🚀 go-pugleaf

I hope this message is premature and that even as I speak somewhere in
the bowels of Apple Cupertino someone is working on an affordable
Macintosh.  But, just in case...  

I hope we can get some discussion going on what is essential to
people in a CheapMac, and how it could be positioned for maximum
effect. 

Background:

I run a small Desktop Publishing/Word Processing shop in the Boston
area, and currently have 4 Mac Pluses for people to come in and use.
I teach beginners how to use all kinds of Mac Software.  I like the
Plus. My customers like the idea that the machines only cost 2K
loaded.  Six months ago I spent a lot of money upgrading all my
machines (Pluses) to at least 2.5 megs, so I could offer my customers
PageMaker under Multifinder, MacDrawII, Illustrator '88 and other
software.

Worries:

I am getting very nervous about the fact that Apple keeps releasing
these expensive machines.  I fear that any day now major software
vendors may stop caring about the Plus, and that I would have to spend
a lot of money to upgrade to more expensive machines.  Money I don't
have. 

Was I Dreaming?

I thought I heard someone at Apple say that they were going to address
BOTH ends of the product line.  Gassee's jokes at press conferences
aside, it's not funny Jean.  It hurts to drool at high-end machines,
knowing they're just out of reach and moving away. I have heard rumors
of something called the "headless SE" for under $1000.  That would be
nice.

Blue Sky:

Personally I think a lot of people would buy an IchabodMac [sp?]
(headless horseman).  3rd party vendors could do displays for it, and
of course external SCSI folks could build drives for it.  I would be a
way to get into the educational market and encourage people to write
educational software.  Kids could use Mom and Dad's Mac to do
homework, and mom and dad could help the kids without buying a Mac and
a ][c and learning both.  Maybe buy the kids their own for home and
use PublicFolder to transfer files using PhoneNet over the extra phone
wires in the house (but I digress...).

Deep Blue Sky:

The more I think about it the better I like the idea of having machine
in this class.  In some ways it would be nice if it used 128k ROMS, to
keep software houses from jumping ship on the Plus, though I imagine
someone at Apple just screamed when I said that.  Alright, I know my
plus has to die someday; I could live with 256k ROMS, but of course
should use a 68000.  Perhaps the 800k floppy?  (saves money, lets
people by Rapports), no ADB so as not to compete with the SE20?

Well, there are some rough ideas.  anybody else got an opinion?  I
think we really should get Macs into schools soon, and for use people
who can't see spending more than 2K for a machine (CPU, SCREEN, HARD
DRIVE), this would be nice.

Questions:

1. Does anyone have confidence that Apple is going to address the
   low-end market anytime soon (< 6 months)?

2. Does anyone care that Mac prices are going to the moon?

3. How many people are excited about the idea of a "headless SE" that
   can take a 3rd party monitor and disk, and can sell for <$1000
   retail? 

4. Since Apple is clearly listening, how about we talk about some of
   the things we'd like to see?  To give some ideas more than
   anything, but also to make sure Macs get into schools where kids
   can do neat things with them. (You can't have a top without a bottom.)

Feel free to send mail to me if you don't like to post news.  But
posting would be nice too.  

Let's get busy.  May someone will forward this to people at Apple
who think about these thing?  Merci.

-- 
Marty Connor, Marty's Computer Workshop,  "Specializing in Macintosh Training"
126 Inman Street, Cambridge, MA 02139; (617) 491-6935
mdc@entity.com, or ...{harvard|uunet}!mit-eddie!spt!mdc