Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!ncrlnk!ncrcce!mercer
From: mercer@ncrcce.StPaul.NCR.COM (Dan Mercer)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: NeXT Optical Drive/Magneto-Optics
Summary: NeXT not aimed at techies
Message-ID: <821@ncrcce.StPaul.NCR.COM>
Date: 17 Oct 88 16:39:44 GMT
References: <4XJgQly00Uw9049VhI@andrew.cmu.edu> <4489@polya.Stanford.EDU> <4004@phoenix.Princeton.EDU>
Reply-To: mercer@ncrcce.StPaul.NCR.COM (Dan Mercer)
Organization: NCR Comten, Inc.
Lines: 41


	I think most of the discussions I have read about the NeXT have
	missed the point.  The NeXT is not being aimed at techies,  nor
	at an eventual business workstation market.  Everything about
	it screams that it is aimed at the general college population,
	not at computer science students.  After all,  the competition
	for computer science machines is enormous,  with VAX and SUN
	holding big edges.

	But virtually no one has addressed the computing needs of
	Liberal Arts majors,  business majors,  and others.
	Why optical storage - because that way one machine can easily
	support the needs of dozens of students - without the complexities
	of network servers and file management and allotment.  Any
	student can carry around as much space as needed,  for only 
	$50 /256mb.  The way I envision the machines being used,
	is with system software on SCSI,  and banks of floptical
	libraries carrying reference works,  course demonstrations,
	library cataloques,  bibliographies.  Sending out the complete
	works of Shakespeare is a demonstration of the new capabilities
	the machine will bring.

	That's why no X - do that on a VAX.  NeXTSTeP (?) is designed
	so that non-programmers can put together applications cheaply
	and easily.  

	Actually,  I bet techies hate the machine.  The programming
	environment will not be challenging enough (not nearly as much
	fun as X),  it won't be fast enough by their standards (though
	any law student who gets to Shepardize on one will be plenty
	impressed by the speed,  as will someone writing a paper on
	Hemingway who has access,  online,  not only to all the works
	of Hemingway,  but also all the criticism).

	As NeXT infiltrates the academic community,  i expect it
	will generate some new ways of thinking.  Mostly,  I
	think it will generate Jobs more millions and yet another
	spot in the history books.

	Dan Mercer
	NCR Comten