Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!asuvax!noao!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!uwm.edu!ogicse!usenet! From: smithj@jacobs.cs.orst.edu (Jeremy Smith) Newsgroups: comp.sys.handhelds Subject: Rabid Jaguar Message-ID: <1991Feb26.182218.5494@lynx.CS.ORST.EDU> Date: 26 Feb 91 18:22:18 GMT Sender: @lynx.CS.ORST.EDU Organization: Oregon State University, CS Dept. Lines: 96 Nntp-Posting-Host: jacobs.cs.orst.edu Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa arrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!? Take a deep, deep breath. Go to line one. Repeat until asphyxiated. 40 columns? Who ever heard of such a thing? When did YOU last use a computer with 40 columns? Commodore PET, Tandy model 100, Coleco Adam, Atari 400? Much BBS software often caters to kids with such machines by having a 40 column mode. 40 columns by _16_lines_! Nah? No. Nooooooo! <> As garyf@jpl-devvax.JPL.NASA.GOV (Gary Friedman) said last may on c.s.h: > Hewlett Packard's calculator division was famous for introducing > small, incredibly powerful computers with such inadequate > keyboards and screens, severely curtailing access to an > uncharacteristically powerful operating system. There was an article in InfoWorld just a few month ago with a full frontal color photograph of a psychologist hired by HP to help with the human-computer interface. Do they find people who LIKE 40 columns? <> This is an interim machine. This is like the HP-28 being a stop gap until they could build the 48. When the machine is built, and it sells like hot cakes, and makes tons of money they'll go back and build the machine they intended (read - I really wanted): same size, bigger keyboard, 25 x 80 screen (industry standard - minimum), >=12MHz 80286, 1M RAM and various optional plug in goodies that represent word processing, spreadsheet, database and communications, but operate the same as the built in 1-2-3 - press one key to invoke it. I know. I'm raving on about an unannounced product. Someone had to do it. But these are my real reactions to what I've seen in print (PCWeek _8_ #5 p1 2/4/91, InfoWorld _13_ #7 p3 2/18/91 and both posted in full on c.s.h). Yet despite my misgivings this is the machine I've been waiting for for a decade. The {Portfolio, BOSS, AgendA, Wizard} and {poqet} didn't cut it for one inadequate reason or an($)other. I've already put in my order, but I'm also waiting impatiently for Big Brother. -- Jeremy |-) Smith smithj@jacobs.cs.orst.edu