From: msnider@Rapnet.Sanders.Lockheed.Com (Marc A. Snider x0193)
Subject: Re: It's so obvious...
Organization: Sanders Associates
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 92 14:29:10 GMT


In article <1992Sep10.084400.2913@lugb.latrobe.edu.au> CS19241727H@LUST2.LATROBE.EDU.AU (KOUKOULAS, STEVEN) writes:
>
>       <<    To all you IBM/PC-Clone owners who insist that they    >>
>       <<       have a better machine than the average Amiga.       >>
>
>
>   Please don't take this as a stab at the PC because I know that the IBM is
>a very capable machine when it comes down to the business side of software and
>power but when you get into the domain of graphics/software/handling the Amiga
>wins hands down.
>
>   Ever since the Amiga first came out in '85 the PC market has been trying
>desperately to compare with the Amiga. We've seen certain products and software
>that the PC market has delivered that are a dead set give-away that the IBM/PC
>is trying to encroach on the Amigas turf.
>
>	Things like this:
>
>1. Windows - a direct copy of the Amiga Workbench (and the Apple interface.)
>
>2. VGA/SVGA cards - Quote*: "We've got good graphics too!!".
>
>3. Sound Cards - Quote*: "We've got good sound too!!".
>
>*Quotes supplied by a frustrated 486-Clone user.
>
>   It's not that I hate IBM/PC users, it's just that they strive to prove that
>their machines are better even though they know they're wrong. It's a waste of
>oxygen.
>
>
   [ stuff deleted ]

>     My artist name is Amskart 3000.
>		Am   : Amiga
>		sk   : Steven Koukoulas   (My initials.)
>		art  : Speaks for itself
>		3000 : The one and only Amiga 3000
>
>
>
>		Lifes pretty straight without an Amiga.
>  
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


What you write WAS certainly true.  It also may be still true today.  
However, do not make the mistake of living in the past (or maybe even in
the present [relative to the computer field]).  The Amiga was (and is) a
very capable graphics and sound machine, in fact, in my opinion, the
best graphics and sound bang for the buck for many years.  I have been
waiting to purchase an Amiga since high school (1986).  Never mind the
life story, but suffice it to say that I just couldn't afford the
necessary machine and peripherals to make my goal of high quality
animations a real possibility.  Now that I have been out of school and
in the work force for several years, I have finally amassed enough dough
to make the purchase of such a system possible.  I have watched the
hardware (and software) in both the Amiga and PC realms very carefully
in the several preceeding years (and much moreso as of late).  While the
Amiga is still the best graphic and sound bang for the buck right now, I
am thoroughly convinced that the PC will shoot by shortly (six months,
one year, 18 months... who knows).  With the advent of the Local Bus in
the PC realm, we are now talking about the PC being able to communicate
as quickly or moreso (how about the 50mhz PC's) than the Amiga 3000
(with the two peripheral boards residing on the Local Bus).  Of course
the PC does lack inherent sound capability and graphics coprocessing -
Again, however, more and more high quality sound boards are popping up.
As far as video goes, coprocessing facilities are now inherent in the
higher quality PC aftermarket boards (I don't mean acceleration, I mean
coprocessing with the ability to directly access on board RAM).  Half a
dozen (at least) PC aftermarket board makers offer video boards with up
to 4 megs of vram ,a Motorola graphics coprocessor (running at up to 40mhz), 
up to 72hz refresh rate, and up to 1152x1024 resolution in 16.8 million
colors.  FYI, some of these also offer hardware pan and zoom capability.
Genlocks also exist for the PC.  While integration of these third party
peripherals may not be as simple as installing a single multifunction
board in the Amiga video slot, be sure that Local Bus based
multifunction boards (similar,if not exact replicas) will be available
for the PC soon.  It is the marketplace that dictates which platforms a
third party developer looks to.  The inherent graphics and sound
capability of the Amiga made it easilty the choice platform for the
Toaster, IV24, Opalvision (etc.) hardware to be developed on.  Now the
advent of Local Bus technology on the PC allows 32 bits worth of data to
be transferred at the speed which the processor operates and developers
(if not already) will soon see that the PC (if only for its humongous
user base) is now the choice development platform.  Vista Pro and
Animation Journeyman (under the alias Playmation) have already been
ported to the PC platform, and Imagine will soon follow.  

I am a software engineer who has worked on the PC platform for several
years, yet, I do not consider myself biased in any way.  I have waited
literally for years to purchase an Amiga based 3D animation environment,
and still I hope that C= will announce the next generation killer Amiga
(which I will probably buy) at WOA starting tomorrow.  The PC is still
behind in graphics (high quality composite encoders) and certainly in
sound hardware, as well as in 3D and other imaging software.  The gap,
however, is much smaller than it has ever been, and is actually blurred
in some areas (1152x1024 16.8mil colors).  The sheer power of the
marketplace and the established numbers of PC owners will soon make for
at least the capability of an Amiga graphics/sound system on a PC based
system.  Processing power is so cheap in the IBM environment, Commodore
could never hope to compete (actually using "Commodore" here is
incorrect, I should have written Amiga - for IBM can no longer compete
in the PC arena itself: the vast numbers of Clone makers are constantly
pushing each other to increased performance and decreased profit
margins).  I am not exagerrating when I state that some new state of the
art graphics, sound, or multifunction board for the PC has probably been
announced for the PC since I began typing this message.  Things move so
fast all because of the incredible amount of money involved.

C= can stay above water with a next generation Amiga machine capable of
inherent 18-24 bit graphics (DCTV in the box?), utilizing an '040
processor and an advanced chip set.  But even with this new machine (oh
please, let it exist ;) ) some intense treading needs to continue taking
place at CBM.  While the Amiga (3000 or next generation) is still the
best buy for graphics/sound, PC clone manufacturers will not rest until
long after the PC has outdistanced everything in it's path (why?
Because they'll still be trying to outdistance each other.) 


I sincerely hope that I have offended no one here, these are just my
personal observations and opinions.


Hope to be a fellow Amiga owner soon  (It'll have to be soon, or never)
:) ,

M. Snider
msnider@rapnet.sanders.lockheed.com