[comp.sys.amiga.misc] So WHERE is the 3000UX and CDTV Advertising???

ai065@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Thomas Hill) (05/23/91)

  I've heard nothing but good things about the 3000UX from people who have
been lucky enough to use it. Sounds like a sure thing in the workstation
market that could really help Commodore, both money and image wise. Does
anybody know why Commodore hasn't started shipping the thing yet? It seems to
me that with each day that passes more 3000UX prospects opt for something
else. With other vendors rushing to push out their own UNIX workstations
(Atari, etc.) I would think that Commodore would want to have it out ASAP.
 
 This brings up another major question. CDTV is shipping to many locations
now but nobody seems to know about it. I was impressed when I used the unit
and I even knew ahead of time what it could do. Where is the advertising?
Where is the tons of software that they said was going to be out for it upon
release? Where are the major electronic chains (Software Etc, Waldensoft)
that were going to carry it? Don't wait around on this one Commodore. Push
this thing TODAY.
 
   Tom

--
       Why purchase a MAC when an Amiga with the same CPU will run 99% of all
    __ MAC software..and FASTER at that?! The same can be said of the IBM and
 __/// Atari computers, and I can run those in a window. IBM's greatest sales 
 \XX/  tool is ignorance on the consumer's part. Only the Amiga! DEVO Anyone?

IP06106@portland.caps.maine.edu (05/25/91)

In article <26196@know.pws.bull.com>, ai065@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Thomas Hill)
says:
>
>
> This brings up another major question. CDTV is shipping to many locations
>now but nobody seems to know about it. I was impressed when I used the unit
>and I even knew ahead of time what it could do. Where is the advertising?
                                                 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Geez, chill out.. it's only MAY.. wait 'till October before you start
panicking... I really doubt anyone's doing their X-mas shopping NOW..

BTW, since you did ask, I heard (I think on Plink) that Macy's of California
not only has CDTV's in stock but already ran some newspaper ads for it..


+-- Graham Kinsey  IP06106@Portland.CAPS.Maine.edu  P/Link: G KINSEY --+
| You know, computers are just like ST:TNG....                         |
|   Amiga == Wesley (Brilliant kid, but whines too much)               |
+------------------ (with apologies to Eric Giguere) ------------------+

rhealey@digibd.com (Rob Healey) (05/27/91)

In article <26196@know.pws.bull.com> ai065@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Thomas Hill) writes:
>  I've heard nothing but good things about the 3000UX from people who have
>been lucky enough to use it. Sounds like a sure thing in the workstation
>market that could really help Commodore, both money and image wise. Does
>anybody know why Commodore hasn't started shipping the thing yet? It seems to
>me that with each day that passes more 3000UX prospects opt for something
>else. With other vendors rushing to push out their own UNIX workstations
>(Atari, etc.) I would think that Commodore would want to have it out ASAP.
> 
	Ummm, I've had my UXD for a month or so and I'm a poor slob who
	had to pay NON-EDUCATIONAL prices for it. i.e. 3000UX's ARE
	shipping, took about 1.5 weeks for me to get mine. Got a 1950
	monitor and the SCSI tape unit as well.

	As far as advertising, check out REAL UNIX rags and UX adverts
	are in 'em. I just wish they'd release the A2410 so I could have
	COLOR X rather than this B&W low rez BS.

	1.1 UNIX has some problems, most notably the motherboard serial
	port has major problems on input but is VERY stable for a first
	cut R4 UNIX, the 386 first cut R4's were much cruder and unstable
	that Amiga UNIX; kudos in this respect for C=!

	So, if anybody wants a UX, just go to you're local C= dealer and
	order away! Comes with 1.3 and 2.0 AmigaDOS as well although no
	AmigaVision. Lot's of cool PD stuff too. It took me 15 minutes
	from the boxes being plopped in my office till I had it up on the
	company net, sending e-mail and reading news via rrn! Plug
	and play UNIX is FINALLY here!

	For those curious about Amiga UNIX, hang out in comp.unix.amiga
	for a while.

