From: mwm@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us (Mike Meyer)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc,comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Re: AMOS (was: Programming)
Date: 18 Nov 92 19:24:15 GMT
Organization: Missionaria Phonibalonica
X-NewsSoftware: Amiga Yarn 3.4, 1992/08/12 15:49:52

In <92323.034636DXB132@psuvm.psu.edu>, DXB132@psuvm.psu.edu wrote:
> In article <mwm.2olh@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us>, mwm@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us
> (Mike Meyer) says:
> 
> >In <92321.092123DXB132@psuvm.psu.edu>, <DXB132@psuvm.psu.edu> wrote:
> >> In article <mwm.2nuv@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us>, mwm@contessa.palo-alto.ca.us
> >> (Mike Meyer) says:
> >>
> >Sigh. Ok, you who know so much - when is the new hardware manual
> >coming out? And why are the folks at commodore.com so busy defending
> >not releasing them?
> 
> Most likely the folks at C= know more about future chip development
> than we do. It seems to me that AA was more of a "quick fix" than
> a long-term solution, and if that's the case, there's little point in
> documenting it (although the alternative OS crowd is a bit peeved).

Yes, AGA seems like a quick fix. However, the reasons coming from
commodore.com are valid, and don't include that. The major one is that
they want to move on to RTG/DIG, which means they have to stop
supporting things that beat on the hardware. The Amiga *needs*
RTG/DIG; badly. Especially since what was said at WOC in Pasadena
implies that there is more than one chip set to follow the AGA. What
becomes of something like AMOS when CBM is releasing two or more new
chip sets a year, and it becomes possible people to have Amigas that
only have GVP (or etc.) graphics cards in them?

> >> By the way, WHAT "serious" applications do you use your Amiga for?
> 
> >I guess you've given up on defending AMOS (wise move on your part),
> >and are now switching to personal attacks. Oh well; that's part of the
> >fun.
> 
> It wouldn't be so darn temping if your commentary wasn't so caustic.

I wouldn't get so caustic if people wouldn't ignore the real question:
"Where are AMOS programs that can interoperate with my Amiga
environment?" Sorry if you took offense.

To again not answer the original question, most of the work I do on
the Amiga involves multiple tasks talking to each other, with things I
do in one window causing changes in anothers tasks window. Much of it
is trivial (i.e. - I isssue a "Followup" command; the editor lurking
in the background opens a window or comes to the top so I can edit
it); some of it is not.

For example, in doing WP work, I regularly invoke external programs
(KeyShow, ProperGrammer, ISpell) so I can have them work on the
document. Assuming I were using a WP written in AMOS, what are the
chances I could get a KeyShow window to open on the WP screen?

> >No; I only criticise packages that are misbehaved and idiots like you.
> >Fortunately, the latter category is very small.
> 
> And langauges ('C'=giggle) and other things I've forgotten. I guess the
> reason I asked was that you seemed (at times) to take on an air of
> superiority. It is logical to ask therefore whether you are indeed
> superior. :-)

Well, when someone makes such an obviously bogus statement as "C is a
good language", it's hard to point out that it's false without
sounding superior. Especially in the midst of a heated debate. If
they'd said "C is good for X/Y/Z", then it's not so bad.

> >> Enough ranting for now...
> 
> >Oh well, at least you know what you're doing.
> 
> Yes I do. Do you? ;-)

Yes.

	<mike