From: andrew@cubetech.com
Subject: Re: Mac & NeXT camp
Organization: Cube Technologies, Inc.
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 07:40:21 GMT

In article <BzFD97.H76@javelin.sim.es.com> mmunson@animal.es.com (Mark Munson) writes:
>The NeXT is a wonderfull machine with lots of good features.  But did you
>tell ML the whole story?
>
>* Did you show him the portable NeXT?
>* Did you show him the DuoDock NeXT? 
>* Did you show him 44 KHz sound coming out of the portable NeXT?

Right now it is not possible to create a NeXTSTEP portable that wasn't
big and needed to be plugged into a wall.  To run NeXTSTEP you need

	1) Lots of pixels
	2) at LEAST an 040
	3) lots of RAM
	4) a big hard-drive
	total:  lots and lots of POWER

Portable technology just isn't good enough yet to deal with NeXTSTEP
in a PowerBook style form factor.  Flat-panel portable plug-in NeXT
computers do exist in building 2 of NeXT, but NeXT is waiting for
most-likely pricing.

However, NeXT has indicated that a special version of NS486 will be
available for PC portables.  Low res screens don't work well with
NeXTSTEP, so we'll have to wait and see.

>* Did you show him the color-capable NeXT priced under $1500?

It is not possible to create a machine that has the video and
processor bandwidth to do color DPS for under $1500.  In 1.5 - 2 years
PC's with JAWS or VESA local-bus will do it for under $1500, but those
machines, and NeXT hardware sure beat the crap out of Mac LC II's.

>* How about the huge library of NeXT applications?
	
NeXTSTEP has a very well populated application library.  There are few
things you cannot do on a NeXTSTEP machine now because there is no
software that will do it.

>* How about the large variety of plug-in NeXT hardware? 

90% of NeXT computers have no slots, and there are few things that
need to be plugged in.  Yes, you are going to come up with something
that needs hardware on a Mac and is beyond the scope of a NeXTstation
or Dimension.  Go head and get a Mac then, or an Amiga.

>* Also, since ML has both a portable Mac and a Macintosh desktop machine, he 
>  can use AppleTalk Remote Access to easily gain access to his network and
>  run applications on his desktop machine remotely.  Did you show him how
>  a NeXT would let him work this way?

That's easy to do on NeXTSTEP too.

>* Somehow, I don't consider it a mojor shortcoming to not have Mathematica
>  in a separate box when you purchase it (assuming you really need it).

Mathematica only ships to educational buyers (which are a small
percentage of NeXT's sales now), so it's a non-issue for most of us.

>* I think the Macintosh model of "select and operate" is just as usable and
>  viable as the "drag and drop" approach.

Macintosh and NeXTSTEP are very similar.  Nobody argued that the
interface paradigm of one or the other was better.

>* I felt that hooking up a Mac to a Novell network was very easy.  The
>  EtherNet board and the Software extensions all installed easily and
>  without difficulty.  Configuring the PC was somewhat difficult though. :)

It's just as easy with NeXTSTEP, but you don't have to install any
hardware or software.  It takes four clicks on the server machine (two
of them are the double-clicks to start the network config app).  This
you anly have to do on the server (which you don't even need to have
if you really don't want).  When new computers are hooked up to the
network and booted, they configure themselves.  If you want other
machines to share their files with everyone else, then it only takes a
few clicks with NFSManager.  It's just as easy.

>* Macs are well known for their good music software.  Hooking up a MIDI 
>  adapter is very simple and hardly worth mentioning.  Did you show ML
>  NeXT music software that is as good as the Macintosh titles?

The same MIDI hardware works on the NeXT as well.  I am told that
Presto, some really killer MIDI software on the NeXT, totally blows
away anything like it on Macintosh or Amiga.  Plus, the entire
MusicKit is available in source code.

>* Built in ISDN sounds real nice.  Where do you get to use this "feature"?

1) you can get ISDN in every major LATA in the U.S.
2) Almost half of the people who buy NeXT computers live in Europe
where ISDN is very, very widespread.


andrew
-- 
andrew@cubetech.com      | "I'm allergic to cigarette smoke, but THIS
Andrew Loewenstern       |  kind of smoke I can handle!"
Cube Technologies, Inc.  |  John Draper, aka Captain Crunch Dec 18, 1992
0000000701B61D1ADF0DFC9C16185CEA055200000007EB4A9FEB1922065D471A89E905B5
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.advocacy