[Coco] CoCoNet and Linux

[Andrew]

Roger,

I know I have hinted about this in the past, but I never saw any 
interest or response, either from you or others.

You haven't given much (any?) info on what the "server" side of things 
is on this future CoCoNet product. You haven't mentioned what it is, 
what platform it runs on (Windows, I assume?), nor how it works. You 
also haven't mentioned if the comm protocol used will be documented and 
available to others?

I don't expect it in the initial release of the product, but support and 
ability to use the server on other platforms would be nice. If you 
aren't willing or able to do so, then without the comm protocol's 
documentation, you would become a "single source" for the back-end 
server, and should ($DEITY forbid) something happen to you, or should 
Windows change in a significant fashion and you are unable to port the 
code...

Well - suffice to say owners of the system might find themselves in a 
bind...

I would really love to purchase CoCoNet when it becomes available, but I 
am not willing to set up  (and spend a lot of money on) a dedicated 
Windows box for the privilege, especially considering that it would see 
limited use anyhow. I already have a nice, new dual-screen Ubuntu box 
ready, though - and the CoCo could easily sit right "next door" to it on 
my desk (where it used to be until recently when I redid my office). If 
I knew that the specs for the protocol were going to be published 
(and/or included) with the hardware, it would go a long way toward 
getting me to decide to purchase one when it became available (and who 
knows, maybe I would spend some time hacking up a server in Perl or 
something for the *nix crowd!)...

-- Andrew L. Ayers, Glendale, Arizona