		Just call me a happy 3000UXD user,

		-Rob
-- 

Rob Healey                                          rhealey@digibd.com
Digi International (DigiBoard)
Eden Prairie, MN                                    (612) 943-9020

jtravis@dworkin.Amber.COM (Jim, Sysop) (05/27/91)

IP06106@portland.caps.maine.edu writes:

> In article <26196@know.pws.bull.com>, ai065@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Thomas Hil
> says:
> >
> >
> > This brings up another major question. CDTV is shipping to many locations
> >now but nobody seems to know about it. I was impressed when I used the unit
> >and I even knew ahead of time what it could do. Where is the advertising?
>                                                  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> 
> Geez, chill out.. it's only MAY.. wait 'till October before you start
> panicking... I really doubt anyone's doing their X-mas shopping NOW..
> 
> +-- Graham Kinsey  IP06106@Portland.CAPS.Maine.edu  P/Link: G KINSEY --+
> | You know, computers are just like ST:TNG....                         |
> |   Amiga == Wesley (Brilliant kid, but whines too much)               |
> +------------------ (with apologies to Eric Giguere) ------------------+

 
        Well, you should know that CDTV has been scattered all over the US, 
but in TEST MARKETS only...Philly, Atlanta, California (they'll buy 
anything)...and it's been well recieved. The New York Times did a story on 
it last week.  But it's gonna be later this year, when the supporting 
software is ready and WAITING that you'll probabaly see the ads.  Why 
advertise now, when people are more interested in tans than hardware.  But 
by summer's end, when kids are getting ready for school, and the first of 
the Sears "wishbooks" hit the mailbox, CBM (if they're as eager for CDTV to 
take off as all of us stockholders are) should hits the airwaves then.  
        
        Jim
 
         ..and now the commercial..
 
--------///----------------------------------------------------------
       ///   Jim Trascapoulos  *  CSAccess BBS  *  609-584-8774
      ///      *** Usenet: jtravis@dworkin.amber.mccc.Edu ***
\\\  ///  "I was told once that people don't like to think anymore,
 \\\///         so I tried to sell one a Mac.  It worked."
--\XX/---------------------------------------------------------------
 
"Spread the legs, open breach, erect launcher,
 apply lube, ram home into the breach, fire."
     -Field Artillery manual

rkushner@sycom.UUCP (Ronald Kushner) (05/27/91)

In article <26196@know.pws.bull.com> ai065@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Thomas Hill) writes:
>
>  I've heard nothing but good things about the 3000UX from people who have
>been lucky enough to use it. Sounds like a sure thing in the workstation
>market that could really help Commodore, both money and image wise. Does
>anybody know why Commodore hasn't started shipping the thing yet? It seems to
>me that with each day that passes more 3000UX prospects opt for something
>else. With other vendors rushing to push out their own UNIX workstations
>(Atari, etc.) I would think that Commodore would want to have it out ASAP.

  Look in a Unix rag for the "Born to run SVR4" ads for the A3000UX. You
don't advertise in GameBoy Monthly(Or AmigaWorld) to sell Unix. 
 
> This brings up another major question. CDTV is shipping to many locations
>now but nobody seems to know about it. I was impressed when I used the unit
>and I even knew ahead of time what it could do. Where is the advertising?
>Where is the tons of software that they said was going to be out for it upon
>release? Where are the major electronic chains (Software Etc, Waldensoft)
>that were going to carry it? Don't wait around on this one Commodore. Push
>this thing TODAY.
 
  Ah, so far Commodore has been using news outlets to advertise the CDTV, I
have seen some talk of the CDTV in the Detroit Free Press(May 9th) in a
Knight-Ridder Newspapers story. I know Knight-Ridder has outlets in Miami,
Detroit, Philadelphia, etc, so seeing this on the business/electronics page
is probably going to wake up nerve sensors in the people who take interest
in these sorts of things. Once advertising does commence, these people will
say "Oh yeah, this was the product they talked about last month in the Free
Press." 

