🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <19140@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU> squibby@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Clark L. Breyman) writes:
>		Considering the amount of net traffic devoted to finding
>	reliable dealers, wouldn't it make sense for Atari to adopt a 
>	similar policy and secure rights to distribute the good Atari
>	PD and shareware ( FSF software, Sozobon, ARC, ZOO, Gulam, TeX,
>	Uniterm...) with the computer.

I believe this has been asked before, with the official Atari response
being something along the lines of "it isn't our job to do that" / "we
don't have the time/money to do that" / "we don't want to distribute
stuff we don't have complete control over (ie: 'not invented here')".
(Ken and Allen and the rest of the hard-working crew at Atari, that wasn't
a knock on you.)  If there has been a change in policy regards this, it'd
be a welcome one.  

I agree; in most parts of the U.S. it's tough to find any lifeform
vaguely resembling an ST dealer, let alone an excellent one.  Such a
"starter kit" would be a nice bonus.  Probably only 25% of it would be
deemed useful to any particular ST buyer, but surely everyone would
find something to be happy about.  I very much enjoyed getting Neochrome
when I bought my ST, and even ST BASIC and LOGO were worth a few
chuckles.  None of those influenced my decision to buy an ST, but then,
in 1985 (was it really that long ago??) nothing else on the market even
came close to the bang for the buck.  (The Amiga was introduced several
months after I bought my ST, so no flames from the Commodore row, please.)
In 1990 it very well might make a big difference to people.

> It would be a hit to their compiler
>	set (Alcyon tools), but wouldn't it they make it up in computer
>	sales?

Atari is a Hardware Company (tm).  Hardware Companies sell Hardware.
Hardware Companies don't use Software to sell Hardware; Software is
just a parasitical yet unavoidable fact of life to a Hardware Company.

>	If this is not the forum for this sort of posting, please flame
>	me by mail and I will refrain from further such postings.

Well, actually this is the forum for Bashing Atari, Spreading the True
Atari Religion, Uncovering Grand Conspiracies, and Indiscriminate Flammage
on All Sides.  But since you were so polite, in your case we'll allow an
otherwise heretical Thoughtful Suggestion, just this once...  ;-)

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>>"Aaiiyeeee!  Death from above!"<< | Steve Rehrauer, rehrauer@apollo.hp.com
   "Flee, lest we be trod upon!"    | The Apollo System Division of H.P.