8 Jan
1999
8 Jan
'99
8:38 p.m.
The
disadvantage is that they always want to do things their way, and they
always assume their way is right.
Oh yeah, like HP is the only one that behaves that way. That's how every
company protects their market (except IBM with the PC, in which they
forgot that one time and lost a monopoly). But I agree, HP seems to go
out of their way to Think Different :-) As long as we're writing science fiction,
here's the timeline for my
parallel universe:
1972: HP introduces the 9830 and markets it as a business machine
as well as a scientific/engineering machine
1974: HP introduces the 65, and offers hefty discounts to students
1975: HP reject's Woz's idea for a personal computer, telling him
instead to use the HP65 form factor with an optional detachable querty
keyboard and TV video interface
1976: HP introduces the Wozple 1
1977: Dennis Ritchie leaves AT&T for HP and ports Unix to the
Wozple
thus causing the 'phone system to deregulate five years early, creating
either a) cheap Internet connections or b) total chaos.
1999: Wozple neural implants drop in price to $0.50
2000: An obscure Harvard grad named Gates is suspended from
ebay for selling counterfeit Beanie Babies
2001: In revenge, Gates writes the ultimate virus which spreads
through the neural implants, creating either a) world domination by Gates or
b) total chaos. You're putting in a pretty tall order, you know. A LOT of
things would have to go right.
Oh well, back to running scandisk on my WinTel box.
It may comfort you to know that MS ripped off the FAT system (like
practically everything else). And the original didn't even work very well!
On the other hand, I suppose that might not comfort you. :)
-- Derek