>(I'm answering to Tonys mail, since I never recived Charles')
>
>I got a somewhat different momory on this topic. Back when
>the Mac was new, it was like a 180 Degree shift in Apples
>information policy. In my view Apple did anything to hinder
>developers. And that'S not only my opinion - back then I was
>part of a 'gang' of A][ freaks, and of course we where interested
>in the Mac, but beside the deadly high price for the Mac,
>the even higher costs of documentations and the lack of a
>real choice in programming language was prohibitive. With
>the Apple ][ you recived a full machine and OS description
>free of additional charge - for the Mac with a price, at least
>double to tripple the price of an A][ you go _nothing_, you
>rather had to spend again almost again the money for an A][,
>just for documentation and very minimalistic tools. And if
>this isn't enough, you had to sign a contract with Apple to
>get all the stuff - you know, they didn't want to sell just
>to geeks anymore. Only two of us did jump onto the Mac - all
>other stayed with the A][, and eventualy became IBM-PC guys.
>IBM did exactly the same as Apple with the A][ - give information
>to the people - yes, they charged, but way less than Apple,
>and you don't need to sell your soul - if your able to tell
>the Name of the document you got it. Well, yes, if we walked
>into the IBM store (Aeh, not store... royal dependance:) at
>this time, we didn't get the same 'audience' as 'real' customers,
>but we told what we want (i.e. an order number) and we get
>it fast and as we want it.
>
>And don't tell me about the complex informations etc. At this
>Time I was already doing some (truly small) jobs with Xerox
>systems - IMHO a way better integrated system as the Mac ever
>did become. It should have been the responsibility of Apple
>to give the developers info out the easy way.
>
>Gruss
>H.
>
>--
>VCF Europa am 29./30. April 2000 in Muenchen
>http://www.vintage.org/vcfe
>http://www.homecomputer.de/vcfe
Well, since everyone on the list has thrown in their two (or more) cents, I
finally feel it is my turn.
Anyway, Hans has a good point going here, Apple did with the Macintosh what
TI tried to do when the TI-99/4A was out: try to block out third party
developers. What can we learn from this? Very simple, never try to tell
people they can't develop hardware & software for a machine, because that
will only give people the extra push they need to develop stuff for a
computer.
But this is something I have noticed: We all know how many PC manufacturers
are abound (maybe too many), by there are how many Macintosh clone
manufacturers? (I can't think of any off the top of my head)
And the Government is jumping in Microsoft's back for being monopolistic?
They might want to look on the other end of the spectrum. (Now I can
understand why IBM & Motorola are pissed off at Apple for not letting clone
manufacturers use G3/G4's in their Maclones.) If you ask me, (and so begins
my conspiracy theory) I think the Microsoft Antitrust Trial was a sham,
because why would CEO's of major software houses go against Microsoft when,
in most cases, their software is flying off the shelves? You do not bite the
hand that feeds you, unless the hand being bitten is not feeding you! If you
ask me, I think only one man had something to gain from this, his name is
Steve Jobs.
____________________________________________________________
David Vohs, Digital Archaeologist & Computer Historian.
Computer Collection:
"Triumph": Commodore 64C, 1802, 1541, FSD-1, GeoRAM 512, Okimate 20.
"Leela": Macintosh 128 (Plus upgrade), Nova SCSI HDD, Imagewriter II.
"Delorean": TI-99/4A.
"Monolith": Apple Macintosh Portable.
"Spectrum": Tandy Color Computer 3.
"Boombox": Sharp PC-7000.
____________________________________________________________
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What is, in your opinion, the best laptop with the best monochrome screen.
If I was asked I'd definitely say the Macintosh Portable.
I'd say this because this computer was one of the first to use active matrix
screen technology. Do remember, in 1989 that was more or less new
technology!
I hate to do this, but I'm going to have to limit this to laptops with
monochrome screens. The last time I did a poll on this list (Top 10: Best
laptop keyboard) it went totally off.
____________________________________________________________
David Vohs, Digital Archaeologist & Computer Historian.
Computer Collection:
"Triumph": Commodore 64C, 1802, 1541, FSD-1, GeoRAM 512, Okimate 20.
"Leela": Macintosh 128 (Plus upgrade), Nova SCSI HDD, Imagewriter II.
"Delorean": TI-99/4A.
"Monolith": Apple Macintosh Portable.
"Spectrum": Tandy Color Computer 3.
"Boombox": Sharp PC-7000.
____________________________________________________________
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Found elsewhere and forwarded for your possible amusement; a damn
sight more OT than why not to ever get in a TraumaHawk or a Lance...
(No, I wouldn't either....) ;}
---------- Forwarded message ----------
This is the story of a different kind. No melting CPU's, no screaming disc
drives, just the kind of psychological torture that scars a man for life.
I had a 9:00 meeting with my sales rep. I needed to buy an entire new
series 70, the works. He said it'd take about an hour. Three hours later,
we'd barely got the datacomm hardware down on paper, so he invited me
downstairs for lunch.
