In the beginning, I could blame the glitches on inexperience. I don't think I can lean
on that excuse any more. Yes, as many of you have noticed, there have been
minor glitches and problems with many of the recent issues.
Too fast
As usually happens, it's due to not thoroughly checking out the finished
product, usually because I'm in a rush to get it out. Well, being in a rush
is no excuse! Especially the couple of times I've made the most major of
errors and misattributed a contribution to the wrong author! Afterall, the only
thing most contributors receive is a bit of fame amongst the community, and if
I mess that up, they don't even get that!
I hereby resolve to take the time to get it right! That means I'm going to
have to set a "hard" deadline for submissions. No more rushing! I'm going
to leave plenty of time to properly check out each issue before releasing it, even
if it means being a day or two late. And it means, please keep hammering on me
if you see a mistake! Hopefully that will force me to stay on my toes. Afterall,
a quality OS deserves a quality e-Zine.
Interesting note...
While we're on the topic of reliability, some of you may have heard the news last
month that quite a few bank transactions (especially paycheques!) were delayed when a software upgrade
at the Royal Bank of Canada didn't quite go as planned. Even farther back, their
ATM's were affect when one of the nasty worms swept the 'net.
I have to wonder, is it a coincidence that the Royal Bank was the only one of
the Canadian banks affected? Is it a coincidence that it is the only one
of the banks that made a major move to Windows? I have personally walked into
the branches of Scotiabank, HSBC and TD-Waterhouse recently and they all use OS/2 at
their branches. I've been told that Bank of Montreal and Canadian Imperial Bank
of Commerce (CIBC) also still use OS/2, and that pretty much covers all the big
banks in the land.
Now, obviously, I wasn't there and I didn't do it ;-), so I can't be sure,
but it kind of makes you wonder if there's more to it than just bad luck...maybe they should have
stuck with something proven to be reliable!
A Note to Shareware Authors
I'd like to also remind shareware authors that OS/2 e-Zine can be the
perfect place to promote your product. Not with an ad, but submit an article
that shows people what sort of tasks can be accomplished by using your product!
Obviously such articles will be clearly marked so that readers are aware of
any potential bias. But it is a great way to get "free" exposure for your product
and it also benefits the readers and OS/2 users in general.
It's rare to benefit all parties, so take advantage of the opportunity!
With such a specialized community having just a handful of websites and newsgroups
as the only medium, getting the message out that your product exists, let alone
convincing people to try it, is not an
easy task. Even though I like to keep close tabs on the community, I still regularly find
software gems that have been existence for years that I've never heard about!
Looking for More OS/2 eZine Content?
How about writing it? The OS/2 eZine has to be a community effort, the more writers we have to spread the work around, the better the issues will be and the easier it is for everyone. If you're working on a cool OS/2 project that you think the readership of the OS/2 eZine would find interesting, we're looking for one-off articles as well as short series and monthly columns to fill the pages of the OS/2 eZine. Trying some cool new software? How about writing a short review? It doesn't take much time and you can win some great prizes!
Have a Product or Service you think our readers would be interested In?
If you have a product you think the readership of the OS/2 eZine might find interesting, take a look at our
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The OS/2 e-Zine is committed to serving the OS/2 and eCS community by providing accurate, useful, and timely information every month. We will deliver user-oriented hardware and software reviews, thoughtful editorial comment, and 'how-to' articles which will include useful tips for both the novice and the experienced OS/2 user.
Isaac Leung (P.Eng.) got a degree in Engineering
Physics followed by a Master's in Electrical Engineering after which he promptly got a job as a product engineer at a company which makes high
speed datacom chips. He is old enough to have cut his computer teeth on Commodore 64's and first played with OS/2 1.3 EE while at a summer job with IBM. The
first PC he ever owned came with Windows 95, but he soon slapped on OS/2 Warp 3
and has been Warping ever since. He has agreed to work for Transmeta while he continues plotting to take over the world.
