Re: A2 Users: Endanged Species? I think not.

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

Gabriel Morales <Togega@Concentric.net> wrote:

>Obsbedia2 wrote:
>> 
>> 
>>         There are, afterall, millions of Apple 2 computers out there--and
they're
>> still being used!!!  What we, Apple II users are, somewhat, are
evolutionaryly
>> delayed.  We're Neanderthals; still living, learning and growing, but not at
>> the rate of our neighbors, Homosapians.
>> 
>>         "Can we live together?"
>>         "Sure," Apple said when it came out with the Macintosh, but we've
learned
>> otherwise.
>> 
>>         A better question is whether or not we can survive.  I'd say that
the answer
>> is a resounding "YEA!"  Apple II interest in the forms of programers
continuing
>> to write for the Apple II platforms, Apple II emulators that run on Mac and
IBM
>> platforms, A2 home pages by enthusiasts/programers, newsgroups like this
one,
>> and from collectors (hey, a few of them might actually stick a program in
and
>> turn it on).
>
>I write:
>
>	But what happens to an endangered species if it losses the ability to
>reproduce? Sure Apple IIs can be made more useful- new software can be
>written, new techniques and protocols can be use, and even new hardware
>can be produced, but the Apple II cannot evolve equally or beyond a
>certain point if new units are not manufactured.

The Apple II is already dead as far as evolution is concerned.  It died
the day Apple decided the Mac was the future and began sidelining
and stunting the Apple II's development.  However, computers are not
living things.  I define a "live" computer platform as one that's still
being actively used and as such, the Apple II is alive and well.

The fact that the IIGS is still useful for diverse tasks shows how far
AHEAD evolutionarily it was for its time.

>	Even if new hardware gave the Apple II new capabilities and uses,
>software employing such capabilities would be limited only to those
>Apple IIs with the new hardware. It would fragment the Apple II
>community further, as some would have the hardware and some would not
>(-since new units are no longer manufactured, the problem would not
>necessarily diminish as time passes). And how much can the Apple II
>evolve without breaking some of its fundamental design specs? The Apple
>IIgs, for example, cannot move to a newer, more efficient processor
>because that would mean breaking its basic design. Workarounds could be
>found, however, at some point it would be too costly or difficult. And
>when old Apple IIs fail, what is to be done? Again, they could be
>repaired, but at some point it would become too costly or difficult.

That's true, but the true enthusiast will find some way.  Like I said in
an earlier thread, the IIGS has joined the ranks of the Mustang and
the original Volkswagen Beetle.  It is a classic computer with many
fans that will make the existing units run forever if possible.  Fans
that would hack them and configure them in layouts never before
seen or dreamt of.

By your definition, the Mustang and the original Volkswagen Beetle
are dead.  Sure, there are newer models from Ford and Volkswagen,
but they are not the same just as Macs are not IIGSes.  But to the
true fan, the original Mustang and the original Volkswagen Beetle
AND the Apple IIGS will never die.  Even President Clinton drove
his classic Mustang at one of the get togethers of fans of this car,
driving his Secret Service agents crazy a few years ago.  ;-)

>	It is not impossible for the Apple II series to "survive" indefinitely,
>because like this the IBM-PC platform has survived, however there have
>been powerful companies depending on and driving their economical
>success by devising standards (although they sometimes do not catch on),
>pushing old technologies to their limits and literally directing the
>platform to what is convenient for them, and still it is a fragmented
>platform (because of other OSs, I/O standards and hardware components).
>The Apple II community is much smaller and lacks a minimum of such
>central direction.

Apple could have taken the II and continued developing it like the PC
world did their platform, but as discussed in many many threads,
Steve Jobs did not view the user base as important enough.

"Survival" of the Apple II today no longer has to do with Apple.  It
has to do with enthusiasts and hackers.  The Apple II will live as long
as we use it.

>	The Apple II will survive, for the time being, as an enthusiast's &
>hobbyist's computer and collector's item, excepting schools and other
>places that either do not have enough money for new computers or have
>made a considerable investment in Apple IIs in the past and still use
>them. In the long-term, however, the Apple II series will survive
>through emulation.

An emulator will never equal the real thing.  That's like saying a picture
of a Mustang or Beetle is equivalent to the real thing.  No sane minded
fanatic will believe that!  Emulators are but shadows of the Apple II.

I want hardware that I can feel, circuit boards that I can hack,
periherals that I can configure.  As long as I am able to keep it
running, I will never trade in the real thing for an emulator.

No, when the last Apple II stops running, the II would be truly dead.
Just like when the last Mustang or last Beetle is retired, those
legends would also have died.  Emulators and pictures are great
for memories, but let's give the real hardware enough respect to
say that great machines have lived, breathed, and passed on rather
than try to pretend that some souless imitation can fill the all too
large shoes left by the classic units...