Buying Microsoft won't get you fired until you get a virus into your mainframe. My nephew runs the computer systems for a university and they had a lot of data wiped out and oh, brother!
He talked to them about switching to Linux but they had just bought an expensive piece of proprietary software and didn't want to see it go to waste. On Fri, 2010-07-30 at 13:53 -0400, Phil M Perry wrote: > As I recall, OS/2 was started as a joint IBM-MS project as a high end > fully pre-emptive multitasking 32 bit OS, rather than continuing to > fiddle with the DOS-based Windows. There was some sort of falling out > between the partners, and MS went on to use its OS/2 work as the core of > a new line -- Windows NT. IBM just didn't know how to do PC operating > systems (build them, or market them), and OS/2 just kind of fizzled out. > Eventually, the DOS-based Windows fizzled out too (after Win ME) and > NT's successors are still with us (currently Win 7). > > OS/2 (circa Warp) was quite nice in its time, but by then, MS had an > insurmountable lead in the marketplace. I can't imagine anyone in their > right mind wanting to bring it back -- its cousin Win 7 is so much > better than Warp was, and any current Linux distribution is far > superior. What would be the point? There are no legacy applications to > speak of, so it would have to have full Windows and Linux compatibility > -- now, if IBM were to offer a Linux with full Windows compatibility > (better than WINE, and no license fees to MS), and call it OS/2, that > might be something interesting. Maybe a VM under the covers with Linux > and Windows preloaded? That would still require paying MS, unless > someone has a really, really good Win clone. After the PS/2 / > Microchannel / OS/2 fiascoes of the late '80s, I don't think IBM would > want to get back into a commodity OS market. It just won't be able to do > it cheaply enough, unless they rebrand Linux. The market doesn't care > any more about IBM -- it's buying Microsoft that will never get you fired. > > _______________________________________________ > Mid-Hudson Valley Linux Users Group http://mhvlug.org > http://mhvlug.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mhvlug > > Upcoming Meetings (6pm - 8pm) MHVLS Auditorium > Aug 4 - Samba > Sep 1 - BOINC > Oct 6 - Creating Firefox Extensions -- Robert Mark Wallace 60 Delaware Road Newburgh, NY 12550-3802 Telephone: (845) 566-0586 Visit my Blog, Mark Wallace Following Christ, at > http://markwallacefollowingchrist.blogspot.com/ > _______________________________________________ Mid-Hudson Valley Linux Users Group http://mhvlug.org http://mhvlug.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mhvlug Upcoming Meetings (6pm - 8pm) MHVLS Auditorium Aug 4 - Samba Sep 1 - BOINC Oct 6 - Creating Firefox Extensions
