Amiga.org
Amiga computer related discussion => General chat about Amiga topics => Topic started by: amiman99 on September 25, 2011, 09:07:16 PM
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So, Amiga X1000 will be released soon and some people will flock to buy it. They get their system up and running...and then what?
Let's say I'm willing to get one of these, what useful software I can use for that machine. During 1980s when Amiga and Atari ST were announced, the question on many reviewers and users were, "where is the software?"
To be successful you need commercial software, in Amiga spirit, you probably need a Video Editing, Photoshop like, and maybe 3D rendering software from well known publishers.
Looking at "Apple", for them to become relevant they they created a brand and software suite bundled with OS.
So, my question is, where is the software?
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So, my question is, where is the software?
There where all commercial MorphOS and AmigaOS software is. Nowhere. We have to write or port them all by ourselves.
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There where all commercial MorphOS and AmigaOS software is. Nowhere. We have to write or port them all by ourselves.
See...writing sw our self's it's not going to work, they "A-EON" need to have a commitment from a "Software Developer", or maybe they need to write or port some GOOD software themselves to get things rolling.
A computer w/o sw is useless.
:idea: Maybe NEWTEK could port "Lightwave" to the X1000, that would be a good start.
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All we really need is a decent web browser. Can't see that happening any time soon though.
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The only software generally comes from the community, other than the OS itself. There's just too small of a market unless you see things as a "labor of love". It is getting better as a whole, however. There is generally a solution/program that will do most of what you need.
Software availability has always been an issue for OS4 machines, and the issue will remain the same regardless of whether it's a lowly SAM 440 like I have or a powerhouse like the SAM 460 or X1000.
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:idea: Maybe NEWTEK could port "Lightwave" to the X1000, that would be a good start.
For less than 1000/2000 users? :sealed:
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For less than 1000/2000 users? :sealed:
Well...how many are Tricaster users?
Looks like they are aiming to more higher end users with X1000.
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The only software generally comes from the community, other than the OS itself. There's just too small of a market unless you see things as a "labor of love". It is getting better as a whole, however. There is generally a solution/program that will do most of what you need.
Software availability has always been an issue for OS4 machines, and the issue will remain the same regardless of whether it's a lowly SAM 440 like I have or a powerhouse like the SAM 460 or X1000.
that's very true. there is plenty of software out there, but in each category not a tremendous amount of choice when compared with mainstream platforms. i find most of my computing needs have solutions on my SAM excepting productivity applications compatible with more popular office suites.
but there is still plenty of great stuff to use. for example, on my SAM, here are some of the applications i use:
productivity
abiword (amicygnix)
gnumeric (amicygnix)
amigawriter 2.2
finalwriter 97
MUIbase
turbocalc 5
wordnet
wordworth 7
audio
adripper
amigaamp 3.1
amipodder
amisounded
hd-rec
hivelytracker
milkytracker
schism
tunenet
video
blender
dvplayer
mplayer (and mplayer GUI)
emulation
amiNES
basilisk 2
DOSbox
E-UAE (with RunInUAE)
Hatari
KEGS
VICE
WarpSNES
graphics
aladdin 4D
amifig
arteffect 4.0
drawstudio
fxpaint 2.0
grafx
imagefx 4.5
perfectpaint
photogenics 5 (not vert stable, though)
personal paint
TVpaint
internet
the AAMP stack
amitwitter
clipdown
ctorrent
jabberwocky
OWB 3.31
OWB (MUI)
pftp
netsurf 2.8
newscoaster
simplemail
timberwolf alpha
transmission
twinVNC
wookiechat
XNet-RSS
astronomy
3Dstars
celestia
digital universe
... and a ton of games and utilities, text editors, viewers, etc. and i can do everything i would on my PC: network connectivity to windows and UNIX boxs, ability to view just about any file format around, postscript-compatible printing, the lot. i would think the biggest barrier to entry is mostly the price of the X1000. there's tons and tons of stuff out there game-wise, and if you don't mind using classic software, tons of general applications as well.
-- eliyahu
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@eliyahu
While you provide a nice list, aren't many of these packages (or similar) usable on our old 68K-based machines? What is the incentive to move over to PPC?
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@eliyahu
While you provide a nice list, aren't many of these packages (or similar) usable on our old 68K-based machines? What is the incentive to move over to PPC?
that's an excellent point. performance is one, but then again, even the fastest mac running MOS or NG amiga running OS4 is going to have a hard time against a modern PC with UAE. for me i very much enjoy the more 'modern' feel to workbench, the fact that networking is built-in and 'just works,' access to more modern web browsers, the few powerpc-only games that are out there, etc.
there are lots of reasons a classic amiga user might want to look into MOS or OS4, but, as i was never a classic user, i'm probably not a good guy to ask. :)
i just provided the list to mention that there is plenty of good software that does run seamlessly on the NG systems, the X1000 included.
