[12318] in Hotline Meeting
Cluster M4-167
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (jimhsu@Athena.MIT.EDU)
Fri Dec 11 15:26:45 1992
From: jimhsu@Athena.MIT.EDU
To: hotline@Athena.MIT.EDU
Date: Fri, 11 Dec 92 15:26:26 EST
In my opinion, this cluster has the worst spatial configuration
possible. It is cramped, hot, and extremely uncomfortable. Two
RT's occupy the same carrolls in the corners. The middle of the
room is completely wasted. Why not redesign the room to take
advantage of the extra space? One practical suggestion I would
like to make: put the computers under the desks and place the
monitors on the desk itself. This allows users to look at the
screen at eye level instead of having to crane our necks to look
up. It would also have the advantage of increasing desk space,
making the keyboard easier to use and also allowing users to put
papers and books in an easily accessible position. If possible,
I would place the rt's in a tower configuration, to take up as
little space as possible.
Another idea I had was to abandon the Athena policy of only one
user per computer. A lot of people use Athena for low-load
applications such as word processing. I think a cluster should
be set up with a couple of spare RT's or VAX (you could use the
unused ones in the corner of 4-167) and lots and lots of places
to simultaneously log in. This cluster would be tailored to
slower applications such as word processing, reading news groups,
or email. Although it would be avoided by many users due to the
slow terminals, the main advantage is that there would probably
always be an open terminal for people who need to write papers.
My two cents.
Sincerely,
Jimmy M.D. Hsu
jimhsu@athena.mit.edu
