From: trevord@polari.online.com
Subject: Re: Open Letter: Don't get rid of UNIX
Followup-To: comp.sys.next.advocacy
Summary: just say no to nt
Keywords: FUD OS vs FUN OS
Organization: Peanuts
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 1992 22:22:46 GMT

In article <1992Sep2.174805.1@capd.jhuapl.edu> waltrip@capd.jhuapl.edu writes:
>writes:
>
>	But, if those aren't the reasons (and I don't believe for a moment
>	that they are), I would suggest that Glenn amend his open letter.  I 
>	would suggest that he request that NeXT take the opportunity to get him
>	access to the mass market that will shortly be represented by MicroSoft
>	NT.
	
	shortly? I'll give you whatever odds you want that nt doesnt show
	its head until late next year. Also I'll give you better odds that 
	the os is slow clunky and buggy.  this is not to insult the coders
	of microsoft, its reality. it takes a great deal of time and usage
	to mature a 32bit os. i'm sure in 3-4 years nt will be a nice os
	(with a lowsy gui and standard graphic api of course ).
	
	people are going to be sticking w/ the mac windows and dos for a
	long time to come.
>
>	4.	"I like/need the UNIX API."
>
>	Well, for those who just like UNIX or who like or need UNIX utilities
>	or the UN!X API, NT has POSIX.  A core of UNIX utilities is included
>	in POSIX and with contributions from GNU and other sources, you can
	POSIX != UN!X

>	as an extra cost option for those not satisfied by POSIX (which, after
>	all, represents a UNIX subset).  If it's that important, push for it.
			^^^^^^^^^^^^^
	Even, you admit it.
>
>	But push for having your cake and eating it too.  The alternative is
>	very possibly nothing to eat at all.
	
	The day of the monopopular OS  is waning...I read a few years ago that
	(Oh  I think it was 89 or 90) the Honda Accord was the best selling
	car of the year. But it was noted it had the lowest number of any
	best selling car in history. (380,000+ if i remember correctly).
	This is the situation that the computer industry is coming to. 
	There are a number of education users/programmers who know what they 
	want/need in a machine. they also know that it is available. If you
	need an elegant pen based solutuion voila penpoint. a platform to
	develop applications at an insane speed -- go buy a NeXT and
	NeXTStep3.0. You have massive data processing needs go get
	a mainframe and MVS/ESA.some.long.silly.revision.number. 

		When nt is released and debugged it'll find some niche. But
	it is not windows (which will sell millions a year far into...).
	or dos. 
	
>
>	As to the issue of whether NeXT has the resources to port NeXTSTEP and
>	keep on improving it, NeXT already has to spend resources on both
>	NeXTSTEP and Mach/UNIX (which ain't no little thing itself).  There
>	would be a payoff from not having to spend resources on OS development
>	once the port was complete.
>
>	And there would be the real payoffs I have suggested in other posts:  a
>	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).

	nt!=windows. 
	

	I would much rather see NeXT port its whole mach/NeXTStep package to
	other platforms. sparc. hp. and of course intel. Who the hell careas
	about nt anyway, god but I have pity on the poor basterads who have to
	code for it. the whole point in buying a NeXT is that its a blast
	to program. 
asta

-- 
* Trevor Dewey                                                                *
* System Administrator	 			         	 	      * 
* Holland America Lines                             uupsi4!polari!trevord     * 
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