Amiga '99 St. Louis -- An Analysis

AMIGA '99

Amiga conventions and St. Louis in March have become forever linked in my mind. For a while I didn't think I'd be able to make this year's show, but then I set my priorities straight and booked a flight on TWA.

I have yet to read much about the meeting on the Internet. Indeed, from the coverage I have seen, one might conclude that St. Louis Amiga '99 was almost a non-event. Nothing could be further from the truth.

What I would like to did is give you my perspective on what it was to be like at St. Louis '99 and my analysis of what I believe turned out to be a very important event. I will leave it to others to give you a list of dealers and classes.

FRIDAY, THE 12TH

Friday, March 12, 1999 was devoted to seminars and classes. The exhibit hall was not set up yet. The two most important events of the day, in my mind, were the demonstration of Amiga OS3.5 by Juergen Haage of Haage and Partner and Jim Collas' speech.

The New Amiga OS

Whether or not there would ever be an upgrade of the Amiga OS has been debated in the Amiga community for the past 2 years. Although Amiga Inc. has for a long time provided a progress bar on its website chronicling development of a new OS. But as deadlines came and went so did trust and moral. Even when a picture of Petro and a team of developers appeared on the Amiga Inc. website, it was hard to accept this as anything more than a publicity stunt.

Thus it was with awe that I watched, in a hushed and darkened room, overflowing with the Amiga faithful, a demonstration of an early alpha version of OS 3.5. As I stared at the first official upgrade to the Amiga operating system in seven long years, it felt like a dream come true. Well what did I see -- the beginnings of an exciting new Amiga OS. Details of the new OS will certainly change as development proceeds. The goal of a reasonable product in a a reasonable time with further upgrades was exactly what I wanted and needed to hear.

It was hard to believe that something positive was finally happening. The Amiga community has been burned so often that something inside urges caution when anything this good seems to appear. Because a release date for the beta version is this Spring or early Summer, we will not have to wait long to see if our cautious optimism, so gingerly given,is justified.

Jim Collas

After the OS3.5 demonstration concluded, an acquaintance was quick to point out that it was the new president of Amiga, Jim Collas, who was responsible for the progress on a new Amiga OS3.5.

Jim, looking dapper in his turtle-neck shirt and his sportcoat, outlined his highly successful career as Vice President at Gateway and his complete support from Ted Waitt, the president of Gateway, but yet independence of the Gateway bureaucracy. He then outlined a time plan for new Amiga products. The new Amiga would be an operating environment that would be at the heart of the digital appliances of the future.

Jim got many rounds of applause during his talk and a standing ovation at the end. The pluses of Jim Collas were obvious -- the moral and financial support of Gateway, an excellent track record, a reputation as a man who gets things done, a firm commitment to the Amiga and a definite timetable regarding products. There were already tangible results. Thanks to Jim, there was actually an Amiga OS3.5 in progress. I could feel my adrenaline level rising.

But hadn't I heard all of these promises somewhere before? I mean, like, maybe, last year in the hotel down the road? And then there was something unsettling that I only allowed myself to realize later -- there was an inexcusable sloppiness to Jim Collas' slide presentation. Jim used Scala as his presentation software, This was a welcome acknowledgment that there are alternatives to Microsoft's PowerPoint. Unfortunately, the slides were practically unreadable because they were much too crowded and the font color was much too light. There was even at least one spelling error ("choas" instead of "chaos"). This kind of amateurish presentation is one that would be unacceptable in almost any business environment. What does this sloppiness imply?

There were also major issues that were glossed over like to whom the Amiga operating system would be marketed and how marketing objectives would be achieved.

While the dealers set up their booths and Annex practiced their Amiga "Back from the Future" dance routines, I went to sleep trying to separate realistic assessment from wishful thinking.

SATURDAY, THE 13TH

Although there were many interesting classes, the day's highlights had to be the show floor during the day and the banquet at night.

The AMIGA '99 Show

I don't have access to official figures but I think there were fewer dealers and attendees than last year. Forecasts of a major snow storm for the St. Louis area, which never occurred, may have kept attendance down. The larger and more spacious show area may have contributed to the less-than-full impression.

I don't recall seeing any new booths but I did miss seeing National Amiga from Canada and representatives from Pagestream and Asimware. I can't understand why National Amiga didn't attend because last year, they seemed to be selling everything in sight. The absence of Pagestream and Asimware is also worrisome as it may be taken as a sign of distancing from the Amiga market.

Amiga users that came to St. Louis '99 came to buy. The scene was reminiscent of a shark feeding frenzy. If you hesitated about purchasing an item there was a good chance it would be sold when you came back. Of course, there were lots of old, recycled but still highly usable software at bargain basement prices. Finding in the $2 to $5 pile old programs you regret never having bought originally makes shows like these delightful. But there was also plenty of current hardware and software available. The largest booth, and the one carrying the most up-to-date selection, was Compuquick, who are based in Ohio. Judging from how busy they were, I have to believe that they were glad they came.

The lament is always that there is no new software for the Amiga. Ignoring for a moment the new Amiga OS 3.5, which is under development, new editions of Photogenics, New York Newsreader and AEMail were introduced at the show and a new, partly completed port of Java, called Daytona, was announced by Holger Kruse. AntiGravity featured new computers based on the BoXer motherboard. This with all the recent new programs and new versions makes too much complaining seem unjustified.

The story would not be complete without mentioning the Annex team from Europe dancing to their "Back from the Future" audio CD. The Amiga guys stared appreciatively at more than just the dancing. The young women in the troupe are nothing less than adorable.

