Autor: Piotr Pekala (ppekala_at_phys.amu.edu.pl)
Data: Thu 12 Sep 1996 - 14:13:12 MET DST
I jeszcze jeden teksttego samego autorstwa, dotyczacy tym razem juz tylko
Merlina.
Przepraszam osoby niezainteresowane, ale niestety ciagle nie ma
grupy poswieconej tylko systemowi OS/2, ktora powinna byc wlasciwym
miejscem do przekazywania tego typu informacji.
pozdrawiam,
Piotr Pekala
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Institute of Acoustics Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
e-mail : ppekala_at_phys.amu.edu.pl, http://phys.amu.edu.pl/~ppekala
pgp finger : ppekala_at_rainbow.ia.amu.edu.pl
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 1996 17:44:24 +0800 (HKT)
From: Fred Ng <fredng_at_hkstar.com>
Reply-To: Brad Wardell <wardell_at_ibm.net>
To: OS2News Posting <os2news_at_teamos2.org>
Subject: OS2News: Review - OS/2 Warp 4.0
BRAD'S OS/2 V4 REVIEW
MERLIN'S MAGIC COMES ALIVE!
by
Brad Wardell
Disclaimer:
I am employed by an ISV that writes software primarily for OS/2 but
also for Windows95 and Windows NT. I believe this review to be
objective and correct but it is important for the reader to be aware
of any possible bias's. You may reprint this, re-post this, or do
whatever else you want with it as long as the contents remain intact
(except for this disclaimer and general editing). Please send any
comments to wardell_at_ibm.net. Please let me know if you do choose to
re-print it. This review will also be posted to Stardock's Compuserve
forum: GO STARDOCK. The Compuserve forum is quickly becoming a hub of
professional discussion on the industry, politics, and technology (as
well as Stardock technical support).
Summary:
The Good:
Improved look and feel
Bullet Proof installation
Voice Type Dictation Integration
Internet Integration
World's greatest object oriented interface
The Bad
Basic underpinnings not worked on
Terrible disk I/O
Single Input Queue still not taken care of
Java support does not live up to billing
True Type Support not well polished
OS/2's first significant upgrade since 2.0 demonstrates IBM's new
vision of a PC on every desktop working with local Intranets, Notes,
and the Internet and running software from whomever fits the users
needs the most. Excellent Internet integration, cosmetic improvements,
and administrative improvements make OS/2 a must-have upgrade to
existing OS/2 users. On the other hand, IBM has failed to address
basic problems with OS/2 such as its slow cache system, single input
queue, and ancient device driver model.
Introduction
Two years ago, IBM released OS/2 Warp 3.0 which was primarily in
response to the mistaken belief that Microsoft would ship Windows95
during 4Q94 (as opposed to nearly a year later). OS/2 Warp 3.0 was
essentially OS/2 2.11 with new icons, integrated MMPM/2, and some
subtle under-the-cover changes. And of course, OS/2 2.1 was OS/2 2.0
with Windows 3.1 support and MMPM/2 included (as a separate
installation).
IBM made an unfortunate error in releasing the Merlin beta in June
when it was unstable and not following up with a second beta in late
July. Many users, including myself, believed that Merlin would end up
a bug-fest and installation nightmare without a second beta. I am
pleased to admit I was wrong, Merlin is very stable, and feels very
complete. For the past 3 weeks, my employer has switched much of its
internal resources in working with IBM to gamma-test OS/2 (23F and on)
and been on the phone until very late at night with IBM developers in
tracking down bugs, making suggestions, etc. The net result is that
IBM, in including "outsiders" and also listening to them may have the
most stable release of OS/2 since 1.3.
It is good to see IBM finally moving forward with OS/2. For the first
time in 4 years, IBM has made a major overhaul to what OS/2 is all
about and come up with a clear strategy for its future. It seems
ironic and more than a bit dubious that there are some in the media
and on-line that claim IBM is not committed to OS/2 and that OS/2 is
"dead". If Merlin doesn't convince the ostriches of the world that IBM
is committed to OS/2's future and that it is alive and well, I do not
know what will. I made a comment on-line recently that went like this:
"What does IBM have to do to make people realize that they are
committed to OS/2? Make OS/2 talk? Oops, they just did that." I have
the utmost confidence that the "OS/2 is dead" drivel will greatly
decrease shortly after Merlin is generally available and that OS/2,
NT, Windows95, Linux and every other OS will be judged on their
respective merits and not by rumor and political issues.
Operating systems are a solution, not a "cause to fight for". It is
the short-sighted corporation or end user that chooses a solution
based on political reasons instead of what the solution provides for
them.
