pjm@pyuxll.UUCP (PJ Maioriello) (09/19/83)
BEFORE EVERYBODY GETS THEIR FLAME THROWERS FIRED UP PLEASE NOTE: This article is not going to tell you what I think the best home computer is (for the record I own a C64). All I want to say is that there has been a lot of talk about who has the best micro. It would seem to me that people buy them for various reasons, and they still cost enough that most people give the decision of which to buy a fair amount of thought. Everyone will therefore, want to justoify their ability to evaluate data and make decisions. This justification seems to take the form of MINE'S the best. Almost everyone's system will have enough unique features that if they are highlited will make that system seem attractive. It is only natural to defend a decision that you have made. How many people will say "Geez, I though about it and then purchased xyz computer, boy did I screw up". The only way to prevent this constant debate is to have a system that everone owns and can run common software. Just think if everything was compatible, net.micro.xyz wouldn't be needed, and nobody could provide testimonials as to whats best. Imagine that, universal compatibility, what a ridiculous concept. Make mine Commodore (sorry, couldn't resist) Paul Maioriello pyuxll!pjm
mel@houxm.UUCP (09/20/83)
Sorry, Paul. I don't agree with your choice (c64) or your wish (universal
compatibility). I do however plead for more information on the killer faults.
I have let you in on what keeps a DEC Rainbow 100 from being a useful system
(too late for keeping me from making the several thousand dollar mistake, but
perhaps helping others), but how about the others? Is the c64 worth the
hassle of returning them until you get one that works right? Would you do the
same with a refrigerator or camera that cost that much? Is it perfect
everafter? I find the DEC keyboard hard to use, is the IBM PC keyboard fine?
How about the cost-performance of the various PC's (does any other consumer
product span the prices of PC's?)?
I have a VIC, which at $235 was a great bargain - at $80 unbelievable. But,
with only 22 characters across by 23 lines hopeless for letter writing,
terminal use, or serious programming. We had a Sinclair for a few weeks, but
the membrane keyboard made even the simplest programming tedious to the
extreme. Are others better? how? perfect? if not, why not? What should I
consider to replace the VIC? the Rainbow? Mike Cain gave a great review of
the Radio Shack 100, how about some others?
Paul, what would you freeze the universal PC to? The c64? Will that be a
good, useful collection of capabilities 10 years from now? 1 year? Would I
have to run my super-duper RISC C machine VAX-and-a-half-on-a-chip with 16M
RAM plus micro-mini gigabyte harddisk 2Kx2K pixel display for $200 system with
your universal c64 software? Would you run your c64 with the 4 deep stack
capabilities of the HP-35 (a $375 system of not so long ago)?
Mel Haas , houxm!melpjm@pyuxll.UUCP (PJ Maioriello) (09/20/83)
Mel, I am almost inclined to think that you missed the point of my article, and maybe others did so I'll say it again. People feel the need (in most cases) to justify an economic decision. You don't agree with my purchases, fine, you chose not to tell me why your purchase was better. In fact you stated that you were sorry you brought a Rainbow. I appreciate your sharing this, and would certainly think twice before buying one. The point is that most people are not going to say your system is beeter than mine. Most of the time they will say the opposite. This is just part of human nature. I agree with you that objective analysis is very useful and I consider this newsgroup a great place to find just such analysis. As far as the 64 is concerned (and at the risk of flames for not putting this part in net.micro.cbm) I certainly am not going to sit here and tell you that its the best thing since sliced bread. I will tell you that I don't regret my purchase and still beleive (never could spell that one) that,listen carefully, FOR THE MONEY (especially at < $200), it is an incredible micro. Not the best, but not too shabby for that price. As far as the universal PC is concerned, maybe my point was missed there too. Actually, I was attempting to be sarcastic when I mentioned universal compatibility (i believe you coined the universal software phrase). I didn't mention "freezing" anything in order to do this, nor did I say anything about which computer would be the best one to "freeze" to. Actually, to a limited extent there have been attempts to make PCs that are quasi-universal. Witness the number of 6502 AND z80 systems, and the co-processors available for PCs that come with different CPUs. Even the 64 has a z80 available, and can run PET software using an emulator. You mention having a VIC. I beleive that you can get some kind of adapter to run atari game programs. While this certainky isin't universal anything, it is a start. most bang for the buck with the 64. I may consider posting some answers to your other points ie: reliability, perfectness etc. in a seperate article in net.micro.cbm. This has already gotten much longer than I wanted. Paul Maioriello pyuxll!pjm