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From: mattd@Apple.COM (Matt Deatherage)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
Subject: Re: A low blow from Apple
Keywords: Apple II
Message-ID: <44692@apple.Apple.COM>
Date: 11 Sep 90 17:19:23 GMT
References: <1990Sep11.000230.23140@mthvax.cs.miami.edu> <44681@apple.Apple.COM>
Organization: Apple Computer Inc., Cupertino, CA
Lines: 50

In article <44681@apple.Apple.COM> mattd@Apple.COM (Matt Deatherage) writes:
>
>Couldn't have anything to do with the fact that it's very expensive and not
>very helpful unless you're in a school lab situation or other heavy-duty,
>lots of Apple IIs-together lab, where 99% of the customers for this publication
>are?
>
>No, that would be logic, and we can't have that in comp.sys.apple2.
>
I have already received enough mail to drive home the point that of all the
ill-tempered responses I've posted, this is one of the most.

I've previously stated in this newsgroup that it can be a real downer to read
because there are a lot of people out there who will treat every move Apple
makes, factual or rumored, as another step in the Illuminati-inspired
conspiracy to kill the Apple II and drive those who purchased it insane.

Although it makes sense to look at the people who were actually purchasing the
Apple II Technical Bulletin (to my understanding, mostly schools and dealers,
as it's a not-incredibly-thick monthly magazine with A+/inCider types of 
information and costs $125/year) and gear it more to their needs, even a
name change is perceived as an insult and a threat.

The customers of this thing (again, TO MY UNDERSTANDING) tend to be schools
who have lots and lots of Apple IIs, often connected to Macintoshes through
AppleTalk networks.  The customers are looking for solutions for problems
they'll encounter in such situations (slow network booting, programs that
work on many Apple platforms, problems that don't show up often but will if
you have lots of Apple IIs together).  Since they're paying good money for
this, I think it makes great sense to give them what they need.

But that's what they need.  If it turns out you're not part of that target
audience anymore, please don't continue subscribing.  Just because Apple
publishes a journal doesn't mean we think our customers should behave that
way.  We also publish _develop_, which has shown how to do CD-ROM audio access
programmatically from an Apple II and will, in the next issue, show how to
write an Apple IIgs Printer Driver.  We don't expect every user to do those
things, either.

Please don't feel so threatened in your use of the Apple II that an attempt
by Apple to please a segment of the customer base is seen as "telling you
what to do with your computer."  Do what you want.  You paid for it.  We
created it to empower you to do great things.

-- 
============================================================================
Matt Deatherage, Apple Computer, Inc. | "The opinions represented here are
Developer Technical Support, Apple II |  not necessarily those of Apple
Group.  Personal mail only, please.   |  Computer, Inc.  Remember that."
============================================================================