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From: Armadillo@cup.portal.com (Russ Armadillo Coffman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: America Online
Message-ID: <24941@cup.portal.com>
Date: 12 Dec 89 22:04:57 GMT
References: <1989Dec9.170635.22759@cs.rochester.edu>
  <24891@cup.portal.com> <1989Dec11.165834.7605@cs.rochester.edu>
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 38

Mark Fulk:

Sorry I misunderstood your terminology re "cached," which you define as
"stored on disk." I always thought that term meant a temporary storage area,
as in disk and RAM caches. :)

"So what solution suggests itself?  Storing the menus on the user's Mac is
clearly needed." Unfortunately, this would do away with one of AO's main
features: the ability to dynamically change the way screens look. AO can
even change the name, number, and locations of buttons in dialogs. New ones
appear all the time, almost daily, as improvements are made and new services
are added. Eenter keyword "time," ferinstance. And they recently added a "Help"
 button in the keyword dialog. There are other features, like business
association members, that only members see. But since you were at a
disadvantage in not knowing this, your criticisms were understandable. :)

Check out all the "My Navigator won't update" messages on CI$ for lots of
good reasons to use dynamic features. The split seconds it takes to send
new features pay off in ease and speed of use, not to mention confusion
and error.

I certainly see why some would like "cached" (stored on disk) menus, window
definitions, and controls. But then some would complain about having to DL
the changes to existing windows and new features, especially if they used AO
from different Macs (at home and work, ferinstance). Some people complain
about MacNet's "receiving new picture," ferinstance. The whole world's a
trade-off, eh? :)

"I am also sick of being told that my problem is that I am not just like
you, and if I would just see the light and start behaving like you want me
to, everything would be just hunky-dory." Exactly why I took the time to
emphasize that there are, "as in any good Mac application, several ways of
doing things" in AO. You have choices - don't "jump in the lake," use them!

I'm not in customer service or sales, just a user like you for most of the
board except for the small area I maintain. Customer service could stand
improvement, that I will acknowledge (that's true of just about everyone
these days, though). Enjoy, -Russ