Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!rutgers!rochester!cornell!batcomputer!itsgw!steinmetz!ge-dab!ge-rtp!edison!rja
From: rja@edison.GE.COM (rja)
Newsgroups: comp.software-eng
Subject: Re: Cynic's Guide to SE #6: Forthcoming Revolt
Summary: productivity & choices of systems and tools
Message-ID: <1658@edison.GE.COM>
Date: 30 Sep 88 11:42:53 GMT
References: <9@helens.stanford.edu>
Organization: GE-Fanuc North America
Lines: 27

In response to neff@helens.Stanford.EDU (Randall B. Neff)'s 
comments on graphic interfaces, and micros vs. superminis/mainframes:

The real trick is to scale the computer used to the job at hand.  Using 
micro computers in CS courses where relatively small pieces of code are
being written is often more appropriate than using superminis/mainframes.
On the other hand as the programs get larger, the superminis make much more
sense than micros -- especially if a large 'make' is what happens.  The tools
provided with most dialects of UNIX ( troff, pic, tbl, etc.) can produce
graphics more than adequate for anything I've needed to do and the source
files are portable to any troff, pic, etc. not just the same brand of pc
or Macintosh.

Graphical interfaces aren't everything.  I find that mice are annoying
because they make me take my hands off of the 'home row' of the keyboard.
That is why I use WordPerfect at home not MS Word.  A good command line
interface or shell ( ksh leaps to mind ) makes me much more productive
and happy than mice and windows ever will.  I'd much rather have a 17"
monocrome display with 35-50 lines of text than a smaller one that does
graphics and colour.

Disclaimer:  My first computer was a PDP-11, the terminal was a DECwriter,
             and the editor was TECO as I recall.
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