Newsgroups: comp.os.linux
Subject: Re: BYTE asks, is UNIX dead?
From: system@kryton.UUCP (Scott Beckstead)
Date: Thu, 01 Oct 92 14:13:25 PDT
Organization: Paradox Alley F&SF BBS 805-492-8789

ketil@spurv.ii.uib.no (Ketil M. Malde) writes:

> In article <3725@eastman.UUCP> talley@ashleigh.Kodak.COM (Brian K. Talley) wr
> 
>    [...]
>    >                                                     A closer scrutiny
>    >of the article proved it's just the otherwise.
> 
>    Interesting. I didn't buy Byte this month, partly because of the crap on
>    the cover.  As such, I wasn't aware of the contents of the article.
> 
> Well, did it now?  My impression was that, sure, NT has (will have)
> some advantages over UNIX, while UNIX also has some advantages over
> NT. (Mostly networking, I think).  That most Unices probably will run
> Ms-DOS and Windows apps long befor NT runs at all, wasn't mentioned,
> (as far as I remember)
> 
>    Propaganda?  Hell, yes!  Look at IBM!  Look at Microsoft!  They didn't get
>    where they are by creating great software and selling it cheap! Of course,
>    there's often a fine line between "Quality Marketing" and propaganda. :}
> 
>    And yes, these folks are smart, in their own weird, twisted way.
> 
> Yeah.  And they're the havyweights that rule the market.  If MS wants
> Byte to proclaim Unix dead, Byte will do so, or be squashed to death,
> I am afraid.  I suppose that's what they call 'business' in the Real
> World(tm)
> 
>    Let's put it this way: when I saw the cover of Byte, I mumbled to myself
>    "...of course it's not dead, you f*ckhead...".  My assumption was that man
>    a brain-dead executive would read that and think "Hmmm...once NT comes out
>    that'll mean the end of Unix!"
> 
> What worries me most, is that NT doesn't even *exist* yet!  While Unix
> is already up and running in several different incantations(?) *today*
> 
> Money rules, and it is the scourge of all free software.
> Unfortunately. I mean, how much coverage have you seen in serious
> magazines about Gnu, FSF, and several of your favorite free software?
> Sure, they've been mentioned occasionally, but never realy taken
> seriously.  Ever seen gcc compared to other C's in the market?  I
> haven't.  An all because it is *free* (and thus most value for money,
> beating everything else, thus leading the other C manufacturers down
> the drain, magazine lose ad money..*sigh*)  I'll stop now. :-)

This months Unix Review compares FSF Gcc to several major SPARC vendors
C compilers.  It didn't do well I'm afraid. 

> 
> BUT: Perhaps we could start letter campaigns to get more coverage for
> free software?  Mail a letter to Byte or whatever, ask for reviews etc
> of Gnu stuff, and other free software.  Perhaps it would be possible
> to get hardware manufacturers on our side?  Now that Dell issues their
> own Unix, how about getting Gateway or someone to give out a
> 'commercial' (that is stable and polished) version of Linux, or
> something?
> 
> I'll stop *now* :-)
> 
> --
>  = Ketil Malde                     In real life:  ketil@ii.uib.no =
>  = Nuke the whales!                    Honk if you love unicorns! =

From a business stand point I really don't care if free software is not
very well advertised.  I see it as my advantage over some of my
competition that are forced to pay HUGE inflated prices (Ok it's a great
exageration) for their tool chain.  While I get mine for a small amount
of engineering overhead.  It can mean the difference between competeing and
being eaten alive by software costs to some small software/consulting firms.
pardon the spelling that's my .02 P
Scott



System Administrator Paradox Alley  F&SF BBS and Usenet News/Mail 
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