amiga-news.de - Bill McEwen: Holiday Greetings, Progress Report, AmigaDE Videos, etc.

23.Dec.2001
Amiga Inc.

Bill McEwen: Holiday Greetings, Progress Report, AmigaDE Videos, etc.
After more than 6 months a new Executive Update is being released, written by Bill McEwen, CEO of Amiga Inc. He is aware of the long delay and apologizes for the long lasting silence. But he says more and even shows something up.

Executive Update - 23. Dezember 2001 - Happy Holidays!

I know that it has been months since you have read something official from the Amiga team. This is not because of lack of activity; in fact, far from it. Whether it is raising money in the US, joint development with partners in the Far East, or developing Ami2D in Sweden and New Zealand, Amiga is truly a global, 24 hours a day company.

First, we would like to say thanks to every one of you for your continued support. It has been a challenging year and Amiga continues to fight battles in this depressed technology market. However, even in these tough times, the true spirit of Amiga and the community has come shining through. We are very happy with our partners and are looking forward to a great future together in the year ahead.

There has been confusion regarding the future of Amiga. Some members of the community are spreading rumors and even going to the extent of hacking web sites, to post false information. Remember, if you do not read it on the official Amiga website or on the developer website, consider it rumor and regard it with appropriate suspicion. If you have any concerns, contact the team or me directly. Let us address any issues that you might have. We will answer. It might not be what you want to hear, but we will address your concerns.

Amiga is here to win! We will win big by attacking segments of the market, where there is a clear opportunity for us to have a significant impact and achieve defendable business. The opportunity for Amiga is stronger than ever. With our two-pronged strategy, of AmigaDE as the universal content system and the AmigaOS as our desktop, workstation and server, we can offer a complete solution for the home, the office, the school or wherever digital computing needs exist.

The Amiga team and I are in this for the long haul, as we know that Amiga can succeed. All of our marketing contacts, our business contacts and, our developer contacts are telling us that this is the time for Amiga. We have seen potential partners, content producers and even companies, in our own business park, disappear. However, Amiga is still in business. As the US economy begins to recover, we are leaner and stronger than we have ever been.

One of the strengths of Amiga is that the Amiga team really extends far out into the world through the users, developers, and dealers. Success for Amiga is success for all of you as well. For too long, the Amiga community has not had anything to be proud of. However, with the launch of our first AmigaDE based products, it is time for the whole Amiga team to work together again. At the end of this update, I am going to ask for some help from everyone because only by working together can Amiga move forwards.

For those of you hungry for specific news, here are some updates:

Amiga Digital Environment™:

The Amiga DE™ Player1.0 for both Windows and Linux is now ready and shipping! We have a new website for AmigaDE, which will in the not-so-far future become a user focal point for everything AmigaDE and we encourage you to visit, participate, and spread the word.

The AmigaDE™ Player is the first step towards our vision of the Digital Habitat™, being the launch product for the AmigaDE (Digital Environment), a set of technologies that brings users and their content together regardless of the digital device they choose to use. The AmigaDE™ has been targeted directly at the user who wants to be able to experience content on any of their digital devices, without having to worry about which of those devices work with that content. Whether the content is an application, a game, music, video, email, or whatever, with the AmigaDE ™ Player the answer is that they all do.

In the coming weeks, many more applications will be released. Third party developers are currently working on products that will scale up to and expect desktop capabilities. Bittersweet, Edivision, e.p.i.c. interactive entertainment, Kaliko, Matay, Pagan Games, Ruksun Software, Technomages, Titan Computer, VecTrace, Zeoneo, some companies yet to be announced as well as many individuals, are all working hard to take advantage of the DE opportunity.

We are looking forward to seeing more people join the ranks of the more than 3000 developers already developing for Amiga. Amiga and our partners will be issuing press releases over the next few weeks as the momentum builds. We will be introducing these new and existing companies. For more information, see the developer website.

What does this really mean? Many of you ask the really important question "When can I buy one of these new AmigaDE enabled devices?" I can tell you that Sharp will soon be shipping their device. Tao Group and Sharp have selected Amiga to provide all developer support for intent™ on the Sharp SL5000D. For more information on how Sharp, Tao and Amiga are working together see the intent-sharp website.

