On Mon, 19 Mar 01 16:36:42, [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Howard Schwartz) wrote:
> At some point I will probably transition from my beloved 486 to some
> kind of pentium with some kind of winblows. The answer to ``Why?'' is
> complex, and I wont bore you with it. However, PC prices seem to be
> down to about $500. US now, due to declining sales.
As the speed and capacity of new computers increases, the price
decreases. This was true even when sales of new computers were
going up, up, up.
Even $400 US now gets you a Pentium II, 300 with all the toys if
you buy used. I'm starting to feel silly with my 386 and the frustration
of curtailed surfing with Arachne and my ten year old computer.
Why not upgrade? Why not enjoy easier and faster access to the
Internet? Why not just use Windows and call it a day? Help me,
I have been assimilated. Resistance is futile.
I'm being co-erced by forces outside my control. I have to actively
resist using Windows. My kids think I'm nuts to do this. They
don't see the point.
But every time I go to a site that doesn't work all that well with
Arachne, I lose a little perspective. I don't want to have to edit
the errors out of the site's HTML or have to futz and figure out
what's wrong. Is it me, is it the site? Is it sunspots?
I just want the damn thing to work. I want it to work better.
My three current problems with Arachne are:
#1. Red squares! Sometimes I get them, sometimes I don't. No pattern
that I can discern. It's just hit or miss. If a page has twenty images
some may or may not be red squares. Reconnecting or reloading will
often fill in the squares and others will turn red. Some days all is
well.
#2. Forms! Like at Amazon. Most often I can't get it to work. I did
once. I ordered ok and it went through. Other times not. It doesn't
work consistently enough for me to want to use it on a regular basis.
You shouldn't need McCorkle's Luck (and expertise) to order a book
from a service that millions of Windows users access every day no
problem.
#3. Sites won't work because Arachne doesn't yet support Javascript or
CSS or SHTML or 128 bit encryption or something else that I don't
understand and really shouldn't have to if all I want to do is
find out how to get tickets to Ozzfest or need information about
a low cholesterol margarine or some other routine chore that I want
to use the Internet for.
Now it may be that trying to surf today's web on a 386 is a recipe
for frustration. With the lower cost of better hardware, it really
is time to upgrade.
But will that help with the red squares or the forms? Would Arachne
be more useable on a Pentium with more memory? Most likely, yes.
And do I need to get involved with Windows or Linux if I want
to go to Http://www.ozzfest.com or Http://www.takecontrol.com?
And be able to use these sites effectively?
Sam Ewalt
Croswell, Michigan, USA
-- Arachne V1.70;rev.3, NON-COMMERCIAL copy, http://arachne.cz/