This was my first experience in an HP cafeteria. Above the service counter
was a menu which began...
MMU's (Main Menu Units)
0001A Burger. Includes sesame-seed bun.
Must order comdiments 00110A seperatly
001 Deletes seeds.
002 Expands burger to two patties.
00020A Double cheeseburger, preconfigured. Includes cheese, bun and
condiments.
001 Add-on bacon.
002 Delete second patty.
003 Replaces second patty with extra cheese.
00021A Burger Upgrade to Double Cheeseburger
001 From Single Burger.
002 From Double Burger.
003 Return credit for bun.
00220A Burger Bundle. Includes 00010A, 00210A and 00310A
001 Substitute root beer 00311A for cola 00310A.
My eyes glazed over. I asked for a burger and a root beer. The waitress
looked at me like I was an alien.
"How would you like to order that, sir ?"
"Quickly, if possible. Can't I just order a sandwich and a drink ?"
"No sir. All our service is menu driven. Now what would you like ?"
I scanned the menu. "How big is the 00010 burger ?"
"The patty is rated at eight bites."
"Well, how about the rest of it ?"
"I dont have the specs on that, sir, but I think it's a bit more."
"Eight bites is too small. Give me the Double Burger Upgrade."
My sales rep interrupted. "No, you want the Single Burger option 002
'expands burger to two patties'. The double burger upgrade would give you
two burgers.
"But you could get return credit on the extra bun," the waitress chimed in,
trying to be helpful, "although it isn't documented."
I looked around to see if anybody was staring at me. There was a couple in
line behind us. I recognized one of them, a guy who merely mowed me down in
the parking lot with his cherry-red '62 Vette. He was talking to some woman
who was waving her arms around and looking very excited.
"What if... we marketed the bacon cheeseburger with the vegetable option
and without the burger and cheese ? It'd be a BLT!"
The woman charged off in the direction of the telephone, running
steeplechases over tables and chairs. My waitress tried to get my attention
again. "Have you decided, sir ?"
"Yeah, give me the double burger- excuse me, I mean the 00020A with the
option 001. I want everything on it." She put me down for the Condiment
Expansion Kit, which included mayonnaise, mustard and pickles with a option
to substitute relish.
"Ketchup." I hated to ask. "I want ketchup on that, too."
"Thats not a
condiment, sir, it's a Tomato Product." My sales rep butted in again.
"Thats not a supported configuration."
"What now ?" I kept my voice steady.
"Too juicy. The bun can't handle it."
"Look. Forget the ketchup, just put some lettuce and tomatoes on it."
The waitress backed away from the counter. "I'm sorry, sir, but thats not
supported either, the bun can take it but the burger won't fit in the box.
The sales rep defended himself. "Just not at first release." "It is being
beta-tested, sir."
I checked the overhead scree. Fries, number 000210A, option 110. French
followed by option 120, English. "What the hell are English Fries ?" I
turned to the sales rep. "Chips they call them. We sell a lot of them."
I gave up. "OK, OK just give me a plain vanilla Burger Bundle." The
confused the waitress profoundly.
"Sir, Vanilla as an option is configured only for series 00450
Milkshakes." My sales rep chuckles. "No ma'am, he just wants a
standard 00220A off the shelf. I wondered how long it had been on the
shelf. I didn't ask.
"Very good, sir." The waitress breathed a sigh off belief. "Your meal is
now on order. Now how would you like it supported ?"
"Support ?"
She directed me to the green shaded area at the bottom of the menu,
and I began a litany with my Sales Rep that I'll never forget.
"Implementation assistance ?"
"You get a waiter."
"Implementation analysis ?"
You tell him how hungry you are and he tells you what to eat."
"Response Center Support ?"
"He brings it to your table."
"Extended materials ?"
"You get refills."
I stuffed some money at the waitress and told her to take it. She gave me
my check on three sheets of green-bar paper. I studied it on my way to the
table, and decided it'd pass as an emergency napkin.
Table ? My Sales Rep had been bright enough to order us a table. He hadn't
been bright enough to check on a delivery date. The table waiter slouching
in his corner surveyed the crowded room, looked at me and said "Two weeks.
But I can get you a standalone chair by the window right away."
I handed him the tray. A woman rushed up to me with two small cups of chile
and sauerkraut for the hot dog somebody else had ordered. The room began to
grom dim, my eyesight faded...
I woke up clutching the water-glass at my bedside table. It was five AM,
four hours till my meeting with HP. I had had a vision, I did what it told
me to do. I dialed my office, and I called in sick.
by Stephen Harrison and Noel Magee
-- end of forwarded message --
>Hi,
>Does anyone have any docs and/or software for Varian machines,
>particularly the 620/L-100 since I just got one, but any Varian stuff
>would be cool.
http://www.spies.com/aek/orphan.html
>I don't remember slew, but a slip is when you turn the plane slightly
>sideways to the path of motion, often to slow it down or account for
>crosswinds in a landing. Don't forget to point it straight before touchdown
>though, or it gets "interesting".
