OT: Myths Persist Forever

From: Douglas H. Quebbeman <dquebbeman_at_acm.org>
Date: Fri Apr 19 16:59:32 2002

> On Fri, Apr 19, 2002 at 10:17:46AM -0500, Doc wrote:
> > On Fri, 19 Apr 2002, John Allain wrote:
> >
> > > I encoded some family geneology into set of frame HTML
> > > pages once. It turned out to be something line 600 small html
> > > files, 300 KBytes or so. When I went to put it on a floppy, it
> > > took over 30 Minutes to write!
> >
> > OK. This is completely off topic, but it has bugged me for years.
> > You guys are more likely to know, and care, than any other forum I hang
> > in. I use a Linux PC as my daily workstation, file server, DNS, MOP
> > server, etc. Given hardware limitations, it's stable enough.
> >
> > I can start a lowlevel format on a floppy, go and surf the net, read
> > my email, compile software, or play a game while (45-75 secs) that happens.
> > Do that in Win<anyversion> on the same hardware, and I might as well
> > go make coffee. Same comparison applies to printing large documents.
> > WHAT is M$ doing that operating a floppy disk drive takes ALL of a
> > 1.4GHz CPU and 512M of memory? I wanna know!
>
> I remember this behaviour from Windows 3.1 - format a floppy and you
> might as well go grab a book. Enter OS/2: start formatting a floppy and
> do something else on the machine until it is done (which didn't take
> long). I suppose that:
> - since Windows 3.1 couldn't do real (preemptive) multitasking (only
> cooperative), it basically stopped everything else,
> - this code was carried through to whatever flavour of Windows is sold
> currently (hell, I had system error boxes with the Windows 3.1 widget
> set pop up at me on some lusers Win9X machines),

I can cut/copy text from any GIU program and paste into any text window.
I can cut/copy text from any text windows into any GUI program.
I can format floppies while running IE5.5, Outlook98, and OE5.5, with a
Modula-2 programming environment running and a copy of the CDC 6000
emulator running the Chippewa Operating System.

Under Windows 2000. On an 800MHz P-III w/256MB of RAM. Not a killer
machine.

Windows sucks for anough real reasons that it's really not necessary
to perpetuate myths and half-truths....

Ok, My Milage May Vary... -dq
Received on Fri Apr 19 2002 - 16:59:32 BST