From: Timothy Rue
Subject: Media Perspective
Date: Wed, 2 Apr 97 23:24:01
----------------------------
>In article (5hkrto$cr8@flood.xnet.com),
> jcompton@typhoon.xnet.com (Jason Compton) wrote:
>>Mark Rickan (rickan@vaxxine.com) wrote:
>>
>>: The remaining user base also has a responsibility to provide the eventual
>>: suitor with some *breathing space*. The rabid behavior of many Amiga
>>: fanatics detracts from the spirit which was embodied in the machine. There
>>: will be ample opportunity for voices to be heard when the time is right.
>>: Spamming the PR contacts at Gateway with heartfelt appeals and boneheaded
>>: suggestions on technology strategy will do nothing to help the cause.
>>
>>I second this. Input and good vibes are one thing, but when you start
>>giving Gateway 10-step plans on "how to save the Amiga" you're really not
>>helping much...
{^_^} Joanne Dow, Amiga Exchange Editor on BIX, aka The Wizardess wrote:
>I'll nominate you for understatement of the year on that one, Jason. If
>people really want to kill the Amiga they should start bombarding Gateway
>2000 with
>10 step plans, diatribes, demands, and the like. This is the chief reason
>that writers never liked to talk about the Amiga. No matter WHAT they said
>they got rabid "Amigoid" mail complaining that it did not say the right thing
>nicely enough and fullsomely enough. It turned off the writers - *COLD*.
>(Many of them inhabit BIX where I deal with them daily. I have too many times
>listened to their frustration with "Amigoids.")
>The *BEST* way to make the Amiga live is to sell Amigas to your neighbors.
>Become hardware pushers. As sales go so shall the Amiga go. SO see to it that
>GW2K can sell Amigas, as many as they can make. Do not "lecture" them. They
>are not and will not be interested.
Perhaps a simple, healthy, productive change in perspective is needed by
the media. The Amiga does needs to be written about in a positive light and
without the negitive feedback. The media has the ability to set the tone of
which it's audience preceive and respond to. If there is such a persistance
from "Amigoids" (used here in a negitive connotation) then perhaps the
media should ask and answer the why rather than dumping blame on Amigoids
(whom share with the media the overall objective of advancing the
platform).
At this stage of the Amiga's evolution, having enough to look back on, it
should be becomming clear what the simple, healthy, productive change in
perspective is. And it's up to the media to recognize it and communicate
it in setting the tone of the media audience. The alternative is to
continue without change and the media already knows what to expect here.
In an effort to be positive enough so that the media and audience might
hear these words, consider the past as growing, evolutional pains. The
evolutional pains of moving from the "closed system mentality" that claims
"this is the way, the only way, it is", to the "open system mentality" of
realizing "this is one possibility out of many, where each can see
something more or different". Note that it has only been 3-4 years since
open systems have been identified with value and versatility beyond closed
systems. And the Amiga having been around for much longer, it should be
obvious now that the real problem has been in lack of identifying (on the
part of both the media and audience) that there is a huge difference in
perspectives between closed systems and open systems. Following thru on
this means there is the same difference in how to cover it.
It is up to, by choice, the media to educate it's audience about this
difference. Setting an example can't hurt. People experienced with the
Amiga know the advantages but haven't identified it under a label. One
won't be very successful in communicating color from a perspective of
black and white only. To identify and communicate a perspective so many
know but have not identified, what will result is a positive keyed in
responce.
To use an analogy:
From inside a semi-transparent sphere, one can only see part of the
sphere. You can change directions all you want but you'll only see a part
of the sphere at any one time. But from outside of the sphere, you can see
the whole sphere with all of it's versatility and possibilities.
Using this analogy, step outside of the sphere and consider what all
you have receive and preceived from within the sphere, but on a neutral
tone (neutral connotation applied). Realize there are many ways to
accomplish the same thing (more than one way to skin a cat). What becomes
important here, in order to accomplish anything within the sphere, is to
know that having a plan to follow (good, fair, or even poor) is better
than no plan at all. But also know (from being outside of the sphere) the
plan being followed is only one of many possible plans.
Closed system mentality does not allow one to step outside of the
sphere. Open system mentality requires not only the ability to step
outside of the sphere but the act of doing it. Perhaps even stepping
outside of the bigger sphere, of which the sphere you stepped out of is
within.
To give a real life example:
Working in the trade show industry and having applied alot of personal
money, time and effort to integrate the Amiga into the many spheres of the
trade show business (the business of many spheres of sales and promotion),
you can be certain I know what I'm communicating here is real and solid.
You can also be sure I have alot to be angry and frustrated with in
regards to the Amiga history (being it's the system invested in to do
this but then I'm being kept from it, due the shakey foundation of the
Amiga since.)
Before I continue -
What can I expect and why (based on experience in dealing with the closed
system mentality of ......) refer to:
http://www.neo-tech.com/discovery/nt1.html
At this point in creating this post I decide to sleep on it. When I woke
up to get ready for work I really wanted to stay home and complete this
post. To communicate the many spheres of the trade show industry and how
it affect a great deal, but by the end of my day I have found I'm just to
tired. Well after much consideration:
As much as I'd like to complete the post as I had intended:
1) I'm not getting paid for it and seem to be lacking in time to do
it. :-)
2) I don't appriciate the faulty rationalizations, distortions,
untrue claims, contridictions, or laziness of those who have not
the intent to apply effort in honesty and wide scope integration to
bring or help bring about solutions openly (where it is needed.)
3) It's clear to me, Gateway 2000 is in business to make money and not
to throw it away on a purchase of something they have no plans on
making money with. Gateway 2000 knows how to run a business to
generate profit. They also know how to solve problems they
encounter in doing so. Gateway 2000 markets to the professional
more so than to the consumer. Gateway 2000 knows the Amiga is an
open system and marketing will be done as such (watch and see.)
4) There is enough in the above to get one started in making a needed
positive, healthy and productive change in perspective. But it's a
choice and I have no doubt there will become plenty of open system
mindedness to fill the space left by those who don't make the
change. Those who do will recognize those who don't, but those who
don't won't understand those who do.
5) A Modular system is consistant with open system mentality. A
traditional system is consistant with closed system mentality.
The 2-3 grand, maximum profit, system price tag was established
in dealing in closed systems, not open systems. Give me a well
designed modular open system and I'll have alot more success in
generating profit for all involved.
Timothy Rue