From: rjus@uonline.com (ren_just)
Newsgroups: alt.bbs
Subject: Re: MUD for TBBS?
Date: 1 Jan 93 17:10:33 GMT
Organization: Just Computers!

manes@magpie.nycenet.edu (Steve Manes) writes:
: 
: I don't believe I "crammed" Unix down anyone's throat, just made the
: observation that you have an uninformed negative attitude towards Unix.
: I don't care what Unix products you claim to own.  Owning is neither
: experience nor knowledge.  I would suggest that if you plan to
: function as a consultant in the online service area rather than
: just a reseller of TBBS that you make the effort to know what
: options are out there for your clients.
: 
: I'm a firm believer in the right tool for the right job and Unix clearly
: is NOT the universal BBS operating environment.  As I've already said,
: Unix is inappropriate in some applications.  I've referred many, many
: clients to TBBS and Major BBS and I am, in fact, a registered TBBS owner.
: But amongst corporate and institutional clients -- those that don't
: have an overwhelming priority to look like and compete with Joey's
: Space Quark BBS down the street -- I've found that Unix more
: closely integrates with those businesses and the resources
: available to them.  As essentially closed universes, multitasking
: DOS BBSes tend to be too inflexible for the kinds of apps that my
: clients typically want to offer.  No, I don't want to write a
: hypertext engine or a real-time weather reporting monitor or
: an internet gateway to 'gopher' or WAIS in TDBS.
: 
: -- 
: Stephen Manes					   manes@magpie.nycenet.edu
: Manes and Associates/Commontech-NoHo		   New York, NY, USA  =o&>o

And another issues that highly irritates me.  Not one of you has even 
asked exactly what I use TBBS for.  Once again, it is a case of you
supplying a solution without even knowing what the problem is.  

Some applications that have been developed include a link between
MicroSoft Mail and the TBBS email system via a Novell network.  Another
has included TBBS linked to a DOS-based telemetry system.  Both of these
would have been difficult to implement under UNIX.  These aren't systems
that are competing with Joey's Space Quark BBS down the road.  These
are systems that cost something between $2000 and $100,000 and serve
purposes for big business.

The application you described for the educators sound as if UNIX was a
good fit.  Kudos to you for providing a good solution to your client.

I don't have a negative attitude towards UNIX.  I find it very fascinating
as well as very powerful in what it does.
In fact, I am a major proponent of it when it is the
best solution.  I just haven't found a client yet where it was the best
most cost effective solution.  It appears that you are very quick to
judge my areas of expertise without knowing me.  UNIX installations
only comprise about 2-3% of the installed micro base.  DOS machines hold
85%+ of the base, so it is not surprising that a DOS oriented solution
is going to occur more often.

As a side note, FoxBASE+ is no longer the chosen environment of xBASE
developers.  That is pretty old stuff these days in the xBASE world. 
I am anxiously awaiting the availability of FoxPro for UNIX.  Hopefully
this will be a reality in the not too far distant future.