From: waltrip@capd.jhuapl.edu
Subject: Re: Open Letter: Don't get rid of UNIX
Organization: CAPVAX, JHU/APL
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 1992 17:18:21 GMT

In article <jbone.715555262@splat>, jbone@splat.dell.com (Jeff Bone) writes:
> 
> DISCLAIMER:  This represents MY opinion ONLY, and is probably 180 degrees
> from what my employer's position is!

	Your employer (Dell Computer) is in the mass market.  In my post (to
	which you are replying), my advice to NeXT is simply that they too
	join the mass market while bringing their quality along (NeXTSTEP).
	I also suggested that those people who have UNIX tools and features
	that are important to them push to get them brought along as well.

> 
> KEYNOTE:  NT DOESN'T EXIST YET!
	    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

	Are you suggesting that NeXT wait until NT ships to decide whether
	they want to play?  Would you counsel Dell to do the same?  Intel?
	MIPS?  DEC?  Compaq?  Its features are plain enough in the developer's
	version which, I suspect, you could check out somewhere in-house.  If
	NT could be dismissed as a hack (as MS-DOS could be), we could all
	ignore it safe inside our superior UNIX security blankets.  But NT,
	even in the developer's version, is good enough.  It may even be
	superior.


>  					NT IS SINGLE-SOURCE!
					^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

	Now that, as I've suggested in previous posts, IS a problem.  The
	only cure is competition but that requires an OS that does all the
	things NT does as well or better than NT does (including running
	all those MS-DOS and Windows applications just as well or better in
	a standalone and networked environment).  That may happen but it
	will take more resources than NeXT has to do it.


>							  NT IS JUST WRONG!
							  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

	We'll see, I guess.


> You know, the thing that really chaps me is this implicit assumption the
> WHOLE non-UNIX world has that NT is going to show up on the scene and UNIX
> is going to disappear.  Point of fact:  NT is vapor, as yet.  Point of fact:
> UNIX has been around, in one form or other for years, and been stable enough
> to be the industry-standard high-end OS for several years.  *IF* NT ships
> with useable functionality, IF it has the same elegance/functionality/
> toolset that makes UNIX so popular, IF it is bugfree enough to be usable,
> then PERHAPS it would be a reasonable competitor for UNIX. Why has UNIX
> been around for so long?  'Cuz it has the RIGHT IDEA.  Will NT have the
> Right Idea?  Dunno. 

	Yes, I agree.  UNIX has survived in the face of the mass market by
	being better.  A lot of us have tended to become fanatical in our
	loyalty and confident (arrogant, maybe?) in our superiority.  But
	what if we ain't better anymore?  In fact, based on developer's NT,
	I'd say there's not that much we can do that they can't and there's
	a lot of really important (to millions of users) things they can do 
	that we can't.  Take away UNIX's superiority, and it may not even
	have its niche market for long.

> 
> BUT!
> 
> NT will compete with UNIX right out of the starting gate, JUST BECAUSE
> IT HAS SCADS OF $$$ AND MICROSOFT BEHIND IT!  This SUCKS!  Developers
> with integrity will port to NT IF IT'S A DECENT OS, *not* just because
> the WA Giant is shoving it down their throats.
> 

	DEVELOPERS WITH INTEGRITY FEED THEIR FAMILIES AND PAY THEIR INVESTORS!

	I have not suggested that anyone port to NT because of MicroSoft.
	I have suggested that they port to it because it is a decent OS (at
	least) and it's an entree to the mass market.  


>>	truly huge market (given that Windows 3.1 is currently shipping in
>>	excess of a million copies a month, it would seem reasonable to project
>>	that NT will ship at least a million copies next year).
> 
> SO, bigger is better.  Might instead of right.  Typical, figures.  Baloney.
> Give me a real OS or shoot me in the head!!!  VIVA UNIX!
> 

	I'm sure you're a nice guy so I'll choose to give you the real OS ;^)
	Viva Steve, Avie and NeXTSTEP!

Opinions expressed are my own.
_/_/_/_/ _/_/_/_ _/      _/      _/ _/     _/   _/_/_/_/_/ _/_/_/_/ _/ _/_/_/_/
_/  cfwaltrip     _/    _/_/    _/ _/_/    _/       _/     _/    _/ _/ _/    _/
_/       _/_/_/    _/  _/  _/  _/ _/_/_/   _/       _/     _/_/_/_/ _/ _/_/_/_/
_/  Internet: <waltrip@capsrv.jhuapl.edu>  _/       _/     _/  _/   _/ _/
_/_/_/_/ _/          _/      _/ _/      _/ _/_/_/_/ _/     _/    _/ _/ _/