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From: apratt@iuvax.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.micro
Subject: Re: Some thoughts on future micro-comput
Message-ID: <400023@iuvax.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 1-Nov-84 00:40:00 EST
Article-I.D.: iuvax.400023
Posted: Thu Nov  1 00:40:00 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 1-Nov-84 07:49:14 EST
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Nf-ID: #R:wu1:-31900:iuvax:400023:000:1898
Nf-From: iuvax!apratt    Oct 31 00:40:00 1984


I feel compelled to point out a glaring omission in the foregoing speculation
of the future of the computer world. I worked for Xerox last summer, and I may
work for them next summer, and I would like to help dispell the notion that
Xerox is ineffectual in the computer marketplace.

Naturally, Xerox loses big in the MICROcomputer market, but in office-
automation and network services, they can't be beat. It's a pity that Star,
the desktop software/word processor/user-top-level of their Dandelion (and
previous) series computers, is so slow, but, speed aside, Star is exceptional
as an office system. (Of course, that's like saying, "Bullet wound aside, Mr.
Lincoln wasn't hurt very badly.) At the risk of violating all manner of
nondisclosure stuff, look for a new environment sometime soon, which really
shows the power of the custom, microcoded, bit-slicing processor in Xerox's
machines.

Moreover, Xerox has a network RIGHT NOW, which is well-established and
reliable. The Department of Defense, where Money is No Object, recently
installed a flock of Dandelions in the Pentagon (I think) for non-classified
secretarial desk-top work & memo transactions. The problem Xerox has right
now is that their product requires a large start-up expenditure, fairly high
per-station cost, a slow environment (ah, the familiar hourglass... Apple
has their watch icon, Xerox has the hourglass), and so on. In the next short
time (measured in years), each of these "bigs" will become smaller. In any
case, Xerox has set the standard in workstation software (desktop w/icons,
folders, opening/closing, overlapping windows, etc.) which others are copying.

In about five years, the market will catch up to the place where Xerox is now.
Unfortunately, by then Xerox will have moved on, and somebody else will get
the profit.

But not the credit.

----
						-- Allan Pratt
					...ihnp4!inuxc!iuvax!apratt