scene.org File Archive

File download

<root>­/­resources­/­docs­/­industry_news/rlx-cdea.txt

File size:
20 327 bytes (19.85K)
File date:
2024-08-11 05:45:01
Download count:
all-time: 5

Preview

       ...tHiS FiLE wAS lEECHED fROM¦..
                                                 - - - - - - - - - -
              _..-·° !                             sYS: mCLoUD/TRS¡
                J    7                           
                J    Fa  ,¶Þ
                '   J¥¨w @"  ,                   - - - - - - - - - -
                    ¤    ¯¤=^     ,r          _
          _a                      ÆF          ÆL
        a"  #                     Ø          ¬ØÞ
       Æ´   F                     #          WØ              [®_mDJ]
      Æ´   d     aw      ,     , JF         JØ  ,    __   ,ç      ¸
      F        æ" `&#    #    J1 IL   _ø*¶#_ÆF  Æ  _/"°° gF3Lá  ¸Æ1
     JÞ       æ´   ØF   J#    ØL 0Þ  µP    ØØÞ  ]LJK    ,F  #0 ,FJF
     JL     çJ#   æ¶K___JQ  _ÆML 0   #   _Æ"Ø   J#F     Ø  dÞ¶_F J
      °w___æ08:38:44 ¯"° 0_æP  & 0  J# _µF  Æ    #      #_æ´ á"  l
        °°"   ¬°"         "    " `   °#@"   ]K   °      ¬°   ¬   ¬NL
                                            "
      ..2_nODEZ_rINGdOWN.. ..dUAL_16'8k_pOWER!.. aSK_fOR_nUMBER nOW!.

               Uploaded on: 02-May-94  By: EaSy RiDeR        

                            On node: 1 
     - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
        amiga           _,w=^""à^"¤.    ,-^3   _as   console
                       ¬¯ g'   11  ¬L a°   "  ¬J
                          7     1  ,´¬¤-=-w,   #
                   A..    J     1-C         °  #   ..lEADER hQ!
                           Þ    E  °x     _,¢  #
                                ¹    ¤`**^".e^°P*
                           ..wiLL rULE yOU nOW!!
       - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
¤------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       __.                                    __.
____  /  |_____________________.       ____  /  |_______.___ :    /Y\________.
\_  \/   \_  ___/  _     / _   |       \_  \/   |   _   |   \|   /   \   _   |
 |       / __/\/  _|____/  |   |        |       |   |   |    \   \___/   |   |
M|  \/  /  |   \_ \_   |   _   | - LO - |  \/   |   _   |        |   |   _   |
b|   \__\_______/__|   |___|   |        |   \___|___|   |___\____|   |___|   |
 `---'             `---'   `---'        `---'       `---'        `---'   `---'

 LSD USHQ - O3O/4oMhz - III nODeS riNGDoWn - AmiGa/CoNSolE/ModuLEs/AsCIi/MoRE

               New User Node # : 812-944-1081 (NUP REQUIRED)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                       ###  BLOOD_TXT bY xRAY/MSQ  ###



@BEGIN_FILE_ID.DIZ                     
     __________________________________
:::::\      \   __/   __/ /   __/  |  /::::
:::::/  :\  /  __/    _/ /   __/      \::::
::::/   |   \  | \   |   \/\ | \   .   \:::
:::/____|____\____\__|______\___\__|____\::
+==============[ PRESENTS! ]==============+
+     C= IS DEAD ! THIS IS OFFICIAL !!    +
+=========================================+
@END_FILE_ID.DIZ


----------- BBS ADDS ABOVE ----------------------------------------------

Okay guys.. THIS IS OFFICIAL !!

COMMODORE IS DEAD...  Read the text below and find out yourself !!!
Also, at the bottom is another text from an ex-Amiga engineer that
opens his book...


