🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <89122619395637@masnet.uucp> greg.trice@canremote.uucp (GREG TRICE) writes:
>Yes I have, lots of it. What you don't realize is that just because 
>Apple needed 128k of code, and N man-years of work doesn't necessarily 
>mean that the task at hand needs that. Depending on the skill - and more
>important - insight - of programmers, the same task may result in 
>solutions that are very different in code size and time taken. I have 
>examples at hand of functionally identical programs, one of which is 
>twenty times the size of the other. And the large one probably took 
>fifty times as long to debug. I've never disassembled a Mac ROM, so I 
>can't give any views on the quality of the code therein, but knowing (a)
>how slow a Mac is and (b) that some at least of the code was written in 
>Pascal (probably by some structured programming fetishist) I suspect 
>that most of the code is pretty awful. 

What makes you think the "code" that apple has written is awful? Just speed?
In that event (no pun), the Mac's of new (SE 30, cx etc) are MUCH faster than
any ole' ST in "raw horespower". But, a Mac + clocks at some 7.xx mhz, not
enough for a noticable difference. In disk i/o, there is a definite advantage
in the ST as DMA (direct memory access) is applied to the task. Screen i/o?
The MAC is doin' a WHOLE lot more work than is "visible" to you. And is as
well MUCH more versitile in what can be done. In that "128k of rom" are over
800 functions. Did you know the Mac has fixed point built in to the rom?
Did you know it has a float library in rom for dealing w/ tiny float values?
+ or - 2 to 30 decimal places. Did you know it has a VERY handy clipboard
for use w/in virtually ALL applications?. Did you know the O/S is extensible?
Da's TRULY multitask. W/ Multifinder, the whole machine multitasks (cute too!)
Apple is supposed to release System 7.0 shortly, which, supports virtual
memory (w/ HD's, over Appletalk etc) and a TON of other features. The Mac
as a "whole" is just a fascinating little gizmo! My only beefs w/ apple is
pricyness (which atari has emulated in the Mega's), and lack of "cheap" color.
(although I'd imagine that'll change too shortly). In adition, the Macs one
of the few "real" games in town. It's widely used in buisiness, it has GOBS
of software available both commercially & Public Domain (over 2 gigabytes
easily PD). Still thats Penuts compared to IBM. It would seem your bashing
a machine w/o exactly knowing any facts. I love my atari, its a fascinating
box. But, realistically it is not in the same league as PC's, Mac's, and
recently Amiga's too. Don't be blinded by names & jargons, but, if you must
at least pick a name that beleives in the computer user.




-- 
Jeff Gortatowsky-Eastman Kodak Company  .....rochester!kodak!elmgate!jdg
(use uuhosts or such to find path to rochester)
Eastman Kodak makes film not comments.  Therefore these comments are mine
not theirs.