  The only thing I know is Commodore will not ignore this market when it
comes to advertising the CDTV, people who live around Detroit have ALOT of
money. We have always been blitzed by Commodore's ad campaigns in the past
(the floating house deal was shown every night on the 5pm news)

  There was also a blurb in Popular Science last October, so I expect to see
something there soon. 

--
Ronald Kushner                          Life In Hell BBS  +1 (313) 939-6666
P.O. Box 353                               14400 USR HST V.42 & V.42bis 
Sterling Heights, MI  48311-0353              Complete Amiga Support   
UUCP: uunet!umich!vela!sycom!rkushner     (We are not satanic, just NUTS!)

mpierce@ewu.UUCP (Mathew Pierce) (05/28/91)

In regards to CDTV advertizing, I have here two official CBM
documents from the VP of sales to authorized dealers stating,
"Those of you interested in selling the CDTV player should note
that it may be sold through outbound sales efforts only.  This 
means exhibiting the machine on your showroom floor or 
advertising the product will be strictly prohibited." 

And,"Start that 'word of mouth' campaign early."

Now this sounds a little weird to me, why doesn't CBM want
dealers to advertise this thing?  Seems to me that a combo of
'word of mouth' and commercial advertising, or whatever works 
for the dealer to move the product would be best.

Does anyone in the know that can talk about it wish to 
enlighten us?

Matt Pierce
 

zerkle@iris.ucdavis.edu (Dan Zerkle) (05/28/91)

In article <1604@ewu.UUCP> mpierce@ewu.UUCP (Mathew Pierce) writes:
>
>In regards to CDTV advertizing, I have here two official CBM
>documents from the VP of sales to authorized dealers stating,
>"Those of you interested in selling the CDTV player should note
>that it may be sold through outbound sales efforts only.  This 
>means exhibiting the machine on your showroom floor or 
>advertising the product will be strictly prohibited." 

Interesting, especially in light of the way a certain dealer near
Sacramento has the machine on the showroom floor (on the same table as
the A500), and has advertised it in the local newspaper....

           Dan Zerkle  zerkle@iris.eecs.ucdavis.edu  (916) 754-0240
           Amiga...  Because life is too short for boring computers.

tzeng@sunland.gsfc.nasa.gov (Nigel Tzeng) (05/29/91)

In article <rkushner.4207@sycom.UUCP> rkushner@sycom.UUCP (Ronald Kushner) writes:

   Path: dftsrv!ames!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rphroy!cfctech!teemc!sycom!rkushner
   From: rkushner@sycom.UUCP (Ronald Kushner)
   Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc
   Date: 27 May 91 16:07:50 GMT
   References: <26196@know.pws.bull.com>
   Organization: Life In Hell BBS, Sterling Heights, MI
   Lines: 43

   In article <26196@know.pws.bull.com> ai065@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Thomas Hill) writes:
   >
   >  I've heard nothing but good things about the 3000UX from people who have
   >been lucky enough to use it. Sounds like a sure thing in the workstation
   >market that could really help Commodore, both money and image wise. Does
   >anybody know why Commodore hasn't started shipping the thing yet? It seems to
   >me that with each day that passes more 3000UX prospects opt for something
   >else. With other vendors rushing to push out their own UNIX workstations
   >(Atari, etc.) I would think that Commodore would want to have it out ASAP.

     Look in a Unix rag for the "Born to run SVR4" ads for the A3000UX. You
   don't advertise in GameBoy Monthly(Or AmigaWorld) to sell Unix. 

[stuff deleted]

   --
   Ronald Kushner                          Life In Hell BBS  +1 (313) 939-6666
   P.O. Box 353                               14400 USR HST V.42 & V.42bis 
   Sterling Heights, MI  48311-0353              Complete Amiga Support   
   UUCP: uunet!umich!vela!sycom!rkushner     (We are not satanic, just NUTS!)


--End included text


Damned if I know where the ads are but getting C= to show off their
machines is like pulling teeth.  The Federal Systems people (Reston)
really dropped the ball around here.  I went out of my way to get them
to demo the damn machine to my boss and then tried to get a demo
machine for our customer (NASA-Goddard) who is about to do a largish UN*X buy.

