CUSA makes the BBC news site

[B00tDisk]

Today's "Macs" are just PCs in an Apple branded box. But no one moans about that.

Actually if you look around the mac community there's a vocal minority who do complain about just that.  They ascribe some kind of mystical magical spiritual significance to the old PPC chips.  They speak of how not being "just a PC" somehow made the mac experience better.  My mother-in-law rushed out to buy a Powermac just so she wouldn't have an intel mac - "Because of all the problems PCs have." (yes, this was her reason)

They're stupid reasons, they're meaningless, made-up reasons...but they're reasons none-the-less.

It's kind of like the arbitrary lines drawn by some raving Amiga fanatics: how a COTS PPC motherboard made by a dying-now-dead Taiwanese company was somehow magically an Amiga, but Amithlon or WinUAE which are unarguably more capable of running Amiga software weren't Amigas.

Frankly I hope CUSA provides - either through UAE/WinUAE or some other means - a method of seamlessly running Amiga apps on the new Amiga-branded hardware they sell.  Not because I give a fig (software wise, there's nothing on the Amiga of any use to me except the occasional game), but just so it can be demonstrated who actually sells an Amiga.

[B00tDisk]

Amen.

It's all those small things indeed, such as:

• enough grunt to actually be usable, unlike those crappy sub-notebooks with win7 basic. eow...
• backlit keyboard even in the 13" model
• environment adaptive backlighting
• cooling system that doesn't melt the laptop if you place the system on a soft surface
• magnetic power connector that prevents disasters (has saved 2 different macbook pros for me already)
• aluminum body that actually can take a beating.

No other "normal" laptop would have survived the beating this one received: busted_macbook_pro.jpg (here's the same machine after some rework: mended_macbook_pro.jpg). The machine was involved in a blading accident and the guy carrying it fared worse than the laptop...

Try the same with some plasticy ACER or DELL and you end up with backbag full of laptop components. This system on the other hand works great (only dvdrw-drive ceased to function). I use it as a backup / party laptop.

And yet just last night I rebuilt an ancient IBM Thinkpad that'd taken a tumble to a concrete floor, losing only the corner (and subsequently support for the display hinges) and refurbed it to working in about 30 minutes.

I've rebuilt and tinkered with all computers.  Nobody has the market on reliability.  Nobody.  Statistics are not your friend.  MBTF for soldering joints is MBTF for soldering joints.  Percentages of DOA RAM or hard drives that die two weeks out is just the same.  Steve Jobs doesn't flit out of his chemotherapy tent and sprinkle magic pixie dust on each and every Apple product to protect it from any and all harm.  Indeed I'd wager the exact opposite is probable.  Apple users tend to be real religious fanatics about their gear, and where a PC user would toss a commodity laptop or netbook, or cell phone or mp3 player, the Cult of Apple takes it back time and time and time again.  Apple repairs them accordingly (in large part so they can hang on to their customer base).  Net result is guy with a busted up mac who takes it back a few times will tell you "Oh my god, this thing has taken such punishment!" and the PC user?  He's replaced it because he has no religious affiliation with his computer equipment.  The Jobsian Reality Distortion Field is carried in part by its users.

Then there's stuff like this and in general, this.

[jorkany]

MBTF for soldering joints is MBTF for soldering joints.

Solder joints? Consumer market crap!

Wire-wrap for MIL SPEC!

[B00tDisk]

Solder joints? Consumer market crap!

Wire-wrap for MIL SPEC!

Jorkany FTW!

[Piru]

Nobody has the market on reliability.

Correct. It doesn't invalidate my points though.

As for Mac users being a cultists, I guess I am the exception that proves the rule. I use Macs because I genuinely considered them to be better than the alternatives. There's nothing more to it.

I also have a bunch (4 currently) of older PowerPC macs mainly because I work on MorphOS for them.

PS. I don't own iphone, ipod, ipad or other Apple nonsense products. There are better alternatives for these.

[Daedalus]

The Dell XPS 17" model and Inspiron 9400 is notorious for the GPU overheating anyway. 90% of faulty machines are due to blown GPU due to heat stress.

Yep, even without blocking the underside vents with your legs, those machines killed themselves regularly with heat. But keeping them on your lap, or even worse, on a cushion on your lap, is a sure-fire way of killing them off...

[runequester]

Frankly I hope CUSA provides - either through UAE/WinUAE or some other means - a method of seamlessly running Amiga apps on the new Amiga-branded hardware they sell.  Not because I give a fig (software wise, there's nothing on the Amiga of any use to me except the occasional game), but just so it can be demonstrated who actually sells an Amiga.

Why not just buy a PC at half the price from Dell, and install UAE?

Im not actually just bitching about the price here. I am genuinely missing what possible benefit CUSA is bringing to "the brand" that isn't already available with any other PC out there

[Belial6]

You keep asking athe same question, and keep getting valid responses.  What part of the many responses don't you understand?  Is it the part that people like the case?  Is it the part that hacking cases is not what MOST people want to do?  Is it the part where the machine is only about the case price more than the cost equivelent machines?  Is it the part that given the statements made by CUSA, and what they have accomplished so  far, people are interested in the software that is likely to be delivered?  The list goes on.

I took the first couple of times that you asked the same question as you just not getting it.  But, now you have had the question answered multiple times, and you just keep pretending like you haven't been answered.

