Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!apple.com!blob
From: blob@apple.com (Brian Bechtel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: CD's available from Apple?
Message-ID: <1927@internal.Apple.COM>
Date: 17 May 89 17:47:57 GMT
References: <1384@ndmath.UUCP>
Sender: usenet@Apple.COM
Organization: Apple Computer, Inc.
Lines: 66

In article <1384@ndmath.UUCP> milo@ndmath.UUCP (Greg Corson) writes:
> I recently got a newsletter from Apple that talked about a couple of 
> developer-oriented CD's that will soon be available from Apple.  The 
> descriptions were pretty brief but one of the CD's was said to be full
> of "development tools" and "sample code" that would be updated every few
> months.

You're talking about Developer Helper(tm) Volume 1: Phil and Dave's 
Excellent CD.  I posted a brief description before; it's got 170 Mbytes of 
Mac files, 10 Mbtypes of Apple II files, and 28 minutes of audio.  It 
includes all our system software back to the 128K mac, almost all our 
foreign language software, all our peripherals software, a nice scattering 
of utilities such as ResEdit, all the DTS samples sources, and so on.

The audio isn't so hot; it was mastered from a cassette tape.  I think 
someone's still looking for the original master tapes...

> This sounds like a smart move to me...particularly if MPW and all the 
> INSIDE MAC chapters and technotes are on the CD.

Neither MPW nor Inside Macintosh are on the CD.

> Does anybody out there know
> what is ACTUALLY on these CD's and how much they will cost?

This CD will be updated roughly quarterly and will be sent out to everyone 
who receives our developer mailings.  I understand that they will make it 
available via APDA as well.  (I don't work for Developer Technical 
Support, so I can't say definitely.)  As soon as I find a price for 
non-certified developers, I'll post it.

> Personally, I think it would save Apple a ton of money to just send out 
> all the technotes, Inside Mac chapters, samples...etc on a CD every other 
> month.  They would save a ton of money on postage and printing, I'l wager  
> the average pack of Technotes costs MUCH more to produce on paper than the 
> $3 it would cost to make a CD.

Actually, the costs of pressing a CD are $1500 premastering charge plus 
$2.00 per CD.  This price seems to be pretty widely available; I know of 
at least six companies with this price structure (E-mail me if you want 
names).  At 9000 discs per pressing (we have 9000 certified developers) 
that's $2.17 per CD.  Yes, it costs considerably less to press the CD than 
any other distribution media, especially when you consider that you can 
put 660 Mbytes on a CD.

> Sure...I would have to by a CD-reader...but heck, by the time I buy all 
> the volumes of Inside Macintosh, the technotes and other materials, I've 
> spent close to the price of a CD-reader anyway!  Particularly when you 
> count all the wasted time hunting through the volumes of IM and the 
> technotes.

Certified developers will receive a coupon in the next mailing with a 
one-time offer of a VERY low price for the AppleCD SC drive.

> Please Apple...get with it!  You've been telling us for years how 
> hypertext, CD's, multimedia...etc are going to make our lives easier...
> how about a sample? 

Of course, we already provide a sample CD with our drive.  We're using 
CD-ROM inside Apple for many projects, and trying to get you folks out in 
the "real" world to consider it as well.  We've also handed out example 
CDs at several forums, such as the third Microsoft CD-ROM conference and
our recent World Wide Developer Conference.

--Brian Bechtel     blob@apple.com     "My opinion, not Apple's"
"I'll listen to reason when it comes out on compact disc."