On Fri, 5 May 2000, Benjamin Scott wrote:
> > I like Linux, it is a powerful, somewhat stable OS. But compared to
> > Windows, it has virtually no applications.
>
> Oh, not *that* argument again. Talk about your dead horses. The number of
> independent programs available for an OS really doesn't matter. What matters
In this instance, it actually does. What this point was leading up to is
that (in HIS words) Linux is only stable because it has no applications.
That's a new twist. The problem is it isn't true. Linux has tons of
apps, so that's not true, and it's very stable, so that's not true.
> is if the programs *you need* are available. Look at what most people
> do with their computers: Surf the web. Read email. Word processing
> and spreadsheets. Databases. All of which is readily available, and
> often free, for Linux.
Right on.
> Are you an astroturfer, or just misinformed?
>
> Microsoft did *nothing* to bring computers to the masses. In fact, I would
> say they *hindered* it.
>
> Did they create a line of semiconductor products cheap enough to be used in
> homes and small offices? No, that was Intel.
>
> Did they create a hardware platform which could be build cheaply from
> commodity parts? No, IBM did that.
This is a great point. Originally I gave the author credit for this
argument, but now that you've reminded me, I realized that the IBM PC had
taken over the position as the most popular PC from the Commodore 64
BEFORE the advent of Windows, and of course DOS _AND_ Windows were
basically ripped off (or bought outright) from someone else. Bill Gates
deserves no credit for any innovation. The marketing job deserves credit.
But that's it.
> Justification? You make that assertion with nothing to back it up.
It's indefensible, but I'm inclined to agree. Unix isn't a very friendly
OS. In my experience, people usually use it out of necessity, at least
initially. Not by choice. But once you've been exposed, it's hard not to
love, eh? :)
The rest of you said basically mirrors things I've already said, so
tempted as I am, I won't repeat it here... :D
--
Derek Martin
System Administrator
Mission Critical Linux
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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