Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!uwm.edu!wuarchive!husc6!cmcl2!shemesh!ittai
From: ittai@shemesh.GBA.NYU.EDU (Ittai Hershman)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.news
Subject: Re: NeWS down-played in OW 2.0
Message-ID: <4845@shemesh.GBA.NYU.EDU>
Date: 24 Aug 90 15:39:39 GMT
References: <11722@hoptoad.uucp> <1990Aug21.154152.27532@odin.corp.sgi.com> <455@adiron.UUCP>
Organization: NYU Stern School of Business
Lines: 37

Interesting.  I had an offline conversation with someone else on this
topic, and I quoted the very same parts of the Unix Today! editorial
as you did:

	...and most people say Open Look is technically superior
	to Motif.  Users, however, have overwhelmingly decided to
	use Motif.  Whether these decisions are purely political,
	or because of Motif's link to DOS and OS/2 is irrelevant
	now; it's dead history.

I think there is an important distinction being developed that is
helpful to a rapprochement.  The users, for whatever reason, like
Motif; the programmers seem to feel that OpenLook is technically
superior, and many in this group certainly feel that NeWS beats
any X11 toolkit hands down.

I see two different issues here, and there is no reason they are
mutually exclusive.  It seems simple: generate an XView and tNt which
use Motif looking graphics.  To the extent there is commonality, adopt
the Motif styleguide, and where there is none, innovate.  For example,
a graphic designer can easily design a motif-looking pushpin.

A case in point: Visix has a a "desktop manager" product called
Looking Glass.  Looking Glass is a Motif application, but it not
written using the Motif toolkit: they wrote their own toolkit, because
Motif did not have styleguide features they wanted (some of which are
in OpenLook).

Sun can forfeit a small skirmish and win the war.  Once the users
are happy, Sun can continue on its way to make NeWS or son-of-NeWS
the successor to X11.  And in the interim, make XView the toolkit
of choice.

Is it really worth fighting to the death about graphical design?
Are roundtangles worth that much!  C'mon, lets get on with it...

-Ittai