Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!UIAMVS.BITNET!AWCTTYPA From: AWCTTYPA@UIAMVS.BITNET ("David A. Lyons") Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple Subject: Apple IIGS future Message-ID: <8812261547.aa26080@SMOKE.BRL.MIL> Date: 27 Dec 88 06:59:49 GMT Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Organization: The Internet Lines: 86 X-Unparsable-Date: Monday 26 Dec 88 2:47 PM CT >Date: Fri, 23 Dec 88 11:21:05 GMT >From: Christopher Hassell >Subject: Apple II Future [Decl. of Annexation / NEW IIgs+ Dsgn: Long] >[...] For the Apple computer to survive we must kill some of the >demons forcing it into the 3-M mold. > >For memory - There must be better ways to organize firmware. I would >like to discuss this if anyone wants to. Firmware could handle the >Constantly Duplicated problems/algor[i]thms out there. Once again >j'accuse the op-sys for striving too much for too complex a method of >clipboarding. I think the toolbox is an _awesome_ way to organize firmware. It's easily patchable, extendable, has a simple & consistent interface...what's your complaint? That it doesn't do _everything_ you could ever want? Can't argue with that, but there are other mechanisms provided by the system: libraries, for example. What's wrong with the way the clipboard (scrap manager) works on the GS, other than that very few programs bother supporting it properly? It's not complicated; it's neat. (Works well on the Mac, no?) >What about stuff like Unix has? In Unix files can be stuffed >*anywhere* from anywhere. programs provided> Bingo! Because of simple redirection from an O/S > endless conversions/movements could be made >Unnecessary! [note "abilities" of standard system would be amplified >& costs-reduced by this] If you have some ideas on how to implement the equivalent of redirection and pipes in a desktop environment, I'd like to hear them. I _don't_ think it would be a terribly good idea to standardize on ascii-formatted data for all interprogram communication. The two currently-defined "scrap types" (things that can be on the clipboard) are TEXT and PICT. PICT is a very flexible format that is basically a sequence of recorded QuickDraw calls; expressing it as text would be a lot less efficient. >I DON'T SEE why you couldn't go all the way and get a second processor. >This IS the Trend Of The Future. Ah, but introducing another processor also makes everything more complicated, which isn't a good thing. I think we ought to concentrate on the operating system and toolbox and on getting programmers to _follow standards_ when they can. I'm thinking particularly of the Clipboard and of Desk Accessories here. And, of course, there are lots of utilities that need to be written (GS/OS versions of things that people are still using ProDOS 8 for, among other things): font editor, disk editor, disk repair, decent disk-copy, a _FAST_ linker, etc. And people just generally need to avoid doing Stupid Things when they write software...for example, Tetris allocates $012000...019FFF for doing animation (shadows onto $E12000), but if that memory is already in use, they use it anyway. It doesn't even check for an error code when requesting the memory. >Small conclusion: > NOW does anyone see why we should commandeer the R & D dept? Nope, _I_ don't. I certainly encourage everybody to give their comments to R&D, but what we need at this point it to clean up what we have (stomp hard on any remaining toolbox bugs, work for more speed in the toolbox [this will benefit the zillions of people who _already_ own IIgs's & don't particularly want to pay for a new motherboard]), and most importantly get third-party developers to make their software fit into the system nicely (supporting CDAs, clipboard, and [if a Desktop applicaton] NDAs, and _not_ requring a reboot before or after using their software! That's not too much to ask, is it?). I wouldn't mind seeing a new ROM releasted w/ more tools in it; this will save a little boot time. A resource manager and maybe an International Utilities package would be keen, too, and I sincerely hope these & other things are in the works. I think _software_ stuff is what we need most right now, not new hardware that's going to make software _more_ complicated. >{rutgers!sunybcs,ncar,nbires}!boulder!tramp!hassell (I'm there somewhere) --David A. Lyons bitnet: awcttypa@uiamvs DAL Systems CompuServe: 72177,3233 P.O. Box 287 GEnie mail: D.LYONS2 North Liberty, IA 52317 AppleLinkPE: Dave Lyons