THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)

Comic Discussion => QUESTIONABLE CONTENT => Topic started by: ysth on 28 Dec 2010, 20:32

Title: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: ysth on 28 Dec 2010, 20:32
and replace it with rage, even so many years after the fact.

The fine folks at groklaw finished transcribing Microsoft's OS/2 Attack Plan.  You'll find it, and a demonstration of how Microsoft hasn't changed, here (http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20101219121621828).

On topic comment: how many of Pintsize's buddies still run OS/2?
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: pwhodges on 29 Dec 2010, 01:17
Thanks for the excellent link (though familiar stuff, really).

As for Pintsize etc, well, the last large-scale usage of OS/2 IRL was in embedded systems like cash dispensers, so it's not inconceivable.
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: Boomslang on 29 Dec 2010, 08:50
I still don't understand why people get into a rage about microsoft. It is what it is, a purely profit-oriented company that sells/licenses software solely as a means to get more money. There are very usable alternatives all over the place for basic functions.

If I could play the video games I play without having to use Wine or an equivalent, and the driver support was better for new hardware, I wouldn't be using windows at all.
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: Mr_Rose on 29 Dec 2010, 09:55
People rage about Microsoft because it deliberately tried to leverage its dominance into a monopoly, which is a blasphemy against capitalism and the Divine Will of the Free Market. Funnily enough only the EU had the balls to go for the throat and actually fine MS for being naughty.
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: Wiregeek on 29 Dec 2010, 10:24
but, but, but, SOCIALISM!

I've been anti-Microsoft since I had a Windows 95 installation just.. eat itself alive.

The problem with the Microsoft/Everyone Else paradigm, is that in the vast majority of cases, Microsoft is bad, but every other available solution is worse.. 
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: Carl-E on 29 Dec 2010, 10:33
I know a lot of people who are quite happy with their variiuos Linux installations, and will let you know that fact, thank you very much.  I had one a few years back (Debian), but not long enough to really get into it.  Wasn't anything I couldn't do, though, and several things just worked better. 

But I always wind up with work computers where I can't tinker with the OS (lest I lose support), so Windows it is.  The school still uses XP.  Which is its own emoticon. 
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: bicostp on 29 Dec 2010, 19:01
Never mind the technical issues, the general Linux userbase just rubs me the wrong way. Say you tried [distro] and had questions, all your answers would be "Oh you don't understand that then just go back to riding Ballmer, M$ $hill. (http://pcwgaming.com/Smileys/SAemotes/smug.gif)". Even in support forums where someone asks for a solution for a problem they have with their Windows install, invariably some freetard can't help but chime in "You should switch to GUH NOO SLASH LIE NUCKS because if you did you won't have that problem anymore. (http://pcwgaming.com/Smileys/SAemotes/smug.gif)". I just tell them "You want to run Linux. Fine. Whatever. I'm not actively trying to 'convert' you, I expect the same in return." BSD has a much nicer userbase; at least they don't treat software as a religion and try to cleanse the earth of dirty EULA-agreeing infidels.

Linux has its uses. But for me, "everyday desktop computer" is not one of them. I just want my PC to work for me, not the other way around.

OS/2 was the shit back in the day though.

I wonder how far back AnthroPC AI goes in the comic's timeline. One of the comics where the CoD staff were discussing them said they've had it since 1996, but how sophisticated was it back then? Maybe they all ran NT 4...
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: Carl-E on 29 Dec 2010, 22:56
Hmmm... 96?  The first AI's were probably on NeXT boxes, or Sun workstations.  Two years later, they were finally ported to Windows...
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: pwhodges on 29 Dec 2010, 23:34
Too mainstream - I reckon that Pintsize is running BeOS.
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: Akima on 30 Dec 2010, 03:32
Too mainstream - I reckon that Pintsize is running BeOS.
More like /b/OS, amirite?
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: akronnick on 30 Dec 2010, 06:07
Oh good God!

The last thing /b/ needs is its own operating system!!!!!  :-o
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: rabidcentipede on 30 Dec 2010, 19:15
I believe they were actually planning a custom linux distro at one point, pre-loaded with tor, privacy/security tools, ddos utilities, and wireless network cracking tools.

fun times.
Title: Re: Cure your OS/2 wistfulness here...
Post by: vforvancouver on 01 Jan 2011, 14:26
I actually still run OS/2 Warp. On a small laptop. I love it when I have to write; even though I have internet on it, I can't see videos from youtube (a Pentium 133 is pretty underpowered for that) so I just use Firefox for research purposes, mainly wikipedia. I have a lot of computers with windows and linux, and even my kindle has more power than my OS/2 machine, but Ozzy is a blast! There were rumours of a bunch of coders looking to rewrite an open-source OS/2 from scratch. If I could code, I'd be there.