CompuServe Messages

Here are my suggestions: 1. Find an entirely new and catchy name for the Amiga. Regular Amiga devotees will know what it is anyway. The big asset, however, is that the "losing" brand name will no longer encourage immediate discard. Also, the micro-computer industry is much more open 'philosophically' to another platform. Many PC users and commentators are frightened by what will happen when Windows 95/NT plows the marketplace. And last but not least, multimedia has become a real shipping product now. Make the name attach itself with multimedia/video/audio/digital/multi-tasking and sound powerful and young. 2. Redesign the casing of all future products. Take modern aesthetics very seriously. There is a terrible void right now in the physical aspect of PCs in the industry (Apple is fairly good at this). Take advantage of it! Try new color schemes. Don't be discouraged to stand-out! 3. Very important. The basic technical specs for ALL new products should be (in order of importance): minimum SVGA output (800 x 600 x 256 colors @ 76Mhz) with simultaneous NTSC (flicker is absolutely out of fashion), MC68040 (reviewers will knock you KO if not), 300MB HD (do you really want new developers to standardize on diskettes?), 1.72/1.44 3.5" diskettes with built-in PC/Mac file sharing capabilities (encourage people to use other systems with their [new name PC]! Remember, no one is going to switch to [new name PC] for word processing or data base management. You must offer something that has a different value compared to what is available elsewhere. 4. Forget about making monitors. Get (3) good sources/agreements with makers such as Mag, Samsung and NEC (if possible) (these are examples). Leave their names on it. This will provide two important things: a) proof of industry standard supporting peripherals. b) improve your image (in every way).. 5. Provide packaged solutions (with different entry prices of course) such as with Video Director, Video Toaster/Flyer, etc. BE CREATIVE. Maybe you could include a model with built-in SVHS or Hi-8!!! You don't need to spend tons of funds on these initial solutions. For instance, make the video/sound signals funnel through the system connected through a built-in genlock/sound sampler. GVP had some. Commodore, I think, had some. Make all this stuff work using utilities/apps that are widely available already. You can wait until your sales are adequate before trying to emulate quick-time and all through the OS. <Christian de la Pointe>