--- cut ---

#: 141508 S3/Hot News and Rumors
    30-Apr-94  04:19:01
Sb: #It's Official (CBM)
Fm: ASDGTechSupport 76004,1765
To: ALL

AP 04/29 20:18 EDT V0623


Copyright 1994. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

   WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) -- Commodore International Ltd., a pioneer in the
personal computer industry, said late Friday it is going out of business.
   The company plans to transfer its assets to unidentified trustees "for
the benefit of its creditors" and has placed its major subsidiary,
Commodore Electronics Ltd., into voluntary liquidation.
   "This is the initial phase of an orderly voluntary liquidation of both
companies," Commodore said in a brief statement.
   Company executives could not immediately be reached Friday evening.
   The company last month reported an $8.2 million loss for the quarter
ending Dec. 31 on sales of $70.1 million. A year earlier, Commodore lost
$77.2 million on sales of $237.7 million in the same period.
   In the latest report, Commodore said financial limits had thwarted its
ability to supply products, leading to weakened sales. One of its new
products, the Amiga CD32 video game, had sold poorly in Europe, where the
company did most of its business.
   The company's net worth turned negative in the fiscal year ended last
June 30.
   Its stock, which had traded at around $3 per share before the quarterly
results were announced last month, closed unchanged at 87 1/2 cents per
share on the New York Stock Exchange Friday.
   "This is a company that briefly captured the attention of the American
market and didn't go where the market was going," said David Coursey,
editor of the newsletter P.C. Letter in San Mateo, Calif. "They just never
managed to change with the marketplace."
   While grabbing some market share and attention in the late 1970s,
Commodore's products were something between PCs and game machines "and
never quite became either," Coursey said.
   Commodore started 40 years ago as a typewriter repair company in the
Bronx. Its extension to the adding machine business paved the way for it to
make calculators and then personal computers by the mid-1970s.
   Commodore competed with Radio Shack for the first computers sold to
homes and co-founder Jack Tramiel became a highly-regarded figure in the
fledgling PC industry.
   By the early 1980s, it was overshadowed in the PC business by Apple
Computer Inc. and IBM. Software manufacturers didn't create as much
software for Commodore's Amiga line as it did for Apple and IBM-compatible
machines.
   In recent years, most of Commodore's business was in Europe.
   NewTek Inc. of Topeka, Kan., created a product called Video Toaster that
converted Commodore's Amiga to a video-editing system. The $2,500 product
was popular with small advertising agencies and home hobbyists. The
company's phones were busy Friday night.

--- cut ---

Text 2.

--- cut ---

 There are also a couple of non-engineering folks remaining like one person
 in personnel, etc. The total is about 22 according to those at the lunch.

 The notion that "the U.S. company is going down the tubes but the U.K. will
 save things" is a total, complete fantasy. Won't happen.

 The remaining staff (almost all engineering) believes that they are being
 kept till the last possible minute in order to keep the sale of the
 technology as attractive as possible to prospective buyers.

 Anyway, all you folks out there who desire to cling to your hopes, dreams
 and fantasies, well ...

 * This message forwarded from area 'comp.sys.amiga.misc' (C.S.A.MISC)
 * Original message dated 29 Apr 94, from Traveler Ltd.

A few things need to be sorted out re: several misconceptions regarding
Commodore, it's structure, it's demise, the layoffs and the like. I realize
that trying to inject reality into the .misc and .advocacy groups is a
short, true path to insanity but here it goes...

First, the layoffs ...

 1. Last Friday (April 22) approx 15 people were let go from West Chester.
    These included the person doing the payroll.

 2. Last Friday Commodore Semiconductor Group was (finally) closed and
    the approx 15 people there were let go.

 3. Last Friday, the "rumor" (it turned out to be fact) was that this week
    ("tuesday or wednesday" was the common wisdom) engineering would follow
    in their footsteps.

 4. On Tuesday (April 26, the engineers who would not be there the next
    day (for whatever reasons) were told that they were history and not to
    worry about coming back.

 5. On Tuesday, plans were laid for a big "lunch party" at Margarita's (the
    semi-official CBM watering hold where many "after layoffs" and "going
    away" parties have been held over the years.)

