-----Original Message-----
From: John Trammell <trammell@fn872.fnal.gov>
Getting Linux and, say, Win95 to play nicely together is more
complicated than a straight Linux install. But not impossible.
Just maybe too big a hurdle for a new user to tackle without
getting discouraged.
a) Linux and other Unix systems have a strong niche in the SERVER world (NT
5 could challenge that) primarily because of stability. These also seem to
be the current flavor for would be 'hackers' (in the good sense of the term)
since Windows is not much fun to try and 'play' with. Probably have a lot
of ex Amiga owners in this group.
b) BeOS seems clearly aiming for a very specialized area of professional
publishing.
c) OS2Warp is DEAD--even if it still occasionally exhales.
d) There is a current market (eventually to die off altogether) for a
specialized OS to keep older machines functional.
All of these suffer the same fundamental problem when looked at to be a
rival to the M$ dominance, and that's lack of software. Each has a core set
of applications that DO run, but don't expect to be able to run out and buy
the NEXT BIG THING in software as soon as it hits the shelves, because it
won't run on anything but a Windows platform. It is also a lesson that has
yet to be entirely understood, that competing formats in the SAME media
can't really coexist. Beta/VHS was a prime example of this. Essentially
Windows/Mac is another--once the scales tipped too far, software vendors
have abandoned the Mac camp leading to a further erosion in users which
leads to a further erosion of software, etc. Currently a similar battle is
shaping up in the world of DVD movies. Recordable DVD media for computers
is still sorting out the standards and the fight over such has held up
High-Definition TV. The bottom line, IMO, is that the software vendors have
NO DESIRE to return to the days of trying to support multiple platforms and
multiple operating systems and therefore (with the possible exception of
Rhapsody running on Intel machines) I see little hope of any of these
alternate OSs becoming mainstream. (Besides, if nobody will write games for
them, they will be quickly DOOMED :-)
What does this all have to do with physics? Well, if your institution is
like ours, you have a mess in your Information Technology BECAUSE of trying
to support three major systems. Unix for the servers and both PC and MAC
based labs. There is separate software in the two user worlds and teachers
trying to help students with papers, projects, etc. really need to be
'bilingual' when it comes to the PC/MAC world. Luckily I have one of each
on my desk, but I long ago chose the PC world over the Mac for personal use
(I had been caught short with my own AMIGA ;-) Testimonials for Linux here
are fine and good AS LONG AS people are well aware of the limitations and
recognize that fundamentally any switch away from Windows (or even Mac) is a
switch primarily to be able to 'play' more with the operating system, or as
a fruitless symbolic gesture against the M$ empire. If Mr.. Bill was really
worried about Linux, he could complain to the DOJ about the practice of
giving away a full operating system!
Rick Tarara (who is running Outlook Express, Word, Excel, TrueBasic Editor,
Paint Shop Pro, and the occasional game of Solitaire simultaneously on his
Win98(beta) machine).