ch2i+@andrew.cmu.edu (Charles A. Hill) (09/25/90)
So far, the reactions to the press release have been "I'm depressed," "I'm mad as hell," "I'm mad at you for being mad," "I'm confused," and "This is what my sources tell me is *really* going on." The most objectionable of all the responses are the ones that say, basically, "Don't worry about it, we'll just wait for the next press release to clear things up." People have been waiting a long time for some official word on what is going to happen to HC 2.0. Apple should have known that the press release, when it came out, would get a lot of attention. Given this, the carelessness of the release that came over the net is inexcusable. It was confusing, downright misleading (if Chuq is right, which I'm assuming he is), and implies much more than it says. People can't be faulted for getting upset over one press release. If a company that you invest in says in a press release that they're going out of business, you don't wait for the next release to see what the "real story" is. You take them on their word and bail out. Apple is probably now getting lots of angry calls and mail, mostly unnecessary, because of their carelessness. If they're not, they should be. After months of sifting through rumor and speculation, we're finally given the official word, and we're *still* not sure what's going on with HC 2.0. In fact, judging by the net, many people have more questions now than they did before. Presumably, at least one of the reasons for the interminable delays of HC 2.0 is so they can get it right--while I don't like the wait, I would rather wait than get a buggy product. The same goes with communications. Next time, sit on it for a couple of days and user-test it--you'll avoid lots of problems for everyone concerned. Charlie.