On 11/27/00 7:05 AM, "Simon P. Lucy" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> If you want to go Netscape bashing, a process slightly easier than stealing
> sweets from babies, I suggest you go to a netscape newsgroup to do
> it. XPFE is here and will provide a lot more than simply different front
> ends as time goes on.
Don't misunderstand *why* I'm angry/frustrated about NS6/Moz. It's not
because I hate Netscape. It's because the product, as is, is not at a final
release level of quality. And since Netscape is, from AOL's own statements
and all the info I cann find, nothing more than an inferior version of a
Mozilla build, then both catch some of the blame here.
I *want* NS6/Moz to rock. I want it to continue being the fastest IMAP
client on the planet, and a really excellent business alternative for
cross-platform web and messaging use.
But from reading Bugzilla reports on the items that *really* count to much
of the world, it is easy to see that those items just don't matter to AOL
much, if at all. The other part is that it's been *three* years for this.
Two if you drop the abortive attempt at upgrading the 4.X codebase. In two
years, the people at Netscape and the OS community couldn't come up with a
web browser/email client that is reasonably free of bugs?
>From a corporate POV, and admittedly, that has it's own unique limits, as do
all POVs, it *looks* like NS6/Moz has gone from being a useful piece of
software to a laboratory for hackers to experiment with. Which is cool, and
needed, but could we get the foundation done?
IMAP performance is *still* cruddy, compared to 4.X, the email filters were
improved not at all, LDAP is gone, (and I'll believe it's coming back when I
see it. Yes, I know it's a promise. Crap in one hand, promise in the other,
which one weighs more?), the interface is ridiculously slow and buggy, the
keystroke commands for certain mail functions are ludicrous...('M', 'A'?!?).
The LDAP bug reports show that Netscape/Mozilla stands to literally lose
*millions* of users, and yet the best response from Netscape seems to be one
of "Well, when Mozilla gets around to it."
Which is crap. Mozilla should not be carrying the load for Netscape. AOL has
the money, they can by god hire some damn coders. I despise Netscape for
blaming anyone else but themselves for the NS6 Debacle. I understand that
Mozilla will take a while to happen, it's the one big disadvantage of open
source. Mozilla I have patience for, NS not at all, and I would really like
to see NS release a damn timetable that isn't Mozilla's with a different
name.
It's just pissing me off to have to drop NS for someone else because a group
of Nimrods at AOL haven't a clue.
john
--
"I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast, for I
intend to go in harm's way."
- John Paul Jones (later adopted by the US Navy's Special Boat Units)
