> Or some company would give him their $10,000 top end computer system and he'd state that the fact it was given to him didn't affect his opinions about the sys

> Or some company would give him their $10,000 top end computer system and he'd state that the fact it was given to him didn't affect his opinions about the system, because he really used the system and that it was he, a power user, who was doing the company a favor by shaking the bugs out of their systems. I didn't buy it for a second. Pournelle was never reluctant to criticize. He discussed the Epson QX-10 because he really wanted to like the bundled Valdocs software, but repeatedly excoriated over several versions its horrible performance. Pournelle was always scathing about copy protection, even if he otherwise liked the software. When discussing CP/M transportables, Pournelle preferred the super-expensive Otrona but rightly said that the Osborne and Kaypro were the Volkswagen better suited for most people in terms of price/performance. Etc., etc.