silber@sbphy.ucsb.edu (03/07/89)
We have some NeXt's on campus and i have been to a couple of demos; i thought that once the machines 'start showing up' up someplace, that that implies that the bally-hoo'ed class of 'authorized university affiliates' could buy them. It turns out that at UCSB, the purchasing department is the only channel for orders and they will only order them for departments, NOT for individuals. So Jobs' famous exhortation: "if they havent' got bread, let them eat cake, if they haven't got cake, LET THEM ENROLL" doesn't cover all or even the majority of cvases!!!!!!
leach@neptune.uucp (Tom Leach) (03/08/89)
In article <1308@hub.ucsb.edu> silber@sbphy.ucsb.edu writes: >affiliates' could buy them. It turns out that at UCSB, the purchasing >department is the only channel for orders and they will only order them >for departments, NOT for individuals. So Jobs' famous exhortation: SIGH!! Folks, the key phrase above is "...at UCSB..."! The contract of who the Univ sells to (on campus), is entirely up the the State and the University. Here at OSU, we have the same deal, but the hangup was not with NeXT but with the various differences with state contracts. By the time that 1.0 is finally revealed, I suspect that the contract will be hammered out and that the students will be able to get them. From what I'm told, it took Apple almost 2 years to get through the contract stuff here and to be able to sell to students. To the folks here at OSU... This isn't a flame, it's just the reality of the system. Tom Leach leach@oce.orst.edu Internet:leach@OCE.ORST.EDU UUCP:{tektronix, hp-pcd}!orstcs!leach ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Middle-of-the-road, man, it stanks. Let's run over Lionel Richie with a tank. >>>Disclaim: It's me, not OCE.<<< B. Catt, Deathtongue. (c 1986)
feldman@umd5.umd.edu (Mark Feldman) (03/09/89)
In article <1308@hub.ucsb.edu> silber@sbphy.ucsb.edu writes: >We have some NeXt's on campus and i have been to a couple of demos; >i thought that once the machines 'start showing up' up someplace, that >that implies that the bally-hoo'ed class of 'authorized university >affiliates' could buy them. Universities that have signed contracts with NeXT can purchase NeXTs. >It turns out that at UCSB, the purchasing >department is the only channel for orders and they will only order them >for departments, NOT for individuals. So Jobs' famous exhortation: >"if they havent' got bread, let them eat cake, if they haven't got >cake, LET THEM ENROLL" doesn't cover all or even the majority of cvases!!!!!! Once a university has signed the NeXT contract, NeXTs can be sold to whomever the university wants to sell them, within the bounds of the contract. This includes university faculty, staff, and students. Don't be angry with UCSB for not selling NeXTs to individuals yet -- we don't, either. It takes time to set up distribution, service, and support channels within a university. Combine that with the fact that the NeXTs currently on the street are version 0.8 -- beta units, missing software and containing bugs -- it is very understandable why students cannot yet purchase NeXTs at many (most?) universities that have signed contracts. Version 0.9 is due out at the end of this month and 1.0 -- the shrink-wrapped release version -- a few months later. You may have to wait until 1.0 before your university (and others) start selling to students. The universities are providing the first level of service and suport for the NeXT. Trying to support a large number of student-owned 0.8 NeXTs -- which as well as being incomplete and buggy, require a fair amount of UNIX knwledge to administer -- requires more people time and money than most universities can deliver right now. Mark