Subject: Slow LW 4.0/4.1 for Amiga
From: [email-masked]
To: Multiple recipients of list <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 21 Jan 1996 23:14:33 -0500

Reply:  Item #5785643 from [email-masked]@INET#

LW for the Amiga renders slow due to the lack of a good C compiler.

NewTek previously used the Manx compiler to generate fast efficient
code. They can't use it any longer due to incompatibility problems
with the latest OS. They switched over to the SAS compiler, which
generates slow fat code. So don't expect a patch to speed up the Amiga
renders. It is going to take some major work to correct this, and it
may be more work than NewTek will ever put into it.

(On a sadder note, no one makes an Amiga C compiler that is optimized
for the 060 chip. The best it can do is emulate an 040.)

I want to buy a Flyer more than any other piece of hardware on the
planet. (I'm saving for one now.) If it wasn't for the Flyer, I would
have already switched to a Pentium. I'm not complaining about the
current rendering speed of 3.5, I'm kind of used to it. It forces me
to be efficient. Slowing speed DOWN by 2.5 times makes it simply
un-useable. Purchasing 4.0 is a big waste of cash!

NewTek needs to address this speed problem. I may just use the cash
put aside for the Flyer to switch to a Pentium. This would cost NewTek
a Flyer sale, as I would get a PVR instead. Can NewTek afford the loss
if all the Amiga owners felt the same way?

JF