Text 7253, 116 rader
Skriven 2008-05-17 18:41:00 av DAVE DRUM (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av MICHAEL LOO
Ärende: Re: 'puters & Ned Ludd
==============================
-=> MICHAEL LOO wrote to JOAN MACDIARMID <=-

 ML> I have a question, not particularly aimed at you, but more at
 ML> the technocrats among us. Why do we need specific drivers for
 ML> these hardware products? Why aren't there interchangeable and
 ML> open-source drivers that the companies can adopt at far lower
 ML> cost than writing the software fresh each time?

It's an ego thing with each company. It's also the chaos one gets when each
company is allowed to set its own "standard" for (whatever). One of the things
I liked most about my beloved, lamented and nearly dead Amiga line of confusers
was that Commodore set a set of rules and issued a set of ROM Kernel manuals (I
still have a set - unopened - of the latest) and prmised that "If you follow
these guidelines and pay attention to these rules in writing your application
for the Amiga that your product will run on subsequent versions of the
operating system. The standards were fairly conservative - as they had to be. 

And it WAS possible, by banging the hardware to get some pretty spectacular
effects ... especially for gamers. But, 10 times out of nine, those who banged
the hardware with non-standard system calls would have software that would only
work on the specific set of the OS it was written on. A lesson that Rip (off)
Hawkins and Electronic (F)Arts finally learned.

Oh, yes. Irving Gould and Mehdi Ali have a LOT to answer for. It almost makes
me wish I believed in some sort of after life or re-incarnation so that they
could get their just rewards!!!!

/soapbox

 ML> I agree, being an advocate for not using more bells and whistles
 ML> than one needs. Just because computing power increases at an
 ML> exponential rate doesn't mean that we need to avail ourselves of
 ML> all capabilities all the time. And resent is a good characterization
 ML> of how I feel when squeezed by diminishing backward compatibility.
 ML> From WordPerfect 5.1 to the Spades game that I used to love to
 ML> play, every version of Microsoft OS makes it harder to revisit
 ML> these old favorites.

And, were this an Amiga world your WP 5.1 would work as well on Workbench 1.0
as on WB 4.0

 ML> I still mourn for my Word 2.0 (or is it Word 6?) that is trapped
 ML> on my useless old Sony computer.

 JM> It's Office Pro, suitable for Windows 3.1 or later
 JM> (they advertised!). Granted, it cannot open later
 JM> versions of Office-generated files. (GRR) But so far
 JM> anything I have generated with it has been readable
 JM> by any recipients.

 ML> I wonder what would happen if I started submitting my mss. in
 ML> WP5.1 format.

You would be in deep doody. Because the people for whom you work (and
presumably) are paid do not understand WP5.1 and don't want to. They understand
Word (latest version) and expect product from their lackeys to be in that
format.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06
 
      Title: Scallops W/Cauliflower, Dried Cherries & Capers
 Categories: Seafood, Shellfish, Fruits
      Yield: 6 servings
 
      5 c  Small cauliflower florets
      3 tb Olive oil; divided
      9 oz Package fresh spinach
           Leaves
      1 lg Shallot; fine chopped,
           Divided
    1/4 ts Ground cinnamon
      6 lg Sea scallops; side muscle
           Removed
      6 tb Butter
      6 lg Sage leaves; sliced thin
      3 tb Dried tart cherries
      2 tb Drained capers
 
  Cook cauliflower florets in large pot of boiling salted
  water until tender, about 6 minutes. Drain and transfer
  cauliflower to bowl. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in same pot over
  medium-high heat. Add spinach and toss until just wilted
  but still bright green, about 3 minutes. Transfer spinach
  to sieve set over large bowl and drain well. Reserve pot.
  
  DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temp.
  
  Heat 1 tablespoon oil in reserved pot. Add half of shallot;
  saute 1 minute. Sprinkle cauliflower with cinnamon, salt,
  and pepper. Add to pot and toss to coat. Add spinach and
  toss until heated through, about 3 minutes. Divide vegetables
  among 6 plates.
  
  Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in medium skillet
  over high heat. Sprinkle scallops with salt and pepper. Add
  to skillet; sear until just opaque in center, about 2 min
  per side. Place 1 scallop on each plate. Melt butter in same
  skillet. Add half of shallot and last 3 ingredients. Cook
  until butter starts to brown, about 4 minutes. Spoon over
  scallops and serve.
  
  Michael Psilakis
  
  Makes 6 servings
  
  Bon Appétit - Features | January 2008
  
  Meal Master Format by Dave Drum - 04 Mach 2008
  
  Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives
 
MMMMM

... "All right, that's enough!" - Tom Wilson during the "Making of WCIII"
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