Executive Update - Amiga Status Announcement

[KennyR]

AInc are becoming a real business and not just some little pseudo-amateur setup. First they eliminate the threat that XL posed, now they're doing the same to the pegasos. Well, thats just the way big business works. You have to be ruthless.

In my opinion, this move has just killed the pegasos project. There were many who liked the look of the pegasos hardware but wanted OS4 who will now have to buy A1 or Shark hardware. As for the actual future of the PegasOS (OS) - ah, well figure it out yourself. There aren't enough existing Amiga users to support the current market, so I don't see how less than a third of this market could survive on its own. Looks like there is a reason for RS's vicious paranoia after all.

Remember, this is my opinion and not the truth. Feel free to believe it or not, or try to convince me otherwise with good evidence. Flames from anonymous users will simply be ignored. Or made fun of. Preferably the latter. ;-)

[KennyR]

Hi Kronos,

Yeah sorry. I didn't make myself all that clear. I know a lot of the current Amiga user base aren't going to buy A1's - they'll stick to (sloooow) 68k, nasty XL or get a Shark. The A1 boards are expensive after all. And there is the question of their very limited upgradeability...

But OS4 will indeed sell more than pegasos, even if it's only because the Shark will use it. Now, the fact that it won't run on a pegasos board will not at all make it any easier for bplan to sell them. This is made worse because most of the ppc games lined up for the future (and there aren't many) are planned for OS4. The only way it could get worse for bplan right now is if OS4 is able to emulate or "semi-emulate" pegasos.

I see a parallel in the competition between PowerUp and WarpOS - WarpOS won out because it has more games and advanced software available, and because it can emulate PUP while the reverse is not true. And this was done without any permission from P5, authors of PUP and makers of the boards: some of whom are now backing bplan.

So as I see it, AInc are just making sure that they dominate the market - by fair means or by foul. Such is life.

[KennyR]

Who says the Shark is vapor? For almost 8 months people have being saying both the A1 and OS4 are vapor. Oh, but loooky...here they are. Vapor! is normally the cry of people who don't like something but can't find any good reason why they don't. I thought Codename Chicago was vapor - until out popped Windows95, the Abomination of Mankind. If the Shark fails to come out, AInc lose 1000s of potential customers of OS4. I doubt they will allow this easily.

As for emulation, correct - it can work both ways. But given what has gone before, i believe bplan will not want to emulate OS4. Some MOS folks have been rabid about wanting nothing to do with it, stating it as being coded by people who know nothing about the Amiga's insides and should go back to coding games. MOS and pegasos emulation on OS4 is the likelier prospect at the moment - especially if pegasos fails - which, let me just put clearly before the flames burn: I do not want to happen.

Lots of software on MOS - well, its mainly just direct ports of (fairly trivial) 68k stuff. I don't doubt that OS4 coders could hammer out the same stuff in a few months. So far, though, (and prove me wrong) there isn't anything in MOS yet that is truly great or innovative - apart from MOS itself. MOS has had at least a year.  No games. Only one planned that I know (Feeble Files). And no big apps. Not good.

[KennyR]

I didn't say A1 and OS4 were the same product. I said that at one time, both were put down as vapor by MOS supporters, and turned out not to be.

As for the software list, ok, point conceded. (I did ask you do prove me wrong) ;-)

At the same time, be sure that the OS that has more users and more publicity will surely have more software available. This is a fact. Whether this will be OS4 or pegasos is yet to be seen. But I know who my money's on.