<><><><>›› WHY AM I DOWN ON IBMs?› by John Kasupski, WNYAUG› Reprinted from WNYAUG POKEY NL 11/91› by THE OL' HACKERS with THANKS!›› A few weeks ago, while reading › through the message bases on The › Wizards Attic, I saw a message › posted by an IBM user who was › having trouble with a file › compression utility. A few Atari › ES users (myself included) left › replies such as "That's what you get › with an IBM" and so forth. The IBM › user replied in kind. After› pointing out the difference in › clock speeds between the Atari› and IBM CPUs, he declared that using› an Atari was "remaining in the dark › ages of computing." He wanted to › know why we were "so down on IBMs". › I feel his question was valid.›› I AM down on IBM products. I have no› desire to own an IBM or compatible.› I make no bones about it. But why,› indeed? To begin with, my› Atari system sits on a modest desk› and hutch in a small room off the › kitchen. It's a HOME personal› computer, exactly what the Atari was› intended to be from the moment it › was created: "The Atari 400 › Personal Home Computer". The rest of › the Atari ES computers followed in › the footsteps of the 400 machines.› But, guess what the initials IBM› stand for? International Business› Machine. Not a home computer, not a› personal computer, a BUSINESS MACHINE› › You know that Every single solitary› IBM computer ever sold was designed› for the business market, except the› PCJr., to which the buying public› quite properly extended about › as much welcome as a fart in› church. Yes, an Intel 80386 › is faster than my Atari's 6502, › but if speed were the only› consideration I'd go out and buy a › Cray mainframe and set it up in the › basement, put a terminal in every› room in the house, do all› programming in ADA, and spend the› rest of my life making payments on› the darned thing. The IBM as a› home computer? Suppose you do › purchase, say, an 80386 machine › with a clock speed › approaching Mach 1 and a price › tag to match. It'll cost you › around $2000, with monochrome › monitor and NO graphics unless you › shell out an extra $500 for another › card to plug in to the motherboard. › This is only the beginning. Every› time you want to connect › something to your computer you'll› have to buy ANOTHER expensive add-on› card.› OH, you just want to get the › basic system running? Not yet: › The whole pile of hardware you› bought is WORTHLESS without a DOS!› That'll cost you another $100 or › so. Never mind that MS-DOS is the› most user-hostile DOS ever › invented, because soon you'll › discover that your IBM MS DOS BASIC› does no syntax checking while› you're entering a program (you don't› find out about syntax errors until› you try to RUN your program). And› although you CAN set up strings› of ANY size, string FUNCTIONS › won't work on strings that are › longer than 255 characters. › › You don't want to program, you just › want to do word processing? › Better get some more memory first!› On my Atari, a GREAT word › processor, TextPro 4.56xe, takes › about 18K of RAM. (It's › ShareWare, the requested donation is › about $15.) On your new IBM, even a › mediocre WP will eat up six times› that amount of RAM, while a good one› like Word Perfect (about $300) › is so large it REQUIRES a hard› drive. Incidentally, IBM› dealers will SWEAR you CAN'T› connect a hard drive to an Atari› ES. The 40Mb hard drive now › connected to my 800XL didn't believe › them; neither should you. › (EDITORS NOTE: He is right I too have› a 10 meg Hard Drive, as do most BBSs)›› Another reason why an IBM does not› strike me as a practical choice for› a home computer: No matter how fast› my CPU is, the signals are still › going to come through my modem› at 1200 bps, and I am still going› to type at the same 20-30 WPM that I› always type at. Why pay through the› nose for a CPU that is going to› spend half of its cycles sitting› idle, waiting for me to do › something?›› But that's only the hardware half› of the story. What about software?› Why is the manual for MS-DOS as› thick and heavy as a telephone› pole-and about as easy to understand?› The biggest manual I've seen for an› Atari software product is for Kyan› PASCAL (a complete programming› environment).›› It explains how to write and compile› PASCAL source, how to use the KIX› Environment, the whole ball of wax.› On an IBM you need a manual twice› that size just for the DOS alone› (you can forget about using your› IBM until you've absorbed the› manual). On an Atari, you can read› through a few pages of› documentation and start being› productive. Why? Because the› computer was intended for home› personal use, so the software› packages are geared to the home› personal computer user. You can› teach yourself to apply Atari› software. Business schools charge› money to teach you how to use the› IBM. Come to think of it,› all this got started with an IBM› user having a problem using a file› compression utility. I've never had› any problem with the Atari, in fact› I have as much fun running the› UNARC utility as I do using the› files I UNARC. The very first time› I called a BBS, I needed to upload› to improve my status. I logged off› the board and proceeded to ARC some› files, successfully, on the first› try. I uploaded the next day. A› few days later I called again and› downloaded an ARC file. I› successfully UNARCed the file on› the first try. It was an Atari› board running BBS Express › Professional. Some time later I› called an IBM board that was› running WWIV. I couldn't even› FIND the files databases, let› alone attempt to upload or download› anything. I couldn't even get the› user help files to capture those!› I decided that if this was a› sample of what IBM software› was like, I wanted no part of it. › Nothing in my experience since,› including actually using an IBM› compatible, has done anything to› change my mind.›› That's why I'm down on IBMs. I won't› go so far as to say that I wouldn't› take an IBM machine if someone› offered it to me for free, because I› would. ›› But, I'd immediately sell it so I› could buy more Atari stuff - like› a bigger memory upgrade, or a 2400› bps modem, or a second phone line so› I could put up a BBS, or...well,› the wish list goes on and on,› but it will never include an IBM. › The REAL "Dark Ages Of › Computing" began when IBM managed to› permeate the business market with› its products, which allowed IBM › to convince a large segment the › public that IBMs were the ONLY› computers worth buying. Never › mind that these machines don't› belong in the home environment to› begin with: The corporate culture› of IBM execs, replete with two-› hour long, three-martini lunches,› has a price. Somebody has to pay› for it, and it may as well be the› buying public! I, for one, am not › fooled. I'll buy my own lunch, and› my own home computer - which, › until they start moving animals › in pairs to Cape Canaveral, will› be an Atari ES!(8 BIT MICRO)›› OL' HACKERS EDITORS NOTE:› No way could I have said it better***› NOW BE VERY HAPPY THAT YOU WERE SMART› ENOUGH TO BUY AND STICK WITH THE 8BIT›› <><><> END <><><> ››