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From: akcs.bill@point.UUCP (Bill Wolff)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc
Subject: User Hostile
Keywords: ibm, gutman, user friendly
Message-ID: <2798af36-243dcomp.ibmpc@point.UUCP>
Date: 20 Jan 91 01:00:03 GMT
Lines: 28

Well there is a fear that I felt that was coming for the IBM software
line. Unlike other computers, IBM doesn't come with standard memory, disk
drives, or even video cards. This means no two will very likely to be the
same. This creates a problem when writing software. Which in short, one
must try to cover all the bases.
 
What inspired this article was after reading Dan Gutman's article titled
"User-Hostile." User-Hostile, what is that? That means instead of things
getting easier for computer users, they are getting harder.
 
Case in point! Dan mentions the new computer game "King's Quest V" by
Sierra Online for example. The new release contains five different
versions and this is only for the IBM computers. It appears you can get a
EGA, VGA (3.5), VGA (5.25), CD-ROM, and low density disk versions.
 
"In the past we've been able to support all the various hardware
configurations of the IBM PC without publishing separate versions," says
Sierra president Ken Williams.  "This is no longer possible."
 
Dan goes on to mention "It reminds me of a scene in the movie 'Moscow On
The Hudson.' Robin Williams played a Russian musician who defects to
America and is faced with so many different brands of coffee that he
passes out on the supermarket floor. It's not likely that customers will
be passing out in computer stores, but the store managers might. They
don't want to stock nine versions of every piece of software."
 
I can only guess what the future will bring? What happens to ones
software when they upgrade a video or drive unit? Does this mean they
have to upgrade the software too? <BW>