Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!udel!rochester!pt.cs.cmu.edu!o.gp.cs.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!mc4c+ From: mc4c+@andrew.cmu.edu (Mark Choi) Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st Subject: Re: Two New Computer Announcements - CeBIT Message-ID: Date: 25 Mar 91 20:27:59 GMT References: <1991Mar17.095612.26923@ariel.unm.edu> <2867@atari.UUCP> , <1991Mar25.083131.71@tamar.compserv.utas.edu.au>, Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Lines: 29 In-Reply-To: Just thought of something. Could it be that perhaps Atari is doing the IBM/PCjr. mistake, and trying to protect sales of the STacy by leaving the notebook lacking in certain departments, thus making it not capable of use in some fields where the STacy will be the only Atrai choice. Stupid, if so. With MIDI, you would think that Atari means this baby to be used with sound, but without a cartridge port, you eliminate all the main commercial sound digitizers. Also this suggestes that the speculation that this thing is based on the STe mother board is just plain false. With no external monitor, what good is an extended colour palette. If it can only use monaural sound, assuimg it even has one speaker, then what good is stereo DMA PCM. What gives? Who is supposed to use this thing, anyway. I am sick and tired of Atari making MIDI controllers, and not better computers. The MIDI market is small and starting to bail to other platforms, so Atrai had better try to find some other niche. Video->Amiga DTP/Word processing->Mac Business/numbers/accounting->PC's Education->Apple II/Mac classic/Mac IILC MIDI->Atari/Mac They don't even have the largest share of the MIDI market anymore. I know th ST can be *used* in these other fields, but it is not versitile enough, and nopt good enough in any of these fields, except DTP/MIDI to really catch on. The hardware is O.K. for a lot of it, but the software/OS stinks. And since when is 320X400 graphics considered acceptable. Not even for NTSC, especially with only 16 colours. To whom is Atari trying to sell these? All this comes down to is that the note book had better have a minimum of STE compatibility, or it will be a dog form the word go, everywhere else but Deutschland. Zu Schlecht!