Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!bionet!ames!ncar!husc6!encore!xenna!paradis
From: paradis@xenna.Encore.COM (Jim Paradis)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.tandy
Subject: Re: Tandy/Radio Shack Printers
Message-ID: <7650@xenna.Encore.COM>
Date: 7 Jun 89 01:53:46 GMT
References: <16348@gryphon.COM> <1588@csm9a.UUCP>
Sender: news@Encore.COM
Reply-To: paradis@xenna.UUCP (Jim Paradis)
Organization: The Whizzo Chocolate Company
Lines: 47

In article <1588@csm9a.UUCP> japplega@csm9a.UUCP (Joe Applegate) writes:
>"Tandy, There are so many better values"

Y'know, I've been watching this go back && forth for a while, and I
have to say that for once in my life (Joe, are you sitting down?) I
find myself in total agreement with Joe Applegate.

Perhaps it's because I, like Joe, was burned by one of Tandy's earliest
MS-DOS offerings.... in my case it was the Tandy 2000.  Back then, Tandy
figgered it could do like it did before and keep all the marbles for
itself by designing proprietary (or semi-proprietary) machines and holding
a monopoly on peripherals and support.  Of course, in about this same
time-frame IBM's open architecture was starting to make PCs and peripherals
commodity items.  Tandy (slowly) recognized this, and most of their offerings
from the 1200 on were pretty PCompatible.  But when I owned the 2000, I had
nothing but headaches because not only was Tandy the only source of support,
but I too found nothing but "shoe salesmen" at the RS stores and computer
centers that I went to.  I mean, if I went in asking about something that
wasn't part of the "standard" package, these guys were totally lost.  I'm
not talking about anything esoteric either... I'm talking about, say, wanting
to hang a 20Mb hard disk off of my machine (Tandy only offered a 10).  For
these guys, the glossy catalog seemed to be the ONLY reference they had
available -- if it wasn't in there, it couldn't be done.  And then, of course,
they'd try to steer me towards what WAS available, regardless of whether it
was suitable for me or not (gotta get those commissions, y'know!).  I had
one salesman try to convince me that 10Mb was more storage than I'd EVER
need, and that it would take a LONG time to fill it up.  Maybe someone like
him who types in BASIC programs with two fingers and his nose, but for
anyone who does REAL computing there is NEVER enuff space!

And then there were the Tandy peripheral prices!  The hard disk upgrade for
the Tandy 2000 cost $1600 in 1985.  At the same time, a 20Mb hard disk kit
for the IBM-PC could be had for $500.  I even pointed out to the guys at
the computer center that they offered a WHOLE COMPUTER with a 10Mb disk
(the Tandy 1200, priced at about $1500) for less than the hard disk alone
for the 2000.  Nonetheless, NOTHING in the universe seems to be able to pry
a discount out of these guys...

I finally managed to offload my 2000 a couple years ago... and from now
on I REFUSE to set foot in a Radio Shack for computer goods...

Hell, Radio Shack just hasn't been the same since they stopped selling
P-Box[tm] kits...


Jim Paradis	paradis@encore.com		508-460-0500
(My other .signature is a witty saying)