CompuServe Thread

Tosh 3401 & Adap 1542

5 messages in this thread
#47725From: Rob NixonMay 5, 1993 8:19 AM
Ken, Your setup sounds a lot like mine, a 486-33 clone, measly 16MB RAM <g>, Diamond Speedstar 24X, an Adaptec 1542C, one Conner CP3204 (IDE) and one Maxstor 7213 (SCSI), and an old Toshiba 3201 CD-ROM. I'm glad to hear OS/2 at least can work on ordinary systems. Still it seems like IBM has missed an advantage in the market because of problems like I had early on with 2.0. Now MS has an open door for Windows NT. If the first release is reasonably solid (by no means assured) and does at least most of what is claimed for it, I expect MS to grab most of the market for this class of OS. Resource requirements are steep, though, and my guess is that MANY users will continue with DOS/Windows for quite some time. Sometimes I'm amazed that ANY of this stuff works. -=Rob=-
#47903From: Ken WhitesellMay 7, 1993 12:37 PM
"Sometimes I'm amazed that ANY of this stuff works." Me, I'm *always* amazed whenever it works. <g> I really don't want to start an OS war here, but I can't see how the initial release of NT is going to be any better than the first release of OS/2. And, with OS/2 2.1 right around the corner, NT will have some ground to make up. (Not the least of which is their inability to decide just *who* is going to buy NT.) However, the product that is technically superior rarely wins in the marketplace. Based on history alone I expect NT to be a runaway best seller. Ciao, Ken
#48080From: Rob NixonMay 10, 1993 10:04 AM
Ken, <<Me, I'm *always* amazed whenever it works.>> The way things are going, I'm getting more _amazed_ all the time. <g> You are very likely right about the first release of NT. I expect it will take at least 1 year, maybe even 2, for Microsoft to get most of the kinks worked out of NT. After all, we are talking about a VAST amount of new code. <<the product that is technically superior rarely wins in the marketplace.>> For the past year, since I tried (hard) and failed to get OS/2 2.0 working on my personal machine, I have been observing how people I encounter were regarding OS/2. I have found _none_ who have adopted OS/2 for regular use. Even the big corporations I have come in contact with have not been using it. I work in the energy industry, and this includes some of the biggest companies in the country, as well as many small ones. It looks to me like NT is in position to dominate the market. The opportunity is there. Now the big question is how many problems will there be with the first release. If there are not too many, and they are not too serious, then I think NT is almost assured of success. However, if Microsoft ships a product with serious bugs, and fails to deal promptly with problems, then I think OS/2 2.1 could pick up a big share of the market. Just one man's opinion, -=Rob=-
#48148From: Ken WhitesellMay 11, 1993 7:01 AM
Ok, you've now found *two*. <g> My co-worker and I have switched to OS/2 at home on a permanent basis. The company we work for has also switched to OS/2 where appropriate. (Distributed databases and program development.) We're also a fairly large Windows shop as well. (I mention that only to show that we're not 'true blue'.) As we say, "Go with whatever gets the job done!" For some of us, it's still DOS. Others, Windows or OS/2. I'm just glad we got the choice! Fortunately, my CD-ROM and SCSI card works in all three environments. (See how I managed to get us back on topic? <bg>) All the best, Ken
#48156From: Rob NixonMay 11, 1993 9:48 AM
Ken, Wow, two of you! OS/2 must be _really_ be catching on. <bg> The work I did last year with OS/2 was for the same reason as you. I hoped it would turn out to be a better way to get the job done. In my case, it was not to be. With 2.0 I couldn't use my tape drive or my video card, and forget about the sound card. There was just no way. 2.1 is a new game though. Choice is surely going to be the name of the game this year and next. With 7 new 64-bit processors and five 32-bit operating systems, the choices are getting overwhelming. Let's see, how about a 200mHz Alpha chip running OS/2, or maybe a Dual Pentium system with NextStep. Now _how_ many combinations were there again? <g> And will my SCSI CD-ROM work in an R4400 system running NT? You think you have headaches now, just wait! Anyway, I'm glad to hear you guys are getting the job done with OS/2, and that the CD-ROM works for multiple environments. I'm sure I'll be trying several things this year. Taking extra aspirin, -=Rob=-