Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!kent
From: kent@swrinde.nde.swri.edu (Kent D. Polk)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: GenericCad
Message-ID: <21160@swrinde.nde.swri.edu>
Date: 12 Sep 89 18:51:09 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas
Lines: 63


A few weeks ago I posted a message about the response we got from
Generic Software when asking about porting GenericCad to the Amiga. The
response our rep received was that the Amiga was not capable of
providing the resources necessary to run a cad program, that it wasn't
'fast' enough.

We requested a conversation with the person who had made this statement
as we were curious as to how he/she could come up with such a
statement.

Well, a technical person from Generic Software called me last week and
we had an interesting conversation. Seems that they DO know about the
Amiga's capabilities and have pretty much given up trying to convince
their management to proceed. As I understand it, executives want the
money "up front" before development would start. Apparently they don't
believe there would be a market for CAD on the Amiga or either there
aren't enough machines to profit.

Also, they don't have personnel to do the job. Most personnel are
currently working on the Mac port. He questioned me about AMAX -
running GenericCad under AMAX that is. I told him what little I knew &
directed him to contact the developers for more info, but I also told
him that I wouldn't be interested in running under AMAX - I'd loose too
much not running AmigaDos and that I suspected that many people would
agree with me.

When I suggested that they consider 'farming' the port out to
experienced, commercial Amiga software developers, He said that it had
been suggested from someone else and they they might consider it if the
work was approved.

What to do?

1) Is there a market for GenericCad (or AutoCAD for that matter) on the
Amiga?  We are ready to buy.

'He' (requested he be left unnamed on UseNet) suggested the following:

2) Write letters to the following people if you are ready to purchase
GenericCad for the Amiga:

   Bob Fulton - Pres. Generic Software.
   Ted Peters - Lead MacIntosh Programmer - Generic Software.

   Generic Software, Inc.
   11911 North Creek Parkway South
   Bothell, Wa. 98011


   Malcomb Davies - V.P. Sales and Marketing - AutoDesk Inc.
   (No address for AutoDesk)

3) Write letters to Ted Peters if you are an available and capable
CAD/Amiga software developer looking for work.

Note that requests for porting AutoCad to the Amiga might be pursued
in a similar fashion :^)

----------------------------------------
Kent Polk - Southwest Research Institute
Internet: kent@swrinde.nde.swri.edu
UUCP    : $ {cs.utexas.edu, gatech!petro, sun!texsun}!swrinde!kent