Living with OS/2 V4
Since OS/2 2.0, a default OS/2 installation left a huge myriad of
icons, folders, and other "junk" on the desktop. The experienced OS/2
user would sigh, straighten out the mess and either hand it over to a
new user or begin working on the OS. With V4, IBM collaborated with a
certain OS/2 ISV on how the OS/2 desktop should be setup. Now, OS/2 V4
installs with just four objects: Connections, Programs, OS/2 System,
and Help Center.
The Connections folder lists drives, internet websites, network
drives, and printers. This is a wonderful way to get to your
connections, even better than "My Computer" on NT/Win95 because the
connections folder starts out in a simple tree-view instead of icon
view..
The Programs folder contains the applications, utilities, and other
programs you'll be running. Instead of segregating programs into
"Windows Apps", "OS/2 Apps", "DOS Apps", they are now organized by
what type of program they are "Applications", "Utilities", etc. Since
OS/2 runs DOS, Windows, and OS/2 programs very well, it does not make
sense to try to distinguish amongst them. It would have been nice if
IBM would have spent the time to make Windows programs LOOK like OS/2
programs which would not be difficult to do.
The Help Center object is designed for new users to get help from. By
default, OS/2 has a new interactive help system "coaches" which can
actually (as was explained to me in January) observe the way you use
the OS and rates your proficiency level at the OS and suggest faster
and easier ways to get things done over time. Users who have the
patience to deal with the early interference of the coaches and not
turn them off may be surprised to learn some tips and tricks on using
OS/2 later on.
OS/2 System stores system specific objects. You can change the way
OS/2 works from here. Lots of subtle interface changes can be made
from here. Next week Stardock's webpage (http://www.stardock.com) will
begin listing tips on improving Merlin performance.
IBM also includes a modified version of Lotus's "Smart Center" which
is now called the Warp Center. I believe IBM should have stayed with
the LaunchPad (now called toolbar) as its main program launching
interface. While the Warp Center is much more powerful, it is much
more difficult to use and most OS/2 power users will find it
inadequate and have moved to Stardock's Object Desktop anyway which
provides the Control Center, a true OS/2 integrated center that also
provides virtual desktops, greater flexibility and performance. In
other words, Warp Center, while better for power users than the
LaunchPad, is too much for end users (i.e. the majority of OS/2
systems are in use in large corporations where they are looking for
something like the Toolbar - or the Tab Launchpad in Object Desktop to
launch programs), and most power users will prefer the Control Center
in Object Desktop.
My biggest cosmetic complaint about OS/2 V4 is the font quality. While
IBM made a good move by replacing the ugly system font with the new
Warp font, the outline font quality went down the tubes and many
programs that used outline fonts look strange and jagged. On the other
hand, OS/2 now supports True Type fonts making True Type the de-facto
standard PC font standard for most users.
But OS/2 V4 looks very nice. The windows, like in NT 4.0, have a 3D
look to them and the ugly old system controls have been updated to
look more embossed. The buttons now look a lot nicer, I think I prefer
them to the NT 4.0 buttons but it's purely a matter of taste.
Also, OS/2 now can view common graphic types such as GIF, JPEG, TARGA,
TIFF, etc. which can make dealing with graphics very nice.
By default now, when you drag and drop objects to the desktop, they
are shadowed. New OS/2 users will appreciate this (or more to the
point, help desks at corporations will appreciate this) but existing
OS/2 users will quickly learn to change it back from the "System"
object.
Full drag is also implemented to bring it up to NT 4.0 in this
cosmetic area. The full drag isn't quite as smooth as it is in third
party products such as FeelX and Stardock's Object Desktop but more
than good enough for most users.
Performance is quite good, slightly better than Warp Connect. Users
will have to be very careful about what they install. OS/2 V4 can
require as little as 8 megs of ram if you keep an eye on what you are
installing and as much as 32 megs if you install the VoiceType
dictation.
But not everything is a bed of roses. OS/2 is slower and less stable
in many ways than NT 4.0. It would be interesting to see a disk I/O
benchmark comparison between the two. On OS/2, I drop to a command
line, do a DEL *.* on a large directory and I could be waiting for a
long time for it to complete. Under NT, it would be instantaneous.
OS/2 also has a disk cache for every conceivable type of drive format.
There's one for FAT partitions, another for HPFS partitions and
another for CD-ROMs. They all have one thing in common, they are
pathetically slow compared to any other OS I have used. System hangs
continue to be an issue too. While Merlin includes the "SIQ fix" from
Fixpack 17, it is a band-aid for a much larger problem. The system
hangs and while everything may be running, you are forced to reboot.
