operating systems

From: Hotze <photze_at_batelco.com.bh>
Date: Fri Jan 2 02:58:04 1998

>Uh, PC's can do _anything_? Kewl. Set up an IBM PC with 64K RAM, 1 35-track
>SSDD Floppy drive, run a multi-user, multi-tasking operating system on it,
>and still have enough RAM/Floppy room left over to actually do something
>*useful*. Lemme know when it's done. My CoCo in the next room is set up to
>do just that.
I'm calling anything that's smaller than a mini a PC.
>Oh, and BTW: I can do *everything* you listed above on my Atari 1040STf...
>albeit not as quickly as my Cyrix box (but there *is* a reason why I
>overclocked it!! ;-) but anything possible on today's Pentium machines can
>be done right now by machines at least 10 years old... sometimes better!
Yep. By the way, what's the best way to overclock a Cyrix?
>>No, it won't. But that doesn't mean that it can't get easy. (Or just not
>>hard) Linux will be here for awhile, and so we've got to live withit.
>
>Linux isn't hard. My first install with _no_ Linux experience took just
>over an hour to install... and when I was done, (with only the initial
>kernal boot) it was useful. My latest Win95 install took me almost 6 hours
>to get it working somewhat -- ButtPlug-n-play chose the wrong Ethernet
>cards -- but after 3 reboots the wrong drivers (I tried putting in the
>right drivers -- NT doesn't even mind being helped along, but 95 whacked
>the right ones and reinstalled the wrong ones) started working marginally.
>Two more reboots to get the SCSI card working with the scanner, A reboot to
>get the screen at the correct resolution / color depth, and 2 more reboots
>after software installs that required it.
You made a couple mistakes... there arn't MS salesmen here, so don't say
PLUG AND PLAY, it's Plug & Pray. What version of Linux is that?
>Granted, Linux isn't an ooey-gooey with pretty pictures, and as such one
>might require 1/2 a brain to use it -- my personal opinion -- good. Keep
>all the idio-er-users with a brainless box...
Yes, but ease of use is important to some.
><Tangent>
>"Uh, my daughter just downloaded our entire computer onto a disk. How do I
>get it back and boot it?"
Duh.....
>Not to sound like a shit-fer-brains, but my holiday is better spent talking
>to you guys & gals than spending 6 hours on the phone talking to a lady who
>specifically told me "I don't want to learn anything about my new computer
>-- I just want to get on the Internet." -- My boss specifically forbade me
>to answer those types of calls anyway ('cause I usually like to be helpful
>to newbies) and I don't get my regular work done.
Tell 'em what I do: (The other day, I e-mailed a friend who was new to the
'Net, then they replied via e-mail and asked what my e-mail address was.)
Then refer them to the convinetly located Online Help, made by someone who
had a little to much of whatever they had an overstock of at the bar and now
have a shortage of, then designed the manual, found on all MS-OSes.
>Yep, Win95 is the NOS for her! (NOS stands for Non-Operating System). But I
>digress...
Well, it would help if she actually thought. I mean, don't you guies
include a manual, like my ISP, that specifically tells you WHERE TO CLICK
AND WHEN? ;-)
></Tangent>
>
>Sorry for the rambling, Have yourselves a joyous and prosperous '98, and
>keep those geezers computing!!!! :-)
We will.... and don't foget, that means that there are less than 365 days
for Windows 98 to be late again. ;-) BTW, does anyone have a spare 14.4
modem? (For x86, preferably NOT a Winmodem)
Tim D. Hotze
Received on Fri Jan 02 1998 - 02:58:04 GMT