 5. On Wednesday the expected layoffs occurred. Over 50 people were at the
    party (including yours truly) and much was said about what is and
    isn't real about the current situation. More on that later.

 6. Remaining at CBM are :

  Software :

   Allan Havemose (department head)
   David Junod
   Eric Cotton

  Hardware :

      Jeff Frank (department head)
      Dave Haynie
      Greg Berlin
      Fred Bowen

 CATS

  Carolyn Scheppner
  Wayne Lutz

  (John Campbell, head of CATS, was let go)

 LSI

  Ted Lenthe (department head)
  Jeff Dean
  Rich Llewellyn
  (and two more I can't remember - sorry guys)

 Other engineering folks remaining:

  Ian Kirschemann (assistant to Jeff Frank)
  Dan Faust (lab tech)

  Lew Eggebrecht

  ('m sure I'm missing a couple.)

There are also a couple of non-engineering folks remaining like one person
in personnel, etc. The total is about 22 according to those at the lunch.

Now Commodore...

There is no difference between the US operations and the UK or German
operations. None. They all get machines designed and engineeried by the
folks at West Chester. The phrase "U.S. Operations" refers to the US sales
and mareting departments, just as "U.K. operations" refers to the sales
and marketing departments in the UK. It does _not_ refer to engineering
nor Commodore Internation Ltd. (CIL) which was "the business". CIL was
nuked completely last Friday.

The notion that "the U.S. company is going down the tubes but the U.K. will
save things" is a total, complete fantasy. Won't happen. In fact, the U.S.
sales company has been history for some time now. I guess no one bothered
to consult with the net about it (G) .

At the Wednesday lunch the information came out that

  1. There are only 3 people remaining in the U.K. operation.

  2. There are only 2 people remaining in the German operation.

  3. There are only 3 people at the Phillipines manufacturing plant
     (which is closed, by the way)

  4. All the other companies, world wide, have been, or are being,
     "liquidated".

  4. The subject of the Canadian company never came up but I would have
     to assume that it's no better off than the UK company.

The remaining staff (almost all engineering) believes that they are being
kept till the last possible minute in order to keep the sale of the
technology as attractive as possible to prospective buyers. There would
still be people available to hand off the technology. However, one of the
(remaining) managers, when asked point blank "how much longer does it
really have?" replied "oh, two to three weeks." The problem with this
proposed sale of the technologies is that it's hard to them to separate out
parts of the company to sell because so many creditors want their share.
Mariott is still owed approx $350,000 for last year's Devcon, for example.

These notions that "the UK will become the base of the new operations" and
that "CBM is moving there" is complete BS. As Mr. Barrett correctly pointed
out, few, if any, of the remaining staff would move there - especially not
to work for Mehdi (would you???). Also, the company can't afford to make
ONE machine, much less move people to England and make enough to support
the staff. They are not paying severance pay to those they lay off.

In reference to several things said over the past couple of days :

 >I just ping'd Dave Haynie's workstation, and it was alive as of 10 minutes
 >ago.

Pinging machines inside CBM doesn't mean a thing. The hardware could be
left on for weeks with no one there to use them. Also, whenever there are
layoffs like this, the systems are shut down for a period of time to
prevent reprisals from unhappy employees. Once the ex-employees' accounts
are fixed to kill their access, the machines come back on-line.

 >The company intends to continue operations overseas with the UK becoming
 >the primary office.

If this is so, was the office always just three people? Does this represent
a _growing_ number? (g)

 >Are the various C=s (eg UK, US the defunct C= Australia) all separate
 >companies?

Only in the sense that they all operate(d) under different legal rules.
But they all took their cues from West Chester.  Cut off the head and the
snake dies.

 >Even the Amiga, if it survives, is going down the Microsoft path (Windows
 >NT for example)

The Windows NT Amiga thing was _never_ more than a pipe dream of Misters
Eggebrecht and Pleasance. None of the engineers ever believed it. Nor was
it ever even proposed as a real project.

