A+/InCider article: ACK!

[slhood@bluemoon.use.com (Stephen L. Hood)]

I just picked up a copy of the December 1992 issue of "A+/InCider", and I 
am agast.  

The "Bridging the Gap" column, written by Greg Keizer, focuses this month 
on the "Gappie" awards, A+/InCider's awards for products that demonstrate 
the best or worst in Apple/Mac connectivity.

The first award was for "Best Technical Performance: GS", and went to 
"Pointless", because, "not only does Pointless let you use TrueType on the 
IIGS, but with a little help from you, it can move Mac, even Windows, 
TrueType fonts to the GS."  It is blatantly untrue that Pointless can 
interpret "Windows" format TrueType fonts.  Such action requires the use 
of either Mac or DOS applications to convert between the Windows and Mac TT
formats.

Another award went to GS/OS 6.0 for "Best Missed Opportunity".  The 
reviewer claims that GS/OS 6.0 (which the rest of the world calls System 
6) "should have taken a couple more pages from the Mac's System 7.  The 
latter, for instance, can quickly create an alias for any docuement or 
program..."  This is an intolerable statement.  It infuriates me that Mr. 
Keizer can be so foolish and shortsighted.  He completely overlooks the 
HFS FST's merits, mentioning it in the middle of a sentence that resolves 
by stating that Apple "missed the opportunity".

"For all the benefits that 1992's new GS/OS 6.0 offered IIGS owners -- 
including a translator that lets the computer read from and write to 
Macintosh floppies -- Apple missed the opportunity to make its most 
powerful Apple II even more powerful, and in the process, match the 
Macintosh operating system's functionality."

The article then goes on for three more paragraphs to describe why System 
6 is inferior to System 7.

Certainly, I would welcome the addition of aliasing and shared folders.  
But what of System 7?  It snagged the "Best Technical Performance:  Mac" 
award, mostly because of its shared folder features.

The HFS FST, coupled with the soon-to-be-released MS-DOS FST, allows the 
GS to access the most popular and common disk formats.  However, even the 
glorious System 7 cannot directly read lowly ProDOS disks -- you first 
have to go to Apple File Exchange and wait about ten times as long to copy 
a file as you would to copy a Mac file to the IIGS.

I personally want nothing more of the Mac OS than aliasing.  The scrolling 
thumbs on the Mac do not resize according to the size of the document, 
creating a very non-intuitive interface.  Folding sharing on the IIGS 
would be impractical -- how many schools use GS/OS anyway?

What upsets me most of all is that Mr. Kreizer's article focuses almost 
entirely on the Macintosh.  Even the titles of his "awards" are tailored 
to recent Mac products, from Kid Pix to the Performa.

Mr. Kreizer's writings have been much more productive and objective in the
past.  Indeed, "Briding the Gap" has been one of the very few tangible 
products of the incorporation of Mac support into A+/InCider.  However, I 
am now quite disappointed by what I feel can only be the result of the 
influence of a new chief editor.

I am upset by this unprofessionalism and intend to write a letter to the 
editor.  Watch for it, folks.  If it even appears, I'll be surprised if I 
recieve a reply.


| Stephen L. Hood                  Ask me about GNO/ME, the multitasking |
|  Micro Center, Inc.                    environment for the Apple IIGS! |
|  slhood@bluemoon.rn.com                  "My Woz, my Woz, why have you |
|  slhood@pro-works.cts.com                               abandoned me?" |