From: jsvec@umaxa.weeg.uiowa.edu (Joe Svec)
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.misc
Subject: IBM!!!  Please get it together!!
Date: 6 Apr 92 18:02:26 GMT
Reply-To: jsvec@umaxa.weeg.uiowa.edu (Joe Svec)
Distribution: usa
Organization: U of Iowa, Iowa City, IA

I've been doing my own personal OS/2 2.0 crusade for the last month.  Our 
local campus newspaper has been running ads for OS/2 since Apr1 which said
"OS/2 2.0 - Breaking through...  Watch for details on April 6th".  So I 
waited...  Now today (April 6th) I rushed down to get my copy of the paper
so I could see the hoopla!  It was a half-page full color ad which said:

   "Stop by the IBM PS/2 Fair at the Health Science Bookstore
       Thursday, April 9 10am - 4pm for a free demonstration"

OK fine.  It also said:

   "Contact your IBM Business Partner [University PC Support Center]
       to reserve your copy of OS/2 version 2.0  IBM knows you're going
       to like it!"

SO, I went down to the Personal Computer Support Center and asked them
where the semi truck full of OS/2 was.  No semi.  No OS/2.  (They were 
busy playing with Windows and yacking about how great the new Quadra was).
They said that they probably wouldn't have it for a week or two and that
if I really wanted it I could probably get it faster through IBM!

Well, tomarrow is "Microsoft day" at the Union.  They will be demonstrating
Windoze 3.1, Word for Windows, Excel 4.0, etc, PROBABLY ON IBM CLONE MACHINES!

What is IBM going to do???  They are going to set up a demo of OS/2 on PS/2s!!
I think that they need to show OS/2 running on CLONES!!

I would also like to see the Personal Computer Support Center put two 
identical machines (clones, not PS/2s) next to each other - one ruuning
Windows 3.1 (which they think they will be getting a truckload of tomarrow),
and the other running OS/2 2.0!

I also went to "Computerland" today and asked them where THIER pile of OS/2
boxes was.  No pile.  Not even a stack.  Yesterday I went to a place called
Software 2000.  They said that they new that OS/2 was an operating system...
Nothing yet though.

Last week I "converted" my first victim.  He is the County Auditor, and is
a "power-user" type.  He said that he had "heard" about OS/2, but [not much].
I YELLED at him for about an hour, told him that it would only cost $49 to 
upgrade to OS/2 2.0, and that he would probably have to put more memory
in his machine (what do you expect - if you want the power of a mainframe
on your desk, you've got to have some memory behind it - look at Macs -
they can "live" on 4MB, but work much more nicely with MORE)...

Everybody complains:

   1)  Will it "work" with only 4 MB?  Answer: Sort of.

   2)  What if IBM gets everyone "hooked", and then jacks the price of
       upgrades?  Answer: It's the 90's, and I really don't think they
       would get away with doing that.

   3)  It take too much hard disk space.  Answer: It is a REAL operating
       system WITH DOS and WINDOWS compatibility - what do you want?  Buy
       a bigger hard disk and more memory and be EXTREEMLY HAPPY, or stay
       with Windows and get left in the dust.

Anyway, my point is that it's been almost a week, and not much is happening.
I think people need to be shown OS/2 running on CLONES.  Stores need to be
given the incentive to put identical machines next to each other so people
can compare OS/2 to Windows.  

If I had a store I would, but most store owners that I've talked to don't
have a clue what OS/2 is about, so why should they be excited about it???

Microsoft on the other hand has momentum, people know what Windows is.  People
know that 3.1 is comming out.  You can go see it today.  IBM is basically 
leaving it up to YOU.  If you know what OS/2 is about, then you can go to the
considerable effort of trying to get someonbe else to get it for you, or
you can call their 800 number and order it yourself.  

BUT, only people on the net seem to know about 1-800-3IBMOS2.  I've been
telling my victims to call that number and get their Windows upgrades.  
They certainly aren't printing that number in the newspaper...

ON THE POSITIVE SIDE:

I've seen a NUMBER of great articles in the New York Times.  One actually
said that the author expects OS/2 to kill Windows AND Macs..  There is 
somebody out there who knows what' going on (besides
the folks here, of course).

WHERE'S THE MEDIA BLITZ (NOT FULL COLOR ADS IN NEWSPAPERS - ALTHOUGH THAT'S
NOT BAD), I WANT TO SEE IT ON TV - OS/2 RUNNING ON A "CLONE" - THEY ALL LOOK
THE SAME (NOT LIKE PS/2s) - with a number of windows open doing things at
the same time (ie:  file download in one window, and graph drawing in 
another - or something!!).

IBM - You've got to show people that OS/2 IS a Windows killer (and a Mac
killer).  They aren't going to go out and figure it out themselves.  They
are either going to go out and buy a Mac, or go out and buy Windows 3.1,
unless they run into someone who reads this newsgroup everyday and happens
to fall into a conversation about PCs with them!!!!!!!

(I could be wrong - I guess the half page ad in the paper was pretty neat,
but I think people need to see it WORKING!!!!!!!!!!!)

Joe Svec