CompuServe Thread

#HELP! (CoComm)

6 messages in this thread
#134105From: Mark BealeJul 11, 1988 12:05 AM
Thanks for that quick reply..! I'll delete all the things you said, then play around with it until everything fits. After reading the Shortdox, I can't wait to give it a try. I'm sure my $15 will be on its way in no time. Thanks!
#134112From: Black Belt SystemsJul 11, 1988 5:04 AM
No problem. There will be an updated version soon, as well. There are a number of things that have been enhanced, and a few bugs that have been summarily squashed. –Ben–
#134122From: Henry ColonnaJul 11, 1988 7:57 AM
WHAT?? But you're not supposed to update your software!!!! (grin)
#134132From: Black Belt SystemsJul 11, 1988 12:22 PM
Oh, no, Henry… I update MY software more often than almost _anybody_. Ask around here… go ahead. <grin>. BUT! I do NOT update my software because of a constant stream of bugs. Now and then, I find one, I kill it. But mostly I just add features. I'm well known among my programminng/engineering peers to have terminal (sic) feature-itis. PCLO has been thru 25 revisions… PCLOplus thru 20… Scheme thru 9… CoComm thru 37… No, I would hardly say I don't revise my stuff, nor do I object to revisions. It's Bugs, constant, annoying bugs, that I object to. Especially those that persist even though there is a known way to produce them… For instance, although I reported those problems to WP _weeks_ ago, no fix. Not a _my_ problem anymore, but still, it's annoying. Henry, currently, I have _one_ "wild" bug, and it's in the Scheme package. I have yet to produce it on demand, and suspect certain things, but can't prove/reproduce it. It's the bane of my programming existance, Henry – I hate that bug, and I'm going to boil it in lead when I catch it… Metaphorically, that means me. <grin>. SInce I _caused_ it, more than likely. Anyway don't think 94 against revisions. Far from it. –Ben–
#134156From: Henry ColonnaJul 11, 1988 7:13 PM
I was merely poking fun at your comment earlier that business software doesn't need updating, which I disagree with for many reasons. Maybe you can clarify what you said earlier vs what you are saying now..
#134177From: Black Belt SystemsJul 11, 1988 10:17 PM
I said that if you don't have a lot of bugs, you don't need a huge _service_ department. Updates are not somethinf customers come screaming to you for, Henry – they don't say things like "It ate my Data!" "Why is the cursor on a different line than the one I'm changing!" "Why does it Guru!" and so forth. They call and say… is there a new version? We say, "Yep". They say, I wanna! we say, ok, we'll send it out in a few days. They hang up. No long phone calls with distraught users, no screaming, no complaints, and no trained personell costing me a zillion bucks because (a) I didn't make the software easy to use or (b) I made it broken. There is a world of difference between a company that simply keeps on updating it's products, and one that has to constantly fix them and deal with the consequences of publishing broken code as if it were a real program. For instance, SoftCircuits doesn't have a "support" person, per se – it has _me_. And I can handle it, _and_ I can still get a fair amount of work done, because what I have to do 99% of the time (or better) is listen for 60 seconds, then say "Read the manual – it's on page xx; meantime, here's how you do it (60 second explanation, cuz software is easy to use) and then I say bye and they run away happy (if slightly embarrassed). The remaining portion of the time, I have to deal with people who fit in a wide range of catagories, but, and this is an important but, since I don't have "specially-trained" personell (like WP does), there isxew_-w_g/one can say tt will make ME say: "Uh, I dunnoo, I'm not familiar '#P that part of the program (or) that use (or) etc." That makes my support better than theirs, Henry, cuz I can _always_ give a solid answer. And guess what? With PCLO being the very first CAD package that was available on the machine, and selling into a highly technical market too, with us well into 4 digits of sales… I can still handle it. That's what I mean when I differentiate between "bug" support and "update" support. Of course, quaility is a big issue… and I think that's why WP's support group is so large. No Quality. –Ben–