Xref: utzoo comp.sys.mac.programmer:1973 comp.sys.mac:19101
Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!endor!singer
From: singer@endor.harvard.edu (Rich Siegel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer,comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: LS Pascal 2.0 Update price
Keywords: $50 ???
Message-ID: <5093@husc6.harvard.edu>
Date: 8 Aug 88 02:56:49 GMT
References: <232@sdeggo.UUCP>
Sender: news@husc6.harvard.edu
Reply-To: singer@endor.UUCP (Rich Siegel)
Organization: Symantec/THINK Technologies, Bedford, MA
Lines: 70

In article <232@sdeggo.UUCP> drew@sdeggo.UUCP (Drew Dean) writes:
>useful update....Now comes LS Pascal 2.0..... I have not received any info
>from Think or Symantec yet, and when I called earlier this week, I was told
>it would ship in September, all registered owners would receive a letter in
>late August, and it would cost $50.  $50!  This is for a product that

	a) It's August 8th now, not "late" August. As we speak, the letters
are being stuffed and mailed by two very hardworking ladies.

	b) The $50 upgrade includes a new product, new package, new manual,
and the salaries for the people to put it together.

>MacConnection is selling (last time I looked) for $65 !  I bet if I order it
>from MacConnection as soon as they get it, I'll get it faster than paying

	a) MacConnection can offer product cheaper because of volume pricing.

	b) Yes, you probably will get it faster. Updates are now handled
through Symantec's offices in California, and they have to deal with 
THINK C, THINK Pascal, Capps, SUM, TimeLine, Q&A, SQZ, and all the associated
stuff. They're five times bigger than THINK once was, and this kind of 
operation takes time.

>I am also upset because Think has let the libraries slip into a nearly
>useless state if you're trying to work with Volume 5 stuff.  

	When Lightspeed Pascal 1.11 came out, we provided the latest 
interfaces that were available. It's true we haven't updated the interfaces
since then, however.

>	Think also advertises Object Pascal support as being now, and in the
>	next sentence says ability to compile MacApp coming soon !  What

	No, the next sentence does NOT say "ability to compile MacApp coming
soon", it says "MacApp coming soon". In fact, the issues involved in porting
MacApp rest largely on the fact that Lightspeed Pascal  can only do
segmentation on a per-file basis instead of a per-procedure basis as in MPW.

>Come on, Think...your updates used to be free, but after your acquisition by
>Symantec, things seem to be changing....Why I remember I few short months
>ago the updates for LS C 2.13 & 2.15 coming over comp.binaries.mac....

	Yes, and I remember that as well. However, those updates were updates
that could be patched into existing copies, and were cheap and easy to 
distribute. Major new releases of software can not be patched in, and can't
be produced for nothing.

	To paraphrase an earlier post of Michael Kahl - during the product
histories of  THINK C and THINK Pascal, there have been various free patches
and updates, and during that time, the developers of THINK Technologies
have continued to be paid their salaries.

>To all those who are going to accuse me of mindless Think bashing:
	
FLAME ON
	I won't accuse you of THINK bashing, only of being mindless.
FLAME OFF

	My apologies for the above. Since I'm directly involved with Lightspeed
Pascal 2.0, I tend to get sensitive about such things.

		--Rich


Rich Siegel
Quality Assurance Technician
THINK Technologies Division, Symantec Corp.
Internet: singer@endor.harvard.edu
UUCP: ..harvard!endor!singer
Phone: (617) 275-4800 x305