From: petesk@microsoft.com (Pete Skelly)
Subject: Re: MS ready to release 32-bit Word & Excel?!?! Read on...
Date: 01 Oct 92 10:17:28 GMT
Organization: Microsoft Corp.

In article <1992Sep30.142538.25536@cu23.crl.aecl.ca> gutz@cc49.crl.aecl.ca wrote:
> 
> In article <1992Sep29.044230.17723@microsoft.com> petesk@microsoft.com (Pete Skelly) writes:

> >
> >I have left my post intact in this article so you can point out my
> >"NT is going to take over the word" attitude.  And, also tell me what
> >projects MS dropped to shift resources to OS/2 apps.

> 
> Name one person at MS who doesn't think NT will take over the world!
> And who said Microsoft dropped projects?  Doesn't Microsoft, the world's
> largest software company claim that they can port thier apps to any
> platform they choose??

So what I say really has no effect on my attitude, it's just the 
"microsoft.com" at the end of my email name.  hmmm.
BTW, you wanted one person, well, how about Rich, the cook downstairs.
I doub't he really cares what software sells well, as long as he
can continue to serve up some mean grub.  :)


> 
> I have seen NT and use OS/2 and I think that if your (MS's) code was
> written properly, a port to OS/2 should take only a few months.  Well,
> were MS's apps written properly, or were they just kludgy bits of source
> tied together?  I personally think it was the later, otherwise MS would
> have used their own COMMDLG routines in WORD rather than writing different
> ones that look like the ones COMMDLG.DLL.

If you mean a port from the NT versions of the apps, maybe so, but you'll
have to wait a couple of months after they are released.  If you mean
ports of the windows versions, do you mean adding threads, etc is going
to only take a few months?  

> 
> Besides, getting back to the original argument of this thread, what's the
> big secret if MS is working on OS/2 apps?  Are you guys afraid that if you
> do admit that you are working on something that you will divert a market
> shift to OS/2?  Is it possible that NT will be so late that any MS OS/2
> apps would guarantee OS/2's success?  Or is MS really trying to cause OS/2
> to fail so the market has to go to NT?  Is it possible that MS is still
> trying to keep users tied to Win3.1/DOS simply because it's the real OS/2
> competitor, and NT will require so much hardware that no one will buy it?
So, our two options are
1) Admit that we are developing OS/2 versions
2) Don't admit for our own devious reasons but develop them anyway


Maybe we are just not developing them...Now mind you, I cannot give you
an official account of this, but I don't think that developing OS/2 apps
is to high on the priority list right now.  


> 
> I'm not trying to be cynical :-), these are questions that many people
> in the PC world have right now.  And MS's refusal to either produce an
> OS/2 app or admit that they are working on something only raises suspicion
> of their intentions.

Unless we aren't producing any, 'cause then we couldn't give you an app,
and admiting that we were working on one would be a lie.

> 
> I think what is really driving people to OS/2 is simply that it offers some
> focus.  IBM will have OS/2 today and tommorrow too.  MS is already talking
> about Windows CAIRO - Do you expect me to upgrade my system again in a
> couple of years? :-(

You don't have to upgrade your system now.  You didn't have to upgrade to
OS/2.  


> 
> I think that even most Windows advocates will be disappointed when NT arrives
> and will flock to OS/2.  I currently have hardware for OS/2 - but not for
> NT, nor do I have a wallet for NT at $500???.  Although NT, like OS/2 in
> its day, will be technically superior to everything else, it requires far
> too much hardware for anyone to use it.  The natural alternative will
> be OS/2.

No list price for NT has been announced.  Add memory to most 386 class machines
and they are quite capable of running NT.  (most machines are shipped with
2 or 4 meg, NT needs 8) <- hey, I made a smile.


> 
> But enough of this.  Is MS working on OS/2 apps or not?  This is a question
> that will never be truly answered.  You'll say no, but is this an honest
> answer or not? In your (MS's) market position I'd do the same thing you
> are doing.

It is my honest answer that I have not heard of any OS/2 development going
on.  I suspect that there may be some network connectivity stuff, such as
lanman.  


petesk@microsoft.com
My Opinions...