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DISKOVER.TXT
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1991-03-25
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8KB
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135 lines
|5╔════════════════════╦══════════════════════════╦════════════════════╗
|5║ |EFirst Things First|5 ║ ^1 Diskovery |5 ║ |EFirst Things First|5 ║
|5╚════════════════════╩══════════════════════════╩════════════════════╝
^Cby
^CJay Wilbur
Don't you just love it when an underdog comes from out of nowhere,
takes on a giant and beats the tar out of him? It's happening right
now with Microsoft(r) and GeoWorks(tm).
Microsoft, one lean, mean, fighting machine, sits in one corner with
their flagship product, Windows(tm) 3.0. While GeoWorks, looking
somewhat small, but ready to mix it up, holds up the other end of the
ring with their new entry in the IBM GUI (graphical user interface)
market, Ensemble(tm). The bell rings and the bout begins!
One cannot overlook the fact that Windows has been sold to millions of
users worldwide and comes from a company whose name is almost
synonymous with PC software. Ensemble and GeoWorks are relatively
unknown in the PC world. GeoWorks takes the first blow to the
midsection. Microsoft is looking confident--perhaps too confident.
With Windows running on a 386 or 486 you can multitask DOS
applications. Anything less, hardware wise, and you can only
multitask Windows' applications. There is something to be said for
this, but not much. If you want to multitask DOS applications on a
386 or better you should be using Quarterdeck's DESQview (tm). Of
course that would be a different bout all together. With Ensemble you
are allowed to multitask Ensemble apps only. Both sides throw
punches, but nobody seems to connect.
Windows 3.0 is packaged with some simple starter software. As you use
each item you'll find yourself wishing it could just do this or it
could just do that. (It can if you don't mind spending a few hundred
dollars on add-on programs.) Unlike Windows, Ensemble comes with some
heavyweight software right out of the box (a word
processor--borderline page-layout software, a draw program, a
communications program, a scheduler, a rolodex-like program and
others). GeoWorks scores a number of clear hits on Microsoft.
Microsoft seems a bit frustrated that such a "out of nowhere"
contender could even come close to hitting them.
Following this series of blows, Ensemble assaults Windows with its
font technology. Ensemble has built-in outline fonts allowing you to
choose from over 700 point sizes for any installed font, and can
perfectly display it in seconds. (You can get this same technology
for Windows if you want to spend a few hundred dollars on add-on
programs.) When GeoWorks says Ensemble's Write software is WYSIWYG,
they mean it. I have never seen such amazing material printed on my
old Mannesmann Tally printer. Since Ensemble supports over 300
printers you are sure to get the same output quality from your
printer. GeoWorks lands a shot to Microsoft's head that sends the Big
M staggering.
For years PC users have been afflicted with what many pundits have
labeled "Mac envy". Windows was supposed to be the cure--the GUI to
end all GUIs. Sorry folks, it's not. One of the best things about
the Mac is the way it iconizes EVERYTHING on the screen. You don't
have to mount an application in a program group to use it. If you
want to navigate storage devices and launch programs in Windows, you
have to use the File Manager. This is Windows answer to the Mac
interface? It's nothing more than a text directory tree utility put
into a window.
GeoWorks has two levels of use. One is similar to the program groups
in Windows and the other is similar (so similar that I wonder why
Apple, Inc. has not sued them) to the truly intuitive interface of the
Mac. (You can get this same technology for Windows if you want to
spend a few hundred dollars on add-on programs.) Again, GeoWorks hits
Microsoft with a punishing blow that makes this large competitor take
a few steps back.
Windows is the hulking Goliath and Ensemble the sleek David. If size
were the mark of a champion, Windows would be the hands down winner.
Unfortunately, there are tradeoffs for size. In this bout it's speed.
Geoworks runs circles around Windows on machines of equal technology.
As deftly as David, Ensemble uses its brains and speed to out maneuver
the Windows Goliath. Take that you Microsoft Philistines! Word on
the streets is the folks at Geoworks hired arcade game programmers to
write Ensemble in Assembly code. It's a well known fact that good
arcade game programmers are great at writing tight code for the sake
of execution speed. They have to if they want their games to play
with any speed on lesser machines. This was a VERY smart move for the
"in training" Ensemble. Letting the champ underestimate you, then
going in fast and hitting hard is usually a very successful tactic.
This speed advantage allows Ensemble to work on ANY PC with a hard
disk and a mouse. From the original XT on up to today's fastest 486,
Ensemble supports them all. Yes, Ensemble is actually usable on an XT
with a CGA card. I didn't say Ensemble was fast on a 4.77 Mhz XT, I
said it was usable. A statement you cannot make for Windows.
Although Windows works on a lesser machine, it bogs down and is
considered a waste of time for anyone with less than a 286. I use
Windows on a 386/33 (speed demon) and at times I find it too slow to
deal with. GeoWorks comes out of nowhere, displaying speed and
intelligence known only to true champions, and hits Microsoft with a
blinding flurry of head and midsection shots that would drop most
competitors. Microsoft is not in good shape!
In the final seconds before the bell tolls I get a feeling down in my
gut that once the below-286 crowd gets word about GeoWorks Ensemble
they will embrace it and send it flying to the top of the charts where
it belongs. GeoWorks delivers a calculated blow to Microsoft's head
that puts the oversized champ on the canvas for the ten count. There
is no being saved by the bell in this bout.
Of course, like any ex-champion, expect to see Windows 3.0 go into
training. Shed a few things here, add a few features there, and
instruct the programmers to write the whole thing in Assembly language
for speed of execution. At that point we should have a great rematch!
See you in 30,
J
-=-
^CProduct information
Ensemble: Windows 3.0:
Suggested retail: $199.99 Suggested Retail: $150.00
Average mail order: $122.50 Average mail order: $94.00
GeoWorks Microsoft
2150 Shattuck Ave. 16011 NE 36th Way
Berkeley, CA 94704 Box 97017
Redmond, WA 98073-9717
For a working model ($9.95) For a working model (Free)
1-800-772-0001 Ext. 200 (USA) 1-800-541-1261 (USA)
1-800-465-1234 Ext. 200 (CANADA) 1-416-673-7638 (CANADA)
206-936-8661 (Everywhere else)
^C(r)/(tm): trademarks of registered owners