Just finished reading the new issue. The editorial and Chris's rant and rave hit right home for me. I use Warp 3 at home and at work (I filled out the questionnaire twice, the Pentium system is at work). I also have Win95 installed at home. I find that my OS/2 system at home is running 98% of the time. The other 2% is to go into '95 to use a GIF Animator. I really haven't seen a good one for OS/2 yet.
At work, OS/2 is up 100% of the time. I have to laugh at the other people when they try to do several things under '95 (like copying files in the background or formating a floppy in the background) and something else.
OS/2 churns and can format/copy in the background much more efficiently than ANY Windoze variant. In fact, one of my co-workers uses '95 & NT and hates them both. He wants to use OS/2, but says he is too lazy to take the time to install it. Then he sees my system (I use Object Desktop 1.0) and is amazed on how many items I have running.
I agree, that users are wasting time stating OS/2 is dead. I have found applications for every item I want to do (except a decent gif animator :-). I use Watcom's , Borland's and GCC C compiler for OS/2, I use all OS/2 base internet stuff and Will use Star Office 4.0 (I am using the 3.1 beta) when the US/English language version is released. Then I read the article by Martin Alfredsson regarding the future of Warp. I think it's time for me to get Warp 4 (of course I have to get another Pentuim! :-).
So what is it you do that OS/2 hums on? Internet access, then okay. But for wordprocessing or spreadsheets, I haven't found any acceptable OS/2 software.
Not only should Windows devotees cease proclaiming the death of OS/2 and its utter unsuitability to task for--as they're so well positioned to gauge--its users' needs; they should likewise lay off of Mac OS, Linux, Hurd, *BSD, etc. users as well. As long as Microsoft has an array of us malcontents' business yet to earn, its OS-es will continue to incorporate (in zealots' circles, "steal") more of the best aspects of these other offerings, and its pricing structure will have to remain modest enough not to drive those with no particular love for their OS-es themselves (e.g., rational users and, hopefully, vendors) into one of these other folds. But maybe I just don't know marketing
Nicely done article. I enjoyed reading it immensely. I know what you mean when you use the term smooth ... My OS/2 is running very smoothly, there are more apps than I can buy (can you say Warped wallet) and all is well.
I have not run across too many people telling me not to use OS/2, but when I do ... I always tell them that everytime they do an ATM transaction or other banking transaction thay ARE using OS/2 and doesn't it run SMOOTHLY. Laughing ... Oh yes, and if they need further confirmation for a dead OS, I simply point to the recent acquirement of OS/2 Warp for the Bank of Hong Kong and its subsidiaries. Usually, the answer from the other person is "I didn't know that." It's a great way to make people "knowledgable."
I agree completely, for me the OS does everything I need to do, bar one thing. Sounds with SB64. I need this card for music, CLabs aren't going to make drivers for it, Will IBM?
Lumping the Cyrix 586 and 686 together in one group is like grouping the Intel 486 and Pentiums together. You really should separate the two.
This is a fair point. By the time we realized this, we had already started taking information from readers though so we have decided to leave the questionnaire as it is for now. We'll note your comments for the future though.
- editor
Responding to D. Lowenstein, who thinks that the WIN-OS2 support hurts the spread of Warp, I can only paraphrase a comment I read on one of the OS2 Compuserve forums a few months ago. Most people have a big investment in Windows 3.1 software. If we make the point that OS2 will run all their current programs, more reliably than Win95, and with superior multitasking capabilities, why wouldn't they at least consider it. In other words, if they are going to pay around $125 for a new operating system anyway, why not get the superior one?
The 50-60% of PC users who are still running Win 3.1 will, I think, respond favorably to such a pitch. The problem is getting anyone to point this out. I tried with our local newspaper columnist, and his response was "This is a Home Computing page. OS/2 is just for big business." Somehow that is the image that has to be overcome.
It looks like that just few hours after current issue of e-Zine! went on-line, someone from IBM read it and there is "new" update for TCP/IP stack available from their ftp server. It's at the same URL I mentioned in my article, but there is new subdirectory there called 'stack' with self-extracting bookmanager archive IC16782.EXE in it.
That same file is part of STACK40.ZIP I found at OS/2 SW BBS (I haven't downloaded it from IBM's server, but the number is the same). However, file from OS/2 SW BBS aslo contains self-extracting bookmanager archive named IC16782.EXE. It' quite smaller, containg only 3-4 core TCP/IP DLLs, but they are newer than those found in IC16063.EXE - one that IBM has finaly made publicly available.
The magazine has great articles. I will DL this new issue. The reason I send you this message is back to a subject I discussed with you sometime ago: *pdf format. I has just receive the Stardock magazine in *pdf format. I think is great. Not the content which I have not read yet but the format. This type of format print fast and allows you to have a nice adds. Besides the OS/2 acrobat it is working very well in my system. My printer is s PS so it may be different with PCL. You should consider this option again. Java programs are getting better and more useful. Why not having a column with description and possible tips of a Java program application in each issue?
I have a registered copy of MR/ICE2. I love this program. I encourage anyone looking for an OS2 email program to use this. It only costs $30 to register, and seeing its the FIRST shareware program that I've ever registered, I feel good about it. I feel good cuz I supported a program that I like and cuz I am (in theory) helping program developers creat more and better program for OS2.
Copyright © 1997 - Falcon Networking