FISCHER@RUTGERS.ARPA (06/05/83)
From: Ron <FISCHER@RUTGERS.ARPA> Your comments about the Lisa were extremely vague. What was "difficult" about the word processor? I had heard that Apple *was* considering a color display (see Byte article). What exactly was disappointing about Lisa's performance? Speed of starting an application? Lisa's word processor has features a Selectric cannot duplicate. You are comparing incomparible objects. Stone tablets and chisels would be even cheaper than a selectric. Would you rather use them? Your comment about Lisa not being a CAD/CAM machine is extraneous as it stands. There are no drafting, or CAD/CAM applications on the machine. Were you trying to say that it could never run a CAD/CAM application due to some limitation you didn't mention? Few people like useless management of any sort. Why doesn't the machine work for CEOs? Your comment about Sage/Fortune doing the same thing at 50% of the price is incorrect. Until integrated application systems like VISI-ON become publicly available Lisa is the only machine in its price range that can transfer data between applications as it does (w/mouse). Then of course you have to ask yourself if the 8088 in the IBM-PC can handle the screen manipulation as well as the Lisa (I doubt). Undersoftwared? Apple announced several packages which were being brought to Lisa by various companies (this from the Byte article plus news at Applefest). Your message was dripping with ichor. But what exactly are you upset about? If you are trying to start a discussion of Lisa's drawbacks you should furnish clearer starting points. If you are trying to keep your boss from "sticking" you with a Lisa it may help to be more specific to them as well. (ron) -------