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  #31  
Old May 20th 15, 04:13 AM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Ken Springer[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,817
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 5/19/15 6:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


WordPad question, Ken...

I think I read somewhere, a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far,
away, that WordPad was developed or something similar from the old
Microsoft Write program. Is my memory faulty or correct?



--
Ken
Mac OS X 10.8.5
Firefox 36.0.4
Thunderbird 31.5
"My brain is like lightning, a quick flash
and it's gone!"
Ads
  #32  
Old May 20th 15, 02:53 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Slimer
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 300
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 2015-05-19 7:17 PM, Keith Nuttle wrote:
On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.


It lacks spelling and grammar checking but if you don't mind that,
Wordpad is perfectly capable.

--
Slimer
Encrypt.
  #33  
Old May 20th 15, 02:54 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Slimer
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 300
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.

My only gripe with Word is that the "define" option (to ensure proper
use of a word) requires an installation of Internet Explorer. It says
that it supports Firefox and other browsers but doesn't.


--
Slimer
Encrypt.
  #34  
Old May 20th 15, 03:20 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Neil Gould[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 167
Default Data Microsoft collects

Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/19/15 6:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little
but seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use
WordPerfect or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


WordPad question, Ken...

I think I read somewhere, a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far,
away, that WordPad was developed or something similar from the old
Microsoft Write program. Is my memory faulty or correct?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Write

WordPad is a step above NotePad, but well below MS Write in terms of
capability.

--
best regards,

Neil



  #35  
Old May 20th 15, 03:31 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Ken Springer[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,817
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 5/20/15 8:20 AM, Neil Gould wrote:
Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/19/15 6:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little
but seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use
WordPerfect or Wordpad.


We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


WordPad question, Ken...

I think I read somewhere, a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far,
away, that WordPad was developed or something similar from the old
Microsoft Write program. Is my memory faulty or correct?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Write

WordPad is a step above NotePad, but well below MS Write in terms of
capability.


Thanks, Neil, just what I wanted to know. I actually have WordPerfect
for the Atari, and a computer that should run it. The comment about
software piracy is/was all too true about the Atari computing world, and
no doubt contributed to the demise of the platform.


--
Ken
Mac OS X 10.8.5
Firefox 36.0.4
Thunderbird 31.5
"My brain is like lightning, a quick flash
and it's gone!"
  #36  
Old May 20th 15, 03:39 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Keith Nuttle
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,844
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 5/20/2015 9:54 AM, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.

My only gripe with Word is that the "define" option (to ensure proper
use of a word) requires an installation of Internet Explorer. It says
that it supports Firefox and other browsers but doesn't.


The reason I use WordPerfect is the editing of the format codes. (Reveal
Codes). It makes resolving problem formatting codes very easy.

When I was editing documents when the company went private under a
different name I used MS Word. I don't know how many hours I spent
trying to resolve problem formatting problems. These documents were
years old, had been edited by many people, and probably had gone through
several updates as MS change the MS word Format.

In many cases the only way to correct the problem was to copy the
document to Notepad, saved it, recopied it to MS Word, and reformatted
the whole document.

It is so much easier in Word perfect to work with the reveal codes to
correct these problems.


  #37  
Old May 20th 15, 03:49 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Ken Blake, MVP[_4_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,699
Default Data Microsoft collects

On Tue, 19 May 2015 21:13:28 -0600, Ken Springer
wrote:

On 5/19/15 6:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


WordPad question, Ken...

I think I read somewhere, a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far,
away, that WordPad was developed or something similar from the old
Microsoft Write program. Is my memory faulty or correct?




I think it's correct.

  #38  
Old May 20th 15, 03:52 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Ken Blake, MVP[_4_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,699
Default Data Microsoft collects

On Wed, 20 May 2015 09:54:45 -0400, Slimer wrote:

On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.



Any two people have different opinions on lots of things. That's fine;
you're entitled to your opinion, but I couldn't disagree with you
more.

  #39  
Old May 20th 15, 07:56 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Good Guy[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,354
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 20/05/2015 00:17, Keith Nuttle wrote:
On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little
but seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use
WordPerfect or Wordpad.


Why don't you use Online Version of Microsoft Word? It is free to
everybody with a Hotmail, Live, or Outlook account. These are all free
Microsoft's email accounts which can be used as Microsoft Account for
everything. You don't need a passport or a driving license to open an
account so you know what to do if your privacy is concerned!!.

Best regards,



  #40  
Old May 20th 15, 08:00 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Good Guy[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,354
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 20/05/2015 14:54, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.



We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.



WordPerfect is not for serious users using something as tool for
business. All corporates I know of are using Microsoft Office and so
they all can't be wrong.








  #41  
Old May 20th 15, 08:09 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Good Guy[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,354
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 20/05/2015 15:39, Keith Nuttle wrote:
On 5/20/2015 9:54 AM, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little
but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use
WordPerfect
or Wordpad.


We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.

My only gripe with Word is that the "define" option (to ensure proper
use of a word) requires an installation of Internet Explorer. It says
that it supports Firefox and other browsers but doesn't.