I have also just signed a contract with one of the largest Set Top Box companies in the world. Unfortunately, I will not be able to give out the name until the second week of January, but you will be pleased.

AmigaDE is now running on numerous other devices. Many of these vendors are working with us on making these products a reality, in the first quarter of 2002. Here are some sample MPEG videos of just a few of the products, with AmigaDE running on them. Click on a screenshot to download/view the MPEG video.

Sharp Collie	Gateway
iPaq	Linux
myfriend	Psion
Vadem	Windows

AmigaDE SDK 1.1

With the AmigaDE moving forward and the AmigaDE Players released, we can now concentrate on moving all of the developed technology into the new SDK. Many of these technologies are already in beta and are being tested by members of the Amiga Developer Network.

For instance, our new Ami2D services have been available to a select few for two months now. In fact, Pulsar Interactive's new AmigaDE game, Gobbler, was written using this technology. Ami2D is a very exciting development, and I believe that it will give DE developers a definite advantage over what other products can offer.

Even more exciting, working closely in conjunction with our partners at Hyperion, Ami3D is advancing towards the release stage. I have seen screen shots of the new Ami3D in action, and have stared at screens throwing solids around and bouncing off walls. This is great news because with the portability of DE application and the new 2D and 3D services, AmigaDE developers will be able to demonstrate their creativity.

There is great excitement here concerning some of our new scaling technologies that are going to provide Amiga applications with even more flexibility and more capabilities than ever before.

I know many of you have read about the progress of SHEEP, our next generation programming language. Yes, it is a scripting language but it is also far more than that, and can be used to do anything, from writing small scripts and macros all the way up to creating full fledged applications. It will be a great addition not just to the DE, but also to application development in general and we are very proud of it.

Add to this a new look interface, intelligent icons, new development environments, an amazing descriptive interface service called Prism™ and a boatload of other stuff, and the new SDK will provide developers with a real taste of the future.

While contract negotiations are always under Non Disclosure Agreements, I can say that with the OEM's that we are working with, and the soon to be released devices that will utilize DE technology and content, then it could well be a merry AmigaDE Christmas.

Amiga Desktop Progress and a new Surprise

AmigaOS

The AmigaOS is a crucial part of our future. I have emphasized this sentence because I want the Amiga community to repeatedly read it and burn it into their hearts and minds. We will passionately and vigorously develop AmigaOS into a world-beating product. Moreover, we passionately and vigorously will defend it against anyone who would try to damage, demean, or seek to take illegal advantage of AmigaOS for their own ends.

I want to apologize for announcing in St Louis that new AmigaOS products would be available on November 1. I did this with the best intentions but many factors have contributed to this slipping, some bad, such as the financial squeeze, compounded by the September 11 atrocity, some unexpected, such as the announcement of the G5, and some good, such as the advances in the next generation development that have made us rethink our transition.

The transition between the AmigaOne and the succeeding generation of the platform requires careful management. We have studied transitions on other platforms to ensure that we try to do what others did right and not do what others did wrong. The transition requires in depth knowledge of AmigaOS3.x software and the classic Amiga hardware and we are relying heavily on our partners, as you will see below.

Another team is developing the next generation Amiga entirely and its design and information is being kept a secret. This is to keep down the rumors and keep the teams focused on getting AmigaOS 4.0, AmigaOne, and AmigaDE to either their first ship or next release.

Hyperion, Eyetech and the other teams in this partnership are very busy and there is a great deal for all of us to do. Believe me there is no better-dedicated team in the world on getting it all done. With this said and in order to alleviate the long periods of silence that may result because of this, the executive updates will start to appear once a month, so that we can share what we can with you.

However, in order to let you know that this is not just noise, Amiga has engaged a partner company from the outside that brings us incredible depth, and has a long history of creating the best of the best in designs. The company is Design Genetix, and the team has already proved to us to be a great fit for our next generation designs in hardware, and will assist us with third party manufacturing.