Well after the afternoon dance performance, it was back to the process of spending money on Amiga hardware and software the world at large doesn't even know exist. I came with an almost empty backpack and a large gym bag and these were filled to capacity with Amiga goodies by the end of the show.

The Banquet

Well, after a fun day of shopping for Amiga related products, what could be better than sitting down and eating with a huge group of people who love the Amiga as much as you? Well, the food wasn't great but the companionship was.

After dinner Bob Castro showed his video tape of Amiga computers used in the space program. Not only was the tape excellent in its own right but it lead nicely into an outstanding slide presentation by the former astronaut team of Steve Nagel and his wife. The lectures were brilliant and everyone listened in rapt attention as pictures from the U.S. space program and the Russian Mir space station flashed by.

The key speaker of the evening was, of course, Jim Collas who incredibly gave the same well-rehearsed speech from Friday with the same slides, the same spelling mistake, and the same horrible font. Not a single slide was different. Is this the man to lead us from our darkness? Well, the Amiga audience was polite but there was no standing ovation. The audience occasionally matched wits with Collas and won each time.

I don't mean to be negative about Jim Collas. He is saying all the right things about respecting the accomplishments of the Amiga community, the passion of Amiga users, the need for a new Amiga computer and better communications. It is just that we have have all been on this Amiga rollercoaster too long and it is hard to believe when your hopes and dreams have been stepped on so often.

SUNDAY, THE 15TH

Classes and the floor show continued for a second day but seemed much more sparsely attended. The mood was still positive and the less crowding meant more relaxed conversations with dealers, developers, and just plain Amiga folks. Discounts on the remaining items was even deeper than on Saturday.

Unfortunately, I opted to leave earlier than I planned because of a snowstorm headed for New York. As it turned out, this was a good idea as the flight on which I was originally booked was subsequently canceled. Of course, leaving early meant that I had to miss the raffle that is held at the end of each day.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Large Amiga events are sufficiently uncommon here in the U.S. that when one occurs, it is newsworthy. I went to St. Louis to catch up with old friends, make new ones, and of course, take advantage of the sales on Amiga products. I also enjoyed being surrounded by Amiga users, rummaging through Amiga merchandise, and showing my continuing support for the Amiga.

I certainly didn't come to the meeting thinking that I would hear anything new from Amiga, Inc. So when I saw the Amiga OS 3.5, even in its early alpha state, it was a welcome surprise. It is the first tangible evidence of progress on the Amiga since it was purchased by Gateway and this is significant. Of course, this is only a first step but it is symbolic: Amiga OS 3.5 is the first inkling of good news that we have had since 1992.

But there is a long road ahead and we as a community have had so many promises and so few results. Is Jim Collas to be the difference?

Having listened to Collas and hearing reports of his reaching out to Newtek, I think the Amiga operating system -- or environment, as he likes to call it -- will appear in some form within the year. I sense a deadline from Gateway and perhaps a willingness to go along with this Amiga nonsense but just for so long. I think we will see results because Gateway wants results.

Jim seems a shrewd guy. I don't think that he would leave a secure job at Gateway to take over Amiga development if he thought that there was a high probability of failure. Of course we have only Jim's account of why he left Gateway so we don't know all the circumstances.

At the banquet, someone asked Jim what automobile he drives. He said he has two autos, one and Audi and the other, a Porsche. I have every reason to believe that Jim wants to continue driving the latest models of each and, therefore, there will be the products badged with the Amiga name and we will not have to wait long.

But what products and which Amiga? Jim spoke of support for the current Amiga for a couple of years until the new Amiga takes hold. Presumably the new operating system will be based on QNX. But what will it operate? According to Collas, these will be digital appliances. Your guess is as good as mine as to specific applications.

Amiga users know that what Woody Allen said about sharks and relationships is also true about computers -- they have to keep moving forward or they die. More and more we realize that if there is only one part of the Amiga that must be saved it is the operating system. The Universal Amiga Emulator which is the Amiga OS running on Windows, UNIX, Mac or what have you preserves the OS. The Amiga Replacement Operating System, AROS, also preserves the OS. The new Amiga from Gateway does not.

The Gateway approach is supposed to preserve the spirit of the Amiga while replacing the Amiga OS with a new OS based on the QNX kernel. So how is this an Amiga? Only if there is a visible connection between the new and the old, if it has the look and feel of an Amiga and runs at least some of the current Amiga software. Otherwise it is just an Amiga in name alone and not a new system which keeps alive the best of the Amiga while enhancing it. It is like putting the Amiga logo on a sweatshirt -- it is still a sweatshirt.

In conclusion, we know Gateway will do something but what that something is no one knows. Many companies other than Gateway are interested in developing operating environments that will run our cars, our homes, and ourselves. The Amiga environment is only one contender for a piece of the pie. Windows CE has not taken the world by storm, and many companies including Gateway, Sony, and Sun smell the blood of Microsoft, ostensibly wounded by the Department of Justice.

Whatever Gateway does and no matter how successful or unsuccessful they are, the Amiga will continue because the Classic Amiga is a classic. Right now the Amiga development community is in a holding pattern waiting to see which way Gateway will go for I surely believe they are, in their own minds, giving this Amiga thing one last shot.

If Gateway makes an Amiga that is an Amiga, than all well and good and Amiga developers will join their efforts. If they don't, look for multiple efforts to preserve the Amiga by rewriting and extending the operating system, creating new hardware platforms for the OS, and wait for the day when some one company will gather the independent efforts into one cohesive unit and blaze forward once again.

In the meantime, it makes sense to give Jim Collas our support and ideas. We have much to gain and nothing to lose.

March, 1999

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