Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!ukma!gatech!hao!ames!amdahl!oliveb!sun!pepper!cmcmanis
From: cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: V1.3 OS?
Message-ID: <42864@sun.uucp>
Date: 23 Feb 88 17:42:39 GMT
References: <34268R38@PSUVM>
Sender: news@sun.uucp
Reply-To: cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis)
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mountain View
Lines: 90

I can tell, 1.3 is going to be worse than 1.2 in this regard (rumors) 
the following stuff is mostly extracted from what the C/A folks say
on BIX. Note that they are suprisingly candid in their own conference
(amiga.dev) and if your a true rumor monger you won't mind paying for
your information ... :-)

In article <34268R38@PSUVM> R38@PSUVM.BITNET (aka Marc Rifkin) writes:
>Ok, I have heard rumors (Any pre-release info from CA comes as rumors...)
>about the upcoming V1.3 Operation System.  But which ones are true?
>Such as:
>      -Workbench get kicked out

One of the things mentioned were *NO* ROM changes. That makes kicking 
workbench out a little tough, it does not preclude having a workbench.library
on the disk but I think it is not to likely.

>      -Shell-like user interface

Don't know, but does it matter? I mean with ConMan, Metacomco Shell, 
Shell 2.07, and derivatives will a different CLI make you change?

>      -Better drivers
>         -Printers

This has been confirmed a couple of places, basically a new printer.device
and some new drivers that support better/faster graphics.

>         -Preferences control of
>      -Better graphics

I assume you have to select them some how :-)

>         -More support for:
>            -Overscan

Were you at the AmiExpo get together that Jimm hosted? He had some ideas and
got some feedback but the timeframe looked to me to be a lot later than 1.3.

>            -HAM

What is more support for HAM? Calls in AmigaBASIC? It's there, it works
I don't understand the intimation.

>            -1/2 brite

Same goes here.

>      -Less GURUS? (PLEASE!)

Argh. My machine running 1.2 *never* GURUs unless I make it GURU. If all I
do is run commercial software I have no problems here. Maybe you have some
flakey hardware? What does your machine run that crashes alot? 

>      -Disk access
>         -Floppy? Any better on reading filenames?

Reading filenames? You mean like enumerating directorys? No, I don't think
there will be any improvement until you can use the Fast File system on 
floppies.

>         -Fast Format - for HD's only?

Fast File system is in, I can only guess that a fast format routine would
be useful too. I hear that the FFS breaks the 52Meg barrier (makes it a 
2G barrier) and I sure as heck don't want to sit around for a day while
that thing formats :-)

>      And one thing I have to suggest:
>            -A *MUCH* better picture of the hand holding a disk
>             that should not say WORKBENCH (it should be a generic
>             looking boot disk)

I think it is kind of tough to be really creative with just line draws and
such. Now if they really put the image in ROM that would be one thing but 
since they don't ...

>Now all of those things are nice, but what I would very much like to know
>is 1) When will it be released?  2) Will new Amigas (500,2000) come with
>V1.3 once it is out?
>Thanks for clearing the mist...

Like I said, Commodore has emphatically denied that there would be any 
ROM changes in 1.3 so I suspect that the 500s/2000s of the world will
still come with 1.2 ROMS. Maybe they just want 500/2000 owners to experience
the joy of buying an 'Enhancer Pack'. In either event I don't think it
will be free. 

--Chuck McManis
uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis   BIX: cmcmanis  ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com
These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.