#Future of the Amiga
16 messages in this thread
Ethan, I am talking about small businesses, which I classify as $500,000
gross sales and under. These business people are still buying 8088 have no
immediate plans to upgrade. I wish I could advocate the replacement of MS-DOS
with Amiga; the fact is, Amiga application, where they even exist, pale to the
equivilent MS-DOS applications.
Another point to ponder: what would make a better spreadsheet engine than
the Amiga? It can address 8 megs + of directly addressable storage, not just
640 K (or more with some silly expanded/extended memory scheme that runs slowly
and no one understands). Microsoft Excel (and closer to home, MaxPlan/PlanIT)
has shown that a mouse and window interface is desirable on a spreadsheet. The
fact that Amiga was able to generate larger spreadsheets than IBM (until
therelease of O/S-2) represents yet another blown oppurtunity for Commodore to
crack the business market.
I think that your comment that Amiga applications "pale" in comparison is
too harsh. We don't have the highest-end spreadsheets and databases, but that
doesn't mean our software sucks! The problem is the chicken and the egg:
software development or the users.
I don't believe there are ANY corporations making $300,000 regularly
buying 8088s today. Maybe some for a terminal, maybe even for word processing,
but not for anything else. What Commodore needs to sell the business people is
the message: when it comes time to upgrade, there is more to the world than
IBM! Get the multitasking you need to make your business more efficient, get a
mouse and windowing interface AND get the upgrade in speed all at the same
time.
With Caligari, Pro Page 1.3 and Compugraphic Fonts, XCad professional,
Advantage, … our software IS finally coming of age.
— Ethan
Netting $300,000. I'd probably have to agree. But the fact is most small
businesses GROSS $300,000. or less. According to sources I've read, the
industry can't kill the 8088 based machines. And they won't if they continue
to sell for under $1,000. in a hard based configuration with monitor (and maybe
even printer!).
If one of my machines at the office decides to die suddenly, I would
replace it by the next business day with another 8088 based machine. If I had
time to plan for the machine's demise, then I probably would buy a 80386SX
machine, at the least. IMHO, the 80286 will die before the 8088. The price
difference between it and the 80386SX is very little, and some manufacturers
have already dropped 80286 models from their lineup.
There are some areas where the Amiga can compete with other computers, and
some areas where the Amiga shines (video graphics). But traditional
applications (databases, spreadsheets and accounting software) do not measure
up to quality found on MS-DOS based machines, and word processing is a step
behind MS-DOS quality, with little hope of catching up at this point. And with
all of the Amiga's graphic prowess, I can't believe no one has released a
serious business presentation graphics program! I wish there were packages of
sufficient quality on the Amiga; the network in my office would be Amiga based
rather than MS-DOS based. But I am forced to use the equipment I need to get
the job done, even if I hate how the machines operate (I just installed a
program that I want to get rid of on an MS-DOS based machine that created
numerous sub-directories 4 levels deep; it's going to take me a half hour to
get rid of all the directories and files because there isn't an equivilent to
the "delete all" command on the MS-DOS).
I agree: where are all the other developers? I didn't expect a rush of
big IBM/Mac products in Amiga format, but I didn't expect none! Microsoft would
really be the best, but then they and IBM are virtually the same company
(MS-DOS, OS/2, Microsoft Windows, …).
— Ethan
Ethan,
You actually _WANT_ Microsoft to write for the AMiga? I am astounded!
-larry
I DEFINITELY want Microsoft to write for the Amiga. I can't think of a
company with more backing. They are hits in both the IBM and Mac markets. They
have Excel and Word which would be EXCELLENT additions to the Amiga software
market. Also, Microsoft C (and Pascal and Fortran, …) would add some more
competition to the high-end compiler market. Besides, the image that MS would
lend to the Amiga would be tremendous.
— Ethan
P.S. I assumed what you wrote was tongue-in-cheek but I did this whole spiel
anyway.
Ethan,
It was not tongue-in-cheek. I don't care if Microsoft ever writes anything
for the Amiga, or for any other machine for that matter. I have yet to see
anything but sloppy, poorly thought out code from them, coupled with an
attitude problem that makes Muhammed Ali look like Mahatma Ghandi.
-larry
I heard a good story today. At one of the Comdex's, some IBM folks were
walking around with shirts that said:
I
Blame
Microsoft
(Apparently in reference to OS/2). 🙂
Steve
If MS Word is so bad, why does everyone rave about it so? I haven't seen
the IBM version but the Mac version (AMax) seems excellent. The tagging feature
is perfect. The only other place I've seen it is PageStream, which doesn't
really count because it is almost impossible to use.
Now I'm not asking Microsoft to write AmigaDOS 1.5! But some of what they
write would be important. Far more for the impression it gives others than the
programs themselves.
— Ethan
Ethan,
I have used the MSDOS version of Microsoft Word. We have version 4 on one
of the clones at work. I don't like it…I think the user interface is awful.
Mind you, this isn't the Windows version–the 2 people who use Word most often
(and for reasons unknown to me actually seem fond of it) are rodent haters–and
user interface preferences are pretty much religious in nature anyway. I'll
admit the program is powerful. Perhaps I could stomach using the Windows
version once in a while, but as it is I take all my writing work home (I work
in a bookstore) and do it on my Ami with TxEd+ or WordPerfect…even if that
means sending out letters a day or two later.
I used to own a Mac (an original 128k model, which I sold a couple of years
ago) but I've never used the Mac version of Word. I understand version 4 is a
big improvement over version 3, which I'm told wasn't so hot.
At any rate, I suspect it might be useful for PR/Image reasons, "for the
impression it gives others," to have Microsoft as an active Amiga developer.
On the other hand, MS is so bloody arrogant that I'd almost rather they keep
their PR savvy to themselves and the markets they currently bully their way
around in.
-Dave
Larry;
My sentiments exactly! Now, that I have an '030 I can't use Amiga Basic even
if I wanted to (of course it is not on the HD anyway).
=>73<=, bill =>KB7LX @ KC4EWO<=
Me, too, Larry. If AmigaBASIC is any indication of the kind of interface they
would give Amiga products, I can sure do without them – no matter how powerful
the product itself might be.
Betty
Betty:
Can't you write AmigaBASIC programs in your favorite text editor, and then
import them into the clunky one they give you just for debugging?
Ray Lewis
Ray,
Have you tried debugging anything in AMigaBASIC? Absolutely awful! The
slowest thing I ever used, all the way back to the TRS80-Model1. NOTHING was
ever so cumbersome, slow, and distasteful. It is true that things can be
written in another editor, but if they are imperfect, you are stuckall the
same.
Betty;
I would like to see Microsoft fix what they already wrote for the Amiga 🙂
AmigaBasic? – Just say *NO*
Tony,
I know what you mean about MS-DOS machines, since that is what I use at work.
Hpwever, there is a freeware program that can delete both files and
sub-directories in the MS-DOS world. The program is named RM_TREE an can be
found on the PCMagNet. RM_TREE will delete all SUB-DIRECTORIES (and all files
therein) in the current directory, but will leave all FILES in the current
directory alone.
We have this program on the LAN at work, but (for fairly obvious reasons),
haven't told any non-Network-Administrator users that it exists…
Wayde