From: rawyatt@phakt.usc.edu (Robert Alexander Wyatt)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.advocacy
Subject: NeXTstep for PowerPC --- THE ONLY CHOICE
Date: 22 Jan 1993 03:55:38 -0800
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: phakt.usc.edu


Well...I'm probably setting myself up for a flame war, but here goes...
I recently posted a note to mac.advocacy asking about PowerPC and Taligent-
out of curiousity...Thanks for all the responses!  In addition, I alluded
to a NeXTstep port (couldn't resist :))...Anyway, I have noticed a few other
posts covering similar topics...So, what do I think??? (Does anyone really
care...we'll just have to see...)

I received a great response to my post from Robert Szarek...and I quote...

"Pink/TalOS - will even leapfrog NeXtStep 3 from what I can dig up. It
will over CPU enablers for different platforms (RISC, 680x0, Pentium?,
x86s). The most interesting concept is that programs will be able to
borrow objects from one prg. to another. The prg. will have to 
"announce" it's objects to the OS, other apps (possibly from the same
or other soft vendors) can look up the object, and if available, it
will use it. Think of it, one dictionary object used by your Word
processor, database, and spreadsheet. The object can be applied in 
various different ways. Like in the wp it would be used to check
text words. But if the dict. obj. can access various data structs.
then in theory it can read words stored in a draw file! Now that's
power that even NeXTStep doesn't offer. They do have OOP but on a
per app. basis. Something a la C++ but better. I could be wrong 
does NS 4 offer object OS/app sharing ?

This only one feature, there are many more in Tal OS."

(Hope you don't mind Robert...)

Okay...not to flame Robert or start a war, but...is Taligent shipping their
OS?  Specs are great...but...until the product is in hand...I seem to remember
a rather sinister jab made by Steve Jobs in regard to Taligent's CEO...
something about the 300 million he spent on OfficeVision (great specs and
all)...and the product he never shipped...(correct me if I am wrong...not about
OfficeVision, but Steve's quote...)  I enjoyed Robert's comments, but
compare Taligent's OS to NeXTstep when Taligent's OS is shipping...by then,
NeXTstep will be somewhere close to Release 5 I imagine...

Robert also mentioned the Business Week article which everyone in next.advocacy
has been discussing...I personally did not find it so grim...If NeXT gets out
of the hardware business, I wouldn't mind...anyone can make good hardware...
but software...let's face it...nothing shipping *today* (or in the near future)
measures up to NeXTstep...SUN is seriously lacking...MS-DOS/Windows...yawn...
System 7.0...(ridiculously crippling)  Taligent from what I understand will 
ship its OS sometime in late 1994/early 1995...(if at all)...Apple and IBM will
begin shipping PowerPC systems this year...that gives NeXT (and anyone else
who cares) at least one solid (probably two) years to port their OS...Might
not be a bad idea...

NeXTstep is a complete OOP system shipping today...NeXTstep is tried and 
true...The system works...The development tools are beautiful...An object 
library is in place and growing...So when Taligent ships its OS in say two 
years...where will NeXTstep be?  By then NeXT will have ten times as many 
objects...the system will be running smoothly on NeXT hardware (maybe...
if they are still in the hardware business), 486s, and probably HP or SUN 
or SGI or all of the above workstations...So, why bother with Taligent?  
Taligent OS will ship...bugs will have to be worked out...objects will have 
to be written...so, in truth we can expect to see a truly functional and
useful Taligent OS in about three to four years...(maybe more!)...not 
one to two...

The computer industry is far too fragmented...everyone has a better idea...
And while companies battle it out over technology...who loses?  The consumer!
So why not consolidate the power of technology...Apple makes nice hardware
and I expect the new stuff will be really amazing...PC clones are in
abundance...not to mention getting faster and faster by the minute...SUN
makes great hardware...SGI...well, perhaps the closest thing to hardware
perfection...

A NeXTstep port to the PowerPC would be great for everyone...This ridiculous
"my computer is better than yours" fight must end...between Macs and PCs,
between NeXTs and Macs...etc...NeXT and Taligent could cooperate on an 
OS that would benefit us all, regardless of what platform it was running
on...I'm sure Taligent is working on some cool stuff...NeXT has cool stuff
available *today*...combine the technology and strengths of both companies...
and anyone else who cares to join in...ship a killer OS...let the consumer
benefit for a change...

As of today, NeXTstep is the crown jewels of the computer industry...there is
no disputing that...Taligent can release all the specs it wants...rumors can 
fly...Mac fanatics can sing its praises...but the fact remains...the market is 
a long ways away from seeing it...

Technological unity is the only thing that can save the consumer, the 
developer, and the manufacturer...

Getting companies to work together...well, that's a much different story...
(but hey, if Apple and IBM can cooperate, I imagine just about anyone can!)


Later,
Rob

rawyatt@scf.usc.edu