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Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!lll-crg!dual!ptsfa!qantel!ihnp4!ihdev!rjv
From: rjv@ihdev.UUCP (ron vaughn)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: Pournelle again
Message-ID: <383@ihdev.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 3-Nov-85 12:07:43 EST
Article-I.D.: ihdev.383
Posted: Sun Nov  3 12:07:43 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 8-Nov-85 04:01:43 EST
References: <338@ucsbcsl.UUCP> <85@birtch.UUCP>
Reply-To: rjv@ihdev.UUCP (55224-R. J. Vaughn)
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 42
Keywords: right, alex?

In article <85@birtch.UUCP> oleg@birtch.UUCP (Oleg Kiselev x268) writes:
>About time someone said a word about Jerry... Pournelle's reviews are, at best,
>incompetent babblings of an over-blown egotist.
[and more about how pournelle *loved* the at&T 7300]

i couldn't agree more.  pournelle's reviews are so..... unprofessional it
makes me doubt anything he says.  he acts like he knows everything in
the world about micro's, when most the time a manufacturer hands him
a product, he uses it for 37 minutes, and then has his son alex tell us
that it is ok.  then he talks about some 4-bit micro he bought in 1973
that is still the best.  "isn't that right, alex?", and alex says it is ok.

his tales from "chaos manner" don't reflect on how "fast paced/up to date/
in the news/with it/on the fly" he is as much it shows he is unorganized, 
unprofessional, and biting off more than he can chew.  he should take
*time* to do reviews ("but we just don't have time, right alex?", and alex
says we had time when we only had the 4-bit micro, our best machine)

whatever his reviews are like, DOUBLE agreement on his ego.  only a
person sitting at home with his vic-20 could take his reviews 
seriously.  he acts like everyone who makes a machine is holding their
breath for the official pournelle OK.  ("jim, i just got the word -- jerry
checked out the new modem over coffee, and alex agreed to say it's ok.  
we're IN!!")

oh well, maybe he'll read this.  i know alex will.  alex is the local
unix expert.  jer consults him all the time.

	right, alex?

	ron vaughn	...!ihnp4!ihdev!rjv

quote from the 7300 article, "the lord of the manor moves upstairs".  (jesus,
what an ego):

"my son alex is a UNIX hacker (see, i told you! -rjv); he very much likes the
machine.  he glues himself to it every opportunity.  although i suspect it's 
largely to play rogue, a game of unimaginable fascination."

thank *G*O*D we got the official alex ok.  the machine is guaranteed
market success now :-)  pournelle then goes on to admit he doesn't play
rogue.  no wonder he can't imagine the fascination.