##66848 Quick/ProWrite
3 messages in this thread
Wayne:
Sorry I couldn't get back sooner. If I remember right VHS won out because
it could tape more on a cassette than BETA. I think it had something to do
with taping football games.
I agree that we need better stuff for the Amiga. That is why I am
complaining about ProWrite and QuickWrite. I think it's bad that ProWrite
can only handle one printer font correctly. QuickWrite can handle three
but without double width printing. The normal (graphic) printing of
ProWrite is not very good looking or legible in sizes similar to Pica. I
wouldn't want to send a resume out printed with them and expect to get the
job. If the inferior PC can turn out better looking reports, letters, etc.
it's not really telling people that the Amiga is a superior machine does
it?
When I demonstrate my Amiga to friends I have to tell them in all honesty
that if they really love the machine go ahead and buy one, but it they want
an allaround computer at reasonable cost for which they can find just about
any kind of software go with the PC. When I bought my A2000 I was not very
happy with the headache that I got from the flickering. I couldn't
understand why Commodore put out a machine that would give headaches to
people. When one adds the price of a flickerFixer and a VGA monitor to the
price of the A2000 it is a fairly expensive computer. So, I think
Commodore made some boo-boos when they marketed it. The PC started out as
a business machine but now it is even taking away the games from the Amiga.
I got the A-10 Tank Killer for my wife's PC and it's beautiful. I also
bought it for the Amiga hoping that it would be even greater. Well, it was
the PC program revamped for the Amiga, and the graphics were worse! That
sure thought me a lesson about the 'ultimate' game machine. Only time will
tell how will the AMiga fair in the future.
Peter:
I also seem to remember the word "football" in the VHS/BETA wars of
way-back-when.
I don't know "ProWrite" or "QuickWrite". I use "excellence!" and is has
similar output limits. It's a shame because the program is very nice
otherwise. I've heard pretty good things about "Final Copy". Anyway, I
agree that better handling of a printer's internal fonts would greatly help
the situation. I'd also like to see better support of scalable fonts. The
simple bitmap dumps we get these days just doesn't cut it.
I try not to give advice to friends as to which computer to buy. I'll
gladly show them my Amiga and tell them why I own one, but I won't tell
them that it is the only alternative. I think a person who is considering
investing in a personal computer should check out every system in his/her
price range. I also think that computer salespeople and press members who
tell the computer buying public "if it isn't IBM/Mac compatible, it isn't a
computer" should be shot. Every PC platform out there has certain
strengths and weaknesses that shouldn't be overlooked. You wouldn't buy a
Ford Escort if you were a construction worker who regularly needed to haul
large amounts of building materials, would you? BTW… This approach has
caused most of my computer-using friends to buy Amigas.
As for CBM's marketing blunders… They're too numerous to mention (again)
in this response. I think CBM getting better at Amiga marketing; however,
they still have a long way to go.
The games issue bugs me too. I don't play a lot of games. However, when I
buy a game for the Amiga that is also available for MS-DOS, I worry. Most
MS-DOS games these days have VGA graphics which look quite nice. It's too
bad that EGA graphics are usually the ones ported to the Amiga. If the
programmers would go the extra mile and recode the graphics to take
advantage of the Amiga's unique abilities, we wouldn't be discussing this
problem.
As you said, only time will tell how the Amiga will fair. For me, the
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Amiga still remains the "ultimate" computer.
Wayne