Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!sdrc!evgabb
From: evgabb@sdrc.UUCP (Rob Gabbard)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.hp
Subject: Re: VUE and OpenLook Apps
Message-ID: <183@sdrc.UUCP>
Date: 22 Oct 90 13:53:10 GMT
References: <38@gauss.mmlai.UUCP>
Organization: SDRC, Cincinnati
Lines: 59

From article <38@gauss.mmlai.UUCP>, by burzio@mmlai.UUCP (Tony Burzio):
> ........................First, I am concerned about reliability
> .........  Would Vue be as buggy?  The demo I saw indicates
> it may well be...

I have been using HP-VUE under HP-UX 7.0.3 on an HP400s Turbo VRX
for about a month now. I can assure you it is very stable. I have never
crashed the system and everything seems to be working as documented.
VUE is a wonder to work with. I have always considered myself a "power"
user, not having much need for desktop manager's (they only got in the
way). But VUE is the first one that I have really been able to use. Its
robust customization allows you to make almost any application use
"drag-and-drop" features as long as it can accept its data as command line
arguments. I will admit that I have not used OpenWindows 2.0 on a daily basis
like I do VUE but I have played around with it a bit and didn't find it as
much too my liking as VUE. Its about time somebody in the UNIX world implemented
a multi-screen facility much like I'm used to on the Amiga. VUE has a workspace
management facility that essentially gives you 6 screens on each display. The
control panel at the bottom of the screen allows you to toggle between them. I
think Xerox's ROOMS uses a similar concept. VUE's object orientated action
database definition method is real powerful and easy to use as well.

The only big complaint I have so far is that the file manager is a little slow
at updating itself once you delete or add a file. They redraw all of the icons
every time this occurs. They need to work on some kind of piecewise update.

> Second, the user interface IS the machine, not a tack on.
> Last I saw Apple was doing pretty well.  Remember, for new
> customers adding VUE is easier, since you can slip it in to
> the capital equipment price.  Try explaining to your boss
> that you need a couple of more grand here, a couple of more
> grand there for a user interface, when the Sun guy down the
> hall got his user interface for free!

This is quoted from the April 1990 Workstation magazine, a monthly HP/Apollo 
based independent magazine, reprinted here without permission:

"HP said it will bundle VUE with its Instant Ignition program for new customers
and will sell it to existing HP-UX and Domain/OS users for $550. When HP ships 
HP-UX 8.0 and Domain/OS 11.0 sometime in 1991, VUE will be bundled with the 
operating system."

This is a good way for them to test the waters. Anyone remenber 
OpenWindows 1.0 >:-( ?

The one thing I think HP needs to do is to bundle in the X wrapper around xdb
that is supplied with HP SoftBench. Almost every other vendor has a GUI-based
debugger bundled in with their OS now - Sun has dbxtool, SGI has EDGE, DEC has
dxdb, Apollo has dde (even the old Apollo debugger had some kind of a GUI). I
think they also need a GUI based mail tool bundled in. Elm with the HPterm
buttons is nice but it still has a curses-based heart :-)  The best GUI-based
mailer I have ever seen (this kills me to say this) is the DECWindows-based
VMS mailer.

-- 

Rob Gabbard (uunet!sdrc!evgabb)  
Technical Development Engineer   
Structural Dynamics Research Corp