Well...somewhere around my 5th unreturned call I attended a NeXT demo.
I mentioned that we were interested in a UN*X box and the sales rep
called me back today "just to touch base".  Looks like we're buying
a NeXT for me and maybe a couple more for an internal company project.  It also
looks like that they will have a demo machine here for the gov't long
before my next return call from C=.  Actually Jana (the C= rep) has
been pretty much on the ball but the people she's going thru are not overly
professional.  Had they followed up quickly (say, before the NeXT demo)
they would have had at least one UX-D order in hand with maybe a few
more to follow.

No flames please...I am a proud owner of an A2000 and a rabid
amigaphile ;-) but the NeXT machine is a lot smoother and their gov't
sales people a lot more aggressive.  The NeXT mailer is just too cool
;-).


Nigel Tzeng

cmp9133@sys.uea.ac.uk (A.C. Lock) (05/29/91)

mpierce@ewu.UUCP (Mathew Pierce) writes:


>In regards to CDTV advertizing, I have here two official CBM
>documents from the VP of sales to authorized dealers stating,
>"Those of you interested in selling the CDTV player should note
>that it may be sold through outbound sales efforts only.  This 
>means exhibiting the machine on your showroom floor or 
>advertising the product will be strictly prohibited." 

>And,"Start that 'word of mouth' campaign early."

>Now this sounds a little weird to me, why doesn't CBM want
>dealers to advertise this thing?  Seems to me that a combo of
>'word of mouth' and commercial advertising, or whatever works 
>for the dealer to move the product would be best.

>Does anyone in the know that can talk about it wish to 
>enlighten us?

Over here in the UK, where the CDTV has been available for about a month,
there has been an advertising campaign in magazines and newspapers.

The only problem with these adverts is that they are so weird that most
people who have never heard of a CDTV are just going to turn the page, because
they will give up trying figure out what this advert means.
Those people who have heard of the CDTV aren't going to make head nor tail
of the adverts either, because it really doesn't give you any facts on the
product.

I have seen the CDTV running, and although I was impressed by the design of the
thing, I thought that it was let down by the software included with it.
If CBM really had their heads screwed on properly, they would have made the
welcome disk the most fantastic,wonderful,all-singing,all-dancing sound/graphic
extravaganza which reached out to the very edges of multimedia presentation
because I would guess, this is the program that most prospective purchasers are
going to see, but instead the welcome disk is pretty feeble, consisting of 
some poorly digitised voices, and some slide shows of various forthcoming 
products.

Let's hope third party companies can do better.

>Matt Pierce
> 

Adam Lock

darrell@comspec.uucp (Darrell Grainger) (05/30/91)

In article <1604@ewu.UUCP> mpierce@ewu.UUCP (Mathew Pierce) writes:
>
>In regards to CDTV advertizing, I have here two official CBM
>documents from the VP of sales to authorized dealers stating,
>"Those of you interested in selling the CDTV player should note
>that it may be sold through outbound sales efforts only.  This 
>means exhibiting the machine on your showroom floor or 
>advertising the product will be strictly prohibited." 
>

 I don't know about the US but up here in Canada we (CBM dealers) were
invited to Commodore for a training on the CDTV. At the training they
talked about the display for the CDTV which would give us a place to
proudly display the CDTV and have spaces (racks) for all the CD titles
(which we now have a lot of in stock). I know that our retail store is
not the only one in the Toronto area displaying CDTV. All the 'mall'
stores are showing it off as well.

>Matt Pierce
> 

----------------------------------------------------------------------
| Darrell Grainger (darrell@comspec) |Comspec Communications Inc.    |
| Toronto, Ontario, Canada           |Disclaimer: My opinions do not |
|  (416)617-1475     (416)633-5605   |reflect those of my employer.  |
|------------------------------------+-------------------------------|
|      Motorcycle: Honda PC800       |      Computer:Amiga 2000      |
----------------------------------------------------------------------