🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <7322@celit.fps.com> billd@fps.com (Bill Davidson) writes:
>   How long do we have to carry around the baggage of a standard that was
>   designed so long ago that it can't even get the colors right most of
>   the time?  Color was an add-on and the implementation suffered in order
>   to maintain compatibility with old black and white sets.  At some point
>   you have to say "enough is enough".
>   ...
>   Why suffer with the old forever?  Just because most people
>   won't be able to afford it is rediculous.  Most people couldn't afford
>   pocket calculators when they first came out (or TV's, or cars or most
>   other major new technologies).

While I basically agree with you Bill, the issue of backward compatability is a
very sticky one.  Simply making the change and living with it is not as easy as
it sounds.  Your analogy to CD technology is not valid.  The introduction of
CD's did not make records disappear, and you could still play old records that
you had, even if buying old one is harder now days.  Making the TV which you
currently have in your home unable to be used is quite another thing.  Unless
all you want to do is watch video tapes (not likely)...

Can you imagine someone decreeing that gasoline will no longer be produced, and
cars must run on some alternative power source?  Can you imagine millions of
people, who once owned a useful mode of transportation, reduced to having a
useless antique sitting in there driveway?  Can you imagine the public outrage
at such a thing?  I think it's very similar to the HDTV dilema.  Yes, it may be
the *BEST* thing to do (in the long run), but who's going to convince the
*PUBLIC* that this is what they want?  No, you don't need to convince me, but
there are several million other folks out there that you *DO* need to convince.
--
Disclaimer: All spelling and/or grammer in this document are guaranteed to be
            correct; any exseptions is the is wurk uv intter-net deemuns.

Mike McManus (mikemc@ncr-fc.FtCollins.ncr.com)  
NCR Microelectronics                
2001 Danfield Ct.                   ncr-fc!mikemc@ncr-sd.sandiego.ncr.com, or
Ft. Collins,  Colorado              ncr-fc!mikemc@ccncsu.colostate.edu, or
(303) 223-5100   Ext. 360           uunet!ncrlnk!ncr-sd!ncr-fc!garage!mikemc