*BSD News Article 66093


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From: neil@beast.usask.ca (Neil Schemenauer)
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.development.system,comp.unix.bsd.386bsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.bsdi.misc,comp.unix.bsd.netbsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,comp.os.linux.advocacy
Subject: Re: Historic Opportunity facing Free Unix (was Re: The Lai/Baker paper, benchmarks, and the world of free UNIX)
Date: 19 Apr 1996 03:07:22 GMT
Organization: University of Saskatchewan
Lines: 34
Message-ID: <slrn4ne0uc.1fh.neil@beast.usask.ca>
References: <tporczykDpqKHL.7vG@netcom.com> <DpsKyx.1Jo@catzen.gun.de> <tporczykDptpAL.8uG@netcom.com> <4ksupc$a1j@cnn.nas.nasa.gov> <4l4pq5$h3s@sidhe.memra.com>
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On 18 Apr 1996 00:08:53 -0700, Michael Dillon <michael@memra.com> wrote:
>In article <4ksupc$a1j@cnn.nas.nasa.gov>,
>Paul M. Newhouse <newhouse@win126.nas.nasa.gov> wrote:
>>>As I said originally, the only thing that can sell UNIX to desktops
>>>(besides specialized uses) is applications - common productivity
>>>applications, priced *reasonably*.
>>
>>I agree.  We need to see a good spreedsheet and a good WYSIWIG document
>>processor at resonable prices in order to really expand the Free/Net BSD,
>>Linux demand in the desktop arena.
>
>Personally, I think we've got to have a good spreadsheet and word processor
>PORTABLE FILE FORMAT that several people can write spreadsheet and WP 
>programs for. In the beginning there was UNIX and plain ASCII stream 
>files. This was good. Then there was nroff/troff and it was still pretty 
>good. But then all hell broke loose and every app comes with mutually 
>incomprehensible file formats that are all so utterly mediocre that they 
>change from one release to the next. We need a little bit of up-front 
>design to come up with something that will work for a long time but is 
>more rigorously designed than HTML and is not so close to the metal as 
>Postscript.
>
>
>-- 
>Michael Dillon                                    Voice: +1-604-546-8022
>Memra Software Inc.                                 Fax: +1-604-546-3049
>http://www.memra.com                             E-mail: michael@memra.com


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