Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!lll-winken!taco!hobbes.catt.ncsu.edu!kdarling From: kdarling@hobbes.catt.ncsu.edu (Kevin Darling) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy Subject: Re: What the heck IS "Interactive TV"? (long) Message-ID: <1991Apr12.022130.3180@ncsu.edu> Date: 12 Apr 91 02:21:30 GMT References: <1991Apr11.090415.5276@ncsu.edu> <1991Apr11.143222.13728@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu> Sender: news@ncsu.edu (USENET News System) Organization: North Carolina State University Lines: 47 In <1991Apr11.143222.13728@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu> rjc@geech.gnu.ai.mit.edu (Ray Cromwell) writes: > I'm going to play Devil's Advocate here and say that I don't think > interactive TV will be the next revolutionary home device. Surprise: you're not alone in thinking that. This question has been pondered for over half a decade now, and reams of marketing surveys, interviews, books, and forecasts have been written about it. Hard to tell for sure; altho again, one _good_ experience sells one on I-TV. > People are used to being passive watchers/listeners. People usually > don't interact with TV/CD Players. It may be a 'neat' thing, but I > think I-TV players will collect dust in the majority of American homes. > Kids may use it to play games, or education. The family may use it for > a library, but most people will still prefer to watch normal TV. Perhaps. OTOH, there are now a great many people who grew up with TV as a familiar appliance, and also it should be noted that a growing percentage of home gameplayers are adults... I don't think that is because they are really into games; that's just all there is right now. Anyway, there are already a lot of people already used to some I-TV. > I think I-TV players will mostly be used for games and info retrieval. > This is where CDTV steals the market. The Amiga has by far the best > games on the market. This library can be ported easily. I think the problem is that Amigans look at I-TV from a viewpoint of porting Amiga stuff, and that is too simplistic. As for games, there are plenty of _really_ good, cheap game machines out there now. To take advantage of the extra space on CDROM would take a lot of extra authoring. Personally, I think that home users will find most interest in travel discs. Games are common, videotapes are common, but interactive touring is new. In any case, all this is moot until some time has passed. > Sure CD-I has better specs, and is backed up by major Japanese companies. > So what? The C64 stood up to the same kind of opposition, and won! [enter rare sarcastic mode] Oh great. An argument for pushing mediocrity. "Sure, the Amiga has better specs than the IBMs, but so what? The PC won!" I can accept most other arguments to back any system, but to actually promote less capable hardware for the masses because of lame brandname loyalty, is not what I expected, especially _here_ of all places. It's a little disappointing. And scary. sadly - kev