This appendix differs from the original in that I have decided not to reproduce the HTML code from the two sources which I used in my research, due to the risk of copyright infringement. Instead, this appendix lists my correspondence with people across the internet. Their names have been hidden for anonymity, and to prevent unwarranted spamming caused by web robots scanning these pages.
Other articles and books which would have been photocopied here can be found in the Bibliography and/or Reading List at the end of each chapter. All email listings have had their header data removed for brevity and clarity.
I shall drop by those links when I have the chance - but that may not be this millennium as things are going. Just one point: ~- On Tue, 14 Oct 1997 06:37:57 PDT Stephen Scott wrote: > Terrible isn't it? Even if you stick to one platform you > hit trouble. The PC must be the worst platform to develop > for, due to differing version of Windoze and hardware on > the users machine. Not at all - but it does depend on your objectives. For example, if you design for MPEG 2, then you know that your audience has appropriate supplementary hardware regardless of platform and you may be blithely uninterested in the platform or OS. If you use still images and no audio compression, the only issue is whether your audience will have the patience to load large files. It is only when you wish to operate in the middle ground that you must compromise. I have produced a number of CD-ROMs on the subject of classical vocal music. To date, each has performed well on any flavour of PC, Mac or Unix box with a WWW browser and audio and CD capability. However, I am planning to use MPEG Level 2 on my next product - and thereby will preclude modest installations of Mac and Wintel. It's a question of serving many well or (slightly) fewer, better. My WWW sites are designed to encourage visits by those without elaborate equipment; I use tables where necessary, but nothing more. I realize that that is terribly backward and I am not demonstrating my skill at the graphic arts, but the purpose of those pages is to convey information clearly and conveniently to as many visitors as possible. We are running on parallel paths - though on distinctly different hardware. FYI: I spent a month in England in 1980. The reason was a proposal effort at Marconi in Chelmsford. The Acorn was a hot subject that summer and since I was already an old hand at computing and at personal computing (I'd had my Commodores for nearly three years as I recall) and since some of my ICL and Marconi colleagues were looking forward to the machine, I learned rather more about it then than I wished. ~- On Wed, 15 Oct 1997 03:12:11 PDT Stephen Scott wrote: > Hi Mike, > > >> Terrible isn't it? Even if you stick to one platform you > >> hit trouble. The PC must be the worst platform to > >> develop for, due to differing version > >> of Windoze and hardware on the users machine. > > > >Not at all - but it does depend on your objectives. > > Well I guess. Maybe I am just too anti-PC. I'm an Acorn > user, and by right we frown upon W95. The menu bar at the > bottom was a clear rip off of the icon bar used in Acorn's > Risc OS systems. But thats another matter. > > > >For example, if you design for MPEG 2, then you know that > >your audience has appropriate supplementary hardware > >regardless of platform and you may be blithely > >uninterested in the platform or OS. If you use still > >images and no audio compression, the only issue is > >whether your audience will have the patience to load large > >files. It is only when you wish to operate in the middle > >ground that you must compromise. > > MPEG2 is a good standard. It is being utilised in set top > boxes such as the Curtis Mathes iTV system. In a way, the > essence of the web is that pages can be viewed anywhere, no > matter what platform you have. If Java takes off, like I > think it will, then it is a huge step forward. Development > costs would be cut dramatically by mmedia companies, who > would otherwise do very extensive testing on every platform > they were aiming to sell for. > > > >I have produced a number of CD-ROMs on the subject of > >classical vocal music. To date, each has performed well on > >any flavour of PC, Mac or Unix box with a WWW browser and > >audio and CD capability. > > You've done very well. I did a CD-ROM over the summer for > an Acorn magazine, Acorn User. They do a cover CD every > year, and I happened to be doing odd jobs for them, and I > suggested that I should do it. The CD is triple format > (Mac/PC/Acorn), with an interface done using Hyperstudio 3. > The CD will be out at Christmas, although its official > release will be at a big show in London at the end of this > month. The hard part is yet to come though - what people > will think of it! > > And there were problems with Mac/PC Hyperstudio (have you > heard of this package?), which I'll divulge if you want to > know! > > >My WWW sites are designed to encourage visits by those > >without elaborate equipment; I use tables where necessary, > >but nothing more. I realize that that is terribly backward > >and I am not demonstrating my skill at the graphic arts, > >but the purpose of those pages is to convey > >information clearly and conveniently to as many visitors > >as possible. > > So are my webpages! Its easier to code as well - those > frames and tables are a bit much for me right now, but I > may do it in the future, while still keeping the current > ones, to allow open access (Acorn web browsers are a little > behind Netscape and IE4 - they determine the standards > anyway!) I do it by hand anyway. Never use stuff like > FrontPage 97/98 - it chucks in loads of horrid HTML code > that is specific to Explorer - and tells Microsoft various > little details about your machine. Most immoral, so I never > use it. > > Kind regards, > > Steve Hello Stephen, Regarding your post to comp.multimedia you might find it worthwhile talking to Sherston Software in the UK - we've done some music production work for them, and I happen to know that they produce all their titles for the 3 platforms you mention. They also have a web presence, though I cannot recall their domain - probably www.sherston.co.uk ...but a search should locate them quite easily. Hope this helps. Regards, Rob proprietor ~ Hello mate, many thanks for the reply. Even though it sounds like a bit of a nightmare you're mail was by far the most positive of the ones that I recieved. The original plan was to try and find something that would convert a Director file to the Acorn or give us an Acorn projector. According to Acorn themselves there is a director converter but only for Director 4! (and its still in Beta). I'm off to have a look at your reports and i'll keep you updated on whats going on. Is there any way of getting hold of your CD? I would like to see what I have to live up to! Once again thanks for the mail and happy authoring. I'll be in touch. cheers