JCE Software, 9B1: Editorial

How Soon Will DOS Be a Loss?

John W. Moore
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706-1396

Note:
This issue is out of print.

The pace of development of hardware and software is frenetic and becoming more so. Changes occur so rapidly that a programmer/chemist/educator might well be discouraged from trying to keep up, and therefore discouraged from writing instructional materials.
It was approximately a year ago, for example, that a group here in Madison spent considerable time and energy studying the question of whether to develop a new lab-preparation system in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) or in a more traditional CAI-type language. We opted, I think wisely, for HTML, and now the materials developed can be made available to students via the World Wide Web quickly and conveniently. However, it will take nearly two years for this multimedia project to be completed, and even after only one year things have changed a lot. By the end of two years ideas that seemed far out when we started will be commonplace and perhaps even old hat. It is impossible to anticipate all the changes that will occur, nor can we adequately address the opportunities and/or problems they may bring.
In December 1991 I wrote an editorial entitled Adieu, Apple II that signaled the demise of Series A of JCE: Software for Apple II computers (1). I was reminded of this when thinking about this DOS issue. How much longer will JCE: Software be publishing instructional materials for DOS? When will DOS be so obsolete that no more authors will produce DOS programs and no more subscribers will want to purchase them? How many people currently run these DOS programs from Windows, not from DOS alone? How important is it for us to continue to include DOS Notes (see pages 42-45) in each issue of Series B? Do readers make startup floppy disks for JCE: Software programs any longer, or does everyone simply load programs onto a hard disk and run them from there?
There is another aspect of the constant development of hardware and software that needs to be addressed. How rapidly are different parts of the educational system changing in response to shifts from one kind of hardware to another, from one operating system to another, or from one kind of delivery mode to another? In other words, how well are administrators, budget officials, state and local governments, and private schools and colleges able to keep up with developing technologies? In many cases, not very well. Technology is expensive and requires infrastructure (such as network cabling) that is also expensive. Budgets are being cut and belts are being tightened. Many of JCE: Software's constituents have neither the time nor the money to make improvements they would like to make.
For example, I recently met with a number of college-level chemistry teachers whose access to the Internet was very inconvenient, and whose students had no access unless they themselves provided it. This is quite common in secondary schools and two-year colleges and in more four-year colleges than most of us would expect. About a year ago my university upgraded the computer facilities in our department, but before that we were unable to run some of the software published by JCE: Software, because our computers simply were not up to the task. These computers were only five or six years old, and we are still using them, but for some things they were just too slow.
Everything I have mentioned so far raises questions for JCE: Software's editorial staff. We need to continue supplying software that can be used by people whose hardware was purchased years ago, but at the same time we want to accommodate authors who have developed materials using the latest, greatest tools and media. We try to anticipate correctly the directions that change will take while bearing in mind those who have not yet been able to participate in change. As long as authors supply high quality DOS software we will continue to publish it, but do not be surprised if DOS issues are published less and less frequently and Windows and Macintosh issues begin to take their place.
As usual the JCE: Software staff and I as editor welcome your input regarding the questions raised here. Please contact us by letter (address on back cover), phone (1-800-991-5534), fax (608-265-8094), email (jcesoft@chem.wisc.edu), or through our World Wide Web site (http://jchemed.chem.wisc.edu/).
We look forward to hearing from you.
Literature Cited

Moore, J. W. JCE: Software 1991 4A (2), 11-12.

First Published: June 1996
Citation: Moore, J. W. How Soon Will DOS Be a Loss? J. Chem. Educ. Software 9B1
Keywords:

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Last Updated: April 26, 2001
Created: December 3, 1996 Created by: J. L. Holmes
Comments to: jceonline@chem.wisc.edu

© 1997 Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.



How Soon Will DOS Be a Loss?
John W. Moore University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706-1396

Note:	This issue is out of print.

The pace of development of hardware and software is frenetic and becoming more so. Changes occur so rapidly that a programmer/chemist/educator might well be discouraged from trying to keep up, and therefore discouraged from writing instructional materials. It was approximately a year ago, for example, that a group here in Madison spent considerable time and energy studying the question of whether to develop a new lab-preparation system in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) or in a more traditional CAI-type language. We opted, I think wisely, for HTML, and now the materials developed can be made available to students via the World Wide Web quickly and conveniently. However, it will take nearly two years for this multimedia project to be completed, and even after only one year things have changed a lot. By the end of two years ideas that seemed far out when we started will be commonplace and perhaps even old hat. It is impossible to anticipate all the changes that will occur, nor can we adequately address the opportunities and/or problems they may bring. In December 1991 I wrote an editorial entitled Adieu, Apple II that signaled the demise of Series A of JCE: Software for Apple II computers (1). I was reminded of this when thinking about this DOS issue. How much longer will JCE: Software be publishing instructional materials for DOS? When will DOS be so obsolete that no more authors will produce DOS programs and no more subscribers will want to purchase them? How many people currently run these DOS programs from Windows, not from DOS alone? How important is it for us to continue to include DOS Notes (see pages 42-45) in each issue of Series B? Do readers make startup floppy disks for JCE: Software programs any longer, or does everyone simply load programs onto a hard disk and run them from there? There is another aspect of the constant development of hardware and software that needs to be addressed. How rapidly are different parts of the educational system changing in response to shifts from one kind of hardware to another, from one operating system to another, or from one kind of delivery mode to another? In other words, how well are administrators, budget officials, state and local governments, and private schools and colleges able to keep up with developing technologies? In many cases, not very well. Technology is expensive and requires infrastructure (such as network cabling) that is also expensive. Budgets are being cut and belts are being tightened. Many of JCE: Software's constituents have neither the time nor the money to make improvements they would like to make. For example, I recently met with a number of college-level chemistry teachers whose access to the Internet was very inconvenient, and whose students had no access unless they themselves provided it. This is quite common in secondary schools and two-year colleges and in more four-year colleges than most of us would expect. About a year ago my university upgraded the computer facilities in our department, but before that we were unable to run some of the software published by JCE: Software, because our computers simply were not up to the task. These computers were only five or six years old, and we are still using them, but for some things they were just too slow. Everything I have mentioned so far raises questions for JCE: Software's editorial staff. We need to continue supplying software that can be used by people whose hardware was purchased years ago, but at the same time we want to accommodate authors who have developed materials using the latest, greatest tools and media. We try to anticipate correctly the directions that change will take while bearing in mind those who have not yet been able to participate in change. As long as authors supply high quality DOS software we will continue to publish it, but do not be surprised if DOS issues are published less and less frequently and Windows and Macintosh issues begin to take their place. As usual the JCE: Software staff and I as editor welcome your input regarding the questions raised here. Please contact us by letter (address on back cover), phone (1-800-991-5534), fax (608-265-8094), email (jcesoft@chem.wisc.edu), or through our World Wide Web site (http://jchemed.chem.wisc.edu/). We look forward to hearing from you. Literature Cited Moore, J. W. JCE: Software 1991 4A (2), 11-12.


News \| Issues \| CD-ROM / Video \| Find It! \| Technical Support \| For Authors
JCE Online \| Journal \| Software \| Internet \| Happenings \| About JCE \| Contact JCE

Last Updated: April 26, 2001 Created: December 3, 1996	Created by: J. L. Holmes Comments to: jceonline@chem.wisc.edu

© 1997 Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.