[Coco] Nicks Survey results

[ostro011]

On 5 Dec 2003, Gene Heskett wrote:

> all sorts of neat things like Jake Commanders Chrmakey editor.  I was 
> also using os9 exclusively by then.
> 

Gene (and others), please take this question in the spirit it is being
asked.  This is something I've often wondered about.

My involvement with the Coco for the past 24 years has been in programming
it in BASIC and ML.  I purchased OS9 soon after it was available but could
never get my arms around it, and there just was no driving force in my
small world that would make learning and using OS9 beneficial to me.  The
Tandy package was not very user friendly, at least in my eyes.

I think the majority of you on this list uses OS9 either most of the time
or all the time, as Gene stated above.  I respect that and am a little bit
in awe of that.  I consider Mark and Boisy as good friends, and they are
into OS9 in a huge way.  We all owe both of them a big debt of gratitude,
as we owe many of the rest of you as well.

OK, enough pre-amble.

The combination of the 6809 and OS9, with all its multitasking abilities
and the like, really showed off how the Coco was much more than the game
machine Tandy sold it as.  I would love to tackle OS9 again, but I need to
know what the rest of you find in OS9 that makes it so useful to you.  Is
it mostly academic and a fun hobby, or will I be able to find it useful or
at least a lot of fun and worth the time.  Keep in mind that my love is
programming this 6809 machine, as time permits, especially in ML, otherwise
my Coco's are just a fun toy for the kids to play when they are feeling
retro or want a lesson in programming.  I'm not asking if OS9 will solve
any of my computer problems.  I'm chained to a PC all day at work in my
research lab.  But where will I find OS9 the most interesting to use?  What
do you, the OS9 experts on this list, use OS9 for the most?

I really appreciate your help in this, and I hope you don't take any of my
comments the wrong way.

Thanks!

-- Steve --