Time to Face the Change...Changes...

by Victor Wong

Brought to you by

Copyright 1997 by Bill Fox

Last Updated: September 12, 1997

The last of the Mohicans...

It has come to this, the end that most people feared. No choice. No freedom. We have been abandoned and left for dead. The cavalry is not coming. There is no hope left. Loyal Mac users are left in the dark to die a lonely death. Each one struggling to remain awake, yet the darkness draws closer and closer. We cannot fight it. This is the end.

By now everyone should know that both IBM and Motorola announced that they will be phasing out their support for PowerPC. In the case of Motorola, the StarMax line is now a supernova and will emit one last burst of brilliant light before going dim forever. Through the silence and the void that now seems to propagate throughout the Macintosh universe, one unified sound can be heard, growing in strength with each electronic tick of the time kept on millions of Macintosh computers around the world. The voice is asking, "Why have we been abandoned, where do we go now?" The answer is simple. You have not been abandoned and you can go anywhere that your heart desires. This is not the end, but a new beginning.

Custer's last stand...

Our last and best hope for CHRP technology to be passed into the hands of the mortal was through Motorola. They had the leverage with the PowerPC processors and the funding to make this dream into a reality. They were our ace in the hole. We could not lose, but we did. Why do you say? The reason is "not due to religion, it is economics."

Rumor has it that the StarMax division was not profitable. It sold many systems, but Motorola reinvested the revenues into projects such as CHRP, G3 processors and a MacOS notebook. It was doing what a responsible parent would do, investing in the future of the children that relied upon its guidance. When these products were deemed unable to ship, there was no going back. The technology on which the money was spent now sits on a shelf, unused, never to be touched by the common man.

Apple has stated that it needed more hardware sales to be profitable again. It cannot afford to give CHRP to Motorola and lose more sales. In addition, it is generally agreed by many that CHRP is not totally ready for market and additional funds would have to be spent by Apple to finish the design. As for Motorola, if they were not able to acquire the CHRP design and be able to ship, it was not worth it. Therefore, they chose to stop producing MacOS clones.

Since Motorola is not losing its license, it can still produce and ship motherboards to its OEMs. The OEM division has been profitable because the development costs are paid by the StarMax division and the advertising is paid by the sub-licensees. Motorola will continue to ship motherboards to companies like PowerTools and APS. This, along with the embedded applications for PowerPC, will help soften the blow of the ending of the StarMax clones. Motorola should continue to ship motherboards and support the OEMs for a very long time.

The good of the one outweighs the good of the many...

The survival of Apple is the key. It is what all the debate is about. Imagine going to a football game with no football teams. For whom will the marching band play? For whom will the cheerleaders cheer? No one. As much as we hate this, we cannot hide from the truth. Apple must survive. It must survive to provide support for us now, and it must survive to be there for us in the future. If indeed the clones were hurting Apple so much, then for the good of the one, some of the many must die. However, if blame must be assessed, it lays squarely on the shoulders of Apple. The blame cannot be passed to anyone else, because Apple agreed to the original charges for the MacOS and the hardware licenses. Apple gave birth to the clones, but now has to kill some of its children so that it can survive. This is not brutal, it is the way of life. We see this in nature every day and try to believe that we are above it. However, you cannot beat nature nor can you stop the winds of change. The blame is on the Apple of the past. The Apple of the present is trying to survive, to overcome the mistakes that it once made, and we are now all paying dearly for it.

Survival of the fittest...