 >Commodore UK will ride the wave for another year or so, marketing the
 >current stock, but then it too will go down - it has no real engineers of
 >its own.

What current stock?

 >Please understand this: CBM USA might be dead, but the Amiga is _VERY_ well
 >alive!!!!!!!!!! It will continue selling just like before, and we have
 >nothing to worry about support because in the first place we never got any
 >from C=.
 >
 >So, don't panic, Amiga has a long way to go, and the upcoming AAA Amigas
 >will make a big splah when they come out (they'll give SGI a run for the
 >money).

You've been into the weed again, haven't you? Or just spending too much
time with Jim Drew. Man, oh man. Who the hell do you think MAKES Amigas?
Geez.

Harv's posting about his phone conversation with the CBM employees paints
an accurate picture (which I must admit surprised me a bit :))

I will be attending the "death vigil party" (as Randell calls it - he
called to invite me yesterday) this weekend. It should be interesting.
Quite a few ex engineering folks are going to be there (Bryce, Lauren
Brown, Andy ...)

Anyway, all you folks out there who desire to cling to your hopes, dreams
and fantasies, well ...

Brian Jackson - ex Amiga engineer

--- cut ---

And finally :

C= UK and GERMANY can't do anything aboutnthis, they will be sold as
'assets' of CBM...

Philips will probably (not confirmed) buy the CD32 technology.

There is still hope for the AMiga, NewTek and Scala are told to be
interested.

Brief :  C= is gone, dead, over and out.. We can only hope that soemone
         will take over the Amiga and continue development...


And for the ones that haven't lost all hope...  Here's a little message
from CompuServe...

--- cut ---
************************************************************************
*  DO YOU WANT TO KNOW THE LATEST ON THE COMMODORE SITUATION?          *
************************************************************************
*                                                                      *
*  Join Mike Levin, the leader of the Commodore Shareholders Movement  *
*  Sunday night at 9pm EST.  This conference was put together quickly  *
*  because of the rapidly changing situation with Commodore.           *
*                                                                      *
*  You might be interested in Mike's spin on all of this. The pending  *
*  liquidation could well turn out to be the best thing for the Amiga. *
*                                                                      *
*  -mark=                                                              *
*                                                                      *
************************************************************************
--- cut ---

The end.


Texts and messages searched together by FRaNKy/ReFLeX (Fido 2:292/603.8)


----- BBS ADDS BELOW -----------------------------------------------------

      _ _ __________________________________. ________________  /   /
       \\\\______    /____    /\__  _____/  | \______    /\   \/   /
           / \    __/ \______/_./   ___)    |__/_\______/_.\_    _/
         _/   \    \    /_     |     ¦    __/    | /_     |/      \_ _ _
      dZG\_____\    \__________|_____:___________|________|   /\___////
    «-----------\____/-----------------------------------/___/------------»

      [Whq] [Lost in Time...] [+1-608-755-1335] [Minstrel.......] [1 Nde]
      [Ehq] [Subway.........] [+46-34-07-38-30] [Terrorizer.....] [1 Nde]
      [Shq] [Black Sabbath..] [+46-8-580-34548] [Euphoria!......] [1 Nde]
      [Uhq] [Dark Moon......] [+1-203-445-0113] [Broken Arrow...] [1 Nde]
      [Uhq] [Warez Depot....] [+1-305-819-9925] [AmigaMan.......] [3 Ndz]
      [Uhq] [Psycho Terminal] [+1-914-682-1975] [Whiz...........] [2 Ndz]
      [Uhq] [Liquid Assets..] [+1-203-822-6225] [Excaliber......] [1 Nde]
      [Uhq] [Dark Church....] [+1-415-586-9269] [Blind Guardian.] [3 Ndz]
      [Uhq] [Zarophagus.....] [+1-503-548-0532] [Adonis.........] [1 Nde]

