Re: [NTLK] NCX: problems connecting via Ethernet

> And yet you have to deal with my opinion.

Marty, I have dealt with your opinion, and not just in my last post either.
I've dealt with your kind of opinions in many of my posts here, actually.

Your opinion is one that stems from maintaining the status quo. In other
words: "Hey, James Wages, NCX has Ethernet connectivity which satisfies me.
So who cares if NCX is lacking in the serial area. What, James? You want
to use serial? Don't be silly. Just use Ethernet like me." You are saying
this indirectly of course, but my feelings are the same as if you said those
words verbatim.

And so, there is nothing further that I need to deal with concerning your
opinion other than to say that some out there would like more serial speed,
I being one of them.

>> The fact that you, Marty, are satisfied with your connectivity
>> doesn't mean the world revolves around your connection preference, however
>> problem free you yourself may have found it to be.
> True, I forgot that your connection preference is much more important.

If you thought about what was written, you would not have responded that way
to me. Why? Because as I stated in my opening paragraph to you in this
post, you are not understanding the situation at all, merely focusing on
your own desire to silence anyone who wants to see serial functionality
improve (and no, it doesn't matter if I appear to be the lone soul talking
about serial either).

You have what you want: your Ethernet connection. You are then telling me
(and everyone else) to not say anything about serial, in spite of my desire
to see that area improved (and there is nothing wrong with "Ask and ye shall
receive" either). I am not in your position of having all I want in terms
of NCX connectivity.

Putting it another way, say you and I are poor. You found food somewhere
and ate until you were full. I have yet to be filled as you, so I ask
someone for some food. You then jump at me and complain about my asking for
something that you yourself no longer need (at least, not for a few hours).
So you can clearly see the basis for my comment about "the world revolving
around you." It's about those who have what they want versus those who
don't.

And as you can see, it's not about you preferring Ethernet and me preferring
serial. It's about functionality of existing connectivity options: Ethernet
being fine, but serial lacking. And one cannot argue that "38400bps should
be good enough because that's what NCU has." Why? because in those days
230kbps wasn't possible on all Macs as it is now with USB adapters like the
TwinSerial. Mac OS X is a different ballgame than the classic Mac OS too.
Since everyone who uses OS X and a Newton and NCX has the means (via
adapter) to get 230kpbs through serial, why not tap into that? But the
Newton hardware cannot accept 100 Base-T Ethernet, so one cannot use the
same argument to ask for further improvements to Ethernet speed. Indeed, if
serial was already at 230kbps, I would not be posting about this at all!

So again, I must reiterate, the world does not revolve around the status
quo. Change is what makes the world go round. And change in the area of
serial is all I asked for, not flame wars. And also keep in mind that it's
not like I'm asking for something that totally doesn't exist now (i.e., as
if NCX totally lacked serial connectivity at all and I was asking for serial
connectivity). It exists. So it's just a matter of making some modest code
improvements to maximize the speed that our hardware already allows for.

> It's more a question of the limited developer time available for Newton.

Why so many of you on this list wish to take up someone else's discussion is
beyond me.

If someone, such as Simon, has something to say, he can say it. And in
fact, he did. He wrote to me offlist saying that he thought focusing his
time on Synching would be better, but at the same time, he didn't rule out
the possibility of improvements elsewhere. Hence, there is no need for you,
Marty, to become someone else's advocate on this list, especially when you
were not asked to do so, and especially when all your are advocated is "the
lack of change" as opposed to what I am asking for "some minor changes." I
value your input, Marty. And I think you've made some positive
contributions to this list. But I strongly disagree with you and others who
say (indirectly, of course) that there is only one opinion on a give matter.
Serial matters to me and I like to talk about it. And I am not using
profanity or ripping Simon about it either. Simply talking a lot about
something is not a bad thing. It keeps the topic alive and kicking, like
I've said before.

As to "limited developer time" I will comment specifically on that later in
this post.

> Actually, serial is an outdated and barely supported interface on the
> mac (ie you need to buy extra stuff to even get it). It's not that I
> don't think serial speed is useful, it's just that I think as a
> priority it is next to nil.

