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Editor's Notes

I am pleased to announce that with this issue, The Amiga Monitor is beginning its second half-year of publication. And although six months doesn't seem like a terribly long time, it's remarkable how much things have changed in the interim.

After all, back in August of 1996 when we published our first issue, could we, or anybody else for that matter, have possibly predicted how things would be now? VIScorp, practically regarded as a shoe-in for acquisition of Amiga Technologies at the time, has now faded somewhat from the scene, apparently giving way to QuikPak, which has actually been building Amigas in North America for some time now. The Amiga public became disenchanted with VIScorp as rumors leaked that perhaps they didn't have the Amiga community's best interests in mind, but it more or less solidified things when Carl Sassenrath and Jason Compton left VIScorp in short succession. We cannot count VIScorp out entirely yet, however.

For the first time in months, it appears that there is resolution in sight to the Amiga's plight. We may be crazy to trust such a notion, but after all that has occurred, I can actually imagine things going as planned. The current "day of decision" is February 28th. Whether or not it will live up to that billing is yet to be seen. With the Amiga, you can never know until you get there.

However, in the event that a reasonably responsible and competent company does end up with Amiga Technologies, we must prepare ourselves to usher in a new age of the Amiga. What exactly do I mean by that? Well, of course the Amiga will not eclipse the PC at this point without divine intervention; but is that what we need? I could certainly live with the status of "minority platform," especially compared to "dead platform." In any event, by all means, this should be a time of anticipation, and possibly even high spirits. After all, the Amiga has a lot going for it; it wouldn't take a miracle to show people that. With a little system enhancement and some marketing, even current models would do well.

But we must look to the future. So, my friends, I urge you to remain optimistic through these trying times, as resolution may very well be nearly upon us. And to help "rally all to the cause," I composed the following lyrics to a song (complete with music, but it's a little impractical to communicate that aspect of it here), perhaps with the end of raising spirits a bit. For those musically-inclined, imagine something somewhat folksy, common time, with a nice bright little arrangement of major chords with perhaps a few 7th's, for effect.

Folks turn on your Amigas,
put those PC's away.
We ain't gonna buy from no Microsoft...
Save that for another day!
And though they say it's a dead platform,
I say it's very much alive.
And if they come asking,
We've got multitasking!...
...and we had it back in '85!

I had a few more lines for it, but not enough for another verse yet. If I get around to writing some more, maybe I'll share it with you all...whaddya think?

Anyway, on to matters of this issue, we have a couple of special guests' viewpoints this month, as well as the experiences of a new convert to the Amiga way with a top-of-the-line system. In addition, we have introduced a new department intended to bring comic relief to the sometimes somber affairs of the Amiga's struggle.

So enjoy this issue of The Amiga Monitor, and I'll see you again next month.

Michael Webb
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief


TABLE OF CONTENTS


VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7, February 1997

NEWS AND EDITORIAL

The Sam Report: Not Too Bad For Dead
By Sam Ormes
Despite rumors of death, our vitality as a community is stronger than ever.

Happenings in the World of Amiga
By Michael Webb
A roundup of various announcements, events, and ideas from the Amiga community over the last month.

The Gateway Computer Show - Amiga 97
By Michael Webb
The trade show, the quintessential center of discussion, information, retail, and community spirit, continues to be an important event for Amiga owners everywhere. In keeping with that tradition, the Gateway Computer Show promises to be a very interesting two days.

Problems for the Mac; Amiga Owners, Take Note
By Bill Graham
The Macintosh is going through lean times these days, even without the Amiga's myriad troubles; what went wrong for them?

PowerCon '97
By Michael Webb
A gathering of all varieties of members of the PowerPC community.

Press Releases from Cloanto
By Michael Webb
Information and updates from the makers of Personal Paint and more.

FEATURES

E-Mail
By Danny Green
Danny Green's internet series continues this month with a look at the great universal system of communication known as E-Mail.

Guest Viewpoint: The History and Direction of the Computer
By Jim Kuzma
In this first part of a series, long-time expert in computer science and engineering Jim Kuzma shares his accounts of the evolution of computers, and his point of view of where they are, and where they are going, today (the latter point being of particular interest to Amiga users).

Amiga Web Outlook
By Michael Webb
We take a quick look at some current options Amiga users have for accessing and browsing the Internet, in this case, particularly the World Wide Web.

Guest Viewpoint: Defining an Amigan
By Guy Nathan
Just what is an "Amigan?" It's something we talk about all the time. It is assumed, and taken for granted. But what is it that really makes us different; what is it that makes us what we really are?

Becoming an Amigan: The Story So Far
By Steve Duff
How often does somebody completely new join the Amiga community? How often does he or she set out to construct the ultimate Amiga system? If you realize just how infrequently such an event occurs, especially when the two are in conjunction, you will find this story very interesting and enlightening.

DEPARTMENTS

Editors@HelpDesk
By the Editorial Staff
The staff of The Amiga Monitor tackles your problems and answers your questions, just like we do every night live on Genie.

Feedback
By you, the readers
The readers speak out about the Amiga industry, Amiga community, and The Amiga Monitor.

The Tone Byte
By Anthony Becker
Tone takes a quick looks at a number of current Amiga products and issues.

Midi Matters
By Frederic A. Ericksen
Fred's Tour de MIDI continues this month with a look at getting different computers and software packages to talk to each other.

Lame Humor Department
By Kyle Webb
A satirical, sarcastic, sardonic, and sometimes downright silly look at affairs in the Amiga community, and life in general...also known as The Amiga Monitor's comic page.

Just For Fun
By Anthony Becker
We begin a new department this month, intended to bring some levity and comic relief to the otherwise rather somber affairs of the Amiga community. Tone starts us off this month with...well, you'll just have to see.

The Amiga Monitor: 1996-1997, Excelsior Digital Publishing
The Amiga Monitor's home site is at URL http://ourworld.compuserve.com/HomePages/MikeWebb/