Re: What if...

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

Phoenyx <quazar@dcnet2000.com> wrote:

>It was a shame that Apple Inc. never saw the possibilities of a
>dual platform market strategy. Even then people knew that one
>computer does not fit all. The Apple II systems had a perfect
>place in the computer world. They made excellent first time
>computers for both home users and educational institutions.

And small businesses actually.  Apple IIs were used in
some business network situations and also as POS
machines.  InCider used to make it a point by doing
feature articles about businesses that used Apple IIs.
Apple IIs were also widely used in research because
it was simple to tap into the slots with custom hardware.

>How many primary level students really need the power of a PC or
>Mac? But then most schools don't look at the benefits to the
>students.

I used my IIGS for all of my projects and papers doing
my high school and college days too.  What do students
really need after all?  Word processing and page layout.
And a terminal program to access the campus network
via a shell account.

Today, students may have different needs due to the
graphical web and thus a IIGS might not do it all, but just
a few years ago, a IIGS was all any student really needed.

As for dual platform strategy, I still believe Apple could,
if they wanted, TODAY bring back a IIGS in an appliance
computer form and make it work.  Something like the
GeoBook but cheaper and bundled with AppleWorks GS
and Spectrum SIS with an integrated 20Mhz (or 14Mhz)
65C816 and 4MB of memory.  Make it in a palmtop or a
laptop case and sell it for $99 or so and they will come.

No one has yet made the Commodore 64 of 2000.

There IS an untapped market.