-- eliyahu
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@eliyahu
[ot]
you were never a "classic user"? how come? may i ask you what have attracted you to this scene? i mean i cannot think of a reason to be here except having used the original machines, but obviously there must be other motivations i wasnt aware of.
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@eliyahu
[ot]
you were never a "classic user"? how come? may i ask you what have attracted you to this scene? i mean i cannot think of a reason to be here except having used the original machines, but obviously there must be other motivations i wasnt aware of.
sure. i actually discovered the modern amiga platform(s) through a review at osnews.com early last year. i hadn't realized the amiga was still around, and, never having been interested in them in the 1980s and 1990s, i read through the article.
i was stunned to see just how beautiful OS4 was, and, as i have an interest in 'exotic' hardware platforms, the SAM sounded like a nice bauble to get. i've used MOS, OS3.1 via UAE, and AROS, but frankly i haven't enjoyed using a machine this much since the days of the macintosh IIci. :)
so, now i'm here as a hobbyist. i always wonder at the level of, er, enthusiasm on these fora, but i very much like my SAM and enjoy being a part of this little community. i give demos of my SAM occasionally at my office, and folks are amazed at how fluid and responsive everything is, the presence of pervasive scripting (via AREXX), the concept behind datatypes, the interface, etc. i really think folks don't know about OS4 (or MOS) out there, and there are more hobbyist types such as myself who would be interested. i've got ataris, apples, amstrads, spectrums, the lot. but i never had any amigas for some reason. i'm glad i have one now, well, if a SAM can be called an 'amiga.' ;)
-- eliyahu
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@eliyahu
Yours is quite an interesting story, and it's nice to hear. In fact, your story alone makes me consider trying OS4 on a SAM. (I'm not going to be able to afford the X1000!) Thanks for the info.
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@eliyahu
I understand your interest.
I myself did not purchase any amiga related hardware until the systems were orphaned.
Currently I find MOS and AOS4 quite attractiveg. While comparisons to OX or Windows may make NG OS' look undeerpowered, its nice to have something that carries on the Amiga OS legacy (without using UAE).
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sure. i actually discovered the modern amiga platform(s) through a review at osnews.com early last year. i hadn't realized the amiga was still around, and, never having been interested in them in the 1980s and 1990s, i read through the article.
interesting, i had my first amiga (a600) also at the end of its era (about 91), went to supermarket and there it was, a machine i ve ever heard from the 80ties and have never seen only heard legends about. sounds familiar? i bought it immediately, and have to carry the consequences to this day. stupid as it gets, i wonder.
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I'm a user since about 1991, got my first A1000 for like $250, then A2000, then A1200 and so on. The A1000 came with "Shadow of the Beast III", that game blew me away, then I tried Octamed 4, WOW!! I was hooked.
Right now I'm looking at the state of new Amigas, trying to figure out what can I do with them, if I decide to buy it.
Right now, I don't see any killer APP for OS4, I would like to use it as a main PC, maybe for video editing or blu-ray burning, web surfing Youtube, printing and so on, but I don't see that right now. Showing that Quake II runs fine it's not going to cut it.
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It's a chicken and the egg thing right now. Few are going to develop software for it because the customer base is so low and the customer base is so low because there's no software available for it.
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All we really need is a decent web browser. Can't see that happening any time soon though.
I find Odyssey 1.14 to be *more* than just "decent", it has pretty much everything I can ask for for my daily browsing needs (except a good Flash solution, but that's not Odyssey's fault). Had Odyssey been running on my Windows 7 box, I'd probably use it there instead of Chrome. Then it would have had access to Flash as well...
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It's a chicken and the egg thing right now. Few are going to develop software for it because the customer base is so low and the customer base is so low because there's no software available for it.
...and because of its (the HW) ridiculous price tag, and because its spec's and performance you get for that price, and because the state OS4 is in, and...
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Had Odyssey been running on my Windows 7 box, I'd probably use it there instead of Chrome.
Wait. This sounds like a great idea. Of course you´d have to get AROSs Zune working on Windows first. Can you create Windows Bountys?
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Well, if the X1000 could use both it's cores it would be slightly more powerful than an iPhone 5....
QUOTE=takemehomegrandma;661510]...and because of its (the HW) ridiculous price tag, and because its spec's and performance you get for that price, and because the state OS4 is in, and...[/QUOTE]