Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!cs.utexas.edu!ut-emx!ccwf.cc.utexas.edu
From: greg@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Greg Harp)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc
Subject: Re: AMIGA DEMOS: Europe VS. USA
Keywords: demos
Message-ID: <47729@ut-emx.uucp>
Date: 23 Apr 91 19:36:19 GMT
References: <20691@brahms.udel.edu>
Sender: news@ut-emx.uucp
Reply-To: greg@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Greg Harp)
Organization: The University of Texas at Austin
Lines: 40

In article <20691@brahms.udel.edu> jon@brahms.udel.edu (Jon Deutsch) writes:
>
>-- Europeans tend to walk on the wild side of coding,
>   while Americans are happy making their nifty utilities and short movies.

This is one I've never been able to figure out.  It seems that Europeans and
Americans have always been at odds about whether one should stick to the
rules.  In the States we tend to scorn breaking the rules, and in Europe they
think we're crazy.  Maybe it's a cultural thing.  The same goes for software
piracy.  Most Americans look down on it (some do while quietly playing their
pirated games :) while Europeans tend to think nothing of it.  Please note
that I'm not saying that Europeans are horrible people or anything.  I'm just
noting differences in our societies.

>-- Europeans tend to display more graphic, production, and music
>   talent than Americans do in their code.

I agree that Europeans tend to put more flash and music into their demos, but
most of it seems to be techinical skill.  At least as MHO, much of it isn't
very original, though.  I've heard about a dozen original-sounding songs in
demos, and all the rest are kind of same-old, same-old.  Also, the rotating
shapes and ga-zill-o-bob demos are getting pretty old.

>-- Europeans seem to get the 'head start' on computing, seeing that the
>   average demo-writer in Europe is still in his teens.

I'm not sure that's much different than over here in the States, though.  Eric
Schwartz is still in his teens, I believe.  Ben Owen (many of you may not
recognize the name, but check out his two animations "Flyer" and "Flyer II" at
the ab20 archive in /amiga/graphics/anims/BenOwen -- more to come) is still in
high school.

One of the reasons I think more productivity software comes out of the US and
more demos/games come out of Europe is that over here we're all trying to make
a buck.  We're greedy.  :)

-- 
       Greg Harp       |"I was there to match my intellect on national TV,
                       | against a plumber and an architect, both with a PhD."
greg@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu|            -- "I Lost on Jeopardy," Weird Al Yankovic