Apple II Survival Manual

[avsystem@rain.org (Adrian Vance)]

Since the demise of "GS Magazine" we have the only "book" open to 
advertisers and our new catalog features ten of them.  This has been so 
popular we are planning to go back on press in October and put out 
another 20,000 to top the the 40,000 we just printed and are mailing, 
sending quantities to conferences, user groups and the like.  

True, we are moving on to MS DOS, Windows(tm) and the like, but will 
continue to support our Apple II listings from those lines.  Yes, we will 
pour money at this technology because we realize that more than a 
computer Apple II was a idea, a concept of a computer that was easy to 
use, open to development by outsiders and an ideal teaching platform not 
only for computers and computing, but virtually any subject in the school 
market.

The big mistake that was made in the overselling of this technology to 
education was the idea that this was the "Holy Grail," the chalice of 
knowledge when anyone who has taught knows the secret to success in 
teaching is that of figuring out 97 different ways of saying the same 
thing, and eventually every knuckhead in the room will "get it."  The 
computer was just another tool like the chalk board, textbook, wall 
chart, film, filmstrip, videotape, and teacher.  Now the Ph.D. airheads 
are raving about CD ROMS and other such ilk ever seeking that phantom cup 
from which they will nourish their dreams and schemes to avoid the 
reality of working with young people.

The Apple II GS was the perfect educational computer with excellent color 
and sound, but Apple insisted on paying John Sculley $7 million per year 
to think for them and he was embarrased to be associated with education 
instead of business, hence the decision to raise the price of the GS to 
that above the Macs, making them look like a bargain to the schools, but 
thin-haired, dim-bulb John never bothered to consider the fact that our 
nation's schools had spend more money on disks than his machines and the 
Mac was not going to stoop to an eight bit operating system and a 5 1/4 
inch "floppy."  The disaster is history so it is up to us to keep this 
technology going in an environment where the Republicans are determined 
to kill the Department of Education, from where 40% of all supplemental 
materials funding comes in their attempt to "Save America!" after the 
Democrats have overtaxed the people in the name of "social welfare."