The decline in consumer choice

[aG93IGRvIGkgdWJ1bnR1Pw==]

Anyway, I don't think we've lost choice so much as we've seen the industry come together and create standards, defacto and dujour.

Freudian slip of the day, thanks for the laugh.

(assuming you meant standards de jure)

[Telengard C64]

So you really think things are worse now than they were then?

Peripherals Back Then

• Commodore: proprietary serial bus (built in)
• Atari: proprietary I/O bus (built in)
• Apple II: Pay $60 for an add-in card, then pay another $150 for something to connect to it.

Peripherals Now

• Everyone: USB (built in)

Programming Back Then

• Commodore BASIC: Text only programs are largely compatible with other Commodore 8-bits, but must be rewritten for any other brand computer.
• Atari BASIC: Programs are largely compatible with other Atari 8-bits, but must be rewritten for any other brand computer.
• AppleSoft BASIC: Programs are largely compatible with other Apple 8-bits, but must be rewritten for any other brand computer.
• 6502 Assembly language: Text only programs are largely compatible with other 6502-based systems, but I/O routines must be rewritten to accommodate differences in hardware and firmware. Graphical programs require the entire toolkit to be ported, or much of the program rewritten.

Programming Now

• C: Runs on any system with a C compiler, usually with some modifications.
• Java: Runs on on any system with a Java interpreter with little or no modification.

Games Then

• Commodore: Buy the C-64 version of the game.
• Atari: Buy the Atari 8-bit version of the game.
• Apple: Buy the Apple II version of the game.
• Don't play games on your computer. Play them on your Atari, Nintendo, or Sega.

Games Now

• Play on the web: Runs on any system with a modern web browser and Flash or Java plugin.
• Download and play: Download the version of the game appropriate to your system.
• PC/Mac: Some games include both versions on the same media.
• Linux: Linux-native versions are provided for some games. Others run in Wine. Virtualization and emulation are also viable options for many games.
• Don't play games on your computer. Play them on your Playstation, Wii, or XBox.

Support Then

• Call the manufacturer: Sometimes long distance, waiting on hold, getting transferred between departments.
• Buy subscriptions to one or more magazines specific to one brand. See lots of advertisements. Pray your needs are addressed in next month's issue.
• Buy a membership to a local computer club, usually specific to one brand computer. Wait weeks for the next meeting before you can talk to anyone.
• Pay to join a BBS. Slow and unreliable dial-up connections. Your help requests get ignored because everyone else is more interested in BBS games or dating. Sysop limits your use of the system for the sake of fairness.
• Invest thousands of hours and hundreds of dollars learning programming and electronics to fix your own problem.

Support Now

• Many manufacturers provide free support online for a period after purchase. Some of them work pretty well in my experience. Almost all manufacturers provide free access to reference materials, troubleshooting guides, and software/firmware updates via their web sites.
• You can still call the manufacturer and wait on hold if you like, but now you frequently must speak to one or more support specialists for whom English may be a second language. Sometimes it works out well for everyone, sometimes not.
• Join a free support forum which focuses on your product. Meet friendly knowledgeable people who usually try very hard to help you without expecting much of anything in return other than a simple "thank you".
• Join a IRC channel devoted to your product. See lots of links to anime pictures and YouTube videos. There are even on-topic discussions occasionally.
• Ask a local expert, maybe even someone in your own home. Standardization of hardware and software means it is very likely that someone in easy reach knows exactly how to solve your problem. Even if your software is not the same as their own, modern GUIs are so simple that it won't take long to figure out.
• Search the web. Any problem you are trying to solve, no matter how obscure, has most likely already been confronted by others who found some solution or work-around.

[pricetech]

Freudian slip of the day, thanks for the laugh.

(assuming you meant standards de jure)

Yeah, I knew that didn't look right. Brain Fart I guess.

Thanks for the catch.

[3rdalbum]

Choice is good, but working on the same standards is better. Think about TVs; you have a choice of TVs, but they all operate with the same signals from your antenna, and they all operate with all AV peripherals out there.

If some TV stations were Sony-only or Panasonic-only, how bad would that be? Pretty bad! Or if NEC peripherals only worked with NEC TVs - when NEC left the TV market, if your NEC TV died you'd have to replace your VCR and DVD recorder as well.

[MisterGaribaldi]

Yeah, but back in the day, it's not like anyone was concerned about compatibility, right?

I mean, all the manufacturers were out to -- excuse the language -- whip 'em out and show theirs was the biggest one.

Basically, Microsoft's mass licensing of their OSs (DOS, principally) is what basically forced the issue of what hardware to build a computer from. You couldn't choose to build custom hardware and yet run MS-DOS on it, or Windows. You either ran some form of x86 hardware, or you were on your own.

Apple was in the same boat with Sun, Apollo, and others like that. In the end, only Apple of all the non-Microsoft licensees was left standing.

Take a look: not a SINGLE other computer maker still exists which didn't hop in bed with Microsoft. Apple's it. If it weren't for Linus, RMS, GNU and Apple, there'd be no competition at all, much less choice.

[earthpigg]

Yeah, but back in the day, it's not like anyone was concerned about compatibility, right?

I mean, all the manufacturers were out to -- excuse the language -- whip 'em out and show theirs was the biggest one.

Basically, Microsoft's mass licensing of their OSs (DOS, principally) is what basically forced the issue of what hardware to build a computer from. You couldn't choose to build custom hardware and yet run MS-DOS on it, or Windows. You either ran some form of x86 hardware, or you were on your own.

Apple was in the same boat with Sun, Apollo, and others like that. In the end, only Apple of all the non-Microsoft licensees was left standing.

Take a look: not a SINGLE other computer maker still exists which didn't hop in bed with Microsoft. Apple's it. If it weren't for Linus, RMS, GNU and Apple, there'd be no competition at all, much less choice.

i like the way your avatar looks at the reader while he reads.

i feel dared to challenge you, but i know from watching B5 that fate is on your side.