From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.5-pre1 (2020-06-20) on ip-172-31-74-118.ec2.internal X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=1.0 required=3.0 tests=BAYES_40,TO_NO_BRKTS_PCNT autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.5-pre1 Date: 23 Aug 93 17:39:00 GMT From: prism!jm59@gatech.edu (MILLS,JOHN M.) Subject: Re: Free Hawaii trip if you buy my Ada products Message-ID: <109976@hydra.gatech.EDU> List-Id: In article <186@mlb.win.net> mbayern@mlb.win.net (Mark Bayern) writes: > > >In article , Mike Ryer (ryer@dsd.camb.inmet.c om) writes: >>So, given unwillingness by DOD to prime the pump, Ada will continue to strugg le >>along growing at 10-20% per year. I believe that I'm seeing increasing >>dissatisfaction with C and C++, and think that Ada will do even better, on >>its own merits, over the next few years. > [stuff deleted] >The folks who should have a reall interest in priming the pump >should be the vendors! After all, they'll be the ones to profit >if it takes off. If you need an example, I can try to find my old >$29.95 copy of JRT Pascal for CP/M. Unfortunate example, I'm afraid. JRT Pascal sold for near $300 for a couple of years, with lukewarm response, the took off like a ruanway fire engine when they re-priced it at $29.95. Problems were that (1) the compiler is pretty fragile, spinning its wheels when it hits some source errors, and (2) the libraries, especially the trancendentals, were "unsafe" and inaccurate in limit conditions. That meant that each $29.95 sale generated a fair load of customer support and some irritation. (I had to rewrite some math source.) The company went rich, then broke in a hurry. I understand JRT Pascal has been released for free public distribution. I wonder who was still around to release it. (I can supply copies on 8" diskettes, BTW. [8*>) Interestingly, the language had some nice features (automatic loading and purging provided a primitive form of virtual memory, for code), and wasn't _badly_ reviewed when it was expensive. Borland's Turbo Pascal 3.0 was a better value at $99.99 than JRT at $29.95. Much significant commercial cp/m software at that time sold around $300, so TP 3.0 was also a bargain, and a lot of "production" code was written with it. I think that one moral to draw from all this is: "Nothing can kill a bad product faster than good advertising." (paraphrase from David Oglyvie [sp?], _Confessions_of_an_Advertising_Man_) The sales-generated demand for customer support has been touched on here in connection with pricing. It is surely important. The mass marketeers of personal computer software must provide as routine, installation and on-line help which must be the envy of most other computer users. (I use "personal computer" in the inclusive sense -- no silly Mac/PC/NeXt flames, please.) Regards --jmm-- -- John M. Mills, SRE; Georgia Tech/GTRI/TSDL, Atlanta, GA 30332 uucp: ...!{decvax,hplabs,ncar,purdue,rutgers}!gatech!prism!jm59 Internet: john.m.mills@gtri.gatech.edu Say "Goodnight," Gracie.