This happens much less frequently under OS/2 Warp 3.0 with FP22
installed but Merlin adds so many new features to the mix (light table
integrated, OpenDoc, Voicetype, Coaches, etc.) that it becomes a real
issue. Though, again, for most users Merlin will be the most stable
version of OS/2 since 1.3. For end users, OS/2 will probably rarely
crash from this, but for experienced users, this is a real issue that
still hasn't been addressed. Stardock is preparing to release a
product called "Process Commander" which is by far the most reliable
way to recover from this sort of thing (its main use is in managing
processes, not recovering from system hangs but it is good at
recovering from hangs) but I can safely say they would prefer to have
had IBM fix this issue than have it still there.
I don't want to make it sound like OS/2 V4 isn't a terrific upgrade,
but it would be unethical not to mention these flaws in an otherwise
great OS.
VoiceType Dictation
VoiceType screams "gimmick" to most people including myself. If it
isn't as good as Star Trek's voice recognition, it is not likely to be
good enough. VoiceType requires a lot of voice training to be usable.
It makes a great demo when properly trained but it will be some time
before it is used by mainstream users. However, for physically
disabled users, VoiceType makes OS/2 the best choice for getting work
done.
VoiceType comes with a sample program called "The States Game" where
users name the different states of the United States. Though I'm not
sure how appreciative non-US citizens will feel about this. Imagine
how Americans would feel about a "Name the French Departments" game.
But it is a very effective example of how VoiceType can be useful. It
recognized every state I said and I had not trained it at all at that
point.
The Internet Integration
This is a mixed bag. IBM scored a home run on the web integration and
FTP integration but the Java support is little more than a marketing
bullet at present. IBM has said that they will continue to enhance and
improve OS/2's JAVA support in the coming months.
Here's is how the FTP integration works:
Drag and drop (from the templates folder) an FTP host. Enter in the
FTP site, UserID and password. Now, when you click on the FTP folder,
you see the contents of that FTP site as if it were on your system.
You can run programs, view text files, etc. right from the FTP site.
To get a file, simply drag and drop it to your desktop. To upload
something, simply drag and drop it to the FTP folder. It looks and
feels just like any other folder. Will this mean the end of Neologic's
FTP program? Not in a million years. Just as OS/2's workplace shell
did not spell the doom for file managers (such as Stardock's OS/2
Essentials, SofTouch's FileStar/2, or Mark Kime's FM/2), the FTP
folder will not spell the doom (or affect in any way) Neologic. But it
sure is cool for doing some quick browsing of your favorite FTP site.
The JAVA support, on the other hand, looks and feels like a work in
progress. At least IBM has the foresight to see the potential in JAVA
but its implementation needs work. Playing Tic-Tac-Toe (JAVA version)
was very painful on my system as it was slow and I had to play from
the HTML file instead of the .CLASS file which is what it should have
been. Also, since the Web Explorer (v1.2 in V4) doesn't support JAVA,
it looks much more incomplete. While Netscape's Navigator is on the
way, it will be a couple months probably before most users have it.
But overall, the internet integration makes OS/2 a very attractive
choice for those who want to have an Intranet or end users looking to
"become one with the internet".
The User Interface
OS/2's biggest strength is the Workplace Shell (backed by SOM).
Without this feature, OS/2 would probably not be a significant force
today. Let me explain to non-OS/2 users (and remind existing OS/2
users) the power of OS/2's interface.
I can change any object (i.e. file) on the computer to the way I like.
That means I can change its icon, its attributes, give it a
description, associate file types to it, etc. It is extremely
consistent and Merlin's notebook controls are a generation ahead of NT
4.0's.
In OS/2, the type of file has nothing to do with the .3 extension.
Describe Word Processor knows its own file because it attaches an
extended attribute to the file. Net result, documents with names like
"Letter to mom" as opposed to "Letter to mom.DOC" as you would have
under Windows95/NT. In short, OS/2 is the OS that takes the best
features of the Macintosh and adds power to it. OS/2 V4 is everything
the MacOS hopes to be someday. It is quite interesting that certain
members of the media proclaim Windows95 as being as easy to use as a
Macintosh. Mac users shake their heads at those sorts of statements.
OS/2 is much more like a Macintosh than Windows95 is and has the power
and multitasking of a high end Unix workstation.
Multitasking
As a rule of thumb, OS/2 does not multitask as well as NT 4.0. But
OS/2 does remain more responsive as the system load goes up. OS/2 is
also much more scaleable than NT. While OS/2 has terrible local disk
I/O, it has great networking I/O. Copying files over the network is
much faster under OS/2 than any PC OS I've used yet.
