From: coil@sample-o.eng.ohio-state.edu (Stacy D. Coil)
Subject: Re: At last: the media woke up
Organization: The Ohio State University Dept. of Electrical Engineering
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1992 02:09:46 GMT

In article <1992Oct14.181622.16550@fwi.uva.nl>, stolk@fwi.uva.nl (Bram) writes:
> However, in the November issue of another german mag. C'T, there is
> an article on Linux. C'T is a very popular magazine of high scientific
> quality, and available all over Europe. The article was pretty

Finally someone on the outside has recognized Linux!!!!!!

> possitive on Linux (as to be expected... kinda hard to write an
> article that puts Linux down).

To be able to get a POSIX compliant OS for free (well you install it
and set it up) is amazing.

> 
> I wonder if there has been an American magazine who did an article on
> Linux yet. I myself am Dutch, and I am pretty sure the first article

I do not know of one.  But I could be wrong, I only read four or five of the
hundreds of computer mags in the States.

> on Linux in a Dutch mag. will only happen in five years or so.
> (Dutch computer magazines really suck, and are very backward).

Sometime, I think the same thing about the mags in the U.S.


> Then again, it makes ya wonder if Linux would be better off, when
> exposed to the world at large. The cult-like Linux community probably
> has its advantages, but every time I read some retarted journalist's
> junk about Windows NT being the OS of the future I can't help thinking:
> 'Boy, U R wrong'.

In my there is two major problems with heralding Linux as the OS of the future
(Please forgive me Linus).  Linux is not very stable (at the moment), and it
is public domain.  

In terms of stability, I have noticed several people posting
info about bugs and problems that they cannot seem to fix by themselves, with
an OS that is going to take over the world of PCs, it would have to be almost,
if not, painless to install and use.  I know that there are many people working
toward that goal, but I it will take time.

Linux is public domain, which means that if you have a problem with Linux in the
way it operates (sys admin or any thing), you are basically on your own.  Even
though there is the great (and I do mean GREAT) news group with all of these
tallented people working with Linux that know the in's and out's.  There isn't
a paid support group that I know that I can call that will give me an answer
to my problems; maybe not in 5 minutes, but they will give me an answer.
Example - We at the Electrical Engineering lab have a hard time supporting the
applications on the computer systems, because we have to rely almost solely on
public domain programs, and we are understaffed.  So we don't have the time
to mess with a new program or OS and to get it up and running.  It is cheaper
for a company to buy a fully supported package than it is to use a public
domain package and have a to allocate Man/Women hours to be able to debug it and
keep it running.

Linus, I really appreciate your efforts.  And, if I had a 386 or better at home,
I would be running almost Linus 24 hours a day.  I am personally in favor of
public domain packages, including cool operating systems.  Please by all means
keep up the OUTSTANDING work (this includes everyone that is working on the
project also).


> 	Take care,
> 
> 		Bram Stolk

	Thank you, you too.


> +-------------------------------------+------------------------------------+
> | "Flying is a nack... the trick is   |  Bram Stolk (stolk@fwi.uva.nl)     |
> |  to throw yourself at the ground,   |  Dept. of maths. & computer science|
> |  and miss..."  - Douglas Adams      |  University of Amsterdam	   |
> +-------------------------------------+------------------------------------+
> 		 		  No, I dont use ms-winDOZE, I prefer Linux!


Stacy

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Stacy D. Coil			         The Ohio State University
Student Programmer III		Electrical Engineering Computer Facilities
coil@ee.eng.ohio-state.edu		      Columbus, Ohio
coil@cis.ohio-state.edu			      (614) 292-1416

	"The more things change, the more they stay the same."

							- my Dad
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Newsgroups: comp.os.linux