The reason I use WordPerfect is the editing of the format codes.
(Reveal Codes). It makes resolving problem formatting codes very easy.

When I was editing documents when the company went private under a
different name I used MS Word. I don't know how many hours I spent
trying to resolve problem formatting problems. These documents were
years old, had been edited by many people, and probably had gone
through several updates as MS change the MS word Format.


You really need to learn Word properly. Word is the simplest tool to
edit and format no matter how old is your document and whether it is DOS
version or old versions of any good word processor package.


In many cases the only way to correct the problem was to copy the
document to Notepad, saved it, recopied it to MS Word, and reformatted
the whole document.


Have you thought of learning Word because this is not the way to do
things. There is something called "Paste Special" and you can paste
almost anything without any formatting associated with the text. You
really need to spend some time learning Word properly. There should be
no excuse that you don't have time to do this because you have time
especially if you are wasting lots of time editing a documents using
something that can be done in 5 minutes.


It is so much easier in Word perfect to work with the reveal codes to
correct these problems.



Never used Wordperfect so can't comment on this. I have blocked people
using non-standard software in my department as support costs rises when
you have many different packages to support. Microsoft Office is the
standard package in my department.





  #42  
Old May 20th 15, 08:13 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Slimer
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 300
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 2015-05-20 10:31 AM, Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/20/15 8:20 AM, Neil Gould wrote:
Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/19/15 6:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little
but seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use
WordPerfect or Wordpad.


We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.

WordPad question, Ken...

I think I read somewhere, a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far,
away, that WordPad was developed or something similar from the old
Microsoft Write program. Is my memory faulty or correct?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Write

WordPad is a step above NotePad, but well below MS Write in terms of
capability.


Thanks, Neil, just what I wanted to know. I actually have WordPerfect
for the Atari, and a computer that should run it. The comment about
software piracy is/was all too true about the Atari computing world, and
no doubt contributed to the demise of the platform.


I've read and watched a lot of videos about the Atari ST platform and I
frankly couldn't understand how it failed. Its operating system was fast
(unlike AmigaOS) and very simple to use. Whether you had an HD or not
made no difference because it was in ROM (unlike its competitor). It
couldn't multitask like AmigaOS, but things of the sort weren't as
valuable at a time when processors could barely handle multitasking
anyway. It worked with a monitor or on your TV, provided MIDI
connections and had a good amount of software as well as a competent
sound chip. It also cost less than a Mac and could run its software
provided you bought the necessary hardware.

It HAD to be software piracy. I truly don't understand what else could
have gone wrong because they also focused on releasing ever more
compelling versions of the ST unlike Amiga. It is incredibly sad to see
what happened to a platform which honestly seemed superior to the PC
until at least 1988.

--
Slimer
Encrypt.
  #43  
Old May 20th 15, 08:14 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Slimer
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 300
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 2015-05-20 10:39 AM, Keith Nuttle wrote:
On 5/20/2015 9:54 AM, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect
installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little but
seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use WordPerfect
or Wordpad.


We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.


I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.

My only gripe with Word is that the "define" option (to ensure proper
use of a word) requires an installation of Internet Explorer. It says
that it supports Firefox and other browsers but doesn't.


The reason I use WordPerfect is the editing of the format codes. (Reveal
Codes). It makes resolving problem formatting codes very easy.

When I was editing documents when the company went private under a
different name I used MS Word. I don't know how many hours I spent
trying to resolve problem formatting problems. These documents were
years old, had been edited by many people, and probably had gone through
several updates as MS change the MS word Format.

In many cases the only way to correct the problem was to copy the
document to Notepad, saved it, recopied it to MS Word, and reformatted
the whole document.

It is so much easier in Word perfect to work with the reveal codes to
correct these problems.


The fact that the .WPD format it uses hasn't changed since the early 90s
should also help.


--
Slimer
Encrypt.
  #44  
Old May 20th 15, 08:21 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Keith Nuttle
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,844
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 5/20/2015 3:00 PM, Good Guy wrote:
On 20/05/2015 14:54, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-05-19 8:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:

e, much better than Microsoft Office.

I own licenses to both and have to disagree with you. WordPerfect is
better as long as you only use text. The moment you need to manipulate
images in WordPerfect, it becomes clear how outdated it is. In that
respect, Word is a lot better.



WordPerfect is not for serious users using something as tool for
business. All corporates I know of are using Microsoft Office and so
they all can't be wrong.


I beleive Word Perfect is prefered by the legal profession, with their
complex documents.

  #45  
Old May 20th 15, 09:36 PM posted to alt.comp.os.windows-8
Ken Springer[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,817
Default Data Microsoft collects

On 5/20/15 1:13 PM, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-05-20 10:31 AM, Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/20/15 8:20 AM, Neil Gould wrote:
Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/19/15 6:55 PM, Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Tue, 19 May 2015 19:17:53 -0400, Keith Nuttle
wrote:

On 5/19/2015 7:02 PM, Slimer wrote:


One capable, the other worthless. Can you tell which is which?


