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Path: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!news.mel.connect.com.au!yarrina.connect.com.au!news.mira.net.au!vic.news.telstra.net!act.news.telstra.net!psgrain!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.mathworks.com!news.duke.edu!news-server.ncren.net!taco.cc.ncsu.edu!rkswamy From: rkswamy@unity.ncsu.edu (Ravi K. Swamy) Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.development.system,comp.unix.bsd.386bsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.bsdi.misc,comp.unix.bsd.netbsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,comp.os.linux.advocacy Subject: Re: Historic Opportunity facing Free Unix (was Re: The Lai/Baker paper, benchmarks, and the world of free UNIX) Date: 23 Apr 1996 04:08:42 GMT Organization: Gunsmith Cats Lines: 85 Message-ID: <4lhl4a$kpu@taco.cc.ncsu.edu> References: <4ki055$60l@Radon.Stanford.EDU> <4lg7al$ap4@nnrp1.news.primenet.com> <4lg85t$42f@news.hic.net> <4lgvk6$enc@taco.cc.ncsu.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: cc04du.unity.ncsu.edu Xref: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au comp.os.linux.development.system:21965 comp.unix.bsd.386bsd.misc:753 comp.unix.bsd.bsdi.misc:3398 comp.unix.bsd.netbsd.misc:3240 comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:17846 comp.os.linux.advocacy:46604 [because I'm feeling silly tonight...] In article <4lgvk6$enc@taco.cc.ncsu.edu>, Kevin P. Neal <kpneal@eos.ncsu.edu> wrote: >Charles A. Tilbury (ctilbury@hic.net) wrote: >Most of the world believes that PCs are the end-all be-all computer. >I once had a person ask me (concerning my Amiga) "Does it run PC >programs?" No "Well, does it run Mac programs?" Nope "Well, what I thought Mattingly was bragging to me about running Mac 68k programs on his Amiga? >does it run?" Amiga programs. "Oh, really?" Sigh. > >Most of the journalists I have been exposed to tend to write about how >people should buy a PC, I mean it works for them, right? Their idea of "works" is quite silly... >My Dad bought my brother a Win95 box for Christmas. Now Dad is learning about >all of the crap that Windows brings along with it. He asks me: >"So why do people put up with all of this?" Because, Dad, this is >*normal* to most people. Sorry, with all respect to your dad and all, you said he supports the CDA so I can't say I feel sorry for him. I take it your brother is nothing like you? He should have bought a Mac. >Journalists included. You never ever hear about how, for example, >Plug and Play has problems. Actually I do sometimes, especially from Mac users who have had it for a decade or so. > You never hear about how ISA is 15 years >old and should have been ditched 10 years ago. You never hear about >how PC Windows programs keep getting larger and slower. Actually you do, it's just you hear about it more from non-Windows users. > Because >the vast majority of users, journalists included, consider this to be >normal. What Free Unix needs is reporters in high places who support >our view. > >I tend to discount any media coverage of computers in general, they tend >to screw up. Who is paying their bills as in advertising? Think about it. > One local news channel had reporters on the scene with >a sattalite. link-up to bring the live pictures to the rest of the Triangle >area of people (Ohmygosh ohmygosh) BUYING the First copies of Win95! Whee! >As if it was exciting or something. She (the reporter) thought it was. > >Another example of a local journalist saying something dumb: >This university (NCSU) has around 27,000 students. We have an extensive >Public Safety force, to the point where I (a male) feel perfectly fine >walking around on campus at 4 in the morning. 4 am? Isn't that when you usually go to Riddick? :) >That's what I mean by news "bias". Sorry for being long winded. >Oh, and this message was brought to you by my Windows 95 laptop, >an IBM thinkpad that doesn't run IBM's OS/2 because it doesn't work >very well on this IBM equipment. Also, I'm posting from a >Dec Alpha running NetBSD. Attribute typos to 95% OK Win95 vt100 emulation. Does crazytrain actually get used for anything besides running tin? :) >Attribute brainos to me being just 21, and raised in a small town. Older than me... >Well, I'm in a city now, like it, and am in the process of getting out >from behind my computer. Scary, huh? Whoo hoo, that is scary. Ravi -- Ravi K. Swamy http://www4.ncsu.edu/~rkswamy/www/ rkswamy@eos.ncsu.edu root@genom.com