>When people cite that example, I often wonder what their intent
>is. When I inquire, I usually find they are citing it as an
>example of the technically superior system falling to an inferior
>system with better marketing.
>But on closer examination I find that Beta's technical superiority
>over VHS has no significance in context; while VHS early on
>developed a critical technical superiority over Beta, that was not
>matched until it was too late to help.
Huh? Next to a Betamax, VHS looked like someone drawing with dull
crayons, it wasn't until they developed Super-VHS that the quality
was compatible.
VHS's success came from being much cheaper than Beta, I also side
with those who say it was because Sony chairman Akia Morrita
wouldn't allow Beta to be used for pornography.
Brian
Member,Extropy Institute