I was sure I'd replied to this email a while back, but now I don;t see
it. Here goes again!
> Yo! Norman. Does QPC2 still work under current versions of Wine?
Yes, pretty much perfectly. I have no problems. Accessing the Floppy
Disc hardware obviously doesn't work though - as far as I remember
Marcel telling me, a long time back, it uses direct sector access and
that's to the inbuilt hardware of a Windows box as opposed to an
emulator's USB floppy. (Wine Is Not an Emulator!)
Still, I believe I can use floppy images now at version 4. I haven't
tried that yet though.
> My only
valid Linux installation ATM is on RasPi - too slow to be worth testing.
It won't work. Wine is x86/amd-64 only. The Pi is ARM, so WINE isn't
even available in the repositories.
Almost every year I reconsider whether its worth emigrating to Linux,
but its just such a hassel.
Really? I moved over to "The Dark Side" way back in 2001 just after
Simon's article in Linux Format which mentioned my Web Site at the time.
Anyone wishing to switch simply has to pick up a copy of the latest
Linux Format (the cover DVD has Mint 17.3 (32 and 64 bit versions) and
OpenSuse Leap (64 bit only) on it) and a large section inside on
migrating simply from Windows to Linux Mint 17.3 - which is what I use
for business and pleasure.
You'll be surprised at how simple it can be to switch. Other Windows
migrants like "Mageia" but I haven't tried it.
A colleague at work had to sort out his ageing parents recently. Their
XP system had a hard disc failure and they had lost/binned/destroyed the
original CD - assuming it actually had one, it may have been a recovery
partition on the now defunct hard drive.
Anyway, they were "dyed in the wool XP users, couldn't use anything
else, didn't like change etc" - what could he do? Windows 7 cost too
much, Windows 8 would have baffled the aged ones, so I suggested Linux
Mint 17 with the Cinnamon Desktop. He was a bit dubious, but did it
anyway. He also told them it was an upgrade to Windows. They loved it!
And, even better, have not had to call him out for any problems.
However, each to their own. However, most Linux distos (aka
distributions) nowadays come with a "live DVD" where you simply insert
the DVD and reboot. As long as the computer boots from the DVD, you get
a "try before you (don't) buy" system that will not touch the hard disc
nor will it write anything over your Windows stuff. Oh, and you can read
your Windows files just fine too.
If you decide to install, they are very careful to make sure that the
allow you to use your Windows system by giving you the option on the
boot menu, unlike Windows which assumes it is the only OS, and wipes the
ability to boot into Linux.
And tho different, to me there seems to be
as much to hate in both systems. (Apple can hardly be considered an
option for grownups and has silly hardware restrictions.) Makes me
wonder whether I might outlive QDOS/SMSQ <shudder>
I think that Linux is vastly more secure than Windows. Security is built
in, not bolted on after the fact. Does Windows still come with an
administrator user which has no password? It did at XP and that little
fact was buried on page 16 of a small booklet full of adverts and not
much else when I got my first XP laptop.
Yes, there is lots to hate in any OS, I know Mac users who whine about
this and that never working, updates that break things and those damned
U2 albums that appear every 5 minutes like a virus! I know Linux users
who whine about other stuff. I have been known to shout at QDOS myself
from time to time!
:-)
Cheers,
Norm.
--
Norman Dunbar
Dunbar IT Consultants Ltd
Registered address:
27a Lidget Hill
Pudsey
West Yorkshire
United Kingdom
LS28 7LG
Company Number: 05132767
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