Re: XyWrite

[Paul R. Falzer 74627,267]

Paul,

I sympathize and concur with Rafael Tennenbaum's point about the direction of
XyWrite development. I think that while the issue of whether TTG should develop
a native OS/2 product may have merit, it was a relatively minor aspect of Raf's
posting. Primarily, he wanted to know where the company has been, why its
presence here has been so spotty, and why product development of XyWrite is
stalled.

I don't question your experience about the dearth of OS/2 users in your
environment. You said: "in my small universe of a few thousand users and all
of my friends and colleagues with whom I have worked over about 15 years in the
computer business NOBODY, literally NOBODY, is using OS/2. As I said, I see
(hear) zero demand for it from my users."

To put Raf's concern in context, substitute the word "XyWrite" for "OS/2" in
the preceding paragraph. Most of the thousands of users I know have never heard
of XyWrite. Most who have heard of it believe it's like WordStar -- a once
shining light that has become an industry joke. Among the few who know better,
some believe that it's an excellent engine for Nota Bene; others recognize it
as the software that was the standard of their publishing house until recently,
when the company upgraded to Word or WordPerfect. There are a few remaining:
there are a few holdout companies, a handful of stubborn individuals. They are
exceptions to the rule. By and large, XyWrite is fast becoming superannuated
and on its way to extinction.

So, I found it rather and odd mysterious when Kenneth Frank, who has
demonstrated no particular interest in keeping XyWrite modern and competitive,
who seems to have done almost nothing to address the program's flaws and
glitches, who has actually defended the inexusable performance of his company's
tech support, and who has all but disappeared from this forum, would suddenly
emerge only to express interest in HTML. It is as if Sherwood Egbert would
phone in from the golf course and proclaim the desire for a Formula 1
Studebaker.

As I read his posting, Raf has attempted to build a fire under Mr. Frank. I
appreciate Raf's effort, though I doubt whether it will succeed. I suspect that
even if it did, too much time may have passed. Rather than quibbling over the
popularity of OS/2, I would appreciate your joining Raf and others who dearly
want the product to succeed, even if the best we can hope for is to forestall
an inevitable move to the dust heep.

Paul Falzer