___ ___ _ _ _ _ _____ ___ _____ _ ___ _ _ ____
/ _ \ / _ \ | \ | || \ | || ___| / _ \ |_ _|| | / _ \ | \ | | / ___|
| | |_|| | | || \| || \| || |__ | | |_| | | | || | | || \| || |__
| | _ | | | || || || __| | | _ | | | || | | || | \__ \
| |_| || |_| || |\ || |\ || |___ | |_| | | | | || |_| || |\ | ___| |
\___/ \___/ |_| \_||_| \_||_____| \___/ |_| |_| \___/ |_| \_||____/
© 1999 Quest Technologies/Bedlam Enterprises
The New AMIGA...A Reality Or An Empty Promise? - By Jon Laker 'Hologram'
What are your thoughts on the "New Machine" that seems to be on the way?
Back in the 1980s, our beloved Commodore pioneered a new computer age with
the release of the Commodore AMIGA, the very first computer able to
multi-task with only a base memory of 512K, 16-Bit graphics, stereo sound,
custom chips - and all at the affordable price that people who never owned
a decent computer before could have at home for serious use, as well as a
kids play thing.
It made Bill Gates eat his words when he said: "It would be impossible for
any computer to properly multi-task without at least having 4MB of RAM"!!!
The AMIGA won countless Awards, one of which being "European Computer Of
The Year" in 1984 (I believe)!!!
But, although Commodore was so ahead of their time (for example the release
of the AMIGA CD32 when 16-Bit consoles were only in their beginnings), they
also lacked a certain amount of foresight in a lot of things, expandability
being pretty much top of the list.
Disk-Drives of only 720K capacity? No provision for Incoming stereo sound
i.e Microphone? I won`t go on with that, because it digresses from the
issue here.
But Intel and the like have rapidly boomed in terms of development and
production, and we now see immense power in PCs today that was never ever
deemed possible. Marketing giants like Bill Gates now have such a
stranglehold that there seems no point in contemplating a machine that is
not IBM compatible, if you ever want to do anything worthwhile on the
computer scene.
But those who have owned, developed and supported their AMIGAs can see the
shallowness in the Monster PC. They enjoy a simple but flexible operating
environment. The so-called "Plug & Play" has been a reality for AMIGA users
pretty much since day one. Simple tasks like Word Processing do not need
monster memory or power (Have a look at a PC version of WordWorth 4 and see
the minimum requirements)!!! Multi-tasking, screen-flicking etc, again are
the basics for us, but only just introduced with Windows 95!!! Not to
mention the fact that our software runs on so much less memory and occupies
FAR less space on our valuable Hard-Drives!
But when it comes to speed, game-play and the using of modern day add-ons,
the PC now seems to have it licked. Unless you want to own a console, your
game-play will never kick butt unless you spend a fortune on your AMIGA, or
just go and buy a PC.
Yet...take your hat off to Third Party Developers...Blizzard Boards, PowerPC
etc have really extended the lifetime of our otherwise flagging machine, and
thanks to Shareware and the enthusiasts, we would otherwise have kissed our
machines goodbye long ago!!!
But their efforts always seem to be behind what has already gone on first in
the PC scene. Why should we have to be one step behind the rest of the
world? Why should we have to spend a fortune of time and money fiddling
with D.I.Y Towers? Why can`t we just pop into a local retailer for our
add-ons and software like the rest of the world?
Enter the AMIGA of Tomorrow...
New AMIGA on the way!!! How long have we been promised that?!?!?! Since
late 1996? The Millennium is upon us!!!
PowerPC based!!! DVD-ROM as standard!!! All-singing all-dancing ultimate
machine that will give the latest Pentiums a run for their money!!!
Will it ever get here? The AMIGA seems to be changing hands, everything
seems so political, arguing who will have the rights over this and that,
which operating system will be the definitive alternative to our beloved
WorkBench.
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO GET IT?
WILL WE BE ABLE TO AFFORD IT??
WILL ANY HIGH STREET STOCKISTS BOTHER TO SUPPORT THE PLATFORM...OUR ARE WE
DESTINED TO MAIL ORDER ONLY?
What are your views? Are you an AMIGA lover who is fed up with mail order,
and watching everyone you know enjoy the accessibility of the PC?
I am not technically minded on anything regarding computers and I do not
know all the ins and outs of the big issues that are obviously attached to
such a debate...it`s not all that simple I know!!!
But do you want a New AMIGA? Let's here your views...
I run Gravity BBS in Southampton, Hampshire on (023)-8048-3880 - why not
call and share your views with us? Or find a BBS near you supporting
PowerNet, a shared MailBase throughout UK BBSes that is FULL of people who
want to hear your views...on this and any other subject!!!
Jon Laker 'Hologram' (SysOp Of Gravity BBS)
E-Mail: jon@gravity98.freeserve.co.uk