By: Tom Nadeau, (os2headquarters@mindspring.com)
http://www.mindspring.com/~os2headquarters
So you're looking to show off OS/2 to your friends who think windoze is where
they want to go? What has always worked for me is the following:
1. Have a *nice* background screen (the sunrise one, or the blue lake). Have
the icons neatly arranged in a vertical column on the left side. Have the best-looking
font set up, with a nice clear font (not too big, not to small). The screen must
*look good* to make a *good first impression*.
2. Make sure you already have it booted. Boot time is the *real* "first
impression" and people who watch OS/2 boot get the silly idea that because
the boot cycle is long, the OS is slow.
3. The "killer demo" involves running a DOS app and a Windoze app simultaneously,
then logging on the Web and downloading two files simultaneously. Then open a DOS
screen and run a batch file that makes an endless loop. Kill the runaway DOS screen.
Note that the Windows, the other DOS, and the downloads are still continuing peacefully.
Remind them that *** The computer that doesn't crash is always the most productive
computer. *** Remind them that with OS/2 *** You never have to stop doing what you're
doing to do something new. *** Then print something out while you continue to talk.
It's never failed to impress.
Remember to make a batch file called "test.bat" in the root directory.
It contains:
@echo off
:start
@echo Hello World!
@goto start
This will cause an endless loop. You can also WOW them by running two DOS windows
simultaneously, each with this runaway app.... showing multitasking. There's something
about a pair of runaway text boxes cascaded on a screen that blows people away.
You can kill them one at a time, leaving the other stuff running in the background.
You might also show Lotus Smartsuite or Star Office running, to counter the erroneous
belief in "no apps." The idea that OS/2 runs Netscape, Lotus apps, and
maybe even version 4.3 of MS Office for Windows 3.1, generally dispels false notions
that OS/2 users lack choices. The OS/2 Solitaire is also pretty impressive, especially
when you play it during the downloads.
Tom Nadeau http://www.mindspring.com/~os2headquarters
OS/2 Headquarters -- Your Chauffeur on the Info Highway