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- From: bslog@pro-scat.cts.com (Bill Logsdon)
- Subject: Comments?
- Organization: ProLine [pro-scat] St. Petersburg, Florida.
- Date: Thu, 17 Dec 92 19:09:32 EST
- Message-ID: <lh70672@pro-scat.cts.com>
- Lines: 486
-
-
- ************************************************************************
-
- Please read over the next few files and leave a little response to them.
-
- We're going to include your opinions with what happens out there so let
- your voice be heard, eh...
-
- ************************************************************************
-
- PROJECT APPLE STORM - Antecedent
-
- In the first week of July, 1992, a cartel of Apple ][ users and
- developers, represented by the Bay Area Apple ][ Users Group, (BAAUG),
- arranged a meeting with members of the User Group Connection and the
- Apple ][ Engineering contingent at Apple Computer Inc. The intended
- purpose of this gathering was singular. "To discuss the merits of the
- continued operation of BAAUG as an Apple ][ User Group."
-
- The initial meeting, set for August, 1992, was postponed by Apple
- because of unforeseen developments preoccupying those expected to be in
- attendance.
-
- Another scheduled for early September, was also postponed and
- rescheduled to late September for the same reason.
-
- Yet again this meeting was postponed and was rescheduled for November
- 18th, again for the same reason.
-
- On November 16th, the meeting was once more postponed once more, for the
- same reason, and rescheduled for November 19th @ 10:00AM.
-
- Many of the BAAUG/A2 representatives had made prior arrangements and
- were forced to readjust their schedules to accommodate the original
- 11/18 meeting. (From as far away as Colorado and San Diego).
-
- Others, who were not contacted in time, made the long drive to the
- Campbell complex for the 11/18/92 meeting, and were at that time
- informed of the rescheduled gathering. To conclude this poignant
- diatribe, three BAAUG members were an hour late to this appointment as a
- result of inaccurate directions volunteered by an Apple employee. Thus
- this author ends his "Harrumph!"
-
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
- -
-
- THE PLAYERS: Those in attendance were...
-
- From Apple Computer Inc:
-
- Sub ->Re: From the MotherBoard out in CA...
- John Santoro, Apple ][ Engineering
- Rye Livingston, Community Groups, User Group Connection
- Ray Kaupp, Manager, User Groups and Associates
-
- Representing the Apple ][:
- Tony Diaz, AllTech Electronics, San Diego
- Mike Garvey, BAAUG Administrative Leader, GEnie Host
- Kent Keltner, BAAUG Planning Leader
- Joe Kohn, Contributing Editor, inCider/A+
- Kent Keltner, BAAUG Planning Leader
- Lunatic, GEnie Ambassador
- Ernest Moore, BAAUG Leadership Coordinator
- Joe Yandrofski, Sequential Systems, Lafayette, Colorado
-
- Missing in action caused by the continual postponments:
- Kenrick Mach, Paul Parkhurst, Margot Taylor and Ed Hernandez
-
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- This report was assembled from a 90 minute audio tape that recorded the
- proceedings from the back of the room and the authors recollection of
- voices, names and faces.
-
- Although the wording may not be quotable, it is extremely accurate!
- When the voice cannot be directly associated with the individual that
- spoke the words, the speaker will be identified as either "APPLE" or
- "BAAUG". Commentory notes by the author are indicated with "{ }"
-
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- PROJECT APPLE STORM - The Beef
-
- MEETING BEGINS: {Finally}
-
- Santoro: What would you like to walk out of here with?
-
- Moore: Basically, straight shoot-from-the-hip answers regarding the
- status of the Apple ][. We don't want to be subjected to the limitations
- of nondisclosure statements and the like because we have an obligation
- to our users. We'd also like to know what the Apple plans are for future
- and new Apple ][ users. We aren't here to prosecute or to be cross
- examined, we just want straight and honest answers.
-
- Santoro: New Apple ][ Users or new Apple ][ Computers?
-
- Moore: New Apple ][ Users!
-
- Santoro: We're not coming out with a new Apple ][ cpu.
-
- {Being evasive here and dodging the question!}
-
- Moore: That doesn't relate to new Apple ][ users, but is there a
- specific reason that Apple has for not releasing a new ][ cpu?
