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From: MBS110@psuvm.psu.edu
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Re: How do we change the scheduler? (Was Re: Multitasking at home...)
Message-ID: <91015.180746MBS110@psuvm.psu.edu>
Date: 15 Jan 91 23:07:46 GMT
References: <42568@ut-emx.uucp>
Organization: Penn State University
Lines: 48

In article <42568@ut-emx.uucp>, awessels@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Allen Wessels)
says:
>
>In article <1445@umvlsi.ecs.umass.edu> pswanson@umvlsi.ecs.umass.edu (Paul
>Swans
>on) writes:
>
>>How about this:  Try playing tetris while a document is printing in the
>>background.  I tried this exactly once and found it to be quite
>>irritating.  Oh, and as for importance, if this were possible I bet it
>>would be one of the biggest uses of multi-tasking on the MAC!
>
>Try a different spooler or try spooling to RAM if your spooler will let you
>switch spool volumes.
>
>Here's a chance for you advocates out there to wax melodic.  On the Mac there
>is
>a type of process called an INIT that multitasks with or without MultiFinder.
>I have about 25 of these (I'm running a "lean" (for me) setup) active,
>providing
>services like screen saving, network mail and file service, a
>calendar/reminder program, and zillion minor utilities like pop-up menus,
>a menuclock, macros, and keyboard shortcuts.
>
>How is this stuff done on an Amiga?

Simple enough. On a multitasking computer, there's no need to distinguish
between applications, "INITs," "desk accessories," the CLI, the "desktop,"
and so forth. All of these are just ordinary programs running concurrently.

If you want a program (any program) to be run every time you boot
the machine, you put its name in the Startup-Sequence -- an ordinary text file
on disk that lists programs that should be automatically run on startup.
I suppose this is the equivalent of an INIT, but you really can't compare
the two. (You could, for example, put DeluxePaint or WordPerfect in the
Startup-Sequence...)

The advantage is that no special programming tricks are required.
Macintosh desk accessories must be programmed to keep handing control
back to the main application "as often as possible," and INITs require
a lot of special writing, installation, and maintenance. On the Amiga,
whether you're writing a huge application or a menu-bar clock, you don't
need to use different techniques.

/Mark "Remixed for Common Household Appliances" Sachs - MBS110@psuvm.psu.edu\
|DISCLAIMER: These are all YOUR opinions, strangely enough.  ||   // AMIGA ||
|   "Can I speak to you privately, Doctor?" "All right..."   || \X/  Power ||
\== "Have you got a DEATH WISH?!!" -- Romana & The Doctor, Warrior's Gate ==/