Re: [Leica] Re: Leica's Development and Management

[Walter S Delesandri <walt@jove.acs.unt.edu>]

Sorry, Nigel, but you seem to have a superb command of the 
language as does most of the free world.  No sympathy here.
I don't know what continent you hail from, but you must 
not have a T.V. if my comments offend you.  The young people 
most likely to be functionally illiterate in English, unfortunately, 
seem to be our own recent generations in the US.

You were not attacked.  I don't know who or what you are, except 
that you profess to have owned and used extensively most of the 
Leica/Leitz products produced since WW-II.  

Every single time someone compares a Hexar or that damn Contax 
to a Leica or Nikon SP or Canon, my response is and will be 
exactly the same, on or off the internet.

The world needs a rangefinder system.  That means a body with 
shutter speeds, f-stops, focus.   Perhaps electronically timed,
perhaps aperture priorty AE.  Preferably M-mount, for obvious 
reasons. (this assumes that they can fight off Leica's attorneys--
I believe a major player can).  The only reason Leica has survived 
with OUTRAGEOUS prices and poor quality control and poorer repair
and ABSURD marketing......etc..........IS that there isn't a 
competitor.  The reason Nikon didn't kick their ass....er excuse 
me "bum"......longer than they did with the SP is because they 
discontinued it.  They underestimated the desirability of a 
rangefinder system to supplement the then-hotrod Nikon F.

Body for $699. 21mm, 28, 35, 50, 90 for $399 each.  Finders 
for all exc 21 built in.  min. focus 3 feet, and you can do away 
with parallax compensation below 50 mm.  It'll sell like hell.

But keep the auto, unreliable crap out of it.  I'm talking 
k-1000 rfdr camera system here.  

Enough babble. This group was nasty as hell before I started 
posting.  I just enjoy/add to it.
Thanks, and no, Nigel I won't apologize again, before or after 
my post.  Grow up.

Walt