From: nathan@laplace.biology.yale.edu (Nathan F. Janette)
Subject: Re:  100 Mips Intel NeXT (moved from comp.sys.next.misc)
Reply-To: nathan@laplace.biology.yale.edu
Organization: Yale University, Department of Computer Science, New Haven, CT
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1992 21:00:45 GMT

In article <dillon.0spj@overload.Berkeley.CA.US> dillon@overload.Berkeley.CA.US  
(Matthew Dillon) writes:
>     Intel's pentium is a joke.  Since NeXT cannot possibly compete with PC
>     maker's 486 boxes (they've dropped below a $1000, see latest issue of
>     computer shopper), and since NeXT would be wasting it's development
>     money working on new hardware of its own (why bother when you can OEM
>     faster hardware from others for less money?), NeXT should get out of
>     the hardware business and start concentrating on its NeXTStep software.

$1,000 for a 486 that will match the specs of a NeXTstation - now that's
a joke.

NeXT hardware is wonderful stuff, and I am thankful that every day I
get to sit in front of a beautiful megapixel display that's nicer than
every other similar display I've seen over the years.  NeXT has milked
impressive performance out of the 68040 with well-engineered
systems that have been priced competitively, although it's time for
their prices to drop now. 

>     First, to get it running on relatively generic 486 boxes, and none of
>     this crap about it working only on specific non-mainstream hardware or
>     only with video standards that nobody heard of 8 months ago, etc... You
>     guys having problems writing drivers, eh?  Keep on going the way you
>     have and your 486 port is going to sink instead of splash, with about
>     as much gratis marketting (magazine articles that drive the PC
>     industry) as a cockroach gets in a printroom.

Sure Matt, no problem, let's see, first we'll just get rid of that
nasty DPS windowing system that requires so much video bandwidth...

Not! 

>     Second, to cut a deal with (predominantly hardware) companies to port
>     NeXTStep to other state of the art platforms and to OEM those
>     platforms.	You can't hope to develop your own hardware faster then
>     others have, so don't even try!

A good point, but I think NeXT should do so "and" work on native
hardware, not "or" work on such hardware.  Then let the market choose
the better hardware for the value. 

>     As it stands, NeXT is trying to have its cake and eat it to, trying to
>     do everything from the hardware to the software to the peripherals and
>     getting badly beat on everything except the software.

You mean NeXT is acting like every other computer company offering both
hardware and software?  What's the point?


>     Why should I
>     bother buying a high end configuration from NeXT when I can buy a low
>     end configuration and purchase the extra disk and memory myself for
>     half the cost?  Why should I bother purchasing a CD drive from NeXT
>     when their 'special' deal is barely competitive with any reasonable
>     third party CD drive?  Why spend major kilobucks on color NeXTStation
>     hardware when I can spend a quarter of the money on a 486 box with
>     equivalent capabilities?  All *I'm* waiting for is NeXTStep to come out
>     for the 486 and you can kiss the NeXT hardware goodbye.

NeXT doesn't care about you, Matt.  It cares about large corporate
customers who prefer to purchase complete systems from one vendor. 
The time you might spend trying to find components cheaper in
Computer Shopper is not worth it to such large corporate MIS shops. 
Time is money, and their time cost a lot more than yours. 

No offense, Matt, but whether people like you (and me) purchase
NeXT hardware is of little concern to NeXT.

Again with the 1/4 price for a 486?  Get real!

--
Nathan Janette		"I'm a NeXTstep man,
Dept MB&B, Yale Univ	 I'm a NeXTcube guy"
New Haven, CT
nathan@laplace.biology.yale.edu (NeXT)

Newsgroups: comp.sys.next.advocacy