From: sip1@ellis.uchicago.edu (Timothy F. Sipples)
Subject: Re: Should I, or shouldn't I...
Reply-To: sip1@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: Dept. of Econ., Univ. of Chicago
Date: Wed, 8 Apr 1992 22:56:30 GMT

In article <1992Apr8.214753.10224@thyme.jpl.nasa.gov> kaleb@thyme.jpl.nasa.gov (Kaleb Keithley) writes:
>Now, OS/2 2.0 is finally a reality.  I've just read through all this groups
>back articles here on our system (four days worth) and it's clear that I can 
>get the OS for a mere US$49.95+S&H.  But for me, the OS is just a small
>slice of the pie.  Is IBM offering equally appealing "upgrade" prices for
>software development packages?  How about the SDK?  (Or whatever IBM calls 
>it.)  It's probably premature to be asking about GNU's gcc for OS/2 2.0.
>Someone posted an article that mentioned X Window System for OS/2.  Is this 
>a substitute GUI for OS/2, or just X terminal software that runs on top of 
>PM?

Actually, $49.00 flat plus shipping as an upgrade from Windows in the
U.S.  The development tools are quite attractively priced now (cf.
comp.os.os2.programmer).  The emx/gcc package is out for OS/2 2.0 --
you can obtain it via anonymous ftp from hobbes.nmsu.edu, directory
pub/os2/programmer/emx.  IBM offers an X Windows server package which
runs atop its TCP/IP package for OS/2.  Total cost, before ~35%
educational discount, is $350 for both the base TCP/IP services and
X-Windows.  X runs alongside PM on the desktop.

>I guess what I'm saying is: convince me!  Compared to three years ago, 
>there's a lot more choices for Intel hardware now; many with quite a bit 
>of appeal.  In the down and dirty department there's Linux, 386BSD, and 
>BSD386, and GNU's OS may cease to be myth-ware some time soon.  Berkeley 
>4.4 and CMU Mach are alleged to crawl out from under AT&T's rock soon too.
>In the Plug-and-Play department there are several inexpensive and rock solid 
>versions of UNIX, and then there's NeXT, with their claim of a 386 version 
>of NeXTstep in the offing.  The Apple/IBM collaboration (I've drawn a 
>momentary blank on its moniker.)  And of course the dirty word, Windows NT
>myth-ware.

Some of those platforms aren't quite there yet, including the
Apple/IBM efforts.

Basically if you want a robust, DOS-compatible, Windows-compatible,
inexpensive, low system requirements, true multitasking, brisk selling
operating system, with an awful lot of built-in functionality, you've
got one choice.

>So, tell me what sets OS/2 apart, what makes it insanely great (to steal
>a catch phrase).  In short, why should I plunk down hard earned dollars
>to switch?  Yeah, I know it'll run all my DOS and Windows software; my 
>existing DOS and Windows already does that.  I know it'll do pre-emptive 
>multi-tasking; my UNIX does that.  Eight out of ten of the choices listed
>above will allow multiple users?  Will OS/2?  I didn't think so!  What's 
>this noise about window origin in the lower left?  Threads?  32-bit address 
>space?  They're nice.  Are they worth the additional cash outlay?  

OS/2 is not multiuser out of the box; it can be made multiuser quite
easily (e.g. Citrix).  (It also depends on how you define multiuser.
For example, is a multiline BBS, a task which OS/2 is superbly
equipped to handle, a "multiuser system"?  I guess it is.  And take a
look at OS2YOU.)  It is also a great platform in a LAN environment.
You pretty much summed it up, though.  There's only one platform which
will preemptively multitask AND give superb backward compatibility
(for the thousands of DOS and Windows applications out there).  IBM
likes to call it "Freedom _from_ choice," because, for all intents and
purposes, you really forget whether the underlying application is DOS,
Windows, or OS/2.

Is it worth $49?  If you have the hardware (386SX, 4 MB or more, 15 to
30 MB hard disk space), I think so.  (Give at least 6 MB of RAM if you
are using HPFS.)
-- 
Timothy F. Sipples       Keeper of the OS/2 Frequently Asked Questions
sip1@ellis.uchicago.edu  List, available via anonymous ftp from
Dept. of Economics       128.123.35.151, directory pub/os2/faq, or via
Univ. of Chicago  60637  netmail from LISTSERV@BLEKUL11.BITNET.