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       __.                                    __.
____  /  |_____________________.       ____  /  |_______.___ :    /Y\________.
\_  \/   \_  ___/  _     / _   |       \_  \/   |   _   |   \|   /   \   _   |
 |       / __/\/  _|____/  |   |        |       |   |   |    \   \___/   |   |
M|  \/  /  |   \_ \_   |   _   | - LO - |  \/   |   _   |        |   |   _   |
b|   \__\_______/__|   |___|   |        |   \___|___|   |___\____|   |___|   |
 `---'             `---'   `---'        `---'       `---'        `---'   `---'

 LSD USHQ - O3O/4oMhz - III nODeS riNGDoWn - AmiGa/CoNSolE/ModuLEs/AsCIi/MoRE

               New User Node # : 812-944-1081 (NUP REQUIRED)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                       ###  BLOOD_TXT bY xRAY/MSQ  ###


___________________________________________________________________________
|>-<>-><-<·>-<>-><-<·>-<>-><-=-<>-><-<·>-<>-><-<·>-<>-><>-><-<·>-<>-><>-><|
|<|¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯|<|
|·| Îf ¥øµ ÂRÊ CøøL, ¥øµ'RÊ ÂLRÊÂÐ¥ HÊRÊ!  ØR ¥øµ KNøW SøMÊøNÊ WHø ÎS!  |>|
|·|                                                                     |>|
|·|   /\__|\__ _|\_ ___/\_  /\_|\___|\_ ___/\___/\___/\______/\/\_ _    |>|
|||°¬/    \  (/ \  Y _/  /¤/  /|    \  V _/  __/  __/  ______  \  V \¯¬°|||
|<|::\ .\_/.    /. | |. /:/. /:|. ° /. | |. /\/. /\/. _/:|.  ° /  | .\::|·|
|>|:/V  \\|| \  \|   | /¯¯\ /¯¯\| ° \|   | /  \ /  \  \/\|| \  \__  //::|<|
|/|:\  __/| _|\_/___ |__  /__  / ___/___ |__  /__  / ___/| _|\_/ ___/Mat|>|
|·|°¬\/°¤*|/¬¯¬°¤*¤°\|¬°\/¤°¬\/|/*¤°¬¯¬°\|¤°\/¬°¤\/\/¯¬°¤|/°¬¯¬\/*¤°¬¯¬°|||
|||                                                                     |·|
|||+×+-+×+-[]       [Ø] by MEMbER ReFErral - ONLY! -  [Ø]     []-+×+-+×+|·|
|||+×+-+×+-[] 3* µSR HST 16.8øø DS RÎÑGÐøWN - 2* µSR HST 14.4ø[]-+×+-+×+|·|
|||                                                                     |·|
||| L·S·Ð WØRLÐ HÊÂÐQµÂRTÊRS __________________ L·S·Ð WØRLÐ HÊÂÐQµÂRTÊRS|·|
|<|_________________________/-><-<·>-<>-><>-><-\________________________|<|
|>-<>-><-<·>-<>-><-<·>-<>->< "ThE BrOtHeRhOoD!" >-<>-><-<·>-<>-><-<·>-<>kø|
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯\-><>-><-<·>-<>-><>/¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
                             ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯                            


                         It comes from one of 
                         :_________________:               
       16.800 DUAL   ____|___________  ____|_/\__     R    
      _|_ P O W E R: \_____\_________\/\_____\/\_\    I    
       |           |  \____/ _______ _\/_    /___/    N    
   ____    R       .    / /  // /  / /// ___/ _ /     G            ____ 
   \ :!T.R.|.S.T.A.R:  / // // /    _/\__ \/  //.!R.E.D S.E.C.T.O.R!: / 
    \/     N       .  / /  // /  /  /    //  ./       O             \/  
           G          \/__/ \/__/  /_____/___/  :     W           
           D                  \/__/        |    |     N    _|_      
           D             |_________________|Sk!n.           |        
           O             :    B O A R D    :
           W                ThE CaUlDrOn
          eNjoy this taste of feeling...try to get the numba...
 
                       ask a trsi-Member For NuP!

°                                                     [A¡RaDDer v3.1 By A¡Rcø]