Polish
OS/2 really falls down in the polish area. V4 is by far the most
polished version of OS/2 but try this on your OS/2 V4 system: Right
click on a folder and choose "Create Another", then choose "Default".
Instead of it creating a folder, it brings up a dialog asking where
you want to put it and has a default name of "Peer WPS Folder Class"
or some yucky name like that. It's actually a bug, though cosmetic.
Another example is doing a local logon. It takes several seconds to
verify that you have entered the correct password and get access to
the network. This too is listed as a bug internally at IBM as it does
a huge network scan before looking on your local system for the
password. And finally, double click on a remote machine, double click
on a shared drive. It comes up in tree view, that's fine. Now double
click on a sub folder, you get just that folder in a tree-view. This
too is a bug but again, overlooked. I would have been willing to go
without JAVA support and VoiceType dictation (and have IBM come up
with a $89.95 Internet Enhancement Kit and another $89.95 Voice
Integration Kit later on) for these and the other issues I mentioned
to be taken care of.
Not to mention that network resources cannot be accessed from OS/2's
ancient file dialog box.
Another example is that the default editor, E.EXE asks the user for
what type of file you are creating on saving a document which is
totally unnecessary but very annoying.
They also did not finish the icons. Most of the icons have the new
Merlin look and about a third are leftovers from Warp. (Shameless plug
time: Luckily, Stardock is creating the OS/2 V4 PlusPak for release in
November which provides "themes" with beautifully rendered replacement
icons that replace virtually every icon on the system plus a bunch of
other "icing on the cake" features).
But there is great polish on other parts of the OS. The new notebooks
are magnificent, the new look of OS/2 is great too. The problems I
discuss here are largely because IBM is developed mostly in Austin but
also in places all over the world and communicating a consistent
design message is probably very difficult.
So it's not so much that OS/2 V4 isn't well polished, it's just not as
well polished as NT 4.0. NT may have a mediocre interface, but it
feels like a completed mediocre interface. OS/2 has the greatest
interface in OS history but it feels like an incomplete one in certain
corners.
Conclusions
OS/2 would be a no-brainer of a choice if it had more third party
support. If IBM could get Adobe, Corel, Netscape, Autodesk, and Lotus
to truly support OS/2, OS/2 could potentially become the #1 OS for the
future. But alas, this is not likely to happen. Microsoft has been
very effective at working with third parties, wooing developers, and
making supporters feel welcome (until they decide to compete with them
and then they try to destroy them). IBM has not yet grasped how to
work with third parties or how to work with allies, but they are
getting better at it. IBM did work with third parties with Merlin and
includes a second CD full of demos of popular OS/2 applications such
as Object Desktop 1.5, Galactic Civilizations II, Star Office, Back
Again/2, Simcity 2000, and many other applications. On the Internet,
users asked how I knew Object Desktop would work with Merlin, now
they'll know why, IBM had to make sure Merlin worked with the
applications that come on the CD Sampler.
But Windows NT has the third party support. If you want to use the
newest Photoshop, Page Maker, Corel Draw, 3D Studio, Office95, etc.,
you have to use NT 4.0. While JAVA support opens the door to
possibilities, only Corel has moved that way and it is unknown how
successful those efforts will be. If JAVA takes off and IBM fulfills
its promise of making OS/2 the premiere JAVA application platform,
then OS/2 has a bright future. But without more third party
application support, OS/2 will languish in the next 18 months.
For me, OS/2 V4 will be my platform of choice. While I may complain
about the things they didn't fix, there's just no alternative to the
Workplace Shell. As Kris Kwilas put it "I cannot imagine using an OS
without the Workplace Shell." OS/2 represents an alternative direction
for the PC user. A relatively open OS which provides excellent
Internet integration, object technology, and a desktop so flexible
that many IS managers prefer it over any other. IBM merely needs to
convincingly assure the industry that OS/2 will remain a critical
focus at IBM and not go the way of the PS/2 and Micro Channel.
But what it comes down to is this: If want more high quality native
applications today, NT is the better choice. If you want to work in a
high productivity environment that scales very well, OS/2 is the
better choice.
OS/2 V4 is the OS I use, I highly recommend it to all existing OS/2
users. I also invite those who are currently on Windows to check it
out for yourselves. It does not receive the weekly hype of NT but it
does deliver the goods.
Brad Wardell can be contacted at wardell_at_ibm.net
To archiwum zostało wygenerowane przez hypermail 2.1.7 : Tue 18 May 2004 - 12:53:53 MET DST