Hello,
quite off original topic, but...
Doug, I would have thought the fact ecs is os/2 , albeit with bells on, is enough to sell it - to make it worth buying in its own right. The 'bells' are secondary to the operating system - os/2! Without that operating system you have nothing.
Most users, like me doesn't have a software subscription with IBM, and haven't had one either as they only make business with other companies, bigger is better in their opinion, but also what cause IBM problems.
What make eCS so good is the fact (as often stated) that it contain fixes, improvements and applications something that most users can't get on their own. One doesn't have to look them up and buy them separately, install them from different media/locations etc.
I am not a marketing droid but an engineer. As such I'm more interested in what the product can do, proven, and not the marketing spiel.
Yes wseb was expensive but it works and works well. On the strength of what my computers can do I've converted a number of people to os/2 (legitimate copies from ebay).
Very good!
I'm an engineer too :-)
You will ask 'why not ecs?' to which I reply version 2 has been so long in coming, indeed its not here yet, and version 1 is apparently so little changed from standard os/2 mcp why not get the original os/2?
Because if you purchase OS/2 with the label eCS, you'll get the same stable product with some improvements IBM doesn't toss into it, but the most important part is that you support continued development of OS/2 under the name eCS. As mentioned, if you buy eCS, Mensys/SSI have influence, if you buy it from IBM, IBM won't care, they're only interested if you buy in 10 000...'s.
Your argument about buying ecs just for the 'enhancements' is only valid is you need a new licence. I
Perhaps to some, but for me it's because I get more bang for the buck and the installation process is smooth. Warp 4, the only version I could buy, had to be patched to install on hardware introduced 1998 and later. :-(
eCS support (selected¹) modern hardware and it's getting better, something that would improve if more OS/2-only users would bite the sour apple and accept eCS as the replacement.
¹Eugene should mention that it's true that it work for selected hardware, and it's getting better and better. The intention that you should look through the list of supported hardware is though not what users in general want, so I can understand that you read his postings the way you do.
Eugene, please, we need to find another way for you to tell the English speaking world of the improvements done. Too many perceive (read and interpret) what you write as pure advertisement and therefore get annoyed, though you really just should/want to inform!
suspect there are a large number of people using os/2, like myself, who do not see the need to change their operating system for the same one just to get the enhancements.
Yes, quite a few don't want to "change" to eCS to extend the life of OS/2, the result is that our beloved OS won't get the updates it need. eCS 2.0 could probably otherwise be out somewhat sooner.
When version 2 of ecs arrives (I won't say if) I will point new users in that direction, much easier than waiting for a copy to turn up on ebay. Note I said NEW users. I am not getting into the micro$oft way of thinking - here is something new, dump your existing and get the new. That worked for m$ in the past though indications are that its not doing so well at the moment.
Yes, you're quite right, I don't like patching installations and the constant upgrades.
Upgrading existing OS/2 installations behave the same with eCS, it's OS/2, some new drivers has been added and problems corrected and are thus included.
IBM had the right idea in issuing fix packs, and slipping new features in that way, as well as software choice. The fix packs have obviously finished but I am not convinced that a software choice style channel open to both os/2 and ecs is not a valid concept and would not upset IBM.
Software Choice has been a closed route for many individuals, at least as to what I've experienced, for many years now. You may be one of the few lucky ones that can use it though, but Mensys and some others provide more and more links and info collected in fewer pages that one had to look for at many different places before. That is a huge improvement to me, I don't have to spend a lot of time searching for excellent OS/2 specific native applications and enhancements such as DragText, AWGet, CTorrent etc.
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Let's improve OS/2-eCS, make use of text mode (VIO) applications to give us new features, but not reject improvements that follow the OS/2-eCS way, that is PM, SOM and the WPS to allow useful, pleasant and slick solutions for efficient use of our computers.
//Jan-Erik