Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!uwm.edu!ux1.cso.uiuc.edu!cs326ag From: cs326ag@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Loren J. Rittle) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.games Subject: Re: Run (don't walk) to your store. Lemmings has been released. Message-ID: <1991Feb22.153827.29437@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> Date: 22 Feb 91 15:38:27 GMT References: <1991Feb20.064217.26621@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> <5215@vela.acs.oakland.edu> <19228@cbmvax.commodore.com> Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Lines: 107 In article <19228@cbmvax.commodore.com> kominetz@cbmvax.commodore.com (John Kominetz - Product Assurance) writes: >In article <5215@vela.acs.oakland.edu> hastoerm@vela.acs.oakland.edu (Moriland) writes: >>In article <1991Feb20.064217.26621@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> cs326ag@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Loren J. Rittle) writes: >>}> P.S. In case you're wondering PC Lemmings is HD installable, but > >>}That, my friend, is the straw that broke the... (and boy does it piss >>}me off. And will it ever get me started...) > >>I'm afraid that I have to agree wth everything you've just said. I >>don't think I will purchase it either. Good game or not. Perhaps when >>it ends up in the bargin bin for $5.00 or so I'll consider it. I plan >>to start boycotting game makers who do not support at LEAST HD >>installability. > > Software manufacturers will produce their software for the most >common configuration of each system. An Electronic Arts Rep said that Come on, you work for C=, you above most others should know by now that it is easier to *support* a HD, than to *not support* a HD on the Amiga. If you don't know that, you should be fired! The harddrive issue is independent of the most common configuration issue. I have come to the conclusion that the only reason programs (OK, games) on the Amiga can't be HD installable is that it makes them, in the minds of the maker, easier to copy. >over 90% of their sales (or at least those that sent in the reg. card) >in the Amiga market are straight A500s: no ram expanders, no external >drives, nothing. They will not change their policies until they are >convinced (by their market info.) that accelerators, extra ram, etc. are >the rule, not the exception. Since many companies base this on their >registered owners' responses, your boycott not only deprives you of good ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ >software but insures that manufacturers won't change their behavior. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ This is the biggest line of BS I've ever heard related to this problem. It's like saying, ``Oh well, I don't the new favor of Coke(tm), I go buy tons of it so the Coke-a-cola Co will listen to me on how to change the mixure.'' Haha You have this point exactly backwards, my friend. Also, I might argue that it is not good software, if it does not run on my system in a friendly way. I will spare the detail of this as we just talked about this issue a few months ago... In any event, you've missed the point, I'm really mad that they had to the balls to make the PC version HD installable, but not the Amiga version. DMA design is making Amiga owners feel like second class computer owners with this decision. That is why I'm so mad. > First, the goal of copy protection is to discourage the common user >from reproducing the software. No protection method will stop a good >hacker, but the average user (with his stock A500) can't copy something >unless one of the copy programs does it. This gives software months in the >marketplace. Pirate BBS's threaten this, but the number of modem owners >is still low enough (and the numbers difficult enough to find) that it >isn't a problem. Humm, last time I checked the lookup the word in the manual method worked quite well. At least many US game makers are using it now. > Second, no analogy to the current PC market is valid. With 20+ million >MSDOS platforms out there, any PC product can afford dramatically higher >piracy rates and still sell more pieces of software than there are Amiga >computers. Back when the PC market was around 2 million, software >(including lotus, wordperfect and games) was copy-protected anyway. > > In conclusion, software companies listen to the people that buy their >software, not the ones that would "if..." The surest way to convince a I have bought and currently own in excess of ten Psygnosis titles, your above point and this conclusion are obviously wrong because they haven't listened to me or people like me yet! I have bought their software, they haven't changed, thus I'm stopping. If they want my business, they can at least treat me like they are now treating PC buyers. This mean allow for HD installation. It's that easy. >manufacturer to leave the market is to stop buying its product, especially >since all these companies can sell ten times more product in their MSDOS Well, I'm not going to buy their wares anymore, so no skin off my back. ``Good riddance,'' I'd say. >lines. You will miss out on a great game for the Amiga by not buying Read, whatever you want into this: Just because I'm not buying Lemmings, does not mean I won't enjoy it. [Note: I don't condone piracy in any form in general, but in this case I might make an exception.] >Lemmings, and your attitude will certainly not improve the situation for >anyone in the Amiga Community. No, you got it backwards again, the situation won't improve unless people like me keep keep my attitude. People with your attitude are just riding along with the status quo. > John Kominetz > >disclaimer: These are my opinions and may not reflect those of Commodore. Boy, let's hope not! Loren J. Rittle -- ``NewTek stated that the Toaster *would not* be made to directly support the Mac, at this point Sculley stormed out of the booth...'' -A scene at the recent MacExpo. Gee, you wouldn't think that an Apple Exec would be so worried about one little Amiga Device... Loren J. Rittle l-rittle@uiuc.edu