[runequester]

You keep asking athe same question, and keep getting valid responses.  What part of the many responses don't you understand?  Is it the part that people like the case?  Is it the part that hacking cases is not what MOST people want to do?  Is it the part where the machine is only about the case price more than the cost equivelent machines?  Is it the part that given the statements made by CUSA, and what they have accomplished so  far, people are interested in the software that is likely to be delivered?  The list goes on.

I took the first couple of times that you asked the same question as you just not getting it.  But, now you have had the question answered multiple times, and you just keep pretending like you haven't been answered.

So the answer to what CUSA brings to the amiga brand is a C64 case, and the promise of a linux distribution?

You are right. I don't get it. Maybe Im getting dumber as Im getting older.


You can believe me or dismiss you at your leisure, but the reason I keep asking is that I am genuinely puzzled. All these years.. all the infighting and arguing and all the different projects, and this is what we were waiting for?

[takemehomegrandma]

PS. I don't own iphone, ipod, ipad or other Apple nonsense products.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BnLbv6QYcA

A classic!

[vidarh]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2002/11/22/man_burns_penis_with_laptop/

I really did not need to read that... Now I have sympathy pains..

[Digiman]

Yep, even without blocking the underside vents with your legs, those machines killed themselves regularly with heat. But keeping them on your lap, or even worse, on a cushion on your lap, is a sure-fire way of killing them off...

Coffee table

[Belial6]

So the answer to what CUSA brings to the amiga brand is a C64 case, and the promise of a linux distribution?

You are right. I don't get it. Maybe Im getting dumber as Im getting older.


You can believe me or dismiss you at your leisure, but the reason I keep asking is that I am genuinely puzzled. All these years.. all the infighting and arguing and all the different projects, and this is what we were waiting for?

No, and I don't believe that you really are that dense.  I think you are putting HUGE effort into not understanding.

One thing they bring to the table is Case styling.  First a very good C64 case.  While their case is expensive, custom cases often are.  For example: http://www.xoxide.com/pccases.html#shop-by-featured

Look at the price of the C64x case alone, and you will find that the added cost of the rest of the computer is pretty much on par with what you would find elsewhere for similar equipment.  Heck, even TheDaddy's case was over a hundred dollars, and The C64x is a far more advanced case than that.  The complaints about price are simply not comparing apples to apples.

Second, you are fully aware that software wise CUSA is talking about more than just a linux distro.  They have been very clear that they want to start with linux as a jumping off point.  Just as Apple started with BSD as a jumping off point.  They are also talking about legal and pre-configured C64 and AmigaOS compatibility via emulation.  You are fully aware of that, and pretending like you don't know that is simply playing dumb.  You have been too involved in these conversations to have missed them, and you clearly brighter than that.

What that leaves us with is your repeated questions asking what CUSA brings to the table is simply trolling.  You don't WANT to know what they bring to the table, but try as you might, you certainly do know it.  It may not be for you, but putting your head in the sand isn't going to make it go away.  It also won't make you stop knowing the truth.

[TheBilgeRat]

I like turtles

[runequester]

No, and I don't believe that you really are that dense.  I think you are putting HUGE effort into not understanding.

One thing they bring to the table is Case styling.  First a very good C64 case.  While their case is expensive, custom cases often are.  For example: http://www.xoxide.com/pccases.html#shop-by-featured

Look at the price of the C64x case alone, and you will find that the added cost of the rest of the computer is pretty much on par with what you would find elsewhere for similar equipment.  Heck, even TheDaddy's case was over a hundred dollars, and The C64x is a far more advanced case than that.  The complaints about price are simply not comparing apples to apples.

A c64 case is entirely and completely irrelevant to the amiga.
As I've said repeatedly on this forum, once they have an "amiga" product, then we'll see, and I've even supported giving them their own forum, alongside morph, aros etc.

Second, you are fully aware that software wise CUSA is talking about more than just a linux distro.  They have been very clear that they want to start with linux as a jumping off point.  Just as Apple started with BSD as a jumping off point.  They are also talking about legal and pre-configured C64 and AmigaOS compatibility via emulation.  You are fully aware of that, and pretending like you don't know that is simply playing dumb.  You have been too involved in these conversations to have missed them, and you clearly brighter than that.

Actually,when Barry answered some of my questions on this forum in the past, it seemed pretty clear that we're talking linux plus emulation.

Anything in writing, from the company, with specifics of more than linux+vice/UAE would be welcome, and actually be relevant and interesting news.

There's been tons of speculation by people not affiliated with CUSA. I'd love to see specifics, other than what was already revealed by CUSA themselves months ago. Not the rantings of Dammy on Moobunny or whatever.

If there's actual evidence that they are developing some sort of OS themselves, I'd love to see it. /that/ would actually be interesting and highly relevant.
Anyone undertaking this effort in 2011 is either loaded beyond belief with money and talent or crazy. For all we know, Barry might be both.

What that leaves us with is your repeated questions asking what CUSA brings to the table is simply trolling.  You don't WANT to know what they bring to the table, but try as you might, you certainly do know it.  It may not be for you, but putting your head in the sand isn't going to make it go away.  It also won't make you stop knowing the truth.

The truth is what is actually available for customers to buy. Nothing more. Nothing less.


So we are basing this all on future promises then?

[persia]

When there's something other than a linux distro available let us know.  There's too much vapour in this forum as it is.  Apple started with a heavily modified FreeBSD and has continued to upgrade and improve it.  There's a track record.  Anubis resurrected as Commodore OS is still talk without substance.  

I'm not interested in a computer in a keyboard, it's a silly idea in 2011, but if you come up with an interesting OS, well, that's something different.