46 lines
2.5 KiB
Plaintext
46 lines
2.5 KiB
Plaintext
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Received: by jhu via csnet; 26 Sep 84 19:43 EDT
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Received: from mit-mc.arpa by csnet-relay.arpa id a000697; 26 Sep 84 3:30 EDT
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Date: 26 September 1984 03:29-EDT
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From: "Richard P. Wilkes" <RICK@MIT-MC>
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Subject: [cosell: Criticism of the Mac]
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To: eed_wgmm.jhu@CSNET-RELAY
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Date: Sun, 23 Sep 84 22:39:37 EDT
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From: Bernie Cosell <cosell at BBN-LABS-B.ARPA>
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To: info-micro at BRL.ARPA
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Re: Criticism of the Mac
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The September issue of the Atlantic has a `Computers' column by James Fallows
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(actually, I don't recall seeing such a column in the Atlantic before so I'm
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not sure if it is a one-off or a newly instituted regular). In it, among other
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things, he does a pretty scathing job of cutting the Mac. It turns out that he
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virtually completely presents my primary gripe about the Mac (and says it a lot
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better than I ever could). I'm sorry for this late notice -- I think the Sept
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issue is just about to disappear from the newsstands. The article is much too
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long to post, but if you're really interested and can't find a copy I could
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probably be persuaded to (US) mail you a Xerox...
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Excerpt:
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...Considered as a feat of engineering, the Macintosh is as dazzling as
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anything that might be found at the Paris Air show. It is that rare
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product in which innovations that were difficult to create are also
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impressive to see. There is a vivacity to the screen display that can be
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matched only on the Macintosh's forebears, Apple's Lisa computer and the
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Xerox Star system....
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...Technically sweet as it is, the Macintosh fails the basic test that the
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market has established for personal computers: it does not make enough of
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life's chores simpler...Apart from those who routinely need to make
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sketches or charts and include them in memos, not many people will find
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that their lives are easier because of Macintosh...
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...Most keyboards have a ``number pad'' which makes business and accounting
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projects go more quickly. The Macintosh does not... Even more irritating,
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its designers, in an act of inexplicable hubris, decided the that
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Macintosh should be the only computer ever built without cursor keys...
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Making a mouse available is like offering your guests chopsticks in
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addition to silverware. Making it mandatory is like forcing them to use
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chopsticks even when you're serving soup...
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/Bernie
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cosell@bbn-unix
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Call The Works BBS - 1600+ Textfiles! - [914]/238-8195 - 300/1200 - Always Open
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