On Dec 21, 2007, at 7:18 AM, mabshoff wrote:
>> But please don't forget, sage is about open source - and windows is >> the complete opposite. > > [begin rant] Well, we support OSX, too, and that isn't exactly Open > Source either. While Apple itself is somewhat more friendly to the > Open Source idea than Microsoft on the software side you shouldn't [...] > I have been porting Software to and from Windows, OSX, Linux, Solaris, > HPUX and so on for many years now and in my experience those ports > always increase the quality of the code.[end rant] Wow, michael, that was the most awesome rant I've ever seen on sage- devel. I agree with you 150%. (well.... I reserve judgement on the women's track and field stuff, but let's not get into that.) My opinion is that having a native windows port is easily the single most effective way to boost Sage's user base. There are two problems. First is that a windows port is, as you point out, very, very (very, very) hard. Second problem, more important from an immediate practical point of view, is that the core of the sage developers don't know Windows, and don't have a convenient way to work with windows. You've seen at all the Sage Days workshops, it's like a macfest, with a couple of people running some kind of linux, and hardly anyone running windows. Moreover, most of us don't *want* to run windows. I've said it before and I'll say it again: if someone can make working on windows as easy and legal for me as "ssh sage.math", then I would probably be able to find some time to help out. If this can be made to happen then I think you will find more people interested in working on the port. david --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sage-devel URLs: http://sage.scipy.org/sage/ and http://modular.math.washington.edu/sage/ -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
