GNO 2.0.2, Wow!

[ltchean@iss.nus.sg (Lim Thye Chean)]

I am now writing this article happily. Initially I wanted it to be posted to
comp.sys.apple2.gno, but I think that this is a much better forum since those
who do know own GNO or considering getting it can know how it is like.

BACKGROUND
----------
1. I have owned GNO 1.0 for a very long time. It takes me 3 days to set up
   the system. And this is with a lot of pain, emails to Jawaids, tests and
   crashes.

2. I have not received my GNO yet. It has been send out to me quite sometime 
   ago and Jawaid decided to pass one copy to me electronicly. So, I have to
   use this new system without any manual.

3. I am a UNIX user, but still quite naive about it. I am not a system 
   administrator. 

4. My system has 4MB, 120MB harddisk, and tones of inits, DAs, etc. I also
   have Zip GS 9/32.

MY FIRST IMPRESSION
-------------------
1. I got three disks of GNO system (2.0). Together with it is the 2.0.2 patch
   (New user should not worry, your version should be 2.0.2, remember I got
   it not through the common channel). I successfully installed the system
   and running it in less than 10 minutes. 10 minutes! YES! And I don't even
   have a manual!

2. Out of my surprise, unlike the 1.0 I have, GNO refuses to crash! It seems
   very stable from the first moment I run it. The gshrc (Configuration file)
   is set up properly for me, and all files are in the proper folders!

USING IT
--------
1. As delighted as it is, I started to do experiment: I set up my GS to boot
   this way:

   1. AutoPilot launches GNO.
   2. GNO launches Switch It.
   3. Switch It launches Finder.
   4. Finder.

   With RAMFast, it is about 35 seconds without shift booting.

2. Now I have a system I really want to use! It is like having GS System 7!
   (Nothing to do with Mac System 7 btw). I have new software that I can use
   with a mouse click a way (Suspense desktop, GNO is back in less than half
   a second). I can switch back to desktop by just typing "fg". The GS 
   suddenly seems to earn a whole new level of functionality... For example,
   I can unbinsciied a file and unshrunk a file at the same time. And I can
   play music on desktop, switch to GNO and do my work.

3. The "vi" editor works, and it is very fast compare to the old stevie I have.
   Since switching between desktop and GNO is so easy, I am tempted to use
   GNO whenever I can. 

4. GSI (An NDA that runs GNO in a window) is useless IMHO. First, the display
   is unreadable. Second, it takes much lesser time to go to GNO screen than
   pop up GSI. Third, under GNO, I have full screen display but GSI is so 
   small, if I want to zoom open it, why not I do it in text screen (GNO is
   a text-based UNIX anyway, there aren't X/Windows for GS).

5. TMTerm is good, I got it from Ian (Thanks Ian), but not perfect. I have 
   some suggestions, like I hate the scrollbar. The text should come to
   display when I type. But it works. I can't get the vi to work, presumely
   my GNO is using gnoterm while TMTerm is using vt100.

6. I successfully crashes GS a few times when I am experimenting. But it is
   not as serious as it sounds. Remember how many things my GS is running now
   together (AutoPilot/GNO/Switch It/Finder), all coexists together. The
   combination seems to work perfectly with minor problems (that I am sure
   Jawaid can solve it if it is some GNO bugs - GNO is a big system so there
   are sure to be bugs hidden somewhere - and Jawaid is an excellent
   technical support).

7. I get the new Switch It from Jawaid that is compatible with GNO 2.0.2.
   Unfortunately it is still 1.0.2.

8. My GS appears to be slow down somehow due to the large amount of overhead.
   But the combination makes my GS to be so much more powerful that it is
   worth every microsecond I have to wait. 

CONCLUSION
----------
I only used GNO for one night. And I am so glad to own it. It is an excellent
system that enhance your GS capabilities. There are new multitasking software
you can now use, and desktop software that multitasks with GNO is not far
away (TelCom II). It is so easy to set up that you don't need any special
knowledge (It just ask me 4 questions I think and do the rest of the work for
me).

My advice is to get this system. It is worth it. And it belongs to every 
serious GS users shelf. And of course, if you are interested in UNIX, GNO 2.0.2
is a MUST.


--
    %% GS Lover Loves GS %%    Author of Super Magic 3 & Mandelbrot II GS
 
          Lim Thye Chean: Lim is my surname. My name is Thye Chean.
     My address: LTCHEAN@ISS.NUS.SG, or 9, College Green, Singapore 1129