Tabakal@UB.CC.UMICH.EDU (12/08/90)
I decided not to include parts of the press release since you can all
read it for yourselves. In case you haven't seen it yet, Hypercard GS
has now been formally announced at the Mini-AppleFest today (12/7/90).
However, I can't believe my eyes. It has a suggested retail price of
$99. Retail price? Come on, Apple. That's one of the sleazier
marketing tactics I've seen in a long time. I don't usually like to
flame the mother company since positive criticism is more beneficial
to "the cause", but I want Ralph Russo to get an earload on this
decision.
$99 ??? $99 ??? I'm still in shock. Mac users get Hypercard for FREE.
Maybe you might charge for the developer's package (maybe you won't),
but Users get it for free. Hypercard is like System Software. If you
want to promote a standard interface for educational use and simple
applications, then you don't charge for it. You take the cost and
write it off to R&D for improving the platform, especially when Apple
is promoting this software as a way to extend usefulness when they're
not going to produce any standalone CPU's.
Congratulations on getting the product out the door. As a stockholder,
I can say it's about time. As an owner and user, I have to say why
bother?
$Set positive-outlook-and-corporate-defender-status=HOLD
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Todd A. Bakal Coming soon:
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Ann Arbor, Michigan tested, UN*X archive
Internet: Tabakal@ub.cc.umich.edu FTP: ummts.cc.umich.edu
BITnet: UserTBKL@UMICHUB 35.1.1.43
UUCP: ...!uunet!ub.cc.umich.edu!tabakal CD PC5:cc@xroads.UUCP (Dan McGuirk) (12/08/90)
In <6946134@ub.cc.umich.edu> Tabakal@UB.CC.UMICH.EDU writes: >$99 ??? $99 ??? I'm still in shock. Mac users get Hypercard for FREE. >Maybe you might charge for the developer's package (maybe you won't), >but Users get it for free. I agree the price is much more than I expected. However, before you get too upset, remember that Mac users only get Hypercard free when they buy a computer. I seem to remember that when Hypercard FIRST came out for the Mac, you had to buy it yourself if it didn't come with your computer... -- \ / C r o s s r o a d s C o m m u n i c a t i o n s /\ (602) 941-2005 300|1200 Baud 24 hrs/day / \ hplabs!hp-sdd!crash!xroads!cc
vw3@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu (Vernon Williams) (12/10/90)
In article <1166@xroads.UUCP> cc@xroads.UUCP (Dan McGuirk) writes: [Message about price of Hypercard GS deleted] >I agree the price is much more than I expected. However, before you >get too upset, remember that Mac users only get Hypercard free when >they buy a computer. I seem to remember that when Hypercard FIRST >came out for the Mac, you had to buy it yourself if it didn't come >with your computer... This is true, but the price for Hypercard was $50. I expected Hypercard GS to be about the same price. I suppose we have to see what CLARIS is selling Hypercard for before we blast Apple for this though. Admittedly it would have been nice if there'd been a slightly lower price for HCGS though. As it is I'd have to get a memory upgrade, and a hard disk before I could even think about using this anyhow -- and I probably will eventually (have to scrimp 'n' save again) > [Nifty .sig deleted] +---------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+ |Vernon L. Williams | Electronic Mail: vw3@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu | |Thomas J. Watson Library | Campus Mail: 130 Uris Hall | |Columbia University | Phone Mail: 212-854-6798 |
torrie@Neon.Stanford.EDU (Evan James Torrie) (12/10/90)
vw3@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu (Vernon Williams) writes: >This is true, but the price for Hypercard was $50. I expected Hypercard >GS to be about the same price. I suppose we have to see what CLARIS >is selling Hypercard for before we blast Apple for this though. >Admittedly it would have been nice if there'd been a slightly lower >price for HCGS though. Claris charges $199 for Hypercard 2.0 for the Mac if you want to get all the help stacks, example stacks, and books on how to script. The stripped down version which comes free with every new Mac only has two or three stacks, and no examples of how to script (it's basically a run-time only version). In my opinion, $99 is a fair price from Apple when comparing it to what Claris gives you. It would have been nice to have it included free with every new IIgs. But since it doesn't run on a IIgs out of the box without adding extra hardware, I don't see that it's a major omission. Perhaps the more important thing is for Apple to start building the IIgs with 2MB Ram standard. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Evan Torrie. Stanford University, Class of 199? torrie@cs.stanford.edu Jim Bolger - a National landslide of incompetence