Re: We should move en masse to Nota Bene

[Bill Troop billtroop@xxxxxxxx]

Just thing how  much easier it would be to continue using XyWrite. Install Virtual XP in Win 7-64 and it's difficult to find problems. You won't have to worry about betas or new versions either. Meanwhile, how does XY4 work on Win 8? 


On Thu, Dec 20, 2012 at 2:11 AM, Harry Binswanger mailto:hb@xxxxxxxx wrote:

I'm devastated to hear that there are problems running XPL. That's my main concern. Is Dave Erickson still working for them?



I suppose I could use NB9 until the XPL problems are resolved. That 9 ran XPL quite competently (if not too rapidly).



--Harry





Harry



I have been thinking along similar lines for some time although I might approach the issue slightly differently.  I've been working with NB10 for a couple of betas now and find the basic word processor much better than NB9 in terms of cleanness of the interface and text window -- I get much less 'noise' with NB10 that I do with NB9.  It even offers different styles so that in common parlance it can be skinned.  This is probably not of much interest to most XY users but I find you can tweak some of the styles to increase menu font size, for example.




What works less well at the moment with NB10 is compatibility with XPL programming and particularly many of the routines within U2.  I do not know enough about XPL and XYWrite to come close to identifying what the problems might be but as of beta 7 they are still major.  NB is generally sympathetic to the needs of former XY users and I have had quite a lot of useful contact with Steve recently.  HOWEVER, their overriding concern is to get all the basic functions that their main user base needs working solidly.  Once that is achieved then I think they can be persuaded to pay more attention to other issues, and I can accept that as reasonable.




My own wish is that NB10 should be capable of running everything in U2. (Or virtually everything: there will be some routines that are no longer necessary such as ANSI compatibility that I have recently been wrestling with.)  I too would like to see more users on the group trying out NB10 and identifying its weaknesses.  The collective technical expertise within the group could probably help pinpoint issues that, for example, prevent U2 routines from functioning correctly.  I'm sure there will be strength in numbers when it comes to negotiating with NB and for that reason alone I would encourage all of us who are able to embrace NB10 and help it on its way.  It should work: as far as I can see -- which may not be very far -- it utilises the same underlying engine and philosophy as our beloved XY4.






Paul Breeze



On 19/12/2012 16:53, Harry Binswanger wrote:


Having bought a Win 7 machine, I've been giving a lot of thought to

this, and I think we XyWriters are in an unsustainable position. 16-bit

DOS XyWrite is drifting ever further back into the mists of history.

Fortunately, Nota Bene is our lifeline.



I've been trying using a VM (Parallels Workstation) to run XP in Win 7.

It works, yes, but with such mental and computer overhead that I'm

thinking I am going to struggle with NB 10, 64 bit, so that I can

continue gaining the advantages of the XyWrite engine.



As I see it, the situation is this: we can spend our time either on the

complexities of getting things the way we want in a VM (note the

extended back-and-forths here on DOSBox) or invest roughly the same time

in getting things the way we want in NB. The advantage of the latter is

that for the same time spent, we create a setup that carries forward

into the future.



It would be considerably easier to make the Xy-to-NB transition if we

had each other (especially Carl) to email to. I suppose that would mean

either a large number of us moving to the NB list, which I gather is

presently too nontechnical for us, or staying on this list but devoting

a large part of it (a sublist?) to things NB-related.



Comments?





--Harry