Marty, your statement here is self-defeating. I could rip the entire Newton
platform to shreds with that line of thought. Our Newton's are not on the
cutting edge of 21st century technology, you know. The same reason why we
use Newtons is the same reason why some of us use classic Macs, like the
512k -- because they are fun. Then when a developer comes along to make
them even more fun, we offer suggestions on how to make the fun even more
fun. And what's wrong with that? Nothing. It's only when someone comes
along and says "stop having fun and accept the status quo" do I lose that
fun spirit and starting thinking about a TV ad I saw in 1984 with a lot of
mindless skinheads watching Big Brother on the big screen. Thankfully,
Apple took a hammer to the status quo back in '84, and while I am by no
means doing anything of that magnitude, I am an advocate of change, not the
status quo.

I am on a number of software beta programs and I have been for years. And I
can tell you, any developer worth his or her salt is open to suggestions --
even heated ones. It's only when a developer starts to ignore suggestions
that a software product begins to lack true innovation. Marty, you have
good intentions, I think, but you are not the developer of NCX nor his
official advocate. Hence, my talk about serial is directed toward Simon and
others on this list who share my desire to see existing functionality
improved (if such is within reason, of course).

So again, you are maintaining the status quo, when all I am doing is what is
reasonable and legal and ethical: asking for something that could be
implemented with a little extra effort and bring benefits to some people
(other than yourself, of course).

So it doesn't matter if serial is out of date -- it still can be improved
(in NCX) up to 230kbps.

> You could probably deal with this temporarily (until the bug is
> fixed) by setting the "energy saver" preferences in "System
> Preferences". Also if you are using a portable Mac (ie a powerbook)
> hooking it to power might help.

Well, I certainly appreciate the suggestion, Marty. (Seriously.) But I
don't really care to go back and forth with that (although I did last night)
if there could be a workaround.

I don't know if it's possible to create a work-around, but that's why I
mentioned it. Again, I do this out of natural instinct because of all the
other beta lists I am on. I make suggestions, however small, when any
thought comes to mind. Often times, the thoughts are discarded, while other
times they are used by the developer. Only the developer can say what is
possible and what is not. I can only make suggestions per what takes place
in my mind. And again, I believe its quite clear to Simon that I am in no
way saying nasty things about him or his software product. I think it's a
great achievement that surpasses all others I've seen over the past 5 or 6
years in the Newton community. That's why I grew very frustrated and angry
over all the senseless talk about that hacked wifi driver when everyone
could and should have been talking about the best thing since sliced bread:
Simons NCX! And that's why it excites me to see the door open to further
improvements to this already great product. So again I say: Simon, keep up
the great work!

> I am very much looking forward to experimenting with the syncing
> tool when it becomes a live item.

Marty, synching has no appeal for me personally. I would never use it. But
I know it's important to some people such as yourself. Hence, I see no
reason for me to pooh-pooh further development in this area if Simon chooses
that path. And, by the way, Simon is not doing this under a tight schedule
working for a company (hence, there is no such thing as "limited developer
time" for further work on NCX). Simon is doing this out of a love for the
Newton platform and the joy it brings to him, and perhaps to a lesser extent
for some monetary gain down the road when NCX becomes more bug free (a gain
that he is fully entitled to).

So what I am saying here is, even though something is not important to me
(e.g., synching) I am by no means telling you or others to not talk about
it. In fact, I think you should talk it up! Keep the synching topic alive
and well. I support you even though I myself would never use it. In like
manner, I would like to appeal to you to do the same with respect to serial
improvements, even in spite of your never using it yourself. That's all I
ask. As a Newton community, we need to support one another before
developers, not tear each other down and guess what developers may think or
want. And again, we often never receive what we want only because we don't
ask. Indeed, the Scriptures have some good advice for us all in this
regard.

Many thanks for your understanding. And again, thank you for the suggesting
about the Energy Saver preferences -- I appreciate it!

Whew! :-)

Best,

James Wages

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