🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <716108512.F00004@blkcat.UUCP>  
David.Gursky@p394.f70.n109.z1.fidonet.org (David Gursky) writes:
> I posted:
> 
>   DG> I'll throw my two cents in to this debate.  The one thing missing  
from
>   DG> everyone's spreadsheet application is compatibility with Excel...
> 
> And Clifford T. Matthews (ctm@ardi.com) responded:
> 
>   CM> Excel 3.0a for the Macintosh runs under Executor 1.2 (shipping  
today).
>   CM> Excel 4.0 for the Macintosh runs under Executor 1.2.1 (shipping
>   CM> sometime next week, assuming we get the manuals back from the
>   CM> printer).
> 
> Clifford's response misses my point.  I know I can use Executor to run  
Excel,
> but  if a user can run Excel, they will not switch to Athena Design's  
Mesa,
> Appsoft's Solution, Lotus' Improv, or Informix's Wingz.  Athena Design,  
Appsoft,
> Lotus, and Informix all realize that backwards compatibility to  
competiting
> products is an effective method of winning new sales, because the user  
will not
> loose access to any of the information they have generated.  All I'm  
saying is
> that the specific set of formats supported needs to be expanded to  
include Excel
> (both Mac and PC versions.)

I think that Executor is a fine product and a cool concept, but I do not  
view it as a long term solution.  It is a way of bridging the software gap  
that still exists on the NeXT.  There is no good word processor (I think  
that MS Word 4.0 is *GREAT*) on the NeXT.  I was holding my breath for  
Pages and PasteUp, but I'd now place even money that Appsoft Write! will  
be out before either of the other two products (I wonder if the folks at  
Appsoft will trade a copy of Write! for a copy of Mesa :-))

Nevertheless, Executor will never offer what I bought my NeXT for:  
NeXTSTEP applications that are cool, interoperate (i.e., distributed  
objects), and look and feel right.  The Mac is almost 10 year old  
technology and looks it.  NeXTSTEP is the leading technology and I want my  
NeXTSTEP applications.  I'm hoping to make Mesa so cool that people will  
go "how did I ever use anything as clunky as Excel?" like they are now  
saying "How did I ever use anything as clucky as 1-2-3?" after seeing  
Mesa.

Cliff is doing a great service to the community, but if I simply wanted to  
run Mac applications, I'd go out and by a Quadra.

David

-- 
David Pollak - dpp@athena.com - NeXTMail Compliant
Attorney at Law,
Feeder of the Bears, Athena Design, Inc.