I wouldn't believe much I read in Acorn User as regards news! I just read it for the adverts and the odd decent review!!!

Aren't you the AU webmaster?

Hardware independence is not necessary as John Kortink can do the necessary for AGP graphics blah blah blah,

Er...that is hardware independence. Hardware independence = the ability to run irrespective of the underlying hardware. John has effectively rewritten the RISC OS graphics routines to use his AGP card. What's needed is for a standard method of doing this to be implemented.

[Edited by johnstlr at 09:40, 3/8/2001]

That being the case, this whole PR mess-up is Acorn User's fault for not double checking such a serious statement. Mr. Middleton please accept my apologies for jumping to conclusions on this matter.

Still, a public press release to point this out should have quickly killed off this thread and many people would have felt a lot more confident about the market. I have regained some of my confidence in it just by reading the above, now please announce that work will soon start on the 32bit OS and I'll be a happy RISC OS user.

We don't care if he was just talking about RISC OS. We _do_ care that he was talking about the future of the desktop computer, since this is what we use. Set top related things are irrelevant to us.

Can you point to a specific page on Pace's site that discuses their idea of home computers? For starters, I don't think you mean pace.com

I'm just going to quote a couple of bits from the latest Foundation newsletter about the Select scheme which seem relevant to this thread.

So, if you don't actually subscribe to a RISCOS Ltd product, you don't get to hear about it.

confidence_level--;
PR_abilities--;

Luckily most adult RISC OS users have little interest in reading postings from immature students who feel the need to liberally spread e******ves into their messages as their way of trying to make out that their view is the correct one because they feel so forcefully about it.

Current demographic of RISC OS users (from their own report) show's the majority of users are around 30. The majority of the concerned users are in this range.

observation_skills--;
PR_abilities--;

Obviously I am taking this all too much to heart but as Paul Johnson has said, the reason we are "apparently rubbishing ROL" is that we are dead worried about the market and it seems the more you know about the market the more concerned you get.

Given the links we have with companies, this is fair comment. If these companies disappear, our livlihoods go as well. I wonder if ROS Ltd have ever bothered to look past their own myopia and see that there are other companies in the equation here. Personally, I wouldn't shed a tear if ROS Ltd disappeared tomorrow - they have done nothing for us (other than OS 4) and show continual signs of not really giving a toss about the community as whole - just saving their worthless hides.

customer_care--;

About the AU thing, Paul said:

Many of you will have seen the August 2001 issue of Acorn User which contained a report on the RISC OS 2001 Expo in Holland, which mistakenly reported that my speech at the show stated that there was no desktop market left and that I had been very negative, offering no direction for desktop computers. To put matters straight there will be a follow up article in the next issue of Acorn User which will correct many items raised in that article and others in the same issue.

This shows that you should have been more careful because if one person can take it "the wrong way" then many of the audience will have taken it as such as waiting another month for AU to put right the wrong is leaving the gap too wide for losing more of your cherished userbase or customerbase as it *should* be known.
Maybe you should make a public apology that it was taken the wrong way and write down what you actually mean and then get it checked and sent.

Actually looks more like back peddling. "Oh dear, I've made a booboo and given more ammunition to those who resent my running of the company. Silly me"

if ((customer_care>0) || (clue_1 > 0) || (PR_ability > 0))
{
printf("Well, I'll be jiggered\n";
exit(EXIT_SUPRISED);
}

I suppose thats fair enough,
RiscOS wont be developed or survive with RiscOS Ltd. in charge
RiscOS may survive if we kick them out
Problem i can see is how do you get them out of the market, leaving someone/company to develop the OS?

Depends on whether anyone can get a decent working relationship with Pace.
Also depends on whether Pace can now be a**ed with the desktop market.
If they aren't even going to use the OS themselves in future products, then why bother at all?

ROL are surviving on Select and Foundation membership money, which the drones keep paying up for.