Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!think.com!mintaka!geech.ai.mit.edu!rjc From: rjc@geech.ai.mit.edu (Ray Cromwell) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc Subject: Re: Amiga vs. Mac Message-ID: <1991Mar12.002957.23990@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu> Date: 12 Mar 91 00:29:57 GMT References: <1991Mar10.192823.30103@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu> <1991Mar10.204119.22113@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu> <4210.27db9aac@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu> Sender: daemon@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu (Lucifer Maleficius) Followup-To: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy Organization: The Internet Lines: 74 In article <4210.27db9aac@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu> rlcollins@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu (Ryan 'Gozar' Collins) writes: >In article <1991Mar10.204119.22113@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>, rjc@wookumz.ai.mit.edu (Ray Cromwell) writes: >> In article <1991Mar10.192823.30103@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu> es1@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (Ethan Solomita) writes: >>>In article jimb@amiglynx.UUCP (Jim Bednar) writes: >>>> >>>> The mac classic costs nowhere around the price of a amiga.. A classic lists >>>>for $999.00 and the Amiga 500 lists for $850.00.. Get your facts straight.. >>>>And why buy a Classic when an AMIGA can emulate it, hell it can emulate just >>>> >>>that we can dismiss it so easily as Jim Bednar did. The Mac >>>Classic sells for about $750 on educational pricing. You can get >> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ >> The A500 sells for $500 street price. Do you get Color with the Classic? >> A keyboard? >> >>>it with 2MB of RAM and a 40MB HD for $1,200 or so on educational >>>pricing. The A500 doesn't even compare to that price. If you get >>>an A500 with A590, for the same price you get 1MB of RAM and a >>>20MB HD. >> >> Why get an A590? There are plenty of other controllers out there, albeit >> not asfast as the 590/2091, but the SLOWEST DMA controller you can >> find for the Amiga will still beat the pants off a Mac Classic with >> its 6502 CPU controller. > >Its only the IIfx that has a 6502 controller in it. (Two as a matter of >fact) But these are not utilized except with System 7 or AUX Haha. So the Mac has no harddrive DMA whatsoever and all I/O is 100% CPU parasitic. >> The A500 can't be compared with the classic, because the classic is >> just too slow. The Amiga's custom chips, and color would have to be >> removed. > >To the market the A500 and classic is geared to, speed is not an issue, >only ease of use and marketbility. The Classic is ideal for education due >to the fact that it is compact and very easy to network. Speed is not an issue? Speed is always an issue. When I was in 8th grade the computer lab was 20 C64's networked together to 2 disk drives and 2 printers. It took 15 minutes to load a program so all the programs had to be preloaded by the lab assistant 15 minutes before the class begun. It took 20 minutes to get a print out. In education, where you teach computer programming, speed is an issue. If compiles take too long, the student won't be able to debug/finish his program in time. In Word processing, screen updates at such a slow speed will become tiresome. >Logically, to the new computer user, could you really recommend an Amiga >500 over a Mac Classic? (especially a computer neophyte?) I would, knowing that it would benefit him better in the long run. 2.0 roms will be out soon, they make finder look like a toy. Word processing isn't the only computer use ya know. Computers should also be fun, and pleasant to watch. The Amiga's grapics, sound and games look much better than the Classic's static 9" B&W monitor and boring interface. I have already recommended Amiga's to my friends, and personally converted 2 Mac users, 2 IBM users, and 1 Atari ST owner to Amigas. NONE of them regret their purchase. The Amiga 500 isn't the only Amiga computer, it's the cheapest model, however more and more Amiga owners are buying Amiga 2000s, accelerator boards and harddrives. IMHO, once you add a harddrive and memory to an Amiga, the Mac's performance falls way behind (power for price). >------------------------------------------------------------------------------ >Ryan 'Gozar' Collins Question for IBM Users: rlcollins@miavx1.BITNET > |||| Power Without How DO you move/copy a rc1dsanu@miamiu.BITNET > / || \ The Price!! Subdirectory? R.COLLINS1 on GEnie >------------------------------------------------------------------------------