I was setting up my new Windows 8.1 tablet, and did not have
WordPerfect installed yet, and need a word processor.

To my surprise the DOS? wordprocessor MS Wordpad is include in the
basic program provided with Windows 8/8.1. I only used it a little
but seems a useful and up to date word processor.

So you don't have to go with MS Word, or Libre, but can use
WordPerfect or Wordpad.


We have *very* different opinions on this. As far as I'm concerned,
WordPad is not a real word processor, but is little more than a text
editor. But WordPerfect is far and away the best word processor
available, much better than Microsoft Office.

WordPad question, Ken...

I think I read somewhere, a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far,
away, that WordPad was developed or something similar from the old
Microsoft Write program. Is my memory faulty or correct?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Write

WordPad is a step above NotePad, but well below MS Write in terms of
capability.


Thanks, Neil, just what I wanted to know. I actually have WordPerfect
for the Atari, and a computer that should run it. The comment about
software piracy is/was all too true about the Atari computing world, and
no doubt contributed to the demise of the platform.


I've read and watched a lot of videos about the Atari ST platform and I
frankly couldn't understand how it failed. Its operating system was fast
(unlike AmigaOS) and very simple to use. Whether you had an HD or not
made no difference because it was in ROM (unlike its competitor). It
couldn't multitask like AmigaOS, but things of the sort weren't as
valuable at a time when processors could barely handle multitasking
anyway. It worked with a monitor or on your TV, provided MIDI
connections and had a good amount of software as well as a competent
sound chip. It also cost less than a Mac and could run its software
provided you bought the necessary hardware.


There were some multitasking options available for the ST/TT computers.
One was called MultiTOS eventually, IIRC, and although I never used
it, I remember it getting nice reviews. Another was called MiNT, which
I never used. I think it was actually a version of Linux. There were a
couple of cooperative multitasking desktops, and one was called Geneva,
which I have installed on my Hades060 clone. I really liked what I
could do with it from a user perspective.

Since TOS was single tasking, to do something like Geneva, you had to
have a boot manager program that ran at boot up, where you could
selectively pick software that would run when you wanted to do some
particular work. Most users today would find that to be a PITA, but
back then, it couldn't be beat. Once I installed Geneva, and discovered
the wonders of multitasking, I knew that was the only way for my
computer uses to evolve. Multitasking fits the way I think.

There were also alternative desktops, so if you didn't like the
simplistic Atari desktop, based on the GEM desktop, you could have
something that was more flexible and more sophisticated in many ways.

Then there were accessories, that I think worked like task switching on
PCs. I never used task switchers so I don't know for sure. The Atari
accessories would read the contents of RAM, store it to the hard drive,
and then load a previously saved RAM session, and you would be right
back at the spot you were working when you saved the RAM session. Not
multitasking per se, but getting close.

MIDI... Never used it for music, but I've heard it was a long, long
time before anything on the PC or Mac surpassed those abilities. You
could even network two Atari computers together using the MIDI ports. I
had an ST1040 and Mega4 connected this way and still have the cables.
Slow by today's standards, but better than the alternative of sneaker net.

There were a couple Mac options. I had a cartridge called Spectre GCR,
and could run System 6 and all the software.

There was also a hardwired 8087 PC board for the ST series, which I
installed. That was my first experience with DOS, and it was 3.3. So
crappy to use compared to TOS on the Atari.

Back then, companies like Borland wrote their software for many
platforms. A lot of PC programmers would write their code in C on the
Atari, then compile the finished product for the PC. The fact that
there were 4 windows to work in and test their code in made for faster
program creation.

There was hardware superiority too. The ST line had a 32 bit processor
and a 16 bit buss. The TT had the same 32 bit processor, but also had a
32 bit buss. I think the PCs were still using 8 bits at the time.

It HAD to be software piracy. I truly don't understand what else could
have gone wrong because they also focused on releasing ever more
compelling versions of the ST unlike Amiga. It is incredibly sad to see
what happened to a platform which honestly seemed superior to the PC
until at least 1988.


I think poor management also played a part. Things really started going
downhill when the son took over for the father.

I think, personally, the PC took off when Gates got the government
contracts, and the government started saying electronic submissions had
to be in certain file formats, obviously from software written for PCs.

An interesting Atari/Amiga trivia fact, the original prototype that
became AmigaOS was called the Lorraine. It was first offered to Atari
which turned it down, and Commordore picked it up. This is what was
published in the computer magazines of the time, so I don't believe the
information you'll find on Wikipedia in the Amiga Corporation is totally
correct. I had those old magazines until they got wet and were
destroyed. :-(

FWIW, there's still an active Atari hobbyist network, and much of the
original system has been updated, including a current close.
Screenshots I've seen are really nice. I'd like to update my Hades
someday, but it will probably never happen.


--
Ken
Mac OS X 10.8.5
Firefox 36.0.4
Thunderbird 31.5
"My brain is like lightning, a quick flash
and it's gone!"
 




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