Design Genetix has garnered over 400 product awards, while launching hundreds of portable, desktop and server products. They have experience in growing product lines from $2.4 billion to over $17 billion over five years.

AmigaOne

Eyetech and their team are making excellent progress with the AmigaOne board. We have seen the work that is being accomplished on the case design for an AmigaOne and an A1200. This project is entering its final stages, and we are delighted to be a participant. Yes it has been a long wait for the next generation of Amiga capable hardware but be in no doubt that the AmigaOne is very real, will be a product that you can buy, and on which Amiga will grow into something of which we can all be proud. For AmigaOne information, see Eyetech's website.

AmigaOS 4.0

AmigaOS4.0 will see the software environment moved onto the AmigaOne where it will be enhanced to take full advantage of the new hardware capabilities. AmigaOS4.0 will offer exceptional performance increases, due to removing a large number of the physical dependencies on the A1200/A4000, increased stability, due to a 'from scratch' hardware design and great new features that will allow developers to leap forwards in terms of offered applications.

To allow Amiga Inc to concentrate on the next generation AmigaDE, and because of the tight integration of AmigaOS 4.0 with the Eyetech AmigaOne product, we have outsourced the project management of AmigaOS4.0 to Hyperion Entertainment, one of the most respected software development companies in the Amiga community. For OS 4.0 information, see Hyperion's website.

They will work closely with Eyetech, Haage and Partner and all our AmigaOS partners in the project, ensuring that the AmigaOne and AmigaOS4.0 combination reaches the market in a timely manner and as a quality product. For Haage-Partner information, see the Haage & Partner website.

Conclusion

Newcomers to the software industry are often unaware of the impact that Amiga had on the computing industry. But with the launch of the DE Player, and seeing all the new content, as well as the AmigaOne and OS4.0, this is starting to change. We are working hard to accelerate this process and each of you can play your part in ensuring that your computer and your community are successful.

I say this to you because I need your help. I need all of you to remember those who used to come to the meetings. I need you to remember those in your office, or neighborhood who run Windows or Linux. I need you to look in your local papers and see who writes the business sections, and who writes the technology sections, and I need you to tell them about AmigaDE.

I need you to tell them about a technology that allows the same content to run without change on various devices. I need you to tell them about how they can use Linux or Windows, and run Amiga content on either machine. I need you to remind them that most of the current content is for PDA's and to ask them to compare what they have seen on PDA's and other handheld gaming systems to what the Amiga community has been building. In addition, I need you to support the developers who are creating content for Amiga in every way possible.

I know there are thousands in the Amiga community who want to help. I get email messages daily asking how you all can help. Well the AmigaDE Player is a big step for us, and for the many developers who have created content for it. Thousands more are working on new content! For those who have the DE Player … buy a game, and then give us feedback. This is the first step in our journey forward, and our first step together towards that future.

There are many amazing things happening at Amiga, and over the next six months, all our hard work will slowly start to emerge into the world. I want you to know so much, but for many reasons, I simply cannot tell you the bulk of what is going on. Just be assured that my team and I are putting our lives and our souls into Amiga and that your patience and loyalty will be rewarded.

For now, I need your help in spreading the good news about the AmigaDE Player. Its simplicity makes it ideal for senior citizens, parents, and children, people who have a computer, enjoy games but who are terrified of the technology. Its portability makes it perfect for developers who want to reach as many markets or as wide an audience as possible.

Go to Amiga's website, purchase some of the games, and then tell everyone you know how Amiga is binary portable; scalable, and able to provide the same content on numerous different devices and products, there is no one else that can show a product like this anywhere. Be Proud and show it off.

I promise you that it will not be another 6 months before you hear from me again, but it was only because there are only 24 hours in a day and we have been putting in 36 hours a day making it all happen.

Merry Christmas, God Bless, and bring on 2002!

Bill McEwen und der Rest das Amiga-Teams
http://www.amiga.com
http://www.amigadev.net
http://www.de.amiga.com
http://intent-sharp.amigadev.net (mj) (Translation: mj)

[News message: 23. Dec. 2001, 23:50] [Comments: 0]
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