LOL! Save your pity for yourself MicroGuineaPig! If you think that
running Betas on non-test machines is the right thing to do, then you'll
need all the pity you can get!
Kurt, Kurt.<sigh>
The problem isn't running beta programs. Gawd even gmail is still in beta
stage. The problem is running beta programs on a toy operating system. Much
of open source software is still in beta. BUT a misbehaving program
shouldn't (and doesn't on Linux) bring down the whole operating system. Of
course in the Windoze world it can and frequently does. Even non-beta
software in the Windoze world can bring down that toy operating system.
The reason for this problem is the way Windoze is designed. Unlike
GNU/Linux, the kernal space is not completely separate from the user space.
Under Windoze an application can access memory locations the kernal uses
and jeopardize the kernal itself - bringing down the "operating system".
Real operating systems - such as *NIX operating systems don't suffer this
problem. Wisely the two spaces are separated and have always been so.
MickeyMouse is apparently trying to come to some terms with this with its
new Fista operating system. It'll be introducing things that Linux has had
for years. Will MickeyMouse succeed? Based on its track record I have my
doubts. It's code is not going to be completely new. Rather, in MickeyMouse
tradition, it's going to have all sorts of "legacy" code in an effort to
keep backwards compatibility. It'll be interesting watching how this all
evolves. Windoze users are going to have to start thinking like *NIX users.
That is understanding something about their computers, permissions, etc.
All this might be a mute point because it looks like the computing world
isn't going to accept Fista that readily in the first place. It's moving
steadily more towards open source. Businesses are going to balk at the
expense of updating hardware to run Fista and are seriously looking at
GNU/Linux for the enterprise since it already has the security and
stability they crave and will run on legacy hardware and has a cost of
ownership so much below Windoze that Fista adoption is going to be a tough
sell for MickeyMouse.