-
- Santoro: We just can't rationalize it. This is a business decision that
- was reached at a corporate level far above our heads here! It's been
- termed as a high risk. Another Apple ][ would send a wrong message to
- consumers. We don't want them to think that we have two platforms and
- it's obvious that Apple supports the Macintosh. {Another of those
- critical statements!}
-
- Moore: Let me guess. The office of the Apple CEO?
-
- Lunatic: Is it true that there was a prototype of a new Apple ][ that
- was going to be released?
-
- Santoro: I won't deny it! {Quickly and nervously shifted, then dodged
- the original again!} We get tons of letters from people that have had
- wonderful experiences with their Apple ]['s from a variety of sources.
- However, last month we sold 7 ][e's and 7 ][gs's nationwide. That's 14
- Apple ]['s across the country. {14 Apple ]['s sold without a lick of
- advertisement.. not bad!}
-
- Diaz: We sold 20 used Apple ][ systems last month alone!
-
- Santoro: Yea, USED Apple ]['s. You haven't seen an Apple ][e or ][gs in
- a dealership for a long time. This is a dealership decision. Apple
- can't dictate to the dealerships what they should keep in stock. People
- were buying Macs and weren't buying ][gs's. Also, it's expensive for us
- to make them. We do want to keep the ][gs viable and we want to continue
- building the bridge between the ][gs and the Mac. {Remember this
- statement later!}
-
- Moore: There's an easy explanation for that. 18 months after the gs was
- released, dealerships were telling people that Apple wasn't making them
- anymore and that the Apple ][ had been discontinued.
-
- Santoro: We can't tell dealerships what to say either!
-
- Kohn: If Apple had a certain criteria that dealerships had to abide by,
- like requiring them to have all of the Apple cpu line on display, these
- false rumors wouldn't manifest themselves.
-
- Santoro: I'll be the first to admit that the company hasn't done the
- best job of policing each and every dealership. {Spoken with an air of
- sarcasm!}
-
- Livingston: A lot of things happened back in '86-'87 that may have been
- debatable, but this is '92 and almost '93 and we have to think of the
- future of the company.
-
- Moore: Yes, and we are obligated to think of the future of this huge
- number of people that own Apple ]['s, who firmly believe Apple Computer
- Inc is giving them the proverbial shaft.
-
- Kaupp: Are these people going to buy new Apple ]['s?
-
- Moore: I won't ask you to validate that question. They already own Apple
- ]['s. Many of them more than one system. What the existing ][ user base
- wants is a solid show of support by Apple, be it in the form of a new
- cpu or a guy on tv with an Apple ][ as his choice for a home computer
- system.
-
- Lunatic: A primary question that I have is, Apple has repeatedly
- professed support for the Apple ][. If Apple Inc is still supporting it,
- why can't users get technical support and service from the Apple
- dealerships?
-
- Santoro: What is support? What support are you looking for?
-
- Moore: A user takes his ][ into a dealership to have it serviced and the
- service personel dosen't recognize the machine. They want to know if the
- ][gs is a 286 or 386 compatible.
-
- Santoro: So you're looking for service?
-
- Moore: We're looking for support, from Apple, for the Apple ][!
-
- Garvey: I'm in a good position to elaborate more on this because I do it
- for a living. Most people don't care about servicing, maintenance and
- the like, they depend on me to do it for them. {Mike Garvey perpetually
- assumes the role of the service department at the dealerships at this
- point.} I must have a source from which to accomodate these things.
- {Reference to service and maintenance.} We're currently in what you may
- refer to as the third generation of computer users. The first consisted
- of semi-power users. The hackers and the like. The next was the class
- that used computers as a learning device and now, the average user has
- their computer as a tool. They use it just as if it were a hammer or a
- screwdriver.
-
- Kohn: What we need is somewhere, or someone, to turn to for sales,
- service and support. Users need a definative response when repairs to
- their systems are necessary. User Groups aren't the answer because most
- aren't qualified to provide service and/or repairs.
-
- Diaz: At AllTech we're encountering even more of a problem. We have
- become one of the places to find Apple ][ stuff, but the dealers don't
- want to support us. They get paranoid when they look at their invoices
- and see all of the purchases made by AllTech Electronics. They ask us if
- we're re-selling things and they're afraid that Apple Inc will cut them
- off.
