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From: thomsen@spf.trw.com (Mark R. Thomsen)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: NeXT in June issue of BYTE
Message-ID: <28447389.2A74@deneva.sdd.trw.com>
Date: 30 May 91 03:37:44 GMT
References: <1991May27.033207.28372@math.ucla.edu>
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Organization: TRW Inc., Redondo Beach, CA
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Barry Merriman writes
  
  NeXT makes a big appearance in the latest (June 1991) BYTE magazine.

  So, finally NeXT gets some good PR from BYTE (which normally writes
  as if an "ALR FlexCache 486" PC clone were the state of the art in
  computers)---that should make a bit of bump in their already healthy
  sales figures.

It is good to see some reasonably good press for NeXT. That hack job
in Forbes last month was pitiful. However Forbes does not influence
as much 'conventional wisdom' as Byte, so let's us hope that the
balance is still slightly positive for NeXT.

Sales continue healthy says my contacts. NeXTstation Color is actually
selling neck and neck with NeXTstation. NeXTdimension is in the chute
and will boost sales again. Most people I talk to are glad of the NeXT
they bought (with nits), so the word of mouth seems positive.

Actually, sales as a rate (machines/month) have approached Sun's rate
in late '86, early '87. I wonder of the acceleration is closing. I have
noticed that my local Sun rep is paying much closer attention to our
NeXTs, what we are doing with them, and why we buy them instead of
Sun. (TRW was reputed to be the #1 sales channel a year or two ago
for Sun, so I can see why we might get attention now).

Gary L. Crum writes

  And, both Steve Jobs and Jim Clark seem to have the vision of
  making new types of technology very accessible.

Speaking of SGI and NeXT in the same breath, BTW, reminds me that
Norm Miller was the key engineer in SGI's Personal Iris design and
early NeXTdimension work (circa 1989). He deserves a round of
applause for two reasonably affordable color systems with good
dimensions (pixels, bits per pixel), together with the other
engineers who made vision into something we can buy. There is not
much offering as much as SGI and NeXT for the price (though NeXT
has it all over in software on top of the OS).

Mark R. Thomsen