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Software Makers need to consider multiple platformsDouglas E. WelchPC Week, Dec 23, 1991 v8 n51 p54(1) COPYRIGHT Ziff-Davis Publishing Co. 1991
Companies ... must still use and support different software for each computer platform. With so many different computers, microcomputer managers are finding it difficult to provide end users with a solution that enables everyone to talk to one another. It's time for end users to send a clear message to the software manufacturers: Manufacturers need to lose any hardware bias and begin developing multiplatform software with the users in mind, not the computers. Many companies are already searching desperately for software that runs under several different operating systems but still maintains the same look and feel. Microsoft and WordPerfect have made efforts in developing this multiplatform software, but there is still a major vacuum. If a manufacturer does develop a product for something other than its dominant platform, the outcome is usually a poor second cousin to the original. It is hard to say which is worse, however -- providing a bad solution or no solution at all. The costs of not having multiplatform software are high. Companies all over the world have made major investments in LAN technology but find that they must still use and support different pieces of software for each computer platform. Computer support people also pay the price. They must become experts at two or more packages with totally different command structures and file formats. Trying to understand the operation of these programs, let alone the bugs, is a demanding and costly task. What is worse, the computers, even though they're connected by a LAN, can't access the same network data files. This makes the implementation of network schedulers, project managers and other group software extremely difficult, if not impossible. Thousands of dollars a year are spent developing software that doesn't communicate with other computer systems. Then, hundreds of dollars are spent to convert and translate documents between systems. Finally, thousands more are spent on support. Not all the blame lies with the software manufacturers, though. They are trying. One problem that has stalled multiplatform software is the vastly different operating systems used by microcomputers. Software designers were forced to write completely different versions of their programs for each operating system. Now, however, with the Macintosh Finder, Windows 3.0, X Windows and Motif, it is possible to make a functionally equivalent program on most major computer platforms with minimal effort. New programming tools make this even easier, allowing large portions of code to be reused for all versions of a particular software product. The combination of these new advances and market pressure hopefully will bring about a new growth of multiplatform software. If the world were perfect, each office would consist of totally matched microcomputers that ran the same software, in the same way, at the same time. As all of us know, however, this is just a recurring dream that makes each day a recurring nightmare.
Douglas E. Welch is a support analyst for a major entertainment company in Southern California.
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