folta@tove.umd.edu (Wayne Folta) (01/05/90)
In the long PC v Mac wars, I get the distinct impression that the two sides
often use terms that the other doesn't understand. I also get the impression
that people who have only used a system under protest will criticize
the system based on ignorance of the system's true capabilities. (How many
times have you read "The XXX system cannot do this", when you know that you
do it daily?)
(I know that I don't know much about the state of DOS 4.0--what it can and
cannot do--since I haven't used a DOS machine for more than three years.)
So, I would like to propose a Mac/IBM listing of terms and features. I would
like to assemble this list, with MAIL (not readnews articles) input from
*knowledgeable* PC and Mac users. It could then be disseminated in the most
appropriate way.
This listing would serve three purposes:
1. Allow Mac and IBM partisans to discuss features without guessing as to
the meaning of terms, nor the true capabilities of a system.
2. Allow users who are forced to use the "wrong" system to learn some of
the nifty things that afficienados know. (That is, I might be forced
to use a PC at work, but life would be easier if I could distill some
knowledge of common concepts and tricks from DOS users.)
3. Allow new users to pick up terms and concepts quickly
Maybe this is too ambitious, I don't know. What do you think (mail me replies
please, and I will summarize). We might also include OS/2 in the listings,
if there is interest. Even if a DOS/Mac document is not desired, I'd like to
know if a Mac-only listing is desired. (Of course, NeXT fans will try to get
away with saying something like "Why write a document about two fossilized
systems?", but we won't let them. Maybe they could contribute, too.) If
you are a DOS-master, maybe you could volunteer to do half of it?
Please tell me if such a document already exists, or if a separate Mac- or
DOS-only version exists.
[For example, I imagine that many DOS users don't really understand what INITs,
CDEVs, FKEYs, WDEFs, etc., do. I (a Mac user) don't know exactly how to
compare INITs and FKEYs to IBM TSRs. And I have the impression that TSRs are
pretty much dead on IBM machines (in the sense that there are so many conflicts
that IBM users generally use only one or two of them.) But I could be quite
mistaken.]
--
Wayne Folta (folta@cs.umd.edu 128.8.128.8)