I agree 100% with Bert.
Eric Gibson
Novartis Pharmaceuticals
"Gunter, Bert" <bert_gunter@merck.com> on 05/27/98 02:28:51 PM
To: "'Rich Calaway'" <rich@statsci.com>
cc: S-news <s-news@wubios.wustl.edu> (bcc: Eric Gibson/PH/Novartis)
Subject: [S] RE: Documentation
Mr. Calaway:
Thankyou for your candor. Your comment confirms a hunch that I have had --
to whit: S-Plus does not fully understand that features without full and
accurate documentation are worthless (or worse). Much work is being
expended
on new feature development, no doubt; it is too bad that commensurate
effort
is not being spent on documentation. Perhaps this is a legacy from S-Plus's
Unix past. In any case, without such effort, S-Plus will not achieve the
market penetration it should. It is enormously frustrating not to have the
information to tell you how things work-- or to have incorrect information.
Your admission of the inadequacy of MathSoft's "limited documentation
resources" and your current difficulties in trying to fix a large backlog
of
problems (while your developers are creating yet more) should certainly
give
anyone who contemplates purchasing S-Plus pause. If the past is a guide, it
can only get worse. Whatever else may be said about SAS, at least they
document.
Contrary opinions welcome, of course.
Bert Gunter
Biometrics Research
Merck Research Labs
P.O. Box 2000
Rahway, NJ 07065-0900
732-594-7765
"The business of the statistician is to catalyze the
scientific learning process." George E. P. Box
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