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Date: Sun, 15 Oct 1995 14:36:43 -0400 (EDT)
From: Robert Cohen <[e-mail]>
To: James Lloyd <[e-mail]>
Cc: Lightwave Post <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (lawsuit)
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On Sun, 15 Oct 1995, James Lloyd wrote:

>
> Yeah... I'm beginning to think that all that was good about Newtek left
> to form PLAY inc.  They screwed all of the original Toaster owners with
> the current LW upgrade policy... how quick do you think I was to consider
> becoming one of the first Flyer owners?
>
> Maybe someone -should- make an example of these high-tech snake-oil
> vendors with some class-action pursuit...
>
> _____________________________________________________________________________
>
>                                 James A. Lloyd
>                               Magnet Interactive
>                                3D Animator-type
> _____________________________________________________________________________

Hi James.

I have been a NewTek customer from 1.0 and have followed the upgrade path
to version 3.  I then purchased the 3.5 SA used.  I have been a bit upset
with NewTeks upgrade and pricing policy for a few years now.

With regards to the video flyer, being a video editor for about 14 years,
I would like nothing more than to retire my videotape machines forever,
as videotape is a dog of a format.  But I also realized that in this cut
throat market, companies are going to be releasing premature software in
the name of securing thier user base.  I decided to let the product
mature long before any version of the flyer hit the market.  Can anyone
truly say that they expect the first run of flyers to work without hitch?
I don't expect the flyer to reach a mature position in the industry for a
number of years.  For one thing, hard drives are getting cheaper and
faster by the month.  A product like the flyer needs cheaper, faster hard
drives for true success and availabilty of the product to the masses.
Also, data compression is in its infancy.  When the information Superhwy
can deliver full res, full motion video to your TV over the phone line
(or whatever lines are set up for this), products like the flyer will be
the backbone of the industry.

While I agree that NewTek needs to be more sensitive to financial issues
of it's user base (remember, they blew into the industry with an
"affordable" desk top solution), and more sensitive about taking peoples'
cash before a product is truly ready for market, I believe that without
NewTek, there would be far fewer people in our field right now.  I am not
going be purchase any of NewTeks newer toys at them moment, but not
because I have decided not to do business with them, but simply because
they have outpriced themselves with regards to my budget.  However, why
can't Newtek offer products to both the lower end AND the high end market?
Other companies do.  When my business warrants it, I will be able to
afford those toys.  And by then, (hopefully) the bugs will have been
worked out, the hard drives will be faster and cheaper and compression
will be more optimized that it is right now.

I think it is up to the individual to figure these things out for
themselves and spend their budgets based on THEIR OWN RESEARCH rather
than the advertising hype that is so prevelant in EVERY industry.  And
with a communications tool like the internet, this is not very hard to
do.  How many of us would purchase a car without road testing it, reading
opinions of other customers, or investigating it THEMSELVES?

I am sure that NewTek will make flyer owners happy sooner or later.  They
usually seem to pull a rabbit out of their hat given the time.
Meanwhile, I think that in the interest of our current investments, we
should certainly not discourage them ;))  If they feel that a given
platform or given product is not worth the grief, then they may choose to
phase it out :)   The bottom line is... even with all of their problems,
NewTek is still developing for the Amiga and now the PC and other
platforms and they are still in pursuit of cutting edge products for the
video / CG professional.  My $8,000 box (Amiga 2000) can do things that
$50,000 would not have purchased just five years ago...

I hope all you guys with flyers get a bug free, high quality version
sometime soon.  I sure don't envy you production houses turned "beta"
testers.  But next time a new product hits the market, I am sure you will
remember this time in your lives ;)





***************************************************************************

Robert Cohen / Ocean Township NJ    Lightwave Animator / Video Editor

          [e-mail] / [e-mail]

***************************************************************************

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