Xref: utzoo comp.sys.amiga:46937 comp.sys.ibm.pc:41456 comp.sys.mac:45673
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!aplcen!samsung!munnari.oz.au!sirius.ucs.adelaide.edu.au!levels!sahiways!peters
From: peters@sahiways.gov.au
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,comp.sys.ibm.pc,comp.sys.mac
Subject: Interface War! was: Xerox sues Apple!!
Message-ID: <848@sahiways.gov.au>
Date: 19 Dec 89 10:47:10 GMT
References: <6767@tank.uchicago.edu> <1989Dec17.112127.27333@me.toronto.edu> <14960@boulder.Colorado.EDU> <1989Dec17.223025.6618@me.toronto.edu> <1989Dec18.040441.30118@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu> <33269@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
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In article <33269@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>, kipnis@janus.Berkeley.EDU (Gary Kipnis) writes:
> Please give a single example of what you can do faster on a mac than on a pc.
> Do you call if faster clicking on the 'disk eject' icon and waiting forever
> for the machine to eject your floppy.  Do you call if faster clicking
> the mouse ten times just to get from one directory to another.  There 
> probably ISN'T a single command that you can perform faster with a mac than
> pc.

Ouch.

What this Gary doesn't seem to realise (and I _won't_ get nasty and say things
viz. levels of intelligence) is that most people prefer a GUI over a CLI
because there is more often than not more than one way of accomplishing a task.

The (now looking rather dated) Macintosh GUI was developed with this in mind,
and it also appears / appeared polished due to the presence of a graphic
designer on the original design team.  Can't say the same for most other GUIs.

Also, the Mac's system architecture allows users to tweak the GUI to their
liking by adding INITs and the like.  No other GUI can do this so easily and
transparently.

The clincher about which is faster (GUI vs. CLI) shouldn't be based upon a
task-by-task rating, but on an overall view.  The Mac is 'faster' than a CLI
based machine because of a strong adherence to interface guidlines across
almost all applications; learn one application thoroughly and you've learned
how to run 90% of all other applications just as thoroughly.  Productivity is
therefore increased, hence the 'faster' claim.

I own a Mac.  I'm an Apple techie.  I also work with IBM's, VAXes and (ecch)
Wangs.  I'm also a full IBM tech, Compaq tech and Toshiba tech.  I've been Prez
of a Mac user group, and Vice Prez of a local DOS user group.  I like to think
I know what I'm talking about; at least I keep an open mind.


I've spent about 80% of my logged computer time on machines with a CLI, but I
bought a Mac.  Why?  Because I'm more productive with one.


Geoff Peters