Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!wuarchive!wugate!uunet!munnari.oz.au!murtoa.cs.mu.oz.au!ditmela!yarra!cm
From: cm@yarra.oz.au (Charles Meo)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: Fed up with MIPS
Message-ID: <4943@yarra.oz.au>
Date: 23 Oct 89 00:55:22 GMT
References: <76700077@p.cs.uiuc.edu> <318@ssp1.idca.tds.philips.nl>
Reply-To: cm@yarra.oz.au (Charles Meo)
Organization: Pyramid Technology Corp Pty Ltd, Melbourne
Lines: 35

> In article <76700077@p.cs.uiuc.edu> gillies@p.cs.uiuc.edu writes:
>
>
>But most office clerical work needs no more than an XT 8088 machine
>and WordPerfect.  They don't need color, SPICE, or a large database.
>Let's hope these clericals are doomed, or the PC industry will die as
>they flourish.

I am a little puzzled by this attitude. Why should the 'clericals' disappear
just because they don't need more computing power than they have? 

It seems axiomatic to me that there is never a need to apply more force
(read mips) than is necessary to do a job.

Others have written of parallels with the US auto industry: I'd agree with
that! There are lots of salesmen and technocrats trying to sell you a muscle
car when you might only need something to get to the local shops and back...
why have a Stingray when (a) you hate driving and (b) a Honda Z will do, and
is cheaper.

Business is about satisfying customer needs/wants. The computer industry as
whole should be as concerned with providing low-power users with the resources
they require, as with providing heavy-duty iron for big applications: always
provided there is a buck in it!

I would discount the possibility that large numbers of satisfied users 
happily running with PCXT will be a millstone aroud the neck of R&D. All this
means is that the demand for hot PC's will be less, and hence costs of making
them will settle at a higher point. 

They don't stop developing fast cars just because not many people buy them!

chuck
-- 
4GL: crushing snails with sledgehammers