So who's left? UMAX has a MacOS 8 license with Apple. PowerTools, and others like them, still have a license with Apple through Motorola. All of these companies will continue to develop, build, ship and support their clones. Who will survive? The ones that can adapt and evolve will survive. It's nature all over, if you cannot adapt, then you will die. How can this be demonstrated? It is quite simple. Take MacOS 8, for example. UMAX has the rights to MacOS 8 right now, but what about 8.0.1? Are they going to have the rights to Apple's Now-Up-To-Date program? Will the program change in mid stream? No one can guarantee what will happen. How do companies adapt then? One way is to open our eyes to every possibility and select the best option. PowerTools elected to bundle retail versions of MacOS 8.0 with their systems. What this really means is that the enduser buys the hardware from PowerTools, but the software from Apple. There are no MacOS support issues, you are now a direct customer of Apple. Any upgrades that Apple will offer, you will get. In a sense, PowerTools has guaranteed the next upgrade from Apple to you free of charge. Those that are capable of change grow stronger, those that are not will die, and in the end the masses will be stronger than they once were.

On January first 1998, this is what will happen. There will be no MacOS clones from PowerComputing or StarMax. Apple will concentrate on the high end systems. PowerTools will continue to integrate innovative solutions to maximize the performance of their systems to provide the best power to cost ratio and also offer complete solutions for vertical markets, and UMAX will own the low end. Daystar will still have the Genesis multiple processing machines, but due to the declining market for products of that type, they will not be a major factor. APS will also remain in the low end as they have been from day one, but may find it hard compete with UMAX. The other companies not mentioned may not be able to weather through the storm to see the new year.

Wishing upon a shining star...

We all wish that these issues would disappear, but wishing will not make it happen. Hard work and dedication are the only salvation for us all. Hard work by Apple to become profitable again, hard work for the cloners to fill gaps where Apple has left, hard work for the user to support the common cause. It is not going to be an easy road. You will be laughed at and scorned by your peers. You will be alone in a room filled with windows, wishing for drapes to cover up the sun light. You will have to stand fast while others flee. You will have to do this because you love the MacOS.

In God we trust...

It's easy to have trust in God. He/She is almighty and promises us love and protection. There is no God here. There is no God of Macintosh, no supreme being over looking the progress of the Macintosh life. Yes it was born of Apple, but now it's free. Free to live and grow with the nurturing of millions of caring people. It is a part of us, it flows through us like a sweet song plucking away at the heart strings of our soul. Some may try to suppress it, but they will not succeed. It is fluid and cannot be contained. It is eternal, even if put to a premature death.

So, where do we go from here? The decision is yours. There is Apple and there may always be Apple, but if there is Apple, then there will be people like me. People like me who refuse to give up. People like me who will stay awake at nights, wandering through the catacombs of our minds, trying to find some way to make the pieces of the puzzle fit together. People like me who believe in the goodness of humanity. People like me who will sacrifice everything to do what's right.

People like me are everywhere.

When I started in this industry years ago, it was for the money, it was for the nice cars, and it was for the nice houses. I've received more than any one man can ask for. All these things I've had yet happiness eludes me, and do you know what? This makes me happy. I've received thousands of e-mails in the past week from people like you. Each one pouring their hearts out to me. Telling me how they love the MacOS. Telling me that they won't know what to do if it is taken away from them. Telling me that they need help. I never thought that I could care so much for anything.

This is a heavy burden to carry. It's a burden that everyone who loves the MacOS has to. There are so many ways that one can guarantee a product, but what does it mean? It means nothing. What really matters is trust. Trust in yourself and trust in others. Right now we have nothing but trust left. We have to trust that Apple will do what is right for all of us. As for the cloners, you have to make that judgment for yourself. Who do you trust? You should trust and support the ones that have not abandoned you. If you don't trust us, then it is over. However, if you trust and support us, then we can all win. I am only one person and I am no better or worse than anyone else, but I can promise that PowerTools will continue to work as hard as possible to provide the computing solutions that you need. There are always ways around problems. If there were no problems in the world, we would be bored to death. It is a risk, but the cloners are willing to take the risk if you are. The path appears much more difficult than it actually is. The sun is shining, will you join us?

Best Regards,

Victor Wong
CEO, PowerTools
victorw@pwrtools.com
[Back to top of page]





Copyright © 1997 by Bill Fox.
All rights reserved--no commercial use permitted without my expressed permission.

Of course . . . . . . and I am proud to be an Evangelista! . . .

[Back to top of page]