-
- Garvey: There's a missing link between Apple and the end users that
- dealerships used to fill that isn't being filled anymore.
-
- Santoro: Again you have to put yourselves in the shoes of the other
- person. Dealerships have to maintain a margin of profit. They want to
- sell the hottest computer and the Apple ][ isn't it. I've made a
- proposal that would fall under the PowerBook service type format but it
- has to be approved at a higher level.
-
- Moore: There are two ends of the spectrum here. Over the years, the end
- user has come to look at the "Authorized Apple Dealership" as the
- extension of Apple Inc and this was by Apple's own design. When an end
- user wanted information about his computer, or wanted to buy a machine
- or parts, or get service and he contacted Apple Inc, he was very gruffly
- told to go see his local authorized Apple Dealership. Now he takes his
- system to this dealership and they haven't the slightest idea as to what
- the machine is. The user is getting aggravated because his system has
- been in the shop for a week while the highly trained service department
- tries to determine if the problem with the ][gs is that it dosen't have
- an RLL/IDE card in it or they can't locate a chip that has a *.86
- suffix. Meanwhile the user comes back muttering "What ta hell kind of
- company is this?"
-
- Livinsgton: No, he comes back and thinks that the planet has changed on
- him. Things aren't the same as they used to be.
-
- Moore: Nope! Now he finally gets his system back, fixed or unfixed and
- he's muttering to himself. He places an ad in the paper to sell his
- system and when that's done he buys a DOS machine because he can get
- support, buy software or have that system serviced anywhere.
-
- Santoro: He comes back and thinks that this dealer dosen't do what he
- used to do and that's absolutely true. We want to keep our Apple ][
- customers with the hopes that they continue to buy Apple machines.
- Dealerships don't want to spend $500 a day for Apple ][ technical
- training for the 2 or 3 Apple ][ calls he's going to get in a month. So
- what's the most efficient way for Apple to deal with this problem?
-
- Moore: That's easy, via the user group.
-
- Livingston: We already do that. When someone calls up for service, we
- give them the name of the nearest dealership and also the name of the
- nearest user group.
-
- Garvey: What Ernie is driving at is an extension of something that I
- wanted to get into a little bit later, but the reality of this is that
- the user cannot rely upon service from the dealerships. Apple has always
- sent their products to dealerships for distribution and now their also
- being sent to super stores and resellers. I look at the Sears catalog
- and I don't see any Apple ][ products there. Also, how do I get service
- for my system?
-
- Santoro: We've just produced a new catalog that has all of the Apple
- products in it, except for the cpu's, and they can be purchased directly
- from us.
-
- Moore: The catalog has Mac cpu's displayed in it and there's one page at
- the back of it with Apple ][ peripherals only.
-
- Garvey: Does this means that I can call up Apple, give them my resellers
- license number and pick up my purchase?
-
- Kohn: Why can't Apple ][ cpu's be distributed by these super stores
- along with the Powerbooks and etc?
-
- Apple: Everyone views the Apple ][ as a single market machine.
- Dealerships regard it as strictly a K-12 computer. {Sound like brain
- washing?}
-
- Moore: The K-12 crew dosen't even know what to do with their cpu's when
- they malfunction. They call ComputerLand and get the same story. By the
- way, how many Apple ]['s does Apple Inc recognize as being the computer
- of choice in the end users home?
-
- APPLE: Actually it's a legal problem regarding contractual agreements
- with PowerBooks where the stores cannot do mail orders of Apple
- products. The big legal question was that if we went mail order with our
- cpu's, would that violate the contractual agreements with these retail
- outlets? {Evasive...eh!}
-
- Kaaup: Wait! I thought we were talking about why the Apple ][ cpu wasn't
- in the catalog? We don't want to sell people ]['s, we want to take the
- installed base of ][ users and support them. {Critical statement there!}
-
- Garvey: Along these lines of damage control, the dealership channal
- isn't working. So where do people have to turn? Online services, user
- groups? What I'd propose is to empower user groups as the go between to
- resell Apple parts and peripherals!
-
- Moore: Here's a case in point example. I received a call from an
- individual that wanted to upgrade from an Apple ][e to a ][gs. Please
- bear in mind that he did *NOT* want a Mac. I could not give him an
- answer!
