Comment by patgarner | Hacker News Reader

Comment by patgarner | Hacker News Reader

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From information found around the web it sounds like you are stretching the truth a little bit.

According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logic_Pro), Emagic and Logic weren't around until the 90's, even though Logic was based on ideas from previous software. It's stated there that Emagic and Logic, as software named "Logic" didn't exist until '93. Then Emagic was acquired by Apple in 2002 at which point the Windows version was discontinued. The information there, if factual, would mean that Logic was only being developed by Emagic for about 10 years before they were acquired by Apple.

Information here implies (http://www.tweakheadz.com/history_of_notator_and_logic3.html) that the Mac version came in '93 followed by the PC/Windows version in '95 or '96 which would mean that Logic wasn't being used on PC/Windows for more than 6 or 7 years or so before the Windows version was discontinued by Apple. Logic and all the previous software whose ideas it was based on were also originally on Atari.

My apologies if it seems that I have misrepresented anything, I was giving numbers from memory. I'm not a Logic user myself. Even assuming that no Logic users upgraded from the Atari ST to the PC, I think the point still stands that six or seven years is a long time to sit in front of the same piece of software. It's a heck of a lot of "continuing professional development", of setup tweaks and hacks and workarounds and little bits of expertise.

The extent to which those skills accumulate is highlighted by the fact that "Pro Tools Operator" is a job title in the industry, and that their pay varies more widely than that of session musicians. Using a DAW isn't just a secondary task, like a writer uses a word processor - at the high end, operating a DAW is a job in itself. People have built whole careers simply off the back of being very quick at piloting Pro Tools. Being told that your DAW is being discontinued is a bit like being told that all your old electric guitars are obsolete and won't work with new amplifiers. It's vaguely tolerable if you're a hobbyist or an artist who can afford to be fussy about their kit, but if you're a professional who needs to get the job done every time, it's a catastrophe waiting to happen.

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