From: becap@cs.mcgill.ca (Brian CAPSON)
Subject: Re: Why I'm sticking with Windows
Organization: SOCS, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1992 21:43:54 GMT

In article <1992Apr15.141452.3464@ncsu.edu> linville@garfield.catt.ncsu.edu  
(John W. Linville) writes:
> In article <1992Apr15.041903.8194@cs.mcgill.ca> becap@cs.mcgill.ca (Brian  
CAPSON) writes:
> >NT has got enough great features that I will MAKE room for it on my machine.
> 
> Just what features are these?  Please don't say pre-emptive multitasking, or
> multithreading, or memory protection, or VDMs, or....

I'm not going to do your homework for you. If you want to know what makes NT  
leagues better than OS/2, you can find it out for yourself, the info is readily  
available, and covers the topic in great detail.

> >OS/2 just doesn't have enough features for me to bother switching to it.
> 
> Do you even know what features OS/2 has?

Come on John. I'm getting sick and tired of your know-it-all condescending  
remarks. Your ignorant reply to someone who disagrees with you is that they  
don't know what they're talking about. I assure you that I am fully aware of  
OS/2's functionality, I've given it a full workout and have read all the specs.
I have also used NT, and read its specs. NT definately is the better OS. Sorry.  
Now run along back to your little group so you can pat each other on the back  
for being so smart while us Windows users wallow in our ignorance.

> >I'm not convinced that IBM does have access to the NT source, but if they  
do,
> 
> Not only do they have access to it, they are still partially funding the 
> project due to existing contractual obligations.

Tell me John, where do you get your information? My sources at Microsoft tell  
me this is absurd.

> >I hope they have the sense not to just keep patching things onto OS/2 to try 
> >to compete with NT, the things that make NT so great have to built in from
> 
> I still don't know what you think will make NT so great.  OS/2 already has 
> hooks for many/most of the features of NT that OS/2 doesn't ALREADY have.

I've told you, if you don't know what makes NT so great, Then FIND OUT about  
it. You'll see, unless you've got your OS/2 blinders on, as I expect. The  
notion of OS/2 having "hooks" for the things that make NT really stand out is  
absurd. We're talking base-level design characteristics here.

> If you're running DOS (patch upon patch) and especially Windows 3.1 (the $50
> patch) then don't speak to me about OS/2 becoming a patch.  At least it is
> here now.

At least it's here now. That's great. 

> >scratch. And since the API is a superset of the one I'll be investing in  
with
> >Windows, I'll be all set. No need to waste my money on OS/2 apps, nor run my
> 
> Which API?  POSIX?  OS/2 1.3 text mode?  Windows 3.x?  Windows32?  (Insert
> flavor of the month here)?  Microsoft has been marketing NT as a server OS.
> Unless they are planning to figure out a way to run Windows apps as X  
clients,
> it is going to be hard to run your Windows 3 apps in text mode.

I guess that you really do have no idea what NT is about. I understand why it's  
difficult for you to compare them then. NT will embody the complete Windows  
API, including 16 and 32 bit implementations. That means that I can maintain  
one set of source code, and recompile for 32 or 16 bit systems. Users can then  
run my app on a PC. On an Iris Indigo. On a new DEC Mips machine. The NT  
interface is totally redesigned, and it will appear on both the NT and the DOS  
based versions of windows. Please read about NT before you start making snarky  
and inaccurate comments about it.

> 
> >Windows apps in an environment where they don't belong.
> 
> Windows apps under OS/2 run under a version of Windows (that acts like a real
> DPMI server should) tailored for OS/2.  The advantage is that you can run  
every
> app in its own address space where it is safe from all the other running  
apps.
> As far as I am concerned, if I have to run a Windows app than OS/2 is where  
it
> belongs.
> 

You run Windows apps where you want, and I'll do the same. I will at least give  
you the courtesy of not telling you that you are wrong, something that I wish  
you OS/2 evangelists would have the social skills to do as well.


- Brian