-
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
- -
-
- PROJECT APPLE STORM - Analysis
-
- In reviewing of the information provided by Apple at this meeting, there
- are many items unveiled which prior to meeting were rumors only.
-
- Statements like, " We don't want users to think that we have two
- platforms ", made by the head of the Apple ][ Continued Engineering Team
- give cause for this reporter to peek between the lines and see the real
- picture.
-
- In retrospecting the Apple ]['s history for the last 5 years, there are
- events that occured which give cause for raised eyebrows.
-
- a) ... Shortly after the ][gs was released, the ][c+ was released and
- it boasted a 4.5 mhz cpu compared to the state of the art gs
- which had a native speed of 2.5 mhz.
-
- b) ... Approximately 10 months after the ][gs and ][c+ were released,
- dealers began telling customers that the Apple ][ had been
- discontinued by Apple Inc and was no longer in production. The
- ][c+ was dropped from the price list less than 1 year after it
- was announced.
-
- c) ... 18 months after the gs was released, mysteriously software
- developers terminated gs projects they were working on. Many of
- them were near completion. Is, WHY a question or an answer?
-
- d) ... A User Group Connection coordinator stated at the meeting,
- " We don't want to sell people Apple ]['s, we want to support
- the existing Apple ][ user base! "
-
- When asked, "Why isn't Apple Inc pushing for Apple ][ sales?", the Apple
- representatives never gave an answer either directly or indirectly. The
- standard comment of, "The 65xxx cpu is old technology!" was always
- offered as the response. Yet the 65xxx cpu is thriving in other cpu's!
-
- Apple would have us believe that only 25% of all Apple ]['s sold since
- 1977 are in homes and the 75% balance are in schools. Using those
- figures, there have been approximately 1.37 million Apple ]['s sold to
- users as the computer of choice in their homes since 1977. I recall
- reading an article in the 1985 era, where 15 million Apple ]['s had been
- sold *then* and 40% were in peoples home as the computer of choice.
-
- This reporter would like to know why a major corporation such as Apple
- Computer cannot support two product lines, being the Apple ][ and the
- Macintosh. This reporter would also like to know why a major corporation
- such as Apple Inc, having a tremendous installed user base with the
- Apple ][, would elect to proceed with a poorly planned program of
- elimination of that massive fertile market at the apex of it's
- popularity. Assuredly it was not done for the financial welfare of the
- company as sales of the ][gs were far beyond promising and the profit
- margin was lucritive.
-
- Realizing that there is no logical answer to these many strange
- occurances; and that the advent of them all began with the changeover in
- the high office, there is one solitary explanation that may be
- extracted. It may be summarized with a single word... " EGOTISM!" This
- reporter charges that the CEO of Apple Computer Inc has a fanatical
- craving to compete with the legend of the past CEO of Chrysler Motors.
- (Can't touch Lee you rascal!) This twisted thinking mandates that the
- name *WOZNIAC* be expunged from the minds of the masses as that name
- automatically invokes images of the Apple ][. (Can't touch Steve
- either dude!) This twisted thinking also mandates that the name
- Macintosh be established as *THE* Apple computer. Yet the name Apple is
- never affiliated with the Macintosh, only the logo!
-
- Now comes the anticipated closed chapter for the, umm, gentleman. At the
- meeting the head of the Apple ][ Continued Engineering Group disclosed
- that the ][gs would be taken off of the price list before the end of
- 1992, and that the ][e would remain because of the K-12 committment. The
- reasoning for this action was that the assembly lines could be used to
- produce PowerBooks which are apparently in high demand.
-
- This reporter poses this question to all who read these lines:
-
- Why can't a corporation as large as Apple Computer, Inc think in terms
- of company growth and expansion, improve the capability of the 65816,
- market it with enthusiasm as other 65xxx based systems do and enjoy the
- success?
-
- If you have not read the transcripts of the meeting, please do so. Read
- it all as it's not that long. Pass it on. There's only one way to stop
- the systematic murder of the Apple ][, SUPPORT IT! Support it with
- testimonials; support it with word of mouth praise for the system to
- prospective first time buyers; support it by developing software and
- hardware for it; support it by demanding to see ][ cpu's and peripherals
- in Apple dealerships; support it by demanding that Apple Inc display
- Aple ]['s in their catalogs; support it by demanding that Apple Inc
- market it with enthusiasm. This is the only way to protect your
- investment. This is the only way to drive a stake through the heart of
- the one that Bram Stoker REALLY wrote his never about!