Slip is applied yaw. I've done a few lanings in high wind demonstrating the
application of yaw.
Allison
>Since that seems to be the almost the only aspect that matters these
>days, then maybe that one of the reasons why DEC did not succeed.
Their lack of direct marketing via radio and TV was a handicap. However,
KO felt the product being marketed was a technical one for professionals
and not directed at hobbiests.
>As you, and many others have stated, DEC had a better mouse
>trap. It almost always worked. The cheese was delicious and
>rarely ran out. But the other reason for the failure of DEC was that
>the DEC mouse trap was so much more expensive to buy that few
>households could afford to buy one. Never mind that in the long
Mostly prose but not completely true. The cost for a Robin, Rainbow
or PRO was consistant with the time for a competeing system with
similar hardware, software and quality. Of course that was the early 80s.
Reality was much more complex than the story of mice and traps.
DEC suffered from a complex product, limited marketing and a vision
that was right for the industry as it was (60s, 70s and early 80s) and
not was it is (for 1987 on). As a result DEC was holding facilities
like PNO, WFO and others complete with trained personell and
nothing for them to do quite literally. At the same time engineering
and marketing groups were sending things overseas for cost reasons.
It didn't take a brain surgeon to see that overhead was way out of line
as there were no layoffs until Palmer appeared. Also over the years
there were what I called "stupid product decisions".
My favorite is the LA75, $700 printer that TEC sold for $350 at local
stores. Sure DEC improved it, but it was costly. Other were monsters
like the VAX9000, fast, powerful and expensive. It was quickly replaced
by the cheaper 6000 series. Older projects like the PRO, sold maybe
40,000 units against a plan that was only scaled for 30,000! If that
sounds bad it was declared a failure. Exceeded plan and failed! An
example of short sightedness as to the size of the market. Other
examples are infamous. I got the dubious honor of participating in
just a few.
DEC was a engineering, a technology and service company. They did
not do a good job at marketing. It was mismanagemant of costs would
end a good run.
I used to remind people and they thought me nuts. If you want to annoy
the customer ship junk. If you really want to become unforgetable in the
customers eyes, go out of business. The former they can forgive if you
fix it, the latter is unforgiveable as your product is part of their
business.
DEC came close to unforgiveable, save for Compaq being there.
Allison
A local scrapper has a couple of HP 2436E versions of the HP
A400 mini's. Anyone know anything about these? I'm sure they meet the 10
year rule, but probably not by much. I believe HP still referred to
these as the HP 1000 systems---probably the next generation after the MX
series. These are part of a medical/cardiology monitoring system but I
would think he might separate them if anyone is interested. In Virginia,
BTW----near Roanoke.
Craig
I'm hoping someone can tell me something I'm missing here, cause I just
can't believe what I'm seeing....
HP7900A disc drive, using the standard media for it. The media for this
drive is virtually identical to an RK05 cartridge. I have 4 pieces of media.
I pulled a cartridge from the stack and tried to spin up the drive. Blowers
come on, but when you hit the load switch the spindle just sits there. After
three days of checking all the sensors, tracing the wires, pouring over the
schematics, still no go.
So finally on a whim (yeah, it's the first thing I should have tried) I
pulled out the cartridge, popped the cover on the drive and defeated all the
sensors. The drive spindle motor started like a champ. Put the cartridge
back in - no spindle motor. However, I noticed that when the cartridge is
in, the relay that gives AC to the spindle motor does engage correctly, but
no spindle movement. So to make a long story short, I tried the other three
pieces of media I have. I put in each piece of media at least 20 times -
every time the spindle starts up fine. But, put in that first piece of
media, the relay engages, but the spindle sits still.
What gives here? What on earth could be wrong with a media cartridge that
would cause the spindle not to move? I tried lifting up the platter slightly
and turning it, it seems to turn just as freely in the "bad" cartridge as in
the other three. I'm just really confused - is there something I'm missing
here???
Dazed and confused....
Jay West
I think this might be skirting the 10 year rule, but if anyone would
know or know where to look, it'd be youse guys.
I was just given a 3/80, an IPC, and a 20" Sun GDM (which I
assume to mean Trinitron) monitor. Is there an adapter cable that
will allow me to use the monitor on one of my Macs?
The IPC has a pair of NIC's in it, so I'd like to set it up as an IP
router/firewall later this year when I get DSL. Always wanted a
piece of Sun equipment in my network..... :o)
Any help and/or pointers would be appreciated.
Thanks.
Paul Braun
NerdWare -- The History of the PC and the Nerds who brought it to you.
nerdware(a)laidbak.com
www.laidbak.com/nerdware
Hi,
Does anyone have any docs and/or software for Varian machines, particularly
the 620/L-100 since I just got one, but any Varian stuff would be cool.
Will J
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