But, the hardware was about 20% cheaper, and the software seems to be 25-75% cheaper for the major packages. And the Atari is much quieter than a PC (important to me), more fun to program than a PC or MAC, more fun to use with the GEM interface, and the games are better. So, it's a pretty good choice for home use. (I think perhaps I should have examined the Amiga closer, but more of my friends have Atari's). %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% % Andy Cassino % % uucp: hplabs!hplsla!andyc domain: andyc%hplsla@hplabs.hp.com % %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%