-
- I encourage responses to the transcripts of Project Apple Storm. With
- enough interest from the end user base, assuredly Project Apple Storm II
- will take place and this time with the voice of the masses behind us.
- Please spread the transcripts of PAS to each and every online service in
- existance. As was once most eloquently stated, "the Apple ][ isn't dead
- yet, but it appears that it's terminal." We're going to be the surgeons
- that bring the near dead to glorious and blissful life.
-
- Contacts:
- Future Net: User #1@#9
- Oggnet : User #8@Valhalla
- AOL : EPM BAAUG
- GEnie : Contact Mike Garvey or Lunatic and ask them
- to forward responses to me.
-
- Here's to hoping that I'll type to you later... E. Moore
-
- ************************************************************************
-
- Project Apple Storm - Apple Retaliates
-
- I received a telephone call from an Apple employee Wednesday, the name
- will remain anonymous as he would probably deny it anyway.
-
- I was told that I was really in trouble because I had broken the law by
- releasing the transcripts of a private meeting. I was also told that
- the legal staff at ACI was looking into what action to take at this
- point. The caller felt that I had violated the sanctity of the hallowed
- halls of the meeting room and using his own words, "Things are really
- going on here as a result of your releasing that CRAP to the Internet
- and GEnie!"
-
- The caller raved on about why didn't I let them, (Apple), review the
- transcripts prior to releasing them and that having a tape recorder
- present at the meeting was also a violation of the law. He continually
- stressed my not knowing how much trouble I was really in! He stated
- that the transcripts made it appear that the User Group Connection and
- John Santoro did not care about the Apple end users.
-
- My response to him was that:
-
- a)... I made my intentions known when the meeting began by stating
- that we didn't want to be a part of non-disclosures as our intent
- was to make
- our users aware of the status of the Apple ][.
-
- b)... I told him that the contents of the transcripts were exactly
- what took place at the meeting and that all remarks enclosed within
- the {}'s were editorial comments.
-
- c)... I informed him that as I interpreted the transcripts, the User
- Group Connection; and John Santoro; and Apple Inc in general, did not
- care about APPLE ][ END USERS other than the those in the K-12 areas.
-
- The caller went on to accuse me of being an idiot in making reference
- to the egotism of the Apple CEO and that by my doing this, most people
- would envision me as a stupid individual to publically make such a
- statement.
-
- In the mind of this reporter, that catagory must have struck a nerve
- somewhere in the Cupertino high office! I informed the caller that I
- felt that I had done the correct thing in reporting the condition of
- the Apple ][ to the public. I lashed him a little for making demeaning
- remarks about my person and told him to let the general public make
- their own conclusions about my intellectual level.
-
- SUMMARY: It's somewhat gratifying to know that the transcripts produced
- a response from Apple. What could prove interesting would be for them
- to get their legal staff actively involved. Think of the glorious
- publicity that the Apple ][ would receive.
-
- ***********************************************************************
-
- Brd > Computer News * Apple // * Numb> 145 of 150
- To > nitt and LSW From> Unseen Entity (#8)
- Subj> Idiot Sculley Date> 12/15/92 03:41:25 PM
- Sorc> Sculley's Hatred:Gardena Ca Rcd > Thu. Dec 17 1992 @ 04:47
-
- Agreed. Sculley's a jerk and can be real thickheaded about getting
- things his way. One day he's going to have to wake up and realize he
- can't have everything his way (hopefully soon).
-
- Blackbeard: Apple is not likely to take legal action, as it would
- generate bad publicity for them, undoubtably accompanied by lots of
- pro-Apple II support. Apple will most likely respond by continuing to
- state that in their opinion a user group who would do that does not care
- about the II users. And, of course, that in their mind would justify
- more mac support and less Apple II support. But, just maybe Sculley and
- Co. will be stupid enough to make a scene and attract negative attention
- to themselves...(hopefully...)
-
-
- Whaddaya think?
-
-