Re: Emus vs. the Real Thing

[Stavros Robert Karatsoridis <skaratso@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu>]

Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net> wrote:
> Stavros Robert Karatsoridis writes ...
>> 
>> Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net> wrote:
>  ....

>> >> > it is not a standard GS and it has
>> >> > _no_ chance of ever becoming the 'standard GS'. It lets you run some
>> >> > software faster; but, there will never be much in the way of new GS
>> >> > games, etc. which are designed to utilize the setup's capabilities. The
>> >> > emu-Mac market will never be large enough to support emu-Mac product
>> >> > development.
>> 
>> What "capabilities?" An emulated IIgs does not have any special
>> capabilities that cannot be performed on a real IIgs, so developing
>> software especially for the emulator is not a viable option anyways, even
>> if there were a market for it.
>>

>      If the emu acts like a GS, then, you can develop "GS software" on
> the emu to run on the emu. According to Lim, software runs a lot faster
> on the emu. Software might be written to take advantage of this extra
> speed. One might even fudge a bit on GS-ness and permit a 640 x 480 x
> 256-color display mode.

OK. I'll give you that one :)  The emulator DOES run things much faster
than a real GS ever could... especially on a 266 MHz G3 :)  However, I
don't think that there would be any incentive to add a 640 x 480 x 256
color mode to the emulator, because then you "miss" the idea of emulation.
As far as I have seen, nobody has tried to add "new capabilities" to any
emulator that would be specific to that emulator.  The problem there would
be that software written for that emulator would only run on that
emulator, and not on anybody else's.  That would severely fragement any
market for such software.


>      Were there a market for software developed for an emulated
> souped-up GS, then, why not produce it? The cruncher is that the
> potential market appears to be too small to justify production of
> emu-only software.

Very true.

>> the emulated GS does not have any special new abilities,

>      It has whatever special abilities the emulator designers choose to
> give it.

Right, but for the reasons I've just listed above, that would make the
software only compatible with that emulator, and not with any others, and
not with a real GS either.

>> so why
>> not develop new software for the real GS, which will then run on the
>> emulated GS anyways (assuming the emulator is compatible).

>      Agreed. You can sell GS software to GS users and, maybe, to emu
> users.

>>  BTW, Mike
>> Westerfield of the Byteworks uses an emulated GS for all of his software
>> development now (can't remember if it's GUS or Bernie, though).
>  ....

>      How is Mike coming along with the new GS BASIC?

I wish I knew. I can't wait for it to come out though :)

Stavros


> Rubywand