Workshops

2.The fall of commodore from my point of view - part 9 (by Rainer Benda)

»And then there was a guest appearance...

...at Amiga Technologies. Somewhen in 1995, Doc Peter Kittel called me and asked me if I was interested to work for Amiga Tech.

At first, I didn't want to, because I had my own store (I still have it, but only as a pseudo-hobby), but still it was very intriguing to entertain the thought of experiencing the rebirth of the Amiga directed by Escom.

Peter mentioned that Petro would be on board, too. At first, I didn't care much about that, because Escom-boss Schmitt was resp. was to be manager of Amiga Tech., but plan changed shortly after my joining. He gave petro the job. Peter wasn't very happy about that either. The reson was that Schmitt was fully occupied by the PC business and didn't want to take another job.

During the first 2 weeks (it were 5 altogether :-) ), I felt quite superfluous at Amiga Tech. We didn't have desks, no offices and Peter and I share a small room with two Escom employees, who ... let's say "smiled at our jobs" ... after these two weeks we got to know that we would be moving to Bensheim, in our own offices. Finally I could start to do my job (I thought)... which covered essentially the same things I did at C= (Support, development of support media like Internet, Mailbox etc. - in other words, coordinating body for all problems around the Amiga, once again).

But reality catched up with me very quickly. We had to bring our own work materials, we got nothing from Amiga Tech., not even enough phone lines etc. - the thing with the works materials escalated so far that we communicated only via our attorneys and in the end I was among the creditors of Amiga Tech. at the creditors meeting with the trustee Hembach. (Petro thought/maybe still thinks that I did this for revenge - this is not true)

Now it was my job to organize coffee machines, a firm's stamp and the installation of more phone lines.

I acceted this as normal, since Amiga Tech. was about to start business.

Maybe I should now state my opinion about Petro, because I can't append "him" to the end of the story without destroying the context

I (and Peter) made our first experience with Petro at C= and weren't exactly happy that he was now our boss. Peter always knew that this would lead to problems and I had hoped that I would be able to just do my job and to avoid a confrontation.

Years later (when I visited Petro 1998 in Langen) I made some kind of "peace" and thus now I think more than I write (after all, I should follow his example and write a book and earn some money by the way), but I don't feel inclined to write a book and I think everyone should be able to get "informations" without making a profit.... but everybody should do what suits him.

All in all is Petro someone with whom I can't stay in the same room for a longer time...because he is too choleric. One moment, he puts his naked butt in your face, 5 minutes later everything is forgotten (for him). I also don't think that he saved to Amiga on behalf of the Amiga, he just rose to the occasion (something which he sure deserves to be credited for) to advertise a product. He succeeded with Escom as well as with Gateway, even though there was no advantage for the users in the end.

As manager of a company, I would have shown a different behavior than he did up to today. Some decisions should have (sadly it was only "should") been made by him, otherwise I see no use for a manager who has nothing the manage. Surely Petro has had different experiences in this area, but at a point were I was unable to go further I would ahve left the company.

The "community" and the product Amiga cannot have been the only reasons. With all due respect to Petro (and with regard to my question back then in Langen, why he was still there at all (he answered that he wanted to stay loyally with the Amiga)), I can't find it comprehensible.

I myself (!) think that he hadn't good prospects for another job where he was in charge and at the same time could do whatever he wanted.

Now some people (and maybe Petro is among them) may think that it would be the best now to concentrate on the "Amiga" and to work with joint forces, but I personally can only come to one conclusion, which is that I did my part in this story more than only once, without any reward at all. No for myself, not for the Amiga either. So all these words about the "Amiga Community" and "keeping up together" etc., which remind me more of a sect than anything else, pass me by. When I "was there" I had no possibilities to influence what was happening, so why should it be any different now?

Not giving up is one thing, letting yourself be fooled something else.

Back to Amiga Tech. - we got personnel reinforcements, a Escom employee started to work as secretary for us and Petro. Everything worked very slowly and when we dared to go home before 9 pm, we even heard stuff like whether we ended our work already at noon .... I didn't find it funny.

Sad to say, history kept repeating, some things were just like at C=. Still they thought of the A1200 as unrivalled by the PC. The combination of a A1200 and Scala drove some people to drooling. I could only shake my head at that, just like Doc Peter.«

To be continued...